Classical Writing or IEW?

[Donna A.]

Which one and why? Are the two mutually exclusive?

[angela in ohio]

I used IEW for a few years before I bought CW to try (peer pressure, I guess - it was "the rage" for a while.) There was really nothing in the first one that I hadn't picked up from IEW and reading Ruth Beechick. I gave it away. I know that it progresses from there through the progym, which would be different from IEW. I think IEW is more applicable to my students' future needs (be able to organize and write great papers for college and their profession.) I do dabble in the progym with another program, but I would never be without IEW. :) So I vote definitely IEW and maybe CW also.

[LizzyBee]

I tried really hard to like IEW, but I couldn't. The writing models used in TWSS were terrible. The writing is very formulaic and style is stressed over content. OTOH, the emphasis in CW (and The Lost Tools of Writing) is analysis of the topic and/or the model. IEW has been expanded and has lots of new products since I tried it, so maybe I'd like it better now. But I love CW, so I have no reason to change.

[Donna A.]

Thanks, ladies. That leaves me with a 50/50 response. LOL

 

Any other thoughts? Anyone?

[elegantlion]

The cost of the DVDs on IEW was a deal breaker for me. CW is also recommended by LCC, which was another reason I chose it.

 

We are using Aesop B and I am well pleased with the progress. I found my books used and for 50.00 I was willing to give CW a try. I didn't have the budget to spend over 200.00 and not know if IEW was going to work for us.

 

We plan to continue with CW through the series.

[Hot Lava Mama]

my daughter will use CW when she gets there. My son, on the other hand, is doing well with IEW. I finally broke down and purchased IEW for him. Other programs didn't work well for him. Yes, it is very formula driven. For those students (including me at his age) who aren't "natural" writers, it's a god-send. My son now knows exactly what to write, what to include and how it is suppose to sound. For us and the struggles with his writing, it's been worth every cent! Good luck. I firmly believe BOTH are very, very good programs and you couldn't go wrong with either one!

Hot Lava Mama

[siloam]

Which one and why? Are the two mutually exclusive?

 

Donna,

 

I use CW and was sold on it early on, so I haven't ever considered IEW.

 

I think you could do both, but then you would probably never finish either...or at least you wouldn't have the time to finish CW I assume IEW has a full program too.

 

CW can be intense and I have known more than one person to take breaks.

 

Heather

 

[In The Great White North]

I have CW (Aesop and Homer) but am seriously considering IEW Rhetoric for ds(17) and Medieval for dd(12).

 

Ds(17) is never going to get through the entire CW series, so for him it's pointless.

 

For dd(12), it may depend on the writing samples/source material (or inertia). For CW, I will have to find my own samples that fit with her history studies this spring, for IEW, I would have to buy it.

 

I certainly don't see them as mutually exclusive and have pulled stuff out of both for both dc.

 

Could anyone spell out the differences in how you use them on a daily basis between the two? The themed units in particular, not the TWSS. I have not really used either as written.

[siloam]

For dd(12), it may depend on the writing samples/source material (or inertia). For CW, I will have to find my own samples that fit with her history studies this spring, for IEW, I would have to buy it.

 

Just have to ask, is it a preference that your dd work with models from her history studies? I am lazy and just use their models and student text. :D

 

I just wanted to make sure you realized there is pre-chosen option now.

 

Heather

[MIch elle]

Thanks, ladies. That leaves me with a 50/50 response. LOL

 

Any other thoughts? Anyone?

 

My older ds used IEW U.S History based writing v.1. My 6th grader is using IEW Ancient History Writing.

 

You don't NEED the IEW TWSS imho.

[Woodland_Mom]

I am very much enjoying IEW with my 3rd grader. The videos are very helpful to watch and I think it pulls the material all together. The videos contain over 10 hours of lessons for you, the teacher. They are not meant for the student to watch. It is expensive, but once you pay for the video series, you will have the tools needed to take you through high school writing! This writing program is very flexible. You can choose to use your own source material as models for your student, or you can purchase a packet of writing lessons, such as History Based Writing lessons, Fables, etc.

[In The Great White North]

Quote:

Originally Posted by In The Great White North

For dd(12), it may depend on the writing samples/source material (or inertia). For CW, I will have to find my own samples that fit with her history studies this spring, for IEW, I would have to buy it.

 

Just have to ask, is it a preference that your dd work with models from her history studies? I am lazy and just use their models and student text. :D

 

I just wanted to make sure you realized there is pre-chosen option now.

 

Yes, I realize I could just use their selections. She started in a Waldorf school and we are still making main lesson books a la Waldorf, which at this grade entails re-writing the history into the book in your own words. The sentence rearranging from CW Homer really helped her writing but since she's going to be writing for the history anyway, I'd rather kill two birds with one stone. It's more work than using theirs but not as much as doing two separate subjects. :D

 

I think that might end with CW Homer though; Diogenes looks like it might be much harder to find selections for that matched her history.

[Lovedtodeath]

Looking at all the writing curricula threads together is very helpful!

[rafiki]

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[plimsoll]

We are using both SWI-A and CW Aesop. They work very well together.

 

For now, we streamline CW: my son just outlines the stories and writes them, including dialogue and descriptions. He also uses the dressups he's learning in IEW. In IEW, we do all of the exercises.

 

Although I bought the TWSS, I have yet to open it. SWI-A is sufficiently self-explanatory to get the student writing and applying the techniques.

 

We do writing every day. At this pace, we're a little more than half way through SWI-A and we just finished CW Aesop A. So I think it is feasible to do both.

[LND1218]

We are using IEW and really liking it. I have never tried CW.

[PeterPan]

Well you haven't asked the real question of whether CW will get your dc writing paragraphs by the time you want them to. That means you need to run history compositions, book reports, etc. (WTM stuff) alongside your CW or else alternate programs. Either way works, and there's plenty of time to alternate a paragraph writing program and CW if you school year-round. If you don't, that's harder. Additionally, if paragraph-writing in an earlier grade is your goal, IEW isn't the only way to get there. Wordsmith Apprentice does a lovely job of developing paragraph and multi-paragraph essay writing, topic sentences, etc. and is totally out of the box, totally different from IEW. Remember too, if you decide to alternate programs, you can always use an older beginners level of CW or skip levels. For instance, a dc who has been doing narrations and WTM-style grammar consistently could go into WT2 (or CW Aesop B?) no problem, skipping the A/1 levels. As the others have said, those are largely rewriting models. So to me it's more helpful to think about what you're wanting to accomplish, as many of the writing programs are quite good. Think about when CW will get them writing paragraphs and essays and decide if that's early enough or if you want it earlier by alternating with another program.

[Riverfront Headmistress]

My older ds used IEW U.S History based writing v.1. My 6th grader is using IEW Ancient History Writing.

 

I agree. Last year I used the TWSS dvd and SWI A with my fourth grader. It was a chore to complete, not to mention boring. Her writing was so-so. This year, as part of a CC Essentials course, we use IEW US History. Through a combination of a group class, great teacher, and interesting stories, my dd's writing is soaring.