IEW with Open Tent, or Essay Essentials with G3?

[malyita]

I’ve decided I need to outsource writing, and am torn between two online courses for 8th grade, maybe you all can help me decide? I’m looking at Open Tent Academy Middle School Writing IEW, and G3 Essay Essentials. Whichever we choose, it is critical that there is emphasis on editing as a part of the process and substantial teacher feedback. 

I have heard great things about IEW, and their description does emphasize editing. They list the types of writing I would want/expect covered, and sound like the expectations and process are very clear. I read G3’s philosophy of writing post, though, and it just so perfectly describes my 2e kid’s “late to writing” journey that it made me more inclined toward their class even though the description had been minorly less enticing. I love the use of “mentor texts,” and the describe a lot of teacher feedback. 

Any advice? Any experiences with either of these courses? Any magical family out there that tried both and could actually compare them?

[CAtoVA]

My son did the Essay class for grades 8-11 taught by Ms. Eva (I think it was called All About Essays or something like that....) when he was in 9th grade. We have had several online classes with various providers and I would say that Open Tent  was well worth the money with LOTS of material that we printed and still use as a reference. Several different types of essays (like maybe 6-7) were featured with about two weeks for each assignment which imo is good pacing for quality work with drafts and editing. There is a LOT of focus on editing and extensive checklists were provided for each assignment. Eva's directions and teaching were very clear and she was available and responsive to emails. She also kept the class on task and moving which I appreciated. The only downside I would say is that Eva has strong opinions about writing in certain ways (a specific way to write a thesis, for example) which were not "bad," but, as a writing teacher myself, I personally didn't always agree with her method. I just used those occasions to explain to my DS that writing is an art and a science and that different teachers have different opinions about ways to go about writing. It's good for him to be exposed to different styles and ideas.

I have no experiences with G3 so can't help you there although I am looking at a cinema studies class from G3 as a possibility for my DS next year. HTH!

Edited June 23, 2020 by CAtoVA