I’ll tackle a bit of the basics for IEW, but others please chime in!
IEW focuses on equiping a child to write about something by giving them source material to work with. In the beginning this may be a paragraph such as a fable from Aesop. The child learns to outline the paragraph by writing down 3 key words for each sentence. Then they retell the story to someone using their outline. Next they write the story using their outline.
Along the way IEW teaches the child ‘dress ups’ like using quality adjectives and strong verbs. Once they learn a technique a child is expected to use it once in every assignment they write because practice makes progress. They are given a checklist to remind them of what they need to have in there. This week my daughter (5th grade) is learning to us a who/which clause to combine two sentences. A simple example:
Christian carried a heavy burden. He was walking down a steep path. My daughter combined these two (and gave it a stronger verb and used an -ly word) as follows:
Christian, who carried a heavy burden, trudged slowly down a steep path.
As you go through the units IEW teaches both fiction and nonfiction writing assignments and techniques, and the source text is adjusted based on your child’s age (a 10th grade works with much more difficult sources than a 5th grader).
IEW offers several products I’ll try to explain in brief.
Teaching Writing Structure and Style (TWSS) – This is a 9+ hour course to the parent on how to teach writing using the IEW methods, covering all 9 units. After watching this you are able to choose your own source text that fits your child and create/run your own lessons using the IEW framework.
Student Writing Intensives (SWI) – These are classes taught to the child on DVD by Andrew Pudewa himself. You are involved as the parent too. Basically, the child watches the lesson and then goes to work through the steps of teh assignment with you. Once they finish that they can do the next lesson on DVD, but you’ve already taken a piece of writing through to a final draft, so they start something new with this lesson. YOu’re given a binder with the source text for each assignment, extra source text for a child who needs several practice assignments before moving to a new lesson/unit, and things to print for the child’s use.
Theme Books – These are similar to the SWI in that the lessons are planned and laid out for you (with source text chosen, checklists, assignments broken into smaller steps) but you do all the teaching, there is no DVD.
We’ve done all 3 with my oldest. I have the TWSS and love that I get immersed in how to teach each unit. I chose source text about things that interested my daughter and created my own lessons. We used the SWI dvd classes for a few months and that kept us moving while getting into the IEW groove. Currently I print the lessons from a theme book, All Things Fun and Fascinating, and teach my daughter using that.
Is IEW for everyone? No. If you have a natural writer who loves writing and would hate being limited by the key word outlines and being given a source text to work from this could kill their love of writing. But if you have a child who wants some guidance (doesn’t want to think up a topic) or is a reluctant writer (like my daughter) it’s wonderful.
