The Writing Plan: Persistence in Practice
The “Writing Plan” is a form I created to help students intentionally build the habit of writing. In consultation with their Editors, they plan an hour during each school day (except for writing class days) when they will work on…
Why ELA vs. STEM?
At the present time, English, Language Arts (ELA) and the humanities in general, in high schools and colleges, have been nearly dismissed as a waste of precious education time and dollars. The reason this has occurred is a preference for…
Grammar Goofs
I’m flummoxed and vexed. Some of my students write fragments without recognizing them. This does NOT flummox or vex me. I work with them on it. I had hoped, nonetheless, in the Age of AI, to find a little extra…
Registration for 2024-2025 Classes Now Open!
Please click on the “Classes” tab for the schedule, pricing, and course descriptions! If you want to register for classes, please click on the Contact tab and send me an email to request registration materials. If you have questions, please…
Featured Story Chart: “The Little Mermaid”
I have a long friendship with Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid.” I first met her in elementary school during my Fairy Tale Phase. During this time, my Air Force fighter pilot Daddy was stationed at RAF Lakenheath in England.…
This Is Your Brain on Fiction
I just ran across a link to a 2012 article, “Your Brain on Fiction,” by Annie Murphy Paul about the importance of reading literature. Did you know that reading descriptive writing not only stimulates the language-processing area of the brain,…
Writer in Training
Last summer I read James Clear’s Atomic Habits. The book deeply reinforced my enthusiasm for harnessing the power of habits. As a result, at the beginning of last year’s classes, I had my students fill out a sheet choosing a…
Summer Drama Classes for Augusta/C.S.R.A. Students!
I’m excited to share a great opportunity for local students of Augusta and the surrounding area! My friend Christi Volpitto Wildes is offering a drama camp for students in grades 3rd-6th and 7th-12th! I’ve known Christi since she was in…
Summer IEW Prep Course!
Please note time change: All class sessions will be held at 2 PM. If you have been curious about IEW classes, my new Summer IEW Prep Course would be a great one to start with! I will conduct a course of…
Don’t “teach to the test!” Test what you teach!
Thanks to IEW’s monthly newsletter, I just learned of a new test that replaces the problematic standardized tests that shackle teachers to Common Core standards, the ACT, and the SAT. Many private schools and homeschools educate their students using a…
The Foundation of IEW Writing: Key Word Outlining
“Key Word Outlining” is the foundational writing skill that students first learn in the IEW method and Writing to Learn classes. As we progress through the different types of writing in the three levels, the way students choose the information…
Experience a PREP-1 Class!
I just love teaching my PREP-1 class! PREP-1 builds a strong foundation in language through: The video below includes all three of the above components. “Harald and the Giant Knight,” by Donald Carrick, is this week’s story! Join us and…
Featured Student: Essay Contest Winner!
Last week I interviewed Tyleigh Spiller, one of my recent Level 3 graduates, about her experience of entering and winning an essay writing contest! The South Carolina Department of Education and Dominion Energy offered students the opportunity to choose and…
I Passed!
Recently, one of my Writing Moms asked me to write a recommendation for her son, who has just completed Level 2, for admission into Honors English at the college preparatory high school he will be attending this coming fall. I…
Spring Break in Italy!
In Augusta, Georgia, where I live, everything runs on Masters time, i.e., around our little golf tournament held the first full week of April every year. For this reason, students in Augusta have their Spring Break later than almost everyone…
Student Writing: “What the World Needs”
I opened my emails yesterday to find the latest edition of Magnum Opus, IEW’s newsletter of student writing! The newsletter features one of the nine units of IEW structure each month, and the March edition is devoted to Unit 7…
Student Writing: “A Wonder of Times Past”
In Level 3, students write ten different models of essays often taught in freshman college English classes. One of the ten models is the Process essay, in which the writer describes a process in stages and steps. Like all essays,…
Featured Story Chart: “Christmas Day in the Morning” with Complete Text
In 1985 as I was reading the December “Reader’s Digest,” I came across Pearl S. Buck’s lovely story, “Christmas Day in the Morning.” I read it and cried. It perfectly expressed the love my own father has for me, and…
Creating an MLA Works Cited Page with Citefast!
One of the more unpleasant parts of my job is teaching MLA citation of sources, a crucial part of writing any research-based paper. The rules are abundant and detailed. It is important for students to have a basic understanding of…
Featured Writing Student: Michael Bowen
As a writing teacher, one of my greatest rewards is seeing students using their hard-won skills in real life. One student who has recently done this is Michael Bowen. He graduated from my Level 3 class in 2019 and went…
Not a “Wishy-Washy English Teacher”
Quite apart from the fact that improper manuscript form greatly complicates the already onerous task of handling, marking, and sorting several hundred papers, and recording grades for them every semester, there is also the fact that one of the most…
Why Do You Write the Date So Funny?
If you have noticed the dates on my articles, you might wonder why I write them that way. For instance, the date on this post is 15 October 2021, not October 15, 2021 as is usually written in the U.S.…
PREP-1 Is Off to a Great Start!
I’m really enjoying the PREP-1 class! The purpose of PREP-1 is to build the foundation of language in preparation for future writing. I am passionate about the value of language, and the most enjoyable way to access high quality language…
Free Download: Key Word Outlining Paragraphs about the U.S. Constitution!
Wednesday, September 17th, is the 234th birthday of the United States Constitution! Did you know that the U.S. Constitution is the oldest written constitution in continuous use? It’s true! Writing about a subject is the BEST way to really learn…
Writing Parents’ Information Meetings This Week!
Last night I held my local Writing Parents’ Meeting for parents of local registered students! The Online Writing Parents’ Meeting is this Thursday evening on Zoom. The meetings always fire up my enthusiasm for the start of classes the following…
Not Good at Writing Stories? Try It the IEW Way
One of the fun parts of teaching writing is reading my students’ papers. In Level 1, we write stories in a very specific format, known as the “3-Paragraph Story.” This assignment is designed to practice the elements of literature, so…
The New PREP-1 Handbooks Have Arrived!
I’m so excited to show off my newest handbook: PREP-1! The handbook contains all the instructions, assignment sheets, and source texts for the Key Work Outlining and oral reports that the students will be doing for the year. Additional material…
Classes start in about 4 weeks!
Materials have been mailed to online students and the Parents’ Information Meetings are about three weeks away! Local parents will meet on August 31st and online parents on September 2nd! It’s not too late to join a class, but time…
Last Week for Early Bird Discount!
Although registration for my 2021/2022 Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) classes, for both local and live Zoom online classes, will continue through July, the $35 Early Bird discount for registration ends this coming Monday, May 31st. If you want to find out more…
Featured Story Chart: WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS
Well, I finally read it. All my life I have avoided Where the Red Fern Grows because I knew it was a sad dog story. But one of my students wanted to write about it, and I needed to make…
Twenty Years of IEW: A Tale of Very Fortunate Events
“It was a dark and stormy night…” Actually, it probably wasn’t stormy, but it was dark and night, or, more accurately, it was about 2 AM one day in early May, 2001. My eyes had popped open and I had…
It’s All Over But the Grading!
This was the last week of classes for all Writing to Learn levels! It was a swift and busy year, with my greatest number of students ever. I love Final Exam week. The students have worked hard all year, and…
Why Do People Assume That Homeschoolers Should Work Independently?
Why do people assume that homeschoolers are self-learners, self-starters, lovers of academics? Homeschoolers are just ordinary people with all the different personalities and quirks and talents and shortcomings that ordinary people have.
C.S. Lewis on Why Literature Matters
Those of us who have been true readers all our life seldom fully realise the enormous extension of our being which we owe to authors.
Planning summer reading? Check out my Story Charts!
If you are new to my website, Writing to Learn, you may not know that I have a page devoted to story charts for literary analysis! These are free to download and I am constantly adding new ones. I use the Center…
One of Those Literary Stories
I have students who do extra work just because they want to. 😀 In Level 1, we have just finished the literature unit. I teach the students how to recognize the elements of literature using the Center for Lit method.…
“Well Trained Mind” Review!
I kept seeing a link to the “Well Trained Mind Forum” as a Referrer on my website stat page. Curious about how people were finding my website from Well Trained Mind, I searched the forums for my website URL. Up…
Writing Class Skills in Real Life: Writing Style and Following Directions
Today I interviewed Sarah, one of my Veteran Writing Moms, about skills needed in the Real World! Sarah shares some experiences about the effect of writing style and following directions on her work. Sarah’s experience is all too common in…
Featured Story Chart: “The Story of Joseph” with Complete Text
The story of Joseph can be found in the Bible, in the Book of Genesis, chapters 37 through 50. It is interrupted briefly in chapter 38, but resumes in chapter 39. Readers of early heroic literature, such as the Iliad,…
Featured Story Chart: The Railway Children
Last summer I read The Railway Children, by Edith Nesbit. I am astonished that I had never before read it. Spending 4th through 6th grade in England, I was exposed to many such books and I devoured as many as…
Student Tip: Overcome Writing Paralysis
I have some amazing students who are learning and growing in their life skills, as well as in their writing. Just this week I had a conversation with one of my Veteran Writing Moms, and she told me about a…
Featured Story Chart: Alice in Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland is the second most frequently downloaded of my story charts! This testifies to the book’s enduring popularity. Lewis Carroll was the pen name of British author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Fortunately, he had practiced writing stories and poems…
Most Popular Story Chart: The Witch of Blackbird Pond
The Witch of Blackbird Pond is my most frequently downloaded story chart! I read the book in 6th grade and loved it. It was a real pleasure to reread it a few years ago so I could make the story…
Featured Story Chart: Jekyll and Hyde
My story charts are created to help readers understand the elements of literature and to learn to analyze a story.
What’s the Big Deal about Level 2?
Some of my parents wonder whether their Level 1 graduates are ready for Level 2. Back in my early days of teaching IEW, I took 6th graders in Level 1 and some went on to Level 2 in 7th grade.…
What’s Wrong with Contractions?
Yes. I am one of those writing teachers who counts off for contractions. I know what you are probably thinking: that idea is old-fashioned, passé, even obsolete. Many professors no longer prohibit them. Even the Modern Language Association, which dictates…
A Method of Learning to Write Well
Andrew Pudewa, in the first edition of the Structure and Style teaching videos, relates an occasion when his daughter burst in on him, exclaiming, “Dad! Dad! IEW is here in Benjamin Franklin’s autobiography!” Then she showed him the following passage:…
Asking the Right Questions
Throw your book list away. Concentrate instead on reading well, reading correctly, understanding what the author has to say, so that he can do his work on you. If you will do that, it will not matter how many books…
Online Classes
All Writing to Learn classes are available as online classes held live through Zoom, a wonderful free app that allows us to see and hear each other in real time! Online classes are limited to 14 students per class. See…
Registration continues!
I just had my most successful Early Registration ever! I’m looking forward to working with many new and veteran writing families this coming school year. Although Early Registration is over, registration will continue through July 31st. Currently, there is still…
Experience an Online Class with ZOOM!
Many parents are curious about how my online classes work. Writing to Learn online classes are held live. They are exactly like my local classes, except we are interacting via computer video and audio instead of in my classroom. This…
The Fun Part of Writing
One of the most amazing aspects of the IEW method is the intentional training in writing style. What is style? As Andrew Pudewa, creator of the IEW method, explains, “Style is not what you say, but how you say it.”…
Student Writing: The Level 3 Super Essay
Level 3 students spend the year learning and writing ten different types of essays that traditionally are taught in college freshman English classes. While they are learning and writing with these models, they are also researching for the final paper…
Writing to Learn Life Skills
“…one of the most important things a student should take from his education is a sense that he must do things properly, according to whatever rules pertain to the situation at hand.” Tina Blue, English Professor, University of Kansas When…
Student Writing: “Golden Champions”
In Augusta, it’s “the second most wonderful time of the year!” This coming Monday Masters Week begins! People descend upon Augusta from all over the world to enjoy the gorgeous grounds and the world’s best golfers at the country’s most…
Supercharge Communication Skills
It’s the start of a brand new school year! I want to fire you up for the task ahead with one of the most wonderful recordings that I know of, Andrew Pudewa’s “Nurturing Competent Communicators.” As Andrew comments, “If you were…
My Students Do Hard Things
I am always delighted to see my students writing of their own free will! The photo above is from a post on a new blog by one of my long-ago students, Amy. I remember how reluctant and timid she was to take…