OK I am being a bit harsh. I don't hate it and my children don't moan and complain every time we open up Writing With Ease, but there are times when they are less than enthusiastic to do their copywork/dictation or the reading assignment. I suppose like anything worth having in life, it takes time, patience and perseverance to get it. And that is what it takes to become an articulate writer. I have had two children use this curriculum and their writing has improved immensely; as too has their reading comprehension. This could be partly due to their age and maturity, but I also know having them read quality literature and then writing down a synopsis, or having them copy passages from great authors has much to do with the development of their writing ability. Many celebrated authors used this same method, including Benjamin Franklin. Do I expect my children to become famous authors? No, but I do expect them to be able to articulate their thoughts logically and with some sense of style.How does Writing With Ease work? Well, 2 days a week the child reads a passage, or if they are too young you read them a passage, and then you ask questions to get them to narrow down what the passage is about. Then they write down a few sentences summarizing what was read. Or if they are young they will dictate to you what the passage is about, you will write it down and then they will copy their summary. Two other days of the week the parent dictates a short passage and the child first restates it and then writes it down. Again, if your child is young they will just copy a passage.
Each week focuses on a certain book or topic for the child to read and copy or dictate. Also, each week focuses on a certain rule in grammar. In the beginning the child learns how to properly punctuate the end of a sentence, but throughout the year more rules of grammar are included. By the end of the year your child should know how to use commas, quotations, apostrophes, question marks, exclamation points, etc.; when to use a semi-colon, colon or a dash; how to write a direct or indirect quotation, etc.
And it is not just all about grammar, dictation and copywork: the passages picked are usually wonderful and just plain fun to read. Many of the reading assignments were ones my children had read or were familiar, but others were new to us and this lead the kids to the library to check out the book that was used that week.
One thing I would suggest is to purchase the workbooks, and not buy The Complete Writer: Writing With Ease. Yes, I am cheap and I did exactly that. It includes examples for some of the weeks for all 4 years, but you as the teacher must find 90% of the material. You need to find passages for your child to read and to copy, and you have to find passages that fit the grammar rule for that week. I did this for first grade, or level one, and it took me ages to locate good books, find interesting passages and sentences with the proper punctuation marks for the week. This was way more work than I wanted to do and so for levels 2-4 I purchases the workbooks. Once again, I did not allow my children to write in them and so I will be able to use the workbook with my youngest. And so, if you are looking for a Charlotte Mason style writing program, that also teaches grammar along the way, I would suggest taking a look at Writing With Ease. Or if you are unsure if it is the book for you, check out what I did for Level One and try it out. If you like it then buy the books, if not you didn't waste any money, just a bit of time.
Thank you for this recommendation ReNae!
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