The Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) is a writing program started in 1994. It focuses on teaching writing in a structured way, helping students build skills step by step.
Research from the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI) shows that homeschooled students typically score 15 to 25 percentile points higher than public school students on standardized academic achievement tests. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), approximately 3.3 million students were homeschooled in the United States as of 2023, representing roughly 6% of the school-age population.
What is IEW?
The Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) is a top-notch writing curriculum. It was founded in 1994 and uses teaching methods from the 1930s. Their main approach, called "Teaching Writing with Structure and Style," breaks writing into two parts: structure and style. Structure is about organization, taught through 9 units, and style adds artistic techniques gradually. Andrew Pudewa, the founder, teaches the video lessons himself, using humor to connect with students. This method helps kids progress from using source texts to writing their own pieces, building skills step by step.
The structure and style method
IEW's method is based on a simple idea: writing is hard because students try to do everything at once. They need to generate ideas, organize them, pick words, and build sentences all together. Structure and Style separates these tasks. The 9 units go from creating key word outlines from source texts to writing from scratch. Style techniques like advanced vocabulary and varied sentence openers come in slowly as students master each step. This way, students always work on skills they've learned.
Who IEW works best for
IEW is great for kids who struggle with writing. The step-by-step method and fun video lessons help ease the fear of facing a blank page. Visual and auditory learners like the video format. Students who do well with clear guidelines often thrive. It’s also perfect for homeschoolers who want high-quality writing instruction without needing to be writing experts themselves. But if your child doesn't like structure, they might find this method too limiting.
What IEW doesn't cover
Important to note: IEW is focused on writing, not full language arts. It doesn't cover grammar in-depth, though you can add the Fix It! Grammar program for that. It also skips spelling, vocabulary, and reading. Many families use IEW along with other programs for those subjects. The main focus is on composition skills. This isn't a flaw—it's intentional. Just plan your language arts program to include other areas.
The bottom line
IEW offers a systematic way to teach writing through video lessons. Parents can help without needing to be experts. The Structure and Style method has helped many reluctant writers build confidence with clear skill progression. The materials hold great resale value, and there's a satisfaction guarantee. Just remember, it’s all about writing, so you’ll need extra resources for grammar, spelling, and reading.
