IEW vs. The Good and the Beautiful Language Arts: How We Are Using Them Together

[@OneBlessedMess]

Good morning, Mamas! ☕️ This video addressed a question I have gotten asked a lot since I mentioned introducing IEW into the mix! Anyone else utilize IEW + TGTB together? ❤️

[@OneBlessedMess]

@Shellie B We omit things in TGTB too! It is working so well for us!

[@sundayandee]

We do! Tgatb and fix it grammar everyday, and Structure and style once or twice a week

[@callsign.Noctra]

We use TGTB LA and Fix It Grammar together. I wanted to use Structure and Style but it was a challenge for my kiddo to go back and forth between the two. I love Fix It Grammar because of how quickly we can do one lesson a day.

[@PatriziaBella85]

I use IEW and TGTB together for my 4 daughters and they love both! They complete all their books fully, partly because they're all bookworms and just truly enjoy it. :)

[@reneeheaner1509]

Thank you for sharing this. I am wanting to start IEW as well. I’m not sure what LA I want to use. If you are doing Grammar Fix It, and Spelling and IEW -what is the benefit of TGTB? What are they getting out of that? WHat spelling do you use? And do you have them work on a handwriting curriculum?

[@JoyfulNoiseLearning]

IEW has been so helpful for my older kiddos! I'm glad we started it in 6th and 4th grade and not any sooner. This video is so helpful for so many mamas!

[@Brigsgirl22]

Your doing exactly what I started doing several weeks ago. I have a 3rd and 6th grader doing TGATB. They were struggling with coming up with what to write as well. We now replaced the writing with IEW and also the spelling. But only the spelling words. Like you we still do the rest of the practice. We still also do the TGATB writing portion orally. We talk about it and ask the questions but I don't try to get her to write anything on it. It's going wonderfully. The more don't fight me in the writing They love it!

[@genabrady1348]

I use the methods of IEW with the Good and Beautiful writing assignments. The keyword outlines of IEW makes the rewrite in your own words assignments of TGATB much less difficult. After going through the 'Teaching Structure and Style' seminars, I'm better equipped to help my kids work through those essays and research papers.

[@dianafrenlynned.rillera17]

Thank you for this video, now I have the confidence to start IEW as I was overwhelmed when I first opened the box! Very helpful and encouraging.. Now I'm excited for my homeschoolers.

[@TheBalancedMom]

IEW is super solid!!! TGTB seems more of a hodge podge--- I think it can work great as a supplement but they jump from concept to concept while IEW is really rigorous. Thanks for your vid

[@EverydayArmyWife]

oh man, this couldnt have come at a better time. I am considering doing exactly this next year. I will have a 3rd and 5th grader next year and have been looking at IEW . Thank you so much for the video. It was very helpful

[@theculturedkidlanguages]

Oh i've wondered how to incorporate both IEW and TGTB. This video totally answered my questions so thankyou so much!

[@amandareece616]

Yes! We do the same thing! We love both programs!!

[@OneBlessedMess]

That is so great!! 🙌

[@amandamendoza4181]

I love that you are excited about teaching your children. I am anxious to try iew as we have also been using The Good and The Beautiful The last 2 years in our homeschool. Thank you for this wonderful implementation of how you use both effectively in your homeschool!

[@fhontaniecjohnson6001]

We will be using Fix It Grammar and TGTB together this comming year. I am excited to work with both.

[@margaretperry951]

How old are your kids?

[@fhontaniecjohnson6001]

@@margaretperry951 Currently, 12 & almost 11

[@SimplyOrganizedMeg]

This is the EXACT video I needed! Thank you. I've been struggling with how to incorporate all three of these together. :)

[@ajgehlhausen]

Thank you for this video! I've been kinda obsessively looking into IEW and I definitely know that's the route we'll go next year. My son will enter 4th grade next year, and I'm considering using a themed book the rest of this year as a way to introduce IEW S&S before jumping into SSS1A. It's quite overwhelming to learn about - but I think it's the best writing program out there! I don't think I'll ever need to look elsewhere after finding IEW! Also, I do not consider TGTB a very effective program. We used it for 1 year and about the only benefit I found was that it was open-and-go. As I was listening to you speak about TGTB, it sounds like you are cutting out / supplementing more than what you're using with TGTB. Same things for me last year. In my personal experience, there are many more effective LA programs available, and after learning about IEW, I may end up using it for my son's entire LA program in the future! (I mean no disrespect! Thank goodness we have options, as so many homeschoolers didn't a few decades ago!)

[@OneBlessedMess]

TOTALLY agree with being thankful to have options!!! What a blessing to us homeschool mamas!

[@Carissa38]

What is an alternative to the TGATB? Was there one that you thought worked best? I just need some advice! Going ti be first time homeschooling and all recommendations are appreciated!🙂

[@ajgehlhausen]

@@Carissa38 Right now, I’m using Guest Hollow’s Language Arts, which uses their grammar program, Beowulf’s Grammar. It’s a hands-on approach for the elementary grades, up to grade 6. It has a been a fun curriculum for my 8-year-old son. Lighting Literature is another one I was considering - the child reads a novel and the grammar is based on that novel. But listen, TGTB might be perfect for your family! It’s definitely not bad by any means - I just feel there are more thorough curriculums available ❤ Best of luck! You got this!!

[@terrim2448]

I use tgtb and fix it grammar. My 3rd grader is a reluctant writer who while she’s very creative she struggles with putting thoughts into writing. With your experience with the writing curriculum would you say it would help guide her to develop that ability better?

[@OneBlessedMess]

@@terrim2448 I definitely think IEW could help her organize her thoughts easier! I know it has certainly done that for mine!

[@JayAlexis30]

thank you so much for the information! I will be looking into IEW because of your video.

[@JessicaFoss-f6q]

Thanks for the video! Combining these curriculums was my plan for next year. I'm glad to hear it's totally doable!

[@kimberlymurphy6003]

Thank you for sharing how you do this!! So helpful

[@bethart1985]

We are starting Fix it Grammar next year for my 2nd grader! I Love me some short simple yet effective lessons!

[@howowen4519]

We appreciate you making this and showing how you implemented both curricula!

[@michellebatac1336]

Thank you sooo much! This is exactly what I’ve been looking all over for! I love the way you incorporate both things and make it work for your family! If I had a channel I’d make your video a ‘you Made me buy it!’

[@L--C]

I hated IEW when my oldest did it through CC, but the new S&S looks so user friendly. Can’t decide if I want to jump on the bandwagon and use it with TGTB or not… I am all about making a curriculum work for you and I’m constantly modifying/skipping stuff in everything I use!

[@full-timeventures5885]

Thank you so much for posting this! We want to combine TGTB and IEW as well to help strengthen and focus writing structure but enjoy TGTB. I was hesitant thinking it would be too much to bite off. This video gives some insight as to what it looks like.

[@Sabrina-jm4dc]

Perfect video. Exactly what I was looking for. TY!

[@shelbyadams6181]

Hope all is well! Praying your 2023 is going great

[@allisonward6621]

How are your kids getting the stories done in a weeks time? Also the videos are very long and my girls haven't wanted to watch the whole video. You mentioned your kids are only doing IEW in 15 min a day. How is this possible?

[@blessedhomeschoolmess]

It must be IEW week with videos and now I’m convinced it’s what we neeed for starting 3rd grade next school year

[@thetate6pack]

We just started structure and style level a 2 weeks ago with my 4th & 6th grader and like you said I just had my 6th grader join at level a and I’m so glad they did! I had my 4th grader do tgtb level 3 and second time so he just finished so I wanted something for him for the rest of the year but I’m definitely going to keep adding it to tgtb … but he is also doing phonetic zoo and fix it grammmar and we are loving phonetic zoo it’s really helping him! So I’ll just have to figure out how I’ll incorporate both next year but this was helpful

[@lifewithginab]

Christie... I want to try IEW 😅 lol the way you explained it... it's the first video where I'm like... hmmm... I want to give this a try eventually!

[@OneBlessedMess]

🤣🤣🤣 Girl, I was the same way for a few years watching videos about it! I'm so glad we took the plunge with it!

[@CalledtoCultivate]

Thanks for sharing this! I’m researching English/writing curriculums for high school. I saw one person say they felt IEW was stifling their child’s “voice” or creativity. Have you felt that way? I’ve never used TGTB language arts, so I’m hesitant to use it for 8th/9th grade if I’ll need to supplement or omit portions of it. You definitely gave me more to think about. 😉🤗

[@ariellelauren4922]

Hi Christie! Thanks so much for making this video as I'm considering doing the same thing for my daughter entering 4th grade next year. Did you purchase the Level A "Premier" package with the teacher training videos? I'm thinking of just purchasing the Basic Plus package and am not sure if the instructional videos for me as the parent instructor are necessary. Thank you!!!

[@morganbaker912]

This is what I’m trying to figure out for my 4th grader too!

[@jessicalantz4428]

Thanks for all this Christie! My 5th grade son is using TGTB, and we use and love Fix It Grammar as well. But TGTB writing just is not clicking for him. The word hate has been tossed around. I'm trying to decide if I should switch him to EIW or IEW. We did a 3 week trial of IEW before and he wasn't a fan at all but that was a couple years ago. So I guess I'm still up in the air about what I should do, LOL

[@OneBlessedMess]

I'm not gonna lie, my kids weren't thrilled with IEW at first either because it was so different than what we had done in the past. But now, I see how effective it has been and we will definitely be sticking with it!

[@alwaysaperdue1]

you are describing my son! We switched to EIW this year and it is a much better fit for him with writing.

[@taniebollinger5558]

This combo is what we have been doing this year!! You mentioned spelling.....What are you using for it this year?

[@Sdewebb]

Do you think that you'll continue to the good and the beautiful next year given that you aren't doing as much of it because of adding IEW? Are you considering totally switching language arts?

[@stefanielynn84]

The timing of this video couldn't have been more perfect. We use TGTB but I've been thinking of adding in more. Just yesterday I was researching IEW, including watching your curriculum videos and wondering if and how I could add it in. Maybe this is a sign? Haha. Thank you for the video!

[@OneBlessedMess]

Perfect timing!! 🙌❤️

[@tiredbutblessed4798]

We have never tried iew. We tried the good and the beautiful. I loved it, my boys not so much, 😔 we went back to a curriculum that I build as we go. I so wanted the good and the beautiful to work for us.

[@OneBlessedMess]

Sometimes that just happens, and it's okay!! You have to do what's best for your boys, and you're doing such a great job! ❤️

[@tiredbutblessed4798]

Thank you I always have that moment of feeling like a failure when I can't make a curriculum work. The worst part is my curriculum was working for the boys before I decided to try TGTB. I just wanted to try something that would be easier for me.

[@OneBlessedMess]

@@tiredbutblessed4798 I have totally done the same thing before! The important thing is that you recognized what works best and don't feel obligated to be married to any one curriculum! 🙌

[@abeautifulmess13]

We were using TGATB but my 4th grade son wasn’t loving it :( so we are now using IEW structure and style and he’s enjoying that

[@Maria-bk7km]

I love how convenient all in one language arts curriculum are but I find they are not thorough enough. It sounds like you are already replacing/supplementing almost everything wouldn’t it make more sense to just drop TGTB 😅

[@katrinalamphere5700]

This is why I stopped using TGTB. I loved it very much but there just wasn’t enough time to do it all and I felt the need to supplement grammar, writing, and spelling.

[@chiaraboccelli4189]

Hi Christie, great video as usual. I was thinking to add IEW in my homeschool. By the way, what Spelling curriculum do you use? Thank you 💕

[@OneBlessedMess]

Hi Chiara! We use Evan Moor spelling! It is simple & traditional ♥️

[@berthaavalos8478]

The Lord bless you and your family watching you has helped me alot it encourages me so much Jeremiah 29:11

[@OneBlessedMess]

Thank you SO much! 😊

[@Carissa38]

Is there are any recommendations for a soon to be 6th grader? I've seen the stuff for this video but anything for math and science? Especially one that struggles in math?I'm wanting to homeschool for the first time in the 2023 2024 school year and trying to prepare now! Thanks in advance!

[@OneBlessedMess]

If you go to IEW's website, they have a pathway that shows what to use for different levels!

[@aprilgraves1090]

Why add TGAB with it? Could IEW be used as a standalone Language Arts curriculum if you added on Fix It Grammar and All About Spelling?

[@sarahbennett7235]

Is your plan to still combine TGTB and IEW for 23/34 school year? One of my kiddos is in TGTB level 5LA and I think it's ok but I hate the writing part. I purchased IEW level A to incorporate this school year for a 3rd and 5th grader but backed off- we were struggling too much with TGTB math 5 and LA. I didn't like TGTB level 7LA for my son so I think we may drop it and just use IEW writing and grammar then add in spelling and vocab. It's such a struggle to figure out the best plan!

[@cortneymckinney9215]

Does screen casting from your phone work well? We live out in the country like you and don’t have internet. 😬

[@alkay1774]

Thanks for sharing!

[@kuttnup250a]

Do you feel each student needs their own structure and style workbook/binder or do you have them share one and make copies?

[@whitneydeloera3878]

We are doing the same with TGTB and IEW. We love IEW and Fix It. I'm still trying to decide if we are going to continue with TGTB. I love all the different areas it covers, but I'm not sure if it's needed. Are you planning to continue TGTB next year?

[@OneBlessedMess]

I feel it is all up in the air at this point! I wasn't planning on falling so hard for IEW 🤣🤣

[@MyCathedralGarden]

If you're wanting just a reading curriculum you may want to look into Christian light education. We did that and loved how thorough and easy it was for them to do on their own.

[@whitneydeloera3878]

@@MyCathedralGarden I have heard great things about CLE reading!

[@TheJohnsonCrew]

This is so helpful! I'm very intrigued by IEW because I think writing skills are so important, but I also really like the Good and the Beautiful (my middle 2 are using) AND the Ron Paul Curriculum's English that my oldest is doing! So I'm tempted to combine them like you've done!! Thanks for the tips!

[@julietaayala1742]

Is there a link to the video you mention that talks about IEW? Is it on their website?

[@janettegayle7411]

Does IEW teach creative writing or is it more teaching how to research and write papers?

[@Brigsgirl22]

I actuator haven't done typing with my kids very much. How important to IEW would you say it is?? Do I need to quickly get then typing a fast as possible so they can do it in the upcoming lessons?

[@thelittlesimplethings7842]

With IEW did you buy 2 books and binders?

[@thejuniperhouse]

You mentioned that you use something different for spelling. I am curious about what you use. We are looking for different options.

[@OneBlessedMess]

We use Evan Moor spelling! It is a simple traditional approach which seems to work best for my kids! 😊

[@raquelapicella3]

Hi Thank for sharing U think iew videos can be used alone without binder curriculum?

[@OneBlessedMess]

The binder is optional, but you'll definitely need a student packet for the videos! 😊

[@raquelapicella3]

@@OneBlessedMess thanks 😊

[@AlwaysBooked]

Do you still use only TGTB for under 3rd grade?

[@tiffanynichol7765]

Can anyone tell me if the "forever streaming" videos from IEW are downloadable? Asking for purposes of storing off cloud.

[@Mare00711]

Why did you decide to not start your 3rd grade to start 1a? And what is left in tgtb LA that you are still doing?

[@OneBlessedMess]

We still hit up sentence structure, diagramming, and grammar in TGTB, but I find myself omitting more and more! My 3rd grader was still on Level 2 TGTB at the beginning of the year, and I wasn't sure of IEW yet so I won't start her until next year! I think she'll be ready then 😊

[@Mare00711]

@@OneBlessedMess thanks for the reply! I'm hoping to go to iew in 3rd grade (aka whenever we finish this curriculum lol) so I was curious about your thoughts.

[@kaylamunsell7558]

What are you all using for spelling? 🤓

[@angelsuniverse6021]

Wonder if there is any of the expenses can have a tax return?

[@tiffaniehingle9462]

So, is IEW recommended for older elementary? Meaning not first or second grade?

[@OneBlessedMess]

Level 1A Structure and Style is recommended for 3rd to 5th 😊