Apologia Educational Ministries Writers in Residence

Our 3rd daughter had just come to me, asking for a writing program. Isn't it awesome how GOD works? The opportunity to review Apologia Educational Ministries' Writers in Residence ​program was perfect timing. I was a bit hesitant about it at first. We use Apologia's science, but they aren't my favorite resources. I supplement with lots of other stuff. This writing program though, seems to have everything I'm looking for. She can do this on her own and is really enjoying it. Her favorite part is reading the author interviews. The questions are unique and have really given her some great insight into their writing habits.

In typical Apologia Educational Ministries fashion, the program is laid out in "Modules". There are 6 units and 24 modules. Each unit has an author spotlight. All of the authors except one write Christian content and we were happy to find that we were familiar with several of them. Each module has 12-16 points from study, instruction & brainstorming to vocabulary, grammar & interesting composition. By the end of this book I think our #3 Princess will have a good start on a nice little autobiographical book. I really love the way Debra Bell, PhD has done Writers in Residence! (This is very much how I write...)  The writing assignments are all in cycles of:

1. I Remember  (Reflection)
2. I Imagine  (Imagination)
3. I Investigate  (Research)
4. I Think  (Opinion)

It's sometimes hard to put our own work, practices, & habits into words for teaching others. I wouldn't have really thought about it this way, but Ms. Bell has made it a doable and understandable step-by-step approach. She's also made everything very visual with charts, color codes (Do you remember how much I LOVE color coding?!), and bright marginal notes. 

While the program is written for 4th grade and up, this is just right for our 14 year old. It's very simple for her but not written down to the student, which is really nice for Delayed Academics Educational Approach or special needs students. If you have a very academically inclined 4th grader, they will probably thrive with this too. I will likely have our 9 year old Princess do this program next, though I'm sure I'll need to spend more time going through it with her where the 14 year old is doing Writers in Residence independently.
​
I definitely think this is a wonderful program that nearly any family could enjoy using.

You can also follow Apologia Educational Ministries on
Facebook, Twitter,  Pinterest & Instagram