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Angel
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My 12 yo ds has discovered the One Year Adventure Novel and is waiting impatiently for the free DVD to arrive. I know that Theresa's ds is using it, but I wondered if anyone else from this threadhad picked it up?
I bought IEW last spring to help my ds with nonfiction, but I really do not like the way they treat creative writing. My ds wants to write a novel but I think is not quite sure how to proceed (except for spending a lot of time thinking and drawing very detailed maps!) I've never had very much use for creative writing curriculum, but I do think my ds could use some outside structure. Only the price!!! 
So, is it worth it? If you're using it do you actually grade the assignments like it says in the syllabus? How do your dc use it? (Theresa??  )
Ok, now back to writing my curriculum for the state. Next year I'm not making any decisions for the new year until July. (I say that every year.)
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Erin
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To add another question to Angela's as I've been considering this still. Ds14 is writing a book, will One Yr Adventure Novel benefit him greatly, another words is it really necessary? He has looked at the sample CD and loved it. We did buy IEW and have yet to use it but so far looks good too, just different
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melmc
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Angela,
I haven't heard of that resource and not to add to what you have planned already, but I wanted to tell you about something I found last fall. I downloaded free workbooks from the NaNoWriMo Young Writer's Program website. (NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month which happens each November - goal is to write 50K words of a novel in one month. Pretty much you turn off your internal editor and just write a rough draft as fast as you can. You don't have to do the challenge to use the books. I may have posted about these here last fall, but I can't remember.
They have three levels: elementary, ms and hs. They are secular so you would need to see if they were appropriate for your family.
Also, you asked about grading assignments. I have no idea what kind of assessment's they do with the curriculum you mentioned, but I wanted to put in my two cents so feel free to ignore it because this is probably none of my business, but...
I write novels for a living. Nothing literary, simply genre fiction. I have worked with many writers young and old. Creative writing is learned by the process of writing. No book or course or secret handshake is going to take the place of putting words on a page on a consistent basis. Some have a natural gift and become "overnight successes", others persevere and learn by writing and rewriting and rewriting again. But whichever category you fall in, it's intimidating to show creative writing to somebody no matter what age. Knowing a piece is for a grade could get in the way of the creative process of a new writer and impede them discovering their true voice. I know it would for my kids so I don't give letter grades for any creative writing assignments. I do offer constructive suggestions. We talk about everything they write. We discuss ways to improve the writing and why they did/didn't do certain things. The goal in our household is to become a better writer and worrying about whether something is an A or C would get in the way for us.
Your child might be different and want that kind of feedback with a grade, but I've seen adult writers end up curled up in the fetal position after some constructive critiques and not wanting to write again for a long while. I'd hate to see that happen to a young person who really had an interest in writing a novel.
As I said, just my 2 cents!
Melissa
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lapazfarm
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I do not grade it. BUt then again, I don't grade anything!LOL!
My ds is doing this pretty independently. He watches the DVD, reads the text and does the assigned work all on his own. I look at his work every once in a while just to offer suggestions and make sure he is getting what the author is saying. I also occasionally ask him to go back and flesh out a section or two if I feel he glossed over it too much and it will come back to hurt him later. He comes to me with questions occasionally, but mostly this is his baby.
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CandaceC
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I don't know if you all are familiar with the TOS Homeschool Crew, but I'm a part of this group and we review homeschool products.
Last year some of the moms reviewed the One Year Adventure Novel...and from what I remember most of them loved it!
But here are their actual review links...
One Year Adventure Novel reviews
HTH!
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Nedra in So. CA
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n/a
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florasita
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I would like to know more what and how other young writers who have published works were schooled be they homeschooled or ps .
any formal tutoring , writing curriculum or just are gifted in the area .
Any work I've published is just via my own style of writing I never much thought of the type of method or curriculum my teachers may have used etc. I do not write fiction though for my adult writing .
The only fiction I've written down are children's stories that are family stories passed on so I have not tried to publish them .
Anyway having had articles , stories published although not books I can say I have absolutely no idea if any one curriculum would have been what led me to be inspired nor a good writer .
Theresa from lapaz is not your dh a published author ? what would he say regarding writing and skill etc. I saw one of my fav journalists speak once in regards to journailism ed etc. he truely felt still although formal ed was great it was the real living expereinces which led most to become truely gifted in the field .He of course was one of those journalists who got where he was before acredditation was needed although of course he is now very accreditited  via his work .
what about the author of Harry Potter books ? did she major in english lit etc. ? I've no idea I just sort of thought you either got it or you don't . Like my dd is a gifted dancer and although I love to dance I stumbled through ballet  and just stick to social dance .
My mother gave me an old copy of The Elements of Style and reading good works by my fav authors , having incredible gifted teachers in english as a child and a parent whom love literature etc.
how could a child remember though if the grammar course or writing techniques were what led one to have a passion & good style
Our second dd is a very gifted writer and really I can't say more then the same in how I would discribe my own experiences she had wonderful teacher from Britian for gr3-6 I took her out of school in gr9 for highschool so she could just read and write basically her passion . So what curriculum if any led her to have the love of the written word I haven't a clue .
One thing I have heard other people say is many writers journal and this is a for sure for both dd and I . I've a journal for day & night and one in my purse for while out with kids .
Now editing is another story I can vouch that not all writers can edit I always get dd to edit for me one of many good qualities from dh except poetry I find when she has edited poetry I've written it takes from the poem .
ponderings
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Erin
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Melissa
I just wanted to come back and thank you for your words and encouragement My sons are currently writing novels, and slowly uploading and editing. The stay up late at night discussing their plots and characters and would be happy if I just let them write their novels and do maths everyday. (Which I'm seriously considering)
Although I am still considering the One Year Adventure Novel as the sample DVD was terrific, he was alive and vibrant and got Dominic to expand his ideas. Its just that it annoys me the way the price is structured. I'm resisting on principle
Angela
I have finally decided to ditch IEW, it is not working at all. I know it is not just us either as a couple of friends borrowed it and it was a failure there too. Simply put he talks too much and doesn't allow thinking time. He bombards you with words and we are all left confused. We wondered if it was a cultural thing? But I don't think so.
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melmc
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Erin,
I'm so happy things are going well for them! They will learn so much simply writing. And the discussions will help, too. Nothing better than having a live-in critique partner to bounce things off of.
Another suggestion is to read in the same genre they are writing. If a passage (paragraph and/or sentence, even a phrase) really appeals to them, have them study it in depth. Read it out loud. They could even diagram it. Find out what it is they liked or what called out to them--the cadence, the words, the imagery, etc. That could help them pay more attention to whatever element it is they discovered. So many times we as readers, something hits us very powerfully, but were so into the story we simply keep going. If that happens to me, I flag the section then go back.
Melissa
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Erin
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Just wondering who is using this and how its going (2 years on for some).
I notice they now have a Science Fiction/ Fantasy component.
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Angel
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My kids love it! They're still working on the One Year Curriculum, kind of going at their own pace, and I have made the decision not to have anything to do with it. They really enjoy the videos and have been learning quite a bit of literary analysis as a bonus.
We actually met Daniel at our homeschool convention this year. He was happy to talk to the kids, and the kids were excited to meet him. He told me that the SF curriculum should really come after Adventure Novel, because while it contains some of the techniques unique to SF (worldbuilding, for instance), it doesn't recover the basics from Adventure Novel. I asked if they could be done concurrently and he said he thought that would be somewhat difficult. I guess he undertook the SF module as a labor of love -- an attempt to really understand the genre, how it began, its main themes, etc., and to introduce kids to classic SF and Fantasy.
To be honest, I am thinking about getting it for myself. Fantasy is what I write (or wrote, back when I had fewer kids), and I'd like to see his analysis of the genre. My ds was excited to see something about SF, as he's more a SF fan than a fantasy fan, but most of what is written for YA today is fantasy.
And he shares my attitude toward adverbs! (Get rid of them!!) Adverbs are one of the biggest reasons I haven't been able to use IEW. Their "dress-ups" make me cringe.
Anyway...  for this curriculum. Highly recommended.
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JennGM
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Angel wrote:
| And he shares my attitude toward adverbs! (Get rid of them!!) Adverbs are one of the biggest reasons I haven't been able to use IEW. Their "dress-ups" make me cringe. |
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Interesting, Angela! Do you mean deliberately adding in adverbs to expand sentences? NEVER use them? Even when one unwittingly writes them in a sentence?
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Angel
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JennGM wrote:
Angel wrote:
| And he shares my attitude toward adverbs! (Get rid of them!!) Adverbs are one of the biggest reasons I haven't been able to use IEW. Their "dress-ups" make me cringe. |
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Interesting, Angela! Do you mean deliberately adding in adverbs to expand sentences? NEVER use them? Even when one unwittingly writes them in a sentence? |
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Hah. No, not never... but adverbs should be used sparingly. ( ) IEW teaches the use of adverbs to "dress up" a sentence. But good sentences do not need fancy accessories. This is true in all writing, but in fiction especially (there's another one) adverbs should be kept to a minimum because they are often about "telling", not "showing". "Show don't tell" is probably the most basic maxim of writing fiction. In any case, it's probably the one most often heard.
Dialogue is often tagged with unnecessary adverbs. For instance, "he said haltingly" or "ruefully" or "wistfully" , etc., etc. Usually you can tell from the actual bit of dialogue or action immediately preceeding or following the dialogue *how* the words were said.
I just asked my dd what Daniel said about adverbs and she said, "He says to use one adverb per 100 words. That's the upper limit." Then we just spent some time discussing *why* adverbs are overused, so that was a good language arts lesson; thank you, Jenn!
We came up with an example.
"Can I have a hundred dollars?" he said timidly.
vs.
He looked at the ground. "Can I... have a hundred dollars?"
Or even just...
"Can I have a hundred dollars?" he mumbled, fidgeting with his pen.
The adverb is telling. But when you paint a picture with action, when you show the reader what is happening or give specific details about the way something or someone looked (although you have to be careful not to overload adjectives, too), the reader is able to *see* the story instead of just taking your word for it. The story becomes more immediate.
Ok, so that was a little rabbit trail. I'd better go take care of my 3 year old before he coats the baby with raspberry jam!
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Angela
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JennGM
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Oh, thanks for the great reply! I never thought of it that way, but I am completely in your camp! I think those adverbs are very stilted and forced... I think those examples should only be relegated to the grammar books that teach what adverbs are.
Your examples are excellent...I much prefer the second examples (the last is my favorite) when I'm reading.
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Erin
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Angela
Thank you, thank you!!! I'm extra keen again, something that has stood the test of time, and I know we have similar approaches.
I was looking at ds joining in a community college course, $180 for 8 weeks run by a local author on publishing etc, ds is keen but her books are rather New Agey looking so I don't know that it would be as relevant to ds who is still writing his fantasy novel. He wants to know about publishing his book etc, but it does need polishing.
Hence me re-looking at the OYAN. Their SF/Fantasy would be so interesting to ds, but I note they recommend to do OYAN first.
Adverbs?? I'm still trying to work them out. Hope you saved your baby
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mommy4ever
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MY dd14 has begged for this class. She dreams of being a novelist.
So we will be getting it, BUT, she needs to improve her spelling and grammar
Great motivation for her to put in a true effort.
I can't wait for the results. She writes all the time, can really build up a story, but can't wrap it up. We're both looking forward to this. I might even do it with her.
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Erin
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I just ordered OYAN!!! 
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Erin
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Erin
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updating to let you know ds16 LOVES his OYAN!! I NEVER have to remind him to turn it on, he is doing 2 sessions a week and is pondering more. However I encouraged him to space it out so he has more time to ponder and mull.
Ds had already planned his trilogy, but he did say planning was discussed. What he is getting the most out of it currently is character development.
Happy 
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Erin
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I'm just smiling hugely here my ds wrote a blog post from his perspective on OYAN.
For school this term, mum did some searching for a good writing curriculum. She came across one called One Year Adventure Novel and I'm loving it. It's very good for creating a good story structure and helping you give your story a meaning and a goal it also helps you to develop good characters for your story. It's down side is it doesn't really help you in descriptive words and sentences, I would suggest a lot of quality reading if you want help in that area. It comes with two work books and eight DVD's, with enough lessons for two lessons a week for a year.
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KackyK
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Great!!!! I won an auction for a set off of ebay on Sunday. My children (dd 16 and ds 14) came running into the study and yelled "you won you won you won". They can't wait to get started!!!!!
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KackyK
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4Real Forums : Language Arts Come Alive
Topic: One Year Adventure Novel
