Teaching Writing: Structure and Style® is the award-winning seminar that started it all over thirty years ago. First released in the mid-1990s, this video seminar has influenced thousands of educators in schools, homeschools, and even colleges and universities. It remains the foundation of everything at the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW).
If the seminar has won awards and captured the hearts and minds of so many, why update it? Simply put, IEW recognized the need for a more streamlined resource—one that is both highly effective and easy for teachers and teaching parents to implement. Released more than a decade after the second edition, the third edition has been carefully updated to better meet the needs of today’s educators. It reflects insights gained from years of working with students and instructors across all levels.
As Andrew Pudewa taught the Structure and Style for Students courses, he incorporated refined teaching techniques, practical tips, and classroom-tested strategies developed over three decades of experience. While the foundational ideas behind these techniques have always been part of the seminar, their clearer articulation in the student video courses has proven especially beneficial. We did not want to limit this instruction to student courses alone.
As an example, beginning in Unit 4 and continuing through Unit 8, Andrew has always taught that one paragraph equals one topic. In SSS-1B, Andrew introduced the idea of using “subject, topic, one more word about the topic” on the topic line of the key word outline. This approach makes writing a topic sentence simpler and more intuitive for students. This enhancement is now fully integrated into both the Seminar Workbook and the video instruction.
Additionally, the seminar videos and workbook now include an expanded section on writing about literature, featuring the classical arrangement model.
The Seminar Workbook features an improved layout designed for clarity and ease of use with detailed instructions that support straightforward implementation. Throughout the Seminar Workbook, color is used to highlight different levels, teaching techniques, and models. Visually engaging layouts illustrate graduated instruction in later units, helping teachers follow the progression with confidence.
In addition, numerous two-page spreads present assignment content in a clear and organized format. Teachers and students alike will benefit from exemplars that clearly demonstrate the Structure and Style methodology—each exemplar fully marked to model expectations. Many units include exemplars ranging from elementary through high school levels, complete with key word outlines (KWOs) and corresponding paragraphs, effectively illustrating the KWO-to-paragraph process.
For instructors pressed for time, the third edition simplifies and streamlines the training process. The total video viewing time has been reduced. Helpful features such as chapter markers, a viewing guide with timestamps, and English subtitles support flexible viewing and review. These thoughtful improvements are designed to help instructors teach writing with greater confidence and effectiveness. Within the Seminar Workbook, practicum assignments are clearly identified with step-by-step instructions provided for clarity, which is particularly helpful for instructors pursuing IEW Accreditation.
Over the years, Andrew Pudewa has often emphasized that—while stylistic techniques may be engaging and fun—the structural models form the true strength of the Structure and Style method. To further support this principle, the third edition Teaching Writing: Structure and Style package now includes Strengthening Structure: Models for Teaching IEW Structural Units. This resource provides instructors with a practical, easy-to-use reference for each structural unit. Each section concludes with exemplars at levels A, B, and C, complete with helpful annotations that highlight key components of the model. Developed and tested in IEW Online classes, these models have proven invaluable in helping instructors set clear expectations and guide student success.
In 2000 this seminar involved a cardboard box filled with twelve video cassettes and a half-inch royal blue binder with fewer than one hundred pages. Despite its simplicity, that seminar changed my teaching forever. The 2015 second edition modernized the presentation, added the convenience of streaming videos, and expanded the Seminar Workbook with abundant material. The third edition of Teaching Writing: Structure and Style is a thoughtfully refined and updated version designed to communicate these concepts more clearly and efficiently. It has been condensed for ease of use, with extraneous content removed, while preserving the core concepts and instructional approach. The same Structure and Style methodology that has shaped the program from the beginning is now presented in a way that will continue to equip and inspire future generations of teachers and students to become confident and competent communicators and thinkers.
by Danielle Olander
