This summer at the IEM Innovate Conference in Sacramento, I met Nancy Helm, an Education Specialist for twelve years at the South Sutter Charter School. Soon afterwards, I received an extremely gracious email from her, which she titled “Letter of accolades for IEW.” It was so encouraging that we decided to interview her for this article. Nancy’s passion for education and her enthusiasm to assist individual students and parents as they instruct their children is profound. IEW is grateful for the value Education Specialists bring to the families served.
Define the role of the Education Specialist in your school. What does a typical day in the life of an ES look like?
First and foremost, the ES has many hats to wear. I cover transitional kindergarten to 12th grade. For example, I am the Teacher of Record for my students. This has me recording learning outcomes and attendance. Occasionally, I have the pleasure of suggesting curricula to help students excel. Additionally, as the ES I am available to meet with high school students as a tutor when needed. Finally, it is my responsibility to ensure we meet state standards.
When did you learn about IEW, and what has happened as a result?
My experience with IEW began seven or eight years ago. The elementary students of one of my families were taking IEW classes offered once per week by some homeschool parents. The students told me about key word outlines and shared their writing samples with me each month. I was rather ambivalent [initially] about the IEW writing curriculum as it seemed like just another writing program with a different spin.
Fast forward to last fall. On the recommendation of some friends, one of my families ordered the Structure and Style® for Students video-based course. This family used your program with fidelity. My curiosity was piqued as their fifth and seventh grade boys shared how funny Mr. Pudewa was and how much they liked his jokes! Hmm, that was not something I’d heard before. They watched the videos and proudly showed examples of their work along with their Fix It!® Grammar assignments. Students, especially these boys, telling me they actually liked writing was new (and news) to me! Their eighth grade relative also enjoyed Mr. Pudewa’s teaching.
As I met each of my families at the end of school in May, I shared a bit of this story and encouraged them to consider IEW’s Structure and Style for Students plus Fix It! Grammar. Several parents took my advice and ordered for fall of 2024.
Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve met with all my families save for one. I’d quite forgotten who ordered what until the students began to show me their work samples. “Mr. Pudewa tells great jokes!” a fourth grade boy shared. “I thought I would miss my other online writing class, but after the first day of Mr. Pudewa’s class, I didn’t miss it at all. I’m happy we are doing IEW!” A parent shared that she is going to get IEW for her younger son next year. Comments from other students included “Mr. Pudewa is so funny,” “I like Mr. Pudewa,” and “I feel like I am in his class and not all by myself.”
Tell me more about the unique circumstances of working with the family from Ukraine.
One family in our school faced a unique challenge. The mother was born in Ukraine, and Ukrainian is the language of choice in her home. The children were born in the United States and speak English fairly well, but initially their vocabulary was limited, especially with homophones. During our last meeting of the school year, the three children shared with me the timed IEW writing exercises they did at the beginning and at the end of the year. The difference was astonishing and brought me to tears! Likewise, Fix It! Grammar helped them see what words needed to be corrected. They are recognizing things they didn’t see before. IEW bridged a gap that I could not. Try as I might, I didn’t know how to help them write well. But IEW did! It is no surprise that the three American-Ukrainian children are continuing with your program this year.
Does your school require that each curriculum meets state standards?
Yes, and I wasn’t sure if Structure and Style for Students would be considered a full ELA curriculum for high school credits, but Educational Consultant Debbi Hall showed me the scope and sequence page that has the literature suggestions. Yay!
Why do you include IEW as one of your recommendations when a family is looking for curriculum advice?
After seeing firsthand how IEW’s curriculum changed students’ writing skills, I now feel comfortable recommending it as a course choice to all my kids. The structure of the material builds confidence in the students and parents alike. Likewise, when using the video program, it feels like they’re attending a class. If middle school boys like it, it must be good. This curriculum is easy for parents, and kids love it. IEW’s exercise of writing a before and after essay is further proof of its effectiveness.
Recently, a parent shared with me how happy she was to have the organization of IEW. When she first opened the box and saw all the material, she was overwhelmed because of her ADHD and had to close the box. A few days later, she told herself she needed to look at the curriculum again. She began to see how everything was laid out and already organized for her and suddenly realized it was not an overwhelming program but quite the opposite. This parent wished she would have had this program for her eleventh grade son and her already-graduated daughter but was so happy her seventh grader would learn to write well.
Does IEW align with the Science of Reading?
Yes, IEW aligns with the Science of Reading (SoR). There’s been a lot of talk about SoR. The structure and predictability of IEW helps the students.
What has your experience been when working with families who use our award-winning curriculum Fix It! Grammar?
They love Fix It! Grammar. It is engaging for the kids, and they can follow along easily. The result? Students are proud of their work with Fix It! Grammar.
Education Specialists are often unaware we have a page on our website dedicated to independent study charter schools (ISCS). Nancy Helm caught the vision of what IEW can do for her families. If you or an Education Specialist that you know would like to learn more, IEW maintains a page dedicated to ISCSs, full of resources for Education Specialists as well as families. Visit IEW.com/charter-schools to request a Charter School Examination Packet, watch videos, find information regarding IEW curriculum and state standards, and explore a myriad of resources designed with ISCS needs in mind.
by Debbi Hall
This article first appeared in the 2025 Arts of Language Schools Magalog
© 2025, Institute for Excellence in Writing, L.L.C.
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