Fix It! Grammar Gets the Job Done! {A Grammar-in-15-Minutes-a-Day Review}

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew.

If you've got a student who needs to bone up on grammar, vocabulary, and writing, but is not an English aficionado, Fix It! Grammar by the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) can help.

My eldest son is not a fan of English these days and needed as pain-free a push as possible to:

• improve his grasp on grammar.
• focus on expanding his vocabulary.
• and encourage him to write legibly and well by hand.

So, when I saw an opportunity for us to review the latest edition of IEW's Fix It! Grammar, Level 5, The Frog Prince, I jumped at the chance.

In the past, an older version of Fix It! Grammar's, Robin Hood had been working well for my son until he lost his copy of the student book, got out of the habit of using the program, and threw his focus into other studies and projects. So, I knew the format of the fourth edition Fix It! Grammar books could work for us if I could just get my son to buy in to putting effort in.

Praise God! I gave enough of a carrot for my son to try The Frog Prince (telling him he could be done with grammar if he finished the book) and the ease and efficiency of the Fix It! Grammar program has been doing the rest.

This Grammar Curriculum Works for My Son!

Here is what my son had to candidly say about his experience with The Frog Prince  so far:

All high schoolers have that one subject they struggle with. For me that is English. I have tried multiple different approaches to studying the subject, few of which have been effective long-term for me. 

When my mother saw the review for IEW’s Fix It! Grammar, The Frog Prince, she decided to accept it. I had no say in the matter, which was probably for the best since I do not like English these days. 

As my mother handed me The Frog Prince, she told me to do it, and I would be done with grammar for high school. So, after some short-lived obstinance, I gave in and started working through the book. 

Even though I was not enthusiastic about working on English, I soon grew to appreciate how little effort I had to put in while still getting effective results. With just about 15 minutes a day, I was improving enough to get my mother off my back about how bad my English skills were, which was a sweet relief. In fact, I would even spend longer on some days just to get ahead. 

It has worked beautifully since Fix It! allows for self-pacing. All I had to do was complete editing a section on my own.

 

Then, during a 1:1 lesson, my mother would go through and check it. After that, I would copy the piece with correct spelling, grammar, and such. 

 

I have also learned some interesting vocabulary while using the book, which is a nice thing to be able to flex on my friends. 

Overall, I would say Fix It! Grammar has allowed me to do what I like to do: control my lessons and pace myself. It is easy to use and works well. I would definitely recommend it. 

My only complaint is that the version of The Frog Prince used is not the original, but one obviously adapted for this curriculum. You can not win them all I guess. 

Anyhow, that's all I have for today. Until the next time my mother decides to make me write a review...

As you can see, even though my son is not an English nor a review-writing enthusiast, he can see the merit of IEW's Fix It! Grammar, Level 5, The Frog Prince. What a victory!

Fix It! Grammar's 4th Edition Makes Language Arts Even Easier than Earlier Editions Did!

I like the fourth edition of Fix It! Grammar even more than I liked earlier editions of the program. The new editions have larger fonts, more white space, and more examples on the Learn It pages than prior editions Student Book pages did, which is something I always look for since my second child benefits from white space and larger fonts!

Each "day" of the lessons also has its own page now with a handy checklist at the top, a large-font passage to edit, and lines for rewriting the passage right on the page. This makes the proven method of Fix It! Grammar even more user-friendly for students. (Prior editions, as you can see in the side-by-side picture below, had passages for each day of a lesson week on the same page.)

There are also some fabulously user-friendly features in the new 205-page, lay-flat, spiral bound, softcover Student Book design which make it even better:

• an instruction page.
• a clear scope and sequence that shows which weeks introduce and reinforce specific concepts
• a vocabulary chart.
• a table of contents.
• teaching pages.
• pages where students read, maker, fix, and rewrite passages.
• an appendix with the complete story.
• appendix pages where students can collect lists of strong verbs, quality adjectives, and -ly adverbs.
  

• appendix pages to help identify and review pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, clauses, phrases, and sentence openers.

I liked Fix It! Grammar student books before, but now am even more impressed by them!

The 4th edition Teacher Manual is also well-designed. It corresponds page-by-page, lesson-by-lessons with the Student Book and includes everything a parent - or self-correcting student - needs to correct each lesson quickly.  It also includes information for downloading other free resources and contains a full Glossary. So, whether you are an English lover or not, you can easily use the Teacher Manual with success.

In addition, you can get thirty full-color, laminated, Fix It! Grammar Cards, which we also received. These support the Student Book by highlighting key concepts and can be used by students who like flashcards for quick reference, memory, and games. A digital list of games and activities for the cards can be accessed online. 

My son chose not to use the cards, but I have looked them over and plan to use them with my middle child when she is ready for them since she tends to like flashcards and games. They will be a handy, fun tool to use with her.

What I Appreciate about Home Learning with IEW's Fix It! Grammar

IEW's Fix It! Grammar, Level 5, The Frog Prince is a clear win in my home! My son appreciates that it is self-paced, easy, effective, and - as he so bluntly put it - gets me off his back. 

I like that, as Fix It! Grammar always has, the fourth edition works as an off-screen, open-and-go, full-year grammar curriculum that can be done in about 1/4 of an hour a day. I also love the new design of the curriculum which makes it even more user-friendly than prior editions. 

IEW has most certainly taken a good thing - its FIX IT! Grammar curriculum - and made it even better with its 4th edition. Whether students re just starting out with grammar or are at higher level, I recommend Fix It! Grammar. With six levels of user-friendly options this homeschool curriculum can help students at varying levels to learn grammar in context, improve editing skills, and transfer grammar and vocabulary concepts to improve writing.

Learn More

You can find our past IEW reviews by browsing here. 

Also, be sure to click over to the Homeschool Review Crew to find links to current blog, video, and social media reviews from families that have recently been using Levels 1-5 of the six-level Fix It! Grammar program.

You might also want to connect with the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) on social media.

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube