Write from the Heart: A Resource Guide to Engage Writers

The curriculum appears to provide direct instruction through structured lessons with clear components including comprehension questions, practice activities, and application assignments. Each chapter follows a consistent format with explicit teaching elements.

Assignments have 'four components labeled Key Terms, Comprehension, Practice, and Application' with 'Comprehension asks two questions based on the lesson content'

This is the curriculum's primary strength, offering comprehensive writing instruction across multiple genres and styles. It teaches professional writing techniques, provides structured assignments, and covers the complete writing process from planning through revision.

The curriculum covers 'writing skills from basic organization through essays and research writing' and teaches 'Voice Techniques...approaches used by professional writers that are seldom taught in school'

The curriculum appears to focus primarily on writing skills and techniques rather than systematically building domain knowledge. Students can customize assignments to reflect their interests, but there's no evidence of structured knowledge-building across disciplines.

The review describes the curriculum as covering 'writing skills from basic organization through essays and research writing' with assignments that 'can be customized by the student to reflect their interests'

The curriculum is designed for flexible use by various instructors including co-op teachers, parents, and independent students. While it can be used independently, there's no evidence of specific teacher training or professional development materials.

The review states it 'can be used by co-op instructors teaching their own courses, a parent working with one or more of their own children, or students working independently' but mentions no teacher training

The curriculum uses excerpts from well-known poetry and literature as models for writing techniques. While these provide good examples, there is no evidence of students reading complete works.

The review mentions 'excerpts from well-known poetry and literature' that 'provide models of particular writing techniques'

The curriculum uses examples from well-known literature and poetry, which likely provides exposure to complex texts as models. However, the primary focus is on writing rather than reading complex texts for comprehension.

The curriculum includes 'excerpts from well-known poetry and literature' that serve as models, though the review doesn't specify text complexity levels

This criterion is not applicable as the curriculum is designed for grades 6-12, well beyond the phonics instruction age range. The grammar section covers parts of speech and sentence structure appropriate for these grade levels.

The curriculum is for 'grades six through twelve' and includes a grammar section on 'parts of speech, sentences, common sentence errors, and punctuation'

The curriculum includes vocabulary development through key terms sections in each chapter. Students are required to write definitions for writing-related terms, though the scope appears limited to composition terminology.

Each chapter assignment has 'Key Terms' where 'students will write definitions' for words 'such as expository and memoir'

While the curriculum includes comprehension questions and practice exercises, there is no clear evidence of systematic retrieval practice or spaced review of previously learned concepts. The structure appears more linear than cyclical.

The review mentions 'Comprehension asks two questions based on the lesson content' and 'Practice assignments' but no indication of spaced review or retrieval of earlier material