Draw Write Now

by Ami
(IN)

We used various levels of Draw Write Now for basic drawing and handwriting from 2007 to present, and we plan to continue using in the future.

Likes: I love the step-by-step guide that helps my son to draw realistic pictures and animals (what he desires).

The variety of things to draw is incredible (if you buy the entire set). We never have a problem finding something to match our unit study topic for the week.

Dislikes: I don't love the sentences that the student is suppose to copy. They are what you would expect a first or second grader to write on their own - not something I really want for copywork. However, this program is flexible, and I usually have my son copy a poem or something else to go with the picture he draws.

Easy and Child-Friendly

by Michael
(TX)

Levels Used: Books 2 and 3
Dates Used: 2008-2009

Likes: These are very easy and child friendly copywork books. We used these lessons in our American History study last year.

The art helps the children have fun with this sometimes tedious subject. These copywork lessons are really good for reinforcing our history lessons as well.

They are reasonably priced and can sometimes be found at your local library.

Dislikes: There are not any books for ancient history.

Wish There Were More Books!

by Carla
(Noblesville, IN, USA)

Levels Used: lower elementary
Dates Used: 2006-2009

Likes: This is the only writing curriculum my daughter would do at the beginning. Because she loved art and especially drawing, she would do these books when no other writing curriculum would have worked for her. We ended up buying almost the whole series.

Each book has a theme. On each two page spread, the student is guided through simple instructions on drawing an animal or other item. Then, under the drawing, they are told to write a simple paragraph with 3-4 sentences. They have been helpful in our unit studies to be able to pull out a historical figure, an animal, or some other thing that would go with our study.

Dislikes: I wish there were more of them!

Highly Recommended

by Janet
(Raleigh, NC, USA)

Product: Draw Write Now! Books 1-4
Subject: Co-op Class for Drawing/Handwriting
Levels Used: Grades K - 3
Dates Used: January 2009 to March 2009

Likes: 1) easy prep, 2) fun and inspirational for a wide grade level of children, 3) helps break down a complicated drawing into manageable pieces.

Dislikes: Assumed a certain level of handwriting exposure which was difficult to teach to a wide range of grade levels.

Overall Recommendation: YES!! 2 thumbs up, just know who is going to need extra help with the writing.

I used the first 4 of this series of books to teach a co-op class of Kindergarten through 3rd graders (a mix of both boys and girls). Most of the kids truly enjoyed the drawing portion of the class and inspired each other on to try new things to draw.

It was a very fun class to teach, and required very little prep time on my part. The children who already wrote well did well with the sentences to copy, but if they weren't already taught how to write, they were a little intimidated by that portion of the lesson.

We didn't focus on that so much in our class, but just had fun learning to draw new things. In that respect, many of the children who were not already "writers" were able to strengthen their fine motor skills. Each book had some more difficult drawings in it, so the more advanced students were challenged as well.

After this class, my daughter (grade K at the time) was further inspired to want to try more difficult drawings from the later books in this series. This series was very good at "dissecting" a complicated looking drawing, breaking it down into manageable pieces, and making the kids successful artists.

Used for Drawing, Not Writing

by Tristan
(Ohio)

Levels Used: Books 1-8, 2nd - 3rd
Dates Used: 2008 - present

Likes: We purchased this set to help our oldest develop her drawing abilities. She was unhappy with her artwork, but didn't know how to improve. Draw Write Now bridged that gap by showing her step by step how to draw a picture. I love how the new piece for each drawing is in red, so it is easy to see.

We enjoyed adding this to our unit studies, they had pictures for nearly every topic, from animals to vehicles to historical places and people and even weather. After each section were great tips to extend what you were learning.

Dislikes: The books do not lay flat, so it provides a challenge to use (until we got a StudyPod!).

Love these Books!

by Penny
(Louisiana)

I absolutely love these books. My girls love them too. They are drawing like they had formal lessons. I love how each picture is broken down into steps. It's so easy to learn to draw with these books.