As an English tutor, as well as a homeschooling parent, one of the frustrations that I hear most often about homeschooling is the confusion of how to handle the teaching of written assignments, especially as a student progresses into the secondary level. Many parents feel like they themselves never had a thorough grounding in writing. Others feel that the subjective nature of the assignments make it hard to evaluate.

For the many parents out there that face this dilemma, WriteGuide may have the answer for you! WriteGuide is a tutorial writing service that matches your student up with his or her own personal writing tutor who instructs, evaluates, and encourages your student until he or she produces top-notch writing assignments.

I used the service with my own 17-year old and was very pleased with the results. As he and his online tutor worked on writing an analysis of Orwell's Animal Farm (his choice), my son opened up with new ideas that truly amazed me. He would have never responded to his own mother with such mature insights! Since all correspondence flows through the hands of the parents and parents are allowed input in the writing assignments, I felt that I was a part of the process without facing the struggles that these assignments typically entail.

This process may not work for every student, but it will for most. Since you are not tied to any long-term commitment, it would at least be worth a try as students face greater writing challenges in the upper grades.

I found the instructors and staff to be friendly, competent, and creative in the ways that they interacted with my student and with me, as a parent. I saw my son's own skills blossom as he received this writing instruction. For those who are looking for a painless solution to teaching this vital skill, I highly recommend WriteGuide.