Testimonials

What do students and parents think of our writing classes? Here’s what currently and previously enrolled students and parents have to say about their experience:

“It really says a lot when a student enjoys your camp so much, they ask to go back. Thank you!” —Mom of a student who participated in both the Basic Essay and Advanced Essay camps in 2016

 

“Writing camp was amazing. The resources we read are sure to help me through English III and personal college essays. It has encouraged me to read classic authors and appreciate a different genre that I had prematurely judged as ‘boring’ and “difficult.’ The best parts of camp were being exposed to multiple authors to learn from, the well-structured and thoughtful lessons, and the awesome teacher!” —Natalie L., 2016 summer camp student

 

“I really loved hearing you talk so enthusiastically about writing. It has been a completely lovely experience. I think that in the future I will revise more and choose my words more carefully.” —Maria-Louise C., returning student, 2015 & 2016 summer camps

 

During the last six months, a highlight of my daughter’s week has been her writing class taught by Jennifer Hartenburg. My daughter has loved having Mrs. Hartenburg for a teacher and has flourished under her instruction. In the course of the class, my daughter learned to craft more sophisticated sentences, paragraphs, and stories; to take notes; and to construct report-style paragraphs. Mrs. Hartenburg taught her to see that sentences are made up of moveable parts that can be changed or re-ordered to render a sentence more precise or vivid. Because Mrs. Hartenburg holds her students to a high standard yet provides a great deal of individual direction, my daughter’s writing and note-taking skills improved immensely. My daughter learned so much and enjoyed every minute of class time; Mrs. Hartenburg is an engaging and effective teacher of writing.

—Bethany L. Getz, PhD, Adjunct Professor of Writing, Honors College, Houston Baptist University

 

Ms. Jen, who is a very kind lady, graciously offered us writing classes this semester. I learned about metaphors and similes. I also appreciated the bizarre ‘super sentence’ activities; they made me laugh like a hyena. The myths and fables are hilarious to read. It is amusing reciting poems like “The Lobster Quadrille” and “Dust of Snow.”

—C.A., 11 years old

 

Jennifer Hartenburg was my son’s English instructor during a Summer Writing Intensive offered at Saint Katherine College in Encinitas, California. Each morning, Jennifer came well prepared to teach her students and share her love of writing. Her primary focus was to engage all teenagers attending the course while teaching them the various models and tips to improve their writing skills. Jen was confident and passionate about presenting the coursework each day and got everyone involved in the learning process by asking questions, offering examples, and listening to the needs of all children and parents attending the workshop.

Mrs. Hartenburg was very creative in presenting her workshop to teenagers who might have been more interested in spending most of their summer surfing or hanging out with their friends. She made the workshop fun by challenging her students to remember specific writing rules by playing fun games and exercises. She spent extra time with students who appeared to have difficulties with understanding a specific writing matter or homework. She was readily available and enthusiastic in responding to emails, staying after class to discuss the daily lesson and always made you feel as if your question was important and essential to becoming a better writer.

I highly recommend Mrs. Hartenburg as a writing teacher. She is confident, well prepared, reliable, creative, compassionate, and eager to teach the subject she loves, English. I believe she is making a difference and touching lives sharing her knowledge of the written language to children who could benefit and improve their writing skills.

—Christina W., parent

 

I am pleased to compose this letter of recommendation for Mrs. Jennifer Hartenburg, who was my IEW teacher this past summer. I have had the blessing of knowing her for the past year through church and writing classes.

Mrs. Hartenburg is a sweet, thoughtful woman who is well-organized in her teaching. She always comes prepared to class with her resources and utilizes the curriculum well, thoroughly explaining the information to me and making sure I understand the lesson. Using her quick wit and humor, Mrs. Hartenburg makes the lessons she teaches amusing, as well as straightforward and easy to learn. This makes her an exceedingly enjoyable and insightful teacher.

In my lessons with her, Mrs. Hartenburg has been a wonderful teacher. When explaining a relatively new curriculum to me, she did it with finesse and grace. I believe that Mrs. Jennifer Hartenburg is an excellent IEW teacher, and I enthusiastically recommend her for teaching this curriculum.

—Anastasia R., seventh grade

 

Read more student and parent testimonials from the 2017 Basic Essay Camp, the 2016 Summer Writing Camps, and the 2015 Summer Writing Camps.