Roadrunner Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 We love, love, love MCT grammar, but I have a suspicion we might be missing out on mechanics practice. I don't want a program that teaches some mechanics in the 4th grade book, some more in the 6th grade..... I would love one big book of "this is all there is to know." Evan Moor workbooks are terrible - they are fragmented and scattered and give us all headaches. I also don't want to get sucked into a worksheet-y program like Hake that repeats on itself the year after year, adding little new content. Can anybody help me find a program that will give us one good year of all the mechanics practice we need? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 11, 2014 Author Share Posted July 11, 2014 Anything? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 Bump. But I think maybe your title is not giving an idea what you want. People may be thinking you are asking about gearboxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrayshire Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 Maybe Fix It by IEW?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 I have never considered Fix It, but will look into it. Is there anybody who thinks over time MCT teaches all the mechanics and no other program is necessary? I just want something for once a week. I am tempted by Hake and a Exercises in a English, but both are a bit much for what I want. Kiwik, I changed the title. :) thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/512474-favorite-mechanics-supplement-for-mct/?hl=%2Bmct There is a thread I had on the same subject. I ended up buying The Language Mechanic by Critical Thinking Co. for this year (although it hasn't came in yet- should be next week- I just ordered). I'm not sure how long it will take but it looked like something he would enjoy and would work well for us. After we finish it I'm considering Analytical Grammar or Hake and alternating it or perhaps IEW's Fix It. I need to look more carefully at samples first, so we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/512474-favorite-mechanics-supplement-for-mct/?hl=%2Bmct There is a thread I had on the same subject. I ended up buying The Language Mechanic by Critical Thinking Co. for this year (although it hasn't came in yet- should be next week- I just ordered). I'm not sure how long it will take but it looked like something he would enjoy and would work well for us. After we finish it I'm considering Analytical Grammar or Hake and alternating it or perhaps IEW's Fix It. I need to look more carefully at samples first, so we'll cross that bridge when we get there. I am still hoping somebody has written one all inclusive mechanics practice book. There has to be an overview one somewhere for high schoolers at least. Why did you decide on Critical Thinking book? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 I just found Jensen's Punctuation. Has anybody used it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 I am still hoping somebody has written one all inclusive mechanics practice book. There has to be an overview one somewhere for high schoolers at least. Why did you decide on Critical Thinking book? I'm not looking for a one shot fix, ds needs to go over things multiple things in a variety of ways fwiw. Looking at the sample it seemed like something he would enjoy, it starts with the basics, which will be great for us as we've been on break so a bit of a refresher will be nice. The good reviews and WTM recs sealed the deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 We used Everyday Edi for practice. It does not teach the rules, just has the kids practice use them by finding and correcting errors. I'm sure you could just get a list of rules somewhere, print it, and stick it in front of your child as she looks for the errors. My older boy was very motivated to find all 10 errors in each paragraph, really a pride thing. Ruth in NZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 We used Everyday Edi for practice. It does not teach the rules, just has the kids practice use them by finding and correcting errors. I'm sure you could just get a list of rules somewhere, print it, and stick it in front of your child as she looks for the errors. My older boy was very motivated to find all 10 errors in each paragraph, really a pride thing. Ruth in NZ We did Evan Moor Paragraph Editing for a while, and while my kids loved it, I sometimes couldn't answer their questions. Punctuation rules are different in my native language. :blush: I have considered going back to it if I can't find anything better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 Have you tried just looking for a reference book for you? Maybe college level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Have you tried just looking for a reference book for you? Maybe college level. Yes, I have a set of Oxford a Grammar Usage. It's great, but not too user friendly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 When you say Mechanics what do you mean? Punctuation only, no other grammar or usage? And how much practice is needed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 When you say Mechanics what do you mean? Punctuation only, no other grammar or usage? And how much practice is needed? What's not in MCT. Yes, mostly punctuation. My older doesn't need much repetition. I just want something to plug in the holes left by MCT without having to do a daily repetitious program like Hake year after year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 There is a book called something like The Blue Book (or Blue Guide or something with Blue) that goes over the basics with limited practice pages. Merriam Webster has a guide to Punctuation and Style which is good as a reference, but without practice pages. A single year of a program like Hake or some such but at the top level offered could be used for a lot of practice, far more than the Blue whatever, but not needed to get bits each year. Warriner's English Grammar and Composition, Complete Course, could be a good option that combines a guide with some practice, but might be too hard for even an advanced 9 year old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Should I just dave in and get Hake 5 or Exercises in English? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourisenough Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Analytical Grammar Jr. Mechanics. There are 15 (I think) lessons with 3 exercises & 1 test per lesson. When the student pages are completed/removed, the student is left with the teaching pages which make for a very handy manual to use for future reference. I follow this up with one or more years using Evan-Moor Paragraph Editing for practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Should I just dave in and get Hake 5 or Exercises in English? My older found EiE workbooks for 2nd to 4th grade boring. We got them through the virtual academy. Just a very short explanation on top of each page followed by exercises. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathie in VA Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Check out Harvey's Revised English Grammar It covers grammar, writing, and punctuation. CBD offers the ability to view a few pages online including the TOC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Another approach would be to get Joe Devine's Commas Are Our Friends and then let your son make his own list of the punctuation marks and examples using them correctly. It may not give some nuances like an em-dash versus an en-dash... but since I cannot figure out how to make my computer make any dash such nuances do not seem to matter much in practice. Also the book I think leaves out the ellipsis, and does not consider an apostrophe to be a qualified mark, but these are minor and easily remedied with a good guide. Oh, another is called something like Everything You Need to Know About Grammar. If you want just one year of a program why not wait and get Hake 8 when he is able to do that so that you do not get what you said you did not want: incremental bits year after year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 If you want just one year of a program why not wait and get Hake 8 when he is able to do that so that you do not get what you said you did not want: incremental bits year after year. This seems too logical to occur to me. :lol: You know, more I think about, more it makes sense to do a lighter mechanics practice now and wait and do Hake 8 in a year or two. I have discovered that I apparently own couple thin books on punctuation from Pruflock Press ( I can't believe I no longer know what I own :blushing: ). i can use those in conduction with Jr. Analytical Grammar punctuation book for now and let it rest for couple of years. Then go to Hake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrayshire Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Oh yeah.... Duh! I agree with using JAG Mechanics! My dd has done very well with it this year..... It is about 15 units, so 15 weeks long. That should take care of any gaps you are questioning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyforlatin Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 I was leaning towards Hake 8, more to get it done and never have to do mechanics again, but as DD is a bit young, I like the plan of using AG and waiting a couple of years later to use Hake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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