................... Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 it's just a fail in every respect. It is very difficult to schedule, and gets put off. He is very frustrated by it, because as he says, "It just doesn't work with my poor sequential brain." (a quote from a book...)...and I can't even understand why it does certain things the way it does. I have re-written his assignments multiple times because I can't even stand the order in which things are presented. It doesn't seem to have starting and stopping points, and even the fonts are annoying. I think this is a good book...for somebody...but not for my kid. We are looking for something 1. That can be done in one semester 2. Inexpensive 3. Challenging (he would rather have a 9th grade level thing that really makes him think ...and also has clear directions and goals, than something easy that is a waste of time.) 4. Preferably workbook textbook based It can be anywhere from a 7th to 9th grade level... ETA: I am thinking of starting him on CLE's 9th Grade English 1, but not doing all of it. He could start with Light Unit 4 and then keep working through the rest, between this year and next year. 1-3 is grammar review, which I don't think he needs. Any experience with them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 I forget if you have tried Essentials in Writing by Matthew Stephens--that's what worked here when Jump In didn't. Haven't tried the others you mentioned, so hopefully someone gives you feedback on those! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 Have you looked at Writing Skills by Diana King book 2 or 3? Also, I used to teach remedial and esl writing at colleges and had some leftover books lying around. So a few years ago, I started using them with my daughter and they were perfect for her - Very specific and straightforward and sequential. I sometimes skipped an exercise if it was not useful (aimed at non native English speakers), but mostly, it was just what I was looking for. Look at "First Steps in academic writing" and its sequels "introduction to academic writing" and "Writing Academic English" all published by longman - author is Ann Hogue. I also used another book called "Write Start" and may give "composing with confidence" a try. There's no teacher's guide really, just a clear workbook type writing program. If you explore this route, be sure to buy old editions - no need to spend more than a few dollars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted November 24, 2014 Author Share Posted November 24, 2014 Thanks Momling, this is definitely the idea of what I was looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted November 24, 2014 Author Share Posted November 24, 2014 Merry- no, we haven't tried that. I'll take another look but I think cost will Be a factor there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted November 24, 2014 Author Share Posted November 24, 2014 Ok I went with the Writing Skills by Diana King...it seemed Affordable enough. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Another Lynn Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 I also like Writing Skills by Diana King - very straight forward. Fwiw, I tried Jump In with my oldest a couple years ago and neither of us liked it. I think we got through one or two papers before we ditched in entirely. Not only did we not like the order it did things, we didn't like the topic suggestions either. (We would also put it off, drag it out, etc. What we did complete of it was like pulling teeth.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted November 25, 2014 Author Share Posted November 25, 2014 Another Lynn...yes! I am kind of surprised it went this way. When I first got it, the happy, cheerful, conversational tone seemed like a winner. My son enjoyed the very first assignment because it taught both of us a little about him. But that's it. He has completed one good essay in over 4 months. Clearly this is not effective. Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Yeah. I hate to say it, but we aren't feeling the Jump In love either. For the first week or so, she loved it... then she just hated it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted November 25, 2014 Author Share Posted November 25, 2014 Well there wasn't much experience with it written about here on the boards so at least people searching for it in the future will get a little more info .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 Have you looked at Writing Skills by Diana King book 2 or 3? Also, I used to teach remedial and esl writing at colleges and had some leftover books lying around. So a few years ago, I started using them with my daughter and they were perfect for her - Very specific and straightforward and sequential. I sometimes skipped an exercise if it was not useful (aimed at non native English speakers), but mostly, it was just what I was looking for. Look at "First Steps in academic writing" and its sequels "introduction to academic writing" and "Writing Academic English" all published by longman - author is Ann Hogue. I also used another book called "Write Start" and may give "composing with confidence" a try. There's no teacher's guide really, just a clear workbook type writing program. If you explore this route, be sure to buy old editions - no need to spend more than a few dollars. These look great. I'm ordering different levels for all my kiddos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Ok I went with the Writing Skills by Diana King...it seemed Affordable enough. :) Calming, have you started this yet? I'm wondering what your initial thoughts are after seeing it in person. Thanks so much, L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 2, 2015 Author Share Posted January 2, 2015 I actually went to amazon, thought I clicked, thought I ordered it, waited for 4 days, and then checked and realized I never ordered it. Then I decided to try to use JUMP In! about two weeks ago and just tweak it or something.... and after SO MANY extremely confusing days with this *&%$0 book, decided to come back to this thread and look at options again. My poor son is so frustrated and so am I. What a disorganized book. I cannot for the life of me understand it. Anyway, I'll let you know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabet1 Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 I was wondering if it was just us. I have not made much effort with writing lately. And my son is doing poorly with Jump In. I figured I just needed to do more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 2, 2015 Author Share Posted January 2, 2015 You know what, I just took out the Write source handbook for 6th grade and my son can use that to write assignments which I assign. Then he can use last year's polishing point checklist to really polish them to make them "shine." Honestly, we have one semester left and Write Source handbooks are awesome. They walk the student through in a friendly, logical way and all I need to do is actually assign an assignment. So I just used his daily planner, and wrote out day by day which page to work on. But instead of a 3 paragraph research report, he will do a 4-5 page research report. This really isn't that hard, if the student has it planned out a bit and the mom is willing to provide support and go over things, Write Source can be pretty easy to use actually! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasperstone Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 it's just a fail in every respect. It is very difficult to schedule, and gets put off. He is very frustrated by it, because as he says, "It just doesn't work with my poor sequential brain." (a quote from a book...)...and I can't even understand why it does certain things the way it does. I have re-written his assignments multiple times because I can't even stand the order in which things are presented. It doesn't seem to have starting and stopping points, and even the fonts are annoying. I think this is a good book...for somebody...but not for my kid. We are looking for something 1. That can be done in one semester 2. Inexpensive 3. Challenging (he would rather have a 9th grade level thing that really makes him think ...and also has clear directions and goals, than something easy that is a waste of time.) 4. Preferably workbook textbook based It can be anywhere from a 7th to 9th grade level... ETA: I am thinking of starting him on CLE's 9th Grade English 1, but not doing all of it. He could start with Light Unit 4 and then keep working through the rest, between this year and next year. 1-3 is grammar review, which I don't think he needs. Any experience with them? PHEW!!!! That I came across this before my order!!!! I need something that is easy to implement, otherwise it never gets done! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasperstone Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 I also like Writing Skills by Diana King - very straight forward. Fwiw, I tried Jump In with my oldest a couple years ago and neither of us liked it. I think we got through one or two papers before we ditched in entirely. Not only did we not like the order it did things, we didn't like the topic suggestions either. (We would also put it off, drag it out, etc. What we did complete of it was like pulling teeth.) Would you need this as well, as the student books? http://www.christianbook.com/writing-skills-teachers-handbook/diana-king/9780838825617/pd/8825613?event=ESRCG Or could you get away with only using the workbooks? Is there enough instructions in them? Thanx! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasperstone Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Also, would I need to supplement it with another grammar book? If so, would Daily Grams work well? Or, something more thorough like Easy Grammar Plus? I'm not wanting too much focus on Grammar this year, as she has had plenty through using CLE LA etc.... I want my dd to concentrate more on writing, and using what she has already learned etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeAndTheBoys Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Just sayin--we LOVE Jump In. We are about 1/4 of the way in, with my 5th and 6th grade boys. We had used WWE for years and I bought WWS to use this year--but realized we didn't want to go that heavy. It is hard to schedule it in--because writing (and science) have ALWAYS gotten pushed aside at our house. But my loves-to-write 6th grader knocks it out, and my reluctant-to-write 5th grader (after he stares at the page for a while and says, I don't know WHAT to write) gets it done and is happy with it. I'm sure it's not perfect, but it's better than a lot of things we have tried. We did IEW last year with a group, and it was NOT a good fit!! I hope you find something that works better for you! but i saw some of the comments on this thread were like, "Glad I found this out before I got Jump In!" and that there weren't many reviews of it, so I did want to throw in that it is working for us, much better than anything else we've tried. The scheduling is our own problem--my boys work at different speeds, and it's hard to get them together at the SAME TIME to do writing; it's my New Year's resoloution to do writing earlier in the day and on a schedule. B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 3, 2015 Author Share Posted January 3, 2015 To each his own! So glad it's working for you. Meanwhile, we are back to Write spurce :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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