Jump to content

Menu
Giving You and Your Child a Road Map to the Best Possible Education
The Well-Trained Mind Community

Barefoot Ragamuffins/ELTL still in business?

silver

By silver,
in K-8 Curriculum Board

 Share

Recommended Posts

silver

silver

Posted
Posted (edited)

So the facebook page is gone, and the author hasn't posted in her yahoo group since August. The books are still available on Amazon and Lulu.com, but since they are print on demand, that makes sense.

 

Does anyone know if it's still in business? Is she still working on ELTL level 6?

 

 

EDITED:

Yes, Baregoot Ragamuffins is still in business!

Edited by silver
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I emailed her two weeks ago to see if she was still in business, and I haven't heard back. That's part of why I posted here. I have gotten some of the ads/sponsor emails from her email group, but I haven't gotten anything that she has actually written in a while. I'm getting concerned, not just about her business closing, but for her.

 

After the post in the facebook group, did anyone confirm that she's still around?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

I got that one, too. It looks like one of the sponsored emails, which I'm pretty sure get sent out on a schedule, without her input. 

 

 

I did want to say that you can still order the books and receive them. I ordered ELTL 4 on Thanksgiving and received it. But, again, that can happen without her input, because Lulu takes care of it without her having to do anything.

Edited by silver
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 4 months later...
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

I tracked this down after hearing a rumor that we're out of business.  :huh:

 

We are still in business.

 

But we've had a rough time over the past year. I was out with an ear infection for about four months last year. So far this year, I've had another ear infection, got rear-ended, caught a really nasty cold, and sold our house. Now we're preparing for a major move at the end of this year. It's an incomplete list, but those would be the highlights.  :laugh:

 

We're still writing. Ernie is working on Quark Chronicles Astronomy. I'm working on updating ALL of ELTL--it's becoming a secular program now, and the levels will have letters instead of numbers.  You can see more about it on our site. I'm also writing Level F (6 under the old levels) which I plan to publish this summer.

 

I do apologize for being so out of touch. We're currently caught up on emails and plan to stay that way, so drop us a line if you have any questions for us. 

  • Like 14
Link to comment
Share on other sites
nixpix5

nixpix5

Posted
Posted

I tracked this down after hearing a rumor that we're out of business. :huh:

 

We are still in business.

 

But we've had a rough time over the past year. I was out with an ear infection for about four months last year. So far this year, I've had another ear infection, got rear-ended, caught a really nasty cold, and sold our house. Now we're preparing for a major move at the end of this year. It's an incomplete list, but those would be the highlights. :laugh:

 

We're still writing. Ernie is working on Quark Chronicles Astronomy. I'm working on updating ALL of ELTL--it's becoming a secular program now, and the levels will have letters instead of numbers. You can see more about it on our site. I'm also writing Level F (6 under the old levels) which I plan to publish this summer.

 

I do apologize for being so out of touch. We're currently caught up on emails and plan to stay that way, so drop us a line if you have any questions for us.

Will the original versions of ELTL be around for a bit longer? I ask because I just purchased 1 and 2 and want to get 3 and 4 as well in the non secular versions. Should I get them asap?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

Will the original versions of ELTL be around for a bit longer? I ask because I just purchased 1 and 2 and want to get 3 and 4 as well in the non secular versions. Should I get them asap?

 

You've got some time. I'm thinking that once the updates are finished, both versions will be available through this summer--as long as I don't start getting tons of emails from people who bought the wrong version.  :closedeyes: There's a temptation to leave the original versions available as print books, but I'm afraid it would end up causing confusion unless I actually changed the name. 

 

I will still sell ebook versions of the originals to people after that time. The Bible copywork from the originals will be available as a FREE download on my site, formatted as copywork as they are in the workbooks.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
nixpix5

nixpix5

Posted
Posted

You've got some time. I'm thinking that once the updates are finished, both versions will be available through this summer--as long as I don't start getting tons of emails from people who bought the wrong version. :closedeyes: There's a temptation to leave the original versions available as print books, but I'm afraid it would end up causing confusion unless I actually changed the name.

 

I will still sell ebook versions of the originals to people after that time. The Bible copywork from the originals will be available as a FREE download on my site, formatted as copywork as they are in the workbooks.

Thank you for this information!

I will probably just stock up hee hee :)

 

Being around through the summer...is that true for both the manual and the workbooks?

 

What does that mean for Wayferers? Will that stay the same? Will the bible still be scheduled?

 

Don't mean to inundate you with questions but I want to make sure to plan for the long haul ;)

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

Thank you for this information!

I will probably just stock up hee hee :)

 

Being around through the summer...is that true for both the manual and the workbooks?

 

What does that mean for Wayferers? Will that stay the same? Will the bible still be scheduled?

 

Don't mean to inundate you with questions but I want to make sure to plan for the long haul ;)

 

I don't have any plans to change Wayfarers. Between the Bible reading plan, optional readings from other faiths for the younger children, and comparative religions course in high school, I feel like it does a good job already at offering options regardless of one's faith. It wasn't where I originally planned to take Wayfarers, but I'm happy with where IT took ME. :-)

 

Yes, I will leave both the print manuals and workbooks available through the summer. And they will remain available as PDFs even after that; those who are interested can just drop me an email for a direct purchase.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ExcitedMama

ExcitedMama

Posted
Posted

Hi Kathy,

 

Will you just be making some minor changes then? At least in ELTL1 there only seem to be a few Bible verses so you will just be making the copywork secular? I just bought ELTL2 so going forward there wouldn't be any problem in going from the "old" 2 to the "new" 3 and so on?

 

Thanks!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hi Kathy,

 

Will you just be making some minor changes then? At least in ELTL1 there only seem to be a few Bible verses so you will just be making the copywork secular? I just bought ELTL2 so going forward there wouldn't be any problem in going from the "old" 2 to the "new" 3 and so on?

 

Thanks!

 

Yes, they're pretty minor changes. You certainly won't have any issues moving from the old versions to the new. Here's a list of the changes that I'm working on:

 

  • I'm replacing the Bible copywork with maxims and/or copywork from the literature. [Edited.]
  • I'm replacing some artwork and poetry that are religious in nature, so some of the poetry copywork will have to be updated as well. 
  • Level 1 had Five Little Peppers replaced with The Box-Car Children, The King of the Golden River, and a few more stories from The Orange Fairy Book.
  • The new print books will all be 8.5 x 11, perfect bound as well as spiral when possible. The 6 x 9 size is disappearing completely.
  • The new ebook size is a little strange, but it keeps the page numbers the same as the print books while keeping the page size narrow enough to look good on small tablets. The pages are have an inch wider than before and two inches longer.

 

And like I said, I'll be posting a FREE download with the Bible copywork from the first five levels. I'll also leave the original free art files for those who want the religious paintings--most levels don't have any religious paintings, but a few do. I've considered making a file of the religious poetry that I'm removing, but I'll probably only do that if a lot of people ask for it. I think there are probably plenty of sources for Christian poetry that are readily available, though I could be wrong.

Edited by KathyJo
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted
  • The new print books will all be 8.5 x 11, perfect bound as well as spiral when possible. The 6 x 9 size is disappearing completely.

 

This makes me sad. Mostly because I have a little bit of completion OCD when it comes to books. I have the 6x9 for levels 1-4. Now they really won't match! Well, that and I hate having to hold a 8.5x11 book in my hands to read from. That size is better for desk work. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

This makes me sad. Mostly because I have a little bit of completion OCD when it comes to books. I have the 6x9 for levels 1-4. Now they really won't match! Well, that and I hate having to hold a 8.5x11 book in my hands to read from. That size is better for desk work. 

 

Sorry! I actually agree with you. I prefer the 6x9 size, and that's what they all originally were, but the 8.5 x 11 seems to be more popular overall, especially the spiral version. I don't actually have print copies of any of our books, though, since we have everything on our tablets.

 

The problem with having multiple sizes is two-fold. First, when people report errors by page number, I have to know which version that they're talking about, and the new way solves that problem. Second, maintaining and correcting multiple versions, and having to upload multiple sizes at two different locations when I update, is hard. I generally do a lot of updates at once, so it's really... Well, I'll stick with "hard."

 

On the bright side, your first four and your last four will be two matching sets...  :001_rolleyes:

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
nixpix5

nixpix5

Posted
Posted

Here are the new rainbow-order covers, if anyone is interested in seeing them. :001_smile: I may need to tweak them slightly, but I'm pretty happy with them right now.

 

thumbnail_eltl-covers_a-f_475.png

These look really nice. As silly as it sounds, it was your over art that made me investigate this curriculum in the first place. It was so charming that I had to see what it was about :) Glad you are keeping the original pics.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

These look really nice. As silly as it sounds, it was your over art that made me investigate this curriculum in the first place. It was so charming that I had to see what it was about :) Glad you are keeping the original pics.

 

I'm a graphic artist by training, so it doesn't sound silly to me.  :lol: 

 

And thanks! I'm glad you like them.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

Hi Kathy Jo!

The link in your signature took me to a file-not-found page. Just fyi!

(I was able to easily get to your site from it, but I thought you would want to know). 

 

Thanks! That's from before I had to move my website. I didn't even notice it when I updated my signature.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
silver

silver

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Sorry! I actually agree with you. I prefer the 6x9 size, and that's what they all originally were, but the 8.5 x 11 seems to be more popular overall, especially the spiral version. I don't actually have print copies of any of our books, though, since we have everything on our tablets.

 

The problem with having multiple sizes is two-fold. First, when people report errors by page number, I have to know which version that they're talking about, and the new way solves that problem. Second, maintaining and correcting multiple versions, and having to upload multiple sizes at two different locations when I update, is hard. I generally do a lot of updates at once, so it's really... Well, I'll stick with "hard."

 

On the bright side, your first four and your last four will be two matching sets... :001_rolleyes:

I can call it my "grammar stage set" and my "logic stage set" :D

 

I understand that juggling all the different versions must be hard. It's not like you can just change the paper size and call it good.

 

 

Unrelated to the size changes, have you considered putting a copy of the studied dictation passage in the workbooks? That way the students can mark it up/highlight it in whatever way will help them remember punctuation and spelling while they study the passage.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

Do you have an expected release date on the new books?

What changes will be made to level 5/E?

 

I am super glad to see that you are still in business! I'm sorry about the curve balls you have been handed.

 

I don't have any firm dates yet. Sorry. "This summer" is all I can say so far, though the changes are going quicker than I expected. I have Level 1 completed, and now I'm working on Level 2. I'll publish them and their workbooks before I begin Level 3 edits.

 

Level 5 will have corrections made, Bible dictation passages changed to literature passages, and some religious poetry and artwork changed.

 

And thanks! Not everything has been bad this year, for the record. I don't want to make it sound like it was. :-) But the reality is that I didn't cope well.

 

I can call it my "grammar stage set" and my "logic stage set" :D

 

I understand that juggling all the different versions must be hard. It's not like you can just change the paper size and call it good.

 

 

Unrelated to the size changes, have you considered putting a copy of the studied dictation passage in the workbooks? That way the students can mark it up/highlight it in whatever way will help them remember punctuation and spelling while they study the passage.

 

LOL! 

 

I LOVE the idea of putting the dictation passages in the workbooks, and you timed that request perfectly since I haven't worked on the workbooks yet. I added it to my list of things to change. Thank you!

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ExcitedMama

ExcitedMama

Posted
Posted

Hi Kathy,

 

Since you are switching over to a secular program have you considered making the workbooks available to order from your website or Rainbow Resources? We use a virtual public charter so I'm excited about being able to order ELTL with my funds now that it could qualify but I'm not sure if they would allow workbook orders through Lulu.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

Thank you for posting in this thread KathyJo.

 

I have a question too, if you don't mind.

Do you have a 4 day a week schedule option for wayfarers?

 

I don't mind. I've subscribed to this thread so that I'll continue to be notified of new posts.

 

No, there's not currently a 4 day schedule for Wayfarers. We do it 4 days per week, but we do it year-round, so we complete all 180 days. And I know of others who just carry it over to the next school year. I may consider a 4 day schedule next year since many people have asked about it.

 

Hi Kathy,

 

Since you are switching over to a secular program have you considered making the workbooks available to order from your website or Rainbow Resources? We use a virtual public charter so I'm excited about being able to order ELTL with my funds now that it could qualify but I'm not sure if they would allow workbook orders through Lulu.

 

I'm glad that the change will help. :-) Rainbow Resource has considered picking up the workbooks in the past, but Lulu is the only print-on-demand company that I know of who does spiral bound books, and it's cost prohibitive to buy from them for a retailer. I have considered selling ebooks from my own site, but so far, the idea of dealing with state sales taxes has kept me from it. (Is it wrong to admit that?) That might change in the future, especially since we hope to be living in a different state by the end of the year. So it's a definite, "Eh, maybe." :laugh: Sorry I can't be any more definite than that right now. Once I know for sure where I'll be living in a year, I can do some research and determine the feasibility of it (i.e. find out how many hoops that the new state government will make me jump through).

 

I COULD make them available through Amazon, but it would be a perfect bound book, so you'd really need to cut off the binding and have it spiral bound or three-hole punched. But I'd be willing to do this if there is a demand for it. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
homeschoolwarrior

homeschoolwarrior

Posted
Posted

Kathy Jo,

 

So sorry to hear about your rough year. We have had a rough spell here as well.

 

A quick question if you don't mind. Is this change over to secular curriculum likely to carry on in the future to any new products and updates?

 

The reason for my question is we are trying to find a curriculum to hopefully stay with for the long haul, as we have changed about a million times and my oldest is only eight. :/ So, right now I am in full reasearch mode trying to find out all I can about all our possibilities. It just made me wonder if you all were are planning on being more secular based moving forward.

 

I hope that isn't too forward of a question. Your replies are always so helpful!

 

Thank you!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted

Kathy Jo,

 

So sorry to hear about your rough year. We have had a rough spell here as well.

 

A quick question if you don't mind. Is this change over to secular curriculum likely to carry on in the future to any new products and updates?

 

The reason for my question is we are trying to find a curriculum to hopefully stay with for the long haul, as we have changed about a million times and my oldest is only eight. :/ So, right now I am in full reasearch mode trying to find out all I can about all our possibilities. It just made me wonder if you all were are planning on being more secular based moving forward.

 

I hope that isn't too forward of a question. Your replies are always so helpful!

 

Thank you!

 

I hope things start to improve for y'all as well! And I don't mind the question at all.

 

ELTL was really our only Christian program. RLTL and HLTL have always been secular, though I may add a HLTL copywork book of Psalms or Proverbs in the future. 50 States is secular. Primal Kids and Primal Teens are both secular. Quark Chronicles is very intentionally remaining neutral about the origins of life and the universe--so, secular.

 

Wayfarers will remain as it is, most likely. Nobody does everything in Wayfarers--not even us--so skipping the religious portions should not cause anyone any problems. And if it did become an issue, like with people using state money to purchase curricula, then I probably would publish two versions of it. 

 

So yeah, I think it's safe to say that with ELTL becoming a secular program, any new products we develop in the future will likely be secular and neutral in nature as well. 

 

I read a book once that used an onion to demonstrate the life philosophy of a number of different groups of people. When the narrator got to his own group, he said that his group didn't really care because "we're just here to sell onions." :-) I want to sell curricula, not push forward a particular religious or political ideology. I originally wrote ELTL in the way that WE intended to use it. I'm updating it now to be more useful to all people.

 

I'm going to be frank for a moment. :-) I've been homeschooling now for 15 years, and I've been visiting the WTM boards and homeschooling blogs for almost that long. I've seen a lot of discussions.  :huh: These discussion have occasionally strayed from "that's a Christian program" to "what kind of Christian" the author is. I've seen SWB being asked to defend her decisions as a Christian rather than as a curriculum developer on the old boards. And while I haven't had to deal with such things, exactly--generally speaking, people don't worry about how my beliefs on the Trinity affect how and what I teach about indirect objects--I was once called a fundamentalist and a feminist in the same week. :lol: I'm just not interested in going there; it's a no win situation when I'm just here to sell onions. So we'll develop inclusive curricula--I think I like that word better than "secular." And I'll continue to support my Christian customers by offering at least some of the religious material from the original series as free downloads.

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites
nixpix5

nixpix5

Posted
Posted

I hope things start to improve for y'all as well! And I don't mind the question at all.

 

ELTL was really our only Christian program. RLTL and HLTL have always been secular, though I may add a HLTL copywork book of Psalms or Proverbs in the future. 50 States is secular. Primal Kids and Primal Teens are both secular. Quark Chronicles is very intentionally remaining neutral about the origins of life and the universe--so, secular.

 

Wayfarers will remain as it is, most likely. Nobody does everything in Wayfarers--not even us--so skipping the religious portions should not cause anyone any problems. And if it did become an issue, like with people using state money to purchase curricula, then I probably would publish two versions of it.

 

So yeah, I think it's safe to say that with ELTL becoming a secular program, any new products we develop in the future will likely be secular and neutral in nature as well.

 

I read a book once that used an onion to demonstrate the life philosophy of a number of different groups of people. When the narrator got to his own group, he said that his group didn't really care because "we're just here to sell onions." :-) I want to sell curricula, not push forward a particular religious or political ideology. I originally wrote ELTL in the way that WE intended to use it. I'm updating it now to be more useful to all people.

 

I'm going to be frank for a moment. :-) I've been homeschooling now for 15 years, and I've been visiting the WTM boards and homeschooling blogs for almost that long. I've seen a lot of discussions. :huh: These discussion have occasionally strayed from "that's a Christian program" to "what kind of Christian" the author is. I've seen SWB being asked to defend her decisions as a Christian rather than as a curriculum developer on the old boards. And while I haven't had to deal with such things, exactly--generally speaking, people don't worry about how my beliefs on the Trinity affect how and what I teach about indirect objects--I was once called a fundamentalist and a feminist in the same week. :lol: I'm just not interested in going there; it's a no win situation when I'm just here to sell onions. So we'll develop inclusive curricula--I think I like that word better than "secular." And I'll continue to support my Christian customers by offering at least some of the religious material from the original series as free downloads.

This makes so much sense. I have always wondered about this. As a Christian myself I always wondered why a Christian wouldn't just make a Christian curriculum. I hadn't at all considered the focus other consumers would place on the author's religious position. It does then take the focus off of the product and onto the author and their personal family choices. This was eye opening and helpful! Thank you for your transparency.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
nixpix5

nixpix5

Posted
Posted (edited)

Quick update: Levels A and B are now available on Lulu. They should be available on Amazon within a week.

 

http://barefootmeandering.com/site/bookstore/#eltl

I am not seeing the previous workbooks that go with the previous books. Where can I still get my hands on those? I still need to purchase level 3 in spiral copy. Thank you!

 

Nevermind...I am clueless and blind ;) just saw your link at the top of the page.

Edited by nixpix5
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
KathyJo

KathyJo

Posted
Posted (edited)

I am not seeing the previous workbooks that go with the previous books. Where can I still get my hands on those? I still need to purchase level 3 in spiral copy. Thank you!

 

Nevermind...I am clueless and blind ;) just saw your link at the top of the page.

 

Okay, good. :-) I'll see if I can make the link more obvious. It's hard because we all tend to skim. LOL

 

With Lulu, I can make all of the original books available only by direct link. In other words, people will only be able to find them if they have the links to the pages on Lulu. I think I'm going to leave the books on Lulu, along with the workbooks, permanently. People will have to go to that special page in order to find the links, so there will be no confusion about having different versions on Amazon and in my Lulu store. Presumably, anyone who is on that special page will be there on purpose. 

 

ETA: The links between the two pages are now large and bold. :-)

Edited by KathyJo
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...