Welcome :) Well, we alternate science to 2 days a week and do history 3 days for the LG/UG kids. Completing PR + history/science + math + independent reading (If We all do science, then they read history independently and vice versa) + one family game + one elective (daily drawing/journaling/art/music) + a little computer time (drilling) and we're at about 5 hours per day for the boys. They spend about 3.75--4 of those hours with me. Dialectic has a 6-8 hour day, depending on workload. They have science daily and a bunch of electives. Rhetoric around 7-9 hours a day. I spend about 2 hours a day with meetings and subject reviews for D and R. I grade papers and small tasks, so I am "working" from about 7--5.

Yes, and I'll come back this week with answers :) I'm off to the beach. GO FL Spring and summer, go!

I was in heaven on Earth! She is such a delightful woman! What a joy to spend time with her and simply enjoy the humanity of a fellow home schooling mom. I still think I'm gonna be her when I grow up. She's G.R.E.A.T.!

Actually, TOG will rec. some pretty cool "biography" type books that are also "activity" books. If you take the DaVinci book, do the experiments, then use an Encyclopedia to solidify the topics (inertia, anatomy force, forming of starts, solor system, etc. that are in the books suggested) you'll have a nice science to go along. I'm doing it for year 4 this year...unit studies built around TOG topics, that are science related: read, experiment, notebook 2 days per week of science. I'll also be using Netflix to compliment subject areas in science/TOG.

Funny....when we did year 1, we only did unit 4 in TOG. We started with SOTW and MOH. I loved the combo. It will be a new experience for me once we get back around to year 1 and I use living books. I suspect I will include: You Wouldn't Wanna Be a (viking, Roman Soldier, etc.) Eggelton's (something like that) Children's Illustrated Bible The Bible Then we'll go from there. Sorry I'm no help this time!

Looks like you have a plan. You'll get some practice in paragraph building in WA, for sure! Between LR, SH, and TOG, you should be SET for LA!

Great job! That is fine sentence writing! This is actually an ideal group of sentences to show how a paragraph puts several sentences together that talk about one topic. Have him cut out all of his "paragraphs" then put them into two groups: trouble maker & painter. Then he can re-write the sentences as 2 paragraphs. In the same way, you can take the run-on (love those sentences where you can "hear" their excitement), have him break that one apart by identifying the "who" and "what" of each sentence (teaching that every sentence must have a who, did what, complete thought). He's given you some great starting points. Sounds like reading paragraph town will be fun!

You could use it and watch for areas of weakness. Perhaps you could start with tests first to rule out and skip areas he is really strong. That way, he starts out with a chance to eliminate busy work. It's a nice perk when you're in 6th grade. If he finishes, then he's done with the work for good. Sounds like he could be okay. You could also use Shurley as reinforcement to LR, using sections in Shurley as the topics arise in LR. This might offer the practice he needs. So, the next question is, is he ready for some heavy copywork? Some days may be 15 minutes, while others might take 45. Can he handle that and will he study vocabulary words. This is where "maturity" is necessary for the program. If the answer is yes, he's good for LR; if not, then the Bridge will bring him to both grammar and working maturity, that and another year of school, of course.

I make sure I have a primary factual book, a narrative spine, one literature selection, activity book and then I have the book basket for anything left. That way, they have the chance to read more, or I can grab from the basket with extra time. Over time, you'll find their favorite authors and that will help narrow your choosing, too.

I say both. We learn grammar as a foundation of language arts. Once the basic foundation is set, we start building on it through writing. Then we bring them together by pulling grammar out of writing. Works wonders! Coming at children from more than one direction is often worth every effort!

Perhaps this will help you.

I'd say by the end of level 2, it will far surpass the creative writing and spelling allowed on most standardized tests (even handwriting for that matter). While I am not familiar with the ITBS, I can tell you PR will have satisfactory spelling and sentence writing by the end of level 1. Fluency and comprehension are also addressed in PR1; however, I find the developed abilities of most 1st graders is well-varied enough that how well a child does in this area is less dependent on PR1 and moreso a reflection of their individual ability.

If you think he needs more, thorough practice, then the Bridge would be a nice start. Keep in mind there will be more dictation in the Bridge versus more copy work in LR. If you think he only needs practice in a couple of areas, then start with Daily Grams alongside LR. If you have something (even a website) that can serve as a "primer" for areas he needs practice, then you can easily find lessons based on his errors in DG and give him the specific practice he needs. In the meantime, he'll be moving forward in both grammar and Latin using LR. With Writing Aids tossed in there, you should see some progress in vocabulary selections, spelling, and writing.

Can your son define and recognize the parts of speech in a sentence? nouns (common, proper, subject), pronouns (object, possessive, subject), verbs (action, linking, helping, being), adjective (articles, pronoun), adverbs, predicate (simple & compound), subject (simple and compound), predicate nominatives and pred. adjectives, prepositions and does he know which questions to ask for each of these (Which One? How many? What kind of? etc.? Can he parse or diagram a sentence? I'm sure I'm leaving something out, as I just hammered that out without referencing anything, but if the answer is, no, then start with the Bridge. If the answer is yes, then head to LR. What has he done for grammar thusfar? Tell me the name and which level is the highest he'll complete before moving forward. I may be able to identify for sure :)

YOU are crackin' me up...I thought you made your decision! Notebook samples honestly don't do much for the program, but here's a post about a Letter of the Week will show how easy it is to implement O/G methods to teach to read. It's been great over here. Day in the Life of PR2. Planning Time for PR1&2 Cursive in PR2 Flipping through the notebook, here is some grammar and lit. in PR2 If you sift through the empty notebook, it doesn't look like much, but by the time your student fills in each section, they have a Language Arts handbook. It's great! Let me know if you'd like to see anything in particular.

Weeellll....b.or.i.n.g. comes to mind. My sons pleaded with me to never again torture someone with the Gen. Sci. The Physical Science was better, but we felt like the push for Young Earth was too hard. We are young Earth and we got a "he's trying too hard and it's kind of annoying" feeling. We have moreso enjoyed the Biology for high school. I am going a different route with the next lot and putting together more living books + Lyrical Science (in the pipeline for next year) + Noeo + Unit Studies.

It's very complimentary, actually. The grammar is hit in LR, as is a word study of derivatives, so there's a kind of vocabulary + the vocab from the lit/history of TOG rounds it out nicely. Use WA and you're good for Composition. They go along very well!

Latin + Grammar are in LR. Plenty of grammar :) Make sure there is a nice foundation of grammar understanding (an elementary one) before moving into LR. If you need more practice, the Bridge is a good starting point. We use all 3. PR is not as intensive for the teacher once you hit level 3; although I don't find it as intensive as other programs. It's very simple to keep a 15-20m daily schedule for topic areas. On the days that require more time, we just limit our work to fit our time restraints. No problem. TOG and PR compliment each other very nicely. Once you pick up some skills in PR, you'll be able to use them in TOG very nicely. We get a lot of narration, summary, and graphic organization from applying the PR skills to TOG (and science). I have 3 in LR, who are doing it completely independently, save daily review of flash cards w/ mom.

Take turns. She does a word, you sound a out a word (modeling), she goes, you go, etc. We had MAJOR tears with 5 out of 6 of the first kids to learn (I didn't teach the 6th). PR has been the only program that hasn't brought tears in learning to read and it fixed a bunch of problems w/ 5&6. Hang in there!

I've heard this before. It was a stopping point for me. I don't know if the plan is the same, but I can say that TOG is more singularly focused for grammar stages and gives more American + World history in D & R. Perhaps this singular focus is appropriate for your age group since it's a commonality amongst 2 great programs.

So glad you started this thread. We're ordering the Com. Book of Ani. too. Looks like a Great Independent read!

I taught my 5yo this year and we had ZERO tears! I couldn't say that for any other program we used to teach reading! He is boy #5 in the house and wiggly is simply a way of life in the Gilbert Gang. We did much of the writing as 1) build the words with tiles, cards, or magnets 2) I wrote the words on paper after he built them 3)he copied the words We also used the white board so he could make jumbo sized letters. There are posts called "A Letter A Week" on my blog. Those posts can give you an idea of how PR will be implemented to teach reading. It's very multi-sensory...hands on, oral, visual, auditory. We also use LR and you will not need more grammar. There is PLENTY. I was worried about it when we started b/c of what others suggested, so we continued with Daily Grams. It was totally unnecessary, so we dropped it pretty quickly. LR has a TON of grammar and is really sticking with my dc. WOOT WOOT!

The assignment is to read a chapter of their Helen Keller book each day, then write 3 or more sentences to summarize the chapter. This work is from an 8yo boy, 2nd grader. He has never had writing instruction beyond PR. I have not made any additions or corrections, this is straight from the horses pencil ;) There are few errors, but overall, he did a great job. We'll go back in the end and work through the Writing Process and correct spelling errors, etc. He has completed PR2 and is in week 7 of PR3. We have not moved forward in PR3, but instead will work on these types of assignments in history and science over the summer. I want them to apply all they've learned and PR3 picks up in intensity, so we're in No Hurry! The areas I will correct are in parenthesis. Each of the corrections will be based on topics covered in PR. When Helen Keller was 18 months she got the scarlet fever. After the scarlet fever was gone Mrs. Keller found out that Helen was deaf and blind. (write out 18; commas; capitalization) When Helen Keller was five her sister was born, Mildred. Soon Helen had sixty signs. Her hands spread out means she wants something big. Two fingers pinched together means she wants something small. Helen didn't like Mildred when she wanted fall into her Mom's hands Mildred was there. Helen spilled water on her apron she placed the apron by the fireplace she was impatient and set the apron on top of the flames and set the apron on fire. (writing in proper tense; run-ons) The Perkins Institute is a school for the deaf and blind. Helen knew something was going on because the house was getting cleaned, new scents coming from the kitchen, and the guest room aired out. Soon there was a knock on the door it was Miss Annie Sullivan. She was the teacher of the Perkins Institute. she came over to show Helen how to read. (capitalization, commas) It all started at breakfast Helen knew how to use her spoon but she choosed to use her hands. She had bad manner's, anger management. One day Helen locked Annie in her room and hid the key Helen's father had to et a ladder and get her out of the window. Helen was bad she ran, she hid. She faught and she hated Annie. (looks like we need some work before we move on to prevent repeated capitalization and comma errors!) Annie told Mrs. Keller that she need's to take Helen away for a couple years because she need's Helen to learn that Annie is not an enemy in her life. Annie taught Helen how to do sign language, read braile. Soon Helen knew how to write eighty different words. Suddenlly, there was a change. Helen still faught but not as hard she grew calm. (commas, spelling)

SWR is a WONDERFUL program, but there is a significant learning curve. Once you pass this, you're in good shape. The plus of PR is the wonderful foundation (think of it as a cousin to SWR), and the across the board application. It really connected the dots for my family. We no longer see Spelling AND Grammar AND writing AND Literature...we see Language Arts and it has really made a difference in our skill level, ability to apply across subject lines, and our enjoyment level. I spend less time in PR than I did when I taught from a more ecclectic mix of LA materials. I also want to add...as an old home schooler :D there are times in this journey where time investment is necessary. In the early years, get that foundation solid! It will be worth however much time it takes. Trust me...remediation is a nightmare!

I love the incorporated writing in PR. After stumbling a bit with my first round of elementary school (my oldest is 15 now), I have learned that application means so much in writing, spelling and grammar. PR 3 is probably where you'd fit for spelling. Personally, since they are similar, I think you'd be fine picking up the spelling in PR3, which will begin with a review of the PR1&2 words. This will also give you a nice chance to learn the markings in PR (won't take long to learn for you or the dc). About midway, the spelling is turned into the word study. It is excellent. We have learned so much from it this year, it sticks, and it is much less boring than other routes we have taken. There is a nice post about the word study on my blog. As for writing, the beginnings of the writing program are in Level 2; however, if you can write sentences and do a very simple outline, you're in good shape. If not, you'll find it will be easy to decipher from Level 3 instructions and you can "catch up" pretty quickly. The writing will come right out of the literature study, which is Wonderful for application and brings out clear understanding. It's easy to "see" the writing in level 3 b/c you're using well written literature to bring it out. The DVDs will take little to no time for the spelling portion and each and every thing you need for grammar will be on the DVD (pulled from lit. study in the 2nd half of the year). I always rec. dvd-a-thons b/c I found, I can sit down, crank out some notes while watching the dvds, then grab and go during the week. I spent time in summer planning out all of year 3. You can also find a blog on how much time it took me to plan. By watching the DVDs you'll get the hand holding for writing you need. It's great. I love PR. It is one product that has truly made a Difference in our home schooling -- a real difference. I'll never look towards another LA program again -- there is not need! FWIW, I have lots of kids, and lots of learning styles. We've made PR work for each of us, I love it, the kids enjoy it and I see tremendous results. Check out my blog. There's loads of info. on PR.