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xanderlily

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Posts posted by xanderlily

  1. Learning Language Arts Through Literature (the Gold Books) have Short Stories, Poetry, and Novel studies for World, American, and British History. We are only going to use parts of the guides.

    This is great. I've been so turned off to LLATL since it was our first (and very bad) experience with homeschool language arts (we are definitely not spiral learners), and I didn't realize the gold series is laid out very differently. Thank you for bringing this to my attention! I checked it out & it might be just what we need to supplement.

    I'm thinking of breaking the World Lit up over the first two years, to allow for other individual book studies in line with Biblioplan. Then I could feel all warm & fuzzy inside that they got the poetry, prose, short story exposure. Thank you! ðŸ˜

     

    Another thing I have done is to use a Literature Text. We *do* lots of short stories/poems/a few essays/a few excerpts and just discuss any full length work. I don't ever want my kids to dread reading because every book has to be STUDIED, kwim?

     

    I remember SWB once mentioning - maybe in the 1st ed WTM, maybe at a convention? - that she gave The Once and Future King to one of her boys and then didn't ask him anything, as she wanted him to just have a private relationship with it, the way she had had when she first read it.

     

    So we read many, discuss most, analyze several, write about some. Otherwise we would read a lot less! Ideally we would write more...well, I've had each child read and write at the right level for them. It has varied with each one.

     

    Of course - jmo. ymmv.

    Man, this is soooo good for me to hear. Such encouragement. I definitely struggle to not overschedule, then push the schedule, kill the passion. This is why I feel so much more at ease with a text or guide of some sort. I truly wish that wasn't the case.

     

    I think a text of some sort is definitely the route for me to go, then I can sub-in/cut out to use other guides. Just to find one that matches the chronological study has proven a struggle. I really like Stobaugh, which can be modified to fit the rotation, but they're a bit too meaty for my reluctant writer 9th grader(they're geared toward 10-12th anyway). I'll have to look into LLATL some more, they might work.

     

     

    Thank you so much for your wisdom ladies!!

    • Like 1
  2. I don't have any advice per se, but wanted to let you know there are guides out there for poetry and short stories if you want to utilize them. Memorial Press has a couple and I think Total Language Plus has a short story guide. I can't tell you how they are as I have not used them. :)

    Awesome! Good to know! I really love some of the guides available out there and would love to go that route, so this definitely intrigues me. Thanks so much for the info! Off to check them out...

  3. I always make a list, get some lit guides - individual or one that covered several works, read everything, and then do a different amount of discussion/analysis/writing for each work.

     

    For example, once for year 3 - Early Modern - I used the Lightning Lit guides for early to mid 19th C American and British Lit. We read other books etc. that year but we only analyzed/wrote about works that were covered in the LL guides. We read other books by Austen but only *did* Pride and Prejudice. We read several short stories by Poe but only *did* The Tell Tale Heart.

     

    HTH!

    Ok, that makes sense. Thank you! I was definitely wondering about that... reading more works than are analyzed. I don't want to overwhelm them, but I'm definitely nervous about striking a good balance b/w exposure to plenty of good works & going deeper.

  4. Just jumping in to tell you that I have taught lots of high schoolers starting with First Form. I have even taught high schoolers using the younger book, Latina Christiana I (and II, which MP doesn't use anymore.) It goes easier for them than for younger students, of course. But no matter how old you are, you start at the beginning when learning something new. They should be able to move more quickly through it, theoretically. We always just beefed it up with doing other things like lots of history and culture and learning songs, prayers, etc.

    Fantastic advice, thank you! It's hard to know what their tolerance level will be with so many changes, so I will definitely keep this in mind. Out of curiousity, do you have any experience with Visual Latin? I thought the humor & video format might ease the transition. Plus, I got it for a song. I was planning on First Form before I found VS & already have the flashcards which I still plan to use.

  5. Hey guys!!  I have been on a month long intensive trek into switch everyone over to the classical model after 6 years of homeschooling (ds15, ds14, dd10, ds6).  I have almost everything figured out, but could really use some advice on literature, as it pertains to history before my head explodes, lol.

     

    My plan for history:

     

    ds15 (10th) Dave Raymond's Modernity

    Biblioplan Ancients + VP cards for:

    ds14 (9th)

    dd10 (5th)

    ds6 (1st)

     

    The struggle... guides vs full curriculum.

    I love the CAP British & MP guides for analysis, but my major concern is about things like poetry, short stories, etc...? I know I can use a separate poetry curriculum,  but is that enough? 

    That sounds very disjointed to me.

    I love a lit program that seams them together,  maybe with some worldview, but not sure how to work with the 4 year cycle without just going bare bones with a Lit guide.

     

    It seems like I have 2 options:

    1. Lit guides for individual books

    2. Complete lit program following a traditional history cycle (i.e. World Lit/Am Lit/Brit Lit)

     

    Am I wrong?

     

    I do reeeeeally like the look of Stobaugh's World/Am/Brit Lit curricula,  but would need to buy all 3 & chop them up to use them in a 4 yr cycle. Well, at least 2 this first year. Ugh.

     

    Any suggestions? What am I missing?

  6. We've enjoyed Apologia Biology with the student notebook & DVDs (our favorite part).

     

    I'm in the same boat as you with choosing an American History for next year. We're planning on Dave Raymond' s American History through Compass Classroom. It's a streaming video course w/ pdf book downloads. He's quite interesting & we are able to get it as a bundle of 8 courses for $16/mo. The website has sample videos.

  7. We've used the dvds this year & loved them!! I can't say enough good things about them.

    My son does well just reading the text & answering questions, but I'm visual & if I was taking the class, the dvd would be what kept me engaged. Idk if you saw already, but the Apologia website has sample videos.

    Some show her on location, the computer animations explaining processes & diagrams were particularly helpful, then of course, she does the labs.

    We were able to purchased them used, which is the only reason I got them at the time, but now I plan to buy them for our remaining Apologia courses, and I won't mind at all paying full price. ðŸ‘

  8. FWIW, we've done several years of Easy Grammar the Ultimate Series, & are so ready to move onto something else as well. We're planning to use Fix It Grammar to firm up the actual use of all that grammar we've learned.

     

    Also, there is Analytical Grammar's Reinforcement books for the high school level. It's one page a week of parsing & diagramming using excerpts from real books.

  9. Ok, I wanna cry now...

    I just did the thing where you spend an hour typing/editing, then lose it all. :banghead:

    Well, here goes.

     

    I've spent the last 2 weeks poring over all of your advice, other threads, websites & here's where I am. (I've highlighted in blue the ones I'm still needing help with.)

     

    *What I have...

    DS 15 (entering 10th):

    Jacob's Geometry, Apol Human Anatomy, Visual Latin I, Fallacy Det/Thinking Toolbox/Art of Argument (leading to MP Trad/Mat Logic), Fix It w/ MPs Grammar Recit I-III (or Analyt Grammar Review), LToW I

    Dave Raymond's Amer History/Stobaugh's Amer Lit

    (maybe) MP's Classical Studies

    +Electives

     

    DS 14 (entering 9th):

    MUS Algebra I, Apol Human Anatomy, Visual Latin I, Fallacy Det/Thinking Toolbox/Art of Argument (leading to MP Trad/Mat Logic), Fix It w/ MPs Grammar Recit I-III (or Analyt Grammar Review), IEW to LToW I

    This is where it gets messy:

    Dave Raymond's Amer History/Stobaugh's Amer Lit,(maybe) MP's Classical Studies

    OR

    beefed up VP Ancients rotation (w/ younger sister) + Spielvogel/Streams of Civs/SWB Ancients/History Odyssey

    OR

    Omnibus I

     

    *Things I'm still struggling with:

    I am in loooove with the idea of chronological history studies. My other 3 will all start on the Ancients rotation this year (1st, 5th, 9th). However DS15, just finished a year of World History, and would be in Year 2, so it seemed too easy to just go on with the Am Hist/Econ/Govt sequence. Can this still result in a classical study, if I add MP's Classical Studies (specifically Book of Ancient World/Greeks/Romans) & a classicaly based American History? I am a bit overwhelmed looking at separate History/Lit/Classical Studies & thinking, this looks like so much more than say, Omnibus.

     

    Not to mention the fact ---- Eastern Hemisphere. Ugh.

     

    DS14: I had originally planned for him to do the Amer Hist/Lit with my oldest, for a more robust discussion time, but then I thought to include him with my DD10 during her VP memory time (putting him in the Year 1 rotation), afterwards having him break off with Spielvogel/Streams of Civs/SWB Ancients or even History Odyssey. I'm disappointed to not have found an option from a Christian persective, tho. He is so bright, but dysgraphic, possibly dyslexic, so I don't know if something like this would be too much. I thought starting the day with the cards might appeal to him. Or is Omnibus 1 even an option for a child like him???

     

    I've discovered I don't do well with too many choices or spiral methods. They've been the death of me. This past year we tried some ABeka and BJU & I found that I love structure & plans. It enables me to be creative, but keeps me on track for where I want us to go. RIP... KONOS, Diana Waring's History Revealed, LLATL, OH, how I loved them!! I've been courting Tapestry of Grace, but realized the likelihood of it ending the same way. So I walked away. Good choice, right???? (please say yes, please say yes....)

     

    Thank you for reading all of this, I know this was long!!

    Jennie

  10. First, I would try to tackle a crashcourse in Grammar. Maybe Analytical Grammar at an accelerated pace? I have heard good things about AG for kids that have holes in grammar and I am trying it with my 8th grade ds this coming year. Also, maybe check out SWB's talk about high school writing and her talk about literary analysis. They are available at the WTM press website. I recall them giving very practical suggestions for things to try to implement. Best of luck!

     

    I'll definitely check out this talk! Great suggestion!

    We did AG a couple of years ago (which they haaaated, but we did it). Then we moved on to Easy Grammar, just to keep up grammar review in a different format. Since their diagramming is definitely rusty, I had planned a splash of AG review alongside Fix It Grammar, this upcoming year (if I go straight AG, I lose em,IYKWIM).

    Or does that sound like a totally crazy idea?

     

    You might look at Memoria Press' Logic curriculum and have your high schoolers start with Logic I. Each course is a semester long and would be completely appropriate for High School. (If that's a class you're interested in them taking!)

     

    For instance, writing, Lost Tools of Writing, Latin I (of whichever sort you want) , Logic I and then Ancients for History.....

     

    Can you say what in particular you don't think will work on SWB's upper level Histories? Is it just too much reading? I think History of the Ancient World is an excellent overview for high school (or adults)- would Audible work? You might also look at Greenleaf Guides to get something a little lighter but still thorough.....you can use the suggested texts and then have discussions instead of so much writing while working through the dyslexia, etc.

     

    We used Fix It Grammar by IEW to fix the grammar holes dd had after leaving public school. She's really enjoyed it and it's worked!

    I'm definitely planning on Logic, but haven't been sure which, so thanks for the lead, I'll check the MP out! We've always done Building Thinking Skills & read the Fallacy Detective a couple of years ago, but I'm ready to do a formal logic, for sure.

     

    I picked up a free IEW History-based Writing for my reluctant writer... After 4 or so different writing curricula, he says he loves it! Ironically, one of the failed attempts was an IEW class at the height of his dysgraphia/dyslexia.

    I also have LToW which I was planning to start my 10th grader on in the fall. He's not had tons writing instruction, but is a natural writer, so I'm hoping just jumping in with LToW will be fine for him. Also considering Windows to the World for Lit Analysis, but just heard about Lightning Lit.... so many good choices.

     

    Latin I... I wasn't sure if I should head toward First Form (sounds too young for HS), Henle (sound difficult for me to teach, maybe?), or... ?

    I recently heard about Latin Road to English Grammar, but it sounds expensive & messes up my grammar plans, lol. Still researching here...

     

    Lastly, SWB history.

    The reading might be fine, they're good readers. The student book seems like it might evoke the feeling of being thrown in the deep end. Not sure if it's too intense. Not being classical students, they're pretty used to plug & chug. I've worked hard to incorporate critical thinking & comprehension into just about everything, but I feel I may have lost this battle up until now.

    I stumbled on History Odyssey & it seems interesting.

    I like that is all laid out, but still has the benefits of a varied chronological study.

    I have a 1st & 5th grader coming up as well to juggle all this with, so I need a structured program.

     

    Roman Roads Media courses (particularly Old Western Culture of which we are particularly fans of!) might be helpful if you're looking for a video course option:

     

    https://romanroadsmedia.com/courses/

    Thank you so much! I haven't heard of this, I'll definitely look into it. ðŸ‘
  11. Thank you everyone for your encouragement, advice & responding so quickly!

     

    Hi! I just wanted to say that to me the bolded seems like he still does have signs of dyslexia; the spelling and avoiding writing.

     

    Hmmmmm.... ok. I guess I need to do a little more digging to see if we need intervention. We've done Dianne Craft therapy/ exercises, which have been great, but I suppose we should continue them. He now reads at an 11th grade reading level, which is why I thought he was past it. 😔

    • Like 1
  12. Hey everyone! I need help.

    I've been perusing these forums since '13 & this is my first post. I've been homeschooling for 6 years, but have just recently read TWTM.

    Omg.

    I wish I had done that 6 yrs ago, it would've changed everything. I have been eclectic, using several of the curriculum mentioned across the forum & wanted terribly to tackle subjects like Latin & logic, not really realizing I was running parallel in my curriculum choices.

    Now that I've decided to jump all in, I'm not quite sure how to transition my upcoming 9th & 10th graders into TWTM method for history & lit when it's so different than what they know. I'm worried about transitioning into rhetoric (in general) without the foundation of grammar & logic, especially.

    This year we did Notgrass History, combining the history, lit & Bible. We love the primary documents, but there's no study of lit analysis.

     

    My gifted/ADHD 10th grader enjoys the reading & answering the questions, hates the projects. This doesn't bother me too much b/c he enjoys the writing, too.

    My 9th grader has worked through dysgraphia (still working), possibly dyslexia (at least the symptoms, but they're gone now) & hoooorid spelling. He is so bright, probably gifted as well. He did the lower level Notgrass this year, but pigs will fly before he will do all that writing in the upper level Notgrass.

    I've looked at SWB history books online, they don't seem like an option at all (tho they do love to read), but I looove the idea of the chronological history study. I have an upcoming 1st & 5th grader I intend to take through SOTW 1 & would love to have my 9th grader start with Ancients as well. My 10th grader could do Medieval.

     

    I've read about every history thread I could find, but really don't know where to start.

    Any advice on transitioning into classical/ WTM in general during rhetoric is coveted as well.

     

    TIA!!

    • Like 1
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