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Melabella

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Everything posted by Melabella

  1. Hmmm...I am considering using SOTW next year, but now I'm concerned. Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin increased slave labor. Is that what you meant to say or does the book truly assert that it was reduced with the invention of the cotton gin?
  2. I am so glad this thread was posted because I really thought it was just a problem with my dd9. I once read that a child has to regress a little to progress (developmentally). Maybe that is part of it. I just know that it's really discouraging for the mother/teacher when everything is going along smoothly, then snap! They can't remember basic math facts. Mel
  3. We are using FLL3 this year and I consider the workbook a necessity. If you are following the scripted lessons in the TM, you say a lot of "Now, read the sentence in exercise 2." Also, this is an example from one of the lessons: "I will ask you to read each of the sentences, 5 through 9, in your workbook, and circle the preposition in the sentence. Then I will ask you to underline the prepositional phrase." So, if you didn't have the workbook, you would write out or type the sentences. The $15 for the workbook is worth every penny to me. HTH Mel
  4. How many days per week do you do The Elements and how much time do you spend per lesson?
  5. These are my current plans for next year. Any feedback? Math – finish Saxon 6/5; Saxon 7/6 Science – Ellen McHenry’s The Elements and Carbon Chemistry + Beautiful Feet’s History of Science (1 lesson per week – may not finish in 1 year) Spelling - Sequential Spelling 2 Vocabulary – Vocabulary Vines and Science Roots through co-op + some vocab work from TOG Grammar – First Language Lessons 4 Writing – totally undecided (Writing Aids, Classical Writing, Meaningful Composition 4 or 5, ?) Please help! Latin – Lively Latin History/Literature – Tapestry of Grace - Year 4 Geography – TOG + complete Trail Guides of US Geography Art – TOG + outside pottery class (I also have Artistic Pursuits 2) Music – Choir and guitar class at co-op + Beautiful Feel History of Classical Music (probably stretched over 2 years) Typing – Typing Instructor Deluxe PE – soccer team and tennis lessons I really don't know what to do for writing. My daughter is bright and has a good voice in her creative writing, but the mechanics are bad (albeit improving). We have done very little, almost zero, essay-type writing and I really want to focus on that. Therefore, I'm looking for something with a KWO focus, but not IEW. Also, I have tried so many science programs and none of them have worked for me. I just can't get into them enough to implement them on a regular basis. DD loves the hands-on stuff. Any suggestions? I really want to do Chemistry, but am open to anything but Biology or Earth science for next year.
  6. Thank you all so much! All of the replies were very helpful, and I am now 99% certain I will give TOG a shot. Mama Lynx please do continue posting about TOG on your blog. I have bookmarked it for follow-up. The last thing I have to determine is where to start. We are doing SL Core 3 now, so that puts us in a strange place with TOG. Ideally, I would cover Civil War and the rest of the 19th century in a mini-unit this summer, then start with Y4 in the fall. I'm just a little concerned about doing Y4 while it is still in progress. Thanks again, Mel
  7. We are a Christian family; however, we don't homeschool for religious reasons or for the purpose of indoctrinating my child with religious beliefs. I am considering TOG for next year primarily for the "thinking" questions, literature analysis, and writing instruction provided. Do the majority of the leading questions and analysis center around religion (i.e, God, Jesus, Bible)? Mel
  8. Thanks, Brenda. Did you have to substitue a lot of the books? One of my main reasons for switching from SL to TOG is the literary analysis/literature worksheets. If I have to substitute a lot, that would negate that benefit, right? If I do decide to go with TOG Y4 next year, I'm thinking it is safest to go with a used or borrowed Classic edition. The release dates for Redesigned seem very up in the air. They don't even guarantee that they are going to complete the Redesign Y4.
  9. Thank you! That is helpful. I was referring to AP US and World History, AP Literature, and the SAT in general. I realize that TOG approaches history chronologically so that all 4 years encompass World History. I guess I was just hoping that the student might retain enough to do well on the AP tests and that the writing assignments would be sufficient for the SAT. Mel
  10. Anyone? Maybe TOG isn't common for high school?
  11. Thanks, Heather. I have read many of your posts about TOG (including those on the SL boards) as I have been researching, and have found your input very helpful.
  12. Thanks, Jen. I noticed the lack of fiction in the Y1 samples, too.
  13. Thank you for your response. I'm not terribly excited about ancient history, but I love the medieval period. Not sure I could codense that one. Also, I feel compled to finish US History (1850 - present) next year.
  14. My dd will be going in to the 5th grade next year and I am considering switching from SL to TOG. My question is for those of you who have used TOG at the Rhetoric/HS level. Do you feel it adequately prepared your child for SAT and AP tests? If you used TOG during the K-8 years, but did something else for HS, what were your reasons? Thanks, Mel
  15. Here's the background: I have one child, dd9, and we will be going into our third year of homeschooling this coming fall. I winged it the first year. This year we are doing SL Core 3. We like it, but it is not as complete a program as I thought it would be. I have been researching other curricula and have finally decided that TOG best fits our needs. However, I have a few questions/concers and am hoping some of you can help me. 1.) Where should we start? We did early American History our first year and repeated/continued this year with SL Core 3. It looks like we pick up around TOG Y3 Unit 3, but that is a bit quirky. I could do a summer unit on the Civil War, then start with TOG Y4. 2.) If I do that, what is the deal with Y4 Redesign plans? I will want to prep this summer, so should I just order the classic? 3.) The Loom - do you just buy one of these that covers all four years or do you have to purchase a separate one each year? 4.) The only thing I dislike about TOG is the literature selections I see for Y4. My daughter would be in the UG level and there are a lot of American Girl books listed. I don't mind those, but I don't consider them "school" type of reading. How difficult would it be to add in other literature? Would I lose a lot of the benefits of using TOG (the lit analysis/questions)? I might be able to move her up to the Dialectic literature. Is it more classical literature. 5.) Thinking long term here. If I switch to a chronological history sequence, I would like my dd to complete Y4 in 11th grade. There is a likely possibility that she will graduate then or I want her to have those courses for testing purposes. She will be in 5th grade next year. I can't come up with a plan that logically progresses so that she hits Y4 in 11th. Any suggestions? Sorry this is so long. If anyone has any advice or comments for any of my questions, I would really appreciate it.
  16. I don't know what your school day looks like, but I can tell you what I do for my dd9. She was in ps for K - 2nd grade and was primarily reading a lot of twaddle. It's one of the reasons I pulled her out. So, we didn't do a lot (but some) classic literature reading until about age 8. She loves the classics and Sonlight books, but she still likes her twaddle, too. We are using Sonlight this year, so we usually have a literature and history read-aloud each day. This takes anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour. She also has an assigned reader which is usually on the easy side for her and she finishes them ahead of schedule. She spends 30 to 45 minutes during "school" time reading to herself. Then, I put her to bed and she reads for an hour before lights out. She has to read a specified amount of the classic literature book I have assigned (from earlier in the day) - usually a certain number of chapters. It depends on the difficulty level of the book. I try to determine what will take her about 30 minutes - sometimes it's a chapter, someitmes it's three. After that, she is free to read any of her twaddle books until lights out. I work from home at night, so I can't read to her at bedtime and this system works for us. Your children may be too young to spend that much time reading each day, but perhaps you could use a similar situation that would require the classic literature and allow for some twaddle. I LOVE the classics and have since I was a teenager. However, I also remember reading Sweet Valley High and VC Andrews books as a kid.
  17. I haven't used Spelling Workout; however, Sequential Spelling has done wonders for my dd9. I highly recommend it for those who struggle to spell. Mel
  18. Do you allow your son to color, doodle, build with legos, mold clay, or something similar while you read aloud? I just read another thread (not sure if it was here or on the SL forums) that had a link to a study that proved doodling helps people retain information they hear aloud. I know this is true for my daughter who has similar issues as your son. She usually colors or plays with beads while I read-aloud and she has excellent retention. Just a suggestion.
  19. My dd9 was a terrible speller. At the end of third grade she tested well above average in every area except spelling/word study which was then on a first grade level. She had attended ps through 2nd grade and was not taught phonics. Anyway, I began using Sequential Spelling this year. Last week, I didn't know whether to cry or jump for joy when she wrote 3 whole paragraphs without any mispelled words. It is very easy to use, takes only about 10 minutes per day, and is inexpensive. I highly recommend it! Mel
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