Have you used the test program yet? Any update on it?

Any more opinions about Sonlight Core G/6?

I am feeling like we need to change our approach to LA in the early years. I used MFW K, 1, and 2 with my older kids, and then we switched to Sonlight LA for upper elementary. I am wanting a different approach with my next two who are ready to learn to read. I have looked at Winter Promise and I like how it teaches phonics more completely. Here is what I am considering for my K student: http://www.winterpromise.net/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=492 I am considering this for my 2nd grader who is struggling to learn to read: http://www.winterpromise.net/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=346 Has anyone used it? Is it user-friendly? Are you happy with the results? Is there anything that you would more highly recommend? I will have four kids to teach this year, and then little ones to care for. It will be a busy year! So I need to be reasonable with that I choose, but I do not want to miss out on the opportunity to lay a good foundation for them.

I completely understand how you are feeling! I feel like I should have it figured out by now. I feel like I should not be swimming in the curriculum ocean right now. I don't feel like I have time! But if we find that something is not working very well, then we do need to adjust. Just try to keep the line clear between "well I'm not sure if there may be something better" and "it's time to admit that this is not effective." LOL. That can be hard sometimes. : ) But really, with Sonlight, why not have them do the readers and buy the 5.00 guide with the schedule and questions? And, you can even buy their LA just for the copywork and a few other things if you want to. If finances allow, it can be a helpful way to glean what you like from Sonlight. I will tell you, we are most likely going to be doing Sonlight Core G with my 5th and 7th graders and I am looking forward to it! Just not planning on doing their LA. Just to give you an idea for LA for your little ones: I am considering Winter Promise K for phonics and LA for my K and 2nd grade children this year. I have not been so happy with the practice of teaching them short vowel sounds, then long vowel sounds etc. I really would prefer a more complete approach. I do not feel that my kids have gotten a strong foundation using MFW LA for K-2, and then Sonlight LA for upper elementary. (We used MFW for K, 1 and 2 and then switched to Sonlight.) But then again, part of it is really just the ups and downs of life! We don't always get to everything. Anyhow, sorry if I am rambling. Maybe some of that can help you to decide what is best for you!

Lori, Thank you very much. The info that you posted is extremely helpful. My brain is foggy right now and we have had a very busy year due to a recent move. I am behind on school decisions for sure! Thank you for pointing out the boy/girl interest of the books. I may have to sub some of the initial books for my daughter, but I do think the boyish books will help to draw my son in. I am closer to being ready to push the "order" button, lol.

Kim, I am in the same place as you are. My plan is to start with what I know we can use for other subjects and then figure LA out as we go. I will need to talk with some more people and get it figured out. I have used Sonlight LA in it's complete form, and just for the copywork and such. I have also purchased just the reading guides and done that. NO need to buy the whole program, just buy the 5.00 guide like the pp said. I don't know. Overall, I am not really clicking with SL LA program. I want more step by step info and even if they are not going to diagram sentences in the early grades, they can still be given explanations at an early age so that things make logical sense as they are learning. Overall, I would not recommend it. I too am searching for something to use with my kids. I am thinking of maybe doing Writing Strands with the older two, and then figuring out a spelling program and a grammar program. For spelling, I tried Sequential Spelling but I did not like it. While it may be sequential, it does not offer any explanations, so it just does not click with me. But the problem with these ideas is that I really want a IG that schedules it all and pulls it all together. My kids really benefit from that, and so do I! I'm not sure what to do!

Has anyone used this Sonlight core? (It used to be Core 6.) Do you feel that it would be appropriate for my 12 yo dd and my 10 yo ds? They will be in 5th and 7th grades this year. I usually have them read the history books by themselves. Will this be okay? What do you think about the read-alouds? Would they be able to read any of those on their own? I LOVE reading the books with them, but I am not always able to do that with our house full of kids! Please share your thoughts about this core and whether you think it would be appropriate for my kids! Thank you! :)

Oops! I put this in the wrong place. Sorry! I just moved it.

I just wanted to chime in and say that it sounds like Saxon isn't the program that you lean toward. If that is true, I'd keep looking. MUS uses a mastery approach and comes with a DVD. Some people like to supplement it with other programs.

MFW K (some parts of it,) Sonlight P 3/4, Developing the Early Learner workbooks, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, Bob books, some early math program, or just a Preschool workbook for math....still browsing.

This is what I was thinking. I was looking at Horizons and Singapore for my almost 4yo and my 6yo. I could easily leave my oldest in MUS, but my DS9 does seem like he would prefer something else. He doesn't want a lot of repetition. Just wants to get it and move on. What would work well for him? Please share....why do you shudder??? :bigear:

I'm not sure whether to consider it or not. Do you think it may be a good fit for us? My older two are in 3rd and 4th grade math, using MUS. I mentioned it because it was one of the options in the Sonlight catalog, so I had seen it there. FYI, my oldest is a year "behind" because I made her start all over when we switched to MUS.

Does this help? DD almost 11: Finishing Delta (Division..approx 4th grade) DS 9: Finishing Gamma (Multiplication...approx 3rd grade) DS 6: Finishing Primer (Numbers and an intro to math...approx K)

Okay, so now that we've discussed MUS in detail, I am open to changing our math program for some of the kids, and may stick with MUS for some. But I wouldn't know which math program to switch to. Could you suggest a program for my kids based on my description and their descriptions? Me: I need math to be something my older ones can do mostly on their own. I want to use my teaching time for other subjects. However, I will need to teach math to my younger kids, so I need something that is easy to teach. Singapore was not easy for me to use, and we lost a lot of ground trying to use it. (I had no idea there were guides out there to use with it.) I am planning on order curriculum from Sonlight so I was looking at Saxon, Horizons, Teaching Textboooks, and Singapore. Sonlight sells math kits to go with each of the early levels, so that makes it easy. Or, I could continue with MUS. Oldest dd 11: Motivated, intense, loves encouragement and affirmation, concrete, people person, able to work independently, want to get them all correct, needs something she can do mostly on her own so I can be teaching siblings while she is working away at her math and other independent subjects. DS 9: Not as motivated. Likes to build with k'nex while I read to them, strong in science and history/social studies, does not like the actual act of writing, pretty easy-going, gets upset with "too much work." Grasps things easily, but gets distracted easily too. DS 6: Creative, not all that interested in academics, would rather play all day, people person, not independent, loves gifts, glitter and hoorah! DD 4: She will be working with her brother, DS6. They are at a similar maturity level and ability. So they will learn together for now. Motivated, yet laid back. Ready to learn to read and write. Toddler: READ TO ME!! PLAY WITH ME!! :) Baby: FEED ME!! SNUGGLE ME!! :) Okay, that describes us! Can you help me understand which Math Program would work best for each child? I may not be able to do a different program for everyone, but I'd like to know what would be ideal so I can choose with understanding.

Also, thank you for the book recommendation. I do not know when I will have time to get through it, but it does sound very helpful. If anyone knows of a website that has a good synopsis of the book, will you please post a link?

Thank you! This thread has been extremely helpful. I now remember why I had chosen MUS in the first place. I chose it because of the mastery approach. Also, I needed a program that was easy to teach. I liked that MUS came with a teaching CD. But somehow in the busyness of doing school, I had forgotten all of the terms and reasons behind why I was doing what I was doing. :) But the trouble is, when I am also doing unit studies, and apologia science (which focuses on one topic at a time,) and reading the same set of read-aloud stories all year long.....my children are not seeing the variety that life has to offer! Really, for me, that is the issue here. I am afraid that our year has started to feel like one big run-on sentence! Now, having said that, I may not need to stop using MUS with my kids, but I do want to look at it in the bigger picture of what we are doing. Thanks for helping me see more clearly!

I am curious why people do not choose this program, or why they leave MUS. My daughter has been happily using it through Delta. We had started with Singapore, but that did not click with me, so I started MUS. I needed something that would help me teach math. Now I am planning for next year and I was peeking at Teaching Textbooks because it explains each problem, step by step But part of me wants to stick with MUS until she is done with Zeta (which completes the lower level math.) Any thoughts? Thanks! :)

One more question.. There are two Usborne Children's Encyclopedias. One is 10.00, the other is 20.00. Which one should I choose to go with MFW K? http://www.amazon.com/Childrens-Encyclopedia-Usborne-Internet-Linked-Encyclopedias/dp/0794507549/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276054239&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Usborne-Internet-Linked-Childrens-Encyclopedia-Encyclopedias/dp/0794503683/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276054239&sr=8-2 I'd assume the 10.00 one is the best pick. It says ages 4-8. The 20.00 one says 9-12.

: )

Thank you! I will certainly check those out. I agree with your point about having a few things to look at. And, right now, with the 3/4 at Amazon, it is a great time to buy books. LynnG, do you think I will have every topic covered with the above four plus some of the Usborne Beginners? Which topics still need something? I just have to say, I am so blessed by these suggestions! I'm feeling a little overwhelmed in trying to put things together for next year. It's such a huge help to come here and ask questions. Thanks a ton, ladies! I know others are reading too. Yay for WTM forums! :)

Oh great ideas! Thanks, Sue! Amazon is having the 4 for 3 promo. I will check out the books you suggested. Yay! I am excited to start! I remember how MFW K always ministered to me even more than the kids. The little morals were always so timely. If anyone has any more book suggestions, please share! I'd love to know which were your favorites! I plan to purchase some read-alouds too. I have one for most of the units, but still need to pick up a few more. Thanks for your help! :)

I am planning to start MFW K with my 4 and 6yo. I really need a reference book for the topics, such as: sun, moon, butterfly, goat, vegetable...etc. Has anyone used the Usborne Internet Linked Childrens Encyclopedia? http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0794507549/ref=pd_luc_mri?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER Is there a different book you would recommend? I have used MFW K for my older kids, and I do like it, but we never had a good reference book. I don't want to go to the library. I plan to purchase some books to go with it. Any other recommendations would be appreciated. We do have several of the read-alouds for "book day," and I plan to pick some more up. But we need a factual book about the MFW K topics. Thanks for any help! :)

Thank you for the additional suggestions! I love coming to this board for help. You ladies are so helpful. Thank you! I will check out the suggested books. And, I'll take a peek a WP too. After looking some more at Sonlight, I am really thinking maybe we should do core 3-4. Any thoughts?

We used these this year. I bought the girl set for one, and the boy set for another. They both enjoyed them a lot! I didn't click with the HOD Drawn into the Heart of Reading, but we liked the books a lot.

I hope to be able to say this next year. :) Not sure about their LA, but I figure we can use it for dictation. We can supplement with some other things if desired. I can relate to things working better once they are older. My thoughts too. Schooling is getting better each year.