Colleen in SEVA Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 (edited) For those who use CW with multiple children, how much time is involved? It looks like a great program and I keep coming back to it, but it seems too teacher-intensive to work on a large scale. I have been using MCT with my oldest and it is going well, but I don't think it will be a good fit for G, and I think that doing multiple levels at the same time will be tricky! So... I am trying to form a long term plan for writing/grammar. G will be starting WWE & AAS this year, but I'm not sure what to do after that. I would like to use something that is good for different learning styles so I can use the same program with the younger boys. Is there something else that is more large-family-friendly? I thought about Writing Tales and GWG, but I have the same concerns about scaling. Thanks! Edited July 26, 2009 by Colleen in SEVA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 For those who use CW with multiple children, how much time is involved? It looks like a great program and I keep coming back to it, but it seems too teacher-intensive to work on a large scale. I have been using MCT with my oldest and it is going well, but I don't think it will be a good fit for G, and I think that doing multiple levels at the same time will be tricky! So... I am trying to form a long term plan for writing/grammar. G will be starting WWE & AAS this year, but I'm not sure what to do after that. I would like to use something that is good for different learning styles so I can use the same program with the younger boys. Is there something else that is more large-family-friendly? I thought about Writing Tales and GWG, but I have the same concerns about scaling. Thanks! No, I dont think CW is large family friendly unless you are already very familiar with the program yourself, and/or your kids are all put in the same level. I found it very difficult to teach only two levels at once- I cant image doing more than that. However, if you could bunch your kids together and teach the lesson to them at once, even if their writing ability was different, it could be doable. It is a time intensive and teacher intensive program, particularly when you get past Aesop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyNellen Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I will let you know after this year. :-) I will have three levels going this year. My oldest is in Maxim: Diogenes. He is enrolled in the online tutorial this year, so that takes a little bit of the pressure off of me. My 6th grader will be in Homer B and my 4th grader will be starting Aesop. I have broken down my schedule so that they all get me for 1-1.5 hours per day to work on writing. It's a lot, but I love the program and am willing to see if we can make it work. Teaching the youngest should be easy, since I've been through the material at least once before. Up until this year, my oldest 2 have been together. This made things easier, so I would definitely recommend pairing kids up if you can. However, my oldest is a much more advanced writer, so I will separate them this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in SEVA Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 I have broken down my schedule so that they all get me for 1-1.5 hours per day to work on writing. Let's see... 1.5 times 5... :ack2: Did I mention that writing is my LEAST favorite thing to teach? :svengo: If we win the lottery, the first thing I will do is hire a private tutor to teach my kids to write (well... ok... maybe the second thing after I hire a chef). Thank you both for your replies. I guess my concerns were valid. :001_unsure: Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Colleen, it's not just you...I WANT to use CW SO BADLY. But with so many kids and so many hours in the day, it's just not gonna happen.:thumbdown: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Narrow Gate Academy Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I have broken down my schedule so that they all get me for 1-1.5 hours per day to work on writing. We won't spend nearly that amount of time here. I expect Aesop to take my 3rd grader 10-15 minutes 4 days per week this year, and Homer to take my 5th grader 30 minutes 4 days per week. Because Aesop and Homer are spead out over two years, the recommended time is really 30 minutes per day for 4 days a week although DD1 and I never spent more than 20 minutes on CW Aesop the past couple of years. If you're pressed for time, I would invest in the student workbooks which make the program much more open and go. I'll have 3 years of running two CW programs before I have to try tackling three at a time. I may have to break down and go the student workbook route by then, but we'll see. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siloam Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Colleen, I don't see why not, though my oldest is a good independent worker. Daily I sit down with her to "check in." Basically read any of the core listed in the Student workbook, and make sure she doesn't have an questions from the day before. Then at the end of the week I have to check her writing. To be honest when I was trying to teach it instead of just read straight from the core book it seemed to take a lot more effort. I had to pre-read the core, and then if what I did to teach her left anything out...well then I had to re-teach it and have her do it again. It is so much easier if you just open the student workbook up and read what they tell you to read to the student. :D It would be intense at first, because there is reading every day, but as you move ahead the reading is not as common (1-2 times a week) and the kiddo's are working less new stuff, so they are able to continue to move ahead without a lot of help. It might require that you take two weeks to do a week for the first few weeks, but I do think it can be done. But in the interested of full disclosure, my oldest is doing Homer A and Poetry A and my 2nd dd is still doing WWE, so I really only have one in CW right now. Given I am doing WWE at double pace I just don't see CW Aesop being a bigger time investment. Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyNellen Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Let's see... 1.5 times 5... :ack2: Well, same here with five. But I see you have at least two, maybe three, who would not be doing CW right now because they are so young. My oldest is moving into the stage where much of his CW work will be independent. I never anticipate spending 1 hour per day with all five. My oldest will be 19 when my youngest is old enough to start Aesop :-) It just comes down to priorities. I really, really like CW. I think it is a superior program and I am willing to put the time in. When we started Aesop, I skimped with time (30 minutes a day) and really felt like we did not get everything out of the program that we could. I decided then that it would get more time and the difference during the Homer years was amazing. I can honestly say my son's writing is extremely good for a 12 year old. But, then again, I like teaching writing. So keep that in mind :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyNellen Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Well, we use the workbooks and it takes us much longer than that to complete the lessons and writing assignment. Especially in Homer. Lots of analyzing and parsing which, at least around here, takes time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in SEVA Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) I only have 1 old enough to be in CW now, and I will probably continue MCT with him. G (my 2nd oldest) is doing 1st grade this year, so I am looking on down the road. When W (the youngest) starts writing in 2nd grade, I will be teaching 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, and high school. I think that will be one in each level of CW, right? Oh my. But thinking out loud... I could probably keep Green and Yellow together through CW (they are 14 mos apart), and Blue will be mostly on his own (or online) by that point, and the younger ones will be going through WWE... so it *MAY* be possible? Right? Maybe? LOL. I know it does no good to plan things this many years down the road, but I don't want to get started with CW only to have it drive us crazy in a few years. Is there a message board for CW? Are there people doing this with 4 or more kids successfully? Edited July 27, 2009 by Colleen in SEVA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyNellen Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Ah, I see. We start writing in the 4th grade. That makes all the difference for us. CW recommends 3rd grade at the earliest. I have found 4th to be perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyNellen Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Yes, there is a yahoo group, as well as message boards. Just google and you'll find them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.