Sonlight History users (M)

[rafiki]

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[Mrs. Readsalot]

I add in lots of books and don't use their Language Art but I love the history books and just modify it to suit my personal taste. For example I combined Sonlight 7 with Sonlight 100 to keep our history in chronological order. I am hoping to stick to their schedule more closely for level 300 and 400 so ds can do these under his own direction. I plan to skip 200 as we just won't have time for it. Although he will have to read Pride and Prejudice from Level 200 because I love that book!!!!

[G5052]

We did TOG for two years and Galloping the Globe for a year, but all told we will have done most of Cores B and C, and then Cores 1-5 by the time my youngest finishes 6th grade. At that point, they'll both be involved in Classical Conversation's Challenge Program and my curriculum-planning days will be mostly over. Next year is my oldest's last Sonlight year before he moves on.

 

I'd still like to do Core 100 and 200 with them, so maybe that's an evening read-aloud or summer project.

[siloam]

We did Core B-2, but younger three are kinesthetic learners, so it wasn't working anymore.

 

From there we did WP for a while and that taught my kids and I how to do/schedule crafts and activities. From there I moved to TOG just because I like it. If I ever need something simpler I will go back to WP.

 

If not for the kinesthetic problem I would have stuck with SL all the way through.

 

Heather

 

[Melissa in CA]

We have used Cores 1, 2, 3, 4 (read-alouds/readers only), 6, 100, 200 (bible only), 300 (history & bible only) and 400.

 

I would definitely use Cores 1 and 2 again, though I used SOTW 1 and 2 with the Activity Guides instead of CHOW with my Cores.

 

I liked Core 3, but I think Winter Promise has a more interesting American History for that age. SL's was quite intense with no picture books to add visuals. I had to add a lot of library books to the core to make it more interesting for my son who was in 4th grade at the time. I switched to Winter Promise for the second half of American history and found the books to be a bit too young for my 5th grader [sigh], but interest level is high. I am using it with SL's Core 4 readers and also adding in many of SL's read-alouds. I think American Story II would have been perfect for him in 3rd or 4th grades.

 

Core 6 was great. The books were very interesting! My main gripe with the Core was the speed at which it went. You have no time to really delve into the cultures. I also didn't think SOTW was appropriate at that level. I don't plan on using it again with my youngest.

 

Core 100 was excellent. This I DO plan to use again with my youngest. We are going to do a four year rotation with TOG and then I plan to have him do Core 100 for high school credit.

 

Core 200 bible was intense and often times difficult, but I may use this again.

 

Core 300 has been a huge hit with my now 11th grader. He's a facts kind of guy and is really enjoying the history texts SL uses. We purchased Core 300 before they switched to a CD-ROM version of the main history spine. He would NOT have liked reading his history from a computer screen. I plan to possibly used this Core, or a portion of it, with youngest.

 

Core 400 was horrible. I could not sell it fast enough. I never want to see it again. LOL

 

I have decided to switch to TOG this fall. It is time for us to move back to the ancients and I really like what I see of TOG. It has great discussion questions, student activity pages, and a Christan worldview. I also like that I can make my own schedule. With SL I never did follow their schedule and would end up rewriting my own, using SL more like a book list. With TOG, I get to create my own schedule from a 'basic' schedule and make it fit our needs. I have purchased several of our TOG books for next year and I really like what I see. I am anxious and excited to get started. :)

[Annie Laurie]

I have used/am using cores A, B, C, 1, 3+4, 6, and 7.

 

I really love SL's book selections, they always seem to resonate with me and with my kids. I like SL's approach to things. I am using Core C loosely right now with ym 7 and 5 yr olds, and reading to my 3 yr old from core A and B. We started Core 1 last year but ended up doing something else after awhile. We'll be using MFW Adventures in the fall but I want to go back to world history after that and am trying to decide between picking Core 1 back up or using SOTW and the activity book.

 

I really like SL but am starting to question myself on the emphasis I've placed on these fun history curriculums, when at this stage I need to emphasize other things more. SL is time consuming so I'm not sure it's the right choice for my little kids, but can't make up my mind since my kids are strong readers for their age and there is only so much time you can spend on writing. History is the fun part I hate to overly pare down.

 

My oldest will use SL all the way through. He went to PS until 4th grade and we have had a journey getting to where we are, SL works for both of us so we'll continue on with it. He is not ready to read the Great books right now. I might add in some literary analysis for highschool, but all in all, I think he'll fare well with SL for history. He has a real love of the subject and has retained a ton of info, a lot of it I think is due to SL.

[Donna T.]

I've taught Core C once all the way through and am currently teaching it for the second time to my youngest son. I taught about 75 percent of Core 1 and then switched to My Father's World for a couple of years. But, during that time, we continued to use Core 1 - it just wasn't our main focus. I'm now re-using Core 1 with The Mystery of History Vol. 1. I really like SL and plan to use it until my boys graduate homeschool. The problem I've had with SL is that my children are three years apart in age and I really want to combine them with history as much as possible. And, SL hasn't worked so great for that. But, now that I'm using MOH, it is all falling into place. MOH goes along with SL very well and by using it alongside a Core, I feel like I'll be adding enough additional content that my oldest won't be slighted by using the younger cores. I plan to stick with MOH and plug SL in around those lessons. Core 2 goes along with MOH Vol. 2 well until the end when SL continues into more modern history.

 

So, I plan to stick with SL (we love the science and will use that long-term, plus the reader packages) but I'll have to tweak it some to make it fit our family. I plan to stick with cores that are a little on the young side for my oldest. That's opposite of what works for many families, but it's best for us. My oldest loves SL but he is a little on the immature side as far as what content (history) he can handle and my youngest is a little on the mature side. MOH Vol 3 should be ready right on time for us, but if it's not, we will do a SL core until it is.

[Mom0012]

I love it and so do my kids. History is my son's absolute favorite subject and I think a lot of that is due to Sonlight. My daughter does not have the level of interest that my son does in history, but she greatly enjoys our read-aloud time and has much more interest than I think she would ever have if she was having everything presented from a textbook.

 

That being said, I've only used Cores B, C and 1. I'm gearing up for Core 2 soon and really looking forward to 3. I don't use SL's language arts.

 

High school seems far off, but I guess that is the first time I could see myself considering moving onto something else. It's so far off that I really haven't thought about it much, though.

 

There are a few other programs that catch my eye once in a while - Geodeo's Africa unit study and Prairie Primer, for example. Maybe we'll get to do those over a couple of summers.

 

Lisa

[AngieW in Texas]

I have used Cores K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 100.

 

We don't like the spine for Cores 1 and 2. My kids all thought that CHOW was written in baby-talk. The first time through, I pulled together library resources to cover the gap from dropping CHOW. When I revisited Core 1 several years ago, I replaced CHOW with SOTW.

 

We don't like the spine for Core 5 either. Actually, I should say that my oldest and I don't. I'm repeating the content of Core 5 this year (readers and readalouds), but using Enchantment of the World books from the library for my spine rather than the World Book Encyclopedia that SL schedules. I think Core 5 as-written is part of what pushed my oldest to ask to go to ps for 6th grade. The spine and most of the other books scheduled under history were BORING.

 

I think my favorite Cores so far have been 3 and 4.

 

My oldest is going to do an off-SL year next year. I'm going to have her start a 2-year world history study. I may have her do Core 300 the 2nd year or may just have her continue with what we start this fall. I'll probably let her decide.

 

My other two are going to do half of Core 100 (my upcoming 8th grader) and Core 3 (my upcoming 5th grader) next year.

[Colleen]

I've been using Sonlight since I began homeschooling ~ when my oldest was in kindergarten. I broke away from it one year to come at history and literature a la TWTM and I could not wait to get back to Sonlight. I've used Cores K (now called Core C), 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5; this year my older two are using Core 6 and I'm revisiting Core 1 again, this time with my third son. I am so excited to cover Core 3 and Core 4 again in a couple of years!

 

I have no plans to stop using Sonlight. If I homeschool my boys throughout high school, SL will continue to be a staple in our studies.

[Julie]

Here ins my two cents, I have uesd Sonlight 3, 4, and 5 with my two older kids, 5 has been by far the best. I will not be repeating 3 or 4 with my youngest. The kids grew tired of the books, "Mom do we have to read another book about Indians?" Honestly, I agreed, it seems to me they spent too much time one one topic for the age of the kids After I finish core 5 I plan on switching everyone to Winter Promise. I like what I see there, better variety of books, more hands on, note booking, and DVD options.

 

Julie

[Jenny in Atl]

We have used SL 2-6. I have supplemented a good bit by adding/meshing with SL, (SOTW and HO). Next year, I may use Trisms :confused: with SL's core 7 readers and some of core 200 & 300's readers as well. HO was a bit of a flop.

 

I do plan to used a good bit of the remaining cores through high school, even if oldest dd goes to a local performing arts charter high school. No harm in after schooling :laugh:

[LillianinAL]

We are enjoying the last stretch of Core 4, and I am looking forward to Core 5 and up, but the more I see of the new SL LA, the less I like it. I am thinking about writing and also literary analysis for my boys as they move on up, and I'm not sure what to use. I think we are switching to Abeka next year for grammar, just because I think we'll like it better than R&S, although we have all three learned a lot this year with that. I plan on having them finish the Spelling Workout books, and we'll be doing Latina Christiana 2 next year. But, literary analysis is something I'd like to do more of, and I think we need to move on in writing to learn more forms, revisions, etc. Also I've done more eliminating writing programs I don't like than finding programs I do like. I keep looking at TOG thinking it would work better for us, but I just don't really like it! I like Sonlight better for the content areas, and I'm planning on doing Science 5 next year too.

 

Any thoughts on literary analysis or writing in the logic stage?

Thanks, and good to "see" you! Lillian

[Heather in VA]

Lillian,

 

What is it about SL LA that you don't care for? Is the problem that you need more explicit writing instruction? I'm wondering if you would be better off finding a writing program to help with the instruction without forgoing the assignments in SL LA. I've been working to find this balance too because I'm finding that a writing program without significant writing practice outside of the program isn't that effective and there aren't that many programs with good writing assignments included.

 

Just a thought.

[LillianinAL]

That is a thought I've had, to have a separate writing program to teach writing and use that knowledge in SL's writing assignments. I have used the dictations thus far and some of the writing assignments for Core 4. I have thought about IEW or Wordsmith/ Wordsmith Apprentice. Just not sure which one I like. I know people do combine these with SL assignments. Do you have any thoughts on the Lit. analysis? Thanks! Lillian

[Heather in VA]

That is a thought I've had, to have a separate writing program to teach writing and use that knowledge in SL's writing assignments. I have used the dictations thus far and some of the writing assignments for Core 4. I have thought about IEW or Wordsmith/ Wordsmith Apprentice. Just not sure which one I like. I know people do combine these with SL assignments. Do you have any thoughts on the Lit. analysis? Thanks! Lillian

 

I don't do alot of lit analysis until they are in middle school and even then it's more discussion rather than official work. I do have Teaching the Classics which has helped me. With my 7th grader we choose a few books during the year to do in more depth and I either get a guide (like progeny press) or gather other resources to help facilitate the discussion. I won't have her write true literary analysis papers until nearly high school. I'm not sure if this is the "right" way to do it but I just see other prioirties earlier in their education.

[Captivated]

I used B, 3+4, 5, 6, 7, 100, 200, 300 and will be doing C next year. Sonlight is the only curriculum I haven't changed in our homeschool journey. My oldest is a junior and we are still going strong. :)

[G5052]

Lord willing, by the time my oldest finishes 6th grade, he will have been through Cores PK-4 (we had other choices in there too), and my youngest will have been through 1-5 and Alt 6 or 100 (haven't decided yet).

 

After that they will both be in Classical Conversation's Challenge Program.

 

No regrets. I just wish that I hadn't switched around for several years after doing K before we came back to Sonlight.

[sassenach]

We've used core 3 and 4. We will be using core 5 next year as well. I have no intentions of moving away from it at this point. We did try sl la, but I didn't care for it at all. We now use Abeka for grammar, writing tales and spelling workout. We also are going to do sl science for the first time next year (5). We are using our cores 1 grade behind. I also stick to their schedules and am not one to rewrite my own, so I appreciate that aspect. Hth,

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