Sigh. I need permission to not like Omnibus.

[Christy B]

Well, *I* like Omnibus just fine. I *love* Omnibus.

 

But my math and science, hands-on, nature and technology loving child isn't loving Omnibus. I'll be honest, it is so far over her head; she is a very concrete thinker, she struggles with any sort of interpretation or analyzing.

 

Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings is going great.

 

She is getting along brilliantly in BJU Biology and LoF Advanced Algebra.

 

I know that the beauty of homeschooling is that we can customize curriculum to our students; I know that I am supposed to appreciate my children for their unique strengths and preferences.

 

I'm just having a really, really hard time letting go of this gorgeous program that *I* would have enjoyed so much in high school.

[Michelle in MO]

Well, *I* like Omnibus just fine. I *love* Omnibus.

 

But my math and science, hands-on, nature and technology loving child isn't loving Omnibus. I'll be honest, it is so far over her head; she is a very concrete thinker, she struggles with any sort of interpretation or analyzing.

 

Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings is going great.

 

She is getting along brilliantly in BJU Biology and LoF Advanced Algebra.

 

I know that the beauty of homeschooling is that we can customize curriculum to our students; I know that I am supposed to appreciate my children for their unique strengths and preferences.

 

I'm just having a really, really hard time letting go of this gorgeous program that *I* would have enjoyed so much in high school.

 

Omnibus isn't for everyone, and frankly, it would be over the heads of many kids.

 

I have not used Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings, but I recently read such a fantastic endorsement of the program from a very well-respected mom that I'm going to order it, even though I'm not homeschooling anymore!

 

I'll admit---Omnibus is a beautiful book; the notes are well laid-out, the pictures are lovely, the support system is there. But, if it's going over your child's head and they're not appreciating it, then move on.

 

Keep up with LL from LOTR and your other programs. Eventually you will find a Great Books program which will meet your dc's needs, challenge them appropriately, and still give them the education that you want them to have. :)

[Moira in MA]

You certainly have my permission to drop Omnibus, too.

 

But, before you do, let me share the following:

 

Doing Omnibus and LLftLotR is too much.

My eldest did LLftLotR in 8th then did Omnibus I in 9th -- she loved both.

My youngest started Omnibus I in 7th -- she complained bitterly and we modified many of the early readings (especially theology) but, 3 years later, she is *very* glad she completed the initial sequence.

We decided not to continue with Omnibus IV. My eldest had a senior English course she's be wanting to do since she first found it and my youngest is happily tackling Sonlight's Brit Lit.

 

HTH

Moira

[Christy B]

You certainly have my permission to drop Omnibus, too.

 

But, before you do, let me share the following:

 

Doing Omnibus and LLftLotR is too much.

My eldest did LLftLotR in 8th then did Omnibus I in 9th -- she loved both.

My youngest started Omnibus I in 7th -- she complained bitterly and we modified many of the early readings (especially theology) but, 3 years later, she is *very* glad she completed the initial sequence.

We decided not to continue with Omnibus IV. My eldest had a senior English course she's be wanting to do since she first found it and my youngest is happily tackling Sonlight's Brit Lit.

 

HTH

Moira

 

Oh, yes, I would absolutely agree. The plan was to use the Omnibus Primary readings and use LLfLOtR *instead* of the Secondary Readings (see, I knew going in that this was going to be a stretch). In fact, I was going to pick and choose even from the Primary Readings.

 

I wonder if by her junior or senior year, we might be able to revisit some of the Omnibus selections I had most hoped to cover. Maybe a couple more years of maturity and a better foundation in literary analysis need to happen first.

[Carol in Cal.]

Teach the child, not the curriculum, is what I always say.

 

It is hard to let the great curricula and approaches go, though, isn't it? I would so have thrived as an unschooler as a child. DD would never have learned anything that way. I would so have loved the stirring, inspirational materials used in schools in the late 1890's. My DD thinks that Antigone is really annoying because she worries so much about a dead body (not, as I did, that Antigone is a noble hero that puts all the rest of the city and royalty to shame for not being her equals. And a fantastic female role model because of that.)

 

We're just different. Different things float our boat, and different things make us learn.

 

Maybe Omnibus I will be a great fit in a year or two. No way did it look like a reasonable 7th grade load for most kids when I examined it a couple of years ago.

[SonshineLearner]

Can you just use it much slower? Kinda more along the two years for every books, maybe she's liked it if it was slower paced. I've heard that it's way too packed for a year, anyway!

Carrie:-)

[Heather in VA]

Well, I'm going to disagree - at least to a point. Of course you don't have to do Omnibus but what caught my eye was your comment that it's giving her problems because she struggles with any kind of analysis. If she's in high school then she needs to be working on developing those analytical skills. If it doesn't come naturally, it will be a struggle. So feel free to move on to something else but you really can't move away from needing to do analysis.

 

Heather

[Michelle in MO]

Yes, now that I've re-read your post, doing Omnibus and Literary Lessons for Lord of the Rings would be way too much. Omnibus I itself is a hefty, hefty load for many 7th graders. Many of them are not quite ready for in-depth discussions.

 

Our experience: we did do Omnibus I when our oldest was in 9th grade and our middle daughter was in 7th grade. The first year seemed like a waste; discussions ended up being very frustrating as I tried to get them to talk and express their thoughts on a particular book. We didn't do nearly as many books as we should have. We did Omnibus II when they were in 10th and 8th grades, respectively. That went much better.

 

I recommend taking another look at what your dc may need at this time. If you're doing both Omnibus and LLLOTR, you might drop one of them, because the combination of both is probably too much. If you decide to stick with LLLOTR, try Omnibus again next year, or, if you choose Omnibus, don't feel compelled to use all of the books. Some people do the entire program and do it well; many tweak it to suit their children's needs. If your dc prefers LLLOTR, that's not a bad choice at all, especially for a 7th grader. It may give her some solid skills in reading and analyzing literature and would be a great foundation for Omnibus I for the next year.

 

Best wishes to you!

 

 

HTH!

[Christy B]

Thanks SO MUCH for the good advice, ladies.

 

Dd is in 9th grade, a concrete thinker to a fault. The plan was to use Omni II Primary *only* and LLFLOTR *instead of* the Secondary (LLFLOTR covers many of the same readings as Omni II Secondary, just at a slower pace and in less depth). Also, Omni does *nothing* to teach literary terminology (foreshadowing, etc) while LLFLOTR does. So there was a method to my madness. I'm not saying it was a good method, lol. Here's what we've been doing so far -- as dd starts each new book in LLFLOTR, I give her an extra day to read JUST the prelude for that book in Omni. It deepens her appreciation of the book, and adds the worldview component, but then her day to day work on the book is with the much lighter tone of the LLFLOTR.

 

Heather makes an excellent point that if the analysis is the problem, we better fix it. And I agree; dd struggles to form and articulate any sort of opinion or get beyond basic comprehension questions and we need to work on that. I wonder, though, if this is just too big of a leap for right now. Is there something that would be a more gradual introduction, than jumping right in and asking a child to understand and articulate the meaning of life and the universe as we know it? :tongue_smilie:

 

I like the idea of just choosing a few books to start with. Maybe if one of the supplementary books in LLFLOTR really grabs her, we can go deeper with that book in Omni II (say, if she enjoys the intro to Beowulf in LLFLOTR, we can do the real deal with Omni). I had considered saving some of the books for later, for British Lit.

 

The other reason I chose Omni II (besides how it lined up so neatly with LLFLOTR, which for us is the non-negotiable in the equation) was the coverage of church history. I *thought* dd was going to cover church history in her SS/Youth program at church this year (turns out it's going to be next year) so I thought that by doing the Omni at home, it would help her get more out of the class (and maybe be able to participate in more than yes and no answers). I suppose I could always use *just* the church history readings in Omni II -- it would be the most expensive church history curriculum EVER but then I could take it REALLY slow and not feel like history and literature are resting on this one program. In fact, that would mean that we could wait until next summer to start those readings (maybe summer, all by itself, would be a good time to tackle one Omni work at a time).

 

I think also starting with the more familiar (maybe starting with a couple of the Omni sections that discuss the short epistles, for example) would get her into the flow of the program. Maybe then we could ease into some of the history and literature books, as they fit with whatever we happen to be doing in history and literature.

 

Of course, this would mean I would really, really, really need to own at least the first three volumes, right, to be ready for use at all times? :tongue_smilie:

[Christy B]

Well, I'm going to disagree - at least to a point. Of course you don't have to do Omnibus but what caught my eye was your comment that it's giving her problems because she struggles with any kind of analysis. If she's in high school then she needs to be working on developing those analytical skills. If it doesn't come naturally, it will be a struggle. So feel free to move on to something else but you really can't move away from needing to do analysis.

 

Heather

 

I've been giving a lot of thought to everyone's responses, thanks.

 

What caught *my* eye was Heather's comment that "you really can't move away from needing to do analysis". Absolutely true. I mean, I *could* move away, I could order ACE Paces for my dd (I graduated from an ACE school and actually manage to have a productive place in society, lol).

 

But, to give her the education that I want her to have, I can't move away.

 

We're staying the course, Omni will be part of our curriculum, but I'm definitely taking the advice to adjust it to fit our needs. If we use only 25% of the program, we will be the richer for it (well, poorer, those are expensive books, but you get my point).

 

First up, Exodus from Omni I; this is where we are in our Classical Studies course. Why not start the analyzing with a rousing discussion of whether or not God causes man to sin? Nothing too intimidating about that. :001_huh:

[FloridaLisa]

Well. . . maybe I'll finally come out and admit why I just can't use Omnibus.

 

A couple of summers ago, I bought Omnibus I and settled down to read it, day after day in the shade while the kids played in the pool. I really liked it. Somewhere during these days of reading, though, I began to get nauseous. The kind of nauseous that doesn't go away easily. And then: two pink lines! In those crazy, quirky, early weeks of pregnancy, I could no longer even look at the Omnibus cover without feeling queasy. :001_huh:

 

So, no more Omnibus for me! I sold it and haven't been able to get back to it yet. Crazy I know. Omnibus and Saab cars will forever spike that queasy feeling for me!

 

Lisa

 

 

 

[Christy B]

Well. . . maybe I'll finally come out and admit why I just can't use Omnibus.

 

A couple of summers ago, I bought Omnibus I and settled down to read it, day after day in the shade while the kids played in the pool. I really liked it. Somewhere during these days of reading, though, I began to get nauseous. The kind of nauseous that doesn't go away easily. And then: two pink lines! In those crazy, quirky, early weeks of pregnancy, I could no longer even look at the Omnibus cover without feeling queasy. :001_huh:

 

So, no more Omnibus for me! I sold it and haven't been able to get back to it yet. Crazy I know. Omnibus and Saab cars will forever spike that queasy feeling for me!

 

Lisa

 

 

 

 

:smilielol5:

 

I'm afraid to ask why Saab cars spike that queasy feeling . . .