Dani n Monies Mom Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 (edited) A recent discussion with soon-to-be 14yodd(in Feb) has prompted me to ask for some curriculum suggestions. We are planning for 9th grade and dd is specific about the type of curriculum she would like. She is willing to use whatever we choose without argument, but I liked that she knew what worked for her and was able to express it. Here's what I'm looking for: HISTORY- A textbook type, just-the-facts with a quiz or test and done. The same format each week. The occasional project is o.k. It doesn't have to be anything flashy or colorful, but not totally black and white. She actually does best with 2 or 3-color press. (She didn't like Mystery of History because it had a different project each lesson and not really any questions, AND it was only black and white.) She mentioned that she would consider Christian Light's workbook format. (Not sure, because she is decidedly against CLE's grammar.) LITERATURE Good discussion questions. No Quizzes, they are annoying. She is willing to answer discussion questions on paper. She has always liked the Sonlight selections, but we're not tied to that. She really enjoys discussing books that she is reading.(In-depth) WRITING Lots of essays work for her. She'd really like to just focus on the book she's writing. GRAMMAR She would prefer not to have any. I realize there is much debate on this, but I'm open to suggestions. I think the most she would need is a refresher. She liked Sonlights old style language arts. She liked Winston Grammar with the cards. No workbooks like CLE. MATH Life of Fred Math-U-See Foerester's FOREIGN LANGUAGE Spanish-She didn't like Rosetta Stone. HISTORY and LIT are the two biggest questions I have. She has done Sonlight and Winter Promise along with Mystery of History. We are currently doing K12 through the public school and she is sure she doesn't want to do that for high school. She doesn't like the combo of being on the computer then off again, it disrupts her flow. But, she wouldn't mind trying a program where everything is on the computer. Thanks for your suggestions! Ava Edited January 19, 2010 by Dani n Monies Mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani n Monies Mom Posted January 19, 2010 Author Share Posted January 19, 2010 bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamarind Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 It matches your criteria. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jibaker103 Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 A recent discussion with soon-to-be 14yodd(in Feb) has prompted me to ask for some curriculum suggestions. We are planning for 9th grade and dd is specific about the type of curriculum she would like. She is willing to use whatever we choose without argument, but I liked that she knew what worked for her and was able to express it. Here's what I'm looking for: HISTORY- Why not use a text book like Spielvogel's World History: The Human Odyssey (high school) or Western Civilization (college). The end of each chapter has plenty of questions that could be used for a test or find the guides that go with the text. Also there is website that has all kinds of study games, quizes, etc. A textbook type, just-the-facts with a quiz or test and done. The same format each week. The occasional project is o.k. It doesn't have to be anything flashy or colorful, but not totally black and white. She actually does best with 2 or 3-color press. (She didn't like Mystery of History because it had a different project each lesson and not really any questions, AND it was only black and white.) She mentioned that she would consider Christian Light's workbook format. (Not sure, because she is decidedly against CLE's grammar.) LITERATURE - Lightning Literature has comprehension and discussion questions as well as writing assignments (no writing instruction). Also has a list of vocabulary words directly from the literature you can do whatever you want with. Good discussion questions. No Quizzes, they are annoying. She is willing to answer discussion questions on paper. She has always liked the Sonlight selections, but we're not tied to that. She really enjoys discussing books that she is reading.(In-depth) WRITING - See Lightning Literature for writing prompts. If you need writing instruction there are lots of choices such as IEW, Wordsmith Craftsman, and Writing Strands Exposition Writing. 1. Lots of essays work for her. 2. She'd really like to just focus on the book she's writing. GRAMMAR - See Lightning Literature above. She would prefer not to have any. I realize there is much debate on this, but I'm open to suggestions. I think the most she would need is a refresher. She liked Sonlights old style language arts. She liked Winston Grammar with the cards. No workbooks like CLE. MATH Life of Fred Math-U-See Foerester's FOREIGN LANGUAGE Spanish-She didn't like Rosetta Stone. HISTORY and LIT are the two biggest questions I have. She has done Sonlight and Winter Promise along with Mystery of History. We are currently doing K12 through the public school and she is sure she doesn't want to do that for high school. She doesn't like the combo of being on the computer then off again, it disrupts her flow. But, she wouldn't mind trying a program where everything is on the computer. Thanks for your suggestions! Ava Hope this helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaSheep Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 I don't know whether you're looking for a particular period or region for history, but if American History is of interest, then the All American History books from Bright Ideas Press might be a good option. It is a textbook approach, and each lesson has the same format. You read the chapter from the textbook, and answer a series of "review questions" in the workbook. Then you fill in information on some other workbook pages (they're kind of "notebooking" style in a way--things like a basic biography form about a U.S. president, and usually some kind of map to label things from the chapter). There are a series of questions "for further study" in which the student does a little basic research and writes a short report, or just discusses the information they found, at the teacher's discretion. The teacher manual has suggestions for projects and activities, which would give you a resource to draw on for the occasional projects, but it's definitely easy to pick and choose how many and which ones you want to use. The teacher manual also has lists of suggested literature selections that correlate with the lessons (but no questions or quizzes for them) so you can pick and choose additional reading. There are also suggestions for dates to enter on a time line, and some other useful things like that. It's definitely a "textbook" at its core, but it's also very easy to tailor "extras" to the student and situation. It is all black and white, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 HISTORY *A textbook type, just-the-facts with a quiz or test and done. *The same format each week. *The occasional project is o.k. *It doesn't have to be anything flashy or colorful, but not totally black and white. It is secular, but we've very successfully used Spielvogel's "World History: Human Odyssey". It is text with color photos and illustrations (some B&W photos of people/events of the 1800s-1900s when there was no color photography). It includes "sidebars" of short (2-6 paragraph) articles on topics related to the time being covered, such as an art movement; culture, race, gender issues; literary movement or author; etc. The text also includes a fair number of excerpts from literature and other writings of people from the time being covered. I found a used copy on Amazon several years back for about $12 (included shipping). It is ancients to moderns (up to year 1999); there is a short review "quiz" of 4-5 questions about very 4-6 pages which you could use as weekly quizzes, or to create an end of chapter test. At the end of every chapter there is also a 2-page set of questions -- both comprehension/review and discussion/"deeper thinking" types of questions that you easily use to create a test, for together discussion, or for history essay writing assignment ideas. For American History this year we are taking a break from Spielvogel and are thoroughly enjoying Ray Notgrass' 2-volume American History text. It is text and B&W photos/illustrations throughout, and is from a Christian perspective. A 3rd book, "American Voices", is a collection of excerpts or full reproductions of famous speeches, essays, poems, short stories, documents, etc. from American history and it really "makes" the program for us. We are also enjoying a refreshing break from the secular viewpoint of Spielvogel. Notgrass is set up to be a 3 credit course (1 credit each for Bible, History, and Literature). I do NOT think it provides that much instruction/material. I would say it is a 1 credit history course, with 1 chapter per week you could use as part of a Bible study, plus a literature reading list (just a very few comprehension questions, no real discussion questions, just a few writing assignment ideas). However, we are using some of the literature books from the Notgrass list, plus other titles I culled from other lists and much research, and are using a variety of literature guides and resources to make our own 1 credit American Literature course. The 3 volume set is about $90, and for another $15 you can get the quiz/test packet. This is a more recent curriculum, so it may be harder to find used. LITERATURE *Good discussion questions. *No Quizzes, they are annoying. *She is willing to answer discussion questions on paper. *She has always liked the Sonlight selections, but we're not tied to that. *She really enjoys discussing books that she is reading.(In-depth) We pick our own literature, using lit. guides and other resources to go with a list that I make from various other lists: - The Well Trained Mind - The Well Educated Mind - Sonlight - Veritas - Ambleside Online - google search of high school classics - post on this board for people's "don't miss" classics 1-year or 1-semester literature programs we have found helpful: - Literary Lessons from the Lord of the Rings - Windows to the World - Learning Language Arts Through Literature: Gold: American Literature - Lightning Literature & Composition Literature Guides/Resources we have found helpful: - Discovering Literature series (Garlic Press publishers) - Progeny Press - The Great Books - Portals to Literature - Sparknotes (free online) - Glencoe (free online) - Wikipedia articles on specific authors or works (free online) For discussing the literature, we tend to use the question suggestions in the first few chapters of The Well Educated Mind, literature guide questions, and speak out about whatever any of us notices as we read. WRITING *Lots of essays work for her. *She'd really like to just focus on the book she's writing. If she's already a solid writer, I don't know as though you really need a writing program for instruction. I would make sure she not only writes about her literature, but does several longer multi-page research papers with citations for history or science each year. Also make sure she can write a good science lab report. And from time to time perhaps practice timed essay writing from past SAT test writing prompts. You can also do the occasional descriptive, narrative, poetry, newspaper article or other type of writing from literature guide writing assignment suggestions. Good literature guides usually give you good ideas for essay and other writing assignments. For an excellent overview of how to write a literary analysis essay, I highly recommend your DD do IEW's "Windows to the World" program to kick off high school; it is a 1-semester course which teaches annotation and literary analysis by focusing on 6 short stories. You could easily stretch it out and do it over 1 year so that you could include other longer literature of your choice. Other lit. guides/programs with good writing assignment ideas: - Lightning Literature & Composition (1 semester programs) - Discovering Literature series (challenger level) - Progeny Press high school level guides - Portals Through Literature high school level guides GRAMMAR *She would prefer not to have any. I realize there is much debate on this, but I'm open to suggestions. I think the most she would need is a refresher. *She liked Sonlights old style language arts. *She liked Winston Grammar with the cards. *No workbooks like CLE. We did Winston, and also are not fans of grammar workbooks. If she's solid on grammar, then you probably don't need a program. You can either just do light refreshers throughout the year, or do no grammar and then have an intensive review before PSAT, SAT, ACT testing in the junior/senior years with something like Warriner's or Jensen's. For light grammar refresher, we use The Chortling Bard (Bell) which is a paragraph a day (and you can do it just 2-3 days a week if desired) with each paragraph being the next part of a continuing story; in this case it is a retelling of several Shakespeare plays. Within the paragraph, you practice grammar mechanics, and also review of various grammar concepts, plus you get some great vocabulary included. It takes no more than 10 minutes a day and it quite painless. Welcome to high school -- you're going to enjoy your journey! :001_smile: BEST of luck in finding what works best for your family! Warmly, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cedarmom Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 I think Omnibus would fit your history and literature bill. Lots of great reading, with discussions and essays. We used Spielvogel History of World Civilization to supplement. Another poster had an excellant description of SPielvogel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani n Monies Mom Posted January 19, 2010 Author Share Posted January 19, 2010 Thanks so much! I was really at a loss and now I feel I have some great curriculum to check out. I really appreciate the descriptions and how they are/were used. Can someone tell me a little more about Omnibus? How does that work with Spielvogel? Is it a one year course? Keep the suggestions coming! Ava Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 (edited) Thanks so much! I was really at a loss and now I feel I have some great curriculum to check out. I really appreciate the descriptions and how they are/were used. Can someone tell me a little more about Omnibus? How does that work with Spielvogel? Is it a one year course? Keep the suggestions coming! Ava You would NOT use both Omnibus and Spielvogel. Omnibus is a VERY full program. I believe there will be or are 6 Omnibus programs, each 1 year long. It is designed around a 6-year history cycle, so you would do the ancients in grade 7 with Omnibus 1, and so on. However, from the samples of the ancients that I looked at, it would have been too much and too mature for us to do with middle schoolers. I think you could do most of the ancients Omnibus with a 9th grader who is a strong reader. (I seriously considered Omnibus because it is a great program when our boys were 8th and 9th grades, but it was more intense, thorough, and formal than what they could have handled. Also, while we did focus on ancient literature, we also wanted to be able to read some other classic high school lit. too -- not have the ENTIRE year be about the ancients.) The literature is based around history, so the year you study the ancients in history, your literature is all either ancient classic works: - the epics (Gilgamesh, Iliad, Odyssey, Aeneid) - histories, documents, philosophy (Code of Hammurabi, Plutarch's Histories, The 12 Caesars, Plato) - several ancient Greek plays Plus, your literature includes several classic works written more recently, but set in ancient times: - Shakespeare's history play "Julius Caesar" - historical fiction novel "Eagle of the Ninth" - CS Lewis' fictional novel (retelling of Cupid & Psyche myth) "Till We Have Faces" Plus an assortment of Christian theology/worldview works, and some art/literature overview works. See more about the program from the publishers, Veritas = http://www.veritaspress.com/products.asp?dept=1071 It is quite an amazing program with a great reading list! Warmest regards, Lori D. Edited January 19, 2010 by Lori D. added info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 We are currently doing K12 through the public school and she is sure she doesn't want to do that for high school. She doesn't like the combo of being on the computer then off again, it disrupts her flow. But, she wouldn't mind trying a program where everything is on the computer. I have a high schooler in MNVA (a K12 charter), and the high school curriculum is completely online. There's far less offline stuff in high school than there is in the middle school years, with the sole exception of the occasional science lab. It seems to me that 99% of what my dd does is online now. With that said, it's actually one of the reasons that I think we're going to go back to homeschooling independently next year. I'd like for her to spend more time offline, and she'd like to be able to focus more on her outside art classes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani n Monies Mom Posted January 21, 2010 Author Share Posted January 21, 2010 Thanks Sharon, That is good to know. I let her read your reply and she says she may reconsider doing the Cyber High School next year. I think I'd prefer traditional homeschool myself, but at this point dh feels she should have a greater role in the decision, so your extra info has helped. God Bless, Ava Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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Guest Siebert200 Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 Finding that for Language Arts the best book I have found is Easy Grammar Plus. We hated LA until I got this book and now my dd flies thru LA and is learning so much. Hope this helps. We also use Abeka World History and the kids really seem to like it alot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Katia Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 Ok, I have some suggestions for you for History and Lit. Seems to me for History, she wants a just-the-facts, get-'er-done program in a worktext format. I would highly recommend either Alpha Omega Lifepacs or ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) PACEs. The format is the same each day; read text and answer questions. Each Friday there is a quiz or 'self-test' over the material learned, and when the chapter (Lifepac or PACE booklet) is finished, there is a final test. My dd needed a program like this for history and enjoyed the AOP Lifepacs. The teacher's manuals (mostly answer keys) all have ideas for projects and papers which you can use or not use at your discretion. I had my dd do one project and one paper each semester. That was just enough hands-on for her. My other dd liked ACE PACEs. For Literature, I would suggest either Hewitt's Lightning Literature programs or SMARR Literature programs. Both use whole books, have discussion questions, vocabulary and require essays/papers on selections read. I have used both and like both for different reasons. Both have samples on their web-sites. Just take some time researching them and see which has the selections and/or progression that fits your needs/wants. Please be aware that Hewitt's LL does not actually teach writing; they just give you prompts with an outline for writing essays and then expect you do it. SMARR, otoh, gives writing lessons but only one type of essay......depends on what you need/want. I started with LL and have ended with SMARR. We find that with SMARR we actually get the work done (they have a great, easy-to-follow schedule) and I much prefer the book selection/progression of SMARR. However, we don't agree with the author's religious viewpoints, which makes for some very, very interesting discussions! Since both programs include writing, you wouldn't need anything 'extra' unless you wanted some writing reference books (we use Writers, Inc. and Jensen's Format Writing for reference). As far as grammar, our educational philosophy is that grammar is studied as a subject in 4th-8th grades and then our students are held accountable for grammar usage in the essays they write in high school. So, we didn't have a grammar curriculum in high school, although in 9th grade we used the upper levels of Editor in Chief for reinforcement. Hope this gives you some other programs to research. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani n Monies Mom Posted January 22, 2010 Author Share Posted January 22, 2010 (edited) I've gotten so many good ideas this week. I feel a lot better about the options out there. So far Omnibus sounds like something we don't want to do. It's more intensive than I'm looking for, and she asked that lit not be tied to history, if possible. However, Spielvogel sounds like something I'd like to look into further. Lifepacs or Paces never really entered my mind. She did suggest that she might like something like that, I just hadn't heard much about them. She did entertain the idea of doing SOS for Social Studies; she liked the online demo and a certain amount of independence in their use. We'll have to look at some samples of the books. I was also thinking of Abeka or Bob Jones and possibly using the streaming video. I think she might like the videos, but the cost seems prohibitive at the moment. For Lit and Grammar I like the idea of Lightening Lit, Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings, SMARR and The Chortling Bard; they seem like they could fit her style of learning. I think I really like the Chortling Bard for grammar, mainly to keep it light, plus she will get into the humor. We tried Easy Grammar and it didn't work out so well, but the paragraph idea appeals to her. SMARR may appeal to us just for the idea of needing lots of discussion. She seems to crave literary discussion. Anyone know where I can see samples of LLLotr? I've got lots to research due to all these great suggestions:001_smile: God Bless, Ava Edited January 22, 2010 by Dani n Monies Mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 23, 2010 Share Posted January 23, 2010 Anyone know where I can see samples of LLLotr? Literary Lessons from the Lord of the Rings: table of contents = http://www.homescholar.org/Table%20of%20Contents.htm sample pages = http://www.homescholar.org/Samples.htm course objectives = http://www.homescholar.org/objectives.htm ordering = http://www.homescholar.org/LOTR%20Curr.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphabetika Posted January 23, 2010 Share Posted January 23, 2010 You might look in to Notgrass for history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted January 23, 2010 Share Posted January 23, 2010 You might look at Excellence in Literature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love2Smile Posted January 27, 2010 Share Posted January 27, 2010 wow, my dd is the SAME! we are looking at LifePacs for history and science, will definately go with science though. Affordable and AOP sells DVD's of the experiements for $20! Can't beat it! I got samples of ACE, they are not for us, TOOOO Many questions to answer, overkill! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Bay Posted January 27, 2010 Share Posted January 27, 2010 My 14 yo is about to start History of the Ancient World by Susan Wise Bauer. There are timelines given in most chapters. There are no questions or quizzes; I'm going to have to do those myself. My dd does not care for history (or any school, but she likes math & science far better.) Of your three choices for math, I'd vote for Life of Fred first and Foerster's second. I personally wouldn't go with MUS as a stand alone high school course, although I plan to use the MUS pre-algebra instructional DVD to augment my second dc's pre-Algebra. Can't help you with essays & lit as this is an uphill battle with dd. What we're doing isn't exactly out of the box and is a combination of suggestions I think will help us the most at this point. For Grammar she's using R&S. For writing, WriteShop & the assignments in R&S will be the mainstay of that. She doesn't need any help with grammar, but hates writing so much, she's doing it so that she can write fewer essays and analyze less lit. Not exactly your stellar lit student! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani n Monies Mom Posted January 28, 2010 Author Share Posted January 28, 2010 (edited) wow, my dd is the SAME! we are looking at LifePacs for history and science, will definately go with science though. Affordable and AOP sells DVD's of the experiements for $20! Can't beat it! I got samples of ACE, they are not for us, TOOOO Many questions to answer, overkill! We aren't going with ACE either. DD used it for grammar in 7th and dragged her feet through it all year long. She made it very clear she didn't want to do it again, even though she requested it for history. Now science lifepacs with a dvd never occured to me. I need to check that out. I've got more of a music and lit oriented kid who has developed a love of math. History and science don't play a big part in her choices. History of the Ancient World may be more than I want to do. I don't have the discipline to keep up with making questions and tests every week. Unless I decide to just have her read history and be done with it. Not sure if I want to do that though. By the way, for math, that is exactly how I'm planning to use it. MUS has given us a great foundation, but now she loves LOF. Forester's is more for dh who wants to make sure she recognizes what she's learning in LOF in a more traditional format. Excellence in Lit, LLOTR Chortling Bard Lightening Lit Those intrigue me the most. The Bard for sure, for grammar instruction. LLOTR interests me the most if she's willing to read out of the ancients vs. a more modern selection. I'm actually exploring Notgrass. A good friend wants to use it in conjunction with My Father's World. But I think it would be too much that way. The trick here is to get my hands on some of this stuff so kiddo can look it over with us. Thanks for all the great choices. Any further insight or experiences with any of these curriculi(?) would be welcome Ava Edited January 28, 2010 by Dani n Monies Mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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