Some insight on MFW please.

[*Amber*]

I keep finding myself drawn back to MFW for next year but the reason I am not settling on it is because of the math and LA. How does MFW work if I was to use a different LA and Math?

 

Next year is my first year homeschooling more than preschool and I will be doing an advanced 4yr old in K and 6 year old in First. I was thinking if we did MFW I would just do the K program for the 4yr old. I would do the 1st grade program with the older and do FLL and WWE once she is reading a bit better ( I would still use MFW phonics program). I would do another math program as well. Would this work? I don't want to overload her but I just feel like the early MFW is lacking in LA and math.

Edited April 7, 2010 by *Amber*
For an incredibly bad run on sentence.

[zookeeperof3]

In the early years the Math & LA is integrated into the program. I say that owning the manuals but not starting K & 1 until this fall. Here's a link to MFW 1 samples http://www.mfwbooks.com/1st_sample.htm

 

In K & 1 it tells you to go to the Math section and do the next thing. It's very easy to just do your own thing. I use several other things for LA & Math and don't have a problem with. Starting in Adventures the Teacher's Manual becomes a grid, so in the grid it just has a box for math, a box for English etc so it's easy to do your own thing. Here's a link to a sample page for you to see it.http://www.mfwbooks.com/pdf/advsample.pdf Scroll to the 9th pages, that's what the Weekly Grid looks like

HTH!

Kim

[Sue G in PA]

MFW K is a gentle program. The math in K is very hands on and very age-appropriate. IMO, you don't need to add anything to MFW K for a 4/5 yo. MFW 1st suggest using the Complete Book of Math (something like that) but we use something different and it works out fine. As for LA...the focus in K and 1st is getting the child to read. There is plenty of writing in 1st as this program moves much more quickly than K. I don't think any more LA is necessary in 1st. You "could" use FLL 1/2 and WWE if you wanted and if your child wasn't too overwhelmed. However, IMO, K and 1st are more than full enough and challenging for those ages/grades...as is. I would use both as is and get a feel for them before adding anything, though. I think you might find that the work is more than enough for each child. Good luck! I love MFW K and 1st!

[*Amber*]

That helps on the 2nd grade on up and it is good to know that your able to add to the LA and math with out problems.

 

 

anyone else?

[*Amber*]

MFW K is a gentle program. The math in K is very hands on and very age-appropriate. IMO, you don't need to add anything to MFW K for a 4/5 yo. MFW 1st suggest using the Complete Book of Math (something like that) but we use something different and it works out fine. As for LA...the focus in K and 1st is getting the child to read. There is plenty of writing in 1st as this program moves much more quickly than K. I don't think any more LA is necessary in 1st. You "could" use FLL 1/2 and WWE if you wanted and if your child wasn't too overwhelmed. However, IMO, K and 1st are more than full enough and challenging for those ages/grades...as is. I would use both as is and get a feel for them before adding anything, though. I think you might find that the work is more than enough for each child. Good luck! I love MFW K and 1st!

 

 

That is really helpful thanks!! I am glad to know that you like it and it worked well for you.

[Momma H]

I will say in my experience with MFW it seems like whenever I try to add anything to the program I wind up not using it or needing it. Personally, I am trying not to add things anymore because it is becoming a waste of money to me:tongue_smilie:. Maybe you could try it the way it is and see later (a couple of weeks into it) if you still really feel the need to add LA and Math. You of course are the one who really knows. ;)

It is nice that MFW keeps that open ended for the later years and we can pick our own LA and Math.

Stacey

[cbollin]

Amber,

 

1st grade language arts -- lots of language arts from phonics, spelling, composition, handwriting, narrations.

 

1st math: The complete book of math is not the main math program in 1st. It is a workbook to supplement the main math program and is very optional.

 

The main math program -- if you really wanted to use something else, you have that freedom in the first grade program as the math schedule is placed in a grid but away from the main part of the daily schedule. So, you could ignore all of the hands on math games, math literature, logic thinking books, and all of that and do your own math. But, as long as the math is in the manual, you might find that you like having those ideas, games, math literature books to do with whatever else you do.

 

topics covered in mfw first grade math: counting, reading and writing numbers to 100, understanding greater than/less to 100. Count by 2’s 5’s, 10’s. Ordinal numbers. Addition and Subtraction facts to 18. Addition and subtraction two digit numbers without regrouping. Place value. Expanded notation. Money, time. Calendar. Patterns. Word problems. Charts, graphs, and tallies.

 

There is a daily math routine of not complicated activities to do to cover lots of stuff. Then you have hands on games to do, books to read to reinforce the concepts

(here's a sample of some of those 120 enrichment books)

http://mfwbooks.com/1st_math.htm

 

But I would start with the math routines and games in there, and like Stacey said, if you want to change it, you can -- even in 1st grade. It will say in the daily plans "math - see schedule" --- then you'd ignore their schedule I guess and do whatever program you'd prefer. But I still think the hands on games and literature list would be a great math thing even if you use something else.

 

-crystal

[TxMama]

I just completed MFW 1 and used a different math program. Their math recommendation is just that a recommendation so you can do any math program that works for you.

 

In MFW 1, LA is fully integrated in their program. There is copywork, oral and eventually written narrations 2x/week from the bible readers. By the end of MFW they are doing a written narration daily of their bible reader. I consider the writing of WWE and MFW1 to be very similar in workload and expectation....they just vary in content. MFW 1 writing is directly related to the bible reader and Proverbs. WWE uses a different story each week. By the end of 1st grade using either program the kids can read or listen to a passage, summarize and write a several sentence long narrations.

 

If you are using MFW 1 and also add WWE 1 which starts out with narrations 2x/week and copywork 2x/ week AND then add in FLL1 which also has more narrations/copywork in addition to the grammar then you will have way.too. much. IMHO.

 

One thought is add in the grammar portions of FLL to MFW 1 skipping the extra narrations/copywork.

 

Once you get to Adventures or the 5 year cycle you can supplement the LA that is integrated in the main program with any LA program that suits your fancy.

 

Math and the supplemental LA are not scheduled in the grid so it is easy to add in your own particulars and schedule.

 

HTH

[*Amber*]

The responses I have gotten so far are great anyone else have other insights about MFW to add.

Edited April 8, 2010 by *Amber*
because it sounded rude even though it wasn't meant to be.

[MeAndTheBoys]

That helps on the 2nd grade on up and it is good to know that your able to add to the LA and math with out problems.

 

 

anyone else?

 

We're doing Adventures, and the math and LA aren't even included--we do our own. MFW suggests and sells math and LA, but in the "package", it's not included.

 

I didn't use MFW for PreK-1st because it is integral to the program and it wouldn't have fit where my boys are.

 

Betsy

[Lori in MS]

I did another math program with 1st. It worked fine. I did not supplement any LA but you could if you wanted to. You could do the oral lessons in FLL 1, you would not need the narrations or copywork as that is in 1st. (You narrate the Bible stories and eventually write one to two sentence summaries of the stories for the Bible notebook.) This is exactly what WWE 1 does so it would be a liitle redundant to do both unless MFW writing portion is moving too slowly for your child. I am actually doing WWE 1 with my 2nd grader this year as he needed more practice with these skills before moving on to dictation.

 

The one thing I love about WWE is the step by step instructions and comprehension questions. The lessons are short and do not take a long time to do. I think you could alternate between WWE 1 and the writing in MFW and do what you like better but not feel like you need to do all of both. My son has enjoyed the story excerpts from WWE 1 so much that we have read some of the books they came from. I can see how this would be a nice variety to the Old Testament stories and provide some great read aloud material during the reading time in MFW 1st.

 

Also, from second grade on, doing your own LA works fine with the other MFW programs. I am doing WWE 1-4 and FLL 1-4 for LA through 4th or 5th grade.

Edited April 8, 2010 by Lori in MS

[mama2cntrykids]

This is my second year using MFW 1st. Like other posters have said, it is VERY easy to use whatever LA/Math programs that you want. That's what we did with my youngest ds anyway.

 

Have fun with it!

[Rebecca77]

I used MFW K with my 5 yr. old dd. my first year homeschooling. I was told by a friend who had used it at church that I would need another math program along with it, we used Saxon K which dd loved!

 

We were already using Phonics Pathways before starting so the phonics was a lot of review. Then, my dd. began to groan everytime she saw the PP book, so I pannicked and spent hundreds of dollars on Abeke's K phonics program, which she did great with. For some reason I just didn't trust that the phonics in MFW was adequate, and needed the assurance, and security that Abeka provided me.

 

I still used the science/bible lessons which are set apart in the teacher manual. The science/bible lessons are what make the program so wonderful and are alone worth every penny I spent.

[Chrystal in TX]

I just completed MFW 1 and used a different math program. Their math recommendation is just that a recommendation so you can do any math program that works for you.

 

In MFW 1, LA is fully integrated in their program. There is copywork, oral and eventually written narrations 2x/week from the bible readers. By the end of MFW they are doing a written narration daily of their bible reader. I consider the writing of WWE and MFW1 to be very similar in workload and expectation....they just vary in content. MFW 1 writing is directly related to the bible reader and Proverbs. WWE uses a different story each week. By the end of 1st grade using either program the kids can read or listen to a passage, summarize and write a several sentence long narrations.

 

If you are using MFW 1 and also add WWE 1 which starts out with narrations 2x/week and copywork 2x/ week AND then add in FLL1 which also has more narrations/copywork in addition to the grammar then you will have way.too. much. IMHO.

 

One thought is add in the grammar portions of FLL to MFW 1 skipping the extra narrations/copywork.

 

Once you get to Adventures or the 5 year cycle you can supplement the LA that is integrated in the main program with any LA program that suits your fancy.

 

Math and the supplemental LA are not scheduled in the grid so it is easy to add in your own particulars and schedule.

 

HTH

Just wanted to say thank you for your answer. I've been searching the forums trying to figure out whether or not I should add WWE to MFW (We are ending 1st and starting ADV). Your answer convinced me that the copywork/narration in MFW is enough. I know that if I stumble upon WWE on sale then I might supplement with it for variety but that's it :)

 

Thanks again!

[dhudson]

I added in other LA and math to MFWK and MFW1 with my oldest and then didn't with my twins and my twins ended up in the same academic place as my oldest( who is probably a better natural academic) without half the stress and time. I would add in WWE/FLL in 2nd.

 

I added in readers because my kids were reading before K but that was pretty easy.