Grammar for 7th gr?

[Sue G in PA]

Some background. Ds12 used K12 LA for 2nd and 3rd, GWG4 for 4th and LLATL/ILL for 5th. Ps for 6th so no grammar there. :glare: Where do I go from here? What should we use for next year? He like GWG and so I though about going back to that. But which level? 5? I thought about R&S but ugh...I just don't want to go back to that. What else is out there? Thanks.

[Liza Q]

When I asked about placing my children in GWG I was told to put them at grade level (even though one had done EG5 and no diagramming and the other had only done PLL - again, no diagramming) and I think it has worked very well. The books really seem to be right where my children are and have kept the perfect pace! Considering that your son has done a year of GWG plus some other grammar I expect that he would be fine with GWG 7.

 

Another thing to consider is Analytical Grammar. My oldest used it for the 8th grade, then used some of their Reinforcement books for High School; she swears by it! If you think it is too much for the 7th grade, you can teach it over 2-3 years instead. It starts from scratch, so to speak, so your son should have no problem with it.

[Chris in PA]

I second GWG 7. I think your ds will be fine. You can always slow the pace down if needed.

I would say that Analytical Grammar is tough. I tried it several years ago with my dds. They were grades 7 and 9 and it was a total bomb. Especially with the 7th grader. There is a ton of diagramming and the sentences are tough. I started it again recently with my oldest (11th) grade and she is doing well. I would consider JAG for your ds if you like what you see with this program.

All of my dc have used Rod and Staff and it is thorough. However I think they all have suffered burn out from it. That's why my ds is using GWG 6 and my oldest is using Analytical grammar. My middle dd is finishing R&S 7 and will just do the Editor in Chief programs next year.

 

HTH

[BeckyFL]

We tried BJU English and like it quite a bit.

[Lori in MS]

2 of my dc have done Analytical Grammar season 1 in 6th grade. My 7th grader is almost finished with Season 2. It is challenging but I made it more doable by not doing 1 lesson per week as suggested. That is a lot of grammar! My sons would parse the sentences for exercise 1 one day. Diagram the 10 sentences over the next 2 days, etc. So they took almost the whole year to do the first season with only doing a little per day. 20-30 minutes per day of grammar was manageable. I really like the program and they have learned a lot!

[Sue G in PA]

I thought about AG. I also thought about the program MFW suggests. But, ds did really well with GWG and I think I will continue with that. After looking at the scope and sequence of the levels, I think I will start him in Level 6. Not b/c of difficulty, but b/c of content. Thanks everyone. Any other suggestions?

[Chris in PA]

Sue,

I will be selling my GWG 6 Answer key and student text in a few weeks if you are interested.

[Storm Bay]

We use R&S, but if I could do it again and had the money, I think I'd use MCT. I'm thinking of buying part of it for my younger two, chiefly the writing part. That's at http://rfwp.com . R&S has worked well for my dds, though, which wasn't the case for you.

[lovemykids]

He might enjoy MCT. I plan to try it out w/ my younger kiddos, and then if it's a hit, I may use it for my sixth grader as well. I also think Grammarlouges looks good for an out of the box type kid, but it's hard to tell from just reading about it.

[Melissa in CA]

Well, since no one has mentioned it yet, I would look at CLE. We REALLY like it. Level 600 would probably be a good place to start your 7th grader considering his history. I told my ds yesterday that I ordered a new set of CLE's LA and he was sooooo happy. I personally like CLE because it is quite independent, and I like that it includes spelling and penmanship so we don't have to add those things in.

 

BJU is very good too, but I would be hesitant to begin BJU at the 7th grade level. Beginning in 7th the workbook gets quite busy, and can feel overwhelming to some children. We've used BJU for several years and at the beginning of this year my ds did a semester of the BJU Grammar 7 with DVDs...he struggled!! Not because he isn't good at grammar, but because the book was visually busy and the teacher moved at break-neck speed. After we had finished that, I decided to try something else 2x-3x a week to add in a little grammar to the rest of our year. We went with CLE and it's been a love affair ever since. :D

 

Now, this past week we have been using MCT Voyager because we finished our CLE LA Light Units. Though I think MCT is good, my ds finds it boring and hates the stories...so it's not a great fit for some kids. My only goal in using MCT at this point is to teach the four level sentence analysis. My ds enjoys diagramming, and I would like him to learn a different way to analyze his sentences. MCT teaches that. But, though I like MCT and think it is a very legitimate approach to 'talking through' grammar, I don't think it is in any way superior to BJU or CLE....regardless of the gushing threads about it! :lol:

 

Best wishes on finding the best for you and yours!

[lovemykids]

Now, this past week we have been using MCT Voyager because we finished our CLE LA Light Units. Though I think MCT is good, my ds finds it boring and hates the stories...so it's not a great fit for some kids. My only goal in using MCT at this point is to teach the four level sentence analysis. My ds enjoys diagramming, and I would like him to learn a different way to analyze his sentences. MCT teaches that. But, though I like MCT and think it is a very legitimate approach to 'talking through' grammar, I don't think it is in any way superior to BJU or CLE....regardless of the gushing threads about it! :lol:

 

Best wishes on finding the best for you and yours!

 

Hmmm, really? I haven't heard this before. We do plan to use OM and diagram on our own, so maybe it will be okay? I don't want to spend all that money and not be happy!! :glare:

[Sue G in PA]

I actually looked at MCT to see what the "buzz" was all about. It didn't appeal to me and I don't think it will appeal to my son. Not sure why...couldn't put my finger on why. I think AG would be too hard for ds12 after looking at the samples. Perfect for my dd13 who had diagramming in 7th and did well with it. I looked also at JAG and am now torn between that and GWG6. What do you all think? GWG6 and then AG in 8th? OR...stick with GWG until high school and then use AG? Or do JAG, then AG...Can you tell I am lost? :001_huh: Oh blech.

 

Chris, I'll let you know about GWG6. One plus to JAG is that it is only 11 units and we can do that this summer or just earlier in the school year and just review from there on out. Oh blech. Decisions, decisions. :tongue_smilie:

[lovemykids]

Yeah, such fun, huh? :ack2: Grammar has me confused as well. I think MCT might be okay, if I can afford it, since we are using other sources. But I wish I felt better about the choice. Maybe I’ll let finances decide for me and use something I own, like LLATL Green, or Shurley. I’ll have to see. I also need to get my hands on the OM 6 English manual, to see which level it actually operates on, before making any more decisions.

Oh, and I just got a part time job, so I am looking to reduce teacher time even further.

My dd really did like GWG 4, AG looks very good but it’s not our cup of tea. (maybe I should go with GWG, LOL)

Best wishes on your decision! :)

[Mindy]

k

When I asked about placing my children in GWG I was told to put them at grade level (even though one had done EG5 and no diagramming and the other had only done PLL - again, no diagramming) and I think it has worked very well. The books really seem to be right where my children are and have kept the perfect pace! Considering that your son has done a year of GWG plus some other grammar I expect that he would be fine with GWG 7.

 

Another thing to consider is Analytical Grammar. My oldest used it for the 8th grade, then used some of their Reinforcement books for High School; she swears by it! If you think it is too much for the 7th grade, you can teach it over 2-3 years instead. It starts from scratch, so to speak, so your son should have no problem with it.

[angela&4boys]

Like Melissa, we are enjoying CLE. Well, I'm enjoying it, but my guys (9 and 13yo) aren't complaining. They are both using a grade level below, but it is an excellent fit. Even my 13yo appreciates the spiraling review and the variety. he wasn't retaining from year to year and this seems to have met that need. We also like the integrated spelling. Additionally, it's very budget-friendly.

 

Okay, I'm off my soap-box! ;)

[angela&4boys]

Mindy, it's Growing with Grammar. :-)