kwickimom Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 I am planning for my first HS year (help me God) :) I have 3rd grader, pre-k, and a 2 year old. I am going subject by subject trying to choose curriculum for the 3rd grader. Language arts is killing me. I have a very small budget for this. I would love to get PR but probably cannot afford that. Anyways....I have to cover: reading (which she is reading at 4th grade level and i will just print out AO booklist and have her read those) writing grammar spelling Does that cover all of LA? I am kind of worried about this. It seems like a lot if I do it all seperate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 I am planning for my first HS year (help me God) :) I have 3rd grader, pre-k, and a 2 year old. I am going subject by subject trying to choose curriculum for the 3rd grader. Language arts is killing me. I have a very small budget for this. I would love to get PR but probably cannot afford that. Anyways....I have to cover: reading (which she is reading at 4th grade level and i will just print out AO booklist and have her read those) writing grammar spelling Does that cover all of LA? I am kind of worried about this. It seems like a lot if I do it all seperate. Well, you could go the textbook route with R&S for English (grammar and writing) and spelling. You already have reading covered. :-) Or you could do copywork and dictation from some of the books on your reading list--not all of them, as your dd should be able to read most books just for enjoyment--and that wouldn't cost you a red cent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffeefreak Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 If you want to go Charlotte Mason, Ambleside has some great recommendations for all in one "gentle" approaches. We use Primary Language Lessons (the Hillside edition) in 2nd and 3rd grade. It would cover everything except reading (which you have covered), and costs $10-$20. If you want a more traditional approach, Rod and Staff 3rd grade would cover Grammar and Writing, and you could buy a spelling workbook. SWB recommends Spelling Workout in TWTM. It's cheap (around $12) and easy. Rod and Staff usually runs $25. Another option (I tried this with oldest) is to buy a grammar workbook (A Beka has a good one for $15), a spelling workbook, and do WWE. OR, do all Peacehill Press. First Language Lessons, and Writing With Ease. I guess the point I'm trying to make is, LA doesn't have to be an expensive, all in one program. I've found my oldest never fit into the all in one box. It made it frustrating for me, and wasted money. I actually like splitting everything up into the separate subjects. It helps me divide the time between my girls. HTH! Welcome to homeschooling! Dorinda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted May 25, 2010 Share Posted May 25, 2010 For spelling, you don't have to have a curriculum if your child isn't really struggling with spelling, IMO. You could simply use words she struggles with and maybe one of the 4th grade spelling lists you can find through a Google search. If I had a very limited budget, I would probably get the Primary Language Lessons workbook from Living Books Curriculum. If I could afford a little more, I would get First Language Lessons 3 and the appropriate level of Writing With Ease. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwickimom Posted May 25, 2010 Author Share Posted May 25, 2010 THANK YOU. All excellent ideas. I just needed it listed like that with a few options. It is sometimes hard to tell what covers what and if I need and addt'l this or that....:001_huh: Thank you for all suggestions I will look into them!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 28, 2010 Share Posted May 28, 2010 I have 3rd grader, pre-k, and a 2 year old.Anyways....I have to cover: reading (which she is reading at 4th grade level and i will just print out AO booklist and have her read those) writing grammar spelling Does that cover all of LA? I am kind of worried about this. It seems like a lot if I do it all seperate. First of all, stop worrying. :grouphug: WRITING - Depending on your budget, either one or both of these to me are great. Just Write - We really like this series. Yes, WWE is great, but unfortunately, there is no actual writing. We love the narration, copywork, and dictation, but if it had writing, it would be a perfect and comprehensive program. So, we're enjoying WWE but have also added Just Write :D. I recently ordered these and simply can't wait for them to arrive. I've heard great things about them. Very comprehensive and thorough. The sequence is the same every year – grammar and then writing. Seems to be very complete. GRAMMAR The link above contains grammar and to me, with good literature, and a simple user-friendly program, that's all I want to cover anyway. We're not a grammar over-kill family. We tried. ;) These are also user-friendly and fine. SPELLING AAS is the absolute best spelling program ever. For us, anyway. :D The 2 key things I am trying to look for in a LA program are: 1. If it goes up to 12th grade or at least as high as possible. This is particularly important to me when it comes to writing. The more I think about it, the more I realize that writing is a subject very much like math that very gradually builds skills little by little. If I jump around to different curriculums and follow different techniques, this is harder to do. So ideally, I would love a curriculum for writing that starts out in elementary and goes through high school. I am finding it very hard to find such a program. 2. User-friendly and not too teacher-intensive. I don't want to have to reinvent the wheel. This is very important to me. I don't particularly enjoy teaching writing. I would much rather teach subjects that are more clear - math, grammar, vocab, history, you name it ... but writing, although I was fine with it in school myself ... teaching it is something I don't enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwickimom Posted May 28, 2010 Author Share Posted May 28, 2010 (edited) First of all, stop worrying. :grouphug: WRITING - Depending on your budget, either one or both of these to me are great. Just Write - We really like this series. Yes, WWE is great, but unfortunately, there is no actual writing. We love the narration, copywork, and dictation, but if it had writing, it would be a perfect and comprehensive program. So, we're enjoying WWE but have also added Just Write :D. I recently ordered these and simply can't wait for them to arrive. I've heard great things about them. Very comprehensive and thorough. The sequence is the same every year – grammar and then writing. Seems to be very complete. GRAMMAR The link above contains grammar and to me, with good literature, and a simple user-friendly program, that's all I want to cover anyway. We're not a grammar over-kill family. We tried. ;) These are also user-friendly and fine. SPELLING AAS is the absolute best spelling program ever. For us, anyway. :D The 2 key things I am trying to look for in a LA program are: 1. If it goes up to 12th grade or at least as high as possible. This is particularly important to me when it comes to writing. The more I think about it, the more I realize that writing is a subject very much like math that very gradually builds skills little by little. If I jump around to different curriculums and follow different techniques, this is harder to do. So ideally, I would love a curriculum for writing that starts out in elementary and goes through high school. I am finding it very hard to find such a program. 2. User-friendly and not too teacher-intensive. I don't want to have to reinvent the wheel. This is very important to me. I don't particularly enjoy teaching writing. I would much rather teach subjects that are more clear - math, grammar, vocab, history, you name it ... but writing, although I was fine with it in school myself ... teaching it is something I don't enjoy. Thank you, I really was thinking along your lines, that I want something to stick to as long as possible and not jump around. I feel that if a method works this year, that it will continue to work throughout the years. If it doesnt work this year then i can change, but I really do not want to curriculum hop if at al possible. Thanks for the Rainbiow Resource link, I actually had not come across that yet. I will check it out. Actually that exact link for the writing/grammar program you had isn't working, what was it called??? Edited May 28, 2010 by kwickimom typos, update Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TN Mama Posted May 28, 2010 Share Posted May 28, 2010 Christian Light also has an all in one LA program. The writing is light and I add in WWE. We just finished the 3rd grade program for Math & LA. Love! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evergreen Academy Posted May 28, 2010 Share Posted May 28, 2010 I couldn't get the Rainbow Resources links to work either, please do share the name of the programs if you get a chance! Thanks, Aimee mom to 6 great kids ages 7-19, schooling grades 1, 3, 3 and 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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