Intrigued with the MCT Grammar Island cult....

[Beth in SW WA]

Can I join? :001_smile:

 

We love Shurley and will continue w/ dd 6 & 7 (in Shurley 3). I'd like to add Grammar Island to the mix. It sounds perfect -- and fun.

 

Caesar's English sounds like a nice fit for dd 13 for summer reading. Then again, I haven't seen anything in person and really only have a hint of what the program is all about based on the rave reviews here.

 

Where to purchase? What do I need?

 

Thank you in advance!

[Violet Crown]

I know what you mean about the MCT thing. We used LLATL, but it wasn't working for my dd7; I'd been convinced by the wisdom of the hive mind that WT2 and then CW Homer would be the way to go ... and then a discussion of PLL/ILL (plus the ability to use the first dozen lessons for free on Amazon) lured me into PLL for the time being, until we get back to the States. So I figured PLL, ILL, WT2, CW Homer ... because you can't order too many English curricula, can you?

 

Now I'm thinking, hmm, maybe MCT could fit into that somewhere....

[cottagechick]

Royal Fireworks Press

 

After you pick a level, you can order the set of books as a package. They have a 'homeschool' package. Island Level is $120 Or you can order books individually.

 

There's video clips, articles, etc. on the site.

[emzhengjiu]

I'm thinking about joining as well! Does the publisher ever have sales and is there anywhere else to buy the material? As of today, I think I'm going to buy the Town basic set with an extra practice book since I will have two DDs using the same level. Currently, we're using R&S which is excellent but very dry.

 

Edited to add I'm considering using Music of the Hemispheres in addition to Building Poems because my younger daughter hasn't had much exposure to poetry. Do you think this would be a good idea or is the information in the first book repeated in Building Poems? I'm still feeling a bit lost.

 

Thanks.

 

Ann

Edited June 9, 2010 by emzhengjiu

[Beth in SW WA]

I'm about to order the whole shebang. Thanks!:001_smile:

[Irishmommy]

Beth, I started with the student text of grammar island that I picked up in a thrift store and after using it for a couple of lessons, I ordered the whole thing and I LOVE IT; but more importantly, my son loves it. :)

[Beth in SW WA]

For the little girls I ordered:

 

Homeschool Complete Level 1 Package plus an extra practice book

 

For dd 13, I ordered:

 

Caesars English (for fun):001_smile:

Word Within The Word Student & Parent

 

I'm excited. (Happy Birthday to me.) :)

[Teresa in MO]

I'm about to order the whole shebang. Thanks!:001_smile:

 

by the whole thing, do you mean the complete package for $190. Is it really worth this. I have repeatedly looked at the website for my 5th grade ds. I keep coming back to it, but it seems like sooooooooooo much money. Is it really worth it? I do have a younger son that could use it too, so am considering that. What level would you start a 5th grader in. He has done Easy Grammar the last two years and FLL in 1st and 2nd.

[Dawn E]

You won't be disappointed! :) My plan is to continue to use CLE while adding MCT in at intervals. CLE is like my meat and potatoes while MCT is like the chocolate lava cake. We took a mid-way break to do Grammar Island, which was a breath of fresh air, and added CLE back in when we got to the extra materials (vocab., poetry, Sentence Island). I'm still trying to decipher how we will do this longterm, but, even as an expensive supplement, I find MCT well worth the cost.

[Capt_Uhura]

You don't need the complete package, only the homeschool package. IF I remember correctly, the complete package comes w/ both teacher and student books for everything. You only need a student book for the Practice Book. I think the homeschool package for Island is about $120.

[radiobrain]

You don't need the complete package, only the homeschool package. IF I remember correctly, the complete package comes w/ both teacher and student books for everything. You only need a student book for the Practice Book. I think the homeschool package for Island is about $120.

:iagree:although, if she is using this for 2 kids at a time, it might not be a bad option. I am all for saving some $$, but sometimes I wish I had a separate student book. Besides the resale value seems to be good, but I know I won't ever sell any of mine. :D I love them too much!

[Beth in SW WA]

My Visa is on fire today. (Kids aren't cheap.) :)

 

Thank you all for your feedback. I can't wait for this to get here.

[MariannNOVA]

My Visa is on fire today. (Kids aren't cheap.) :)

 

Thank you all for your feedback. I can't wait for this to get here.

 

:lol:Well, it certainly sounds to me as if you are now a member of the cult......ooops :rolleyes:.........I mean, group! :D Welcome!

[Teresa in MO]

:iagree:although, if she is using this for 2 kids at a time, it might not be a bad option. I am all for saving some $$, but sometimes I wish I had a separate student book. Besides the resale value seems to be good, but I know I won't ever sell any of mine. :D I love them too much!

 

I won't be using it for two kids at a time, I just meant I will have another ds who could use it in a few years. I am going to be doing FLL 1/2 with him starting this next school year. So the basic package comes with the student and the teacher's books. Would you order the basic package if you were going to continue to use WWE. Would you still get the writing portion? Which section would you consider the strength of MCT? Grammar, voc., writing? Also, I can't remember, does it include spelling?

[MariannNOVA]

I won't be using it for two kids at a time, I just meant I will have another ds who could use it in a few years. I am going to be doing FLL 1/2 with him starting this next school year. So the basic package comes with the student and the teacher's books. Would you order the basic package if you were going to continue to use WWE. Would you still get the writing portion? Which section would you consider the strength of MCT? Grammar, voc., writing? Also, I can't remember, does it include spelling?

 

 

So, here I come muddying up the water even more - sorry --:001_huh:

 

What level will you buy for your 5th grader (did I get that right?) My fifth grader just completed Paragraph Town and the exercises in the back of the Teacher's Manual ARE the WRITING SECTION. I know better than anyone how confusing it is until the stuff is in one's hot little hands -- but the 'WRITING' component in Island and Town is found in the back of the Teacher's Manual. Unless I am mistaken, it is the same with VOYAGE level; -- Island, Town, Voyage are the first three levels. The 'writing section or component' changes after those first three levels - I think - someone else may have to help me out here.

 

The STRENGTH of the program is the basic level at which MCT begins with 'eight' kinds of words, parts of speech, parts of a sentence AND the relationship each has to the other......modifiers, verb agreement, fragments, for example. The program then (as the child learns kinds of words and the 'job' of each) has the child begin to write sentences - simple sentences - with words used correctly. In the first level, ISLAND, that is what happens in the writing section. In TOWN, it is expanded upon, and we have not started Voyage Essay yet - so I cannot speak to that level.

 

Spelling is not included - we use IEW Phonetic Zoo and we really like it.

 

I would recommend that you order the basic package -- if you are only using it with one child at a time, it is your best bet.

[TKDmom]

So the basic package comes with the student and the teacher's books. Would you order the basic package if you were going to continue to use WWE. Would you still get the writing portion? Which section would you consider the strength of MCT? Grammar, voc., writing? Also, I can't remember, does it include spelling?

 

The basic packege only has the teacher guides (plus a student book for Practice Island). The complete package has both student and teacher books for everything. The teacher books contain all the text of the student books with little "bubbles" here and there telling you what to emphasize with dc. It also has a separate teacher resource section in the back. Since the student texts don't have any unique information in them, they are not really necessary (except for Practice Island--the answers are in the teacher's manual, so the student book is included in the basic package).

 

I am using all of the components of Island level along with WWE--the writing instruction is totally different from WWE. I think grammar is its strength, along with an appreciation for the beauty of the English language. These themes pop up in all the books. It does not include spelling.

 

ETA: I've only used Island level, so obviously, that's the level I'm talking about here.

Edited June 9, 2010 by bonniebeth4

[Teresa in MO]

okay, I'm starting to understand how I can get by with just the basic package. So, do the levels build on each other. Would you start at the beginning, which is Island, with a 5th grader or could you go straight into Town. Do you really need to do Island to do Town? Thanks so much for everyones help.

[Beth in SW WA]

Teresa, If you call the number, the gal will ask you some questions to help determine what products you need for your student's age/ability. She was very helpful and didn't want to sell me more than I needed. I actually wanted to buy more but she talked me out of it :)

 

FWIW, We are using WWE also. For language arts, dd 7 will have a hodge-podge of:

 

WWE

Shurley

Grammar Island

SWR

IEW (extremely light by just touching on key words & oral retelling)

 

We are transitioning from a classical school so I am sticking with materials we know & love AND adding in others for variety.

[MariannNOVA]

okay, I'm starting to understand how I can get by with just the basic package. So, do the levels build on each other. Would you start at the beginning, which is Island, with a 5th grader or could you go straight into Town. Do you really need to do Island to do Town? Thanks so much for everyones help.

 

RFWP is incredibly helpful on the phone - so I second that idea.

 

Here, dd (5th grade) started Grammar Voyage, then we bumped down to Paragraph Town and we are proceeding from there. You might want to get the TOWN basic package and just the TM for Grammar Island -- you can go through Grmamar Island with a fifth grader really quickly. Heaven knows, you could sell it here in about thirty seconds when you were finished with it.

[Teresa in MO]

Teresa, If you call the number, the gal will ask you some questions to help determine what products you need for your student's age/ability. She was very helpful and didn't want to sell me more than I needed. I actually wanted to buy more but she talked me out of it :)

 

FWIW, We are using WWE also. For language arts, dd 7 will have a hodge-podge of:

 

WWE

Shurley

Grammar Island

SWR

IEW (extremely light by just touching on key words & oral retelling)

 

We are transitioning from a classical school so I am sticking with materials we know & love AND adding in others for variety.

 

 

I see that you are also using Shurley. Do most people use MCT as a grammar supplement? You all have been so very helpful to me today!

[MariannNOVA]

I see that you are also using Shurley. Do most people use MCT as a grammar supplement? You all have been so very helpful to me today!

 

 

My children had a very strong grammar foundation from Shurley (they were in a private classical Christian school) -- we are using MCT for grammar and writing, some other things tossed in here and there for writing, and IEW Phonetic Zoo for spelling. I don't use any other grammar curric.

[TKDmom]

I see that you are also using Shurley. Do most people use MCT as a grammar supplement? You all have been so very helpful to me today!

 

I know you're not asking me ;), but I don't use anything else. I learned a few things I'd never known from Grammar Island. And looking through the samples of Grammar Town, I saw that it is much more thorough. I'm considering buying the higher levels mct just so I can stay a step ahead of dd in learning these topics. :D

[radiobrain]

I don't use anything else.

 

However, I do supplement on the writing end. This is not because the writing portion is inadequate... but because I need to use a multi-pronged approach to writing with my boys. Writing has so many facets to it, that I think using any one program exclusively can be limiting. When I get to the Advanced Academic Writing level, I will most likely drop anything else.

 

Also, each elementary level is very different from the last. I think different people would have different answers to what are MCTLA strengths depending on level used and personal preference.

 

The same goes for whether someone supplements or not. It is NOT necessary to supplement, some just choose to.

[Caitilin]

I'm thinking about joining as well! Does the publisher ever have sales and is there anywhere else to buy the material? As of today, I think I'm going to buy the Town basic set with an extra practice book since I will have two DDs using the same level. Currently, we're using R&S which is excellent but very dry.

 

Edited to add I'm considering using Music of the Hemispheres in addition to Building Poems because my younger daughter hasn't had much exposure to poetry. Do you think this would be a good idea or is the information in the first book repeated in Building Poems? I'm still feeling a bit lost.

 

Thanks.

 

Ann

 

I don't think you need to do anything but Building Poems; all of the info in MotH will be repeated in BP, just at a new, higher level. It should be perfect for what you need all on its own. :)