If you once considered AO, or if you actually used it and

[Susie in MS]

either decided against it or stopped using it, can you tell me why?

 

Thanks!

[mystika1]

:auto:

[Amy Jo]

I pick books from it, but I want my children together more, especially since they are young. I plan to use more of their lists as my children can read independently, but plan to keep us in the same history period and science topic (as in Simply Charlotte Mason and TWTM).

[Susie in MS]

Thank you all!

[kewb]

I love AO's extensive booklists. I try to incorporate other aspects of the Charlotte Mason approach into our days such as the short lessons.

[FO4UR]

I've used Year 1 (most of it). I love the CM style/method. I don't love some core books scheduled years 2+. So, I'm working to keep the CM flare, sifting through to pull out the great literature, and finding resources that better fit us.

[Susie in MS]

Paula,

Can you tell me which core books you don't like and why?

Thanks!

[woolybear]

I used year 1 here and will continue to use it, but not as our core program. I will use it in conjunction with several other programs. One of the reasons is that ds needs lots of hands on for every subject. I believe OM will work better in this regard for him. However, I love Ambleside and I plan to use a lot of their resources, not just for read alouds, but also for history, natural science, poetry, literature, and picture studies. I think the two programs will work well together.

[Closeacademy]

I thought about it when I started homeschooling but then I decided that my dd would get bored with a lot of the old fashioned books they have on their list. We went with Sonlight for a little bit then TWTM after that.:001_smile:

[Soror]

I was not fond of the history selections but do like a lot of the lit selections and info about nature studies etc.

[easygoer]

Charlotte Mason's approach fits me/us very well.

 

My biggest break with Ambelside's lists (which I think is very well put together and represents very careful, dedicated work) is the approach and sequence chosen for history. The editors wrote:

 

"Charlotte Mason taught the history of her own country alongside world history, doing both side by side chronologically. It hasn't been practical for Ambleside Online to duplicate that totally because Charlotte Mason's country (England) had a long, rich history, unlike the US, whose history is only known only vaguely before the 1400's. Rather, what Ambleside has offered is closer to a history of western civilization, with an emphasis on America's roots in Western/British history."

which is not the direction I want to go. And their history selection does very closely follow this philosophy.

 

They do suggest following an alternative, Beautiful Feet is one of the alternatives mentioned (The AO editors do recommend SOTW in year 5 when the sequence reaches vol. 4.)...I'm a Core Knowledge fan and stick to Hirsch's program (which also focuses on CM-style Living Books so I feel it's a good fit.) CK also is a sequence that studies American history 'alongside' world history, which is in the spirit of CM's choices for her students in England, IMHO.

 

So, An Island Story is out, for me. It makes perfect sense for CM's students but not for mine, really. The church history and religious studies I have also tailored to be more representative of our own spirituality here.

 

The CM schedule and methods we have begun and plan to continue sticking to reasonably closely for the forseeable future. The booklist, particularly history, needed some shifting to meet my needs.

Edited June 13, 2010 by easygoer

[Another Lynn]

Hi! I began my oldest in AO in 1st and 2nd grade. The two things that pulled me away were 1)trying to line up with WTM's history cycle and 2)trying to address our weaknesses in certain skill subjects. The thing that pulls me back to AO is longing for books that engage my kids and keep them begging for more.

 

Here's the long version of what I did: When my oldest was in 2nd, I realized that although I loved what we were reading from AO, I was struggling with teaching skill subjects - particularly reading - though he was improving by that time. In his 3rd grade, I began to speed us up to get in line with WTM history cycle and I was pregnant and very sick. Thankfully his reading began to take off, so he was less dependent on me. But he still wasn't ready for AO yr 4 the next year, so I made up my own 3.5 - still speeding up history...

We completed the history cycle that year and started ancients over again (per WTM) in 5th grade (this past year). I also had a 1st grader and a 2nd grader. I made up my own ancients year for them (using Christine Miller's SAW, Hillyer, related picture books, and some AO yr 1 lit. Now, my whole crew is ready for Middle Ages and I'm dying to do AO yr 2 again. So, I'm leaning back towards AO and don't really care how many years our history cycle is. My biggest "tweak" is that I like to start with Ancients (instead of putting ancients at the end of the cycle the way AO does) and I like to marry Biblical and secular history during the ancients year.

 

Clear as mud? I agree with advice you got on the other thread about considering when your dc will be ready for yr 4 books. My 2nd ds - though reading better than my oldest at comparable ages wasn't ready to listen to AO books in 1st grade. We did a partial year of HOD's Beyond (Stories of the Pilgrims) which really helped him grow in his listening. He was definitely more ready for AO in 2nd.

[Susie in MS]

You all have been most helpful!

 

My dd turns 5 in July so this is not for this coming year. But I like to plan. I am the type that wants to know something inside and out before the last minute. ;)

 

Right now she is reading from McGuffey's Pictorial Primer (the original) and Pathway's first reader. Her comprehension while listening to read alouds is improving greatly. She is doing well with FIAR and loves the books, but I see her starting to get bored with reading them more than twice. I will still use FIAR for a while though. I have also been using other books with less and less pics to practice with her comprehension. I think what I will do with some of the AO books is read the samples online to her to see if she is ready for them next year when she will be turning 6.

 

You all have given much to consider with the choice of books too. I don't know if I will stay with the program 100% or do my usual tweaking.

 

Thanks for all of your help! Any other thoughts are also greatly appreciated!

[Another Lynn]

You all have been most helpful!

 

My dd turns 5 in July so this is not for this coming year. But I like to plan. I am the type that wants to know something inside and out before the last minute. ;)

 

Right now she is reading from McGuffey's Pictorial Primer (the original) and Pathway's first reader. Her comprehension while listening to read alouds is improving greatly. She is doing well with FIAR and loves the books, but I see her starting to get bored with reading them more than twice. I will still use FIAR for a while though. I have also been using other books with less and less pics to practice with her comprehension. I think what I will do with some of the AO books is read the samples online to her to see if she is ready for them next year when she will be turning 6.

 

You all have given much to consider with the choice of books too. I don't know if I will stay with the program 100% or do my usual tweaking.

 

Thanks for all of your help! Any other thoughts are also greatly appreciated!

 

That's a great idea - and I think it's also possible to spread it out over two years. Aesops, Burgess Bird, James Herriot, Island Story, 50 Famous are pretty accessible. (Well, Herriot may stretch dc's vocabulary, but there are great pictures). Just So Stories, Parables from Nature, Blue Fairy Book, Paddle to the Sea might be a bit more challenging. I'm sure I'm forgetting some.

[FO4UR]

That's a great idea - and I think it's also possible to spread it out over two years. Aesops, Burgess Bird, James Herriot, Island Story, 50 Famous are pretty accessible. (Well, Herriot may stretch dc's vocabulary, but there are great pictures). Just So Stories, Parables from Nature, Blue Fairy Book, Paddle to the Sea might be a bit more challenging. I'm sure I'm forgetting some.

 

:iagree:

 

...and exhaust the AO YR0 booklist now.

[Susie in MS]

Oh, believe you me, we have nearly exhausted that list and more! Hehe! :D We are on vol 3 of FIAR, and we have read and reread Milne, Potter and more.

[Peela]

I am a chornic tweaker. We did AO year 7 (and the last part of 6) last year and many of the books were hits, but some were not. When I looked at year 8, I just felt it was a little too hard and dry for my kids. Year 7 is a great year though.

Also, I never felt that retelling was enough once they were older- although I still integrate it- and I wanted them to write more meaningful essays and assignments. It ended up being a lot of work to think those up for myself, so I ended up with a curriculum (IEW Medieval) to do it for me...thats how it always starts here...I dont like one aspect....I try to do it myself....ends up too much work....find a curriculum to replace that part....and it goes from there.

[Another Lynn]

I am a chornic tweaker. We did AO year 7 (and the last part of 6) last year and many of the books were hits, but some were not.

 

Care to share which year 7 books were not hits?

 

TIA!