Anyone Used/Looked at the Free Houghton-Mifflin LOTR Lesson Plans?sour

[WishboneDawn]

I came across these awhile ago and downloaded them. They look pretty good with great questions, vocabulary, extra reading, etc.

 

I may use it for literature in the next year or two. Anyone else use it or think it might look good?

[WishboneDawn]

Anyone?

[PollyOR]

Thank you for linking this. :)

[pooh bear]

I have not seen these before, thanks for the link.

 

Off to have a look at them.

[Guest]

I used them -- not all of them, but the ones for the first volume -- with my daughter. I skipped some things, spent a lot of time with others. I liked them very much indeed. Some of the questions were really great for generating discussion and particularly for showing how symbolism does not mean that an object has to "mean" one single thing, but can be more diffuse: the question that really was wonderful for this was about the meaning of the One Ring, and how it affects different individuals.

 

The questions went far beyond typical comprehension questions and reminded me of the kinds of discussion generated by the Great Books program.

 

We're now moving on to the section on Book Two.

[swimmermom3]

I came across these awhile ago and downloaded them. They look pretty good with great questions, vocabulary, extra reading, etc.

 

I may use it for literature in the next year or two. Anyone else use it or think it might look good?

 

Wow, Dawn! I can adapt these beautifully to work with my current plan. They will give it so much more depth.

 

KarenAnne, I should have known that you used these. You have a gift for finding intelligent resources. Thanks for the heads-up. These should reduce my planning workload significantly.

[Guest]

I posted a thread about these when I discovered them -- maybe five or six months ago??? But it was mid-year and perhaps not the right time for people to be looking for that sort of thing. I'm glad they're up on the boards again because they're really good, and they're FREE.

[Matryoshka]

Wow, Dawn! I can adapt these beautifully to work with my current plan. They will give it so much more depth.

 

KarenAnne, I should have known that you used these. You have a gift for finding intelligent resources. Thanks for the heads-up. These should reduce my planning workload significantly.

 

Heavens, Lisa, are you telling me you're going to use these on top of LLfLOTR? :svengo:

 

When you've worked out a nice schedule to integrate them, please share. :D :bigear:

[Capt_Uhura]

Yes do please share! :lol:

[2cents]

We're doing llflotr in August and I think I am bookmarking this site. Thanks!!!

[elegantlion]

Heavens, Lisa, are you telling me you're going to use these on top of LLfLOTR? :svengo:

 

When you've worked out a nice schedule to integrate them, please share. :D :bigear:

 

:iagree::bigear:

[Nestof3]

Thanks for linking! I see they also have The Hobbit plans. Nathan has been reading the LOTR series this summer, so I wonder if I should use it now or wait until he is older?

 

I plan to add this to my blog, if you don't mind.

[PeterPan]

Since we're talking LoTR, anyone have a particularly elegant or beautiful edition they like? I don't even OWN them yet. :)

[PeterPan]

I posted a thread about these when I discovered them -- maybe five or six months ago??? But it was mid-year and perhaps not the right time for people to be looking for that sort of thing. I'm glad they're up on the boards again because they're really good, and they're FREE.

 

That's just the nature of things. Sometimes things don't strike you, and then boom all of a sudden you realize it's what you need. Or maybe we just needed time to become KarenAnne groupies. :)

[Guest]

That's just the nature of things. Sometimes things don't strike you, and then boom all of a sudden you realize it's what you need. Or maybe we just needed time to become KarenAnne groupies. :)

 

Oh Elizabeth, I love you! The groupiness is mutual.

 

The edition Emma likes best is the Houghton Mifflin one printed for the 50th anniversary of the book. It's a slightly oversized paperback and the font is slightly larger than the typical paperback, which is partly why she likes it (she also adores the cover illustrations). We also have the unabridged audiobooks. Multiple listenings are a great way to get thoroughly familiar with the flow of the story and the language, which in turn helps with discussion questions.

[Jen+4dc]

Heavens, Lisa, are you telling me you're going to use these on top of LLfLOTR? :svengo:

 

When you've worked out a nice schedule to integrate them, please share. :D :bigear:

 

Pretty please?!?!?:D:D

[swimmermom3]

Since we're talking LoTR, anyone have a particularly elegant or beautiful edition they like? I don't even OWN them yet. :)

 

We all use beat up paperbacks except my 15 yo son who owns these. They are really beautiful with crisp heavy white paper and illustrations by Alan Lee. My son treasures them and reads them at home, but the paperbacks go on the road.

[WishboneDawn]

Since we're talking LoTR, anyone have a particularly elegant or beautiful edition they like? I don't even OWN them yet. :)

 

*gulp* Yes.

 

I have a copy of The Hobbit and the set of LOTR published by the Folio Society. They cost about $250 altogether and we bought them at a time when we had absolutely NO business spending that kind of money.

 

But they're also drop dead gorgeous. Here's a description of the process they go through in printing and binding a book. Mine have cloth covers with gold embossing.

 

But they are ridiculously expensive. :)

[elegantlion]

*gulp* Yes.

 

I have a copy of The Hobbit and the set of LOTR published by the Folio Society. They cost about $250 altogether and we bought them at a time when we had absolutely NO business spending that kind of money.

 

But they're also drop dead gorgeous. Here's a description of the process they go through in printing and binding a book. Mine have cloth covers with gold embossing.

 

But they are ridiculously expensive. :)

 

:svengo: oh my! I have a new dream. They have so many choices! Perhaps...someday... :svengo:

[WishboneDawn]

:svengo: oh my! I have a new dream. They have so many choices! Perhaps...someday... :svengo:

 

If you get on their mailing list they'll send you offers where you can get a free set of books if you buy 5. Sort of a bookworm's Columbia House movie club thing. Of course the five books generally start at $30 and go up, sometimes waaay up from there but now that I think about it that may be how we got out LOTR. It may have been the "free" set. We have about 10 or 12 other Folio editions around the house (I think I joined once before I was married and once after?) and they are all beautiful books.

[Capt_Uhura]

OK SWimmermom HHHHEEEELLLLPPPPPPPPPP

 

How does the freebie compare w/ LLfLOTR? WOuld they work well together or is one better than the other considering that one is FREE! I had my friend's 1st edition but I gave it back and she's out of town now.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I came across these awhile ago and downloaded them. They look pretty good with great questions, vocabulary, extra reading, etc.

 

I may use it for literature in the next year or two. Anyone else use it or think it might look good?

 

I like that these seem to be more thematic than chapter based. The topics go well beyond basic comprehension questions.

[swimmermom3]

*gulp* Yes.

 

I have a copy of The Hobbit and the set of LOTR published by the Folio Society. They cost about $250 altogether and we bought them at a time when we had absolutely NO business spending that kind of money.

 

But they're also drop dead gorgeous. Here's a description of the process they go through in printing and binding a book. Mine have cloth covers with gold embossing.

 

But they are ridiculously expensive. :)

 

I should never have opened that link. I darn near electrocuted myself by excessively drooling on the keyboard. :tongue_smilie:

[swimmermom3]

This is off the top of my head since I just saw the materials today and I am still supposed to be doing geometry.:tongue_smilie:

 

Rough schedule

 

Begin LLofLOTR Unit Study 5: Exploring Epics when covering Greece in Y1 history rotation. Use your preferred versions for The Iliad, The Odyssey, and The Aeneid. Discusses the following:

 

1. epic
   
2. oral traditions
   
3. folk epics
   
4. Homer, Virgil
   
5. 3 works mentioned above
   
6. literary epic
   
7. pastoral poetry
   
8. modern epic translations
   
9. epic conventions: in media res, flashback, invocation, epithets, cataloguing, importance of armor, and qualities of epic hero
   

We made an epic book based on the unit study which we will add onto this year during our medieval studies. I can't attach the pdf files here because it is too large so pm me if you need to see it. We covered the four myths regarding Perseus, Atalanta, Thesus, and Jason and discussed heroes and quests, especially how the traits of heroes reflect the culture from which they are drawn. There was other work but this is what was tied to LLof LOTR. From the free materials I would pull the handout for the key terms. Some of these are the same as in LLofLOTR, but the additional ones support the overall lesson. I think it's important at this age to distinguish between epics, myths, folktales and fairy tales. The free lesson for Unit One "includes seven handouts, a small compendium of myths, folktales, ballads, and fairy stories derived from ancient traditions." The student can see first hand the differences. The inclusion of ballads is helpful as you move into medieval times, but I will hold "Voluspo" until we cover Norse Mythology. I'll probably try to figure out how to add the additional terms into our epic book. The discussion topics on pp.30-31 would be the final piece.

 

This year, we will start our study of the middle ages with a review of our epic book and the epic conventions. We'll read The Hound of Ulster by Rosemary Sutcliff (Ulster Cycle) and add a page to the epic book. Beowulf will follow and we will look at the differences between Celtic and Anglo-Saxon epics. LLoLOTR's Unit Study 6-A covers the history of Beowulf, unfamiliar terms,and features of Old English poetry (gnomic sayings, kennings, epithets, alliterative meter, and alliteration). Unit 6B is the epic itself, but we'll use Robert Nye's retelling. Unit 7A continues the reading and 7B covers imaginary history, monsters, and heroes. Much of this does refer to Tolkien's works (unlike the EE unit) so I will do some adapting.

 

In the free materials, the second unit is somewhat similar to the second unit in LLoLOTR in that they both cover etymology and philology. I'll leave that unit in LLoLOTR until we actually cover the books. Again, I'll use the key terms and proceed with the Anglo Saxon riddles handout. This goes along with materials I am pulling from LL British Medieval. The TC lectures we are watching have a recitation of a delightfully bawdy riddle, so I am most pleased.:D Lit lessons include foreshadowing and metaphors.

[tarana]

What age group/ Grade level do you use these books for?

[prairiegirl]

Thank you so much for the link. Those lessons are wonderful! We are going to be reading The Hobbit this coming year. These lessons will help a great deal. We won't be doing LOTR until the following year. I have LLfTLOTR but these will flesh everything out very nicely.

 

Thanks again.

[Sara Mac]

Since we're talking LoTR, anyone have a particularly elegant or beautiful edition they like? I don't even OWN them yet. :)

 

Yup, I've got the 1st edition of this one http://www.tolkienbooks.net/html/lotr-1-sc_7.htm

 

It was a present from my husband about 3 months after we started dating (he obviously knew we were definitely staying together :lol: ) I have NEVER read this edition, it's just too beautiful and too delicate. I read beat up old cheapy paperbacks :001_smile:

[mom22greatkids]

Wow, thanks for the link WishboneDawn! We have the Houghton Mifflin set that comes in a cardboard slipcase. I got it for free at my local homeschool fair this year by trading in our old used books. The credit was enough to cover the cost.

 

My daughter is reading through these books this summer along with the literature guide published by Veritas Press. She really, really likes it.

 

I wish that I had had enough insight to look into the HM site before. I am starting to see many posts referencing the site. I think they have wonderful support for a lot of their curriculum.

 

Has anyone used anything of HM's that they especially like? Or, have you used just some of their free online links to support what you are currently doing (besides LoTR)? I would love to know what you think is especially worth while.

 

Thanks,

 

Susan

[Irishmommy]

When do your kids read LOTR? I don't think my almost 4th grader has read or listened to them. I wanted to hold off until he could really understand them on a higher level. He is probably reading on an 8th or 9th grade level now.

[swimmermom3]

It would depend upon the child for when you wanted to start the books. Beginning with The Hobbit is a good choice since the reading level is lower. For literary analysis purpose I don't think I would go lower than 5th grade. That doesn't mean younger children can't read the book or wouldn't enjoy listening to it. It's just that to fully engage in the analysis portion, the child needs to be beyond the literal stage. The books are so rich in symbolism and metaphor that it would be a shame to use them to early. For example, it may be difficult for them to identify Bilbo's internal conflict. The HF download would be good on its own for The Hobbit or you could add it to the LL 7 (or 8?) lesson on the book and have a really meaty study.

 

We won't be starting the LOTR series until the end of seventh grade working our way through until the end of eighth grade. I would wait until 8th or 9th but I don't know if ds will be home for high school. HTH!