Ditching our LA workbooks...scared!

[hsbaby]

Okay, so after only one week of school I decided to do a major overhaul. Our "school" too closely resembled a ps in that we were doing workbooks all.day.long. We did the same thing last year and our year was just, well, lacking in fun. With all the workbooks we had to get though, there was no time for educational games or anything! It felt like we were just going through the motions and getting school out of the way rather than enjoying learning and being together. I really want this year to be different. SOOOO....I have decided to throw out my beloved CLE LA. For the past few days we have been using FLL 2, WWE, (along with cursive, reading, spelling, and read a louds---debating about adding in phonics)). My problem is that it seems TOO easy. We get through LA so much quicker. The kids are loving it, of course. The public schooled child in me is having a near breakdown though! All of this oral work is so foreign to me. I am a box checking, worksheet completing and filing freak. So, does this LA program sound like it's enough (this is for a second grader and a 13 yr. old with special needs that works at about a second grade level). I don't know why it feels like I am over looking something. Hope this makes sense....my 3 yr. old is sitting here telling me the story of how she had an accident on the couch last night:lol:

[alpidarkomama]

We LOVE doing oral work. It's much more efficient. DD7 does plenty of writing otherwise, so I love that we can scoot through concepts pretty quickly that way. Sounds like plenty of LA to me; about the same as what we're doing. :)

[athena1277]

Um, that's all we are doing for 2nd grade. :confused: I don't know what's in the CLE LA, but all the other things you mentioned will give your dc a complete LA education. When we first started with FLL and WWE last year, it didn't seem like much. After a couple weeks you will start to see how much they are retaining and learning and realize it really is enough.

[hsbaby]

Thank you...just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something. I don't think the CLE was more difficult, but it definitely took longer to get through! I guess that's why this route seems "easier"....like it's too good to be true:) Stepping outside of the workbook style is a challenge for me. But the kids have seemed so much happier without having a ton of workbooks thrown at them!!

[Guest]

I am so glad you posted this! I am going through the exact same thing. Now I feel better and not so alone. I started mine 2 August so we have been slugging through for a couple weeks. I have to agree with you, the CLE LA does take so much more time. Mine are older so they did the work alone, then waited for me to check it, then had to go back to make corrections....ARGGGG! Enough already!

 

I plan on grabbing FLL3 and WWE tomorrow at my local store. Thank you agin for helping me feel not alone.

[alpidarkomama]

Definitely discovering that less can be more. WWE is *fantastic*. We just started Year 2. Absolutely love it. :)

[MrsMe]

I feel your pain. I'm doing CLE Reading and I hate that if we just want to have fun for a day or a week that we are then behind, because it all works on concepts learned. Forever behind.

 

This year I'm trying DITHOR instead of CLE Reading. I can't get behind in DITHOR...really. Not like CLE.

[hsbaby]

Training5: I hope things work out for you!! For the first time EVER, my son asked if we were having school tomorrow. I told him no as it's Saturday. His response....."Aw man, it has been fun lately!!!:). Streamlining our LA has given us the opportunity to play some fun educational games this week. I have gone from being scared of this new format to really excited about it!! Time for some workbook burning!!! Okay, no....more like selling. But burning would be more fun.

[Tree House Academy]

I am beta testing CLE LA 2 right now (the new one) and they have made a lot of changes in this second edition that shorten the lessons for CLE LA. Thank God they did, because I refused to use it the other way. We recently stopped our beloved CLE Math for my older son because the lessons were so long and he was starting to hate math. Sad, but workbooks aren't always the answer, huh? The ps kid in me screams over that sometimes too! We are doing Life of Fred Fractions for right now and my son is loving math again! :) We added Singapore to my younger son's CLE and he is also starting to love math again.

[Guest]

hsbaby: Thanks, I hope so. This will make the 3rd switch since I 'decided' on our plan in July.

[FO4UR]

As a testimony to the genius of FLL, my 7yo and 5yo both remember grammar concepts from 6mo ago. I mentioned something about "action words" on Thursday and ds7 reminded me that those are verbs.:001_smile:

 

The oral lessons really do work, and really do take only 5 minutes some days.

[texasmama]

That sounds great to me and very similar to the plan I have for my second grader. :001_smile: We do very few worksheet-type activities. I let the kids check their own boxes (on a page protected schedule for each of them). We are all a pretty happy bunch. Enjoy!:D