If you have used Analytical Grammar, could you give me review

[gaillardia]

On FS forum I saw AG review and reinforcement and wondered if these are additional materials that you use only after using AG, A Systematic Approach.

What are your likes and dislikes about it?

What about the Junior AG? Like or not?

Also, anyone using Stewart English Program with the Principles Plus, Grammar Plus and Writing Plus? Kids do well with it? Please tell me what you or your children think of any of these materials.;)

Thanks!

[siloam]

On FS forum I saw AG review and reinforcement and wondered if these are additional materials that you use only after using AG, A Systematic Approach.

What are your likes and dislikes about it?

What about the Junior AG? Like or not?

Also, anyone using Stewart English Program with the Principles Plus, Grammar Plus and Writing Plus? Kids do well with it? Please tell me what you or your children think of any of these materials.;)

Thanks!

I have pretty much only used AG and JAG, but we love both here.

 

Yes the review and reinforcement would be used most efficiently after AG, but I suppose if you used a different program you might make use of them as long as you have covered the material in AG. The only possible problem I see is AG tries to purposefully keep things simple and not divide up type of pronouns sort of detail, so there might be times on the answer keys when AG has a label that isn't as specific.

 

Love:

 

1. How streamlined the program is.

2. The unusual sequence taught. (Doesn't start with subject and verb.)

3. Easy to understand.

 

 

I really don't have any cons. Winston and Harvey's are the only other programs I have seen in hand, but AG just made more sense to me.

 

My kids don't love AG and JAG, but they don't hate it either. They don't care for diagramming or physically writing, so there is just no winning the like it battle with any program. AG and JAG gets it done quickly and as painlessly as possible, which we all appreciate.

 

Heather

 

p.s. My oldest is finishing up the 2nd season of AG and my 2nd dd is doing JAG right now.

[romeacademy]

Totally my personal opinion, but dd hated AG and so did I. She was in 6th grade when we started and maybe should have done JAG first, but according to the website it should have been OK. I bought it because the idea of not repeating the same grammar year after year made so much sense, but it just really didn't work for my oldest, and I never went back.

 

It seemed to me that the program expected kids to know a lot coming in, even though I'm pretty sure it said no previous experience was necessary. The thing that was hardest for dd was that so much seemed to be thrown at her at once, with fewer examples than she would have liked. We had previously used R&S for grammar and I guess we were both used to the pattern of introducing a concept (say verb phrases) then practicing that almost in isolation for a little bit before adding trickier stuff to the mix.

 

I think the best example I can give is actually math related. You know how when the child is learning long-division, most programs will have some problems that practice the skill straight up before throwing in word problems that require several steps using different skills to get the answer? Well, AG seemed like it went straight to the multi-step word problems without letting you get your feet wet. We got through about 5 weeks before giving it up.

[Sunshine State Sue]

We used Analytical Grammar for 6th-7th-8th and loved it. You may read my review here. We just started the high school reinforcement books. I like it so far.

 

ETA: If you do an advanced board search with Analytical Grammar in the title, you'll find lots more threads.

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

Totally my personal opinion, but dd hated AG and so did I. She was in 6th grade when we started and maybe should have done JAG first, but according to the website it should have been OK. I bought it because the idea of not repeating the same grammar year after year made so much sense, but it just really didn't work for my oldest, and I never went back.

 

It seemed to me that the program expected kids to know a lot coming in, even though I'm pretty sure it said no previous experience was necessary. The thing that was hardest for dd was that so much seemed to be thrown at her at once, with fewer examples than she would have liked. We had previously used R&S for grammar and I guess we were both used to the pattern of introducing a concept (say verb phrases) then practicing that almost in isolation for a little bit before adding trickier stuff to the mix.

 

I think the best example I can give is actually math related. You know how when the child is learning long-division, most programs will have some problems that practice the skill straight up before throwing in word problems that require several steps using different skills to get the answer? Well, AG seemed like it went straight to the multi-step word problems without letting you get your feet wet. We got through about 5 weeks before giving it up.

 

We like it but found the opposite to be true. After having done Shurley English through Level 7 the very basic way AG had you label seemed babyish to my children (if you can call teenage boys much taller than you are children, LOL). We felt like it was starting at square one because my kids already knew everything until we started diagramming. Since I like everything else about it we are using the Shurley English labels instead of the AG labels.

 

Things I like:

- sentences more complex than Shurley English

- diagramming (no diagramming in Shurley)

 

Things I don't like:

- the very basic way sentences are labeled

 

I think it's a very good follow-up to Shurley English (with the exception of the labeling) to teach diagramming and work with sentences that are more complex than in Shurley English. I will also do the Shurley/AG sequence with my younger children instead of JAG/AG because I prefer Shurley.

[HollyDay]

I started AG for the first time this year in 6th and have no complaints. It is easy, straight forward and streamlined. The first lesson is nouns, articles, and adj. So, even though the definitions of these are listed, I agree with a previous poster that some knowledge of grammar is assumed. The next lesson is on prepositions and prepostional phrases. Diagramming is introduced at this point.

 

It is a different approach. Nouns are taught as nouns not subjects or objects. Those terms are introduced later. The concept I think is to identify nouns first, then learn their jobs.

 

AG is good. But, again, it does assume the student has taken some grammar somewhere from some curriculum. If not, then I would most definitely start with JAG.

[Lolly]

Used it after R&S. Two of my girls had really picked up all the grammar they needed from R&S. AG was a good review for them. One had struggled through R&S. AG really reached her. She has done extremely well with it. I do think the R&S helped there. AG just pulled it all together for her. Me, I liked it alright. I do prefer R&S. I think it is far better than Easy Grammar. I purchased the review and reinforcement, but none of us liked it. Those have been shelved. Somewhere.

[gaillardia]

Thanks, y'all! (I'm sorry, I've been in Texas too long).

I will be referring back to this thread. Thank you, Sue, for the link. I never make choices over materials very quickly and this definitely gives me much-needed input. :001_smile:

[Negin]

My dd tried JAG at 6th grade. We tried and tried and tried ... hated it more than anything. We still joke about it to this day and she's even made up songs about it. ;) :lol:

[shanvan]

We like it but found the opposite to be true. After having done Shurley English through Level 7 the very basic way AG had you label seemed babyish to my children (if you can call teenage boys much taller than you are children, LOL). We felt like it was starting at square one because my kids already knew everything until we started diagramming. Since I like everything else about it we are using the Shurley English labels instead of the AG labels.

 

Can you give an example of how you did this and how the Shurley labels differ? It would really help me out with decision making.

 

 

 

We are currently using Shurley and I was going to move into AG next. However, if it looks like the labels are too simple I may just use my college grammar text if it has enough of an answer key.

 

At any rate, I'd like to see how you change the labels, if you have time to post. Pretty please? :D

 

 

Shannon

[Sunshine State Sue]

We are currently using Shurley and I was going to move into AG next. However, if it looks like the labels are too simple I may just use my college grammar text if it has enough of an answer key.

 

At any rate, I'd like to see how you change the labels, if you have time to post. Pretty please? :D

 

 

Shannon

Shurley labels the nouns: SN, PN (predicate nominative), DO, IO, OP. AG labels the nouns: N (common noun) or PN (proper noun).

 

This bothered me at first, but the job of the noun became clear when diagramming the sentence, so it didn't matter as much to me in the long run.

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

We are currently using Shurley and I was going to move into AG next. However, if it looks like the labels are too simple I may just use my college grammar text if it has enough of an answer key.

 

At any rate, I'd like to see how you change the labels, if you have time to post. Pretty please? :D

 

 

Shannon

Shurley is much more specific. AG labels all of the following nouns; subject noun, object of the preposition, direct object, object complement noun, object of the preposition, etc. AG labels all of the following adjectives; subject pronoun, possessive pronoun adjective, possessive noun adjective, predicate adjective, etc. It goes on like this through all parts of speech.

 

There are also some cases where AG calls an adjective an adverb because the word it's modifying is acting as an adjective when the pair of words should be marked as an adjective. Here is a quote from my previous post about this because it's confusing to explain.

 

We recently started AG and have a question about one of the sentences. Here is the sentence and the question is about the bolded word:

 

"This disrupted the normal paper towel distribution, which created shortages for whoever really needed paper towels."

 

The students are to be labeling nouns, articles, adjectives and pronouns. They label "towel" as and adjective and "distribution" as a noun. "Paper" is left unlabeled with the following note at the bottom:

 

"Paper" is not an adjective in this sentence because it doesn't modify the noun "distribution." It modifies the adjective "towel." We will learn in subsequent units what that word is.

Here is AG's response.

We teach everything by simple function. Any word that modifies an adjective

is an adverb. You can look at your adverb notes (unit #5) for more specific

information.

 

You can use the term compound noun (in this case it would be a compound

adjective), but mom chose to use the basic functions of the words in a

sentence. It's one of the things that allows AG to be as thorough as it is

while not taking years to complete.

 

Once a student understands grammar at a mastery level (after learning it

through AG), it's very easy to read something like your entry on compound

nouns and understand that concept.

 

On the other hand, taking the time at this point to try and understand the

subtle differences between adj+noun and compound noun doesn't get a lot of

payoff and stalls the forward progress of more important topics.

 

I hope this helps!

I have chosen to stick with the Shurley labels and mark all compound nouns/adjectives as such, and not as adverbs.

 

I hope I don't sound too negative because I really do like AG a lot. In fact, I like it so much that I plan to use the Shurley English/AG combination with my younger children when they are old enough (the oldest of my younger crew is in 1st grade so no grammar at all yet). That's just one part of the program that I don't like so I do it "my" way. I also tweaked Shurley by only doing the grammar portions, and felt the need to do something after it for diagramming, more complexity and more practice with clauses (which weren't introduced in Shurley until the end of Level 7). There is a lot I like about both programs so I make them work for me:D

Edited August 31, 2010 by Cheryl in SoCal

[shanvan]

Your comments are very helpful. I will probably go ahead with AG and may use Shurley labels or not. I can see how diagramming would make the function more clear. So, we'll see when we get there.

There are also some cases where AG calls an adjective an adverb because the word it's modifying is acting as an adjective when the pair of words should be marked as an adjective.

 

 

In my college grammar class I was taught the same approach AG uses in this case. It makes more sense to me.

 

Shannon

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

Your comments are very helpful. I will probably go ahead with AG and may use Shurley labels or not. I can see how diagramming would make the function more clear. So, we'll see when we get there.

 

 

In my college grammar class I was taught the same approach AG uses in this case. It makes more sense to me.

 

Shannon

Then the adverb/adjective thing won't be an issue for you:001_smile: I was never taught that way in high school or college (or in Shurley English) so it really bothered me. Actually, it still does:lol:

 

I really don't think the labeling is a deal breaker because it's easily fixed if it ends up bugging you. If we hadn't already done SE it would have been a non-issue but my kids were like, "Are you kidding me?! We are not in 2nd grade.":lol:

[ekarl2]

On FS forum I saw AG review and reinforcement and wondered if these are additional materials that you use only after using AG, A Systematic Approach.

What are your likes and dislikes about it?

What about the Junior AG? Like or not?

Also, anyone using Stewart English Program with the Principles Plus, Grammar Plus and Writing Plus? Kids do well with it? Please tell me what you or your children think of any of these materials.;)

Thanks!

 

 

The Reinforcement and Review book is used if you have a student who does AG and breaks it up over two or three years. If the student goes straight through, he doesn't need it. If you break it up, it's MANDATORY. :001_smile: