All in one LA - CLE vs. R&S

[sands1978]

I am looking for an all in one LA. I am divided between CLE and R&S. Can someone give us pro and cons...

[m0mmaBuck]

I can only speak to CLE as I haven't started using R&S yet. We used CLE last year. For DS, it was too repetitive, the spelling words were too easy, and he was literally in tears by the end of each lesson. We found ourselves supplementing with different spelling and penmanship programs to bring that part up to his level. We also found ourselves skipping sections (or going over them verbally) to decrease DS's anxiety over doing the same thing over and over day after day.

[lotsofpumpkins]

Well, R&S isn't all-in-one like CLE is. With R&S, there's separate books for English, spelling, handwriting, and phonics. CLE puts it all together.

 

Another difference is that CLE is consumable. R&S English texts are nonconsumable so it's cheaper to use R&S if you have more than one child.

 

I personally prefer R&S for LA, but I love CLE for math.

[Dawn E]

CLE has been a great fit here. There is a lot of repetition, but I personally think that is good. I have a quick learner, but still she needs repetition to internalize say the uses of "their, there, they're" or "two, to, too." I consider it similar to learning and practicing math facts so that they become something you do without thinking. The handwriting and spelling have also worked well for us. Many people supplement the spelling, so that is something to keep in mind regarding an all-in-one. We have added in the spelling rules cards from SWR simply because I already had them. It is work, and dd does grumble about it sometimes. However, I am very pleased with what she is learning and retaining through it. I'm also pleased with how thorough it is and all that is covered.

 

ETA--I've looked at R&S, and I am sure it is a wonderful program (though, again, the grammar is not an all in one). Many home schoolers I greatly respect swear by it. I just never liked the looks of it...and the format of CLE (consumable, user-friendly layout) just appealed to me more. Hopefully you can get your hands on a copy of both and get a better idea of what would be the best fit for your family.

Edited September 5, 2010 by Dawn E

[mothergooseof4]

We used CLE last year. I am switching to R&S. This is why:

 

CLE is designed to allow the student to work fairly independently. It is academically a great, well-rounded program if your child is able to work in this manner.

 

My ds worked through CLE LA 400 last year for 4th. It was a battle everyday and a learning experience for me. I have come to realize that he is an auditory learner. He can read history or science himself, but he needs to hear math and LA and be able to interact with me in order for it to stick. He also would look at the 4 pages of LA each day and get overwhelmed. Therefore, when sent to work on it, I think he got easily distracted and bored because he thought the task too daunting. I also think he would make careless mistakes for the same reasons. So, after taking FOREVER to finish a lesson, we would then spend FOREVER going back to fix his mistakes and to reteach things he did not pick up on his own.

 

We are doing R&S as scheduled in Heart of Dakota CTC this year. We are also doing all of the other LA items scheduled in CTC, but adding in AAS. Everything we are using is technically more teacher intensive than CLE, but we actually spend less time each day on LA than we used to spend just correcting CLE.....not counting the time he had already spent on his own. He reads the R&S lesson to me, we do the questions orally, then he does the written assignment on his own. We then do whatever other LA is scheduled for the day, plus AAS. We are usually finished in less time and there is no frustration. I think this is because he sees things in smaller chunks instead of one big assignment. Plus, he doesn't do a lesson only to have to go back and redo much of it.

 

CLE is a great curriculum. I would actually do well with it since I am very much an independent learner. The only thing that I do not care for in it is the spelling. Half through level 100, they switch from studying a new phonogram or spelling rule and having words based on that to just having a list of words to memorize. I prefer AAS or something similar that continues phonetically based spelling for a several years.

 

edited to add: I also used CLE Learning to Read and LA 100 with my 1st grader this past year. I loved LTR, but when we added in LA 100 it bogged him down with so much work. He grew to hate school. He is doing the LA in HOD's Beyond and adding in AAS this year and it is going well. He will start R&S next year as scheduled in HOD.

 

I started my Ker last year in Learning to Read at half pace. She is now in 1st and alternating LTR and LA 100 so that she does not have the load of both in one day.

Edited September 5, 2010 by mothergooseofthree

[m0mmaBuck]

I do love the consumable workbook-style of CLE. DS really likes CLE Math, repetition and all (but then again he loves math). He also did well with their Science and Social Studies light units. However, the open-and-go style of CLE LA didn't work for him. He didn't find the topic interesting enough to really maintain his focus.

[Dawn E]

I have an extra LA 405 that I'd be happy to put in the mail for you just to get a look at, whether you use it or not. Just send me a pm. The LA builds on itself, so you won't be able to try it out with your child since it is in the middle of the year, but it will at least give you an idea of what the program is like.

 

All of the points made are very valid ones, so you really have to consider the learning style and personality of your dc. My dd is a quick learner, as I said, but she can be a very fidgety, easily distracted child as well. She started CLE LA 3 last year and had previously been through GWG 1/2. I sit with her during math, Latin and writing, and we read aloud many other subjects. This is the only material that she does sitting alone, and I have explained to her the importance of paying special attention to directions and working carefully. Of course, if she has any questions, we go over those--when she is finished--and I've told her to skip any sections she doesn't understand for us to do together afterwards. CLE works for us because it allows her to foster independence and teaches her study skills.

 

That being said, we also love MCT, and we plan to alternate between the two as we did last year. MCT is more teacher-intensive with less written work for the student. She loves MCT, but I feel it is important to keep CLE in the mix for all the reasons I have mentioned.