imhim Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 CQLA - Character Quality Language Arts. They have free samples on their website and looks really good. A homeschool mom mentioned this to me, she was really excited about it. I am wondering if anyone here has any experience with this program. Thank you. http://www.tfths.com/cqla.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwi mum Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 I have used the samples and I liked it. But I didn't like it enough to spend that amount of money on it. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imhim Posted October 14, 2010 Author Share Posted October 14, 2010 Anyone else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWOB Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 I use the writing portion, Meaningful Composition, with dd10. We love it. I've heard it is like IEW for idiots. Both of us needed hand-holding for writing, and MC does this. DD can easily take what she has learned from the book and apply it to other areas, such as writing narrations in History and Science. I can't bring myself to purchase and use CQLA sine we get tons of grammar in our Latin program, but the writing portion is worth the money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twogirlsmommy Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 (edited) This is our first year using CQLA. We are using CQLA blue level A. I have to say it is Amazing!!! It did take a bit to get into the swing of it, and at first it did not seem to flow very well, but at the end of the month I really saw the cohesiveness of the program! DD is able to work on it independently for about 75% of the program. I love the writing assignments, the spelling, the grammar, and how they include vocabulary words that are in the passages. Copywork and dictation are part of the program, which I feel is important. I really like that there are spelling lists, but you also include words spelled wrong on the spelling test, dictation quiz, or writing assignment. On the downside I feel like it could have a bit more vocabulary practice, so I am just going to use the words and make up lists myself for DD to work on throughout the week. There is no sentence diagramming, but right now we are doing okay without that part and we can always add a diagramming book as needed. DD needs a bit more grammar practice (every day) do she does Daily Grams (which takes about 5 minutes). Oh, as far as the price...the start-up is expensive (the Teacher's Guide and Spelling books you only buy once) but the yearly amount is really not that bad. The program is set for 8 months...so that is $10/month for spelling, vocab, writing, grammar...I feel that is reasonable. Hope this helps!! Edited October 14, 2010 by twogirlsmommy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wonderfilled Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 This is our first year using it and we are really enjoying it. My two boys look forward to getting a new story to read and write from each week. I usually only hand out a weeks worth at a time. The author recommends a months worth, but my children like the novelty of getting something new each week. Out of every 4 week cycle the student writes from a model the first two weeks and then writes something original the last two. The program gives guidelines on what to write about. I like the very detailed instructions and the hand holding it gives in helping the students revise their essays. My boys are able to do a lot of it themselves, but I have to help a lot with their revisions. With continued use, I'm sure it will get better. I noticed a previous poster mentioned that the vocabulary is weak, but I did notice on the new samples on-line that they have really improved in that area. I also wish they included diagramming and am thinking of adding that next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twogirlsmommy Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 The newer samples did look like better vocabulary. I think that the green has the newest information. I was also wondering if it went by level. It looks like Level B has much more vocabulary. I have to say my daughter hated writing until this year. She has really come a long way and really enjoys the writing assignments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imhim Posted October 14, 2010 Author Share Posted October 14, 2010 My oldest is second grade. Would that be the PreA level? Or should I just wait until next year, 3-rd grade. We are finishing up WWE1 and starting WWE2. What color should I get first? Green for level A in third? I am not sure I am understanding how this works with levels and colors. Thank you for all the input! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imhim Posted October 15, 2010 Author Share Posted October 15, 2010 bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne115 Posted October 15, 2010 Share Posted October 15, 2010 I tried it last year and hated it. My daughter was in second grade. I think it wasn't a good fit for us because she is somewhat advanced in writing and language arts. It was very boring for us and I didn't like the layout at all. Suzanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twogirlsmommy Posted October 15, 2010 Share Posted October 15, 2010 The levels are PreA, A, B, C. Within each level is a color. You can pick a color based on the character qualities you wish to study. So right now we are doing Level A Blue for my 4th grade DD. PreA is for 2nd and 3rd grades, Level A for 4th and 5th grades. On the website it does tell you what your child needs to know before starting the program. I can see spending two years in one level because within each weekly lesson there are different "levels." For example for spelling the child can do "All, Extension, or Further Extension" depending on their skill level. My DD does the Further Extension activities for spelling but only the All activities for writing. There are also many optional activity ideas along the sides of the pages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah Posted October 15, 2010 Share Posted October 15, 2010 We LOVED CQLA!!! Just finished doing the Blue Series (Pre A, 2 B's and a C) last week and we'll be starting Green on Monday. (Green looks even more rigorous than Blue; it has weekly quizzes now and extra spelling work breaking their words into syllables) There are words in the vocabulary list that I promise will challenge the greatest among us. :blink:The boys really enjoyed it. I enjoyed having one character trait a month to pull everyone in on. It was refreshing for me to see so many things adequately covered. The Narration / Dictation in Pre-A is a bit different than the others and my second grader looked forward to this part especially. I saw tremendous improvement in all their writing. We have done IEW in the summers and the writing in CQLA was perfect. The thing is HUGE so you will want to give 1 month or less at a time to your student. I really hope you enjoy it. Don't be fooled into thinking the black and white pages are dull. The content is rich, focused, challenging and God honoring all while keeping everyone on track either for a 4 or 5 day week. This curriculum is the bomb! :thumbup1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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