How much time for each aspect of language arts?

[Sparrows-Song]

So if Language Arts consists of grammar, literature, composition, vocabulary, and spelling, how much does the average 9th and 7th grader do of each of these daily/ yearly?

 

Right now I teach an equal amount of time in grammar, lit, and composition, and it takes up a tremendous amount of time. It feels as if Language Arts is 3 separate subjects requiring 3 times the amount of work, for only one credit. I'm wondering if it would be "ok" to focus on grammar part of the year, literature part of the year, and composition part of the year, (and add in vocabulary and spelling here and there?)

 

We use Rod and Staff for grammar, Write Shop for composition, and Lightning Lit for literature (only literature.)

 

How do you do this?

[regentrude]

My kids are now in 6th and 8th and they do not do spelling anymore. DD is a perfect speller, DS almost, we just fix the occasional rare mistake.

I also do not teach isolated vocabulary, because they develop their vocabulary through reading and Latin.

They have basic grammar knowledge and use English grammar correctly; so we only do grammar within our foreign language studies and with German (their second native language).

Which means, for high school, our language time is split between literature, writing, and oral presentation (which constitutes a substantial part of their assignments).

[Julie in MN]

Very similar to Regentrude here.

 

Dropped spelling when it was no longer needed (back about 3rd grade). It came back into play again, though, around 7th grade when new vocab began to appear in science and even higher literature.

 

We spent 7th & 8th on grammar, and now in high school it's just review of the harder concepts (phrases, blech) and the use of grammar in actual writing. And I agree, the foreign language brings up the grammar, too.

 

My youngest has always read about a chapter a day or a half hour a day. The amount he can do in that period of time or the types of books he has read have increased, but I don't see him ever dropping the daily reading. I don't really count that as part of the school day, although sometimes he does it during the day.

 

Starting in about 7th, he "studies" some of the books he reads, but that's not every book or all year.

 

Composition also has been continual and I don't see it ending. However, it was oral composition in the younger years, then by about 6th it was daily writing of at least *something,* and now it's somewhere around an essay every-other-week in 9th although sometimes that's English and sometimes history etc. (we follow the MFW lesson plans).

 

English is big but I'd have a focus area and a daily practice area.

 

Julie

[Zee]

:lurk5: I'd like to see some other replies, too. I see this as a problem next year. My ds still needs grammar instruction and spelling instruction. :tongue_smilie: We spend a lot of time on language arts each day, to include vocabulary, lit, and composition. I'd really like to see more examples of what others are doing and the amount of time they are spending on english each day for the 1 credit it's supposed to receive. :bigear:

[Susan C.]

It is a continual problem for us.... too much to do, so little time! Grammar, literature, vocab, spelling have always bumped out composition (dd had to write her papers during the first part of summer). So this year in 11th grade, I am allowing grammar to be bumped. Spelling was dropped last year. We are going to try to do the grammar, but in 11th grade, composition is more important. I also clip the literature back as well. It is just one big juggling act... I try to keep it balanced, if we do a lot of composition, then it can drop for a few weeks to do some grammar. I got an easier vocabulary program too (Vocabulary Cartoons).

[Sparrows-Song]

Thanks for the replies. I'd still love to hear more! :bigear:

[Ellie]

Well, when *I* was in school, literature and grammar/comp alternated with each other. IOW, each was only half a semester in length, not each a whole year, KWIM? Maybe you're trying to do too much of each thing.

 

Also, I never did spelling as a separate subject after 6th grade. Even vocabulary wasn't separate, but part of the literature study (or history, for that matter).

[elegantlion]

So if Language Arts consists of grammar, literature, composition, vocabulary, and spelling, how much does the average 9th and 7th grader do of each of these daily/ yearly?

 

 

We're in 7th grade and this is how we are working it this year:

 

Grammar - we rotate with a full grammar program one year, review program another. This is our review year. We will do a final year of refresher in 10th or 11th grade, otherwise grammar will be done in context.

 

vocabulary - we do not use a separate program. We use Latin language, we will study Greek roots at some point and everything else in context of other subjects.

 

Spelling - ds is using Megawords and we do this three days a week. This year we are rotating Megawords for several weeks, then doing our grammar refresher for several weeks.

 

Composition - is done 4x per week, 2x using a program, two days in history or lit.

 

literature - is done 3x per week. We separate this from our other English lessons.

 

My ds needs the most work with spelling and composition so that is where the bulk of our focus goes. I foresee writing and Megawords being most of our English instruction in high school. Literature will be mostly Great Books, so that will be dealt with separately. I'm hoping to be done with the Megawords series by the time we do our refresher year of grammar.

[Melissa B]

My dd is in 7th. This is our first year of applying credits/grades. I dropped spelling and vocabulary from our English studies, but still incorporate them into other subjects. I am also doing literature with our history studies. I am doing one full credit for American History/Lit and one full credit for Ancient History/Lit so I am not doing Literature with our English studies. That only leaves grammar and composition.

 

7th grade:

 

Magic Lens I / 4 Practice I (grammar)

Put That in Writing I (grammar and comp)

online Composition class

 

- for 8th it will be the same only level 2 of each program

 

Dd still spends 7-8 hours per week on English.

 

 

 

For 9th-12th we will drop grammar and do .5 credit composition and .5 credit literature each year.

[Pam L in Mid Tenn]

My boys still need spelling and grammar. They read a lot. I'd say they spend an hour a day on literature, about 20 minutes per WEEK on spelling, about an hour per WEEK on writing INSTRUCTION, and grammar averages about 45 minutes per WEEK.

 

Each day is different right now. We've dropped spelling for October and they are reading more this month.

[Melanie]

My 9th grader has two blocks of time for language arts. I give him one hour in the morning to work on the "nuts and bolts" (grammar, vocabulary, writing exercises, style books, etc.), and two hours in the afternoon for his Great Books study.

 

Sometimes that hour in the morning only takes 10-20 minutes. ;)

[Zee]

Ellie,

You used to teach Rod and Staff english, right? Forgive me if I've remembered it wrong. Did you teach it in high school? If so, I'm wondering how you covered the grammar books. We are doing the first 1/2 of the 7th grade book this year (8th) grade and I plan to continue with 1/2 book a year for 9-11th. That would have us completing the 8th book at the end of the 11th year. We can do a review in 12th or drop it then, I'm not sure yet. But....my thoughts are that Rod&Staff takes a lot of time. I know I could do something quicker and easier, but I like the results I'm getting with this program and it's laying all the right foundations. Anyway...just wondered how you used it with your classes or kids, if you did use it.

[Zee]

In 8th we do:

45 min x 4 days literature

50 min x 4 days Writing

35 min x 4 days Grammar

20 min x 5 days Spelling

15 min x 4 days vocabulary

 

That averages to close to 2.5 hours a day. I know high school will require much more reading time, especially since we use ToG. I have no idea how this is going to work. It seems like too much time to me. DS NEEDS the spelling and grammar. Not sure how I'll get it all to combine and yet, still be a reasonable load with all of his other high school subjects next year. I have a lot of praying yet to do.

[Sparrows-Song]

Thanks all!!