MCT Grammar Island 1st Ed vs. 2nd Ed

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

I promised to post the differences after my 2nd Edition arrived. Sorry it took me so long to get around to doing it! I am comparing the most recent release of the 1st Edition (January 2010) and the newly released 2nd Edition.

 

There are more teacher notes. Almost every page has at least one teacher note and many have 2. There are also new graphics. Most are improvements over the language teaching graphics but a few added to look nice (like a fish on a page that was plain). The text is also different in some places. Sometimes changed and sometimes additional text added. It also seems that additional words in the text are in color, usually for emphasis. The colors throughout the book seem more vibrant and many of the pictures are larger, many full page instead of part of a page.

 

Some examples: there is text added explaining AVP's and LVP's, and then verbs are labeled as such instead of "action verb" and "linking verb." The graphics on pg 102 of the 2nd edition (pg 98 of the 1st edition) showing the construction of the sentence is greatly improved, both easier to understand and better looking. There are 8 new pages about indirect objects, direct objects and objects of the preposition.

 

I haven't had time to compare every single page but those are some of the differences. I'm glad I was able to get the new edition but, while it seems greatly improved, I don't think it's something you absolutely must buy or you will mess up your child's grammar education.

 

I hope this is helpful!

 

ETA that after writing all that I noticed that RFWP had new samples up, including the changes. You can view them in detail at http://rfwp.com/samples/gram-is-teacher.pdf on pages 34 - 35. If I can figure out how to copy them correctly you can read them below.

 

Teacher Section

The Second Edition of Grammar Island

 

This second edition of Grammar Island is a dramatic revision, changing text and graphics, adding

new content, and connecting Grammar Island both artistically and intellectually with the new edition

of Grammar Town and with Sentence Island. The coherence of these related texts is visibily

enhanced. Here are some of the more salient focal points of the revision:

 

1. Graphics. I have improved the graphics of the book significantly, expanding Milton Kemnitz’s

beautiful paintings to full-page status where they can be appropriately enjoyed. I have also added

four-level icons to the tops of the pages, giving a visual reinforcement for the level at issue on the

page; these icons are also at the tops of the pages in the Practice Island book and in the new

edition of Grammar Town. Finally, I have imported graphic images from my slide presentations that

I use in conferences and workshops, making a more consistent total experience.

 

2. Grammar. For this edition of Grammar Island I have added indirect objects; they were already

in Sentence Island, and now the two texts are more coherent. Experience has shown me that

younger students can understand indirect objects if there is a clear presentation and sufficient

practice. I have given more emphasis to the way linking verbs create equations between subjects

and subject complements. Finally, I have expanded the presentation of the adverb to show that

it modifies not only verbs but also adjectives and adverbs, though the focus is still largely on the

modification of verbs; the full talent of adverbs will be explored in Grammar Town.

 

3. Style. I have made a number of changes to the style of the writing. In the first edition I used

contractions to impart a friendly, face-to-face feel to the presentation. Having seen through my

recent teaching that many students use contractions in all of their writing and do not realize that

contractions are out of place in academic papers, I have changed all contractions back to full words. I

made other revisions that I felt would contribute to a textual experience that, while still friendly, would

be a good presentation of academic style.

 

4. Teacher Manual. In the second edition I have made the Teacher and Student editions dramatically

different, making each text particularly suitable for its intended reader. The Teacher Manual now

has more answer keys, more tips and assignments, more instruction for what to emphasize. I have

used purple boxes to add a stream of discussion questions to the pages; these are usually Socratic in

nature, meaning that they are not aimed at one particular right answer, but should lead to enjoyable

explorations of possibilities--deep thinking about the grammar.

This second edition of Grammar Island now fits with the other books in this curriculum, both in

content and appearance, and it is highly enhanced in its supplementary elements for teachers or

parents to use. I hope that you enjoy going to the new Grammar Island.

 

Michael Clay Thompson, 2010

Edited December 24, 2010 by Cheryl in SoCal

[Capt_Uhura]

Thanks for the update Cheryl! I won't be buying MCT ahead of time so I can be sure to get the latest edition.

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

Thanks for the update Cheryl! I won't be buying MCT ahead of time so I can be sure to get the latest edition.

Very wise! It was just like me to buy them a week before the new was set to be released:001_huh::lol: I had to buy the elementary levels (Merry Christmas to me:lol:) to remediate my older children (and I can't tell you how much I'm LOVING it!) but am waiting until he finishes rewriting the Magic Lens series before buying them. Thankfully, they should be done in time for me.

 

ETA that I was planning on using the Shurley English labels with MCT but have now decided against that. AG irritated me to no end with the simple labeling and we replaced her labels with Shurley labels but MCT's 4 level analysis (which I like so much better than the parsing in Shurley and AG, and my children like so much better than diagramming) addresses everything much more completely so it's not an issue. I also LOVE the way he addresses clauses from the beginning. I was so disappointed that Shurley didn't really address them until Level 7, and by then the series was over so very little practice. MCT also doesn't try any of the "this adjective is actually an adverb because the word it's modifying is acting as an adjective and only adverbs can modify adjectives" nonsense that AG does, and drives me nuts!!!

Edited December 24, 2010 by Cheryl in SoCal

[deanna1949]

I just bought this last month in preparation for beginning in January. Now I wish that I'd waited a few weeks for the 2nd edition. Thanks for the link to the new samples. I've made sticky notes to add to my "old" new book. :glare:

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

I just bought this last month in preparation for beginning in January. Now I wish that I'd waited a few weeks for the 2nd edition. Thanks for the link to the new samples. I've made sticky notes to add to my "old" new book. :glare:

I'm sorry:( If you haven't used the book yet I'd call and see if you can exchange it for the new. You'd have to buy the student book though as they no longer recommend that you use the teacher manual alone. While I do love the changes made to the 2nd Edition I can see where some would prefer to stick with the 1st Edition because they can use just the teacher manual.