wapiti Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 I'd like to try this out for dd, almost 10. She's a fairly good reader and writer (though she struggles with language processing issues - reading comprehension - long story; she's also a visual learner). The last time she did MAP testing, she did very well. We're also doing a lot of Latin at the moment. So, I'm thinking Town level. Can I only do Paragraph Town and Grammar Town? Or Paragraph Town and Caesar's English? Or do I need to do all the books for each level? Do I buy the Teacher's Manual, the Student Manual, or both? Can I get away with just one or the other? Thank you :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheryl in SoCal Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 I'd like to try this out for dd, almost 10. She's a fairly good reader and writer (though she struggles with language processing issues - reading comprehension - long story; she's also a visual learner). The last time she did MAP testing, she did very well. We're also doing a lot of Latin at the moment. So, I'm thinking Town level. Can I only do Paragraph Town and Grammar Town? Or Paragraph Town and Caesar's English? Or do I need to do all the books for each level? Do I buy the Teacher's Manual, the Student Manual, or both? Can I get away with just one or the other? Thank you :) I'm not an expert but think Grammar Town would be the logical place to begin. I believe you can do any of the components separately, with the exception being grammar. We are currently doing Paragraph Town and even though my children are considerably older than your dd and had been through Shurley English Levels 3 - 7 we had to start using the grammar component (we were going to not use grammar until the new Magic Lens 1 came out). In the elementary series, you now need the Teacher Manual and Student Books for Grammar Island and Grammar Town but can use just the Teacher Manual for Grammar Voyage. You will also need the Teacher Manual and Student Book for the practice books unless you will be doing the sentences on a white board. The rest of the Town level books can be used with just the Teacher Manual. I have both because it's convenient (and my teen boys don't want to snuggle on the couch with mommy:lol:) but so far I haven't NEEDED them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in KY Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 (edited) You can do any or all components. However, the Grammar/Practice books are definitely a pair. I bought only Practice Island and Grammar Island last year; this year I bought the whole program. Next year I will likely buy all but poetry, and I may skip Essay Voyage to do some specific work from SWB's lectures. In MCT, everything is well-integrated. My dc love the vocab portion and have never complained about doing Practice Town or the paragraph labs. I am finding it goes very well—beautifully, in fact!—with Killgallon. The teacher's manuals are all you need, though I would have the occasional post-it note on hand to cover up some teacher's notes. It is very helpful to have the student text for both Practice Town and Caesar's English, but you can get by without them. Edited January 19, 2011 by Susan in KY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheryl in SoCal Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 You can do any or all components. I bought only Practice Island and Grammar Island last year; this year I bought the whole program. Next year I will likely buy all but poetry, and I may skip Essay Voyage to do some specific work from SWB's lectures. In MCT, everything is well-integrated. My dc love the vocab portion and have never complained about doing Practice Town or the paragraph labs. I am finding it goes very well—beautifully, in fact!—with Killgallon. The teacher's manuals are all you need, though I would have the occasional post-it note on hand to cover up some teacher's notes. It is very helpful to have the student text for both Practice Town and Caesar's English, but you can get by without them. The Teacher Manuals for Grammar Island and Grammar Town have been revised and now it's no longer recommended that they be used without the Student Book. It's a recent change so I thought I'd mention it. So, unless one is buying a used copy of the previous edition, they should order both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I wouldn't recommend doing Grammar Town without Paragraph Town. The bulk of the grammar instruction in the "town" level is actually in the latter. You can do the vocabulary & poetry components individually but the grammar/practice/writing components need to be done together for a "meaty" program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 Thank you ladies!!! I really, really appreciate your help here. I'm chafing at the cost and the number of books involved, particularly both grammar books when I'm not that interested in the grammar. We have other grammar going on at the moment - Language Principles with a Latin Background (which I could drop), Henle Latin (which is going to take awhile!), and I'm about to add Killgallon's sentence book. Paragraph Town is what I'm primarily interested in. Maybe I'll buy Paragraph Town just to get a better look at it, and buy the others later, if and when we're ready to start the grammar and practice books. On the other hand, I think I read on the website that the grammar book takes a shorter amount of time? hmmm..... ok more questions: How long did it take you to get through Grammar Town, specifically? Did you do Grammar Town and Paragraph Town simultaneously? Does the author suggest any particular coordination of these books, in terms of pages/topics? Should I do Killgallon before, after, or during Paragraph Town? Or does it not really matter? (keeping in mind that we will not have done Island level). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 How long did it take you to get through Grammar Town, specifically? GT does not take long at all. I think most folks finish it in about a month or so. My DD only missed a couple of items on the pre-test so she blasted through it in less than a week. Did you do Grammar Town and Paragraph Town simultaneously? Does the author suggest any particular coordination of these books, in terms of pages/topics? GT comes first, and then the student starts the other components. There is a schedule up on the Royal Fireworks website somewhere. Should I do Killgallon before, after, or during Paragraph Town? Or does it not really matter? (keeping in mind that we will not have done Island level). Which Killgallon book did you get? If it's Story Grammar, I would strongly recommend going through Grammar Town first to learn the terminology. My oldest did Killgallon SG before MCT GT and I really wish that I had done it the other way around as it would've made SG a lot easier. If it's SC for Elementary, then I believe the correct terminology is taught in that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 GT does not take long at all. I think most folks finish it in about a month or so. My DD only missed a couple of items on the pre-test so she blasted through it in less than a week. GT comes first, and then the student starts the other components. There is a schedule up on the Royal Fireworks website somewhere. Which Killgallon book did you get? If it's Story Grammar, I would strongly recommend going through Grammar Town first to learn the terminology. My oldest did Killgallon SG before MCT GT and I really wish that I had done it the other way around as it would've made SG a lot easier. If it's SC for Elementary, then I believe the correct terminology is taught in that. Thank you, Crimson Wife, for this information. This is very, very helpful!! The Killagon book is SC for Elementary. Now I'll hunt down that schedule on the website :auto: :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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