smilesonly Posted February 26, 2011 Share Posted February 26, 2011 I am getting so much pressure from the "gallery" to start narrowing down choices for HS. Needs I have..(warning! there are so much more than I even list;))..... Hand-holding for me-especially in the writing area. (Good Lord, Help me!!) A curriculum we can use 9-12. No jumping ship. Huh-uh, no way.(Repeat to myself...) A scheduled written out plan; day by day or even week by week, written to my dd. Independent work to prepare for college, accountability other than me would be nice:). I would like some sort of flow/connection between subjects-especially History and English. Outside accountability if for no other reason-writing! Strong college prep (still figuring out what that is;:tongue_smilie:I would say 4 yrs each of English, History,Math, Science, and Foreign Language). As little tweaking as possible. I won't use Rosetta Stone or Apologia beyond what we are doing now. Christian-but doesn't need to be overly, awkwardly shoved in, iykwim. Will not break our little piggy bank.;) And...I'm open to other choices I am unaware of. ~tia:grouphug: eta-we are finding that dd is suddenly challenged by "connecting the dots." If that helps...;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted February 26, 2011 Share Posted February 26, 2011 (edited) The only Hewitt I've used is LL and a Hewitt schedule for health, both for jr hi. I do think MFW would meet most of your goals. The outside accountability one is not going to be the kind of accountability that Hewitt could give you, but it is there in terms of a clearly-defined body of work expected. If you want to use something else for foreign language and science, then you won't benefit from the MFW schedule for those, but you will have boxes on your weekly grid for recording whether those subjects are completed each day. MFW is very Christian, and one of the main textbooks is the entire Old Testament. It isn't the type of "added in" that I experienced when I bought a BJU math workbook and Bible verses were placed at the bottom of pages. And it isn't the type of "shoved in" that I experienced when I had an ABeka book of "doctrines" that my child was supposed to memorize. But there is a strong theme of evaluating your faith running throughout the 3 credits in AHL (which we are using this year), including comparing the Bible to other ancient literature, to archaeology, & to science. HTH a little, julie Edited February 27, 2011 by Julie in MN jr hi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4wildberrys Posted February 26, 2011 Share Posted February 26, 2011 I would say MFW fits your needs in many more areas than Hewitt---with the exception of the outside accountability. The syllabi I have gotten from Hewitt aren't quite as laid out, open and go as MFW---most especially the English or Lightning Lit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brindee Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 We haven't used Hewitt, but my dd is using MFW AHL this year. MFW is written to the student--VERY clear and easy to follow. One of the things we like about it is how it weaves the three subjects together! Both of us really like the Bible being one of the main "textbooks!" You can use whatever science and Bible you want to. We are using Teaching Textbook for Algebra and a different science for Biology. This has been such a great year for dd. She's very independent, and has done very well with the lessons! My problem is that I got sick for a few weeks, and she basically did things on her own for 3 weeks or so. Then I got lazy and didn't check in with her as much as I should. The last couple of weeks we've gotten back to the meetings and setting and accomplishing goals well! She was doing fine, I just wasn't being as much a part of it as I wanted to be. There is a lot of reading, but my dd loves reading, so she makes it through even the harder/not as interesting stuff fine. It is definitely college prep for us! The writing instruction is very good I think! I'm NOT a writer, and we've done fine with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABQmom Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 I'm looking for some similar things that you are. Lori D. gave me a great response to the writing/lit question I had that may help you since you are looking for hand holding in writing. Here's the thread. One thing I have found when looking for curricula for my high school dd is that a lot of what people recommend will break your bank account. Sigh. I was able to borrow TOG for our ninth grade year to see if I would like it. What a blessing! While I think it's a good program, it was not easy to use for me--too time consuming and too hard for me to know how much I should do. Also too expensive. Before you decide on something try to get a real good look at it--borrow if you can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brindee Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 One thing I have found when looking for curricula for my high school dd is that a lot of what people recommend will break your bank account. Sigh. I was able to borrow TOG for our ninth grade year to see if I would like it. What a blessing! While I think it's a good program, it was not easy to use for me--too time consuming and too hard for me to know how much I should do. Also too expensive. Before you decide on something try to get a real good look at it--borrow if you can.MFW may seem expensive, but one needs to take a few things into consideration: Many of the other programs that are compared with MFW are worth 1 credit for History. MFW is worth 3 credits for History, English/Lit. and Bible. Some have plans, but, as was mentioned above, those plans leave gaps and are time-consuming to pull together and make specific plans. MFW has complete plans for the whole year for each of the 3 subjects, which are very clear. They are written to the student, have a checklist, and are easy for the student to follow all on their own, if need be. There are clear and distinct writing explanations that even this mom, who is NOT a writer, can use to help dd with her writing. The program weaves the three subjects together to make a beautifully cohesive curriculum that is not matched by many other programs. Using this curriculum has saved me untold hours of pulling things together, headaches from misunderstandings and dead ends, and has helped my dd love and excel in these subjects! Adding all of those together makes MFW WELL worth the cost! I just have not found anything so well put together and interesting! Also, many of the items are reused, and can be resold. That makes it even cheaper! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smilesonly Posted February 27, 2011 Author Share Posted February 27, 2011 The only Hewitt I've used is LL and a Hewitt schedule for health, both for jr hi. I do think MFW would meet most of your goals. The outside accountability one is not going to be the kind of accountability that Hewitt could give you, but it is there in terms of a clearly-defined body of work expected. If you want to use something else for foreign language and science, then you won't benefit from the MFW schedule for those, but you will have boxes on your weekly grid for recording whether those subjects are completed each day. MFW is very Christian, and one of the main textbooks is the entire Old Testament. It isn't the type of "added in" that I experienced when I bought a BJU math workbook and Bible verses were placed at the bottom of pages. And it isn't the type of "shoved in" that I experienced when I had an ABeka book of "doctrines" that my child was supposed to memorize. But there is a strong theme of evaluating your faith running throughout the 3 credits in AHL (which we are using this year), including comparing the Bible to other ancient literature, to archaeology, & to science. HTH a little, julie Thanks, Julie. My brain was off duty yesterday, and as I reread my post, I'm thinking "shoved" was too strong of a word, so I'm glad you were able to understand what I meant.:D I would say MFW fits your needs in many more areas than Hewitt---with the exception of the outside accountability. The syllabi I have gotten from Hewitt aren't quite as laid out, open and go as MFW---most especially the English or Lightning Lit. Okay-MFW seriously needs to develop an accountability option! Now that would really seem ideal-though too much to ask for. Well, that is a bummer about LL, as I have read good things about it. Thanks for giving me your .02.:) I'm looking for some similar things that you are. Lori D. gave me a great response to the writing/lit question I had that may help you since you are looking for hand holding in writing. Here's the thread. One thing I have found when looking for curricula for my high school dd is that a lot of what people recommend will break your bank account. Sigh. I was able to borrow TOG for our ninth grade year to see if I would like it. What a blessing! While I think it's a good program, it was not easy to use for me--too time consuming and too hard for me to know how much I should do. Also too expensive. Before you decide on something try to get a real good look at it--borrow if you can. Thanks for the link-it is a gem! Wow. Yes, I agree about the breaking the bank-last night dh said a firm NO to Hewitt for that reason. I am planning on attending a convention for the 1st time ever this spring, so I should be able to get my hands and eyes on MFW and others. I'm just being a little too anxious and impatient.;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brindee Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 I'm just being a little too anxious and impatient.;):D Very understandable, I'm the same way! Another thing about waiting is that some people will be finishing up MFW AHL and may want to sell many of the parts of it for cheaper than if you bought it new! I'm not sure when we'll finish, but I'll want to be selling much of it to help me be able to get the MFW WHL! So, that may be something to consider. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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