3boysmama Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Ok, I know that everyone will have a totally different opionion on that but I want to know what everyone's opinion on that IS!! We are so weak in that area, grammar and writing just seem to fall behind in my house :( I'm trying to decide what would be best for my boys this next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in CA Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) We've tried Abeka, Sonlight, R&S, FLL, Easy Grammar, and Winston Grammar through the years. My vote is for FLL 1 and 2 followed by Rod and Staff, for 3rd-8th grades! Have not taught past jr high, so cannot comment on upper level grammar. We also follow SWB's recommendation for dictation and narration for reading, science, history. We start outlining in 5th grade. Edited May 18, 2011 by Jean in CA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zusjames Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom&nana Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We love The Phonics Road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaurelJ Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We've tried Abeka, Sonlight, R&S, FLL, Easy Grammar through the years. My vote is for FLL and R&S! Jean in CA ,what do you go to when you finish FLL level 4? Is that when you begin R & S? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnandtinagilbert Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 After all these years and so many "OOPS!" my last love will also be our last attempt! The Phonics Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyCamper Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We very much enjoy MCT for language arts. We use the whole program, which includes grammar, poetry, and vocabulary. It is parent intensive, and fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy to monkeys Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momofabcd Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Another vote for Phonics Road at least so far. Although, I did really like FLL, WWE & AAS when I used it for a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I trust Susan for writing and I will stick by that now after our little break from her products with Phonics Road. It will not happen again! I think that grammar really depends on your student and the type of learner they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homeschooling6 Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I owned Phonics Road for levels 1-3 plus The Bridge (wish I would have kept The Bridge) and IMHO I think it's one of the best. Because of spelling and reading issues we didn't continue with it. I haven't used Shurley English but plan to this next coming school year. From what I hear, mainly that the children remember those jingles years later, with the repetition I think it's a great program (I'll have to report back in a yr:D) I've tried and looked at many LA programs and out of all of them PR would be my #1 pick. I really wish I didn't sell The Bridge :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedgehogs4 Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I LOVE the PHP stuff, but I cannot deny that PR is winning me over. I have switched this year for my K-er, and we both are really enjoying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I owned Phonics Road for levels 1-3 plus The Bridge (wish I would have kept The Bridge) and IMHO I think it's one of the best. Because of spelling and reading issues we didn't continue with it. I haven't used Shurley English but plan to this next coming school year. From what I hear, mainly that the children remember those jingles years later, with the repetition I think it's a great program (I'll have to report back in a yr:D) I've tried and looked at many LA programs and out of all of them PR would be my #1 pick. I really wish I didn't sell The Bridge :( The Jingles are what I love about PR... that and that we have a building code for every jingle, so auditory and visual are both covered. It is good to know that Shurley has jingles too. After trying several programs for DD I will be using Phonics Road 1 and 2 along with WWE 1 and 2 with DS, then switching over to FLL and WWE with Building Spelling Skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassenach Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 The Phonics Road is a treasure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miracleone Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We've only tried FLL 1/2 up to FLL3. We've used Rod and Staff too. I would say that FLL 1/2 is nice and gentle. FLL 3 is ok but DD8 got tired and could speed through the lessons. Rod and Staff is very complete but lots of writing. I like WWE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 The Phonics Road ($$$$) and Writing Skills by EPS Books. The latter might work best for you as it has 3 levels that all your boys would fit into. Get the TM, if you can as it explains the program. If not, just work through the workbooks at your pace. http://eps.schoolspecialty.com/products/details.cfm?series=2561M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Laurie Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We are so weak in that area, grammar and writing just seem to fall behind in my house :( I'm trying to decide what would be best for my boys this next year. There are a lot of great products, and honestly, using any of them consistently will get you the "best" results from an LA program. So just pick something that is doable for you, something that suits your style, that your kids can tolerate, and that will get done. For us, that is CLE for grammar and WWE for writing. I have been tempted by other things, but I know in reality, they wouldn't get done here. CLE is a workbook that is astonishingly gentle, thorough, and varied- my kids have learned so much. They can do this themselves in the morning while I'm finishing getting the baby and myself ready for the day, then we go over it together and it takes 10 minutes. WWE is scripted, (if you buy the workbook) which makes it easy for me to just open and go, so it always gets done. It also takes 10 minutes (per child) and I have seen good results in my kids' writing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 My vote is for FLL 1 and 2 followed by Rod and Staff, for 3rd-8th grades! We also follow SWB's recommendation for dictation and narration for reading, science, history. We start outlining in 5th grade. :iagree:Except that I've homeschooled two all the way through. FLL 1 & 2, followed by R&S through 10th, combined with SWB's Language Arts plan as outlined in the WTM + her audio lecture, have served us well. To finish it up, oldest passed the English Composition CLEP and next oldest did both English APs. GardenMom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erika Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 FLL and WWE. I am also a true believer in SWB way for writing. I will continue with WWS once we get to those levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in CA Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Jean in CA ,what do you go to when you finish FLL level 4? Is that when you begin R & S? FLL 3 and 4 were not out yet, when I was teaching my oldest, so we went directly from FLL (grade 1 and 2) to R&S 3. The two programs work well together. We found the memorization of definitions of nouns, verbs, pronouns, etc. and especially the prepositions in FLL were invaluable in solidifying grammar skills. We also like emphasis on diagramming throughout all the books. R&S also builds year after year and seems more rigorous than other programs we've used. We also like Ruth Beechick's natural method (which we learned through Sonlight LA) and incorporate teaching grammar while we are revising our writing assignments. After all, the purpose of learning grammar is to become a better writer :). We also do all the grammar exerices orally (class practice only). If they make mistakes or need more practice, we'll do select exercises from the Written Practice section. I agree R&S would be way too much writing, if done on paper! Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3byzaz Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 There are a lot of great products, and honestly, using any of them consistently will get you the "best" results from an LA program. So just pick something that is doable for you, something that suits your style, that your kids can tolerate, and that will get done. For us, that is CLE for grammar and WWE for writing. I have been tempted by other things, but I know in reality, they wouldn't get done here. CLE is a workbook that is astonishingly gentle, thorough, and varied- my kids have learned so much. They can do this themselves in the morning while I'm finishing getting the baby and myself ready for the day, then we go over it together and it takes 10 minutes. WWE is scripted, (if you buy the workbook) which makes it easy for me to just open and go, so it always gets done. It also takes 10 minutes (per child) and I have seen good results in my kids' writing. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3boysmama Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 There are a lot of great products, and honestly, using any of them consistently will get you the "best" results from an LA program. So just pick something that is doable for you, something that suits your style, that your kids can tolerate, and that will get done. For us, that is CLE for grammar and WWE for writing. I have been tempted by other things, but I know in reality, they wouldn't get done here. CLE is a workbook that is astonishingly gentle, thorough, and varied- my kids have learned so much. They can do this themselves in the morning while I'm finishing getting the baby and myself ready for the day, then we go over it together and it takes 10 minutes. WWE is scripted, (if you buy the workbook) which makes it easy for me to just open and go, so it always gets done. It also takes 10 minutes (per child) and I have seen good results in my kids' writing. Ok, see I have been thinking about CLE and gave my dc the placement tests...my two olders didn't place very high...:(...I'm very embarrassed to admit this to everyone! Please don't stone me!! I really do feel like I am a failure and doing my dc a dis-service. :( But I did decide to go ahead and buy CLE today, since I have heard such good things about it. But I'm not sure what its like for writing. I used WWE 1 with my youngest the year before last when he was in 1st. It went well with him. This past year things changed a lot so we had to go with a totally different curriuclum. And this past year has been an absolute MESS...I'm not sure that my kids have learned anything! :( It's just been BAD! So, I guess my question is...is WWE for older kids? My oldest will be going into 8th next year, middle ds 5th-6th, and youngest will be 3rd. I know my youngest could use it, but would you recommend him doing level 2 or 3? Thanks for the help! (leaving, while hanging my head with shame) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquinas Academy Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 For writing, I love Classical Writing. I'm a big fan of the progymnasmata approach and my kids have done very well with CW. My favourite grammar curriculua are Primary Language Lessons, Intermediate Language Lessons, and Analytical Grammar. I love the gentle, CM style of PLL and ILL. I've found AG to be very well laid out and really like the amount of diagramming it teaches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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