Please share what you are using for Language Arts?

[BlessedMom]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts.

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen?

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent?

 

Is it all inclusive?

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child?

 

Would you choose it again?

 

What have other LA have you tried & not liked?

 

 

Thank you. :)

[Jamauk]

We're switching it up this year, but for the last two years we've used McRuffy. I have to say we really did not enjoy it. At the beginning I thought it was great because it was well scripted and really did most of the work for me. Then we came to dread it. It has a LOT of writing and in my opinion, it sort of jumps around quite a bit. It didn't seem to flow very well.

 

My son hated it and it would take us hours each day to get through it. I'm looking forward to starting something new this year!

[WIS0320]

PR 1 - I chose it because it is solid and has intensive teacher training for me.

 

McGuffey Readers - The old-fashioned leveled phonics based readers work well and have charming content.

 

Core Knowledge Literature - I can order the text resources and get all my read aloud grade appropriate literature for the year for about $35. It's affordable and I like the selections for each grade in the sequence. *We read aloud a lot and use tons of library books but I focus our reading comprehension/narration lessons on these selections.

 

None of these choices are colorful. My kid is easily distracted visually so I've wanted to avoid that. I think the lessons can be fun but we try and keep things short. We are new homeschoolers so take my advice for exactly what it is worth. :-)

Edited August 29, 2011 by drexel

[Just Robyn]

4th grader

 

MCT Town - We loved Island level last year and so far so good with Town level this year. I love the presentation and the assignments. Teacher intensive.

 

Daily Language Review - It's quick. It's easy. It puts me at ease.

 

WWE - Open and go. Gets my kids excited about some of the excerpted books.

 

K12 Lit. - Open and go. Includes formats of literature other than the novel. Makes introducing literary elements a breeze.

 

Phonetic Zoo - Independent.

 

Dynamic Literacy - Haven't started using this yet.

2nd grader

 

Grammar-Land - Fun, engaging.

 

WWE - As described above.

 

WriteShop Primary - Fun. Teacher intensive. Some annoying prep.

 

Apples and Pears - Open and go. Teacher intensive. Working so far which is all that really matters.

 

Daily Language Review - As described above.

Kindergartener

 

McRuffy - Open and go. Covers the basics. Colorful. We're going through the K level quickly to solidify previously learned phonics, but I'm not sure we'll stick with it after that as I've read that the first grade level is focused more on grammar than phonics.

 

Oak Meadow 1 - Love it, but subjects are not sold separately at this level.

 

I hope to bring in some ideas/techniques from The Writer's Jungle with all three of them.

[laughing lioness]

3rd grade: R & S 3, IEW Myths and Fairy Tales, WWE 3.

We are doing IEW and WWE with a small group of youngers while their sibs do Lego League.

I love IEW. It's a front end load program. Once you get it, you can teach 3rd through college. Thier theme books are excellent.

R & S- it gets the job done. My 3rd grader doesn't love it. At this age it's open and go

WWE- 3rd grader did 1 & 2 and Loves WWE. Open and go

[boscopup]

2nd grader here:

 

Grammar: FLL3

Writing: WWE2

Spelling: recently started WRTR

Literature: Just picked good books at appropriate reading level

Handwriting: Cursive - GDI font, but not using the workbooks right now

 

Teacher intensive? Yes, but my 2nd grader isn't an independent worker, so anything I use will require me to be there. I might as well have something to do! :tongue_smilie: Well, literature is independent, but everything else, no. :)

 

Colorful and engaging? No on colorful, yes on engaging. If I'm talking to him, it's engaging. ;) My son doesn't require colorful curricula. FLL is mostly oral with some written exercises. No pictures necessary. WWE is also oral with some writing. No pictures.

 

I would definitely use all this again, and likely will with my next one.

 

Next year, we'll be switching grammar to MCT for a bit. The following year, we might head back over and do ALL. We will keep WWE while doing MCT, and will move to WWS when ready for it. For spelling, we'll probably move to a studied dictation program at some point, once we've covered all the phonics (taught himself to read, so we're using spelling to teach phonics).

 

Other programs I've used:

 

Rod & Staff English 2 and 3 - moved too slowly for my son

CLE Reading 100 - busy work, and reading level too low (but he couldn't have done the work at his reading level)

All About Spelling - love this BUT... I finally decided I need to use a program that teaches all the phonograms up front. This child doesn't need the incremental lessons.

How to Teach Spelling - not much hand holding for teacher, but I will still use bits and pieces of it.

 

I don't use all in one language arts programs because my son is asynchronous. His physical writing ability is not where his brain is. So any program that mixes reading/grammar with writing is not going to work, because I need much higher levels in reading and grammar than I do in writing. Piecing together is working well for us, and most of the pieces don't take very long, plus FLL and WWE go together very well, even if they're at different levels.

[MerryAtHope]

DD-7th grade: Easy Grammar (it really is easy to teach, incremental, straightforward, I like it); Karen Andreola's Story Starters (great pictures and stories for dd to write the endings) and All About Spelling (this one is teacher intensive but has been so worth it here. Multi-sensory, open and go, mastery based, incremental...it works well for us).

 

DS-9th grade: IEW SWI C (straightforward, seems to present things in a way my son understands, my son is not hating writing this year so I consider that success!), Sonlight 100 LA (we use these for extra assignments sometimes, fun topics, not a lot of instruction but that's ok since it's not our main writing program), and All About Spelling (see above).

 

Merry :-)

[coffeegal]

Language Arts 8th, 6th, 3rd

TOG literature & writing ~ Love having the younger 3 children reading the same books, having discussion questions, worksheets, etc. We're just getting going on the writing. It starts slowly. This is our first year with TOG.

 

Rod & Staff English ~ It works and is reasonable independent. The teacher manual has everything I need to teach the children. The student book has excellent explainations and enough practice problems for the children to retain the grammar they learn. This is our 3rd year using it.

Pentime Penmanship ~ It goes through the 8th grade so we're able to work on good penmanship for years. This is my 3rd year using this program and it's very independent.

 

Spelling ~ Calvert Spelling & Vocabulary Cd-roms (old ones) - independent and excellent for my good spellers. I've used it on and off for 8 years now. Apples & Pears Spelling - my child who couldn't learn to spell past a 2nd grade level is now improving dramatically by the day! It's very teacher intensive and takes time. Spelling Power - works.

 

We've tried a bunch of LA programs over the years. This is what I've settled on... at least for now. :D

[Carrie12345]

We started WWE with level 1 and will continue.

 

We've done FLL 1-3, but are moving to MCT, which is much more engaging for dd2. Dd1 could learn with just about anything!

 

We all hate spelling, but AAS has proven to be more effective in our house than Sequential Spelling, Spectrum Spelling, or... Now I forget the other one we dabbled with.

 

We have MCT literature, but we'll continue to incorporate other books "WTM style".

 

Elementary is all teacher-intensive in our house, save for dd1's math. She picks up math very easily.

[julikins]

Currently using for 4th grader R&S 3--doing it mostly orally but doing the worksheets and writing assignments as well. It's thorough, complete English program except for spelling/vocab, and cheap. It has come highly recommended but this is my first year using it. I've heard it can be dry, but I'm hoping we can make it quick and painless for DD who has not had an easy time with language arts. And she commented that she liked the hand drawn illustrations in the book. It's not teacher intensive either, so far.

 

We liked Learning Language Arts Through LIterature, but I felt it was not as meaty as I felt she needed for 4th grade. We loved it for 1st grade and 2nd, then 3rd not so much. But it was easy and mostly independent work for her. I corrected, explained. I never used their handwriting program, that comes included, then I stopped doing their spelling because I couldn't figure out the pattern for it, so it became less all inclusive for us.

 

I'm using All About Spelling for spelling to remediate my daughters spelling issues, starting at the very beginning. She hates writing for two reasons, she can't spell and she has a hard time writing quickly. So this program is not as writing intensive and I've found that she is learning the spelling rules well. It is teacher intensive, but takes only about 15 minutes a day. I'm setting a timer to keep us to the 15 minutes. But honestly, I'm personally not loving it--it's just not my style, though others love it so much. But I'm going to keep doing it because it's working so well for her.

 

My son is in 1st and is reading well with Abeka's Phonics program. I wish I could use their program without using their teachers guides because it's designed for a classroom. I end up throwing out most of what they say in the guide because it doesn't apply--most activities don't work with one child. But he is reading very well and has a very solid foundation for sounding out letters. The text is very colorful (seatwork texts) and he loves that part. He generally loves school anyway, so he's pretty easy to please.

 

I've used Sonlights K LA--before the change--and it didn't work for us. I've used Phonics Pathways and that's what finally helped my DD learn to read--it was slow and painful, but she made it through.

 

So we'll see what we do next year, we're only at the beginning of the school year now, so I'm not sure how this year's curriculum choices will pan out.

 

One of my favorite resources we did with my daughter in 1st was First Language Lessons. She stills talks about it and remembers the poems. It really stuck with her. I didn't do it in 2nd grade, can't remember why, but know she would like it. I'm trying to decide whether I should use it with my son now in First grade or wait and do it 2nd and 3rd. Can't decide what to do yet, but am praying about it.

[Chelli]

2nd grade:

 

BJU English 2 (Student workbook only): Very colorful! Alternates 1 chapter of grammar with 1 chapter of writing. I go over the grammar concept, then dd does the worksheet herself. When doing a writing chapter, I will be more hands on with her.

 

FLL 2: We do this three days a week. It is quick, easy grammar. An easy add on to any grammar program.

 

WWE2: We do this three days a week as well. We combine days 1 and 2 each week. This is an enjoyable way to do our copywork/narration/dictation work.

 

The Sentence Family: Very colorful, storybook/artistic way to teach grammar! Using this just for fun after we get done studying the appropriate section in BJU. DD LOVES this! By far the biggest hit of them all, with BJU in second place.

 

Spelling Plus with Dictation book/HTTS: We do one week of the spelling list from Spelling Plus, then the next week do the appropriate dictation sentences. On the off-weeks where we are doing the Spelling Plus dictation book we are working through the HTTS workbooks to solidify the rules. On the weeks where we are doing the Spelling Plus lists, we use dictation sentences from HTTS TM.

 

I know this looks like a lot, but it only takes us about 20-30 minutes to do grammar/writing/spelling each day. The weeks vary depending on what week we are doing. If it's a writing week in BJU or a grammar week, spelling list week or dictation week, etc. BJU, Spelling Plus, and parts of WWE are all done independently by dd, so the curriculum is not that teacher intensive for me.

[Aurelia]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts. All About Spelling, Winning With Writing, Oak Meadow 2, just finished Jolly Grammar

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen? I dislike OM's LA, it's too gentle for my child and she wasn't getting anything out of it. I like that JG is only once a week for grammar, it was very gentle and the worksheets offered opportunity for some creativity and coloring. WWW is quick and easy, in fact we've been condensing lessons to try to get through more quickly and start 3rd grade work by January. I'm not thrilled with all the pieces that go to AAS, but it's more scripted than WRTR, which I needed.

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent? AAS and OM are teacher intensive. WWW is mostly independent and JG was about half and half - the first part is teaching the lesson and the second was filling out the worksheet.

 

Is it all inclusive? No. I wanted to only use OM so it would be, but that didn't work out. I'm hoping to switch to mostly all inclusive soon, using only Galore Park's Junior English and AAS, but I haven't yet tried it.

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child? Yes.

 

Would you choose it again? I would not use OM again. I would use the others.

 

What have other LA have you tried & not liked? FLL. Others we have also used that didn't work for us, but didn't necessarily dislike were Dancing Bears and Apples and Pears. We used WWE1 successfully but bought and never used WWE2. I really like WRTR but it was just a little light on instruction for me to fully implement successfully.

[Farrar]

2nd gradeish:

 

Spelling Plus - simple to do for me and the kids, with a great system for memorization, not "fun" but it doesn't take much time either

 

Explode the Code - simple, easy, kids are engaged by the funny questions, they're used to it because they're getting farther along so this is practically on autopilot at this point

 

Everything else we do is of my own basic design - copywork to practice handwriting most days, free reading almost every day, and a writing and grammar workbook I made for them - obviously all those things basically work because I designed them for us specifically, if that makes sense.

[Mrs Twain]

English--CLE for 1st, Rod and Staff after that.

Spelling--Spelling Power

Writing--WWE (2 days per week), IEW (3 days per week), except a few weeks we subsitute book reports (Evan Moor How to Report on Books, etc)

Reading Comprehension--Evan-Moor Skill Sharpeners Reading Workbook

Reading--Selections from Sonlight and VP

Vocabulary--Dynamic Literacy WordBuild

 

I am very happy with all of it, though IEW, Dynamic Literacy, and CLE for 1st are new for us this year.

[Food4Thought]

Everything else we do is of my own basic design - copywork to practice handwriting most days, free reading almost every day, and a writing and grammar workbook I made for them - obviously all those things basically work because I designed them for us specifically, if that makes sense.

 

I'm very similar. I'm using Daily Language Review as a kick-off point. I use spelling words from the Progressive Phonics books, as well as common words (like colors, months, days of the week). DS reads a ton of books, does copywork I've prepared, reads a lot of the Brian P. Cleary books to get used to types of words, and also does narration for science and history four days a week.

 

I'm not sure how to answer the rest of the OP's questions based on that. I like it. If I didn't, I'd have to change it. :lol: I suppose the one drawback is that it doesn't offer a sense of "We've done it, let's move on to the next level now." It's a constant and ongoing process, and it's interconnected with every other subject, so I often forget we are doing Language Arts at all.

[atozmom]

Grammar - The Sentence Family -- Very colorful, short lessons and fun. DS (2nd grade) asks to do grammar every day.

 

Spelling -- AAS -- You do as little or as much as you want everyday, so it really doesn't take that much time. It is all laid out for you in the teacher's book, so it is open and go. My son does well with it and is retaining the information well. I also love that it is multi-sensory (very important for ds), incremental and incorporates dictation.

 

Writing -- Winning with Writing -- Short lessons and gets the job done. I don't know if we will stick with it long term, but it seems to be working for now. We just started.

 

Primary Phonics workbooks with Readers and Reading comprehension workbooks -- These are very quick and easy lessons and ds enjoys them. He loves all of the little stories in each reader. I like that there are corresponding comprehension workbooks that go along with the readers. He's done well with the series and we are sticking with them until the end, which will be half way through this year.

[warneral]

I'm honestly a little overwhelmed by ours but we only just started using (most of) it and just started homeschooling this summer.

 

Grammar - Growing with Grammar (levels 2 and 3). Level 3 has been challenging for ds - too much writing in the early lessons. I'm working with him to just mark up the sentences instead of writing them all out.

 

Writing - Winning with writing - so far this is super easy. We do 1-2 lessons per day.

 

Spelling - All About Spelling - I got this b/c my DS seems to need to know the rules as he often misspells words by sounding them out but doesn't know *why* we spell things. He is a total rule follower so I think it should work. DD is a natural speller and *could* use something workbooky and probably do well but they are both LOVING doing AAS. We write on the white board and spell with the tiles, and they really need that interactive aspect just to lighten up the mood.

 

Handwriting - I have them do manuscript copywork on Monday mostly for the purpose of having their memory verse in their own handwritten journal. Then Tues-Thursday they are doing 1 page of Reason For Handwriting cursive.

 

Vocab - I decided against doing Wordly Wise (which we have) because we just have too much to do *and* because we are heavily reading so we are learning new words that way.

 

ETA - I bought WWE 1 and WWE2 just to help me teach how to properly do narrations. This is because we are newbies and none of us are very good at getting out good narrations and believe it is an important skill to work on. That being said I have no idea where I will fit it into the schedule :D

 

Literature - just readalouds with very little assigned literature reading. I mostly want them to love to read and pick whatever fancies them. For readalouds, I'm using Sonlight and Beautiful Feet and various other books (from the Library). I'm trying to do some period specific historical fiction (to go along with our History Lessons) as well as classics.

 

They also are writing in History notebooks and science.

[FO4UR]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts.

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen?

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent?

 

Is it all inclusive?

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child?

 

Would you choose it again?

 

What have other LA have you tried & not liked?

 

 

Thank you. :)

 

 

Dancing Bears Fast Track Reading

Apples & Pears Spelling

These two compliment each other well. Together, they form a pretty comprehensive "learn to read and spell" package. I like both on their own merits, but they are powerful together. They are teacher-intensive lessons, but zero planning...do the next page...

 

Classical Writing Primers

Charlotte Mason in a workbook. I actually *do* what I desire to do for my ds. It's copywork, narration, dictation, nature study, picture study, a smattering of grammar and spelling too. (This is for ds8.)

 

The Sentence Family

This is more for livening/beefing up our grammar...which is in the Primer mentioned above for ds8 and FLL for dd6. It's fun...though we are just beginning...jury is still out...

 

FLL/WWE

These are for dd6. The actual lessons are teacher-intensive, but zero planning...do the next page. dd6 loves FLL. I tried shelving it for a summer after using it with ds8 long ago, and she pulled it back off the shelf repeatedly ASKING for lessons. I caved, and decided to stick with PHP for her LA.

 

http://www.amblesideonline.com I start here when it's time to restock my shelves with good books to read. I read to the dc on average 2hrs per day. Very teacher-intensive, but our favorite part of every day!

 

 

I used SWR for 2.5 years. I do not regret selling it, nor does ds8.:tongue_smilie: I do take what I learned from that program and incorporate it as it fits. I also have OPGTR, and am using it with ds5 currently...it's more of a spine that I use as I incorporate things I've learned from SWR, Recipe for Reading, and other resources that I've devoured in search for help for my oldest ds.

 

 

I am pretty happy/confident with our LA this year. My dc are just not ready for independent LA. I could never find an all-inclusive LA that included what I want. We get color elsewhere. Engaging - CW Primers, FLL, The Sentence Family and Ambleside are engaging. The others get the job done efficiently.

 

 

...and typing this all out...I now see why I am so tired at the end of the day!!!:auto:

[warneral]

I also thought it would be fun to make parts of speech flashcards (and am in the process of making them)

 

http://shelbyfamily.net/index_files/HS_Lang_Arts.htm

[Momling]

With my youngest (7 yr old): Last year, we tried CLE and didn't care for the religious element. This year, we've moved to GWG and SWS plus HWOT cursive.

 

With my oldest (9 yr old): Last year we ued MCT, this year, I'm trying Excavating English and some writing curriculum I have on hand with Spencerian cursive. I'm curious how it'll go....

[bnrmom]

2nd grade:

 

Spelling Plus with Dictation book/HTTS: We do one week of the spelling list from Spelling Plus, then the next week do the appropriate dictation sentences. On the off-weeks where we are doing the Spelling Plus dictation book we are working through the HTTS workbooks to solidify the rules. On the weeks where we are doing the Spelling Plus lists, we use dictation sentences from HTTS TM.

.

 

What is HTTS? Thanks!

[KrissiK]

3rd Grader

A Beka Readers

WWE2

R & S Grammar

Spelling Workout C

 

2nd Grader

A Beka Readers

WWE1

R & S Grammar

Spelling Workout B

 

It's all going well with us. I'm very happy with R & S which is new to us this year. We switched from A Beka Spelling to Spelling Workout and I like that better, too! So, all's good here!

[Chelli]

What is HTTS? Thanks!

 

How To Teach Spelling

 

It is Orton-Gillingham based like AAS, but not as slow moving or as many moving parts. I loved the idea of AAS, but the teacher intensiveness drove me nuts and all the hands on stuff drove dd nuts. This was a nice switch for both of us.

[Spy Car]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts.

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen?

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent?

 

Is it all inclusive?

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child?

 

Would you choose it again?

 

What have other LA have you tried & not liked?

 

 

Thank you. :)

 

Rising Second Grader

 

This summer we have done most of the MCT Island Level program. I adore it, and am astonished how much my son has learned so quickly. The best thing is the program is it's inspiring. The author obviously loves language and his enthusiasm is catching.

 

It is "teacher intensive" in the best possible way. Some of the work is "independent" in the Practice Island books (where children work though the 4 Level parsing of 100 sentences) but even these exercises lead to good discussions.

 

I strongly prefer "teacher intensive" programs.

 

As to "all inclusive" I suppose one could argue the point. MCT is far deeper than any other program I've seen for children on many levels, but hasn't bothered with some basic mechanics. I wouldn't change a thing.

 

Is it colorful and engaging? Most certainly. The whole approach is deeply interesting and the art and design nicely complements the text. Very nice aesthetics.

 

Would I choose it again? A thousand times...YES!!!!

 

MCT is a dream-come-true program for us.

 

Bill

Edited August 30, 2011 by Spy Car

[sagira]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts.

 

I have a third grader ds. We're doing

 

Serl's PLL with VIE to reinforce and expand

WWE Text (we'll be starting at 2)

Wheeler's Elementary Speller (Spelling City for quizzing)

 

Vocabulary through reading, history, and natural science. The plan is for me to jot down relevant vocabulary on index cards and have ds review every few weeks.

 

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen?

 

I really like PLL for its gentleness and thoroughness.

I like WWE so far because of how systematic it is in its building of skills.

I like ES because it combines phonics, rules, memorization and marks to teach

spelling. And it's free.

 

As of now I am happy. Ask me in a few weeks :D

 

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent?

 

PLL is teacher intensive (and I need it to be that way for ds)

WWE the same.

ES can be done independently, but invariably I'll have a finger in the pie as ds' focus leaves a lot to be desired.

 

 

Is it all inclusive?

 

No.

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child?

 

No. I purposefully didn't want bells and whistles, as ds is easily distracted. This is an understatement.

 

Would you choose it again?

 

So far, yes. We haven't officially started WWE yet. We did do PLL and ES last year.

 

What have other LA have you tried & not liked?

 

Spectrum Spelling (ds wasn't learning anything, just busywork)

Natural Speller (I needed more hand holding, but I still use it as a reference)

[sagira]

SpyCar, if you are not a salesman, you should make a career switch right now. You know how to sell :)

 

Rising Second Grader

 

This summer we have done most of the MCT Island Level program. I adore it, and am astonished how much my son has learned so quickly. The best thing is the program is inspiring. The author obviously loves language and his enthusiasm is catching.

 

It is "teacher intensive" in the best possible way. Some of the work is "independent" in the Practice Island books (where children work though the 4 Level parsing of 100 sentences) but even these exercises lead to good discussions.

 

I strongly prefer "teacher intensive" programs.

 

As to "all inclusive" I suppose one could argue the point. MCT is far deeper than any other program I've seen for children on many levels, but hasn't bothered with some basic mechanics. I wouldn't change a thing.

 

Is it colorful and engaging? Most certainly. The whole approach is deeply interesting and the art and design nicely complements the text. Very nice aesthetics.

 

Would I choose it again? A thousand times...YES!!!!

 

MCT is a dream-come-true program for us.

 

Bill

[Mom in High Heels]

For 3rd grade we used FLL3, but it was not a good fit for us. There was too much talking (it's scripted) and the lessons were long.

 

This year for 4th we're using Growing With Grammar and love it. The lessons are short and sweet (but informative) and the workbook that goes along with it is phenomenal. We're also using Winning With Writing, but I'm not quite as thrilled with it. It's good, but not as well done as GWG.

[....]

My 4th grader is using:

 

MCT's LA (Royal Fireworks Press)

Intermediate Language Lessons

Classical Composition (writing)

spelling thru Webster's Speller and list of 1,000 most common words in English

 

My 3rd grader is using:

 

Primary Language Lessons

Writing with Ease finish 2 and start 3

spelling thru Webster's Speller and the word list above

 

My 1st grader is using:

 

First Language Lessons

WWE1

Spelling Workout A

 

Yeah, they are all teacher-intensive. I've noticed that my kids learn more with the teacher-intensive materials, so we mostly use those.

[LindaOz]

We are using Sonlight LA program along with Rod and Staff grammar 2x a week, and Wordly Wise 3x a week (1st grader uses ETC instead of R&S and WW).

 

I really like SL LA. I like the variety of writing assignments and the way it builds skills and knowledge of a wide range of genres. It is teacher intensive for lower grades, but becomes more independent for the older students.

 

I like to add R&S grammar because I think that it is a good solid grammar program and complements SL LA nicely. Doing it twice a week is not too much and the kids add in Wordly Wise on 'non-grammar' day.

 

I plan on continuing with it next year. :001_smile:

[kolamum]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts. After much debate I settled with Australian Primary Language Lessons.

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen? I like the fact that it's one simple boo {ebook at that}. I like that, unlike the regular PLL, it doesn't have dictation or narration in it more then once. I don't need those as I've all ready got them covered. It also has little to no copywork, another area I didn't need.

 

What I don't like is that my 4th grader knows all the info in there, thus far, and I think he could have used something more structured like Queens. So much so, I plan to snag it for next year if not sooner.

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent? It could easily be done independently without hesitation! At least thus far in, which isn't far.

 

Is it all inclusive? Yes, all though I feel that the art pictures included are a bit small and I don't like that they are black & white so I really like to google them so we can have a better choice to look at.

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child? No, it's not colorful. My children have no problems with it, but then again a lesson only takes a very short time considering they all ready know everything we've read in it thus far. {2nd & 4th}

 

Would you choose it again? Not for the ages I'm using it with. My children's only exposure to LA before this was via FIAR, and clearly it covered gobs more then I thought because they've had no problems. I chose this book to fill gaps, and I don't appear to have any. That's a good thing, right??

 

What have other LA have you tried & not liked? None, but I would desperately like to use Queen's, which IS colorful and my children ADORE the pictures in it. We use their cursive and I hear things like, "Oh Mummy I love these pictures I could just stare at them ALL day long. Can we get more?"

 

 

Thank you. :)

 

My replies are bolded. :D

[mytwomonkeys]

4th grade

bju english 4 w/ teacher dvd's - this is our 2nd year with bju, but our first year with the dvd's. so far, we love it. i have no complaints whatsoever.

 

bju spelling 4 w/ dvd's - this is our first year, but we really like it... so far

 

simply spelling and the dictation resource book - 2nd year. LOVE.

 

2nd Grade

R&S English 2 (orally) - I've used R&S before with my daughter, so I'm really comfortable with it and like it very much. It's very gentle at this age, especially orally.

 

bju spelling 2 w/ dvd's - love it so far. it's our first year with it.

 

spectrum writing grade 1 - very gentle and introductory. i've used these before with my daughter and like them all.

 

 

other curriculum we've tried... WWE 1 & 2, writeshop 1, writing strands 2, igniting your writing, just write, and too many more to name. all of them were great, just not a good fit for my daughter. i've enjoyed bju so much, i just plan to stick with that for my son beginning next year as well.

 

hth

[Mom0012]

My daugher is using CLE for grammar and spelling and WT for for writing. She is also using the SL readers. I'm very happy with what she is doing.

 

My son is using Saxon Grammar and we're mixing in a little Rod & Staff with it for the subjects we need to concentrate on a little more. He's taking an outsourced IEW class and he is using an SRA spelling program that is similar to Apples & Pears. He also uses the SL readers.

 

The things that are somewhat, but not overly, intensive out of all this is WT, Saxon Grammar, Rod & Staff and the SRA spelling. I have to spend some time working on these subjects with my kids each day.

 

Overall, I am pretty happy with what we are using.

 

Lisa

[BlessedMom]

All of you have given me such detailed responses and I am so thankful!!:):):):)

I appreciate your time & your wisdom!!

Thank you!!

[masaki]

This year, the plan is:

 

Writing: Writing Strands 5, (mostly independent)-Started it last week and ds loved his first lesson. It inspired him to create a character he says he wants to develop throughout the remaining lessons. We're following the book's schedule this year. There are 16 week-long (approx) lessons in WS 5, and generally you alternate between a week on and week off of writing. Last year ds did a lesson a week, with an occasional week off. He finished WS4 in a semester, then he focused on grammar the following semester. Which brings us to...

Grammar: Easy Grammar 6, (ds needs me a to teach new topic a few times a week)-Guess what? It's easy! So far, so good. Last year, ds used Excellence in English by Loyola Press. We both didn't love it, but he got through it.

Spelling: Ds's nemesis. About half-way through last year, we switched to IEW's Phonetic Zoo, Level A (independent). We both like it enough. His vocabulary is beyond his spelling skills, so although he's doing well on this program, there are always plenty of words to keep track of and study.

Word Roots: English From the Roots Up and the Word Roots workbooks from Critical Thinking Press. He'll be working on this during his weeks off from WS 5.

Handwriting: Just started teaching ds how to write in cursive over the summer. He's using a Zaner-Bloser workbook to practice in right now, but I think I'll just have him start doing some of his other work in cursive, even if it won't look great for a little while.

Literature: This we do in conjunction with history. This year we'll be focusing more on discussion and we'll spend some time on literary terms.

 

Another thing about writing, the main reason he's taking it "easy" in writing, as far as using a formal program goes, is because he does do a fair amount of writing in science (outlines, labs) and history (summaries, outlines, bios).

 

Marilyn

Edited August 30, 2011 by masaki
adding details

[Violet Crown]

For dd8 I'm using Galore Park's Junior English, minus the technical (grammar, orthography) exercises.

 

For grammar, the exercises from Rod & Staff, but substituting my own (structural) grammar lessons for the book's lessons.

 

For spelling, combining the study method and 10-step study page from Spelling Power, but using my own lists (a combination of a running list of words dd struggles with, and an old local spelling book).

 

For literature, reading and discussion of good books.

 

It's all teacher-intensive. There are certain subjects which get full one-on-one teaching time, and English is one of those.

Edited August 30, 2011 by Sharon in Austin

[mrsrevmeg]

Grade 3- Shurley English Level 3

Grade 5- Shurley English Level 5

We just do the grammar portion. The vocabulary and writing leave something to be desired. It takes usually 25-30 minutes a day, three days per week. It is very repetitive. That causes a lot of people I know to hate it. The repetition causes my kids to really get what they are learning. They know how to form coherent sentences. They know their parts of speech.

 

 

Grade Nine- Learning Language Arts Through Literature Once again, we do not do the writing assignments.

 

All Grades- Writing Aids From Tapestry of Grace I love the writing assignments that Tapestry suggests. My kids do not always love them because they are not always easy and require some thought.

[ChrissySC]

R&S English, R&S Spelling, Wordly Wise, Best Nonfiction, Best Short Stories, Best Selling Chapters, Writing Strands, Writer's Express with TE

 

What do you like or dislike about what you have chosen?

 

Variety, comprehensive, challenging - lesson scope and sequence is planned, easy to schedule, meets our objectives for the year.

 

Is it teacher intensive or somewhat independent?

 

It is both depending on the skill or concept. For the most part instruction time is limited to a few minutes. Writing - I am required for the proofing and editing. The "little archeologist" needs to see a model and be shown how to edit and proof. Otherwise, the initial rough draft is independent, as well as worksheets.

 

Grammar requires instruction. Practice is done orally. Diagramming is independent. She completes the worksheets, when they arrive, on her own.

 

Is it all inclusive?

 

No, it is not a package or boxed deal. I have choosen these items based on learning style and objectives that I have for the year.

 

Is it colorful & engaging for your child?

 

Engaging yes. It is easy to use and develop trails of learning (especially the literature). Color is not a factor in my choice. Writer's Express is a colorful book.

 

Would you choose it again?

We will use these resources through the eighth grade.

[StephanieZ]

3rd, 7th, & 9th grades:

 

MCT Town (3rd) & Magic Lens 1 (7th & 9th)

 

Looooooovvvveeee MCT.

 

It includes all the major elements (grammar, writing, vocab, & poetry)

 

I could go on all day about how wonderful it is. Absolutely fabulous. ONLY drawback IMHO is that it is fairly time intensive for Mom. It is hugely worth it!

 

It covers all we want/need EXCEPT: Literature, Spelling, & Handwriting.

 

For Literature, we are using:

 

I am using SonLight for lit for the younger two. (Have used SL for the past 6 years and have enjoyed it greatly, although it doesn't have as much classic literature as I'd like, and doesn't have great depth in the literature . . . It does have very good quality childrens' lit, and great history exposure, and is just plain enjoyable.)

 

My oldest is using Excellence in Literature 1 this year -- both for literature and for extra practice writing essays. (First time for us with EiL, so far so great! I think this will be a likely keeper, but can't swear to it since we've just begun).

 

I am also using MCT's brand new Lit unit (Alice, Peter, & Mole) for the younger two this year as well. It is DELIGHTFUL, and I will be the first to buy each additional unit as it is released.

 

Spelling: Spelling Work Out. Older two graduated last year. Youngest continues on. Simple, quick, and gets the job done with very little time from mom. LOVE IT!

 

Handwriting: Youngest soldiers on with Zaner Bloser workbook. These work well for us.

 

In the past, we've used:

 

SonLight LA -- bought, tried, and failed three times. If I were willing to drop all other LA and give it the time it needed, there was some good stuff in there -- especially in writing prompts and some general lit analysis. However, I wasn't willing to abandon actual writing instruction or grammar, and I just couldn't trust the program enough to give it a good go. If you aren't set on formal grammar each year, then SL LA could be a good thing to try some year you aren't doing grammar (only if you are doing the SL Core!!)

 

Rod & Staff English -- used for many years successfully. Solid, boring, solid. Not elegant like MCT. Doesn't cover poetry in a substantial way. Writing instruction is there, but you MUST add more assignments to get enough practice. Very solid grammar. Easy to use with low mom time investment. I'd recommend it if you really can't afford the mom time needed for MCT or for some other reason MCT is just not working for you. If you added writing practice a' la SWB audio lectures, you'd be in really good shape. (And, if poetry is important, add an MCT poetry book!)

 

Classical Writing Aesop -- tried and failed, twice. Once about 8 yrs ago when it first came out. Once a few years later when the student/practice/whatever books were also published. Gave it a good college try each time (month or so), but just couldn't handle the back and forth and scheduling chaos. I think there was some lovely stuff in there if it clicks for you.

 

IEW (TWSS; Fables, Myths & Fairytales; Ancient History): I've used about 3-4 years worth of material spread over two kids. They built up some solid skills using this. I have to say that the MCT approach to writing instruction is coloring my feelings towards IEW, but I still plan to use it again . . . someday, maybe this year with my youngest . . . I will tweak it a bit (drop emphasis on adverbs and adjectives . . .) but I did think it really helps give the kids a "tool box" from which to draw in the future.

 

HTH

[tuesdayschild]

Please share what you are using for Language Arts.

:)

We have only 3 & ½ months left of our learning year to go & this has been our best year of language arts yet.

Teacher intensive

All About Spelling (Both- as prescribed for DD9, just the rules for DS11)

Writing With Ease Text and some of the workbooks- (Both - Using different levels)

First Language Lessons (3 & 4 accelerated for DS)

 

 

Some teacher instruction

Grammar Land & practice sheets (intro for DD9, review for DS11) **added in Aug 2011

Language Lessons - Queen Homeschool - Daisy

Independent

Italics Handwriting - Both (using Startwrite to create our own cursive pages)

Poems for Memorization - Rod & Staff Both using different grade selection

Child's Introduction to Poetry – DD9

The Walker Book of Classic Poetry & Poets – DS11

Reading J Sonlight & Other for both

[ScoutTN]

DD 6 yo/1st grade

 

Phonics Pathways. Almost done with this. Open and go. All done orally.

AAS Levels 1 and 2. Open and go, but teacher intensive. Love this!

HWT Yellow book and some copywork.

FLL 1 Not loving this. Too incremental and scripted, but I'm adapting it.

Literature from various lists: VP, AO, Sonlight and my childhood favorites!

[HappyCamper]

DD9 - we are using MCT as our primary language Arts curriculum, including poetry, grammar, and vocabulary. We are using phonetic zoo for spelling. We are also reading aloud (alternating page by page between student and parent) the literature that is part of History Odyssey. We have the MCT literature prFinally, for writing, we are using MCT, Bravewriter, and the assignments from History Odyssey. I have2 hours/day blocked off for language arts, but a significant part of that time could be considered history.