Grammar: MCT or FLL?

[ksoika]

Hi all,

 

I need to choose a grammar program for when we finish phonics. Does anyone have any thoughts on the difference between FLL and MCT? I have a perception that FLL is less complex, but that may not be accurate. I'm hoping for a fairly rigorous program.

 

Thanks,

Kelli

[boscopup]

What age?

 

I'm using FLL before going to MCT. We'll start MCT in 3rd grade, having already done FLL3 in 2nd grade.

[justLisa]

I would have to agree with boscopup. DS is 2nd grade and we have MCT. We love the reading, and will continue to use it but not as curriculum. The writing portion is a bit much for us right now. We just started using GWG and WWW, along with WWE2

[ksoika]

GWG and WWW?

 

(I'm new to homeschooling!)

 

(I feel like a student who learned a few phrases in a foreign language and quickly talked herself into a conversation she quickly can't follow!)

 

She'll be 7 when we start. I read a few threads about starting MCT around that age and skipping a more basic grammar program. I'm finding that my daughter gets bored easily when work reinforces what she already knows so I'm afraid FLL might cover much of the same ground we've covered as she's learned to read (parts of a sentence, punctuation, types of sentences) and as we've worked on narration and memorization.

 

Then again, I don't want to burn through a curriculum that could be okay now but would be great in a few years.

 

Maybe there are some other options I haven't considered.

 

Thanks,

Kelli

[heidip2p]

GWG and WWW?

 

(I'm new to homeschooling!)

 

(I feel like a student who learned a few phrases in a foreign language and quickly talked herself into a conversation she quickly can't follow!)

 

She'll be 7 when we start. I read a few threads about starting MCT around that age and skipping a more basic grammar program. I'm finding that my daughter gets bored easily when work reinforces what she already knows so I'm afraid FLL might cover much of the same ground we've covered as she's learned to read (parts of a sentence, punctuation, types of sentences) and as we've worked on narration and memorization.

 

Then again, I don't want to burn through a curriculum that could be okay now but would be great in a few years.

 

Maybe there are some other options I haven't considered.

 

Thanks,

Kelli

Growing with Grammar and Winning with Writing :)

[boscopup]

I had trouble finding a good grammar fit for my son. He picks it up easily, and most of the 1st and 2nd grade programs were too slow for him in 1st grade. FLL3 has been much better. It doesn't have them do tons and tons of exercises. There is the memorization, but you can tone it down (we never repeat things 3 times). It hits a lot of topics and has diagramming. We're 6 weeks in, and we've done nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and direct objects.

 

I've heard that MCT assumes that some formal grammar has been taught already. While you could probably get by with the grammar portion (parts of speech), the writing may become more difficult, particularly at the upper levels.

 

Does that mean you shouldn't do it? Not necessarily. Your dd may be completely ready for all of it. :) Just realize that MCT doesn't always teach all of the mechanics and such that a traditional program would normally teach. A lot of people use another program before starting it or alongside it. There are a few who do only MCT. I don't know how many of those did other grammar first.

 

Of course, again, I haven't used it yet... Only researched it. ;) So take my post with a huge grain if salt!

[3peasinapod]

Bring up this old post again.

 

I was looking at adding some MCT next year for a 4th grader. I like the looks of the vocab, Sentence and Grammar Island, and the poetry (though it scares me, but maybe that's a good thing to get then). I want to continue with WWE3 and FLL4, so is this too much? Am I kidding myself?

 

I don't think I would want the extra practice in Practice Island. Would it still work to just go through the teacher's manual/student books with her (the ones listed above)? Would that just be hacking up the program too much? I would probably stretch out if need be. I just like the idea of looking at language arts differently.

[nikkid]

My dd couldn't handle both MCT and FLL3. FLL can be so boring depending on how you teach it. We went through all of FLL2 so FLL3 starts out with a lot of repetition. But I bought FLL3 anyway for me to go through alone since I feel weak about explaining sentence clauses and prep phrases, etc. and FLL is a lot more thorough and systematic. I have found MCT assumes thorough knowledge by the teacher of some grammar concepts. (Little notes like "This is a good place to talk with your students about subject pronouns vs object pronouns.) Maybe it's just me, but I need to be walked through that.

 

I plan to add in some of the fun games from FLL, but not teach directly out of it. We have really enjoyed the MCT Island level so far. I'm glad though we have Practice Island, otherwise my dd would forget everything. It's the kinesthetic part of internalizing what she's learned. It's only one sentence a day so it doesn't take long.

 

We are using WWE on top of MCT and that works nicely. Keeps her brushed up on skills she learned in 2nd grade.

HTH!

Nikki

[3peasinapod]

My dd couldn't handle both MCT and FLL3. FLL can be so boring depending on how you teach it. We went through all of FLL2 so FLL3 starts out with a lot of repetition. But I bought FLL3 anyway for me to go through alone since I feel weak about explaining sentence clauses and prep phrases, etc. and FLL is a lot more thorough and systematic. I have found MCT assumes thorough knowledge by the teacher of some grammar concepts. (Little notes like "This is a good place to talk with your students about subject pronouns vs object pronouns.) Maybe it's just me, but I need to be walked through that.

 

I plan to add in some of the fun games from FLL, but not teach directly out of it. We have really enjoyed the MCT Island level so far. I'm glad though we have Practice Island, otherwise my dd would forget everything. It's the kinesthetic part of internalizing what she's learned. It's only one sentence a day so it doesn't take long.

 

We are using WWE on top of MCT and that works nicely. Keeps her brushed up on skills she learned in 2nd grade.

HTH!

Nikki

 

Thanks for the input. Does the Practice Island have a lot of written work. Is the one sentence a day you described above from that?

[nikkid]

Thanks for the input. Does the Practice Island have a lot of written work. Is the one sentence a day you described above from that?

 

Yes, Practice Island is a book of 100 practice sentences to analyze with the 4-step process. (You can see a sample with answers here. In case you haven't seen the pdf explaining Practice Island as well as the other books and when/how to use them, see this pdf.)

 

This is from the Royal Fireworks Press site about Practice Island:

Each of the hundred sentences has a separate page with four blank lines to fill in the parts of speech, the parts of the sentence, phrases and clauses. By the end of the workbook, by examining a wide and often amusing set of sentences, students experience the success and satisfaction of a clear understanding of the principles of English sentences.

 

We just use the teacher's manual to save money, and just write out the sentences on lined paper or on the whiteboard. Only one a day isn't hard to do that. I have found it surprisingly difficult to come up with sentences that are funny but at the perfect level to analyze that coincide with what we've been studying about grammar/sentences/vocab.

 

Good luck in your decision!

Nikki