dirty ethel rackham Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 I have dropped the ball on doing grammar with dd11. We had been doing MCT, after we had done FLL ages ago. But, I haven't been getting around to MCT because of some other stuff taking priority. Is there a grammar program that can catch her up, that doesn't need a ton of face time with me, that isn't terribly repetitious, etc. Oh, and that doesn't bash our Catholic faith. Is there a quick one-year study to get her (and me) up to where she should be now? I don't feel competent to "teach" grammar as I never had a good formal study of it myself. (It didn't seem to impact my foreign language study, though because I minored in Spanish in college back in the dinosaur age.) My boys did Abeka, but, my middle son had an out-and-out mutiny about how boring and repetitious with was. Also, after looking at it more closely, I became more aware of the anti-Catholic flavor. What does the hive recommend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Easy Grammar. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowbeltmom Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 I am using MCT for my dd as well. While dd is able to label a sentence following the "4 levels", her punctuation in her own writing (especially comma's) is lacking. A few weeks ago I began supplementing MCT with Easy Grammar's Daily Grams. It is quick, and it is working. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athomemom Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 We love Easy Grammar, but wanted a bit more rigor. We recently started with Rod & Staff. So far it's going well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 We love Easy Grammar, but wanted a bit more rigor. We recently started with Rod & Staff. So far it's going well. ITA that R&S's grammar is more rigorous (although I confess that I'm feeling a little tired of that word, lol), but it does cover a boatload more stuff, too. Sometimes if you just want grammar, enough to fill in some gaps before moving on to something more, EG does the trick, KWIM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 Where would I start with Easy Grammar? I have Daily Grams Junior/Senior High - recently found behind the piano, all packaged up to send back to Rainbow since it was too basic for my teens. However, it is too advanced for her. What all do I need to order? (If I do get this, I want to get it today, since I have things in my cart that I need soon.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GingerPoppy Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 How about KISS grammar? It's good, quick, easy, painless, and free! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmom2011 Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 My dd(11yrs) just started with Hake Grammar this year. She reads the lessons and does the workbook independently. We skip the writing portion and use WWW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athomemom Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 What grade is she in 5th? If so, I think you could go with her grade level and be fine. Where would I start with Easy Grammar? I have Daily Grams Junior/Senior High - recently found behind the piano, all packaged up to send back to Rainbow since it was too basic for my teens. However, it is too advanced for her. What all do I need to order? (If I do get this, I want to get it today, since I have things in my cart that I need soon.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athomemom Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 ITA that R&S's grammar is more rigorous (although I confess that I'm feeling a little tired of that word, lol), but it does cover a boatload more stuff, too. Sometimes if you just want grammar, enough to fill in some gaps before moving on to something more, EG does the trick, KWIM? :iagree: Rigorous isn't in my usual vocabulary.:lol: do you have a better adjective to describe R&S? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 KISS looks interesting. The website is a little baffling. How do you use it? I don't know where to start. (Okay, maybe I am not reading carefully enough, but I need to get to the eye doctor and get new glasses - so reading crowded websites is difficult for me right now.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 I would go with Analytical Grammar. It is intended to be a one time, hard driving teaching of grammar. I would also suggest rehearsing the 8 parts of speech regularly, and parsing or diagramming one-two simple sentences together every day, for practice. Also, get the Rod and Staff handbook to use as a reference. It's reasonably priced and very thorough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowbeltmom Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Where would I start with Easy Grammar? I have Daily Grams Junior/Senior High - recently found behind the piano, all packaged up to send back to Rainbow since it was too basic for my teens. However, it is too advanced for her. What all do I need to order? (If I do get this, I want to get it today, since I have things in my cart that I need soon.) Fwiw, that is the exact book I am using with my dd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smilesonly Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 we've tried R&S(snore) Easy Grammar Plus(no retention whatsoever and i didn't care for sequence) we currently LOVE Step-by Step Grammar. it makes the most sense to me of any grammar program i've seen. it is not juvenile, yet is aimed at ages 10-adult.:) good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thowell Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 This is exactly where I found myself with dd11 this year. She has just finished Winston Grammar basic and it worked great. There are some other more complex grammar issues that it did not cover and at first I was concerned. However, after rethinking it I think it has done a fine job. We will be skipping a formal grammar for the rest of the year and start on AG next year following there 3 year sequence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walking-Iris Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 I love Easy Grammar!!!! I've used it with my 3rd grader this year (he's finished with it) and he has 100% retention and it is showing in his writing this term. I didn't care for Daily Grams though. I found it too lacking. I'm using an Evan Moor book called Daily Language Review and I believe they have them at the 5th/6th grade level. I would suggest that and the Easy Grammar (at her grade level should be fine) worktext and teacher's book. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 What level of Grammar do you have with MCT? Is it the Island level? If it is, I would simplify and have dd do it as independent work, just for this year. Angela at Satori Smiles has it all broken down. I would have her read through the Grammar Island, Then Sentence Island and practice Island and forget the rest. Just do it independently. You don't have to spend money as you are using what you have. As you started it you (and dd) have some familiarity with it. For plain old fun, not rigorous and just the main parts of speech. Mad Libs! Maybe next year look back at Advanced Language Lessons. I found FLL overwhelming so I switched to MCT. I have found it a struggle, but we are getting through it (TT for Math really helped free up some time for me). I am going to try SWB with ALL again next year. I read that it is going to start with parent involvement, but it will shift over the program to being more independent. Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
letsplaymath Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 KISS Grammar is wonderful, but it does require face time (but only about 10 mins per day, 3-4 days per week), and it takes longer than one year to get through the system -- but your child is not "behind" because everyone starts KISS at the beginning. If you are really interested in it, I would start by searching the forum here. We've had several threads in the last few months. For instance, here is a general introduction, and here is a question about how KISS compares to other programs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauracolumbus Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 I have to second AG. It might be a bit difficult for your dd. Mine started when she was 11 and is flying through it and loving it. DS is struggling a bit in the second season. I just bought the dvd for him to solidify things. It is very organized, simple, and independent. You can do just the first season for 10 weeks. I think it's a 7-9th grade program. They have JAG, but I think for my youngest I'm just going to wait til she's old enough to do AG from FLL and skip JAG. Best of luck, Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 I got entirely sick of my grammar. I started grade 2 of Climbing to Good English. http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com/list/Climbing_to_Good_English/ I has to skim through level 2 to prepare for the respelling exercises in level 3, but need to entirely complete level 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 I would probably go with Hake Grammar. My boys hated Easy Grammar because they learned nothing. They asked to go back to Rod & Staff. I would recommend R&S, but I'm not sure if there is any anti-Catholic stuff in there. I really like Hake, and used it one year with one of my sons. I would've continued, but I like that R&S starts in 2 and goes through 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 :iagree: Rigorous isn't in my usual vocabulary.:lol: do you have a better adjective to describe R&S? Comprehensive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloggermom Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 The fact that Analytical Grammar has a DVD teacher makes it VERY appealing. I plan to use that with my DS10 after I catch him up with FLL 3 and 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegularMom Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 We went from FLL to MCT and then switched to Hake. Hake is working very well here, but I'm not sure you'd want it, since it does have repetition. It works like Saxon math works, so if you like Saxon, chances are you'll like Hake, but it's definitely secular, which is always preferred here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland Mist Academy Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 We went from FLL to MCT and then switched to Hake. Hake is working very well here, but I'm not sure you'd want it, since it does have repetition. It works like Saxon math works, so if you like Saxon, chances are you'll like Hake, but it's definitely secular, which is always preferred here. Would you mind elaborating on why you switched from MCT? Which levels of MCT did you do? Are you still using any parts of MCT? We are doing the Voyage level and don't like it as well as the first two levels. I'm trying to decide whether to supplement or change completely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 This is the KISS thread that will show you how to navigate the website. http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=324737&highlight=kiss+grammar Ruth in NZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegularMom Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 We did the Island level last year, with my 4th grader. She liked the stories, and the characters, especially Mud. We still talk about Mud when we talk grammar issues. But I switched because I was really looking for more mechanics, more practice and traditional diagramming, and MCT didn't offer that. I liked MCT a lot, but considering how expensive it is, and realizing that I'd need to supplement the mechanics practice, diagramming, and writing with 2 or 3 other programs, I couldn't justify the cost of it. What I would love to be able to do, actually, is supplement all my other language arts stuff with MCT. If my library offered MCT, that would be ideal. If I keep anything out of MCT, it will be the poetry component. In fact, I might at some point, puchase the entire poetry series and use it as an independent writing study, but other than that, we're happy with Hake. I use all of the Hake, too, including the writing part, but I supplement only with Writing Strands. Cost wise, I think it's the best curricula choice I've found for my dollar. Not to mention, my dd herself said that Hake was probably the best she'd used. HTH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Saxon/Hake grammar. It goes from 5th to 8th grade so its the perfect time to use it. Easy Grammar was a failure here. Not enough repetition, not enough review, not enough application. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walking-Iris Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Saxon/Hake grammar. It goes from 5th to 8th grade so its the perfect time to use it. Easy Grammar was a failure here. Not enough repetition, not enough review, not enough application. EG repeats the lessons multiple times, with numerous cumulative reviews and tests, and a pre and post assessment, finishing with a writing unit. I have a hard time understanding why people hate it so much when a child couldn't even complete the subsequent units unless the previous were mastered, and if one grade level was completed in it's entirety there would have been many many opportunities to find any weak links in a child's learning. The only way I could see it not appealing would be on a learning style or aesthetics level. The grammar is solid. And "rigorous" imo. ;) There are no bells and whistles attached. Just a list of what my 3rd grader has mastered with one term of EG. Parts of speech: nouns/pronouns (personal/common/proper) verbs (regular/irregular/auxiliary) prepositions adjectives (comparative/superlative/limiting/articles) adverbs (degrees) interjections conjunctions Parts of sentence: types of sentences subject (compound/singular) predicate (verb phrase) direct objects/prepositional object prepositional phrases appositives Other: contractions double negatives subject verb agreement tenses spelling rules dictionary usage possessives capitalization punctuation writing process I think it's okay not to like something. But it's definitely not because EG is lacking in solid grammar instruction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Testimony Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 I thought that MCT's grammar was like about 6 weeks. My impression is that he did not want you to spend too much time on grammar. So, you did it for the first 6 weeks of school and then the rest of the school year you write. I could be wrong. That was what someone told me. I was wondering what made MCT grammar harder than a full year's program. I ask because I like his thinking on grammar. He parses the sentences and has the child identify the different parts to the sentence. I would recommend Growing with Grammar because it is just straightforward grammar. There are no bells and whistles with it. And the best is that the child does it independently. Blessings in your homeschooling journey! Sincerely, Karen http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/testimony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland Mist Academy Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 We did the Island level last year, with my 4th grader. She liked the stories, and the characters, especially Mud. We still talk about Mud when we talk grammar issues. But I switched because I was really looking for more mechanics, more practice and traditional diagramming, and MCT didn't offer that. I liked MCT a lot, but considering how expensive it is, and realizing that I'd need to supplement the mechanics practice, diagramming, and writing with 2 or 3 other programs, I couldn't justify the cost of it. What I would love to be able to do, actually, is supplement all my other language arts stuff with MCT. If my library offered MCT, that would be ideal. If I keep anything out of MCT, it will be the poetry component. In fact, I might at some point, puchase the entire poetry series and use it as an independent writing study, but other than that, we're happy with Hake. I use all of the Hake, too, including the writing part, but I supplement only with Writing Strands. Cost wise, I think it's the best curricula choice I've found for my dollar. Not to mention, my dd herself said that Hake was probably the best she'd used. HTH. Thanks. I appreciate your input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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