wehave8 Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 ...they cover the same topics? Pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandra in va Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 (edited) I don't think I can adequately answer why (or if!) R/S is more rigorous than any other program - but I will tell you why we like R/S. (and used it over GWG - I tried level 1 and 2) First, I like the oral drill before every lesson - review is so important in mastering grammar. This is found only in the Teacher's Manual land for grades 3 and up. I also think the lessons are very detailed and consistently teach grammar principles - growing in depth each year. I love the diagramming practice scattered throughout the book - and my kids have grown up diagramming and really like it. There are many exercises for each lesson to make sure that your kids really understand the material, as well as review lessons. There are tests for every chapter that check to make sure the kids understand the material. I'm pleased with the depth that they cover grammar - we've only gone through 7...but it is a lot of grammar! I have not found anything else that teaches English better. Obviously this is just my opinion. Here's the down side (again, for me!) - it takes a lot of time. I do the oral drill, read through the lesson with the kids, and try some of the exercises to make sure they "get it". Multiply that times "X-number of kids" and it takes a lot of time! Also, the sentences can be contrived for the exercises. I really like Analytical Grammar because it uses "real life" sentences. (With my oldest I used AG after R/S 7 and liked the change - will probably do that again.) Sometimes I long for more of a workbook approach (like GWG) b/c it is simpler - with R/S my kids write out their answers in a seperate notebook (that's just how we do it - I know many do it all orally, but then it takes a little more of my time.) HTH!! Edited January 25, 2012 by sandra in va Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I have not used R&S but I have looked at the samples quite a few times. I wish we could use it, but it's entirely too religious for us. We had a brief fling with GWG. I burned all the pictures and letters. ;) My experience with GWG is grammar is that it is extremely simplistic in what it asks the kids to do. It gives some examples, and then it gives a bunch of "practice" exercises that exactly mimic the format of the examples. The kids don't have to actually understand the concept; the only have to recognize the pattern. The exercises are not complex; they are very formulaic. I found GWG to be a complete waste of our time. For the child I tried GWG with, I have switched to a vintage Google book from Mary Frances Hyde: Practical Lessons in the Use of English. For my older child, who has gone straight through FLL with no GWG fling, I am now using Hake. Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Is it? I like R&S's style. I don't know if it's more "rigorous" or not. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wehave8 Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 Is it? I don't know. That's what I've heard. Just wondered why people say this in posts I've read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsMe Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 R&S ....they only school through 8th grade, so what you learn elsewhere that takes you through high school is all done through 8th with R&S. So everything is bumped up a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wehave8 Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 I don't think I can adequately answer why R/S is more rigorous than any other program - but I will tell you why we like R/S. (and used it over GWG - I tried level 1 and 2) First, I like the oral drill before every lesson - review is so important in mastering grammar. This is found only in the Teacher's Manual land for grades 3 and up. I also think the lessons are very detailed and consistently teach grammar principles - growing in depth each year. I love the diagramming practice scattered throughout the book - and my kids have grown up diagramming and really like it. There are many exercises for each lesson to make sure that your kids really understand the material, as well as review lessons. There are tests for every chapter that check to make sure the kids understand the material. I'm pleased with the depth that they cover grammar - we've only gone through 7...but it is a lot of grammar! I have not found anything else that teaches English better. Obviously this is just my opinion. Here's the down side (again, for me!) - it takes a lot of time. I do the oral drill, read through the lesson with the kids, and try some of the exercises to make sure they "get it". Multiply that times "X-number of kids" and it takes a lot of time! Also, the sentences can be contrived for the exercises. I really like Analytical Grammar because it uses "real life" sentences. (With my oldest I used AG after R/S 7 and liked the change - will probably do that again.) Sometimes I long for more of a workbook approach (like GWG) b/c it is simpler - with R/S my kids write out their answers in a seperate notebook (that's just how we do it - I know many do it all orally, but then it takes a little more of my time.) HTH!! Sandra-- Thank you for explaining what you see. That does help a lot!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wehave8 Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 My experience with GWG is grammar is that it is extremely simplistic in what it asks the kids to do. It gives some examples, and then it gives a bunch of "practice" exercises that exactly mimic the format of the examples. The kids don't have to actually understand the concept; the only have to recognize the pattern. The exercises are not complex; they are very formulaic. I found GWG to be a complete waste of our time. Tara Tara- I can see this being a problem for us. We tried ABeka once with our older dc years ago, and that is what was happening. I can see mine catching on to the pattern with what they are doing now in GWG, but I was hoping it would change. I don't think it will as I look at more examples, even though I thoroughly read each lesson and sentence with them. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsMe Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 My experience with GWG is grammar is that it is extremely simplistic in what it asks the kids to do. It gives some examples, and then it gives a bunch of "practice" exercises that exactly mimic the format of the examples. The kids don't have to actually understand the concept; the only have to recognize the pattern. The exercises are not complex; they are very formulaic. Tara I couldn't put my finger on it when I saw the samples, but you just hit the nail on the head.:iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleBears Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 (edited) I would not say it is more rigorous. I think it is just more "in depth" and explicit so naturally it does take more time. Actually I think it is quite gentle because it takes the pieces and then builds on them year after year. It has a lot of review because it was originally made for classroom use, so it seems more rigorous. IMO it is very through and build a very solid foundation in grammar. Like all things you get out of it what you put in.:001_smile: Edited January 25, 2012 by MyLittleBears Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 I haven't used R & S. But I have found that certain grammar programs are harder simply because the sentences are more complicated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 R&S ....they only school through 8th grade, so what you learn elsewhere that takes you through high school is all done through 8th with R&S. So everything is bumped up a bit. English, science and Bible series go through 10th, history and reading through 9th. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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