AJ1972 Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 http://www.rfwp.com/pages/michael-clay-thompson/ When looking at grade 4 and up ... Do I purchase the entire row of books? Grammar Town, Caesar's English, Building Poems, Paragraph Town, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheAutumnOak Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 If you are starting with a 4th grader, you may want to start with the Island level (level 1)...Do you want to do the whole program?...We do, so we buy all of the books...There is grammar, grammar practice, writing, word study (vocabulary), and poetry...I would look at the homeschool packages to see which one you need...But yes, to do the complete program, you need the entire row of books... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 That's right! You go across the row, and get the grammar, practice, poetics, vocabulary, and writing book for each level. Or, click on the red "Levels & Packages" on the left, and it will take you to a page that tells what you need for each level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ1972 Posted February 10, 2012 Author Share Posted February 10, 2012 OK, thank you :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ1972 Posted February 10, 2012 Author Share Posted February 10, 2012 Also, it says the Grammar book has 20 lessons. 20 lessons? That doesn't seem like a lot at all. How does that work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheAutumnOak Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Also, it says the Grammar book has 20 lessons. 20 lessons? That doesn't seem like a lot at all. How does that work? If you click on this link, it will explain everything...It is MCT's slideshow of how to implement the curriculum...I hope this helps... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 http://www.rfwp.com/pages/michael-clay-thompson/ When looking at grade 4 and up ... Do I purchase the entire row of books? Grammar Town, Caesar's English, Building Poems, Paragraph Town, etc. Here is a link to the "Homeschool Packages." What you need is the "Basic" package, or you could order the items in the "Basic" package á la carte minus the Student version of the Grammar Island or Town books and save $20. If you omit the student Grammar books there as a few pages in the TMs that require "work-arounds" as a few answers are given away, but not a big deal. ETA: The packages do not include the (fairly new) Literature program. Also, it says the Grammar book has 20 lessons. 20 lessons? That doesn't seem like a lot at all. How does that work? MCT was originally written for so-called "gifted" children who generally find the incrementalism of many grammar programs boring. It's use has proven to be valuable to children beyond those who are "gifted" but it is not the type of program that spends 48 lessons on learning about "nouns." So consider your child's learning style. The somewhat sparse lessons in the Grammar books are reenforced in the Writing books and then driven home in the Practice books. the approach is great for those who like getting a big-picture first, then facing some challenges to their understandings (with solutions discussed after-wards). This may not be the best methodology for every child, but it is very exciting to those who thrive on this sort of approach. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Also, it says the Grammar book has 20 lessons. 20 lessons? That doesn't seem like a lot at all. How does that work? MCT has chosen to spread the grammar out over 3 books: Grammar Town, Practice Town, and Paragraph Town. You really do need to use all 3 together to have a "meaty" grammar program. This is actually my biggest pet peeve with MCT's LA. It is very ADD-ish, where it jumps from topic to topic and then circles around back later to the first topic. If you want to do a sentence in Practice Town that corresponds with whatever topic you're covering in Paragraph Town (where the bulk of the grammar instruction is) you need to flip through the entire book looking for one :glare: MCT's materials are very engaging to the student and I absolutely :001_wub: the vocab and poetry books. So I put up with the grammar being to my mind poorly organized. Also, you should be aware that MCT's grammar covers very little in the way of mechanics. You will likely need to supplement with something to practice capitalization & punctuation. I personally use Evan-Moor Daily Paragraph Editing, since those exercises are very similar to what is on standardized tests like the ITBS or the EXPLORE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I completely disagree that MCT is "ADDish." It is true that the grammar instruction is spread over three separate components. That is done to facilitate student learning, as opposed to being a "reference" book or "manual of style" for parents. There is a stong method to the instruction. The Grammar books provide an overview, the Writing books reenforce the lessons and objectives found in the Grammar book through a whimsical story, and the Practice books challenge the students to put their knowledge into practice, and then to learn from their mistakes by reading Mr Thompson's comments in the Practice Island TMs. I love the way it is organized. Part of the beauty of MCT is that not everything is spoon-fed. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Herehttp://satorismiles.com/2011/06/10/mct-island-schedule/ is a wonderful blog post about MCT that includes a schedule that you can print out. We have been following this schedule this year with my 4th grader. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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