MFW Creation to Greeks or MOH1??? Please sway me:-)

[TwoEdgedSword]

I am much closer to deciding between these two programs for our youngest 6 kids, 12, 9, 6, 5, 5 and 4. I realize it will be a lot of tagging along for the youngest three.

 

I'm REALLY looking for the big picture p.o.v. here as I've researched things to death and it's hard to see the forest through the trees, kwim?

 

Our oldest will be doing MFW ahl. MFW will be totally new to us. Have done brief Sonlight, Veritas and lots of putting it together myself prior to now.

 

I'm nervous about going with two MFW programs, being new to them (although we'll be buying used).

 

I've done MOH Vol 2 in the past and was ok with it.....not wowed.

 

MFW or MOH1 for the youngest children????

 

Please pros and cons, do MFW x2 or, tell me this is crazy.

 

Life is very busy and I need more open and go.....

 

Thanks!:)

 

JFB

[edeemarie]

We are just starting MFW ECC and haven't done any other levels, but if the book basket is as good in CtoG as it is in ECC your younger kids will be just fine. I have a 6 year old doing ECC and she is doing a great job so far! She does do the student sheets and my kids are getting so much in science and geography just from the book basket books we read! The manual is so open-and-go and very easy to use. It is my understand that the high school programs are supposed to be mainly independent but maybe you could start you high schooler a week or two early just to get them going. I don't have any experience with MOH but for our family I personally like the variety of books instead of being tied to one book for the whole year.

[TwoEdgedSword]

Thanks Erin,

 

That is good to hear. If we do MFW for the younger kids, I already had in my mind that we would do ECC possibly next year as I have read so many good things about it. For now, we like the idea of doing ancients at the same time as the high schooler as she had a little trepidation about going into this new h.s. program.

 

Also, ECC would be good for me as I snoozed on that in my school years and our sons from Africa would get the big picture!:001_smile::001_smile:

 

JFB

[mommaduck]

I think the question is, do you want it scheduled for you or do you want to pick and choose from a list and schedule things out yourself? MFW is the former and MOH is the latter. I love MFW and one of my closest friends loves MOH.

[TwoEdgedSword]

Mommaduck,

 

If open and go means scheduled, then I think that is what I need right now.

 

While I feel hemmed in by other's schedules for me, I really need to move the ball forward this year.

 

When I go more Amblesidey and Living Booksy, I love it, but I spend lots of time getting all the JUST PERFECT books.

 

We have a very busy life beyond homeschooling. So I need something that is most mom-friendly.

 

Also concerned about crafts stressing me out in MFW, but I can always skip some, right???

 

Thank you!:001_smile:

JFB

[mommaduck]

You can always add or subtract from MFW (many people, including myself, do). But it is a very open an go curricula (I have a large family, an active church life, a home business, babysitting for others, and the oldest children's activities) and it has saved me in many ways. Even if we don't do it all on the day scheduled, I can still use it as a check list for "do the next thing" and I know where we are at or what we have done. Granted, with both curricula, you will need to add Math and Grammar. I'm not sure if you have to add Science to MOH, but I know you don't with MFW (unless you have a jr high student...Apologia is recommended by them, but that choice is yours). Science is included in the cycles. Art and music are included in the schedule and you can get the items by buying the deluxe packages.

[sassenach]

I am a huge MFW fan, but I moved to MOH this year because I really wanted to downgrade history. I need to take a year off of being history centered. If it goes well, I may never be history centered again! IMO, MOH gets it done. I bought the notebooking pages and I think that'll be enough.

 

How much of your homeschool do you want to revolve around history? MOH keeps it simple, MFW beautifully integrates it.

[TwoEdgedSword]

Thanks ladies,

 

And Shannon, I LOVE your avatar. We DO want the driving force in our home to be Bible and History. They are totally the favs here. The oldest 9th grader even publishes her own history magazine for homeschoolers.

 

Mommaduck, MFW does sound doable and even modifiable if neccesary. I'll use their science for the youngers and my 7th grader will continue w/Apologia, which was what we were already doing. We are all set in the Lang. Arts dept too.

 

Feeling more peace about going with MFW. Part of the uneasiness was the NEW factor, but as I said we have done MOH for the Rome/Reformation period and it was ok. Ready to try something that gets us unified and fired up!

 

Thanks again!:)

JFB

[Donna A.]

We prefer MFW over MOH for several reasons, one being that everything is there for me, ready to go with very clear instructions about what to do and how to guide my children through all of the subjects. Marie also provides me with a supply list at the beginning of each week so that with a quick glance, I can gather things ahead of time as needed. I can also skim through the teacher's notes for the week and decide if we even WANT to do the activities scheduled. Sometimes we do, and sometimes we don't. Sometimes one child will do an activity and the others won't. MFW is very, very flexible in this way.

 

All of the core books *needed* to do the program are included in the Basic and Deluxe packages (though even the Deluxe part of it could be considered optional... but definitely help "finish" the program, so you want them if you can swing it). Then there's an extensive booklist in the back of the manual that are optional, as time and interest allow. This list is divided up by week # and topic so that you can look ahead of time to decide what to order from the library (or purchase, if you prefer). There are also video titles that are related to the topics being studied in Bible, history, and science, so that's nice. The book and video titles are in every genre (fiction, non-fiction, etc.) and for every age group from children's picture books to adult level. Marie gives a description and age recommendation, as well as an alert to potentially sensitive content to help you decide, as well.

 

And, as you said in your last post, Bible and History (together) are the driving force in our home as well. :) We also like using multiple resources for our studies, and of course the Bible as a main spine, rather than someone's "summary" of it. MFW does a great job of that. To me, skills in the 3 R's are easier to fill in because you can literally pick and choose separate skills individualized for each student. The content subjects are a lot harder because SO much is dependent on one's worldview, with theology, politics, philosophy.... all very attached to it. And everyone has a worldview of some sort. ;) And *I* (and my dh) want to be in charge of teaching those subjects to my children.... not someone else's summary or scripted opinion.

[Mallorie]

I will be doing CtG along with AHL with my oldest, starting in a couple weeks. I am just getting the house/books organized and then we start.

 

I also own MOH, and after looking through both, I prefer CtG. I am like you, I need things streamlined and laid out for me. I love the schedule, I LOVED the book basket suggestions for ECC, so am looking forward to that in CtG again. The message board at MFW is helpful, as well as the blogroll, so you can see how others have improvised/scaled back.

 

If you have not done so, I would ask the same question over at the MFW board, concerning your youngest four. I do know the staff is helpful in making recommendations for how to make life easier/manageable.

[TwoEdgedSword]

Thank you Mallorie!

 

I didn't know about the blogroll for MFW. I'll have to check that out. Neat to hear you have embarked upon what we are contemplating!:grouphug:

 

JFB

[Mallorie]

You know, one of the reasons I chose MFW is to make my life easier. I wanted it all planned out because I'm a bit nervous about our first year hs'ing high school. We have co-op one day a week, so I like that Fridays are light in MFW, as that's the day we have co-op.

 

MFW is really easy to implement. If you are set with math and LA, this won't be hard at all.

 

If you go to the blogroll, look for mishmashmaggie. She's a popular one to visit, lots of videos and such.

[PeterPan]

Joyful, MFW K5 has turned out to be the real surprise for me. I NEVER thought I'd like a pre-scheduled curriculum so much. Yes, the book basket lists have turned out to be exceptional and are easy to implement.

 

I've done things independently for so long, winging it, making baskets on topics, etc., I really didn't expect to be so happy. It just gives me peace when I open up the guide, knowing the bulk of the work is done. Might be a good stage of life where it would do that for you.

[Donna A.]

You know, one of the reasons I chose MFW is to make my life easier. I wanted it all planned out because I'm a bit nervous about our first year hs'ing high school. We have co-op one day a week, so I like that Fridays are light in MFW, as that's the day we have co-op.

 

Yes! Our long day outside of the house this year will be on Wednesdays, so that's going to be our "light Friday". While the days are labeled by day-of-the-week within the teacher's notes each week, the grid itself is not labeled. That's intentional. I'm doing CTG with my youngest this year, and since I'm thinking ahead to our schedule after dance and piano start up again, I decided to start school (this morning) with something else to sort of "introduce" our year in CTG so that Wed. will intentionally be a short academic day. Then we'll begin Day 1 of CTG on Thursday. So Day 2 will be Friday, Day 3 Monday, Day 4 Tuesday, and Day 5 (light schedule) on Wednesday.

 

Now, for CTG in particular, because of the Jewish feasts that are scheduled on Fridays (or Day 5) off and on throughout the year, I'll have to plan around that. But for the weeks that we don't have a feast, it doesn't mess with the rest of the schedule at all.

 

Sorry if that sounds confusing.... It's really quite simple. It just means that Thursday is our Day 1 or "Monday" of each week this year. :001_smile:

 

If I wasn't choosing to do it this way, and to keep Day 1 as the 'real' Monday, I would shift the majority of work assigned on Wednesday to the following day so that our Fridays wouldn't be as light as they're shown on the grid.

[TwoEdgedSword]

Donna, Elizabeth and Mallorie,

 

Thank you for adding your further thoughts! And Donna thanks for all of your input from yesterday too! I was the one who pm'd you about SCM and you don't need to get back to me about it as someone else did and it seems to confirm what you were saying, vis a vis MFW...:)

 

And Elizabeth, did you mean you also did the Kindergraten program is that A to Z?

 

Thanks everyone!

JFB

[Donna A.]

Donna, Elizabeth and Mallorie,

 

Thank you for adding your further thoughts! And Donna thanks for all of your input from yesterday too! I was the one who pm'd you about SCM and you don't need to get back to me about it as someone else did and it seems to confirm what you were saying, vis a vis MFW...:)

 

 

:001_unsure: I sent you a two-part reply on August 1st. Did you not get that? Or did you send me another message since then? I'm not seeing anything in my PM box after August 1st.....

[TwoEdgedSword]

Oh Donna,...I am such a dope! :biggrinjester:

 

I just didn't think to check there. I thought it would go to my regular email!

 

Thank you for your very thoughtful words here.

I'm going to chew on it more after I get the kids settled for naps!

 

Thanks so much!

 

JFB