Is there a specific reason WWE uses excerpts from various books?

[kdownie]

I recently started WWE, and I am currently using just the teacher's guide(for a first grader). I plan to choose my own passages for many of the weeks, instead of getting the workbook. I notice that the passages we have read so far are from a variety of books (Wizard of Oz, Little House in the Big Woods, etc).

 

Is there a specific reason that the excerpts are from varied books? I'd like to use the book we are reading out loud together (Chronicles of Narnia: Magician's Nephew) so it all ties together nicely, but if it is beneficial to use a variety of books, I could definitely do that too.

 

This is my first year completely home schooling, so I'm always open to suggestions for making this work. Thanks!

[Veritaserum]

I don't think there's a reason other than perhaps to prevent boredom? I use passages from the books we are reading for literature using the principles I learned in The Complete Writer (the explanation of Writing with Ease).

[boscopup]

I think she does that to give practice with a wide variety of genres, different levels of vocabulary, etc. Some of those passages are HARD because of "old language", etc. She does fiction, poetry, non-fiction, etc. In WWE2, you start to find the main narrative thread, and sometimes there is a specific way you do it based on the type of passage it is.

[Michele B]

At some point, I forget when exactly, you begin to notice that there is more variety: passages from history or science books as well as literature. This is really good practice for the writing lessons in WWS as well as later learning. It was very difficult for my older daughter to do the science passages - history and literature were fine because they were stories. What's inside a comet was more difficult to deal with. I kept telling her it was essential to train her mind to focus on readings that were outside her comfort or interest level. I REALLY wish I had been more disciplined with my college reading.

If you are choosing the passages on your own, I would definitely start with literature or SOTW passages, and start sprinkling in science or geography once the child is answering without too much difficulty.

[redsquirrel]

She also wrote "The Complete Writer" so you can pick your own passages from your own readings. It has monthly and weekly goals and suggestions of what to look for. For example, you might use lines with dialogue for several weeks.

 

The WWE workbooks are only for convenience to save you the trouble of picking your own passages. But, if you want to pick your own, go ahead. You would only need to buy The Complete Writer and you will have all the writing instruction you need for 4 years.

 

I use the workbooks, because I just need to pull it off the shelf and get to work.

[happycc]

My kids love the variety and so excited about the different stories and want to find them in the bookstore or library to read the whole books.

There were many books that they would have never considered had they not been "forced" or "exposed" to them because of WWE. One of my daughters actually want to read the WWI book from WWE3. Who would have thought.

[skeeterbug]

I think she does that to give practice with a wide variety of genres, different levels of vocabulary, etc. Some of those passages are HARD because of "old language", etc. She does fiction, poetry, non-fiction, etc. In WWE2, you start to find the main narrative thread, and sometimes there is a specific way you do it based on the type of passage it is.

 

:iagree:

 

FWIW, we love the variety of passages. We have been introduced to many things we would not have come across. If there is a passage we've particularly enjoyed then we'll have a look at the library for it.

[kdownie]

Thanks everyone! All the input was really helpful, and I'll either get the workbooks (because being able to just open and go would be really great once the baby-on-the-way arrives) or I'll just be careful to choose passages from a variety of sources.

[Dinsfamily]

I recently started WWE, and I am currently using just the teacher's guide(for a first grader). I plan to choose my own passages for many of the weeks, instead of getting the workbook. I notice that the passages we have read so far are from a variety of books (Wizard of Oz, Little House in the Big Woods, etc).

 

Is there a specific reason that the excerpts are from varied books? I'd like to use the book we are reading out loud together (Chronicles of Narnia: Magician's Nephew) so it all ties together nicely, but if it is beneficial to use a variety of books, I could definitely do that too.

 

This is my first year completely home schooling, so I'm always open to suggestions for making this work. Thanks!

 

I picked out my own passages for WWE1 with my oldest based on our read alouds. I used a variety of sources and switched it up between our various subjects (science, history, or literature). It took quite a bit of time and it was hard to find the right types of passages each week. In the end, I decided to buy the workbook for WWE 2 and am using the WWE 1 workbook with ds6 this year (abandoning my own inferior selections). SWB's selections are good and many of the books are in our reading line-up already. Ds8 is has read some of the other books that have come up in his free time because the excerpts piqued his interest. That and the saved time have been a big bonuses to using the workbooks.