Brianna Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 I'm very interested in both these programs. I like the great books found in Sonlight, but I like the looks of Veritas press also for their history and Bible. I think one thing that really attracts me to VP Is the memory work that goes along with it. With SL I see there is a lot of reading, but I am not sure how much retention there would be. I am looking into using this for my 2 oldest children who will be 1st and 3rd. Thank you ladies for your time. Do you see any benefit for one program over another or those who have used both programs is there anything that you like more about either one :) Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnMomof7 Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 There is a LOT of reading in SL but it anchors historical points in context when approached through literature so there's pretty good retention, more natural than drilling memory, but still good nonetheless. For me SL is also easier to wrap my head around - I can actually figure out how the program works, whereas with VP I've...never really been able to figure out how it would actually look in practice! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outdoorsy Type Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 I have been doing VP online History - Explorers to 1815 and then added the readers and read alouds from Sonlight Core D. It's been a pretty good blend for us! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland_Mom Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 I have not used Sonlight, but have contemplated it several times! However, I can comment on Veritas Press. The VP cards are terrific because it helps you pinpoint specific people/events in history to study. My kids memorized all of the VP history cards, which put a terrific timeline of history into their minds. Now that we are getting ready for our second pass of history, I appreciate the fact that we focused on western history during their elementary years. This gave us the ability to study western events in a little more detail. Now that the boys are middle schoolers, we'll study world history with more detail/information about global events. T VP provides a more structured study of history. You study one card per week and consult various sources to get more information. All of the source material is listed on the back of the card. You will need to select the literature yourself, but their catalog coordinates literatrue with the cards by listing the card number in small print after each book description. The VP TM has nice activities for hands-on learning and also includes worksheets and tests. I used the worksheet questions for oral review of the events and we did not do the tests. Oftentimes, I'd have my kids outline info from a VP card or use a VP Card as source material for a writing assignment. The TM does have writing assignments integrated into the curriculum. VP is very easy to use across several grades. My boys are two years apart, and it worked well for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 With SL I see there is a lot of reading, but I am not sure how much retention there would be. We have used SL many years now. My kids were K/1st when we started. I am shocked often by the things they say that they heard from a read aloud 4-5 years ago!!!!! They do retain it. And we have loved sitting on the couch reading, discussing. I added fun stuff to our SL years for more hands on. We did a timeline and they remember things that group together on pages! I looked at VP but tried SL with every intention of returning it. Five years later I still love SL. I tried to do my own thing this year. It was me copying SL ideas, lol. We are slowly wrapping up my own thing and moving back into SL. It works for us. I bought years ago planning to try and return. It's worth trying. You will know if it's right for you and your family. Or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 We used both when my dc's were that age. My dd is two years older and I felt she needed more when studying ancients etc. We enjoyed both when used in that manner. The VP cards are gorgeous. Really had everything needed to answer the questions. It took me a while to figure that out. Some of their books like the Time Travel Agency ones were the absolute favorites of those years. The negative was all that writing. DS12 would not like to fill out the weekly sheets now much less when he was 6. For dd it was perfect. Loves writing. Also at first glance choosing the books you want seems great but I really was not good at it. I made several expensive errors. We did use most later but many were not engaging when read aloud which is what we wanted. We liked the SL books better overall. Retention wise they both work it does depend on the student. Forcing my ds to do the complete VP would have been painful. He could have done it but I seriously doubt he would have retained much. He does remember the history reinforced by SL books. Is it as complete as VP probably not. My dd could learn history from most programs and enjoy it but she does love the great books from SL. She really did not need the VP too but she did love it. She did the Bible part too. She enjoyed school. I do not mean this to be a sales pitch for SL. I ended up creating my own for several years and have only recently gone back to SL because that big box is so easy. If you have children who will write without a fuss VP is lovely. I would be tempted to work as many SL books in to your curriculum as possible. When you see the advanced color markings in the VP catalog beware that your young child probably will not really enjoy it even if they read at a high grade level. I hope this makes sense. Both are good and do the job. It depends on everyone's personality. I love to cuddle up andread great books with my kids because of that SL wins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OK Family Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 We love the sonlight. My son is currently in condensed american history d and e. I like how the history and the readers coincide in topic. He makes many connections between the various text. We also use the Veritas press timeline cards. We memorize them in order, eight each week. My kids are also able to recognize when we read or learn something more about each timeline card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esse Quam Videri Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 We are using VP along with SOTW1. After using it with my first and third graders, I would never want to use it as a stand alone program. It is mostly tests/worksheets, and the reading is really dry. My kids like the cards, and a couple of the projects have been fun, but they enjoy SOTW SO much more. I'm going to continue using both because I like the Biblical history of VP, but I would honestly be sad for my kiddos if VP was all they had at that age. They are smart and stay engaged, but it's just not a very fun program. Obviously, my recommendation would be Sonlight, though I've never used the program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 Well doing the VP history won't preclude using the SL *books*. I've done the VP print history and the self-paced online, and we liked the print, LOVED the self-paced online. If you do the self-paced online, it makes it so easy to nail the memory work and whatnot. Then you put *your* time and energy into planning hands-on, read alouds, etc. to make it pop. Then you have the best of both worlds. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in KS Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 The self paced online vp is wonderfully rich with history, cultural background, maps and they review with great interactive games. They schedue optional lit as well. i've done sl and like the books, but fact retention long term was very lacking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjpeter Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 We've had wonderful luck with VP history this year. My son is doing Ancients, and it's his favorite subject right now. I'm finding that the amount of information he is retaining is amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianna Posted October 17, 2012 Author Share Posted October 17, 2012 Thank you ladies so much. Sounds like they are both really great curriculums. I know I really want to do the cards and memory work that VP has, but I still kinda would like to do Sonlight maybe along with it. I've truthfully read to my kids almost all the read alouds from Core A and B and I've been using CHOW for history this year (we're on Greece now). Do you think doing Core C with the VP cards would be doable with a 1st and 3rd grader. My younger dd is pretty good with listening and retaining right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankcassiesmom Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 This year we are doing Veritas Press cards alongside our Sonlight. I'm kind of a stickler about memorizing so we will be working on memorizing the cards. I have one in Core B/C and one in G so they will do the same cards. Then my core F gal just won't do cards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aloha2U Posted October 18, 2012 Share Posted October 18, 2012 The VP cards are terrific because it helps you pinpoint specific people/events in history to study. My kids memorized all of the VP history cards, which put a terrific timeline of history into their minds. Now that we are getting ready for our second pass of history, I appreciate the fact that we focused on western history during their elementary years. This gave us the ability to study western events in a little more detail. Now that the boys are middle schoolers, we'll study world history with more detail/information about global events. T VP provides a more structured study of history. You study one card per week and consult various sources to get more information. All of the source material is listed on the back of the card. You will need to select the literature yourself, but their catalog coordinates literatrue with the cards by listing the card number in small print after each book description. The VP TM has nice activities for hands-on learning and also includes worksheets and tests. I used the worksheet questions for oral review of the events and we did not do the tests. Oftentimes, I'd have my kids outline info from a VP card or use a VP Card as source material for a writing assignment. The TM does have writing assignments integrated into the curriculum. VP is very easy to use across several grades. My boys are two years apart, and it worked well for us. :iagree: Also, you've made a very good point (in gray text) here. I was contemplating this very thing when I was considering the possibility of incorporating CC's new timeline to our memory work, which (as I'm sure you already know) includes eastern and such, but all in all I kept preferring VP's over CC's timeline cards. You've confirmed my opinion for me. Thanks! :) Btw, are you trying to deprive us of your homeschool blog? ;) I noticed that it's no longer in your signature. Yours is one that I've gleaned from. Well doing the VP history won't preclude using the SL *books*. I've done the VP print history and the self-paced online, and we liked the print, LOVED the self-paced online. If you do the self-paced online, it makes it so easy to nail the memory work and whatnot. Then you put *your* time and energy into planning hands-on, read alouds, etc. to make it pop. Then you have the best of both worlds. :) :iagree: I'll just add that we used VP's Bible (Gen-Josh) & History (OTAE) cards, along with the TM and such, last year and really liked them. This year we're doing their Bible (Judges-Kings) cards & Self-Paced History (NTGR) and really LOVE both of them. :D I feel as though we're learning the most and using the best of what VP has to offer with the combined application of both the Bible cards (w/TM and additional resources) & the Self-Paced History. I do have the History cards, as well as the other recommended resources, but haven't necessarily tapped in to them yet, with the exception of using the cards (with hand motions) to review the timeline and reading aloud or independently from Famous Men Greece/Rome, D'Aulaires Greek Myths, etc. I had already purchased the other resources for history before I knew we'd being utilizing the Online Self-Paced course, and although the other resources aren't required alongside it, I've found that I prefer to have them available for my little man anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegirlwhopaintedtrees Posted October 19, 2012 Share Posted October 19, 2012 Thank you ladies so much. Sounds like they are both really great curriculums. I know I really want to do the cards and memory work that VP has, but I still kinda would like to do Sonlight maybe along with it. I've truthfully read to my kids almost all the read alouds from Core A and B and I've been using CHOW for history this year (we're on Greece now). Do you think doing Core C with the VP cards would be doable with a 1st and 3rd grader. My younger dd is pretty good with listening and retaining right now. I'm doing Core B with my 5 year old, so I definitely think Core C is doable for 1st and 3rd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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