Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Any reviews? Is it user friendly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abbeygurl4 Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Any reviews? Is it user friendly? I'm using it with my 9 yo. I had problems with it at first, but if you just keep following the lesson plan you start to figure it out. One lesson takes two weeks to complete and some of it can be done orally. MP is working on DVDs for Fable; they sent me the first one which is still in Beta testing. The DVD is fairly helpful, but the Teacher's Guide is very thorough so the DVDs aren't all that necessary imho. The Teacher's Guide also explains how to use Fable with a 7th grader and above who is new to Classical Comp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Thanks. Videos sound good, we like the ones they have for prima latina. I think it might be challenge for my son, 9 in spring but may go for it. Anyone else have any reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Thanks. Videos sound good, we like the ones they have for prima latina. I think it might be challenge for my son, 9 in spring but may go for it. Anyone else have any reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Thanks. Videos sound good, we like the ones they have for prima latina. I think it might be challenge for my son, 9 in spring but may go for it. Anyone else have any reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Thanks. Videos sound good, we like the ones they have for prima latina. I think it might be challenge for my son, 9 in spring but may go for it. Anyone else have any reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Thanks. Videos sound good, we like the ones they have for prima latina. I think it might be challenge for my son, 9 in spring but may go for it. Anyone else have any reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleWonders Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 I'm using it in an abbreviated way with ds11, one of my reluctant writers. We were doing WWS, but I felt he needed to step back to something that would be a bit easier and something that I felt would really help him solidify some skills (narration, for instance, is a strong oral skill for him but written can become either exceptionally short because he wants to be done quickly or a drawn out process full of run-on sentences). I appreciate the copies work as well as the addition of more descriptive writing exercises as he tends to write more to the point. We will complete about five lessons before spending some time back in WWS, and then we will do about 5 to 8 or so lessons in CC Narrative. (The goal is alternating MP CC with WWS, as many levels as she writes, to help him be a well rounded write who is hopefully not as reluctant as he has been.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Yikes, how did I respond soo many times? Thanks --great to hear since I want to do WWS down the road. Looking at the sample I see it jumps right into outlining, does it explain it well or is there something I should do first to learn that? We are finishing up WWE2 now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleWonders Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 First of all, I meant to mention that I agree; the teacher's guide of really really helpful. That said, though we did the first lesson the way it was written, I have to say I do not like the way the outlining is done. I get the idea ... think of the (very short) fable in terms of "acts" and identify the main events, etc. But, it felt like it was way too much for such a short selection. So, from now on, we are going to do key word outlining similar to how IEW teaches it. I'll have ds11 read through the fable again, writing 3-4 key words for each sentence (or so) of the fable. I think the outlining is probably my least favorite part. The teacher's guide does have the "answers" for the outline (which I needed to use as I couldn't figure out what they wanted on all those lines!). I just think my ds, at this point in time, is better suited doing more of a key word outline, or even a modified outline where you just pick out, for instance, five main things that happened in the story (this would probably have to be rather fluid for each fable/lesson). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleWonders Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 By the way, I do not have ds11 do this independently (nor do we do WWS independently even though it is written to be done as such). We sit together, read the fable together, work on the activities together. I don't give him answers, but we talk through the various activities, he'll bounce ideas off me, I'll have him orally narrate the story back to me, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 19, 2012 Author Share Posted November 19, 2012 I am not familiar with IEW, but looking at the sameple first lesson I think I agree with you about the outline. I had looked at WWS with a plan to use it after a year of two of MP composition. do you think doing the first few lessons and learning their ourlining would be beneficial before diving into MP Fable composition? Or would it be too much for a 9 year old, somewhat relucctant writer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleWonders Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 WWS teaches one level outlining, at least until the end of the book (if I remember correctly). Basically in WWS, y are pulling the main idea out of each paragraph. In IEW, you write down three words from each sentence that captures the main idea of that sentence. For what we are doing in Fable, doing a key word outline would be better, I think, than a one level outline like in WWS. YMMV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 20, 2012 Author Share Posted November 20, 2012 WWS teaches one level outlining, at least until the end of the book (if I remember correctly). Basically in WWS, y are pulling the main idea out of each paragraph. In IEW, you write down three words from each sentence that captures the main idea of that sentence. For what we are doing in Fable, doing a key word outline would be better, I think, than a one level outline like in WWS. YMMV Thank you! Anyone know any good resources for teaching ey word outlines to go along wit FAbles? Assuming I am right and that part needs a little bit of help in the curriculum? Needless to say, i am not going ti get IEW in addition! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.... Posted November 20, 2012 Share Posted November 20, 2012 Hi, I used Fable last year with my daughter, but switched this year to Writing with Skill. I actually regret switching at that point. I probably should have used one more year of Classical Comp and switched my daughter to WWS at 6th grade. But, the oldest kid has been my guinea pig. I don't know if I can add any more info to your thread. We really liked it. She learned how to use a thesaurus...she learned how to outline... You need the teacher's manual. We did not have the DVD. My daughter enjoyed Aesop's Fables. I liked that the program just focused on one writing topic for the whole year. Actually, this thread is talking me into taking a look at it again. It's only November. Maybe I can get one more year out of it before we finish WWS1 next year. Edited to say: I bought mine through the Classical Composition website. Is there a difference? It seems to be the same. The CC website has much more on it than the MP website has. Have you seen the CC website? http://classicalcomposition.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted November 20, 2012 Author Share Posted November 20, 2012 I have 't actually looked at the CC website, just at the samples on MP, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleWonders Posted November 20, 2012 Share Posted November 20, 2012 From what I understand, MP is the new publisher of Jim Selby's Classical Composition program. If you look at the Fable level on the CC website, they are now the MPs books. IIRC, MP took the original teacher's manuals and made them a bit easier to understand and added some more information (someone correct me if I'm remembering incorrectly). So, when you purchase them, you are getting MPs books, regardless of if you purchase through MP or through CC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted December 20, 2012 Author Share Posted December 20, 2012 I am continuing to look at this and think we are going to give it a try. When I looked at the teacher's guide on the MP website it isn't clear to me it shows you have to break down and schedule the lessons. Does the guide explain this? If not can someon share how often they do the lessons and how they break them down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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