Tapestry of Grace-what to buy, what not to?

[k3bzr18]

Hi,

 

considering TOG and want to know from you users....what to buy and what not to? Digital? lapbooks, etc?

Did you borrow the books or end up buying them?

Thank you!

Lynn

[coffeegal]

What ages are you buying for? There's a big difference between what I purchase for my 10yo and what I purchase for my highschoolers.

 

I like digital although I print up the year plans because we reference them all the time. However I have 2 littles and want to have the option of updated versions for them, so I purchase the digital.

 

UG: SOTW series (we love it) and the US Hakim series are my main purchases, otherwise I use the library for all other books. I do substitute a lot or use the LG book instead. Ds loves the lapbook. He reads TOG throughout the week, then we sit down together to put the lapbook together. It gives me a chance to discuss his reading in a relaxed manner.

 

D & R: I try to purchase any books that are used more than 4-5 weeks. After that I check the library for TOG books and look for alternatives. My dc know to research the accountability questions if they can't find the answer, so I don't sweat not having the correct book if it's only used for a week or two. :001_smile:

[melmichigan]

It definately depends on the ages levels.

[k3bzr18]

Thanks ladies! Sorry for missing that detail. I will be working with my 7 yr old!

 

[AngelBee]

Are you going to be using year 1?

[k3bzr18]

Year 2. :-)

[joyfulmomSDG]

I have a digital+print version but for the LG level the digital version has been fine for us. I reference it to preview the week and make a week-plan. After that, I don't really need to refer back for this age. When we cycle back through, though, I will definitely want a printed copy.

 

Regarding books to purchase, I second the SOTW and any of the other books that are used for more than 5 weeks. For all the others I have found either the primary or an alternative resource at the library. This is especially easy for LG level. HTH!

[AngelBee]

Ok...let me think. I do DE and print, but if you buy from TOG you can upgrade to print later. I would maybe do DE only right now. Lapbook is fun. :) Pop Quiz is helpful for me. That is all I owned for Yr 2.

 

I also used SOTW and the AG for that year. (You would need sotw2 and sotw3 as tog2 covers a BIG chunk of time)

[Tracy]

My kids are about the same age as your two oldest. We are on our 3rd year of TOG. I use digital, because it is cheaper, and at the LG level, you don't need most of the paper. If you bought the paper version, you would have to store it for at least 5 years before you could even use the teacher's notes (the bulk of the paper) for your kids. I have tried to do some self-education, but mostly we have difficulty just getting school work done.

 

Anyway, MapAids is helpful, but not absolutely necessary. I have WriteAids but never used it. I don't agree with the writing philosophy for the LG level. But I will keep it, because I like the R level writing assignments. I don't use lapbooks. They seem like busywork to me. My dd8 would probably like them, but it would create more work for me. (I am already reading every.single.book to her, including alternates and enrichments.) I don't use Evaluations.

 

I get the books from the library for the most part. I only buy what is used for more than 3 weeks or is not available at the library and is not easy to substitute. I also buy SOTW audio CDs to supplement.

[bethben]

I would only buy digital and the books (only if you have younger children that will cycle through at that level). I personally think the lap books are better suited to a UG child. Map aids is also nice if you want but not necessary.

 

Just so you realize about SOTW and TOG year 2, it schedules SOTW 2 AND part of 3. I had thought about going that direction with my youngest two next year, but I wanted to keep up with their older brother and the thought of doing 3 or more chapters if SOTW was too much. Sure, we could just do SOTW for the whole year, but then we would miss all those great books for early American history in the second semester.

 

Beth

[PineFarmMom]

I changed to DE only, and I like it. The main things I appreciate about it is that I won't wind up having 16 large binders to store and it saves money!!! I print the first 8 or 9 pages of each week on paper two sheets per side, that way I have the info but it isn't taking up as much space. I tried it 4 sheets per side, but I couldn't read it very well. :tongue_smilie: I keep those in a notebook to reference in case someone is using the laptop and I'm unable to get to it.

 

I have LG and D students.

 

I purchase:

*Mapaids,

*Writing Aids (though we don't use it all the time). I do a combination of WWE and WA for my youngers but pretty much exclusively use WA for my D student.

*Evaluations. I think evaluations aren't really necessary except for UG and above. We like them, though, and do use them for LG. I use them as a teaching aid. For my younger guys, I ask all the questions from evaluations at the beginning of the week so they will know what to be listening for as the week progresses, then I give them the evaluation either orally or written on Thursday or Friday.

 

I have used the lapbooks. They are fun to a degree but became a burden by the end because I felt we had spent the money on them and NEEDED to do them. We may try them again later. It was neat to have that completed lapbook in the end.

 

Also, I bought the Popquiz for 2 units last year and found that I forgot to use them. That is a personaly thing, though. :)

 

We do purchase about 90% of the books, as our library just isn't that good. If it is a super expensive book and I think we can sub something, I won't buy it. For dialectic, though, I make sure that either our library has it or I purchase it, as it affects his discussions in co-op.

[TXMary2]

I usually do DE + Print. I get the year plan, map aids and evaluations. Also, do the one time Writing Aids purhase unless you really have a writing instruction program you already like. Buying DE will get you all future updates for free.