fourcatmom Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 I have finally made a decision after spending countless hours on the computer looking through previous WTM threads and the TOG website that I am going to order Y2 for my 7th grader. I am excited but nervous. I was really leaning towards Biblioplan but this is calling my name! :laugh: Any advice, suggestions...I know Y2 is suppose to be the largest so I am nervous. I am going to order the maps and probably the WA. It won't be my primary writing program for her but a supplement. I am either going to use WWS or something more advanced in IEW. I also have looked at Cover Story but I am not sure on that one now. I am also wondering about the evaluations. I think this would be a good thing for her since she loves to write so much and wants to write a book. I am thinking of just doing the first three units in Y2 as my focus and looking at Unit 4 next year with Y4. I have heard that there is overlap. Does unit 4 really need to be done in Y2 with Medieval? Or maybe a short version of unit 4 and then pick up in 8th with Y4. We will have to skip Y3 until HS. She will need to do more World History for 8th and Y4 has new information for her. Also she fits in the D level but I really like the literature selections in UG better. I will probably try to combine UG and D in some way using what she can and what she likes from each level. The next time around will HS anyway so I figure using a combination of these two shoud be okay. Any advice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 Do I understand that the information for Y3 isn't new to her, and that's why your skipping it? We did Y2U1-U3 in a school year. I then shifted everything. We did Y2U4-Y3U3 last year and this year we did Y3U4-Y4. Take a look at the evaluation samples, my DD wasn't ready for that type of memorization right off the bat, I had to ease into it. We mix and match across levels depending on the child, that is part of the appeal of TOG. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted May 24, 2013 Author Share Posted May 24, 2013 Do I understand that the information for Y3 isn't new to her, and that's why your skipping it? We did Y2U1-U3 in a school year. I then shifted everything. We did Y2U4-Y3U3 last year and this year we did Y3U4-Y4. Take a look at the evaluation samples, my DD wasn't ready for that type of memorization right off the bat, I had to ease into it. We mix and match across levels depending on the child, that is part of the appeal of TOG. :) She did AH in 5th so I was going to skip level 3 since I have two years of Middle school left. We will do Y2 in 7th and then Y4 in 8th and then we can start over at Y1 and continue through Y4 through HS. I don't actually know what is required for history in HS but I would like her to be able to go from the beginning all the way through and we just did Ancients MOH this year. I think 3 levels is going to work better for us this year that's why I was thinking of skipping unit 4 since she did early AH in 5th. I guess that's more of an overlap with Y3 not Y4. I have too look again. We are going to school the 6 weeks on and 1 week off so doing units 1-3 would work well as I would have 12 weeks to complete each unit instead of 9. But, still looking for opinions on that. Unit 4 does seem like a good unit as well? I think I mixed it up, it's Y3 unit 4 that is overlapped with Y4 unit 1? I don't know why I was thinking it was Y2? I guess doing Unit 4 in Y2 would be a good place to stop to pick up Y4 the following year. I am just afraid Medieval will be rushed. Oh and eta: What spines have people used that they enjoyed with the UG and D levels? She likes tor read STOW but I would also like something more for middle school. What has worked for your middle schooler? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karenciavo Posted May 25, 2013 Share Posted May 25, 2013 Week 36 of Year 3 slightly overlaps with Week one of Year 4; both include the study of T. Roosevelt although Yr3 Wk36 is only to the vice presidency and Year 4 continues with his presidency onward. The first week of Year 3 covers some review of the French Revolution and John Adams' presidency; both were covered in more detail in year 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talantine Posted May 26, 2013 Share Posted May 26, 2013 We are on TOG year two, unit two. We started at the beginning of year one last year. So in two years of schooling we made it through a year and a half on TOG. One thing I recently started doing that I wish I would have done from the beginning, is to only spend a week on each TOG week. I would not get to things I wanted to get to and would stretch them into the next week. Then I wouldn't want to start a new TOG week mid-week so I would wait to the following Monday. Things ended up taking too long. Now every Monday we start a new week. The exception is the Literature. We won't stop reading a novel mid book! I also don't do the timeline weekly. We do it at the end of the unit - a great review. We use the homeschool in the woods figures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justkeepswimming Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 I also don't do the timeline weekly. We do it at the end of the unit - a great review. We use the homeschool in the woods figures. Oooh, I love this idea for the timeline. (We're starting TOG for the first time this year as well) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted May 27, 2013 Author Share Posted May 27, 2013 Thank you for all the suggestions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Do I understand that the information for Y3 isn't new to her, and that's why your skipping it? We did Y2U1-U3 in a school year. I then shifted everything. We did Y2U4-Y3U3 last year and this year we did Y3U4-Y4. We do this too. It makes SO much more sense to me. Otherwise, you have to blow through some really important (and fun) stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 5, 2013 Author Share Posted June 5, 2013 We do this too. It makes SO much more sense to me. Otherwise, you have to blow through some really important (and fun) stuff! The only problem that I am having with this is that I don't know if we are going to go into Y3 for the following year. Since she is in 7th next year we only have two years of middle school and I was going to do Y2 for 7th and then jump to Y4 for 8th. The time period for Y3 she covered in 5th for American History. I want to be able to start over at Y1 and move through Y4 for High School. So, if I skip Unit 4 of Y2 then she won't get that info until she is in 10th grade, the way I have it planned. I also considered focusing on Unit 1-Unit 3 for Y2 over the year and maybe take the summer to do unit 4. I want to do Unit 4 but I am concerned about having enough time and rushing through. If I do just the three units I would have 12 weeks for each unit and then about 6 weeks of summer for Unit 4. All the other years seem that you can get through all the units in 1 year, just not Y2, is that correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I would say you would be in good shape if you cover the first three units over the year, and then do reading over the summer that fleshes out unit 4. If she covered early American in 5th, she probably covered the Age of Exploration, so that should be pretty fresh still. Just make up a reading list based on unit 4 and have her work it over the summer. You may also want to glance through the week topics for Year 3 to see if you could use the last month of summer to do a cursory overview of year 3 so that you can have a more see less transition to year 4. In short, June and July - read from Y2U4 August - read a couple of books that either give an overview of year 3 or cover topics she may not have covered from that timeframe Clear as mud? ;-). Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 5, 2013 Author Share Posted June 5, 2013 Thank you Professormom, those are great ideas! I like that plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 One more question...what were the not to miss books for Year 2 in the UG and D levels? There are so many! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Aw shucks :wub: And, it's your lucky day because I have me book list sitting right next to me. Let's see... Wait... Do you mean for Unit 4 or for the while year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 Aw shucks :wub: And, it's your lucky day because I have me book list sitting right next to me. Let's see... Wait... Do you mean for Unit 4 or for the while year? Yay Me! I am just looking for mostly Y2 units 1-3 but will take what you want to share! Thank you, you have been a great resource already! 1 more question since you are here...it looks like the History of US books are used in some of the units (don't remember what year) but is there a main spine for Y2 that I am missing or is all the living books combined with the extra books? From my understanding, your not using something like STOW or MOH with this, correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 The spines they use are older books like "The Story of the Middle Ages" by Harding (UG) and "The Story of Europe" by Marshall. I will sometimes use those as read alouds and have my UG do SOTW (whatever lines up with the topic of the week - it listed in the "Alternate Resources" section of TOG, so it is easy to assign.) I decided to use the OUP Middle Ages books for the D spine this year. This gives me a good blend of the old and new resources available. Plus, the older books are told in a more narrative form. They are good read alouds because they sometimes contain parts I need to explain due to language differences, etc. I will try to pop back on with some other book recommendations later today. I know it seems a little nuts trying to schedule TOG, but once you get going, it really does flow... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 Thank you, I see where those are listed now. I hadn't found where it explained it so thanks again. What is OUP? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Oxford University Press This is the link: http://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-medieval-and-early-modern-world-9780195178487?cc=us&lang=en& It is a set of 7 books for that period... It is pricy on their site, but can be found used for reasonable $. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 Ok, since I am breaking extending weeks 1-26 over the year, these would be my must reads (I think:-). Disclaimer, I have a HUGE list that including books from SL and TOG and other places, so if I include other stuff, don't think I am trying to be confusing! I am still muddling through my planning;-) We already got the spines out of the way, so on to other history and lit choices: UG Tales of King Arthur Arabian Nights Story of St. Patrick Mosque, Castle, and Cathedral and other David MacCaulay books - I always get these from the library D'aulaire Norse Myths Leif the Lucky Robin Hood Marco Polo Door in the Wall Fine Print Michaelangelo - Stanley I, Juan de Pareja Leonardo da Vinci - Stanley Brilliant Brits Henry VIII Pertinent Hakim books Bard of Avon, Peter the Great, and Good Queen Bess all by Stanley Castle Diary Minstrel in the Tower The Apprentice William Bradford, Pilgrim Boy Blackthorn Winter As I am compiling this, I realize that I am apparently completely dysfunctional when trying to pair down reading lists! So take my input with a grain of salt... Believe it or not, this is just a small portion of what I have... UG. I will put D in another post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 Here are some for D level: Some overlap, such as Arabian Nights, King Arthur, and Robin Hood... Augustine Came to Kent Encyclopedia of World Religions (this is just useful for whenever you run across a new religion mentioned in a text or lit choice) Son of Charlemagne Beowulf - Marshall Dragon and the Raven - Henty (this author's books are awesome for their ability to draw readers into the time period. Give you a good sense of 'being there') Men of Iron - Pyle World of Columbus and Sons - Foster (these are a great set of books that can be kind of spin-ish as well... Don't you love my technical terms) Morning Star of the Reformation Explorers Who Got Lost By Right of Conquest - Henty Bible Smuggler Shakespeare Stories Landing of the Pilgrims Little Pilgrim's Progress Iron Peacock Ravenmaster's Secret Shakespeare Stealer Leonardo da Vinci - Hahn Witch of Blackbird Pond I must stop myself, lol. The activity books TOG recommends are really good as well, but I just pick one to combine my UG and D. Another book that was really excellent was the King's Shadow. I would do it as a read aloud though, the boy has his tongue cut out, so how your kids respond to it will depend on their tolerance for gross. But the story is really well done and I highly recommend it. If you want my full list, pm me and I will take a pic and send it to you:-). But, since you are trying to narrow down your choices, I can't imagine that would be overly helpful! Have a great day... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 7, 2013 Author Share Posted June 7, 2013 Thank you! Thank you! :hurray: I appreciate all the information and time you have put in to helping me, and I so appreciate it! I am sure this list will help others as well. Thanks again. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 8, 2013 Author Share Posted June 8, 2013 One more question...I know I said that before :laugh: but do you have any comments about the Writing Aids and Evaluations? I was thinking of buying both since I will use this for more then 1 year. If I understand everything correctly once I purchase them I can use them with any level and unit within Y2. If I use this again for HS then I would be able to use the Evaluations and WA again for the R level and for multiple children. I am also thinking that I will just get the downloaded version since you can make copies and use for multiple children/times. Do I have all this right? I am going to place my order for Unit 1 this weekend and I was going to add the maps for unit 1, the evaluations for the year and the WA for the year. Just thought I would get your comments before I submitted the order. Thanks. :thumbup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professormom Posted June 8, 2013 Share Posted June 8, 2013 I think the Writing Aids is a one time purchase in general, I.e., you only buy it once for all levels and years. So, $40 and you are done:-). The evaluations you can purchase by level and year. But, I think if you buy it by year, then all the levels are included. I.e, if you buy it for the year, it includes all levels for the whole year for $50. then, you just use them each year. Or, you can buy it by level, so if you only had a R student left, you could just buy the R Evals for the year - $15. Wow, do I need coffee! Hope that helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcatmom Posted June 9, 2013 Author Share Posted June 9, 2013 I just bought Y2 Unit 1 from TOG! I am both excited and overwhelmed. There are a lot of downloads and I am not really sure how to start making sense of it all! This is not a cheap curriculum! I ended up just ordering Unit 1 and the WA and the maps for unit 1 and it was just under $100. :scared: Okay, I have more quick question. Already in reading the plans for week 1 there is a lot of reference to unit 4 for Year 1, Ancients. We did not do TOG for Ancients. I know Y2 is already full according to what people have said and my plan was to cover units 1 -3 this year and work on unit 4 over next summer. Is it worth the information to go back and start with Y1, Unit 4 to start the Middle Ages or will she be okay just jumping in where Y2 starts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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