I need reviews: Sonlight core 100 Literature

[mom2agang]

I am looking at Sonlight core 100 literature for my 11th grader next year.( I want to do the whole core) He is doing BJU 10th this year. Will it be too easy? Does it cover literature terms needed for college? I'm not looking looking for read a book and answer basic questions. Is it set up that way?

[Lori D.]

I am looking at Sonlight core 100 literature for my 11th grader next year.( I want to do the whole core) He is doing BJU 10th this year. Will it be too easy? 

 

Yes. Way too easy, esp. since your DS is working at a very solid 10th grade level this year with BJU. SL100 is geared for 7th/8th grade.

 

 

Does it cover literature terms needed for college?

 

No. If you would like some ideas for learning literary terms used in high school and college Literature classes and literary analysis, I suggest:  Figuratively Speaking, and then Walch Toolbox: Prose and Poetry.

 

And for learning how to read/discuss/analyze literature, and esp. how to write a literary analysis essay (typical assignment in a high school Lit. course, and in college Writing and Lit. courses), I strongly suggest IEW's Windows to the World (1 semester Lit. course, teaching literary analysis through focus on 6 short stories).

 

 

I'm not looking looking for read a book and answer basic questions. Is it set up that way?

 

No, SL guides are not workbook-like, with comprehension questions. But neither are they guided literary analysis with thought-provoking discussion questions (and suggested answers for you, the teacher).

 

 

Looks like you'd like to focus on American History and Literature for 11th grade. You may want to take a look at My Father's World (2 year program) -- or Ray Notgrass' 1-year Exploring America. MFW uses Notgrass as the spine, and spreads it out over 2 years, with additional Lit. and literary analysis/writing instruction, Bible, History, etc. (The Lit. portion of Notgrass is quite weak, with little-to-no instruction in literary analysis or literary terms.)

 

Or, for just the Lit. portion of an American Hist./Lit year, you might check out:

- BJUP: American Lit

- Excellence in Literature: American Lit

- Lighting Lit: American Lit: Early to Mid 19th Century

- Lighting Lit: American Lit: Mid to Late 19th Century

- SMARR: Survey of American Literature (here is the scope & sequence)

 

And for just the History portion, you might take a look at:

- Beautiful Feet: U.S. and World History

- Biblioplan (2 years to cover all U.S. history): Early America & World; Modern America & World

 

You might also check around for an online course, say through The Potter's School, or other.

 

In case it helps, below is a list of the SL100 books I am personally familiar with, and what grade level I would place the books. Normally, an 11th grader would be covering much more complex works for American Lit. (Typical works/authors: Nathaniel Hawthorne; Herman Melville; Ernest Hemingway; F. Scott Fitzgerald; John Steinbeck; Arthur Miller; etc.)

 

BEST of luck, whatever you decide to go with! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

 

4th gr. level

- Shh! We're Writing the Constitution

 

4th/5th gr. level

- Panama Canal

- Sequoyah and the Cherokee Alphabet

- A Wrinkle in Time

- Bound for Oregon

 

5th-6h gr. level

- Boy's War

- Cameron Townsend

- Traitor: Case of Benedict Arnold

- Bonanza Girl

- Bud, Not Buddy

 

6th/7th gr. level

- Moonshiner's Son

- Amos Fortune, Free Man

- A Long Way From Chicago

- Call of the Wild

- The View from Saturday

- Dear Mr. Henshaw

- Indian Captive

- Maniac Magee

- Out of the Dust

- A Year Down Yonder

 

7th/8th gr. level

- Dragon's Gate

- Farewell to Manzanar

- Adventures of Tom Sawyer

- Rip Van Winkle

 

8th/9th gr. level

- To Kill a Mockingbird

[mommymilkies]

I highly suggest looking up reviews on here about some controversy surrounding this core. 

[Julie in MN]

I've used Sonlight 100 but even with my being open-minded on high school literature (being in a school district that reads almost nothing), and choosing mostly short reads for my dd, we still dropped almost all of SL-100 lit.  I know we did Mockingbird, and maybe a missionary bio or two, but that's about it.  Lori's summary seems spot-on.  Even my very non-reading ds had read a lot of those in 6th-7th grades.  SL has a method of interspersing easy and hard books, but for 11th grade at least, it's going to be over 90% children's books.

 

I do think there were questions on some (not all) of the SL lit, at least when my dd was in high school (she's 26 now).  Most of the questions were comprehension-type.  I could look in my dd's notebook, but pretty sure we did use the questions on Mockingbird and at least one other, so those questions in particular must've seemed of some value to me, or else I added to them, but I know some of the other books had very basic detail recall questions.

 

HTH,

Julie

[MerryAtHope]

I am looking at Sonlight core 100 literature for my 11th grader next year.( I want to do the whole core) He is doing BJU 10th this year. Will it be too easy? Does it cover literature terms needed for college? I'm not looking looking for read a book and answer basic questions. Is it set up that way?

 

If you really want to stick with Sonlight, I would consider doing 400 lit with Core 100, or at least subbing several books.

 

My kids do 100 in 9th grade, and I don't mind that some are on the easier side, because the content is interesting--it's a nice mix for introducing them to high school. However, I do drop a few in favor of adding in more AP level books.

 

My 11th grader is doing selections from 400 lit, which is also American literature--and I think you'd be much happier with that caliber of books, or with something else for lit altogether. 

[swimmermom3]

The first year we homeschooled, my youngest did Core 3+4 (American history) and my oldest son did Core 6+7 (World History) and it was a wonderful year. For 5th and 8th grade the following year, the boys did Core 5 (Eastern Hemisphere) and Core 100.  I was struck by the inconsistency of the level of work in Core 100 in comparison to the other cores we had used/were using. In fact, I actually pulled several works from Core 3+4 and substituted them for some of the less challenging works in 100. Both Julie and Lori are dead on in their assessments and I know Merry has spent a lot of years with Sonlight and I like her idea of combining the lit from 400 with Core 100. I wish you the best of luck in making your choice. WE have very good memories of our time with Sonlight, but the literature in Core 100 didn't do it for us. I may not have liked all the notes for history either, but that's a personal problem. :D

[Rockhopper]

Tech difficulties -- switching browsers so I can quote.

 

[Rockhopper]

 

 

If you really want to stick with Sonlight, I would consider doing 400 lit with Core 100, or at least subbing several books.

 

My kids do 100 in 9th grade, and I don't mind that some are on the easier side, because the content is interesting--it's a nice mix for introducing them to high school. However, I do drop a few in favor of adding in more AP level books.

 

My 11th grader is doing selections from 400 lit, which is also American literature--and I think you'd be much happier with that caliber of books, or with something else for lit altogether. 

 

I agree with Merry. My 9th graders enjoys some of the easier lit selections as a break, and we've bumped up lit analysis on a few. There's plenty of marrow to suck from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer or, even, say A Wrinkle in Time  -- which I re-read as an adult every few years, and always find more to consider. But for an 11th grader, I think you'd prefer a different group of lit books. 

 

The history, if done completely (IG notes, the additional history books besides the spine, etc) is meaty, but for an 11th grader, you might consider adding research and opinion papers and essays.

 

 

4th gr. level

- Shh! We're Writing the Constitution

 

4th/5th gr. level

- Panama Canal

- Sequoyah and the Cherokee Alphabet

- A Wrinkle in Time

- Bound for Oregon

 

5th-6h gr. level

- Boy's War

- Cameron Townsend

- Traitor: Case of Benedict Arnold

- Bonanza Girl

- Bud, Not Buddy

 

6th/7th gr. level

- Moonshiner's Son

- Amos Fortune, Free Man

- A Long Way From Chicago

- Call of the Wild

- The View from Saturday

- Dear Mr. Henshaw

- Indian Captive

- Maniac Magee

- Out of the Dust

- A Year Down Yonder

 

7th/8th gr. level

- Dragon's Gate

- Farewell to Manzanar

- Adventures of Tom Sawyer

- Rip Van Winkle

 

8th/9th gr. level

- To Kill a Mockingbird

 

Keep in mind that many (most?) of the books listed above are for use as history books, not lit. And "Shh! We're Writing the Constitution" is a one-day read. It's not there to teach literature or be a spine; it's just a quick, graphic consolidation of info covered elsewhere. "Dragon's Gate" (really put flesh on the reality of Chinese laborers in America) and "Farewell to Manzanar" are also history; as are "The Boys' War", "Moonshiner's Son" and "Cameron Townsend". Oh, and the book on the Panama Canal (same as Shh!), and Sequoyah. Maybe others; those are the ones I remember. And they are in addition to the 10-volume Hakim spine and the point-counterpoint of the IG notes.

 

And grade levels are pretty subjective. For reading, my fits-the-WTM-profile early/strong reader could and did read A Wrinkle in Time in the 5th grade. But he will get a lot more out of it in a re-read and lit study this year. My current 4th grader (a much more average homeschool kid) --- not so much! 

[Lori D.]

There's plenty of marrow to suck from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer or, even, say A Wrinkle in Time  -- which I re-read as an adult every few years, and always find more to consider. But for an 11th grader, I think you'd prefer a different group of lit books. 

 

... Keep in mind that many (most?) of the books listed above are for use as history books, not lit...

 

 

Gently, I'm not trying to be ornery or pick a fight ( ;) ), as I totally agree with you here -- that Wrinkle in Time, Call of the Wild, Rip Van Winkle, and Tom Sawyer, while they can be read by younger students, definitely have "meat" and food for thought/discussion when re-read at an older age. All of those titles are esp. good for middle school students who are just beginning to read Literature for literary analysis.

 

And we, too, all through middle school and high school, did a few works each year for History and for Lit. that were "below grade level", because they were a nice break, fit our history period or literature theme, were a clean and direct explanation of a historical event, or because we just wanted to do them.

 

 

 

... Keep in mind that many (most?) of the books listed above are for use as history books, not lit...

 

 

I just wanted to explain that I am gearing my review to the original poster's (OP) situation -- that IMO the vast majority of SL100 Literature would be a big step down for an 11th grader, esp. one who has been doing BJUP.  And it would not be giving the instruction in literary terms and literary analysis that the OP was looking for.

 

BJUP grade 10 Literature includes poetry by Dickinson, Hughes, Rossetti, Cummings, Frost, Keats, and many others; short stories by Poe, Twain, Borges, Thurber, and more; novel excerpts from The Screwtape Letters and The Iliad; all of the play Romeo & Juliet; plus essays and speeches. JMO, but to go from that level and selection of works to SL100's Literature, which is largely middle school historical fiction, would be a real step down in interest and ability for 11th grade.

 

Below is what SL lists for Literature for core 100. JMO, but the first group is all historical fiction at a middle school level; the second group is "novelized biography"; and the third group is traditional Literature, usually done in middle school:

 

 

Bonanza Girl

Bound for Oregon

Bud, Not Buddy

Dear Mr. Henshaw

Elijah of Buxton

Guests

Indian Captive

Keeping Score

Long Way from Chicago

Maniac Magee

Rules of the Road

Stink Alley

They Loved to Laugh

The View from Saturday

When You Reach Me

Year Down Yonder

_________________

 

My Heart Lies South

Peace Child

_________________

 

Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Call of the Wild

Out of the Dust

Rip Van Winkle

To Kill a Mockingbird

Treasury of Poetry for Young People

Wrinkle in Time

 

Personally, I think that's a fine reading list for a 7th grader -- it mixes a lot of lighter works and historical fiction to fit the history being studied, along with some quality Literature for taking a first step into beginning literary analysis and studying traditional classic Literature. Again, JMO, I would want something more challenging and preparatory for college for 11th grade Literature.

 

BEST of luck to all in your History and Literature journeys, where ever that leads! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

[swimmermom3]

Lori, thank you for explaining what BJUP covers. In that case, SL 100 would definitely be a step backwards.

[MerryAtHope]

 I may not have liked all the notes for history either, but that's a personal problem. :D

 

It's a fairly common one though. My (history-loving) son wanted to do core 100 because of the 2 opposing views, and actually chose this over some other choices I offered...and he was sick of it about halfway through the year! My dd is NOT doing Hakim--I didn't want to go through that again! She is doing most of the other Core 100 books, but yeah...not going there again. If SL would abridge the notes, I might have considered it. I considered doing that myself...but decided the time wasn't worth it.

[Vida Winter]

It's a fairly common one though. My (history-loving) son wanted to do core 100 because of the 2 opposing views, and actually chose this over some other choices I offered...and he was sick of it about halfway through the year! My dd is NOT doing Hakim--I didn't want to go through that again! She is doing most of the other Core 100 books, but yeah...not going there again. If SL would abridge the notes, I might have considered it. I considered doing that myself...but decided the time wasn't worth it.

 

Would you mind sharing what your daughter is using instead of Hakim? I am in the same boat, trying to decide what to modify for my 9th grader next year in Core 100. When we went through it before I loathed the Hakim books.

[texasmama]

As a point of reference, I will be using an older version of core 100 with my boys next year. They will be an 8th grader and an accelerated 6th grader. They have been combined in cores since the beginning.

[mom2agang]

Thanks for the recommendations. I like the idea of using a different core for lit. I am planning on adding in MOH 3 and hopefully 4 to beef the history up more. Is there something else out there along the lines of history spines? We tried Notgrass and it wasn't what floated our boat.

[MerryAtHope]

Would you mind sharing what your daughter is using instead of Hakim? I am in the same boat, trying to decide what to modify for my 9th grader next year in Core 100. When we went through it before I loathed the Hakim books.

 

She's using Notgrass, which I like well enough but don't love. It's serviceable. 

 

I didn't loathe Hakim, but I didn't love the books either. I wanted to like the "2 opposing opinions" approach, but felt the SL notes beat a dead horse and then some, instead of making it fun and interesting for my history-loving son. I knew my dd, who barely tolerates history, would have no interest in doing it, though I did offer it as one option for her! (Had she chosen it, my thought was to spend the summer heavily editing the notes to focus on the most important things, and delete a lot of superfluous ones. Not my idea of fun, but I would have done it for her, and would have considered it necessary for me to stomach doing Hakim again!)

 

Thanks for the recommendations. I like the idea of using a different core for lit. I am planning on adding in MOH 3 and hopefully 4 to beef the history up more. Is there something else out there along the lines of history spines? We tried Notgrass and it wasn't what floated our boat.

 

Notgrass is no MOH, that's for sure! But...I've done MOH 3, and it's not a lot of US history. Not sure how well it would work to add it in. Plus the readings are longer than MOH 1 and 2. MOH 4 will probably have more US history since it's more modern, but Linda has stated repeatedly that it's not enough for US history. Plus...I'd hate to squeeze 3 and 4 into one year (assuming that 4 will again be meatier than 3, just as 3 was meatier than 2, and 2 more than 1). Not trying to discourage you from trying this, just not sure how well it would work out to combine these world history texts with a US history course.

[Lori D.]

We tried Notgrass and it wasn't what floated our boat.

 

We only did the Notgrass Exploring America, and passed on the World History after looking at samples.

 

In comparing the sample pages of the World History, I do think the two programs are fairly different. Exploring America goes into more depth and has an overall structure of being organized by Presidential administrations, which is actually rather helpful for connecting events in US History with specific people. There are a number of interesting primary source documents in the first half of the American Voices volume that really help to flesh out the thinking in the Colonial/Revolutionary/Constitution years.

 

The Notgrass World History samples looked like the curriculum was trying to cover WAAYYY TOOOO MUCH material (6000+ years and the entire world) in 30 weeks -- not really going to make a lot of sense, make connections, or go into much detail trying to do that. JMO.

 

You might check out the samples of Exploring America if what you previously tried was the World History. Just a thought!

 

 

If you're interested in putting together your own materials, you might check out Paul Johnson's A History of American People, Bennett's America: The Last Best Hope, or All American History -- or even the Complete Idiot's Guide to U.S. History -- as a spine text -- all recommended by multiple members of this Board. Also check out these past threads for more ideas for a DIY American History:

 

Looking for American History suggestions

Interesting American History text for high school?

Which BJU America History text should I use?

Stobaugh vs. Notgrass for American History (a number of other suggestions in this thread as well)

Sharing some ideas for American History

 

You could flesh out with documentaries & feature films (see this past thread for loads of ideas), and additional books on topics of especial interest for research/writing longer papers with citations. For discussion / analysis, you might add in a unit of Critical Thinking in U.S. History from Critical Thinking Press. Or try out a Teaching Company: Great Course to practice note-taking from a lecture series (often available used for much less than even the sale prices).

 

BEST of luck, whatever you go with. Warmly, Lori D.

[Vida Winter]

Thanks, Merry, I will take a look at Notgrass.

 

I'll tell you what I did with my older dd the first time we used core 100 a few years ago -- we watched and discussed the videos from the 3-part American History Teaching Company lectures. I enjoyed them but am not sure I'm up to doing all that watching and discussing next year with my science-focused dd. There are so many lectures! If I could find a spine that would work for my dd it would greatly simplify things.

 

There is another video-based possibility that I happened upon the other day - Victor Davis Hanson's Freedom Academy.  Dr. Hanson is a classics professor so the U.S. lectures would have a historical tie-in with Greek and Roman ideas. I doubt if anyone has used it as it is new. Here's a link:

 

http://www.pjtv.com/?cmd=mpg&mpid=505

 

 

ETA: Thanks Lori, for the links - I am curious about the K12 American Odyssey book and found a copy on Amazon for $1.49 so it's cheap enough to buy in order to preview. Maybe Notgrass has samples online.