zenjenn Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I just went to LoF web site to order some more LoF math books and I see Life of Fred Language Arts is a thing and shipping starts this month. WHOA! Anyone know anything about this? Has anyone had a sneak peak? I have one kid who will sit riveted reading LoF books. She's doing WWE right now and while she's progressing through the assignments, she is not engaged...MCT wasn't a hit either. Hmm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrapbabe Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheryl in CA Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 My dd10 loves all things Fred so I bought them for her for fun (we use MCT). She has been reading through them and loves them but I haven't looked at them yet so I can't comment on how quality it is, just how fun she thinks it is, LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrunchyGirl Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 There was a thread the other day and it sounded like so far the verdict is that the quality is poor and definitely significantly below the grade level it's marketed for. I'm torn. I have a Fred lover on my hands but so far it sounds like there would be just fun reading books for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess4879 Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 It lists these as high school level. I'm curious to know what level people feel they are really at...Off to look at some samples. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 It lists these as high school level. I'm curious to know what level people feel they are really at...Off to look at some samples. :) I would say upper elementary. Maybe middle school. I know that the first book my dd10 could do now with no problems after having used MCT Island. I about fell out of my chair when I saw they were marketed for high school. :huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Yes, check out the samples - you can read a whole chapter of each and see for yourself what you think. If I were rich, or if the library carried them, I might get these for my kids for fun. But not for the purpose/age group for which they are offered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 Yeah, reading the table of contents I was a little perplexed by the HS designation. I could see it as a refresher course for afterschooling use though. A lot of teens these days can't write. I have a 8 yr old and 11 yr old and the books looked about perfect for them. Especially my gifted 8 yr old - the LoF stuff seems to really resonate with her. Some of it they know, some of it they don't, but if it's like usual LoF it will be an entertaining mash-up that makes certain topics memorable. If I were rich, or if the library carried them, I might get these for my kids for fun. I went ahead and ordered them for fun. I'm not rich, but well off enough to have a generous amount of cash in the school budget. I think they'll be worth having around as a resource. I'll post about our experiences later... We've never used LoF as a main curriculum either. But my daughters enjoy reading through them and it's a fun way to reinforce and introduce concepts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vida Winter Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 My 9 year old would probably love these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma2three Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 They're a lot more religious than the math books. That cuts it out for us, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexi Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I read the first chapter and I'm shocked they are marketed to high schoolers. If I were in high school I would be offended. That chapter was so simple. I think elementary or maybe middle school at the most. Maybe the later chapters are more complex, but wow! It seems silly especially with the obviously wrong answers in the multiple choice section. But I don't love the writing style anyway. We aren't Fred people at our house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 They're a lot more religious than the math books. That cuts it out for us, I think. Oh no, are they? Can you elaborate? I just have it on pre-order. I don't mind references to God and such but if it's Jesusy I'm out. All I saw in the sample chapters was a reference to Sunday school. Is there more? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma2three Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Oh no, are they? Can you elaborate? I just have it on pre-order. I don't mind references to God and such but if it's Jesusy I'm out. All I saw in the sample chapters was a reference to Sunday school. Is there more? It looks like the general story arc is that Fred goes to Sunday School and decides to be an English teacher in Australia because the developing world needs more English teachers (presumably, it's a joke that he ends up in Australia... that would be classic Fred). There seemed to be references to the 10 Commandments, though the story referenced "The 6th rule says not to kill" or something like that. It just seemed to expect that you were reading the story from a certain viewpoint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 It seemed all over the place to me. (Maybe that's normal for Fred books.) I was thinking of getting it for my very independent 7yo, who is taking herself through the LOF math books at her own pace. But I think I will wait until more folks have experience with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I kind of gathered from the sample that Australia was going to be about Fred being a missionary. Yeah, that's probably another reason I'd just as soon skip it. I bailed on using PreA w/ Economics because I couldn't quite deal with "the civil war had nothing to do with slavery, it was all about tariffs" thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 LoF is a really weird thing to me. I bought the Fractions book just to try it. I thought it was random and weird. But my 8 yr old just likes the way he's random and throws in strange facts and things, and she seems to take away fundamental concepts from the books. She doesn't do the lessons though - it's like an extra thing. She already uses another math curriculum. I think the author may be a bit *off* but he has a way of getting through to my weirdo kid. She's very academically independent and finishes her required work in 2-3 hours, so I love having extra things like this around for her to look at the rest of the school day. She is a self-proclaimed atheist though, so if it's religiously preachy or anything it would annoy her. But she has a Jewish education so... it's not like the worldview is foreign to her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted February 6, 2014 Author Share Posted February 6, 2014 Update: We ordered this. I think it's odd, but I think LoF math is odd, too. My 8-yr-old gifted LoF fan is just reading it cover-to-cover and enjoys it and seems to remember the content. I think it works like memory tricks work - you hear something in the context of a zany story and you remember it. As language arts content it's... meh. But as a family we've basically given up on grammar as every grammar program we've tried ends up evaluated as tedious is abandoned. I guess it's just a intuitive subject for my kids. I guess LoF seems like an adequate crash course in that regard. I'm all for self-driven learning so any books that tackle core concepts that my kids are inclined to read on their own works for me. But I have no idea what Stanley Schmit is smokin' to claim this is high school language arts. Maybe as a quick readthrough for teens who never learned the stuff or totally forgot it? But in no way, shape, or form would I call this high school material. On my invoice for the books there was even a hand-written note indicating the language arts material was recommended for grades 9-12. (I guess since I ordered it concurrent with some middle grade math books, he was bothered that I'd order the "high school" language arts at the same time?) I haven't read all four books cover-to-cover yet, but the religious content appears minimal. Fred goes to Sunday school but.. whatever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 We got the set because my son is named Frederick (we call him Fritz, though he says Fred will be his "work" name when he grows up) and he loves the math ones as odd as they are. Language arts look equally odd. Definitely not high school level. It's perfect for my son (7 years old/3rd grade level). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Another Jen Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 I got the set and agree that it is not high school level. Maybe public school high school 9th grade 1 per quarter to make sure the kids didn't miss anything. We got them because my high schooler loves the crazy fred stories. There was 1 thing in book 3 she didn't know but the rest was review. I'm savng them and will use them with my youngest in maybe 5-6th grades? BTW- the relgious content isn't much more than in the math books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 They're a lot more religious than the math books. That cuts it out for us, I think. Actually, they are not. I paged through and skimmed all four books last night. There have been comments in the elementary math ones about Fred saying his prayers and people having gone to heaven when they died. That's about as religious as the language arts books get as well. Australia starts out with Fred in Sunday School, but that was just a mechanism to get him in a class as a student with kids his age and for him to find out about the need for missionary teachers in Australia. He is not being a missionary in the spreading of religion sense. It is just to teach (math he assumes). So Fred sends a letter about wanting to be a missionary and that he is a college professor (doesn't say a *math* professor) and that starts off a typical Fred comedy of errors as he goes to and is in Australia (who expects a college professor to be 5, after all). The only other religious content I noticed (though remember I was skimming so it is entirely possible I missed something small) was two Bible verse references in the 3rd book (pretty sure it was the third book). The Bible verses themselves weren't there. Just the references (Proverbs x:x or whatever it was). And I think it was in relation to a kangaroo. Otherwise it is totally secular. The complete story from beginning to end is in the four books. It has a cute ending. For review, they could certainly be used for 9th grade. For learning, they are totally mid-elementary to early-middle level. It does cover a lot of advanced grammar, but in the Fred way I think it makes it easy for younger kids. And like the math books, I don't think it would be nearly enough to be used alone (unless it was being used with, say, a 3rd or 4th grader). The reading level is very young, typical Fred, quite similar to the elementary math series, really. I think my Fritz is going to love them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 I read all the samples and was horrified that the author expects the series to be a complete high school course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommee & Baba Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 I plan on purchasing the entire series and have my upcoming 4th and 6th graders use these as "fun" LA. We are LOF fans here though. My girls have learned SOOO much better and deeper using LOF math that I imagine the LOF LA is going to be somewhat similar. They WANT to learn math each day and it's not like pulling teeth. We easily read 2 chapters a day and I even throw in several more "your turn to play" questions and equations for them to figure out. We all enjoy it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doodle Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 I decided to get the series for Doodle since he is currently enjoying the Fractions book. We did chapter one today and both of us have decided that we prefer to begin paragraphs by yelling, "New paragraph coming!" B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirstenhill Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 I have to admit that I am really curious about this. But, his brief comments about spelling in one of the Elementary books drove me crazy. I totally disagreed with his assertion that Y is not a vowel, so that there are some words that "have no vowels." It honestly makes me distrustful a bit of the author's expertise at writing a Language Arts curriculum. So other than his somewhat odd view about vowels, has anyone run into anything else that seems "off" compared to what other curricula teach? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 Hmm, Sylvia is not thrilled with R&S for grammar. I won't drop it, but maybe she could read these for fun? Oof, okay, maybe not for $80. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 I ordered it for DD9. She loves Fred,and this should be a fun independent piece for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma2three Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 Actually, they are not. I paged through and skimmed all four books last night. There have been comments in the elementary math ones about Fred saying his prayers and people having gone to heaven when they died. That's about as religious as the language arts books get as well. Australia starts out with Fred in Sunday School, but that was just a mechanism to get him in a class as a student with kids his age and for him to find out about the need for missionary teachers in Australia. He is not being a missionary in the spreading of religion sense. It is just to teach (math he assumes). So Fred sends a letter about wanting to be a missionary and that he is a college professor (doesn't say a *math* professor) and that starts off a typical Fred comedy of errors as he goes to and is in Australia (who expects a college professor to be 5, after all). The only other religious content I noticed (though remember I was skimming so it is entirely possible I missed something small) was two Bible verse references in the 3rd book (pretty sure it was the third book). The Bible verses themselves weren't there. Just the references (Proverbs x:x or whatever it was). And I think it was in relation to a kangaroo. Otherwise it is totally secular. The complete story from beginning to end is in the four books. It has a cute ending. For review, they could certainly be used for 9th grade. For learning, they are totally mid-elementary to early-middle level. It does cover a lot of advanced grammar, but in the Fred way I think it makes it easy for younger kids. And like the math books, I don't think it would be nearly enough to be used alone (unless it was being used with, say, a 3rd or 4th grader). The reading level is very young, typical Fred, quite similar to the elementary math series, really. I think my Fritz is going to love them. Thank you very much for clearing this up. I just read the samples online, and it seemed like the religion was going to be a lot more heavy-handed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaMere Academy Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 I just ordered the first one after buying TWTM recommended Rod & Staff Lang. book for my 8th grader. No way with the religious content and old-fashioned set-up was it going to work for us. LOF does look simple but I'm hoping it gets a bit more meaty as it goes along. My son does need the basics gone over though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 I haven't tried it. Just wanted to mention that Life of Fred Chemistry is also a thing. I just got it today. I'm looking forward to it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted January 21, 2015 Share Posted January 21, 2015 I haven't tried it. Just wanted to mention that Life of Fred Chemistry is also a thing. I just got it today. I'm looking forward to it! Remember you promised to tell us what you think of it once you've had a chance to look it over!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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