Luann in ID, about Lightning Lit and thegreatbooks.com...

[Colleen]

I'm responding to the comments you shared with me in another thread. I thought I'd start anew in case it's helpful and of interest to others. You said:

 

"Lightning Lit was a lifesaver for me for a few years when we were extra busy with a lot of extracurricular stuff...We appreciated the way LL was all laid out for us and so conducive to self-study. Overall it was a great success, and dd felt it helped prepare her for college level writing assignments.

 

"When thegreatbooks.com came into being, the older kids asked to do that. Not because they didn't like LL, but because they are such Worldview Academy enthusiasts and appreciate the approach that Jeff Baldwin takes with literature. I'm not as busy as I was a few years ago and have really enjoyed the interaction we have with Baldwin's discussion guides.

 

"In short, we were all very happy with LL, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it (or use it again myself), but thegreatbooks.com is a better fit for our family right now. Are you thinking about using LL?"

 

Yes, I've toyed with the idea of using Lightning Lit. We do Sonlight history and I'd hoped to have my oldest use the LA that's incorporated with Core 7 this year. It's on the meager side, though, so I'm considering other options. Do you have experience with LL 8, or only the high school levels? I'm admittedly attracted to LL's ease of use, but it seems to lack depth.

 

After I read your comments, I looked at the greatbooks.com site. I hadn't heard of it before, although I am somewhat familiar with Worldview Academy as a few young people I know have done that. It's offered at Seattle Pacific University and I am considering having my oldest attend in the next year or two. (Although I must say, they sure do charge a pretty penny!) It sounds like it's been a very positive experience for your kids.

 

I hate to say it, but I don't know that I have the smarts or werewithal to make use of thegreatbooks. I am not a classicist, don't follow that history rotation, haven't read many of those books and likely won't require my boys to do so, either. I am glad to know of those discussion guides, though. I'm just wondering how one actually interacts with them and puts them to use?

 

Thanks for any more insight you can offer, Luann.:)

[Jane Elliot]

I have to admit, this gave me a chuckle, "I hate to say it, but I don't know that I have the smarts or werewithal to make use of thegreatbooks." I've been reading your posts on these boards for what ... 6+ years now? I *know* you have the smarts for thegreatbooks. Good grief, if *I* do... But, if thegreatbooks doesn't interest you, I totally understand that. You did ask how one interacts with them. I think in my original post I said something about enjoying the interactions we've had with them, and in case my meaning wasn't clear, I meant I enjoyed the interactions we've had with *each other* because of the questions in the guides. They are basically just discussion guides, but the questions are thought provoking and lead to a lot of discussions relating to real life issues such as the meaning of life, how we know what we know, what truth is, etc. It has forced the boys to learn to defend their beliefs with intelligent, respectful conversation. I could say more about that, but I think you are mainly wondering about LL, so...

 

We did use LL8, but not all of it (can't remember why we didn't finish it, I vaguely remember starting it in the middle of the year and not expecting to finish.) We have more experience with the high school packs and I like them better, but 7 & 8 suited our purposes at the time, too. One of the things I like most about LL is the way it writes to the student in a conversational style that reminds me of the Apologia texts. You are right in your observation though that LL lacks depth. The questions are comprehension questions. You won't have any deep thought-provoking discussions as a result of them. But, if you're looking for a program that teaches literary elements and how to respond to good literature with writing, LL could be a good choice. I haven't seen Sonlight 7 LA, so I can't say whether you'll be getting more substance with LL than SL. I wonder if anyone could compare the two for you. Have you been able to lay eyes on LL8?

 

Best wishes in your search, Colleen. I don't feel I've been much help here, but if I can give any other questions a shot, let me know.

[Colleen]

I have to admit, this gave me a chuckle, "I hate to say it, but I don't know that I have the smarts or werewithal to make use of thegreatbooks." I've been reading your posts on these boards for what ... 6+ years now? I *know* you have the smarts for thegreatbooks. Good grief, if *I* do...

 

Yeah, it's actually a cop-out on my part to say I don't have the smarts. I do. It's the aforementioned werewithal that's lacking. I am just not a classicist, though I've tried at times to convince myself otherwise. Looking at those reading lists at thegreatbooks.com makes my eyes glaze over. And mercy! The rapidity of their schedule is downright ridiculous, imo. Not that one has to follow that recommendation, I realize. I understand that the book selections and schedule are merely suggestions. Nonetheless, I'm at odds with suggesting students read through so many books, of such depth, at such speed. Again, though, my reaction is likely a sign of my own weakness.

 

I enjoyed the interactions we've had with *each other* because of the questions in the [greatbooks] guides. They are basically just discussion guides, but the questions are thought provoking and lead to a lot of discussions relating to real life issues such as the meaning of life, how we know what we know, what truth is, etc. It has forced the boys to learn to defend their beliefs with intelligent, respectful conversation.

 

I can definitely see the value to that. I have trouble grasping how one parent and one student can engage like this, though. I can better imagine it working well in a small group setting (and just your oldest five boys are a small group in and of themselves!). I did look at one guide that was available to download and the questions were very good, very thought-provoking. I am just not sure what one actually does with discussion guides/questions, though. I realize how dense that sounds. Discussion guides are intended to stimulate discussion. Check! Got it. But...beyond that? Read the book. Talk about the book. And then...what?

 

Oh, dear. It is so much easier to me to wrap my brain around cut-and-dried course descriptions and content. Much as I love humanities and literature, I don't grasp how to make those subjects happen at home.

 

Regarding Lightning Lit...

 

One of the things I like most about LL is the way it writes to the student in a conversational style that reminds me of the Apologia texts. You are right in your observation though that LL lacks depth. The questions are comprehension questions. You won't have any deep thought-provoking discussions as a result of them.

 

That's probably why it looks more appealing to me.;) The simplicity (and resulting lack of depth) seems do-able. I see the parameters and how to put it to work. In short, it's easier for me. Not necessarily the best reason to choose a program, I realize. I am glad to know, though, that it served your oldest daughter well. You mentioned to me that she averages 100 pages of writing per month for the school she's in now and that just...wow! That's a lot of writing!

 

Thanks for talking more with me about these materials, Luann. Final sidenote ~ maybe you said this and I missed it ~ have your kids actually attended Worldview camps?

 

Oh, and if anyone else reading along has thoughts to share, please do so. Thanks!

[Veronica in VA]

My dd used LL American Lit for 10th grade along with Notgrass American History. I liked them. I wanted flexibility, ideas for compositions, etc. The lit analysis for American Lit wasn't super strong, but for 10th grade I really wasn't looking for that. This year though (11th grade), I am using a lot of the Kolbe guides to lit for their modern lit as well as the WTEM questions, along with Sonlight 300 history. The main reason for the change was that my dd didn't really enjoy a lot of the LL selections, and since she was raised on Sonlight, really preferred their books.

 

I'm a classicist wannebe - it suits me, but my dd - well, not really. I sometimes wonder if we should have stuck with the Kolbe plan, which is very classical, but I know my dd would have hated it. I really like the LL World Lit selections though, but I don't know if we will get to them. She will be graduating next December but for the fall semester next year we will do either Kolbe lit or Brit Lit from Sonlight (and what we don't finish I'll read for fun:)).

 

Have fun choosing!

 

Veronica

[Jane Elliot]

I'm trying to multi-quote for the first time and I have no idea how it's done.

 

I have trouble grasping how one parent and one student can engage like this, though. I can better imagine it working well in a small group setting.

 

A very legitimate concern. I'm not sure I'd do it with just one kid. I think the discussions work because we do them in a group. I wouldn't do it with a student under 14/15. And, I'm sure it wouldn't have gone as well if they hadn't been to WVA. (You asked. Jordan went for two years, then did a third as an intern at the two Seattle Pacific camps. Taylor and Jacob have been 3 years, Micah 2, and Isaac 1.) WVA has laid a foundation for them and sparked an enthusiasm that I couldn't have at home.

 

The rapidity of their schedule is downright ridiculous, imo.

 

Yup. We have altered it for sanity's sake.

 

And as for LL:

 

That's probably why it looks more appealing to me.;) The simplicity (and resulting lack of depth) seems do-able. I see the parameters and how to put it to work. In short, it's easier for me. Not necessarily the best reason to choose a program, I realize.

 

Sometimes the best program is the one you can get done. :-)

 

I do hope others will add some thoughts.

 

ETA: Grrrr. I still can't figure out the multi-quote thing.

[AuntieM]

 

Discussion guides are intended to stimulate discussion. Check! Got it. But...beyond that? Read the book. Talk about the book. And then...what?

 

Don't mean to butt in, but Nan's advice has been helpful to me in planning for our great books study. If you have not already seen her post on how she uses the WTM/WEM approach, I can paste it into this thread. In addition to reading and discussing, she has them do pre-reading research on the historical setting and author's background. We hope to incorporate that with thegreatbooks.com study.

 

I just read over one of thegreatbooks study guides I received this week, and frankly, I, too have wondered about the discussion with just one student. I hope to recruit a friend or two, but at present, it's just my son & I (unless I can convince dh to read along - not likely!). I think if we can tough it out through the first year of Ancients, we'll have a greater chance of others joining us for the rest, especially when we get to American history.

[Lori D.]

We started "literary analysis/literature discussion" actually with movies, starting when the boys were about 4th/5th grade. (I was a film and literature major in college.) Every so often I'd throw in a comment about the lighting or framing -- how it foreshadowed something, or symbolized something about the person's character, etc. Over time, we also began asking the occasional "worldview" or analysis type of question:

- where will that choice lead?

- what does that decision say about that person's character?

- where have you seen something similar (or completely opposite) to this event/scene/decision/etc.?

 

 

Along about 7th/8th grade, we began a little more formal literary analysis, using specific literature programs. We read the books together, did literary programs together, and threw in comments as they occured to us (during reading or discussion questions). We also discussed and practiced literary elements (LL7, LL8, Figuratively Speaking), and began to do some (very guided) short writing about literature. This year, 9th/10th grade, we continue to read/discuss aloud together, use lit. guides, and are working towards longer more analysis type of writing.

 

 

Our literature discussions tend to be a lot about comparisons at this point (a lot of references to Star Wars movies, Star Trek episodes, recent movies viewed, and previous books we've read). The older son went to Worldview Academy this past summer, so he is also beginning to bring in ideas of worldview and faith. I'm also beginning to introduce the concept of symbolism and/or repeated imagery/events so they can begin to think about what that means or what depth that adds to the literature. We rely pretty heavily on study guides for both discussion questions and commentary/insights on the literature. Some questions get blank looks. Some get very brief responses. Maybe one a session will spark a longer conversation.

 

Conversations also arise as we discuss what to write for a paper on a literary work (and then in the midst of writing, how to support the topic with specific examples from the book), how to figure out what they have as a contention about the piece of literature, and how to support their contention. The younger son (9th grade) struggles with writing, so his literature papers are about 3 paragraphs long and are more like book reviews at this point. The older son (10th grade) is very literal and logic minded and really doesn't like having a contention or opinion (that seems too subjective to him), so that can be a real struggle to get him to get beyond the mere statement of facts; but once he makes the jump (with a *lot* of guidance in the form of Q&A from me), he has been able to write a few 5-6 paragraph papers comparing/contrasting or doing a character analysis.

 

Below are things we've used for literary analysis/literature discussions, and my thumbnail reviews of each in that context. Hope something here is of help as you think through how you want literature to look at your house! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

LL7 and LL8

- Designed for 7th and 8th graders (depending on student's development and reading strength, LL7 could be used for gr. 6-8; LL8 could be used for gr. 8-9).

- An ideal first step into reading for more than just "the story" or for enjoyment -- a gentle introduction to beginning literary analysis.

- Can be done mostly independently by the student.

- Helpful worksheets for practicing the literary elements learned, or for additional beginning literary analysis on excerpts from classic works.

- Longer writing assignment suggestions at the end of each work relate more to the literary element discussed, rather than practice of literary analysis.

 

 

Literary Lessons From The Lord of the Rings

- IMO, best for grades 8-10. A very nice "first or second step" into literary analysis: perfect as the next step up from either LL7 or LL8, or for a 9th-10th grade student just beginning with literary analysis.

- Very in-depth notes (which nicely model beginning literary analytical writing!). The chapter notes give: background on the author, his influences, themes in each chapter and examples of how the themes are portrayed, suggestions of what to look for in future chapters, occasional comparisons to other works.

- The discussion questions are not just comprehension questions; there are usually 4-8 more in-depth discussion questions per chapter.

- Some writing assignments; all expand the topic discussed rather than practice literary analysis.

 

 

Windows from the World, from IEW

- grades 9-12

- A good step after LL7 AND LL8, or after LLftLotR, as it is a bit more formal.

- Written to the student; mostly done independently.

- Teaches how to read and annotate a book in the margins with comments to assist you when you go back through looking for themes, symbols, etc. A program directly written to students, similar in technique to The Well Educated Mind. Covers short stories. Student exercises, teaching text on specific literary elements, writing assignment ideas.

(we'll be doing part of this one this year)

 

 

Parallel Text Shakespeare

- grades 9-12

- A good step after LL7 or LL8, or after LLftLotR, as it is a bit more formal.

- Written to the student; mostly done independently.

- Student workbook with reading assignments, teaching text explaining themes and meanings, exercises, writing assignment ideas.

(we'll be trying this one out this year, using the Macbeth parallel text and student workbook)

 

 

The Great Books

- Probably get more out of these if used after 1-2 years practice of reading/discussing/analyzing literature.

- A student *could* use this on their own, but the layout (a question immediately followed by a paragraph or two of commentary) suggests that an instructor asks the question and the family discusses, then reads the commentary.

- Series of discussion questions, based around worldview, Christian faith, character development/moral portray.

- No writing assignments, but a few of the questions could be adapted into a writing assignment.

 

 

Garlic Press publishers literature guides

- grade 5-8 guides; grade 9-12 guides.

- Absolutely the best lit. guides I've seen; these really hold your hand with chapter summaries; great discussion questions for each chapter; short units describing a literary element with examples of how it's used in the work you're reading; great writing assignments ideas; additional activities and resources.

 

 

Progeny Press literature guides

- grade 5-8 guides; grade 9-12 guides.

- We've only used the high school guides; sort of a cross between The Great Books and Garlic Press. Vocabulary lists/exercises/quizzes. Comprehension questions. Discussion questions. The discussion questions often include scriptures to look up and compare character's choices to Bible examples. A few essay question ideas for writing. Suggestions for other works to compare the work to.

 

 

Glencoe free online lit. guides

- grades 5-12

- Background info on the artist and the historical/cultural setting. Suggestions of what to look for while reading. Themes discussed and shown in the chapters. Short descriptions of literary elements and how they were used in the chapter. Student workpages. Some writing assignment ideas.

 

 

Spark Notes free online lit. guides

- grades 9-12 and college

- Lots of background info on the author and the historical/cultural setting. Lots of commentary on themes, symbols and motifs. Detailed analysis of all major characters. Detailed summary and analysis of sections of the book. 4-5 key quotations from the book explored/explained. 2-3 writing assignment ideas.

 

 

RESOURCES

 

We found it helpful to use the following resources (a page a day, 2-3 times a week, takes maybe 10 minutes). These give you ideas of "what to look for" as you're reading -- genre, literary elements, and sound elements -- these are the "tools" an author uses for placing a deeper meaning in a work:

- Figuratively Speaking

- Story Elements, gr. 5/6

- Story Elements, gr. 7/8

 

 

Some helpful resources for you, the parent, in beginning to guide literary analysis and literature discussions:

 

- The Well Educated Mind

The first few chapters give a great outline of how to read/think about a book, and lists of questions to be thinking about that could be used as general discussion questions. An excellent, specific guide to leading a discussion on the piece of literature being read.

 

- How To Read a Book Like A Professor

Lists specific common things used in literature as symbols, and explains their symbolic meanings.

 

- Deconstructing Penguins

Each chapter narrates what a book club discussion (questions and variety of answers eventually moving toward a conclusion) looked like on a specific book. Helpful in getting an idea of what literature discussion might look like.

[Colleen]

Nan's advice has been helpful to me in planning for our great books study. If you have not already seen her post on how she uses the WTM/WEM approach, I can paste it into this thread. In addition to reading and discussing, she has them do pre-reading research on the historical setting and author's background. We hope to incorporate that with thegreatbooks.com study.

 

I think what I need is Nan to just come here and do it for me.;) When I read how people tackle these rhetoric-level discussions, I have trouble envisioning myself doing it. I am not one enjoys analyzing or even discussing literature. I didn't like having to do it when I was in school, and I secretly want to avoid incorporating it into my children's schooling. I am trying to get past my bias.

 

I just read over one of thegreatbooks study guides I received this week, and frankly, I, too have wondered about the discussion with just one student.

 

Yes, I just can't see it. That would feel tremendously forced to me. A small group setting, at minimum, would be more comfortable, imo. Hope that works out for you!

[Colleen]

Thanks so much for sharing all this, Lori! I am feeling rather lame in that I don't care for analyzing and discussing literature and want to avoid it altogether. I like to read books. Period. I hate having to pick them apart. And yet I hear this is what we're "supposed" to do, so I'm trying to figure out how to best approach it. A lot of programs look good to me on paper, but when I consider the verbal engagement aspect ~ the Socratic discussion ~ I cringe. It all feels so forced to me.:bored:

 

I well remember sitting in high school English, having to analyze "themes" and "symbols" and how it totally diminished my original appreciation of or interest in the work being discussed. And a handful of pages into The Well-Educated Mind I shelved it as a general reference book. Can't fathom dissecting books as Susan describes ~ which is why I'm not the one with the multiple higher degrees.

 

Each of the programs you described seems good in its own right. I'd not heard of Garlic Press. The lit guide samples I saw online looked very simplistic and, to an extent, like busywork. On the other hand, there's something to be said for simplistic when one wants to keep it simple.;)

 

Oh, I don't know. I have officially driven myself batty thinking about writing and lit and so on for my eighth grader and seem to only be going in circles. I am looking forward to our Sonlight Core 7 history and various other things, but on this score, the waters are still very muddy. I do appreciate the explanations and suggestions from everyone here, and I always benefit from your thoughtful replies. Thank you!

[JennW in SoCal]

Thanks for starting such a great thread, Colleen!

 

For what it is worth, I am using Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings with my 8th grader this year. My 13yo and I are going it alone -- I mentioned it to a couple of friends who have teen aged sons, but no one seems interested in joining us and my 16year old would rather undergo a root canal than read fantasy literature!

 

My 16yo is using Kathryn Stout's Movies as Literature, which can be found through Design-a-Study. I like the discussion questions and essay topics that prompt students to analyze how the story is told, and how the author of this curriculum ties these story telling elements to literary analysis terms. This *might* occassionally lead to some nice family discussions as we all may wind up watching the movies, but I am again expecting it to be just one on one.

 

I like the WEM, by the way. I've used it with my oldest son over the last few years, asking him to write a summary of each chapter, then using the further steps in analysis to generate a discussion with him. It took my marking up my WEM copy in order to distill it down to what I personally need to do literary analysis. I've also turned to sparknotes.com again and again.

 

My younger son did Boomerang through Bravewriter last year, but he was reluctant to join the on-line discussions. We read the discussions together and talked about the points people raised, but he just didn't feel like joining in, so I'm not doing anything else on-line at least this year.

 

Not that any of this is helpful, mind you, but I thought you might be curious what others are doing!

[Karen in CO]

Thanks so much for sharing all this, Lori! I am feeling rather lame in that I don't care for analyzing and discussing literature and want to avoid it altogether. I like to read books. Period. I hate having to pick them apart. And yet I hear this is what we're "supposed" to do, so I'm trying to figure out how to best approach it.

 

One thing to remember is that you don't have to analyze every book or pick it completely to death. That is one of the things that I liked about the LL that we used. It focused on one literary element and studied it in one book. So it didn't detract from the enjoyment of the book as much as I was afraid it would.

[Colleen]

For what it is worth, I am using Literary Lessons from Lord of the Rings with my 8th grader this year.

 

So many people mention this program and I've only recently given it a good look. I'd prefer a program that doesn't focus solely on just one series of books, for one thing. And since my son read all the books in the not-too-distant past, I don't know that he's up for going through them again already. But it does look appealing. Are you going to spend one school year on this? Are you covering the unit studies? Those aren't as important to me as are the chapter studies.

 

I like the WEM, by the way. I've used it with my oldest son over the last few years, asking him to write a summary of each chapter, then using the further steps in analysis to generate a discussion with him. It took my marking up my WEM copy in order to distill it down to what I personally need to do literary analysis.

 

Yes, this is what I hear from others, but doing literary analysis like this for my own personal benefit is utterly disinteresting to me.

 

My younger son did Boomerang through Bravewriter last year, but he was reluctant to join the on-line discussions. We read the discussions together and talked about the points people raised, but he just didn't feel like joining in, so I'm not doing anything else on-line at least this year.

 

I've used and appreciated the Arrow before but haven't yet tried the Boomerang. I'm not interested in the online discussion aspect to it, but I like the other elements.

[JennW in SoCal]

 

So many people mention this program and I've only recently given it a good look. I'd prefer a program that doesn't focus solely on just one series of books, for one thing. And since my son read all the books in the not-too-distant past, I don't know that he's up for going through them again already. But it does look appealing. Are you going to spend one school year on this? Are you covering the unit studies? Those aren't as important to me as are the chapter studies.

 

My ds has read them, also, and we've watched the movies several time plus all the bonus features! So I too was leery of spending a whole year on this program, but I figured it had been a while since he last actually read them, and the program will help the two of us find new things to appreciate about the books.

 

My brilliant idea is for us to make a special afternoon of it once week to do the discussion questions, review the vocabulary and to do some grammar and spelling also. It will be our time, with tea or hot chocolate or...lembas! I don't intend to use the tests, but will have my son write out some answers or essays based on the discussion questions.

 

I'm thinking we'll take 1-3 weeks on each of the unit studies, depending on how the topic piques our interest. Those require a little more work on our (the mom's) part as you'll have to pick up a copy of one of the recommended books or something similar. But the written introductions to the unit studies are quite good.

 

So all in all I think it will take the whole year. I don't mind it being just the one series as I'm looking at this as an introduction to literary analysis, and my ds reads enough on his own that he won't get bored with this.... Shouldn't get bored, better not...I hope he won't.:lol:

 

I'm looking forward to watching the movies again after this, and the special features on how they adapted the books. It will be interesting to have a more educated perspective to see if we agree with the choices they made.

 

By the way, if you decide on using this, I just bought the teacher's edition as it has EVERYTHING. I didn't feel I needed blank copies of the tests or the worksheets, and if I did, I could make copies from the ones in the binder.

 

That's probably a much longer answer than what you were looking for, but I can't seem to edit myself down today...

[Kareni]

I'm trying to multi-quote for the first time and I have no idea how it's done.

 

 

 

At the end of each post (on the far right) there are three icons. The middle one has a quotation mark and a plus sign. For each post you would like to quote, click that icon. You will see it become orange. Then move to the next post that you'd like to quote, and click on that icon again. When you've chosen all the posts of interest, click on Post Reply.

 

Good luck!

Regards,

Kareni

[Lori D.]

Just wanted to give you background on various things to hopefully help in decision making -- but I think I just muddied the waters -- lol. Really hope Nan jumps in here -- her family is not real into literary analysis, so they do some, but not a lot. And that's fine!

 

I think you'll be fine with the SL -- some exposure, not too much, simple for you, check it off, on you go! Warmly, Lori D.

[Colleen]

One thing to remember is that you don't have to analyze every book or pick it completely to death. That is one of the things that I liked about the LL that we used. It focused on one literary element and studied it in one book. So it didn't detract from the enjoyment of the book as much as I was afraid it would.

 

Thanks for the reminder, Karen. I know I need to get over my knee-jerk negative to reaction to the notion of literary analysis.:) Which level(s) of Lightning Lit have you used?

[Colleen]

I'm all for long replies; gives me more food for thought. So thank you! I am going to talk with my son and see what he thinks of devoting a year to an in-depth study of LoTR. He's a fan, but I suspect he'd prefer more diversity. Still, it's definitely worth considering.

[Colleen]

Just wanted to give you background on various things to hopefully help in decision making -- but I think I just muddied the waters -- lol. Really hope Nan jumps in here -- her family is not real into literary analysis, so they do some, but not a lot. And that's fine!

 

My muddled thinking is due to my own lack of clarity; I truly appreciate people such as you lending me help. There are just so many choices.

 

I think you'll be fine with the SL -- some exposure, not too much, simple for you, check it off, on you go!

 

No, I definitely won't be using the LA portion of Core 7. It's worthless. Basically nothing more than vague weekly writing assignments with little instruction.

[Karen in CO]

 

Which level(s) of Lightning Lit have you used?

 

I used the British Medieval. I have heard some complain about the way LL does the analysis, but I liked it. I thought is was just enough to let you see the book a little more deeply without feeling like it was picked to death. The sample they have up for British Medieval is for Beowulf. Take a look at it. It just covers foreshadowing. Beowulf is one of my favorite classic works, but I enjoyed their analysis of it. We skipped many of the comprehension questions and spent a little time discussing the literary devices. I liked that LL put each work in context before it was read. My ds said that it helped him to understand them better.

 

I wish I had started them earlier with my ds, it would have saved us a lot of trouble. I am planning to start them with my girls at LL7 and work through as many of the highschool ones as we can.

 

My ds's ps friend had to write a paper for his AP lit class on Beowulf. He and my ds used LL as a reference when they were working on it. The friend got an A on the paper. ;)

[Colleen]

Reading for enjoyment is a *lot* different from reading for comprehension, vocabulary, plot/theme/character analysis. So, you might consider it a good foundation for Literary Lessons that your ds has already reading LOTR once.

 

Yes, good point.

 

BTW, another vote in favor of Lightning Lit...my ds has used 7 and 8 and enjoyed them and actually written stuff without howls of protest. This year, though, he's sweating with the volume of writing for SL 200 plus the chapter summaries I'm asking him to write on his reading.

 

I'm surprised your son is using Core 200; he's on the young side for that. So did he use LL 8 as a 7th grader? Looking at the samples, it seems like LL 8 would be fairly light for a 13 yo.

 

I am realizing that I let him off of outlining because of his many protests about writing, and now he needs to re-learn it. Sigh.

 

Mmm, well, I'm not real big on outlining; it served me no great purpose. Aside from teaching my guys the basics of outlining, it's not high on my list of priorities.:)