LBC Posted August 29, 2008 Share Posted August 29, 2008 I decided to try Sonlight for the first time this year, and so I've planned our entire year around it. I'm using Core 7 for grades 8 & 9, and LA 3 advanced for my 3rd & 6th graders. I had planned to use the LA in Core 7 with the 8th & 9th graders, but I'm reading a ton of negative comments on the Sonlight forums re: SL LA, especially in Core 7. We had a really bumpy year last year, and I really need this year to go well. The thought of starting off with SL LA, only to find myself switching to something else after a few weeks is really freaking me out. We've used IEW for years, so I could just go with that again, and maybe Lightning Lit. for literature. Or maybe the SL LA 7 will be fine, since my dc have had a few years with IEW and won't need the hand holding that seems to be lacking for some using SL LA 7. Any advice would be appreciated. Lori Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 I decided to try Sonlight for the first time this year, and so I've planned our entire year around it. I'm using Core 7 for grades 8 & 9, and LA 3 advanced for my 3rd & 6th graders. I had planned to use the LA in Core 7 with the 8th & 9th graders, but I'm reading a ton of negative comments on the Sonlight forums re: SL LA, especially in Core 7. You probably read my negative comments on the SL board. At first I wondered if I was being too harsh in my review; after all, when I posted, I'd only just received Core 7 and given the LA assignments a cursory look. I've since taken time to better familiarize myself with it and I'm even less impressed than I was initially. In fact, I'm downright disgusted. Passing those flimsy writing prompts off as an entire language arts program is misrepresentation at best. Perhaps it's my own fault, relying as I was on SL in this respect. While I've used and loved the history aspect of SL for years, I've never been impressed with their LA. I believe history/lit is what SL does best and they should stick with it rather than try year after year to reinvent the LA wheel. So why did I anticipate something better from Core 7? I'm not quite sure, to be honest. But for whatever reason, I thought perhaps the aspects of SL's LA I dislike were limited to the early years. Then, too, I asked several times on the board for more detailed descriptions of the LA and while there were few replies, those who did respond didn't say anything to dissuade me from relying on it. Call it wishful thinking on my part. Anyway, suffice it to say I consider the LA fairly worthless. I might draw from a few of the writing prompts as a means of tying in my son's writing with his history/reading, but beyond that, it's not usable. We had a really bumpy year last year, and I really need this year to go well. The thought of starting off with SL LA, only to find myself switching to something else after a few weeks is really freaking me out. Well, friend, if misery loves company I'm right there with you. Since receiving Core 7, I've spent a ridiculous number of hours and days combing through other LA possibilities, trying to come up with Plan B. We've used IEW for years, so I could just go with that again, and maybe Lightning Lit. for literature. Or maybe the SL LA 7 will be fine, since my dc have had a few years with IEW and won't need the hand holding that seems to be lacking for some using SL LA 7. Mmm, I don't need hand holding per se. I consider myself a confident teacher and my oldest a competent, independent worker. But there's an abysmal lack of direction ~ for parents or students ~ with the SL LA. There's no substance. The assignments strike me as busy work and nothing more. So. Here we are. Up the creek. I'm leaving in a couple of days for a long-ish vacation and am diving into the school year right when we return. As it stands, I still have nothing slated for my oldest as far as LA/English is concerned. And I hate this feeling ~ the black cloud of indecision hanging over my head. If I were you, I'd stick with IEW. I've never been drawn to IEW so that's not on the table for me. I've considered all manner of things, in various combinations: Lightning Lit 8, Windows to the World, Put That in Writing, Our Mother Tongue (grammar), Warriner's...and the list goes on. Bleh. Did I say how frustrated I am about this?:glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veronica in VA Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 One suggestions, at least to help with LA in the short term is CQLA - Character Quality Language Arts. This includes writing, grammar, and spelling. This actually incorporates the IEW approach, along with some other things and is multi-level. The reason I suggest this is that you can download a free month sample. You can see if you like it, and in the meantime you have something, free, you can use if you decide to order something else. You can download it at Timberdoodle. Hope that helps, Veronica Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 Here are some free online resources in grammar and writing to "tide you over" until you can decide what you want to do about your language arts. Hope something here is on help! Warmest regards, Lori D. GRAMMAR Free online grammar instruction; worksheets; tips; games; resources: English•Grammar Online http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar Owl Online http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/ The Beehive http://www.thebeehive.org/external_link.asp?r=/school/middle/subjects.asp?subject=12&e=http://www.dailygrammar.com/archive.shtml list of online grammar resources: http://www.dmoz.org/Kids_and_Teens/School_Time/English/Grammar/ WRITING Free online writing/composition instruction; prompts; assignment ideas; etc. - The Five Paragraph Essay Instruction; prompts; = http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Atrium/1437/index.html - narrative essay prompts = http://members.accessus.net/~bradley...eprompts2.html - expository essay prompts (Writer's Web): http://mh034.k12.sd.us/expository_essay_prompts.htm - persuasive essay prompts (About.com) = http://712educators.about.com/od/ess...uasprompts.htm - Book Review Start by answering SWB's questions about the book, then expand that information into a book review. WTM website, "workshops & handouts" page, "academic excellence, grades 5-8" page, scroll down to the heading of "Talk" for an extensive list of questions. - journal entries from prompts 1. Writing Fix: home of interactive writing prompts: http://www.writingfix.com/'>http://www.writingfix.com/ 2. Creativity Portal: writing prompt generator: http://www.creativity-portal.com/pro...on.prompt.html 3. The Teacher's Corner: free daily writing prompts: http://www.theteacherscorner.net/dai...FRNOagodU2RQkQ FREE ONLINE WRITING LESSON PLANS - K-12 Lesson Plan index: writing lesson ideas by grade level http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/index.asp - Writing Fix -- writing lessons http://www.writingfix.com/ - Writer's Web -- list of links to writing lessons/assignments: http://mh034.k12.sd.us/lessons%20and%20ideas.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 I decided to try Sonlight for the first time this year, and so I've planned our entire year around it. I'm using Core 7 for grades 8 & 9, and LA 3 advanced for my 3rd & 6th graders. I had planned to use the LA in Core 7 with the 8th & 9th graders, but I'm reading a ton of negative comments on the Sonlight forums re: SL LA, especially in Core 7. We had a really bumpy year last year, and I really need this year to go well. The thought of starting off with SL LA, only to find myself switching to something else after a few weeks is really freaking me out. We've used IEW for years, so I could just go with that again, and maybe Lightning Lit. for literature. Or maybe the SL LA 7 will be fine, since my dc have had a few years with IEW and won't need the hand holding that seems to be lacking for some using SL LA 7. Any advice would be appreciated. Lori After those kind of reviews and having not seen LA 7 myself I'd probably run away from it. How about Analytical Grammar, Lightning Lit (which has a composition element though not a lot of explicit composition teaching), and IEW? Although with the amount of lit in Sonlight you could probably get away with Analytical Grammar and IEW and just tailor some IEW assignments towards lit analysis of the books they're already reading for Sonlight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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