MyLittleBears Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 (edited) I am debating using this with my 5 grader or going with R&S and using the writing portion as well. He has done two years of IEW at coop and done well. I'm just worried that the writing in ELTL will not be enough for him. What if I add CAP to ELTL? Something else? I think I've pinned myself into a corner by overthinking... ETA: we did FFL 3 this past year since I had it and he does know parts of speech pretty well from using IEW Edited July 21, 2016 by MyLittleBears Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CelticHaiku Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 I don't have an answer for you but it will be haelpful for those with more experience to know what level of ELTL you plan using. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleBears Posted July 21, 2016 Author Share Posted July 21, 2016 Actually I was not sure about that either. According to the website it sound like he should be in level 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TX Pilgrim Posted July 22, 2016 Share Posted July 22, 2016 I have not seen R&S so I a can't compare with that. ELTL provides some specific instruction but it expects the student to write based on what they read/ hear. We have used levels 1 through 3 and will start with 4 this year. It provides more writing opportunities than previous levels but probably not as much as other writing programs. It is CM in the sense that students don't really start written narrations (or compositions) until about 10 which is when most students would be in level 4. She uses some elements that are common in progym programs but because it is an all in one program it doesn't dwell on these matters too much. CAP seems between ELTL and IEW in the way it offers instruction. Since it is solely a composition program it uses the progym but focuses on specific aspects of writing with lots of examples and supports. IEW is probably the most formulaic of these and clearly guides the student on how to construct every step of the paper (from what I have seen). I think all of them can work and depend on the child and the teacher. In my opinion, using ELTL and CAP would be somewhat redundant unless you wanted CAP to provide you with a bit more support and examples for specific aspects of writing. They are both progym approaches. If you want to introduce more creative writing or free writing I would think something like Bravewriter would be a better fit to accomplish that. We use ELTL as our spine but I teach middle and high school history at a coop and I use pieces of CAP to introduce different writing concepts. After using level 4 of ELTL I might pull some of her exercises as well. We have really enjoyed ELTL and writing our narrations will be a big step for us this year. His oral narrations are great after spending a few years in this program. So he has the thought process, now we just have to learn the writing process. Hope you find a combination that works for your family. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleBears Posted July 22, 2016 Author Share Posted July 22, 2016 I have not seen R&S so I a can't compare with that. ELTL provides some specific instruction but it expects the student to write based on what they read/ hear. We have used levels 1 through 3 and will start with 4 this year. It provides more writing opportunities than previous levels but probably not as much as other writing programs. It is CM in the sense that students don't really start written narrations (or compositions) until about 10 which is when most students would be in level 4. She uses some elements that are common in progym programs but because it is an all in one program it doesn't dwell on these matters too much. CAP seems between ELTL and IEW in the way it offers instruction. Since it is solely a composition program it uses the progym but focuses on specific aspects of writing with lots of examples and supports. IEW is probably the most formulaic of these and clearly guides the student on how to construct every step of the paper (from what I have seen). I think all of them can work and depend on the child and the teacher. In my opinion, using ELTL and CAP would be somewhat redundant unless you wanted CAP to provide you with a bit more support and examples for specific aspects of writing. They are both progym approaches. If you want to introduce more creative writing or free writing I would think something like Bravewriter would be a better fit to accomplish that. We use ELTL as our spine but I teach middle and high school history at a coop and I use pieces of CAP to introduce different writing concepts. After using level 4 of ELTL I might pull some of her exercises as well. We have really enjoyed ELTL and writing our narrations will be a big step for us this year. His oral narrations are great after spending a few years in this program. So he has the thought process, now we just have to learn the writing process. Hope you find a combination that works for your family. Thank you. That was very helpful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TX Pilgrim Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 Glad it was helpful. Right now the blog Classical Scholar is looking at some of these key practices in writing. You might want to check out her blog posts and podcasts to give you a better idea of the approach that ELTL takes. Her post about substitution helped me better understand how to do the exercises in ELTL. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icngirl119 Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 TXPilgrim, I've been wondering about this too a bit. I'm planning to use ELTL 4 twice a week and W&R Fable twice a week with my 5th grader. Once Fable is done, we'll up ELTL to 4 times a week to finish it. What do you think of that schedule? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 I haven't used level 4, but my 7th grader is using level 5. Monday and Wednesday include copywork (1/2 page in a commonplace book) and dictation (typically one to two paragraphs). Friday is a written narration, and each time she gives specific things to include in the narration. We are also using Wayfarers, which has them do narrations in the different subjects throughout the week. So there is a narration opportunity every day. I personally think the writing in ELTL is enough, assuming that you are writing across subjects as Wayfarers suggests. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleBears Posted July 31, 2016 Author Share Posted July 31, 2016 I haven't used level 4, but my 7th grader is using level 5. Monday and Wednesday include copywork (1/2 page in a commonplace book) and dictation (typically one to two paragraphs). Friday is a written narration, and each time she gives specific things to include in the narration. We are also using Wayfarers, which has them do narrations in the different subjects throughout the week. So there is a narration opportunity every day. I personally think the writing in ELTL is enough, assuming that you are writing across subjects as Wayfarers suggests. Just curious if you will switch to something else after ELTL 5, since her other levels are not out yet. One of my concerns is using a program that I will have to switch out of since there are no subsequent books. That is part of the reason R&S is still on my radar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 Just curious if you will switch to something else after ELTL 5, since her other levels are not out yet. One of my concerns is using a program that I will have to switch out of since there are no subsequent books. That is part of the reason R&S is still on my radar.Level 6 is supposed to be out this fall, and if you need it before she releases it (she's had some health issues slowing her down), you can email her to get the beginning parts. Her own son is using level 6 this year, so it will get written. I think it was originally planned for August but might be September or a little later. Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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