Rod and Staff English

[lulalu]

Last school year was a hard one. We had a lot of outside stuff going on. So we began the year using R&S English 5, but we didn't finish it and DS used Fix It Grammar 1 independently for the rest of the year. 

Should we finish R&S 5 before moving into 6? We got through 2 and a half chapters last year. R&S does a great job of slowly building each year. I don't want to miss anything important. DS is naturally good at grammar. 

[Green Bean]

R&S will review/repeat the previous book in the beginning at a faster pace. if you think he can handle that, then move on.

[lulalu]

Thanks. I used 3rd and 4th so I figured it was the same pattern that each chapter reviews previous years. I have just heard over the years that 6th is a big jump up. I think DS should be able to handle it fine. 

[Ellie]

19 hours ago, lulalu said:

Thanks. I used 3rd and 4th so I figured it was the same pattern that each chapter reviews previous years. I have just heard over the years that 6th is a big jump up. I think DS should be able to handle it fine. 

I think the bigger jump is from 6th to 7th. 

[homemommy83]

I always thought five was a foundational year.  You could also just start where you left off and skip anything too easy for her.

 

Blessings, 

Brenda

[Brittany1116]

Having used 2-7 (now in 8), and knowing many use 7 and 8 as HS level, I'd probably just restart 5. Heck, I've seen 5 used as remedial English for adults in community programs somewhere. 

[Nm.]

I personally wouldn't skip anything because I really like how repetitive it is.  There are never any tears.  I'm using the last half of 5 in grade 7.  My 5th grader is using 4.  My 4th grader is using 3.  We don't skip any of the writing.  Nothing is done orally except when it's called for in the lesson.  For the most part they do it independently, not taking more than 20 minutes.  I do the diagramming with them.  I love Rod and Staff.

[Servant4Christ]

Thank you for the heads up, @Ellie !!! We used grades 3-6 at grade level and will begin level 7 also at grade level when we start school next week. The progression is very similar year to year, but moves quicker and goes deeper each year. We had to slooow the truck down in two chapters of 6 just so I could personally refresh my own skills to help Oldest. I really like it. We plan to stay the course through grade 8 before determining whether to use the 9/10 books in high school.

[Ellie]

On 8/29/2023 at 8:08 PM, Nm. said:

I personally wouldn't skip anything because I really like how repetitive it is.  There are never any tears.  I'm using the last half of 5 in grade 7.  My 5th grader is using 4.  My 4th grader is using 3.  We don't skip any of the writing.  Nothing is done orally except when it's called for in the lesson.  For the most part they do it independently, not taking more than 20 minutes.  I do the diagramming with them.  I love Rod and Staff.

People underestimate the importance of doing the assignments in writing. I think that if a younger child isn't able to do the writing, he isn't old enough to do the book in the first place. JMHO, of course. 🙂

[Classically Minded]

I actually compared 5 and 6 and found that most was the same but 6 increases in difficulty and doesn't explain a few things, so I bookmarked those in 5 to go over.  You could always give the tests from 5, I have the test booklet and that is what we are doing this week to spot any weak areas that may need more attention.  We don't do any of the writing lessons.

*Update - I had my son do the tests from the R&S 5 test booklet and he didn't do as well I would have hoped, so we ARE going to do R&S 5.

Edited September 19, 2023 by Classically Minded

[Servant4Christ]

We just started 7 and wow, at first glance, there appears to be more writing assignments than I remember there being last year. There's a proofreading assignment coming up that expects the student to know/use proofreading symbols that I don't remember teaching last year. Not that it's a big deal to teach them, but I'm trying to figure out if my mom brain missed something or if the upcoming lessons will teach them beforehand. I'm assuming this one is on me because it's rare for R&S to expect something that hasn't been taught at least through the TM. 

Edited September 6, 2023 by Servant4Christ

[Nm.]

5 hours ago, Servant4Christ said:

We just started 7 and wow, at first glance, there appears to be more writing assignments than I remember there being last year. There's a proofreading assignment coming up that expects the student to know/use proofreading symbols that I don't remember teaching last year. Not that it's a big deal to teach them, but I'm trying to figure out if my mom brain missed something or if the upcoming lessons will teach them beforehand. I'm assuming this one is on me because it's rare for R&S to expect something that hasn't been taught at least through the TM. 

Exactly why I’m not in a hurry to go through those levels until much later.  I have books 2-9/10.  7+ has tons of writing.

[Servant4Christ]

7 minutes ago, Nm. said:

Exactly why I’m not in a hurry to go through those levels until much later.  I have books 2-9/10.  7+ has tons of writing.

Thanks for the heads up. I wish I'd have thought to look through it over the summer so I could make a game plan. I'm debating on pushing out all the writing assignments to be done consecutively at the end of each chapter.

[Brittany1116]

We just finished test 1 for level 8. It was a longer and more intense test than I remember from years past. We will be taking a break next year when he is actually in grade 8 and I am not sure what we will do for HS. I love RS English but I think completing 2-8 is more than adequate if we can continue to use those skills in HS. 

Younger son is in level 2 and I love how gentle but repetitive it is. I am keeping the entire set for sure. Maybe my grandkids will need it someday. 😆

[Servant4Christ]

I spoke to R&S this morning and found out I didn't miss something, which is a relief. The gentleman I spoke with said I definitely brought to light something they can improve upon. I asked about/suggested just a chart of symbols with meanings and when to use them for the student and teacher to refer to during writing assignments and he was nice enough to look and find that there actually is a chart in the 9/10 book and an entire chapter in their English handbook. Thought I'd pass along the information in case it helps someone else.

[Green Bean]

Most grammar books regardless of publisher do up the writing as you move through the series. I always thought that was appropriate since the younger years are laying the foundation for learning to write well. I don't like series that try to cram a ton of writing too early because they need to satisfy some school standard. Just my $0.2.

[Servant4Christ]

1 hour ago, Green Bean said:

Most grammar books regardless of publisher do up the writing as you move through the series. I always thought that was appropriate since the younger years are laying the foundation for learning to write well. I don't like series that try to cram a ton of writing too early because they need to satisfy some school standard. Just my $0.2.

Yes, I agree. I'm fine with teaching symbols as we go. I am just accustomed to a little something briefly noted before the lesson or in the TM stating, "This is a new symbol and here's what it means and when to use it." Some symbols I don't remember or are different than I learned. Examples are the transposition symbol (I don't remember learning this one) and the slash mark with a curly que (I've never seen one with the curly que on it).

Edited September 8, 2023 by Servant4Christ

[Ellie]

On 9/6/2023 at 9:13 PM, Servant4Christ said:

Thanks for the heads up. I wish I'd have thought to look through it over the summer so I could make a game plan. I'm debating on pushing out all the writing assignments to be done consecutively at the end of each chapter.

But why? Then there would be a boatload of writing all at once, which could be really difficult.

[lmrich]

Rod and Staff fifth grade is my favorite grammar book. You  already own it so just  use it. 

[Servant4Christ]

22 hours ago, Ellie said:

But why? Then there would be a boatload of writing all at once, which could be really difficult.

You're right. I thought about it and decided that yes we're doing all the composition assignments in the order of the book. 

[Servant4Christ]

Oh my! I just looked at our English lesson for tomorrow and wouldn't you know it: The lesson is about proofreading and covers the new punctuation marks. How did I miss this? The information was right there the whole time. 🤦