Classical Conversations Challenge B

[ciyates]

There is a new CC starting near us. I was wondering if anyone had experience with them and could give me their opinion of the higher programs.

[NCMom]

I kinda copied this from a previous post I made...

 

I have 1 dd who is finishing Challenge B. Our tutor is wonderful and so prepared -which makes a HUGE impact on the class. We tweak as needed and as always, I am still the primary teacher. We have no other academic options here so we decided to try it. We have gotten more done this year (non-CC stuff included) than ever before and for that alone I am thankful! Here are some pros and cons that we have found so far.

 

Pros...

-Though she is a serious introvert, my dd loves the interaction. She loves hearing others' ideas and the discussion. She likes having "peers" (gee all 6 of them, lol). She adores her teacher - a gentle lady and a fine person.

-She really loved the Logic, Mock Trial and amazingly Saxon Math. Her speed at math has greatly increased.

-She can whip out a 500 word essay, though getting there nearly killed us the first semester.

-She stepped up to the plate and took ownership for her work.

-She learned a lot in the Current Events debate, and indeed, the kids got together outside of class each week to prepare for these debates. She totally looks for and finds the "main point" of things she reads now.

-The work itself was not that difficult but pace was too fast; ironically, she enjoyed that. She is HUGELY more self confident about her abilities now. It's hard to gain that confidence when you don't have much access to good outside classes.

-Mock Trial has gotten her interested in law and rhetoric. She is really shining - amazing for someone so introverted!

-We still have time to do our own thing.

-We can choose to do only some of the seminars and not the others.

 

Cons...

-I HATE, HATE, HATE the Latin they use in A & B. Uuuggg. It's awful for us.

-Saxon Math is great but it apparently teaches you ~how~ not ~why~. So we are doing the ~why~ ourselves.

-I didn't like the outlining stuff in the second semester. Totally useless for us.

-Apologia Science is not my favorite and they do Physical in the 9th so we have to do an actual college level science to replace that one.

-No formal writing instruction (that I see) after Challenge A. We are doing that on our own.

-The credits they list for each Challenge are not reasonable. Way,way too much for what you do.

-The Mock Trial Guide is sadly useless. Infuriatingly so.

-It's not the path ~I~ wanted to take. But we are committed for at least one more year. ;)

 

hth,

Georgia

[Suzannah]

What Latin do they use?

[G5052]

Some tutors incorporate resources from other programs :001_smile:.

[vlshort]

I'm interested in the info about the mock trial. I wondered what curriculum or materials would be used to teach that. I have been considering Challenge as well, although we have another year before DS is old enough. Can you elaborate on how the mock trial is done?

thanks so much!

-vanessa

[NCMom]

I'm interested in the info about the mock trial. I wondered what curriculum or materials would be used to teach that. I have been considering Challenge as well, although we have another year before DS is old enough. Can you elaborate on how the mock trial is done?

thanks so much!

-vanessa

 

I was unclear in my other post, I think.

 

There is a separate mock trial info pack and it contains all of the info the kids may use to prepare. It has the statements, the reports, the statutes/rulings you are allowed to use, the pleas you get to pick from and all of the rules of competition. It doesn't give a lot of help about how to prepare, however.

 

The part that was useless was in the assignment guide, the part that tells you what to do each week to prepare for the trial. Not helpful, lol.

 

So anyway, the kids must prepare both a defense and a prosecution for the case (a real criminal case, not one of those 3 Little Pig fake cases ;)). They have to prepare opening statements, closing statements and direct and cross examination questions for both sides. They also play attorneys, witnesses, the accused, and the bailiff. And the kicker is, you have NO idea what defense your opponents (another CC team) will choose.

 

Whew, it's a lot! Then you compete. We do this on Tuesday so I don't know how it will go. We have a real courtroom lined up, a practicing trial attorney to be our judge and a retired attorney and a law clerk for our jurors.

 

The case is scored by how you do based on a rubric type thingy, NOT by who wins.

 

It's actually been lots of fun. If only any of us had ever seen a Mock Trial before.:glare: We actually took a tour of the courthouse; and had ADA's and bailiffs yakking our ears off. It really got the students motivated!

 

hth,

Georgia

[ciyates]

Thanks so much!

[SonshineLearner]

I think an easy switch to make, if you're willing to help...would be Latina Christiana I and II or find out about Memoria Press' other Latin...and then straight into Henle. That's where Memoria Press was always headed, anyway! I think it's maybe $50 cheaper not to do Latin with Challenge, and that's a big help towards what Latina Christiana would cost (get the DVD) other that that...we've loved Challenge...We concur that LNST is horrid.