HappyGrace Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Did you like it-more importantly, did your kids like it? I'm concerned about the whole using-the-encyclopedia-as-a-spine concept: looks boring! Did you feel your dc learned from a thoroughly Christian perspective? Tell me anything about it you think it would be good to know! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline4kids Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 We are only in the beginning, but I have heard from many that they have dropped the Eastern Hemisphere Explorer and the World Book cd without detriment to the course. I haven't decided how much of the EHE we are going to do, but probably a little out of each country, but not the whole thing. We have the four day and it has A LOT of books. I believe there is no one spine, but a variety of books that expound on each country. So far (four weeks) my kids are really loving it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Glad to hear your kids are loving it. I have decided this is what I am doing next year with my 2 oldest kids, so glad to here a good review on it. Did you just go with the core or the LA too? I am trying to piece together next year for what I will need in addition to the core and not sure about the LA. Is there lit analysis etc in the core or is that in the LA? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 Because in the IG it looks like it's just basic comprehension questions for the reading. Does it feel tied together or like you're just reading separate books about the countries? Thanks for answering our questions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 It looks fairly light and like most of it is towards the years end. http://www.sonlight.com/uploads/1/5TL_2008_1.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 thanks for the link! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Laurie Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Did you feel your dc learned from a thoroughly Christian perspective? I was just reading at the SL forums that core 5 is challenging and that while the IG has notes that are from a Christian perspective, there are some books that present other religions as positive, from the views of the characters in the book. Some people there didn't like that and I would suggest asking at the SL choosing forum if that would be an issue or if you want to hear some different perspectives on this. I haven't used the core myself yet, just thought I'd mention that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 and they feel that reading books like that is a good thing. I'm not saying it's NOT, but it needs to be completely in the light of Scripture. I believe this can and should be done, but I think right now I'd rather spend our time saturated in the Word and things related to it so we have a really firm foundation first. So this was great to know-thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mims Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 and they feel that reading books like that is a good thing. I'm not saying it's NOT, but it needs to be completely in the light of Scripture. I believe this can and should be done, but I think right now I'd rather spend our time saturated in the Word and things related to it so we have a really firm foundation first. So this was great to know-thanks! I understand that many may pause at some of the books (although only a couple) but it was our best year ever. My kids walked away with a love for the world and a concern for the many cultures we learned about. Really, it was not hard (especially with Sonlight's notes) to talk about others' beliefs and really bring it back to scripture. None of my three kids questioned our beliefs because of any of these books . . . it came out as more of a compassion for others. This was a very, very special year both spiritually and educationally. I loved it so much that I tend to think everyone should do it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 in aiding discussion about the books from a Scriptural perspective? Because that would be worthwhile! I have heard many people say it was their favorite SL year. And would you mind mentioning the ages your dc were when you did SL5? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mazakaal Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 I'm using Core 5 with my 5th grader this year. We're moving through it slowly and will take 1 1/2 years to finish. I think it would be too much to complete with a 5th grader in one year unless you dropped some of the EHE. I have heard of people with more than 1dc doing it assigning different parts of EHE to each dc then they each report back what they learned. I think that's a great idea. As far as using an encyclopedia as a spine, I haven't had a problem with it. It's really just a tool to use to do the work in the EHE. You could do the Core without EHE, but I really think you would lose a lot. I don't think the learning comes entirely from a Christian perspective. A lot of the learning is about the cultures that are certainly not Christian, but we talk about the differences. Many of the books are not Christian, but I'm fine with that. I do a Bible curriculum with ds and I don't feel like my history needs to be completely centered on the Bible or the Christian faith. Because my husband is in ministry, our whole lives revolve around our Christian faith and I don't feel like all our curriculum choices need to be distinctly Christian. Sonlight is obviously a Christian company and there are plenty of missionary biographies in the Core, but if you really want something that is heavy on how Christianity relates to each thing you study, Core 5 may not be right for you. If you feel comfortable making those connections yourself and discussing those with your dc, you'll be fine with Core 5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbjmeyer Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 I have to give you a mixed review of it. I liked it, my ds is not crazy about it! While other SL years are primarily reading, this year is definitely different. Primarily, my ds -age 11 - learned the skill of doing research using an encyclopedia (the World Book software used for the EHE book). This is such an important skill to learn, and it isn't really taught in the other SL Cores. I would not consider SL5 a year of history, but instead, a year of social studies with some history included. I think the EHE was a great resource; however, my son didn't particularly like it. But that was because it wasn't easy and quick to finish. For each country, the EHE had questions about culture, important people, a book report, history, religion predominant in the country, etc. The encyc. contained the info, but it had to be found, and many times the answers were not written word for word, but the text had to be understood first. So, this was a lot of work for my ds, and therefore he didn't look forward to it. But it has been a valuable learning experience. Not everything can be easy, nor totally fun. Now, I have seen posts on the SL forums about children getting so into the WB that they spend a lot of time reading extra - but this was not my experience. My son races thru, does the least required, and many times had to redo his answers because they were not complete. These were lessons he had to learn this year. There is also a list of 'projects' to choose from for each country, which allows you to make the learning more varied than just research. There are cooking and art projects, or more research project to allow for deeper study. We did one for most of the countries we studied. He did enjoy these! The readers are great; we couldn't keep up with the list because my ds isn't a strong reader, so we missed several. But each book supplemented what he was learning in his research. SL books are always great! I added travel videos about the country we were studying - globetrekker, anthonly bourdain's no reservations, schlessinger videos about children in the country to supplement also. I also accessed youtube for cultural dances, music. I feel we both had a good introduction to the cultures and people around the world, and even though it was hard for him, my ds will be using the skills he gained for the rest of his life. I hope this doesn't make your decision harder! Feel free to write me back with any more specific questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calandalsmom Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 We are doing it. I hate using a computer based encyclopedia, so we ditched that and are using an older book called Circling the Globe. its 10 yrs old so we use google and etc to reserach what has changed from then to now (pop in China for example!) EHE is not at all light. It high school level work and its dull and time consuming. We use it sort of as a study guide but do not complete it as written. Im basically rewriting the whole thing and getting rid of the ethnocentric tone of it, but we are having a wionderful time. The readers and readalouds are wonderful as always. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Im basically rewriting the whole thing and getting rid of the ethnocentric tone of itI know who I'm contacting when we get to that point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mims Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 in aiding discussion about the books from a Scriptural perspective? Because that would be worthwhile! I have heard many people say it was their favorite SL year. And would you mind mentioning the ages your dc were when you did SL5? Thanks! Theothers have answere this pretty well now. My kids were 6th and 4th (and advanced reader). I think the notes did pretty well but a lot of the discussion just came from my general knowledge, too. I really thought the EHE was a good experience but we also didn't stress over it. My kids worked together taking turns searching for answers while the other one wrote. If they couldn't find the answer fairly soon they skipped and we discussed it or I helped look it up or I just decided that question wasn't important. We started doing the Core the first 3 week at half pace so we weren't rushed and I could hold their hand in the research. After that they took off on their own and we finished the Core easily that year. We loved finding movies off netflix that were dubbed in English. I remember some hilarious ones from China that were produced in China. We will always remember those stories. Sonlight has a sticky on the top of their Eastern Hemisphere Forum where people post extra videos and books they have found. The year was so full of culture and learning that I don't think my kids would ever get anywhere else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momof8 Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 We are in the middle of Core 5 and loving the books. Wow!! We don't us the World Book a lot because of time constraints, but it is a nice resource. You can do Core 5 without it if you want. Remember with Sonlight you can do as much or as little as you want. We do the Eastern Hemisphere Explorer because I like the idea that the kids will have a nice finished "notebook" at the end of the year. We do it by reading aloud the questions and answers from the IG usually. Sometimes looking things up with world Book or actual hard copy encyclopedias. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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