TLP versus Progeny Press

[brownie]

I have 2 advanced readers...they will be doing 2nd and 3rd/4th grade next year and I am looking for a lit study they can do together. I realize TLP has lots of vocab and spelling...I really don't care if the lit study includes those things. Can anyone compare the quality of the 2 from a reading comprehension standpoint? It's hard to tell from sample pages...they both look interesting.

 

I liked that the sample pages for TLP I looked at covered literary elements like foreshadowing and similes but maybe Progeny Press does a good job with this too?

 

Thanks, Brownie

[Julie in MN]

Brownie,

There was a lot of comparison going on at the MFW boards when their suggestion to use literature guides in 7th-8th grades first came out. These days, MFW is just recommending PP, but you can still read some of the comparisons here:

http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=2846

 

I have used PP & am very happy with it for my 7th grader. I've never used TLP.

Julie

Edited April 28, 2009 by Julie in MN

[brownie]

thanks! very helpful link. To summarize, PP has less extra stuff in it and a few people think it has more literary analysis. Since I will be piecing together my own vocabulary, grammar and spelling, so far my original choice of PP is sounding like the right one.

 

I also noticed that PP has more book choices.

 

Brownie

[PeterPan]

Brownie, the PP guides are more introspective, with lots of thought about the why's of things, and they have what some kids would find to be busywork (crosswords, etc.). The TLP guides, which I looked over at the convention but don't own, seemed very different. They're more open-ended, with a broad variety of choices for each book and activities that work with a variety of modalities. PP guides made sense to me but never clicked with dd. Also, the thought process is advanced for simple books. If your dc are advanced, you might find them using much higher up levels of PP, meaning the types of questions wouldn't fit them. Don't know if I explained that clearly. A young, advanced dc reading a book advanced for his age doesn't necessarily want to talk about it at the level a 7th grader would, kwim? TLP looked a little more open-ended, like something I could use as a smorgasboard, picking what would work for us and leaving the rest. I was pretty impressed with the TLP guides as an option and might buy a couple to try.

 

Have you looked at the online samples? You might try buying one of each and see what happens. You could also consider something like the VP guides for your younger dc. Although just basic comprehension with a few activities thrown in, they are good at squeezing in more WRITING. And personally, I think the writing is more important at this age than actually discussing the literature. I'd just let them read and then make sure they're writing enough.