A few questions…

Hi Pecangrove! My daughter is in 8th grade and this is what we are doing for language arts this year.

For copywork, dictation and spelling we are using Simply Spelling. It’s a program that covers teaching these subjects to all ages and is very inexpensive. We’ve just begun using it and I really like it.

For writing, we are sticking with Charlotte Mason’s advice to hold off until later with formal writing instruction. We are simply continuing with written narrations. I require my daughter to write 2 a week and they average about 100 words each, give or take. Sometimes they are much shorter, sometimes much longer.

For grammar, we are using Step by Step grammar. It’s inexpensive and to the point but I do find that it moves a bit too fast for us so we are taking it slow.

Our province requires “novel studies” for lit. I found Deeper Into The Heart of Reading by Heart of Dakota is an excellent lit study curriculum that allows you to use any literature from 8 genres you want to. So my DD13: going in to G8 will use it to read a novel from the Middle Ages-Reformation period that will enhance her history study of SCM’s Module 4. Same with DS10 going into 6th, I will find a good history novel at his reading level and use DITHOR for his “study” and work samples required. Other than that, they will give me written narrations for portfolio samples for the school. I record when they have orally narrated to me or likewise, in the notes box of the SCM Bookfinder and Organizer online. It tells us what we are doing each day and helps me keep track of their reading, work, and progress. DD13 will also do either Intermediate Language Lessons by Emma Serl or Grammarland for grammar. We will not do an actual “writing” program, because she does written narrations in history, science, and occasionally assigned in Serl if we use it. We will work on writing through those narrations. I have The English Handbook from Rod & Staff for me as a resource if I have any Q’s. It’s taken me years to learn that I don’t need as many programs as there are topics. Things can be accounted for and practiced in other subjects for English. If I didn’t need the samples for their portfolios for the province, we would not even do a DITHOR section; we would just use the historical lit and narrations and discussions themselves. I see how that is rich learning on it’s own. KWIM? Simple leaves room for making real connections in learning. Busy is just busywork. I hope that helps.