Ambleside online

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  • May 25, 2008 at 3:22 pm
    christina
    Member

    Good morning everyone! I was doing some looking around last night on ambleside online curriculum, and was very intriqued with the curriculum layout. We already get in the copywork, math, etc, but seem to be missing some of the other components of a CM education. The way the reading is layed out may be the gap filler I am looking for…

    I was wondering if others are familiar with it, how did you find it, and how hard was it to find the books??? I searched my library online last night and did not have success in finding the books! Any ideas???

    Blessings,

    Christina

    May 26, 2008 at 11:18 am
    CindyS
    Participant

    Hi Christina,

    We used Ambleside for a short time and our experience was this: Many of the books were very good. I would recommend that you preview them though, of course, because not all of them are appropriate…some very inappropriate, as a matter of fact.

    The other thing that happened for us is that the schedule for the books was such that we got bogged down. I know that reading a book over a long period of time aids in retention but our schedule is such that we missed enough days that the books lasted too long, if that is possible. That may be our own ineffiency, however, and can easily be fixed by making the schedule to suit our family’s needs.

    Also, I was trying to use the library for most of these resources and you can only renew books so many times! The ones that are available only online were not helpful to us because we just can’t seem to enjoy sitting in front of a computer to read and printing them was not really an option for us.

    Having said all of that, I think Ambleside can be very beneficial for a family that goes into it carefully. One thing I like about SCM is that the curriculum guide is not at all overwhelming, yet gives a thorough overview for those that want to implement it in totality.

    Blessings,

    Cindy

    May 26, 2008 at 6:14 pm
    Bookworm
    Participant

    We’ve done AO at least partially for a few years. We have LOVED some of the books, and not cared much for others. One of the important things that AO did for me was to help me see a breadth of types of books to include. I am more deliberate now in choosing biographies, or nature reading, etc. than I was before, when it was more hit and miss. We are very, very fond of the nature and geography readings at AO. We also tried some books that we might not otherwise have tried–some we’ve loved (I thought Oliver Twist would be too hard for the age it’s at, and Kidnapped, etc. but my boys LOVED them) and some we’ve not (Age of Fable was NOT a big hit here and we no longer include it)

    I’ve not had a hard time finding things. I have printed off a few, and with patience got a LOT of the rest at libraries, library sales, http://www.paperbackswap.com , used book sites, etc.

    I just like the general framework here at SCM better, although like I mentioned I am careful to choose out biographies and other categories of books from the choices here on the Bookfinder and the Curriculum Guide. I “imported” some of my favorite AO books over here with me, and happily left others behind. 🙂 I like the art and music selections here better, and have chosen to read only a few Shakespeare plays instead of one every term, but we like Plutarch very much so we add that in as well.

    Just a few thoughts.

    May 27, 2008 at 4:26 pm
    Amy Lu
    Member

    We are currently using Ambleside Online Year 1.

    We love it for this age and grade. I’ve looked a couple of years ahead and it seems do-able to us. I’ve purchased all the books we’ve used for Year 0 and Year 1. It’s just easier for us, and the list hasn’t been too overwhelming yet.

    I don’t know if that would be much help to you, it seems you are farther ahead than we are. I just wanted to put in a good word for Ambleside, since we do love it!

    May 27, 2008 at 9:18 pm
    the9clarks
    Participant

    We’re in our third year of AO and we LOVE it! Because I get most of the books at the library, I don’t use the schedule, just the booklists. I also use Librivox.org audio books for a lot of it, as most of the AO books are on there (and free!)

    I have had to buy very few books for AO as most of them are in the public domain.

    May 27, 2008 at 10:50 pm
    christina
    Member

    Thank you for all the thoughts! After the last couple days, I have had some time to think about what I am missing in our schooling, as well as what exactly I am looking for. It seems to be what I am missing is the structured layout, which is what I liked about AO. After posting this, and getting the thoughts back on SCM, I would have to say….it is this site that brought me a passion for CM.

    Again, thank you for everyones thoughts. I love being able to bounce ideas back and forth. It keeps us all growing together! =)

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