Language Lesson by Queens

Maybe another program. We are enjoying Jump-In Writing. It goes step by step through different types of papers. We have stretched it out because my son doesn’t like writing much. I am comfortable correcting papers and I think that is probably the only con I can see for some.

We just started the Queen’s book and they are a nice change. We were using Winston before and it was just too crazy for me to check.

Hi Misty,

I personally believe grammar to be very important and if your oldest wasn’t ready for JR AG at the time you tried it, I’d definitely do it again. It’s not a full year course, being only an intro, not full instruction, so you could feasibly do it, then go into AG and also begin/do Jump-In during that time; I’d say after JR AG.

It’d be okay if you went into the “9th grade” year with AG and Jump-In before starting Queen’s HS LL, since there are only 3. The important part is that they have a solid foundation in grammar before HS.

I don’t have a copy of the DW Sp. and Gr., just the DW Commonly Confused Words and I like the format and I think it is good for filling in ‘gaps’ or lightening the load temporarily. Your situation is different than mine as he will have finished ILL, been doing Latin and will have started Meaningful Composition (which has a little grammar the first 8 wks.) by the the “7th” grade year so I want to avoid overkill, hence just using the Daily Warm-Ups then using Our Mother Tongue probably in the first HS year.

But you don’t have that situation, actually having little grammar instruction via Queen’s, so I think it’d serve them better to actually do the JR AG and AG, instead plus a writing program, whichever one you choose.

HTH, Rachel

Betty, thanks for sharing your thoughts on Queens. I always wondered if LL would be enough. We’ve supplemented with Spelling Wisdom, The Writing Course & Our Mother Tongue – also recently added Total Language Plus. We’re really enjoying this and considering dropping Queens for TLP – so hearing your experience has helped . Trying to stay warm, Heather

That’s a good order, but in looking at the materials, you’ll end up doing AG and LL in the same years.

JAG-eleven week or so program

Jump-In-1 1/2 to 2 year program; also here

AG-1-3 years; see timeline at bottom of linked page. It shows you how long to use it for based on when you start and what you’ll need.

So it breaks down like this:

JAG for about 3 mths. starting in 7th; then start Jump-In the same year, probably taking you through to the beginning of 9th or so; then start AG after that, sometime in 9th or beginning of 10th (see aforementioned timeline on the link); you can start LL in 9th or wait till 10th for 3 yrs.

Does that clarify, Misty?

Rachel

Hi Misty, I’m sorry my box was filled up and you couldn’t reach me; I’ll take care of that.

I think he’ll be ready to do JAG; with the others, you could probably start sooner. Don’t you have one around 10 or 11? You could even kill two birds with one stone by having your two older boys do JAG together.

According to the reviews and the website (above), the teacher is given all the answers she needs and, for the exception of the first lesson in a Unit, the child can be fairly independant. Here’s some past posts about AG with Sonya’s input, who’s used it personally:http://simplycharlottemason.com/scmforum/topic/analytical-grammar  and http://simplycharlottemason.com/scmforum/topic/analytical-grammar-or-our-mother-tongue#post-1235 and http://simplycharlottemason.com/scmforum/topic/analytical-grammar-1#post-2241

Latin will help them a great deal. My only concern, and probably yours, too, is the cost factor. You only have to get the Teacher’s Guide once for each program; each student text in JAG is around $20 and for AG around $50 (of course, that is for 2 years, so only $25.00 a yr.), so you’d have to plan for that for each child. Then the Review and Reinforcement, which is recommended when stretching it out, is $20.

Two ideas to lessen the cost factor is to require your child to write the sentences out themselves, instead of writing in the student book; the other idea (but don’t know if it’s legal) is to copy the practice part of the lesson. That way you’d only have to purchase one student book and one TG for all your children. It’s more of a hassle that way and like I said, don’t know if it’s legal. It wouldn’t kill them to have to write out the sentences themselves, that’s how children did it in the past and it’d save you a bundel, since only one student book would be required, thereby making it a non-consumable text. You may want to PM Sonya to get her thoughts about the copying out of the book possibility in order to save money.

There may be a non-consumable text out there to help you, but don’t know which would suit your needs best, as AG is very incremental.

You’ll be learning along with them Misty and by the end of your first or second go-round with it, you’ll be an expert! Remember, you’ll still need a writing program, like Jump-In mentioned above (just confirm that it covers all the writing concepts needed, check out the review I linked above and perhaps ask more specifically about it on the forum). I think the order I laid out above would be good, minus LL. In HS, they’ll still have copywork via the Book of Mottoes, spelling/dictation and written narrations, too, so they’ll have practice writing the concepts learned in Jump-In.

Is that helpful?

Rachel

You’re welcome! I hope you feel better about your direction for the future.

Rachel