Queens LL thru High School?

I am really interested to hear what others have to say. We have really enjoyed them over the last year and have no plans to change.

Misty,

Sign language will count as a foreign language at some colleges.  It will not at others. 

Do try to do your best and not panic.  There is ALWAYS the possibility to begin college at a community college, which takes some of the pressure off of you.  It would be easy to do a foreign language and some other things there, and then transfer later to a four-year college if that is what fits your children’s needs the best.  We are kind of wound tight here, because my oldest turns 17 today, and he has not only college but grad school in his sights, and he has big dreams, big ambitions, and wants to go to a serious school.  🙂  All of mine are probably aiming at a four-year college right off the bat, which means I need to really have my ducks in a row, and it makes me a little tense at times.  🙂  I’ve been known to lie in bed twitching at night wondering if we are really nailing down calculus or if we need a tutor (preferably a free one, lol!) and we are waiting on tenterhooks for his PSAT scores to get back.  🙂  I don’t want to infect anyone else with the disease, lol, so relax, take a deep breath, and prayerfully do your best.  If you really want to go back to Queens, then do it.  I still think the idea of a basic handbook might not be a bad idea–you and your children could use it as a reference without making much more “work”.  Let me know if you need some ideas if you want to think about doing that.

Michelle

I am using Queen’s LL with a high schooler. I love it and believe it is enough. But I am not one to believe a heavy grammar program is necessary all 4 years of high school. My kids use Queen’s from the beginning, so when they arrive in the high school years they already have a good grip on grammar and do not need to continue repeating it. The Queen’s high school books focus on writing through dictation, copywork, and essay.

Misty, perhaps you may be interested in Nancy Wilson’s Our Mother Tongue instead. Plus, it’s not too late to start your children on a Latin program.

As for how much, I think a lot depends upon the direction your child is headed, vocation-wise, and your personal expectations of your children-what you consider to be valuable and what one thinks is a well-rounded education. I also think it’s prudent to have an idea of what the colleges expect, because that’s what they are going to be dealing with eventually, no matter what our personal opinions are; if their professor requires that they know this material, then it’s only responsible for us to prepare them.

Rachel

Misty, Our Mother Tongue is what I use for a quick brush-up in junior high.  I have  heard from several people who did not find it in-depth or explanatory enough for children/families that were not very familiar with grammar.  It was really just a review for my children and worked very well for that.  It is inexpensive and quick, but does sort of assume that you know some things already, and that your child won’t need much practice. 

I was thinking maybe a basic handbook like the Rod and Staff English Handbook would be good if you wanted to use it as a reference, and then to choose rules/etc. to discuss and apply towards the writing they are doing with Queens.  It would be simple to do.

I second the idea to think about Latin.  IMO it’s the easiest foreign language to teach in a homeschool.  And it’s PERFECT for nailing down English grammar.  In fact, the grammarians of long ago made up some of the “rules” of English to make English more like Latin (for example, the rules on not splitting infinitives–impossible in Latin! and the ones on not ending sentences with prepositions)   In our home, we use Latin in the Christian Trivium–don’t let that panic you, there’s no real “trivium” going on, it’s just based on the Latin Bible instead of on, say , Caesar’s writings or Cicero’s.  But after hearing from Sonya how much she liked it, I started my youngest this year in Getting Started with Latin, and it’s working very well as a gentle beginning for him.  He was really intimidated by his older brothers, who are very odd and like to actually CONVERSE in Latin, and didn’t want to start learning Latin yet, but GSWL has sort of broken him in gently.  When we are done with that, we’ll leap right into the first volume of Latin in the Christian Trivium.