Min
- Reviewed on Saturday, June 06, 2009
- Grades Used: 2nd-4th
- Dates used: 2006-2009
Red 2nd Grade: you need the readers that go with it. Cutting and pasting are fun to do and the stories were interesting to my daughter.
Yellow 3rd Grade: Literature continues to be more advanced, for example, Madeline
Orange 4th Grade: Chapter books like Boxcar Children and more writing assignments
Overall I give this series a B+ for my kids. They are both very good readers, naturally good at spelling, and tend to shy away from workbooks. With LLATL, there is little teacher prep (although you will be happier if you prep since sometimes you need to check out certain library books) which was good for me in the time period I used it. Plus, it does not take long to do a daily lesson. Because my kids were advanced readers, sometimes the reading choices were not advanced enough. I probably could have solved this by going a level higher.
We need to move away from LLATL for awhile, because my kids need to try new things from time to time to stay interested, which matches our eclectic method of HS. I don't think you'll be disappointed if you try this out. It touches on many different skills so you can discover your child's strong and weak areas. I did supplement with additional spelling words and handwriting, but this would depend on the student and teacher.
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asheepnomore
- Reviewed on Tuesday, April 28, 2009
- Grades Used: 3rd-4th
- Dates used: 2006-2008
When I started off with this curriculum I loved, and told everyone I knew how great if was! I think it is nice in theory, but for us, it just wasn't getting the job done. I got my son tested after using the program for more than a year and he did terrible in the language arts section. I started supplementing with Rod and Staff and before long I realized that I had to supplement it so much, that what was my child really getting out of the program. To say it is light would be an understatement. It is a lot of copywork with the idea that they will learn good grammar by copying great literature. It might work for some, but total bust here. It claims to be all in one, but the spelling is almost nonexistent, I didn't like their handwriting style so I skipped it. Grammar instruction was almost none. I no of some that it worked for, I just wish I could say the same for us.
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marie2boys
- Reviewed on Tuesday, April 21, 2009
- Grades Used: 2nd and 3rd
- Dates used: 2008-2009
I got this curriculum originally because it claimed to be a complete LA curriculum. I thought it was going to be great and after using it for a complete school year I don't think I'll use it next year or I'll pick and choose the lessons I think have the most educational benefit. Some are more than others for instance the other day in the yellow book the whole lesson was on reading graphs which is more something he'd do in math. Another day was spent on reading a map and drawing one, or looking up different types of flowers. Some of these lessons could be skipped if they're covered in other subjects.
Both of my boys have learned and improved using it, but what I have found is that instead of it being a complete LA curriculum, the child gets SOME spelling, SOME grammar, SOME penmanship (by the way not enough practice for the child to learn it, you'll have to supplement penmanship definitely), and SOME literature reading. Especially with the red book there's a fair amount of cutting and pasting and coloring added in. Sometimes I found that to be strictly time consuming with little educational benefit which I would give my son the option of doing or not and often he would opt not to. If he didn't his lesson became extremely short for the day. There are days with both the red and yellow book where the lesson doesn't even take 10 min and they're done for the day. The red book has 4 spelling words a week and the yellow 5 with a bonus word and they're very easy. Both of my sons get them memorized on Monday and the rest of the week is just review which tells me they can handle more words than that. They have yet to struggle with a spelling word and while I don't want them to be frustrated, I'm thinking they're not being challenged either. I don't consider either of my sons great spellers though as they do make mistakes in their writing.
One of the things that I'm personally disappointed in is that there's so little reading involved, which is the opposite of what I assumed from the title. You read one short story a week in red book, and go over it and review the rest of the week, and 4 lines of a snippet of literature a week in the yellow book plus 4 stories spread out through the year. My son really, really didn't like the readers that came with the red book. He doesn't like stories with talking animals that wear clothes and have feelings. It surprises me really as I didn't mind them when I was young, but he prefers realistic fiction or nonfiction. That was a problem for me because almost all of the readers are of animals acting human which drove him crazy. I have to supplement the stories with ones I think he'd like which is more work on my part and of course the questions in his student book didn't match the story we read. All of the lessons relate to the story read on Mon.
Overall, it's a good program and the boys like it because it doesn't take them long to get it done. I've decided not to use it because I want them to be more challenged. Plus, my 2nd gr is a reluctant writer and this program is designed for kids that don't mind writing. There's not a lot of writing required, a few sentences here and there and he still complains and will write as little as he can get away with. So, I'm going to have use something different. You'll definitely need to supplement this though with penmanship and also I have them read a chapter in a chapter book every day as they're good readers and my 3rd gr write in a journal every day. When I read the phonics and grammar lessons to them, I know they tune me out as it's boring to them (typical boys I think). I ask them to repeat it back and they can't, and when they're able to repeat it back it doesn't stick (for instance an hour later it's gone) and I don't think there's enough review of the grammar lessons previously taught. For us, I don't think this is the best choice.
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Miah
- Reviewed on Tuesday, February 24, 2009
- Grades Used: 1st-4th
- Dates used: 2008-2009
I was very excited about this program when I first researched it. (This was before finding this website.) I really liked the idea of having everything in one package, so I couldn't forget to cover anything. I am really weak in grammar, so this worries me alot. My boys were half way through 1st and 2nd grade public school when we pulled them out last January. We put the 1st grader back at the beginning of the Blue book, because he was behind in reading. My 2nd grader needed no further phonics review so we put him in the 3rd grade Yellow book. My mother did the primary teaching last year, and they finished the books they were in. I had some concern with the amount of grammar, handwriting, and spelling they were getting, but my mother assured me that they were getting plenty, so I purchased the next levels, Red book 2nd grade, and Orange book 4th grade.
Now that I have been more involved (I am fully teaching them myself this year, as I am no longer working), I have found all my concerns to be fully justified and then some. The lessons are scattered and contain very little handwriting, only 4-5 spelling words per week, which doesn't concern my older child who has no problems with spelling, but my younger child has only fallen even further behind this year. And the grammar is sorely lacking. My older son detests the copy work, refuses to read any of the books required for the lessons, and instead of coming to enjoy literature he has been pushed back away from reading. The phonics in the Red book have not been nearly thorough enough for my younger son, and I think we are looking at spending 3rd grade going back to the basics with something like Saxon Phonics. Right now he is frustrated and feeling like a failure most of the time when it comes to spelling and reading.
I have been searching for something for next year, but I am at the point of quitting entirely before the end of this year. I have already had to supplement with separate handwriting books, and spelling words, and the general aggravation and feeling of wasting my time and theirs is just getting to be too much.
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