What program should you use for your child's foreign language?

I believe that Rosetta Stone is the most well-known and popular language learning program available; however, I know that I am not the only one that finds them expensive for my budget.  My wonderful parents loaned us their Latin American Spanish set this past yer.  Navy SEAL has been using it for about a year.  As I read reviews on language learning programs I found there are quite a few negative comments out there.  I don't relly know how I came across the website, but I found this site which reviews language learning software for many languages.  They have a great side-by-side comparison of several software programs specifically in the same language.  (For example, in certain languages Rosetta Stone is the top software evaluated.  In a different language Tell Me More is rated highest.)  I used their information to choose SEAL's Russian software.


SEAL is using Transparent Russian Complete Edition, and he has mentioned to me several times that he likes it a lot.  They have a great variety of activities to aid in learning Russian.

NFL (and several others in our family) plans to study German. Tell me More is rated the highest for the Germn language; however, it costs $209 in comparison to the second rated program Instant Immersion German which sells for $44.99.  Based on the review if I have $209 to spare, I will purchase Tell me More.  If our money is tight, I will be comfortable with purchasing Instant Immersion German.  I will lean toward putting more money into a German program than another language, because my husband is from Germany.  My children learning to speak German is of great value as they have several relatives who only speak English....their own Grandfather being top on that list!  :0)  This coming Spring, we are planning to take SEAL and NFL to Germany to visit where my husband grew up and to visit Europe.  (As my son has been researching the Naval Academy, he learned of a class called "European Culture Immersion".  We plan to use that as a course title for this special trip that they will be taking also.)

If you are looking for a foreign language program, I whole-heartedly recommend trusting the Top Ten Review web site.

Why not 12 years of Grammar?

Quite simply, you must watch the videos at Analytical Grammar.  I remember having year after year of Grammar as a child.  Frankly?  It was tedious and unnecessary, in my opinion, and that is coming from an English minor in college!

The wonderful teachers at AG have created a complete course in grammar.  They intend for it to be completed over the course of three years, but it can be completed in as little as one year if necessary.  After AG is completed, the student can work through a reinforcement book each year until he graduates.  Each reinforcement book has a literature theme, so it is ideal to coordinate it with the literature course your child is studying.  Oh!  The student only needs to complete one review lesson every two weeks to stay on top of all of the grammar.

My plan is for the AG book to be covered in grades 8, 9, and 10.  Since we are studying World Literature in 11th grade, we will use the World Authors Reinforcement Book.  When we study American Literature during the Senior year, we will use the American Authors Reinforcement Book.

Both SEAL and NFL have started using AG this year (using the teaching dvd also), and are learning well without all the drudgery of the past!  I am VERY pleased with this choice.  (AND I really enjoyed meeting Erin at the Teach Them Diligently Conference in March 2012.)

Check out Analytical Grammar.  I predict that your children (AND YOU!!!) will be glad you did!

Introducing....Gratia Dei Academy

WHAT?

Yes, we finally have a name for our homeschool...after 12 years!

Gratia Dei Academy = the Grace of God Academy  

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

1 Peter 5:10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

Elementary and Junior High Social Studies

This is a basic listing of our plan for Elementary Social Studies.  I will explain a little below.

Kindergarten - Liberty's Kids TV series (40 episodes) and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood (if available).
Grade 1 - Read Aloud from Biographies
Grade 2 - Read Aloud from Biographies
Grade 3 - Read Aloud from Biographies
Grade 4 - Read Aloud / Independent Reading of Biographies
Grade 5 - Heroes of History biography series (Independent Reading)
Grade 6 - Heroes of History biography series (Independent Reading)
Grade 7 - Our 50 States
Grade 8 - American Government (Abeka) / Economics (BJUP)

If you have not seen Liberty's Kids, may I highly recommend it.  There are 40 episodes covering the American Revolution through the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  My kids really enjoy the program, and they have learned a lot about America becoming a nation by watching each of the episodes.

I also find that Mr. Rogers is great for helping children to learn about the people who live in our communities.  There are all sorts of great and interesting topics discussed on the program.  (Some of the movies he shows are like a children's version of "How It's Made".)

I was VERY blessed by my husband at the Teach Them Diligently Conference in Spartanburg, SC.  He bought the rest of the Christian Hero Series and the Heroes of History Series from YWAM.  During the early elementary years, I will read aloud to my kids a chapter a day from these wonderful biographies.  When the student is an independent reader, they will finish reading all of the book sin these two series. 

On a side note, our library carries the animated hero dvds from Nest Family.  Another library nearby carries the Bible dvds.  Many of our trips to the library result in bringing these dvds home.  I have been thrilled to see the details that my younger children have picked up from watching these outstanding biographical animated movies.


As our children approach high school, I want to encourage them to research topics on their own.  In 7th grade, they will do their own personal study of each of the 50 states.  For each state they will fill out worksheets on the state bird, flag, etc...  They will also include essays about the state and people in history from the state they are studying.  Horse Girl will be in 7th grade this coming year (2012-13), and she will be the first child to embark on this journey.  All of the notebook pages will be compiled into one binder.

When I planned the high school Social Studies classes, I found that the other classes were more difficult than the American Government and Economics courses that we will be using.  As a result, I decided to cover those two courses in the 8th grade. 

Social Studies for High School - Revised

What Did We Do This Year?

SEAL has done a fantastic job with the Mystery of History Volumes 1 and 2.  (We call this World History & Geography I.)  Next year he will be using the Mystery of History Volume 3 and Around the World in 180 Days from Apologia Press.  (World History & Geography II)  IF MOH, Volume 4 is available in the Spring, he will continue working in that also.  Seal, a very motivated student, does all of this on his own.  He does not do every activity for the older student but must accumulate 200 points for each book.  The point value of an assignment is determined by how much time is necessary for research as well as the length of his essay or paragraph.  I love seeing my children focused on learning and enjoying it!  I am confident with this arrangement that my high school students will have a firm grasp of World History.

NFL who has chosen to work on math and one other subject at a time finished American Government this past summer.  He will be working on World Geography soon.

Our Revised High School Social Studies Plan

Freshman: World Geography
Sophomore: World History I
Junior: World History II
Senior: United States History

Why are the classes in this order?

I believe that the Around the World in 180 Days book is one that a Ninth Grader can complete alone. For a student to accomplish 2 volumes of Mystery of History in a school year will require more maturity and self-discipline, so the 2 years of World History are scheduled for the 10th and 11th grades.  What I have designed for our United States History course is totally based on self-motivated research and composition skills, so this course is better suited to a Senior who is preparing for college research projects.  (There really is some logic in this progression!)

What about American Government?

I'm glad you asked... I plan for this to be completed in 8th grade.  It is a 1/2 credit course, but using the Abeka American Government book which is meant for 12th grade still requires hard work for an 8th grade student.  I still need to choose an Economics course.  Any recommendations for an Economics course are welcome.  Nothing has really grabbed my attention yet.