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@@madiha3299 Hello! that depends on the curriculum you choose for him. There are a lot of companies that will offer placements tests that are specific to their materials, and the skills and levels of difficulties will vary depending on company- though, I do find most of them to be pretty in line with what is supposed to be taught in a public school system grade-wise. Those placement tests will be posted on their website. Some curriculum companies will say ahead of time that their materials are aimed towards those that need more rigor or challenge, so in that case the companies would have specified that on their website somewhere. In some of these companies I mentioned here in my video, I've worked with them before in prior school years and know what they offer and how challenging they are, and can determine what's appropriate for my kiddo based on what I know he needs. Is there a specific curriculum company you're looking at that you're curious about placement in?
@@MindfullyLiv thanks for the detailed explanation. I was looking at Vocabulary from Classical Roots. I couldn’t find a placement test for it. I read somewhere to pick a level based on the student’s reading level but I wasn’t confident where my son placed in reading either. I ended up buying level 6 and level 5 since each book has 16 lessons each and we can potentially finish both books in the upcoming school year.
If you don't follow a typical school year schedule, do you feel that the holiday weeks can be done out of order? More specifically, do you think the weeks build in skill or can they be done in any order without causing any issues?
Hi! I absolutely jump around depending on what comes up in different weeks. If it's going to snow before or after the weeks including snow day books, I just jump to that week, and then back track. If a holiday comes up before or after its timed in the weeks layed out, we pull it out of order and do it then. There's no increase in skill! There actually aren't any "skills" specifically that the enrichment curriculum adds or covers. I would consider this guide the "beauty subjects" rather than core subjects that teach skill- language arts, math, writing, etc. The Enrichment Guide is for read alouds and science and culture, poetry, music and art :) feel free to read from whichever week you want, whenever you want!
I decided not to finish up MWC and start R&S from Sept! I can't drag on with MWC anymore 😅 but i noticed as i was taking out my notes in the teacher's guide that i think it's a spiral method and not mastery method like i thought it was 😮 anyways, i wanted to ask if you know of other videos that other moms have made that have switched from MWC to R&S?
Thank you for this video! I did watch your other do a lesson video and was very helpful! We're using Math with Confidence grade 1 also and ready to switch 😅 i had to take so many breaks from it bc it overwhelmed me. We're planning on using R&S English in the fall and was looking at R&S math and wondered if we could start from workbook 2?
@@KikiP-rb8no that's totally your call for your kiddo! I can see how if you've already done a chunk of grade 1 from another curriculum that you'd decide to skip the first part. My only recommendation would be to look through the teacher instructions for class time and how each activity works from the beginning, because they repeat skills throughout, and how skills are taught, that way you're familiar with what it's asking you to do if you start halfway through.
This is indeed very heartwarming and very wonderful and very beautiful and very adorable and this brings back wonderful memories of when I use to be a 90s kid and an early 2000s kid and I am a new subscriber as well:).
This was very helpful to me. I’m a recovering Singapore Math Mom, lol, and switching to Rod & Staff 1 and 3 this year. I appreciate the walk-through. How much time do you typically spend on a lesson per day? Even when I left out mastered portions, Singapore 2 took me a solid 45 minutes to get through. Just curious what your average time allotment is. Thanks!
@@Dulce_Domum I know, the Singapore lessons even in the US primary edition really do take a good chunk of time. The lesson times may ramp up a bit with R&S when we get to some different skills, but overall I feel like it's much more straight forward with how they implement the teachings. If I do EVERYTHING that is laid out in the class time and post lesson time, it's closer to 30 minutes. Like I showed in the video, I skip where I feel like it's unnecessary to practice any more of a particular skill, so that cuts lesson time for sure.
I love love that you shared curriculum that’s different from what is so popular!! Looking into that LA! Will be so interested to hear what you think and see flip throughs of the science, LA, and the LitHouse learning guides. I had them on my ‘resources to remember’ list and happened to look into them just recently and fell in love. I’m reading the Heartwood Hotel series with my rising 2nd grader so I’m planning to do the accompanying study with the 3rd Heartwood Hotel book.
@@homeschoollifemom ill definitely do a flip through at the least, and plan on sharing my thoughts of the different curriculum I shared 😊 just gonna get into them a little bit first! I hope you guys have a great 2nd grade year, gosh the Heartwood Hotel series is so stinking sweet!
@@robinriggs4194 hi Robin! I did not get either :) the art is all public domain, I've been able to find it on Google images every time and just zoom in and have it up on a tablet if we want to look at them. As for the lesson plans, I feel like the teacher manual does enough explanation for me for what to do with each subject!
Thanks for sharing. I bought this for my son to use after trying many different math curriculums. He’s doing really well so far with it. There weren’t many videos on this particular curriculum so it’s nice to see this.
That sounds like a great year of curriculum. I'm also planning on using Lithouse Learning with my 2nd grader. I bought the Level 0 for Heartwood Hotel and Level 1 for Ancient History.
We love Rod and Staff math and it's so affordable, it almost doesn't matter that you aren't using a hand-me-down curriculum. Also, consider that the MP Enrichment can just be a package of vetted picture books to add to your home. Such a great program!
I hadn't before looking into LA curriculums for my 2nd grader this year, either! I really hope we enjoy it and I didn't miss out on Rod and Staff English for nothing 🥲
@@Blessed_assurance-777 I would highly recommend the teacher resource- if you check out their sample lessons, it shows that it's not just a follow along for the student text, but really is necessary to apply the strategies for the different skills the child will learn each lesson as well.
Do any of you have experience with these curriculums?! Any second grade homeschool mamas out there, what are you using in your line up for the upcoming school year?!
Thank you! Hopefully I can tackle a good routine with it all 😆 Is it the survival unit studies you mentioned in your second grade video for the novel studies? If not I'd love to know what else you're looking at!
@@MindfullyLiv I’m using those for my second grader yes! But I’m also using a few different ones for my 7th grader too. I’ve also thought about maybe using some Brave Writer darts with my 2nd grader too but we will see what I fit in next year.
We use CLE for math and I know that Rod and Staff is very similar in general. I think for math CLE might be a bit more spiral, however it also very mastery as well. For us it is the perfect balance. Your daughter is a doll! Loved this review!😊
Hi friend. I also try very hard to protect my little girls identity mostly with camera angles, but this is also a good idea. Love that book "Why Mosquitos buzz in People's Ears. " Hope you are having a wonderful summmer. 💗☺️
I try so hard with camera angles, they just move so much and so fast I'm always getting them full in the face 🤣 it's so hard, as you know! We're enjoying our summer, I hope you guys are enjoying yours as well 😁
sometimes us homeschool moms get a little buy-happy with the shiny new things 🤣 I obviously had no self control two years ago 🙃 gotta put it all to good use.
I'm going to try Singapore Primary with my 2nd grade daughter this year, but I didn't purchase a teacher's guide. Do you think it is important to have? Also, I heard there is a home educator's guide too. I'm wondering if I might need that or the teacher's guide or if I can get by without either?
For the earlier years I would personally absolutely want the home instructors guide. Even the guide meant to teach a classroom would work, it teaches the same things, just will recommend group work. The foundation the early years sets for understanding in math just so important, and it works through tons of problems in the instructor guides. It gives all of the solutions to the reviews in there as well!
I would highly recommend reading The Giver BEFORE your son. This was a book my 10 yr old daughter had picked and I did not do much research on it before we started. It is horrifying in my opinion. There is suicide of a 12 ye old girl, infant murder depicted in detail, frequent mentions of nudity involving adults and children TOGETHER. And most of the really disturbing content is later in the book so most people just shrug off what I’ve been saying about this book. Just awful. I went so far as contacting Moving Beyond the Page to revise their listing of the unit to include suicide and sexual content warnings and they have not changed it last time I looked. Sorry just a heads up. The unit study itself is beautifully done and we continued doing the work but we did not finish reading the book together. Horrible book
Thank you for sharing these aspects of the story for anyone who isn't familiar with the book. I agree that MBTP and other companies should have more thorough content warnings for The Giver. I have read this a couple of times myself in the past and I don't see some of these situations in the same light. The suicide is horrible and sad, and the infanticide is also tragic. Both of these make the main character uncomfortable and are part of what builds his motivation to escape and seek change, because these parts of the colony are wrong, and the connotation for these situations is that it's wrong and not okay. I did not think the scene when the boys are tasked to bathe the very elderly was inappropriate in a suggestive way.
@@MindfullyLivRight. And there are children in the world who are exposed to these kinds of situations and worse ones in real life 😢. It's very unfortunate, but it helps to build our appreciation for what we have while being aware of what goes on around the world.
@@peachy_reina I agree. I definitely screen what my kids read and watch, but if it's done tastefully, I think exposure to difficult concepts is incredibly important. Especially in an educational setting 💛 but I appreciate that everyone has differing boundaries for their own families!
It is not scripted word-for-word like some math curriculum, you are correct! But it definitely guides you through the math. I absolutely forgot how to do some fractional work for example, and it held my hand throughout, explaining the problems to do with your child and the solutions, though it didn't give me word-for-word what to say. I can make a youtube short this week and show a better look into the instructor's guide and link it to this video.
@@MindfullyLiv oh thank you! Im currently using MWC grade 1 and I have a love hate relationship with it. It just doesn’t feel like enough and the games are blah to my son - which makes it seem not worth it to me. I do like how clear it is on “do this” “say this” “show this” etc though so I’m nervous about a change!
@@JonesyMama you're welcome! And that short is now posted on my channel if you want a better look at the home instructors guide. They only allowed a minute so I did what I could 😆 feel free to pause it to take your time to read everything they lay out for you to do to teach the lesson, and if you have more questions please reach out! I had a dislike/ not for me relationship with MWC as well 🙃
It's been really awesome for the upper grades especially. He uses the textbook to get him through his lessons in the workbook independently, then if he needs any more instruction if he gets held up on a concept, I can flip through the teachers manual and dig a little deeper with him. Hope you find something you guys love with less materials!!
I photocopy!! Holding onto these to see how my littlest does with the curriculum when she's ready for it, as well as being able to resell in the future with the parent text and the supplemental practice sheets :)
HANDS DOWN this is one of my fav videos I’ve seen from you! 👏🏻👏🏻 First of all, I loved hearing your son’s POV and totally love the helmet idea for privacy. 💡 Secondly, this review is so thorough of MBTP and just shows how much goes into each concept. They learn sooo much! It was so neat to hear what your son liked/disliked about each concept/unit. Now I want to read The Wanderer. 😂 And lastly, I appreciate so much the reality that sometimes we can’t fit an entire “school year” worth of curriculum into the ACTUAL school year. I’ve used MBTP in the past and dang that pressure to do it all in the time they suggest was so stressful. We are using it next year (LA/S/SS) for my upcoming 4th and 7th grade boys and this really is encouraging to us to use it in the time frame that works for our fam. Thanks you so much for taking the time to film this video and involve your son! 🫶🏻
Awh, thank you for the kind words Megan! I'm so happy you enjoyed it. It was so fun to film. I realized halfway through this that it was probably a better MBTP review than my actual MBTP review 😅😂 Yes totally, there's often a push to fit in SO MUCH and complete SO MUCH during each school year. I have admittedly been like that in some past school years. It wasn't until prepping for the video that I was 😮 really impressed with just how much he covered this year, even with just over half of the curriculum. I haven't looked through the 7th grade package yet, I hope you guys enjoy it!
@@MindfullyLiv it really is such a great review! I so appreciate you taking the time to do it! I love any reviews for MBTP because I feel like it’s a curriculum that’s so hard to explain unless you actually use it. We chose levels 7-9 and 11-13 for my kiddos. I know how advanced MBTP is and my rising 4 grader is very dyslexic and still very much so in the learning to read category. So my plan is to utilize the 7-9 level with me reading the literature aloud to him so that we can enjoy the great book selections and do the corresponding activities!
Hi, I know this is an old post, but I'm wondering if I could pick your brain about MCT. I have the chance to grab the Grammar Island, Practice Island and Sentence Island [all] student books for a great deal. Which of these do you recommend also getting the instructor guide for (if any)? I think I'd grab the ebook version for the teacher guides... Thanks :)
Oh that's great! Well, it's difficult for me to say which ones to choose teacher editions for, as I only chose teacher editions versus the student ones. The instructor guides are going to be the ones that lead you through teaching the material and any lesson planning. If you can't choose all of them, I suppose the Practice island for sure, as you'll need to be able to correct their sentences. Also, I would choose Sentence Island over Grammar Island, because it goes more in depth and has more to it than Grammar Island. Though, it would be difficult, I would think, to go through Grammar Island without the answers highlighted like within the instructor guide. Those are tough decisions! Hopefully my response was more help than hindrance 😅
@@MindfullyLivthank you!! I think I’ll probably grab them 😅. One more question… would Sentence Island be too much to do in addition to another writing program such as IEW or similar? Or could it be used as a supplement so to speak?
@@ErstwhileEducation you could probably supplement with sentence Island for sure! We've also done IEW, it was a VERY rigorous load, if done the way it's laid out in the curriculum. That would be a lot to do MCT at the same time. I could see doing every other week with Sentence Island and another structured writing program, or one right after the other. Sentence Island is definitely not a year-long piece! It's shorter and could be done in a month or two if you went right through it.
I feel the exact same way about MWC. We used it for 3 years and every year I wanted to quit and use something else. This year we are quiting MWC. I posted in the FB group explaining my struggles in even wanting to teach it and people suggested I quit teaching my almost 3rd grade spelling to give more time to teach MWC. Nope.
Do you feel the need to add in anything for spelling with MCT? Sorry if you’ve mentioned this before. I’ve watched a million MCT videos and they’re all running together in my head haha
Oh I don't think I've ever brought spelling up before, no problem! MCT does not have any structured spelling curriculum. If you're wanting intentional spelling work, you'll have to supplement. I've never personally felt the need for a spelling curriculum but I know others prefer to!
I actually totally purchased it just this past week for her next year's curriculum 😆 my thought process before was I had already bought and used Singapore Primary US edition for 2nd-6th for my 11 year old, and it works so well for him. I figured I'd just use the curriculum we'd already spent money on and had at home that produced great results. But she thoroughly enjoys this one and it so obviously works wonders for her, so, I did cave and purchase level 2 R&S ☺️💛
@@MindfullyLiv awesome!! Totally makes sense. I was curious because I plan on using memoria press and they use r&s. So many people hate on it and I don’t understand why! I personally love the boring straight to the point curriculums lol
@@MindfullyLiv even for reading we are trying all about reading right now and I feel like it’s so many steps you have to take just to learn one concept.
This was super helpful, thank you. I purchased the Island level and have been slowly moving through it. It's very different from anything I've ever used before. Looking forward to your 6th grade curriculum choices.
Ohhhh I hate Evan Moor 😶 it's so boring. Finally got our rhythm down this yr: *A Year of Learning Slow Down- which is Bible, Character, Science/Nature, Copy work, Poetry and Art. This is perfect for my 4th grader and I print the Kindergarten packet for my youngest. *Sonlight Core D is History. *Beauty and Truth guides with Strayer Upton Math *Logos Latin. Doubles as grammar and foreign language Pretty easy peasy :)
