Why We’re Quitting MasterBooks Language Lessons/ Homeschool Curriculum REVIEW
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- čas přidán 21. 03. 2022
- Making some curriculum changes for the next school year and sharing our personal experience with MasterBooks.
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Thank you for saying this out loud!! I had been feeling the same way (especially about the spelling on day 5). It was just not working 🤦🏾♀️. When the cons outweigh the pros, you just have to make that move. Thanks for validating what was already on my heart 😌
So true! I’m glad it was helpful! ❤️
I have found that I LOVE Growing with Grammar curriculum! I am a traditional homeschooler. I love tests and making sure my kids are truly learning and not just reading fun stories. MB is honestly not enough and I have found that I can get better curriculums for cheap and they are exactly what I'm looking for and my children love them. I think MB and TGTB are just big names with fancy stories and pictures.
I’ve never heard of Growing with Grammar but I’ll check that out! Thanks for sharing!
What a wonderful review! We had the similar experience with the MB math curriculum. We had to make the switch to CLE, and are so glad we did! I love that you mentioned the pros as well. ❤️
Thanks for watching! It’s always nice to settle into something that works.
Thank you for this review!!! We have been eyeballing this! I will be doing much more research!
Yw and I’m glad it was helpful!
This is our 2 year using it. My son, really likes it. I think it has really helped him because it’s very gentle😊 it’s been like a stepping stone for him. I think as time passes maybe we will change it up but for now he really is growing with it. We do add readers. He picks out one book to read a week from the library or his personal reads. We write out the scriptures into his writing journal. It truly is about what each child needs and how they learn😊 I know for my daughter Masterbooks probably won’t work.. I love how you asked your girls and how you all work together to find the best fit❤️❤️❤️ that is so important mama❤️❤️ thank you for sharing and blessings always
I love how you’ve added in what your son needs to make it work for you all. I bet he really enjoys picking out his own books each week! ❤️ Thank you for sharing!
I love that you include your daughters so much in the decision process of curriculum. It helps them to take ownership of their education. I do the same thing with my daughter. She is much more willing to do her work because she’s gotten to choose some of her curriculum.
Absolutely true. It’s a fun time we get to have discussing it all. They get just as excited, when boxes start arriving, as I do!!❤️
Personally, I don't understand why people love it so much, it seems like a supplement more than a curriculum.
It worked for the season we were in but definitely not working anymore. Makes me wonder if others using it added in additional material. 🤔
@@LifeofTillmans Don't know if you found anything yet, but you should look into Saxon Grammar.
@@denisejohnson4037 Thanks! I’ll take a look!
I agree with everything you said. When we began homeschooling 3rd grade last year, I loved everything Masterbooks stood for and purchased level 3 for language arts. But a few months in, I noticed the same issues as you. I needed a curriculum that was much more thorough and repetitive. Although my daughter was approaching 4th grade, she had no concept of any grammar from public school. So I decided to purchase 'Language Lessons for the Well Trained Mind' by Susan Wise Bauer, levels 1 & 2 as well as Bauer's 'Writing With Ease' levels 1 & 2. We went through them at her pace and I added cursive for her too, (to make sure she was getting plenty of practice, as these levels are for 1st and 2nd grade, so cursive is not included) Honestly, it was the best decision for us. Being older, she has quickly grasped the grammar concepts and has retained all of the definitions, plus, we have almost completed both levels in just over one academic year.
For 5th grade, we will go through level 3 for grammar, and IEW Structure & Style for writing. I thank God for these wonderful resources! It's not about speed and levels, it's about learning at their own pace and being able to grasp and retain the information for when they may need it.
While enjoying learning! ❤
I love that you’ve found something that is working for her! It’s nice to not feel like to have to stick with something that isn’t working just because. I truly believe that many times we have to combine several resources to get what our children are needing. Thank you for sharing! ❤️
@@LifeofTillmans Yes! A curriculum tailored to a childs individual needs is one of the many blessings of homeschooling ❤ Thank YOU for sharing
Thanks for the in depth ideas and being transparent about EXACTLY what didnt work for your girls and why vs a general vague description. I am using Evan Moor Language Fundamentals for Core concepts plus MFW Language Lessons for Today when we finish TOO fast and need filler lessons.
Thank you for watching!
Thanks for this video. I wanted something that was “all in one” language arts. However, your review has help me to make my decision.
Yw & I’m glad it was helpful.
Thanks for the review. We are trying this again this year with my third year because he needs shorts and sweet. We will se how it goes.
The shorter lessons definitely are a plus. I hope it works for you all!
100% agree with the cons and this is why we’re ditching it. My brain can’t handle how unorganized it is and how much supplementing is necessary.
Yes, that seems to be a common theme.
Great video! Your honesty will definitely help others in making their decisions.
Thank you! ❤️
Just know what works for other families may not work for others.
@@alisiajimenez You are correct. Not everyone will feel to same way about this curriculum. It served us well for a season. Thanks for watching! ❤️
@@LifeofTillmans MB in the 5th grades and up have Writing Strands, which will do more grammar and writing. This curriculum was designed to be gentle in the earlier grades of elementary so your children can have fun learning and time for being a child. It saves time for more experiences like field trips and fun learning projects. We have a rising 1st, 3rd, and 5th grader. They need to preserve their childhood while they can. In a snap of a finger they will be in middle school and highschool. Trust me you will miss the younger stages and wish you had that time back doing more fun things rather than spending all that time doing tons of school work. They will not be behind. Don't focus on other people's opinions about when a child are supposed to gasp a concept. You really just want homeschool to be enjoyable and come from a place of love for learning. You don't want tears because of them being overwhelmed. Especially in elementary.
For MB Math they have Practice Makes Perfect that goes with the Math series. Most people don't use the part. Just had to let you know if you didn't. This curriculum has placement test, which people sometime don't use. You should us this curriculum in it's entirety. When people get upset that curriculum don't work I always ask if they use the full curriculum to it's entirety.
If you are not satisfied with MB, you all should try First Language Lessons of a Well Trained Mind. It is a thorough Language Arts curriculum.
welltrainedmind.com/
For spelling:
1. Spelling Workout (it has the spelling in cursive)
2. Building Spelling Skills
2022-2023 will be our first year using MB curriculum. We will use MB Language Arts and supplementing with the other curriculum I just gave you for the same reasons. It's hard to find curriculum that has the Bible throughout that is affordable. Short lesson are great for our children whom get overwhelmed with so much work to do.
Also, Evan-Moor has lot of workbooks for Language Art such as:
1. Paragraph Editing
2. Reading Comprehension Fundamentals
HAPPY HOMESCHOOLING!!
@@alisiajimenez We love Writing Strands as it’s worked well for us for the past year. I’m glad you all have a solid plan for your children that works for your household. It’s definitely a process to find your groove with what works. Enjoy! 😄
This is why I'm switching from Masterbooks this coming school year. Looking at other curriculum for 3rd grade, I'm worried my now-2nd-grader will be behind. I feel like there are a lot of gaps in his learning because we've used Masterbooks for the past 2 years, especially in language arts. But like you said, it was good for a season for us. I needed something cheap, easy for me, and short at the beginning of my homeschool journey so I could get into the swing of schooling and also so I could find out what does and doesn't work for us. I'm looking into The Good and The Beautiful and loving what I see so I think that is what we will be doing next year.
Lots of people feel the same way about MasterBooks. Also, I’ve heard lots of good things about TGTB as well! I hope you find what works best for you all. ❤️
Thank you so much for sharing why you stopped. It just wasn’t enough review and it seemed scattered. I ended up going with Abeka Language Arts for my 3rd grader and she is doing excellent! It has the review she needs and she is retaining the information well. I didn’t want to switch curriculum so close to the end of the year.😖We will just go with it until we finish it or at least most of it, and then go to 4th grade level. She enjoyed the Bible just like your girls. We will still use that. I’m excited to see what you picked🙂
I’m glad you were able to find something for her. I’ve heard good things about Abeka’s language arts.
Tolob
Habe
This helps. Thank you!!
❤️
I have similar issues right now just finished our second year and my kids aren’t retaining grammar, spelling etc. I am trying CLE with my oldest and I switched to AAR 1 with my reader because she was struggling after Phonics and language lessons 1&2. I need grammar for the youngest if you have any suggestions! Both of mine tested behind in grammar this year so I definitely need something more for that!
Grammar focus has been a common concern for many. What “grade” is your youngest?
You should look at some of the Good and the beautiful language arts free lessons. Their language arts program is amazing. It's very thorough. It has a lot of review and it flows seamlessly from one lesson to the next.
Thanks for the recommendation! ❤️
We use Masterbooks LA for my second grader and I was frustrated about the spelling as well. I use the extra stuff at the back to beef it up so we do a "pretest" on Monday and then practice the words throughout the week. I wish they had them at the beginning of the week though. The extra step doesn't bother me, at least not now 😅
I do plan to use it again for 3rd grade, mainly because I will have a newborn and need something to keep us on track and moving forward but also something relatively short. I think I am going to add some additional grammar though, especially after seeing some of the reviews like this.
Yes the short lessons will definitely help you during that transition period. You have a solid plan together!
@@LifeofTillmans do you have plans for American history yet?
@@samanthawoods615 I’m still researching that one 🤔😩 It’s a challenging subject for sure.
@@LifeofTillmans ideally I would LOVE a Christian one, but I am having a hard time finding one that fits our needs. I saw History Quest is coming out with one so I will try and sample that when it comes out, but I am so lost and have so much anxiety over what to do for US history.
@@samanthawoods615 same here but I’ve not had much research success. However I’m not giving up. It may take a little adding to and taking away but we will get there. 🙏🏽🙌🏽
I do like Master Books but with that said we only use it as extra review during the week.
I can definitely see it being used for review.
I agree with the review. LLFLE (and MLFLE) is not for us. We are really liking Christian Light Education (CLE)
Thanks for the recommendation!
Look into Lifepacs from Alpha and Omega
Thank you!
Thank you, I kept saying to myself what is wrong with this curriculum? I felt like the information being given was just someone’s understanding of language, it wasn’t being taught from the basics and building on it thoroughly. It is just convoluted and And I felt like there was no real review. We did not do the spelling portion because we were using all about reading and all about spelling, but I swear all that we learned last year was, what is a noun?! The program, I think, is a hit because it’s easy and all in one. However, I think that it really needs to be rethought and re-written by someone with an English/language arts background. I don’t say that rudely, I just feel like everything that you said is everything that I saw in it and as a homeschool teacher and as a previous classroom teacher, this curriculum just felt like someone sat down and said this is what I want you to learn and this is how I understand it and I just wrote it down for you to read. There is no real teaching of the material, there is no real understanding to be had from what’s given to you and I didn’t like the way they would give you a rule and then give you a rule breaker along side of it and then you’re just supposed to memorize it. And like you said, it’s just like one day, here’s nouns. the next day, you move on to something else and then the following week you may do nouns again once and that’s it. It is a mess in my opinion. I used it for a child who needed to spend the bulk of their time on reading instruction, which I also highly recommend that no one use language lessons for a living education to teach reading, because it is not even curriculum in my opinion. So, my child was focused on all about reading and I just needed to touch on language arts, so this curriculum worked for that, but I only used it for the language arts pieces and those pieces were just not enough and like I said they were all over the place so I ended up having to supplement that. So, I’ve been looking at other things for this year for that same child and I haven’t found what I like just yet. However, I have found that the resource review books, like spectrum and others, actually are teaching language arts more fluently and consistently than the entire language lessons for a living education curriculum. So, I’m sorry this is so long-winded. It was just so good to hear everything that you said, because I kept going back and saying, am I missing something - why can’t I just articulate exactly how I feel about this curriculum… you did that for me.
I’m glad this helped you with your process. It can be hard trying to pinpoint certain things. I hope you all find something that works best for you all. It’s so worth the search. ❤️❤️❤️