Does R level lit assume that the student will have a full credit in literature only? Or does it allow time for writing, grammar, vocabulary, etc.? (I realize that grammar is not included; I'm just wondering about the time required for the lit.) I intend for my son's English credit to also include grammar, vocabulary, and composition, so I will need to take this into account as I think about how much of the literature to do.
Thanks
Michelle

Hi Michelle,
I'm no Dana from TOG but looking at the Loom document about credits may help a bit with this question.

We are going the English 9 - English 10 route ourselves, with lit, comp, vocab and grammar combined.
Gives a bit of leeway with the work too this way.
HTH,
Stephanie

I've been reading the Loom document on R lit and English credits, and I am SO CONFUSED!!! From what I'm reading, for either an English OR a literature credit, you are supposed to do 3/4 of the work for both literature and writing. This doesn't quite seem like it makes sense to me. Plus, it looks like MORE papers are required for the literature credit than for the English credit. How can that be if I'm also including some grammar and vocabulary study for our English credit? Or am I just totally confused?

Here is what I'm wanting to do: combine TOG literature, writing assignments (mostly TOG but may substitute other things), grammar (minimal--he's pretty proficient in this area--it will be in the context of writing), and vocabulary study (Vocabulary for the High School Student). I want all of these components to constitute an English credit. So, I am therefore trying to figure out if I need to cut more than the 9 weeks of literature recommended in the Loom so I don't have my student overwhelmed.

Thanks,
Michelle

I think you'd be fine if you did what you're outlining, Michelle, even if you don't cut 9 weeks of literature assignments. All that is really required for Literature is that your student read the books, have the discussions, and (we recommend) make sure that three of the writing assignments that he completes in the course of the year are literature papers. I think that just means that you pitch a few of the writing assignments suggested and replace them with the literature papers suggested. Does that make sense?

Dana is our credits guru, so maybe she could weigh in here as well in case I'm getting this wrong...

Christy Somerville

Hi Michelle,
So sorry you are confused! It's easy to do so however, with the plethora of choices and requirements.

So, just to simplify and hopefully provide you some clarity...

An English credit consists of some combination of literature, grammar, vocabulary, and writing. In Tapestry, we suggest that the literature comprise the largest portion of that English credit, with the second largest being writing. If you want to follow our suggestions, then yes, you would cut 9 weeks of literature assignments AND do two lit papers (one lit analysis and one lit comparison). These two papers *take the place of other writing assignments* if needed.

If your student is earning a literature credit (regular, not honors), he will complete at least 3/4 of the lit assignments AND complete three papers (one personal response, one lit analysis, and one lit comparison). These do not take the place of any writing assignments.

One BIG key before beginning is checking out your umbrella school's requirements. My umbrella school REQUIRES English I, II, III, and IV (and does not allow ANY honors). If you want to get lit or writing credits, those are considered electives and must be over and beyond the English credit.

Hope this helps!

Thanks, Dana and Christy. That does help. Part of what I forgot is that when everyone else talks about a "credit", they mean a year of work (or a Carnegie unit) whereas in Indiana a "credit" is a semester of work. So I was thinking he had to do two lit papers per semester, rather than per year. Folding these two writing assignments in for the whole year, and pitching a couple of others in order to get them in, seems much more doable than what I was thinking in my muddled mind yesterday!

Thanks!
Michelle

quote:

Originally posted by cjsomerville:
All that is really required for Literature is that your student read the books, have the discussions, and (we recommend) make sure that three of the writing assignments that he completes in the course of the year are literature papers.
Christy Somerville

Christy, I'm really trying to figure out how to ease my student into R literature. I've read in a few posts how mom needs to really hold her students' hands in some cases to help them begin to understand lit analysis. Should I have him attempt the questions in the SAP alone first, or will they be pretty difficult for someone just starting R lit and I should just plan on doing them together with him? What about the Thinking questions? Should I initially skip those, or attempt to walk through those, too? After two years of TOG, I'm getting pretty good at adapting, but I don't want to freak him out the first two or three weeks so he develops a massive fear of failure.

And one other question: I'm noticing the literary terms card bank that it is suggested they make. My son's handwriting is atrocious--not that he doesn't need to work on it, but the longer he writes, the worse it gets. What is your opinion of typing out the words/definitions? (NOT copying and pasting from the Loom, as I expect he will probably suggest ) If he types them, he still has to consciously think each word as he types and at least he'll be able to read them later. . .

Thanks so much!
Michelle

Hi Michelle! Good questions. :-) To answer the last one first, I've always been a fan of writing things out by hand because it does help you to remember them, but I also have a student whose handwriting is almost illegible, so I know what you mean. I think that the compromise you suggest is a good one, though I would also encourage you not to give up on the handwriting (maybe take away all his typing privileges, including email and facebook, until he can write legibly by hand? That might help if it's an issue of motivation).

As far as easing into R lit goes, I think it's always a good idea at the beginning to walk through things with your student, show him your answers and answer charts so he can see what a good response looks like, etc. On the other hand, he won't know what he doesn't know unless he tries to do some on his own. One thing I've found effective with my own students is to let them try the SAP's and any chart assignments on their own, and then in class give them a copy of my class plan and go through it with them, allowing them to read the answers and discussing what they say.

Overall, my advice to you is to require him to TRY FIRST on his own, and then come alongside him with help where he needs it. :-) Two other things I did with my own class of thirteen students from the very beginning was to tell them 1) This is why you're doing all this work, and this is why it's worth it, 2) it WILL be hard work, so don't expect it to be easy, and 3) just think of all the vocab cards you WON'T have to make, and all the terms and tools you'll already know, when we begin next year! Most of my students were beginning level last year, and I encouraged them throughout the year with reminders like "Hey, just think---next year you'll already know how to find an experiment in living! Next year will be so much easier!"

Because there are a finite set of terms and tools that we use each year, and because these repeat from year to year, your student's second, third, and fourth years of R lit really will be MUCH easier than his first year. So you can encourage him to persevere with the thought that everything he works hard at NOW is something he will have to work less hard at in the future. And I hope it also encourages you, because this means that if you have to skip a few things to keep your school year sane (e.g. if you had to, you might decide to skip all the sections on style and texture, and just focus on the topics dealing with characters and content), you can always come back to those things next year. :-)

I hope some of this helps. :-) Please let me know if you have more questions!