Omnibus primary & secondary sources Question

[SS in MD]

I'm considering Omnibus III primary & secondary for dd (9th grade). If we can afford VP online we'll go that route.

I've read previous posts regarding Omni primary & secondary that dc have used secondary as English credit. How did you do that since there is no grammar/mechanics in secondary readings/omnibus guide. Did you add english topics in or simply have child write more essays?? Our state requires 4 years of English, so I'm not sure if on dd's transcript I wrote Modern Lit (for 9th grade Omnibus secondary readings) that would count as English?... hope this makes sense!

Thanks for your help
Sangita

[Michelle in MO]

I'm considering Omnibus III primary & secondary for dd (9th grade). If we can afford VP online we'll go that route.

I've read previous posts regarding Omni primary & secondary that dc have used secondary as English credit. How did you do that since there is no grammar/mechanics in secondary readings/omnibus guide. Did you add english topics in or simply have child write more essays?? Our state requires 4 years of English, so I'm not sure if on dd's transcript I wrote Modern Lit (for 9th grade Omnibus secondary readings) that would count as English?... hope this makes sense!

Thanks for your help
Sangita

that prior to doing Omnibus III, the student has done plenty of grammar work. If someone has used most of VP's materials, they will have gone through Shurley Grammar and IEW for writing. IIRC, neither the primary nor the secondary readings in Omnibus incorporate any grammar work. By that time the student is expected to be able to read, discuss, and write about the literature.

I'm a little confused by your question, though. Are you planning on doing all of Omnibus III, or only the secondary readings? According to the people at VP, doing all of Omnibus III counts as 1 credit each of history, theology, and literature. If you are planning on doing only the secondary readings, then you might keep track of the hours involved with the reading, discussions, and written assignments, and then see if those hours approximate the amount of hours one would normally require of a high school student per credit. I'd say that would range from 120 hours(at the low end, imo) to 180 hours (at the high end). I would definitely make them write about the literature that they are reading, though.

Also, I have not used Omnibus III, but look at the book list and decide whether or not most of the works are literary or historical or theological in nature. Omnibus has a weighted system assigned to each book (i.e., one book might be given a rating of 3 for theology, 5 for literature, and 2 for history), which I think you get when you actually purchase the book with the teacher's CD, or else you could call the people at VP and see if this info. is available on their website.

Hope this helps! If I've misunderstood anything, please feel free to clarify. :)

[Moira in MA]

By high school, most English courses are literature-based. There are usually writing exercises and essays based on the materials read.

English mechanics like grammar and spelling are covered in context and do not form a separate course.

I would suggest you do a search for English grade 9 syllabi to get a feel for what typically covered.

hth
~Moira