Need help choosing literature program please!! . . .

[Momto5girls]

I posted below about dd, 10. She's working through a Spectrum book to prepare for the CAT this year, and I'm embarassed that we are both lost in the sections about analyzing literature. Somehow, we missed the boat on this one. We read alot, but never analyzed what we were reading. Some of the areas I'd like to cover are: genres of writing, elements of plot, foreshadowing, irony, mood, figurative writing, protagonist/antagonist, etc.

Ideally, I would like to use a lit program that covers these elements through the reading of real books/snippets of real books. We are taking the year off from SL, so we aren't really using a lit program this year. Does something like this exist? She is reading on a fifth grade level.

Any help would be appreciated.
Lisa

[Tammyla]

Are you looking only for literature? LLATL might cover the bill for 5th. You have time. Don't stress the past.

[Robin in DFW]

Here are some I've looked at, used, or am considering using....

Learning Language Arts Through Literature-simply done, but covers types of literature

How To Report On Books from Evan-Moor-you can see the whole book at their site (I think they have other books on literature as well)

Write Source Handbook

If I think of others, I'll post again. I'm getting lunch ready for the kids, so my mind is not functioning fully!

hth a little,
Robin

[Rebecca]

I could be wrong... so bear with me but doesn't Drawn Into The Heart of Reading by Heart of Dakota deal with this?

It might be something to look into.
Rebecca

[Dayle in Guatemala]

It covers literary elements and genres. It's wonderful, because you can also choose whatever books you or your dd want to read and not books they've chosen for you. The exercises are great for working with beginning to look at literature critically and also it's good for conversations.

Learning Language Arts Through Literature covers this a little bit, but, if that's not the direction you want to go in LA in general, you wouldn't get it all in one year.

With DITHOR, you will get a good grasp of it all the first year.

[Mamabyrd]

It is a complete literature program. The earliest level is for 5th grade, however. http://www.mosdospress.com/

[cherryblossom]

They introduce some elements you mentioned. They are sold through Rainbow Resource.

[Stacy in NJ]

Use a good lit guide. Cliff's Notes or Sparknotes are good. It would really be a huge waste of an entire year to choose a program based on the need to teach those elements. Search Wikepedia for "literary elements" or get a cheap workbook from amazon, something like Teaching Literary Elements with Short Stories.

[training5]

About Mosdos Press. THANK YOU for posting. I found their site a ways back and lost the bookmark. I have been trying to remember the name since! Have you used it yourself? Does it teach or already expect the child to know inference, etc.? We haven't covered any of this too much either. Thank you again!

[Fourmother]

Stacy, Thank you so much for posting this. I had never heard of Teaching Literary Elements before. I just found it at Rainbow Resource (http://rainbowresource.com/proddtl.php?sid=1201296337-1838687&subject=&id=030045), and it looks very good. Perhaps a fun summer enrichment activity.

[Lori D.]

"Figuratively Speaking: Using Classic Literature to Teach 40 Literary Terms" by Delanna Heidrich
published by The Learning Works
$16 ($12.25 at Rainbow Resource)
paperback; 136 pages (exercise answers included in the back pages)

Figuratively Speaking is a good resource to use in the middle school years to become exposed to 40 literary elements/terms. Each literary element is covered in 3 pages:
- definition of the literary element
- examples of how its used in well-known literature
- a page of exercises for practicing seeing/using the literary element
- ideas for further exercises or writing assignments using that literary element

We have used Figuratively Speaking by doing about 2 literary elements a week (each takes maybe 10 minutes).


As mentioned by others in this thread, Learning Language Arts Through Litertaure is also a great way to learn/practice literary analysis. (See sample pages at: http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/easy_find?Ntk=keywords&Ntt=learning+language+arts+through+literature&action=Search&N=0&Ne=0&event=ESRCN&nav_search=1&cms=1&Go.x=0&Go.y=0&Go=Go

Also, for 7th and for 8th grades, you might be interested in Lightning Literature & Composition. (See samples at: hewitthomeschooling.com/book/blight.asp)


BEST of luck in finding what fits well for both of you! Warmest regards, Lori D.

[KIN]

I just bought Teaching the Classics which would also fit the bill for what you are looking. I'll try to link it:

http://www.curriculumconnection.net/teachingclassics.htm

It is published through IEW, although also sold at Rainbow Resources. HTH!

[Janice in NJ]

Not a program, but can I suggest "Deconstructing Penguins?" It is a super-easy read, and I think it is very,very (did I mention VERY!!!) well done. *grin*
Can you see if your library has it? ISBN: 0812970284
My little guy looks at novels in a whole new way now. :-)

Another program that I used with my younger son that was very inexpensive was the reading program by Christian Light Education. This would not work as a secular program, but it really worked for us. Somehow I just never remembered to DO this stuff with the little guy on his own - yup - it fell by the way-side. Busy, busy momma! I picked up the complete reading program for less than $40 and we did it. I would sit with him for 3 minutes and get him headed in the right direction, and then he did the reading and workbook pages on his own. He brought it to me to correct it. That's when I could easily glance through it and see which literary analysis items they were focusing on. That's when the discussion happened. Easy. Simple. And it got done.

This January I have started carving out read aloud time with him by himself. We have things to talk about now.
Link to the program @ Rainbow Resource:
http://rainbowresource.com/prodlist.php?sid=1201298504-531182&subject=6&category=934

Have fun!

Peace,
Janice

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