Growing with Grammar users - could you please give me your $.02?

[klmama]

We're talking 4th-6th grade here. I need your most honest truth!

Is the fact that GwG is easy to read, has all the grammar explanations in one spot, and has less writing in the exercises going to make this less overwhelming and boring than R&S or A Beka for a house full of grammar haters?

Is the lack of color (we love color) and the fact that we have two student books to keep track of (more stuff!) going to drive us crazy?

For a right-hander, is the spiral at the top of the student workbook a detriment because the children forget to do the other page that they can't see?

If you would consider going back to either A Beka or R&S, what do you see in them as a benefit that GwG doesn't have?

Thank you for taking the time to answer!!!!!

[HollyDay]

I love it! Very straightforward. Very uncluttered. Easy to teach, plenty of review. Simple explainations that make it easy to understand. The top spiral has been no problem for either my lefty or my righty.

[Amy from WT]

My two cents -

The material is well organized,with plenty of review. I love the sentence diagramming added in periodically. Students can do it on their own with parents correcting their work daily after it is completed. We haven't had a problem keeping track of the two books. My lefty loves the top spiral; I'm a righty and I'll admit I haven't loved it when I look at it to correct it, but I've quickly gotten used to it.

We're visual people as well, and the workpages are so well-organized, that the lack of color has not bothered me at all. And my daughter hasn't complained about it. My feel about that...the world is not always going to cater to those of us that are visual...we've got to get used to the black and white at some point! This is a good time and place to do that.

We LOVE this program!

[Sue G in PA]

I love GWG. We started out using R&S (based on WTM recommendations) and while my dd11 doesn't mind using R&S, it drove my ds10 to tears. So, we switched to GWG and ever since then he has said that grammar is his favorite subject! Yeah! No more tears! I love how the workbook is laid out, just enough practice and review. My ds can do it independently except when he has quesions or challenges (he frequently has to review diagramming, but that's just him...not a flaw of GWG). It doesn't take him long to complete each set of pages. Personally, I find the top spiral a bit "annoying", but that's just me. :D That's a small thing! Yes, ds does forget to do the back page sometimes, but I think he "forgets" on purpose, KWIM? I can't say whether I prefer it over R&S, but if you made me choose..I think I'd choose GWG.

[Amy loves Bud]

My goodness, we will NEVER go back to R&S. GWG is easy to implement and my son understands grammar and can diagram very well for a 9 year old, IMO.

It is perfect for grammar-haters and grammar-likers.

[klmama]

If we are starting this in the middle and my dc haven't retained a lot of grammar from previous years, will they be okay jumping into the middle with 4th and 6th grades? Is there enough repetition to do that, or should we go back a level and/or buy earlier levels of student manuals for reference?

[Amy loves Bud]

If we are starting this in the middle and my dc haven't retained a lot of grammar from previous years, will they be okay jumping into the middle with 4th and 6th grades? Is there enough repetition to do that, or should we go back a level and/or buy earlier levels of student manuals for reference?

Well, my son started with GWG4 this year, and basically retained nada from R&S (in fact we quit 3rd grade grammar last year because it was such an awful experience). Everything he learned about grammar, he has learned since September. He had no problems understanding GWG4 with very little background.

HTH.