Customer Reviews

Primary Language Lessons

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this book because I had heard such wonderful reviews from the homeschooling community. When I received it, I was not disappointed. The lessons are thorough and my daughter enjoys doing them! The author uses picture and nature study as well as classic poetry and prose to teach the basics of grammar. There is no teacher preparation time required, and no complicated teacher's manual to follow. This gentle grammar introduction is a joy to use for student and teacher alike. There are two years of engaging lessons for the beginning grammar student, so it's a great buy! You'll love this one.

Emma Serl created a practical and varied grammar book. I purchased this unsure of what I really was going to be getting. I am pleased. Our homeschooled children find the book's requirements easy to understand but challenging to accomplish. It is recommended for second and third graders, but I simplify the assignments for our first grader, as well. They are learning some grammar basics but don't seem to realize the amount of their effort.

No expensive teacher's guide is needed. This is a good price for a practical and easy-to-use format.

I had previously looked at First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind and English for the Thoughtful Child. I found both titles lacking. I am very pleased with Primary Language Lessons! It has exceeded my expectations! It's a complete language/grammar book for grades 2/3. I would rate this my top recommendation for early elementary grammar/language.

This is a perfect book for 2nd & 3rd graders. As a mother of ten, I have found it to be gentle and delightful in its content and format, but a challenge for my children. The expectations for amount of copywork and dictation, as well as memorization of poetry is quite high, but not inappropriate. My children find a great sense of accomplishment when finishing these lessons. I am pleased with the variable content which includes the aforementioned disciplines as well as picture and literary narration, grammar, beginning composition, and word usage. The choices for art and poetry are especially nostalgic and beautiful. It was a wonderful surprise to find so much inside one little book.

My ds (10 y.o.) started using this book in August of this year (2007). He's on lesson 45 now, and I am very pleased. His spelling, punctuation, caps and other basic knowledge of grammar have improved immensely! His writing has become more expressive and enjoyable to read. He is able to use this book for independent learning. The only times he needs me are to read aloud dictation lessons, to listen to his recitation of memorization lessons, and to mark mistakes on his finished paper so he can make corrections. He used to "hate" writing, but now it is his favorite subject...never thought I'd hear that from him! The lessons start out short in the beginning, but gradually get longer. If you have a reluctant writer and aren't sure how to teach grammar, give this book a try!

The book is hard bound, very sturdy...nicely made. I went for the "free shipping" option with Amazon, since I was getting the second book of this series also. I was a little nervous when I saw the projected shipping date, but Amazon actually shipped book 1 out the same day I ordered, so that I had it the next day! The other book followed a few days later. A great experience all around!

Before choosing this English / grammar book, I looked into First Language Lessons by Jessie Wise and English for the Thoughtful Child by Shearer and Hyde. I'm sure all are adequate, but I was looking for short, simple lessons that could be done daily. Upon flipping through F.L.L., I discovered incomplete poems and loads of repetition. (This book is also based upon Engish for the Thoughtful Child)

English for the Thoughtful Child was my 2nd choice here for its Charlotte Mason style. But it required more writing than I want for my 2nd grader and too much research for me.

Primary Language Lessons got 1st pick. Overall, it is a great, gentle introduction to English. The 4 stars are because, for me, I needed more examples and additional exercises to expound on the book itself. So I highly recommend the teacher's edition if you are new to homeschooling or are creating your own curriculum.

I also wanted to mention that this particular book has several of the "picture lessons" in COLOR, whereas I've heard the other editions are all in black and white. It's a nice touch.

This is a great book for second and third graders. It is very economical. It is nonconsummable to be reusued with other students later. I went through and made a schedule for myself and I did end up skipping a few lessons. Most of those lessons were observation or discussion lessons where questions were asked about certain flowers or birds that we were unfamiliar with. I would have had to have done some research first to complete these lessons. But don't let that deter you. The approach is wonderful and I am sure my son will learn a lot from this book. I have been the tradition text book mom before so I am excited to use this more gentle approach to grammar and language.

My kids didn't learn grammar from this book, which is what I was hoping this book would teach them.
We've been printing grammar lessons from these books.
[...]
Just click on the level you want and then print it.

Primary Language Lessons might be nice after a child has learned grammar, but this book doesn't teach grammar. It does teach verb tenses with "fill in the correct word" sentences, but the child does not learn that the words are verbs.
I was disappointed because I thought it was a grammar book.

Here's a couple of random lessons.

Lesson 11
(There's a picture of kittens (from a painting by Adam))
What do you see in the picture?
Where are the kittens?
If you had three kitten like these, what would you name them??
What is the name of this picture?
What's the artist's name?
Tell a story about the kittens.
(there are lessons much like this one through out the book)

Lesson 12
Read each question silently, and give the answer as a complete sentence.
(you'll need another book to teach sentence structure this one doesn't teach it)
With what is a cat covered?
Of what use is the fur?
When is the fur thickest?
When does a cat shed it's fur?
and on and on and on.

Here's lesson 59
Seeds
What seeds are scattered by the wind?
What seeds are scattered by clinging to the fur of animals and the clothing of people?
What seeds are carried by birds?
What seeds have shells?
What seeds grow in pods?
What seeds have husks around them?
What seeds have pulp around them?
(you're on your own to find the answers, because they're not in the book)

This book has poems to be memorized and letter writing but the composition part is nothing more than "fill in the blank" sentences.

I really wanted to like this book. I love old textbooks but this isn't one I will use.

This is a great resource for homeschooling language. It contains many poems and written exercises as well as classic art pieces for the children to be exposed to. The lessons are short and easily done in 30 minutes or so. Great tool to supplement traditional language lessons.

A fantastic little book for language arts study. Beautiful artwork for picture study, great poetry selections, dictation exercises, and more. We have thoroughly enjoyed it, and are looking forward to the next level!