Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew. Reviews are based on my personal opinion of the product. I am not paid to write about our experience, I simply want to share with you products that might bless your family as well!
English Grammar is one of those subjects that starts producing rich fruit in high school. Through middle school, our kids are learning how to think logically and practice grammar through more diverse writing. As they hit high school, they then take their logic and writing to a new level by expressing it with eloquence and excellence.
We have been using Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum’s English Grammar Skills for 8th grade with Adyn, and this product has given us confidence that he is ready to enter 9th grade with a thorough understanding of English Grammar, and ready to tackle writing assignments with greater ease.
What Is It?
From Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum, we received both a physical and digital copies of the full English Grammar Skills course. Though, digital copies are typically sold separately. The physical copy came 3-hole punched, ready to place into a 3-ring binder. It even included a cover page, spine, and back cover page. Visit my Instagram or Facebook page for a video clip of how I organized my binder!
There are 5 chapters total, with a coordinating soft cover text and activity book for each chapter for your student. Within my binder, I kept the answer keys and teacher resources. The lessons include:
- a reading of a short story or poem
- teaching of a new concept
- a life principle.
The short reading includes vocabulary to learn, as well as comprehension questions in the activity book. After reading through the new concept, your student then completes the activity questions, using the text for help when needed. Lastly, the life principles are wonderful quotes for your student to learn and memorize.
Our Experience
For each lesson, Adyn used both the text and activity book together. To begin, we would walk through the lesson together, making sure he understood the concept and directions. Then, I allowed him to independently finish the work, letting me know if he had any questions along the way.
Most days, we graded the lesson immediately, so we knew he was ready to move on the next day. Grading was quick as we did it together. He read the answers to me, and I corrected him when needed. Most lessons took on average of 30-40 minutes to complete, and since we work on a 4-day week schedule, we finished 3 lessons and often a quiz/test per week.
This product is geared towards 8th grade students, and we found it very easy to navigate for both Adyn as student and I as teacher. It is clearly laid out, from how to organize a binder to how the course works in general, to how to grade the assignments.
My Opinion
What I like most about English Grammar Skills by PAC is the ease of use. I expect my 8th grader to be mostly independent at this age, and this is a program I could feel confident knowing he would grasp the concepts and be able to complete the work with minimal help.
It was very helpful to have the chapter texts and activity books separately printed out. My son is rough on his books…so this avoided having to deal with ripped or bent pages through the whole course. As soon as we finished a chapter, he got a fresh new set of books. It also gave the sense of accomplishment as he began a crisp set of books and motivated him to complete his work.
Having everything 3-hole punched was SUPER helpful! It really set the tone for an “open and go” feel for this product. I didn’t have to spend more than 30 minutes setting it up and reading through the material to feel ready and confident to begin.
The concepts presented, such as parts of speech, were easy to follow and made learning enjoyable for Adyn. At this age, he has been presented with these before, even a couple times in other curriculums. So, with English Grammar Skills, it was a great opportunity to review the concepts and hone-in and master them, which is perfect as we enter high school this fall!
I would recommend English Grammar Skills by PAC to any homeschool family with an 8th grader! You will benefit from the ease of this course, whether your student has little English Grammar background or has studied it for years already. I was very happy we chose this course!
Visit the “>Homeschool Review Crew website to read more reviews of Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum’s English Grammar Skills and more!
We used English Grammar Skills, but other families used various products from Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum, including Government, Communication Skills and English 1 Language. Be sure to visit the Homeschool Review Crew to read more reviews!
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