12 things I DIDN’T KNOW about TGTB HIGH SCHOOL Language Arts & Adjustments We Made // Next Year???

Even though you research, you don't always grasp all parts of a curriculum and such was the case with THE GOOD and the BEAUTIFUL HIGH SCHOOL LANGUAGE ARTS when we purchased this for my 9th grader:

When you purchase new homeschool curriculum, you may have an IDEA of how its supposed to work, but the reality is many times, you just have to dig in and see for yourself. When I purchased The Good and the Beautiful Language Arts for High School, I had a little knowledge because my sister in law had used it for her high schooler the previous year. Apparently, I didn't ask enough questions! But that's life...you live and you learn!

So I'm going to share with you 12 things that I think would be helpful to know and understand if you are brand new to this TGATB high school course....or even if this is your 1st year using it!

This video is a collaboration with Colleen from "OUR BLESSED LIFE" I reached out to Colleen because she had experience with IEW, Lost Tools of Writing, and also The Good and the Beautiful high school language arts. Knowing what she knows now....having a senior high school homeschooler, would she do anything different with her language arts choices? Check out her video here:

VIDEO CHAPTERS:
The backstory of the conundrum…should we continue with TGTB or go back to IEW/Lost Tools?
Collaboration with Our Blessed Life!
3:01 12 things I didn’t realize when we purchased
3:34 #1 confirmation email
4:07 #2 storage for Mom
4:28 #3 20/20 vision
4:46 #4 lots of extra helps
5:18 #5 grading the unit booklet
6:17 #6 unit schedule
7:19 #7 “extra” projects
9:14 #8 Mom’s engagement
12:00 #9 checklist for writing papers
12:48 #10 spelling dictation
13:43 #11 high school credits
15:18 HOW should we use this curriculum? What if you can’t finish all 10 units?
16:53 #12 How to grade & tailor the grading

I hope this video is helpful as you consider The Good and the Beautiful high school language arts program, HS1! Spoiler…I do think this is a great homeschool language arts curriculum for high school!
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Other "OUR HOMESCHOOL PLAN" videos you should check out:

IEW vs. LTW
Institute for Excellence in Writing vs. Lost Tools of Writing - PT. 1 (compares cost, what you get, and how IEW works)

HOW LOST TOOLS OF WRITING WORKS - PT. 2:

HOW I'M TEACHING MY HIGH SCHOOL TO BE AN INDEPENDENT LEARNER:

PARENT - STUDENT CONFERENCE DAY IDEAS:
(this is when I check in with my high schooler weekly)

ARE YOU WEIGHED DOWN BY CURRICULUM?
Rethinking how we use homeschool curriculum:

HOW TO HOMESCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL PLAYLIST:
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COMPASS CLASSROOM:

INSTITUTE FOR EXCELLENCE IN WRITING (IEW)
TEACHING WRITING: STRUCTURE AND STYLE :
(this link will take you to the Teaching Binder, but on the left side, you can find other products by filtering what you need. Theme Based writing can be accessed there, or choose your grade level first.)

TUTTLE TWINS book series:

NOT CONSUMED MINISTRIES:

MASTERBOOKS:
Checkout products here! We love Masterbooks & all Answers in Genesis products!
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THRIFTBOOKS!
Use this code for 15% off your first purchase!

PASSIONATE PENNY PINCHER PLANNER:

ERIN CONDREN PLANNER:

Video editing software I use: FILMORA:

*These are affiliate links
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Follow me on Instagram: rachel_ourhomeschoolplan

#homeschoolcurriculum #homeschool #thegoodandthebeautiful

[Michelle-slgj]

We just finished the HS year 1 curriculum. She liked one of the books, but the rest were just ok. She prefers fantasy. She really enjoyed Patterns on the Wall. I really likes that they have you read Up from Slavery since it is written by Booker T. Washington that lived during that time. I have read one of the books she will be reading next year, and I loved it! It is now one of my favorite books!

[simplejoyfilledliving]

I always had Katie turn in a rough draft and I would give her things to correct without actually correcting it so she had to think through it. So I would say, "your grammar needs work", without telling her exactly what to fix. She was able to take it from there. We also continued using the LTW stand IEW skills. They help so much!

[simplejoyfilledliving]

This video will be so helpful as people get started with TG&TB! Another thing I have seen moms miss is the reading challenge. Sometimes they don't realize that you are supposed to add extra books to the program.

[melissacapps]

I can’t thank u enough for this video. This is the only video about the HS TGTB that really gets into the nitty gritty. I’ve been on the fence about their HS for a while. It would work for one of my kids but I have one that struggles and it just doesn’t seem like a good fit. Thanks again for this!

[upcountrycharlottemason]

I have a son who started out using TGTB Year 1 this year. We dropped it after 3.5 units because he wanted a more rigorous literature plan, he didn't like stretching a thin novel over several units. He was frustrated with the unit checks requiring him to write about the same book repeatedly. I also wish that TGTB separated out the art and geography. Generally, we don't care for programs that incorporate several subjects. I'm sure that is just our personal quirk. If TGTB sold a separate art history program I would purchase it in a heartbeat. I also wish that there was a better teacher manual and a syllabus/course schedule. We have a CC background too. We use Janice Campbell's Excellence In Literature; and love it.

[ourthriftyhomeschool]

This is so helpful! High school can be so daunting…I’ve been so curious about TGTB language for high school, so this was hugely helpful!

[SevenInAll]

You're right that it can be confusing to figure out where the answer key is! Love this collaboration idea and video! One of the reasons we put the 10th grader on TGTB Language Arts is because she has very solid grammar skills as far as the nitty gritty of word choice, punctuation, capitalization, etc. (mainly from Abeka) and she is naturally good at organizing and putting together compositions (I don't really think she learned that from anywhere in particular)--Abeka pretty much does the exact same thing for all 4 years of high school, so we just had her do one year, she learned it, and then moved onto something a little more 'fun' for her. For us, she does it 100% independently, and just asks questions whenever she has something she's not sure about, and goes over her writing assignments when she's done with mom or me once she has a solid draft (and I am also the pick it apart type. lol! My mom is not as tough as I am on writing...) You're reminding me that my mom wants me to print out unit 8 for her...when we finish it I'll probably make a video reviewing my thoughts on its strengths and weaknesses.

[simplejoyfilledliving]

Those additional videos were so helpful!

[kgn]

I agree 100% in regard to tayloring the curriculum for your student!! We used TGATB for middle school and now 9 th grade. We love TGATB! Very thorough, although we may look into IEW after listening to your input!! Thank you!!

Our Blessed Life has been so helpful to us as well!!

[sheilasepulveda]

This is our second year using TGTB for high school and so far so good. We only got through 8 units last year and I was totally fine with that. I do have a struggling learner that I sit with when she works on LA so nothing was really a surprise to me per say. My kids seem to like it but we don’t really have much to compare it to. I think someone else mentioned this but I don’t print the answer key, I just pull it up on my computer and ZOOM until I can see it 😆 It is super fine print!! Thanks for your video, I always like to see how other people do things in their homeschool ☺️

[JoyfulNoiseLearning]

Ha ha! The magnifying glass! 😆 That’s awesome, Rachel 👍🏻👏🏻

[sjones]

This is by far the best video I've seen for tgab highschool! You did such a great job breaking everything down.

[kayegenin]

I’m in undergrad right now, and I will say all of the rubrics I have seen for my papers don’t emphasize grammar a lot. Most assignments prioritize the content and structure above grammar.

[OneMamaToAnother]

This was really interesting to watch. We've used TGTB Highschool 1 & 2 and like them. We don't do credits though, or a ton of grading so that's not an issue for us.

[crystalkurtz]

Ouch my head hurts😩 We started this and have kinda stopped because I felt like we were always missing something. I think we’re going to work more on IEW and LTOW because he only did a year each with both. His grammar is solid! He rocked 2 years of Essentials at CC. I really wanted to like this curriculum but I feel like there is so much hidden info kinda like “ but wait there’s more!” 🤣😅
We’re doing Shormann Algebra 1, Thinkwell honors biology, David Raymond’s American History, Dave Ramsey’s personal finance. He is doing great in all those classes! I love having someone else teach 😅
All my attention goes to his younger brother who is dyslexic.

[karenposselt]

Thanks that was so thorough! I have all 3 levels but you mentioned a couple of things I hadn’t thought of. I used level 1 for my son last year and we had mixed feelings. This year I’m mixing up levels two and three as they go with our world history curriculum. So we’re using the Middle Ages and Shakespeare sections, for example, and we’re going to save anything American for next year when we do government for history so we can do an American lit credit. We aren’t using most of the lit that comes with it. I’m doing other books that go along with our history. For the issue you mentioned with the tiny print, what I do is I don’t print it. I correct it using the computer, and on the computer screen you can easily adjust the print size.

[jennajadeg]

I love this. Seriously thinking of switching to TGTB for high school, 9th grader next year. She is a struggling learner though. Your ideas on a struggling learner going into TGTB. As a mom who struggles with Lang Arts, are there other ways to edit the papers, right now I am using Grammarly to make sure I have zoned in on what needs work. Phew! So much to consider. I feel like time is rushing by and I am just standing in the wind lol! Love to know your insights!

[cottingtonmae]

I wanted to comment that I sooo appreciate these videos even a year or two or three later!! Thank you so much for doing them! I am excited to move my daughter on to the HS levels, as she has so far liked TGTB from levels 3-6 so far. I know the HS levels will be slightly different for her, and I want to make sure to challenge her while still keeping it fun. And good to know about the grading for completion, so, I will need to change that up! You are so good that you pulled out the checklists anf whatnot from IEW!!

[RockSimmer-galGod]

My God sister loves TGTB language arts for her kids and it got me interested and when I pulled my kids out of school their reading wasn’t grade level and TGTB got them there. I’m loving the grammar work in TGTB language arts!!! I’m planning on using the high school levels when we get there but unsure. The answer pdf in the email I doubt I would find on my own. The videos sounds awesome!!! We add extra time for the lower levels as my kids are below grade level in language arts!!! I’m already engaged on the independent work.

[homeschoolteenswithjenny]

We're in Unit 3 right now with my 9th grader. Honestly, I didn't give the grading any thought when it came to just a completion grade. I check his work EVERY DAY though, so he is working WITH me and correcting his work as we go. IMO, they aren't going to just jump into independence their first high school year. I work towards that, but I don't mind partnering with him on key core subjects to make sure he is understanding. I also use Homeschool Planet as my homeschool planner, and I schedule one unit at a time for him. So he gets a checklist of assignments every day. I will let him start navigating how to break down assignments maybe next year bc I wanted him to get familiar with it first before I just hand him a unit book. Otherwise, he would get way too overwhelmed. --- We do geography as an added bonus (I don't count it on his transcript), but we don't do any art assignments in the back of the unit.