First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind: Level 3 (First Language Lessons)

I have just finished doing nine weeks of lesson planning for the fall when we start third grade using this book for our grammar lessons. We have already finished Level 2. I will say that when we finished Level 2 my seven year old son said, "Oh, I like that book." As if the book was a dieing favored pet. I love Level 2 with some modifications that I made to fit my son.Now, as to Level 3, the first thing that I do not like is the fact that I had to buy two books. You have to buy the student workbook since she references it up to 11 times per lesson. Level 2 does not require a workbook and that worked out perfect for us. I do not like having to purchase an entirely separate book and based on the first 9 weeks, other than having him follow along in the book, I will not be using the pages. My son works better if he can learn about grammar by writing on the board or spreading words out on the floor. The authors' approach is very monotonous as stated but other reviewers but you can make adjustments to fit your student. For instance, I do not have my son repeat a definition 5-10 times per lesson. If he can tell me the definition in his own words and put the rule to use then we move on until we review the concept, which is done weekly through grammar games that I make up.I love this series because it directs me in an organized fashion as to what he needs to know at his age and this alone makes the book worth the money. There are sample schedules at the back of the book that I use as a guide post but modify to fit his learning curve. It is a rigorous grammar program for his age but it is done in an easy step-by-step approach that does not make it overwhelming for him. She builds on the concepts over the 36 weeks and does frequent reviews of all the topics covered. He actually enjoys his grammar lessons and can easily tell you what all the parts of speech do, which none of his public school friends can do.I would highly recommend this book without reservations but be prepared to make adjustments as necessary since I do not know any child who would like repeating definitions everyday and the workbook to me is not that helpful (I would rather have him work on notebook paper if the concept requires it). Happy teaching!!

I've used the First Language Lessons from the beginning and my children have responded well to their style. The only reason I am not giving this a 5 star review is because I bought the kindle edition and it is not a true electronic book. Because of this, the charts are very difficult to read. They are not size adjustable and don't fit on the kindle page. For example, Lesson 4 has a chart on the first page, it has 4 columns in the chart and there is no setting that allows viewing of the whole chart. The 4th column is half missing when sized to the smallest font possible. Each and every chart in the book is partially broken that way. I find it to be unacceptable. Another issue with this kindle version came up in the very first lesson. The student is supposed to be learning about how a table of contents work and they want you to use your teacher's manual to demonstrate how they work, but there are no page numbers in a kindle book table of contents. If you are selling a digital book it should at least be fully readable and usable. I'm disappointed and wish I'd bought the paperback instead.

We have homeschooled the last two years and this curriculum covers all the bases when it comes to language arts. It covers the parts of speech but also engages the mind in poetry, listening skills, copy work and more. We love it.

I've used the last two levels in this series and I wish grammar was taught to me this way. It is simplified, thorough, repetitive and scripted. I mention scripted (and you obviously can explain the lesson any way you prefer) for those that may feel intimated teaching grammar for the first time (referring to homeschooling) or English is your second language. The lesson covers Comprehension, Parts of Speech and sentence structure, Narration, picture narration, dictation and sentence diagramming. I also bought the workbook and I'm glad I did! I almost didn't but the workbook because we had finished two levels without it, however, even during the last level I wished I had one.

We began using this 6 months ago to replace Sonlight's Language Arts. It is working beautifully. My 9 yr old son is learning so much grammar. He is diagramming sentences and memorizing poems. He enjoys memorizing the grammar rules.I love how all the lessons are very simple with promptings for the parent/teacher. It tells you exactly what to say to the student along with expected answers from the student.This product has made the Language Arts part of our home school so much more enjoyable. We use this along with Writing With Ease for a thorough Language Arts education.You need to buy the workbook for ease of use. I believe you can make your own student pages but why would you want to? The investment is well worth it!

I am using levels 1 and 3 concurrently with my children, and like many of these reviews state, the program is great. The only caveat: I'm using level 3 in ebook format, and it is incredibly awkward. I've tried using it on both my paperwhite and my windows laptop, and it's very difficult to jump back and forth to the poems, view lessons as a whole, and I'm constantly losing my place. Pay a little extra for the physical book - it's well worth it.

Great open and go curriculum (you need both the teacher's guide and the student workbook) for teaching grammar. It has been extremely helpful.

This curriculum was not a good fit for my gifted child, who found it tedious. But for my average child this has been great. The repetition should be adapted to your child. Don't repeat things 3 times if you know your kid already knows it. Grammar is going much better with sentence diagramming. I really see improvement.

Love it! What else can I say? We've worked our way through Level 1 and Level 2, and are now working our way through Level 3. Yes, there's a lot of repetition but that helps a child retain what I believe to be the key aspects of grammar. This approach of learning may not be everyone's cup of tea but I love it and, most importantly, so does my home-schooled child.The lessons are short and straightforward. There's a script for the instructor, which I love as I don't / wouldn't have the time to come up with a lesson plan for every day. The job is done for me, and with some tweaking here and there, I can easily 'teach' my child grammar. I recommend.

It's simple for the parent. It explains everything to the child, in words they can understand making sure the adult does not make any assumptions as to what should be understood at that age. I was able to go though this with my daughter, who was not happy with other English systems that base themselves on constant tests and dont teach anything

The books by Peace Hill press are all excellent. Don't let the size of the textbook and workbook deter you. It's in small chunks and easily doable a few times a week. It's all scripted in the textbook. You will need the workbook for the student to use. Came well packaged and in good conditions. I would buy from this seller again. The

Love it

First Language Lessons is my "go to" product for teaching grammar/writing skills. I love all of Jessie Wise and her daughters product, but what I really like? My children love them too! I really appreciate the fact that they have everything written out for parents. Along with guidelines on how to correct, or redirect a child who has the answer wrong. We have been using this product/series for a few years working our way through them. Highly recommend this for any parent homeschooling or not!