American Literature Set

As a former Literature Professor, I LOVED this course...my daughter; however, did not. She was excited (at first) for she is an avid reader and was excited about all of the reading that was suggested (expected by mom). That excitement and thrill quickly faded into the abyss as she discovered the amount of writing that was expected to accompany each chapter. There are weekly essays and requirements for in-depth analysis and reflection. If you have a child that struggles with self expression, an inability or reluctance to write and/or critical think outside the parameters of previous scopes of learning, this course will be a battle. Additionally, there were several texts that she refused to finish because they made her uncomfortable (these were the few books that dealt with adultery, implied adultery, as well as relationships outside of marriage: Scarlet Letter, Ethan Frome, Their Eyes Were Watching God, A Farewell to Arms, to name a few). Again, this course was absolutely well written and executed; however, it is not recommended for those that are not strong writers or who are reluctant writers. For all other students, I highly recommend it.

Definitely meant for the AP Student. This was the suggested material for Language Arts for my 10th grader. These concepts and reading were far from her 10th grade academic level, and very similar to my college lit classes. If your child is advanced in this area, it would be a great option. It's (from my perspective) challenging and thoughtful work, many reading options that I thought would be better for my senior than the grade level I purchased it for.

My 9th grader took this alongside MB American History. I love that there is an alternate schedule where you can chose from a list of books. Basically, you choose 1 book out of 3 for each section of literature. This is all listed in the link for the alternate schedule. I sat with my son in a Barnes and Noble with our stacks of 3. My son, who is a reluctant reader, leafed through the books, read the back covers and chose what he wanted to read. Choosing what he got to read helped a lot! He went into the school year with an open mind and ended up enjoying many books he never would've picked up otherwise. We did skip some of the short stories and made this curriculum work for our family. My goal was to work on growth which I think we accomplished.

The course is challenging and great for my 10th grader. The organization and everything is also good. However, some of the reading selections are bad choices for a Christian household.

If you're looking for an AP Level American Literature Class for your homeschool students, this is it. This 34-week course is comprehensive and does require students to read literature in advance in order to keep up with assignments. It will require a fair amount of parent involvement for scheduling, discussion, and grading. It does not include a recommended day-by-day schedule, which would be so beneficial. The product listing states it's for 9th-12th grade, but I would recommend this course for 11th-12th grade purely based on workload. This is definitely a college prep course. The teacher's guide does contain all of the concept builders, essay questions (with answers), and test answers.

American Literature is a high school level course that can offer 2 high school credit hours (1 Literature, 1 Writing) when used to its full potential. This course offers many great literature options by American authors that follows the same sequence as the High School American History course offered through Master Books. (Taking both courses together would offer 3 high school credits when used to its full potential.)

The teacher guide offers clear instructions on how to utilize the course, including options on how to grade, a complete list of books, and answers for activities in the student guide. One of my favorite parts of this curriculum, is that it explains that most, if not all, book selections may be available for free through your local library or online through public domain sites such as Project Gutenberg, making this an extremely affordable literature course. Each chapter gives the parent multiple essay options, if a writing credit is desired, as well as a test on the material from the chapter.

The student guide includes the chapter introduction and activities that are to be completed each day/week. At the end of each lesson, assignments are clearly outlined for the student. I especially like that they include telling the student to read future content ahead of the lesson to which it correlates to ensure the student can continuously move forward in the program rather than stopping to complete a book before it’s taught.

This is a wonderfully rich, but highly customizable high school literature course.

A literature course not for the faint of heart, students earn two full credits: one for writing and one for literature. It covers American Literature beginning at the start of the New Land and journeying to present day over 34 weeks of study, five days a week. This is a great course to teach student responsibility because it is set up for independent learning. Expectations include reading sometimes 200 plus pages in a week, practice writing or giving oral responses, weekly essays, and more. Weekly objectives and the read ahead schedule is very clear at the beginning of each chapter. I would definitely take the recommendation to heart to have your student start reading the literature the summer before starting this course in order to lessen their load throughout the year.

Challenging, yes. Even as a parent, learning how the course is designed and scheduled wasn’t a walk in the park, but this course is so rich and beautiful with the classics that are studied, it was worth the little bit of extra time in understanding how it is set up. I love the way that it maintains a biblical worldview even as you read from authors with different views and beliefs. This course will prepare any student preparing to further their education beyond high school.

The Teacher Guide for American Literature includes answer keys, student objectives, daily concept builders, and weekly essays and tests. In reading how to use this guide, it makes it clear that this course can be adjusted in difficulty and alternate books, movies, or plays can be used if you find one you would prefer your student to not be exposed to.

This guide follows the five lessons a week, over 34 weeks of study structure. Even though this course is set up for independent study by the student, as a parent, you will still need to be involved to complete grading and feedback. Honestly, I love this course and have enjoyed going through it also!

For each lesson, the assignments for the day for the student are listed, as are the answers for the daily concept builders. Essays options are listed for each chapter, along with answer summaries, as well as the chapter test answers, and discussion question answers. I appreciate that the teacher guide also includes the first thoughts and author worldview watch, as well as learning objectives and the recommended reading ahead schedule. This makes it easy to follow along with your student without needing access to their student book.

This literature course studies American Literature through history. I love the chronological nature of it and how it thoroughly includes a Christian worldview. There is even an entire chapter in the beginning devoted to understanding and studying worldview. I think this is so important in today’s world. The book includes important information in the text and assignments. The student will need to purchase or borrow the literature selections separately. I also like that it is a two credit course including both a credit in literature and 1 in writing.

This manual is laid out well and is a great resource for parents teaching this American Literature course. It includes the student objectives, assignments, and answer key. The American Literature course is a wonderful course presented from a Christian worldview and a historical perspective of American Literature.

-The teacher’s guide outlines student objectives with each chapter.
-Several different grading options are provided.
-Each chapter includes a test and essay options.
-Students learn from great American Literature books and selections
-Students can earn two full credits for this curriculum for writing and literature
-34 week intensive study
-Most assignments are based on the student’s opinions
-Warm-up exercises in each lesson are challenging at times but enjoyable
-Students will develop essay writing skills, have a solid worldview and gain a strong vocabulary
-This equips students to think critically about philosophy and trends in culture while articulating their worldview through writing.
Excellent course to prepare a student for college literature and literary analysis

This set includes both the Teacher Guide and the Student Text book. Both are necessary for the course. Parents should know there is reading for the course that your student should read before starting the course or at a minimum before the lesson begins. The list is included in the front of the book and also includes a few websites where you may be able to get the books for free to read if they aren’t available in your local library and you don’t want to purchase.

This course is for both writing AND literature – if you are tracking credits, students get a credit for each portion (2 credit course). Warm-ups, Concept builders, Daily reading and weekly essays and tests are part of each lesson. Each chapter is broken up into 5 lessons.

I appreciate the supplemental reading list at the end of the book – we are always looking for more to read. I also appreciate the schedule options supplement pdf that can be found on the American Literature page of the MB Website - “American Literature Schedule Options” – It gives options for when to start and end reading each required book. This is a course you will want to preview and plan ahead with, it is not as open and go as many other Master Books courses.

I love that American Literature and American History – both by Stobaugh – line up. Students can do both together and complete Writing, Literature and History in under 2 hours. I personally believe that having the connections between the texts will help solidify the information learned in each course.

The course begins with a discussion on Worldviews and how we form the worldviews we have. The text helps the student define their own worldview – and that of their family. From the discussion on worldviews, the text moves on to Literature starting in the late 16th century and moving through the different periods, all the way through literature of today. I find that, while advanced and could be used as an AP course, students should be able to keep up with the concepts discussed within each lesson. The author does a great job laying it out and tying in the readings so they don’t seem “pointless” to your student. There is a lot of vocabulary throughout the text (and readings) that your student may need to keep flash cards as he or she learns the new words.