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Thank you!

I am doing Level B with my daughter now, and it usually takes us around 30 minutes depending on the lesson and whether or not we do the review exercises at the beginning.

Oh wow, that’s not bad! Most of what I see says each lesson is taking 60 minutes, and we will also need to add in the reader. Are you doing it over one year or two?

@@laurene9166 I am very relaxed with our pacing because I like to take my time and enjoy the wealth of exercises and activities, so I do not try to fit it all in 1 year. Adding the reader will also stretch it out a bit because the reader activities can add another day or two depending on how many of the activities you choose to do.

Since we used Logic of English Foundations prior to this, I started Essentials Level B with my kids around 2nd or 3rd grade, depending on when we finished Foundations. If you haven't used Foundations, you could probably start with Essentials Level A in 1st grade if your child already knows how to read and write. Essentials will build upon basic reading skills and teach spelling, vocabulary, and grammar.

I modify the lessons as needed, reviewing what we need to review and skipping over things we don't. If you have the phonogram flashcards, you can drill those weekly. We have the LOE phonogram app, so I have my child play that once or twice a week for a complete photogram review.

The LOE Essentials Reader is more along the line of the LOE Foundations D non-fiction readers. It focuses more on new vocabulary words that incorporate the phonograms, with some activities that include Venn diagrams, copywork/dictation, and other activities to enhance comprehension/discussion. If you enjoyed the Foundation D readers and activities, then you would probably like the Essentials Reader. If you are looking for more literature than non-fiction, I would suggest looking into Bravewriter Literature Singles. store.bravewriter.com/collections/literature-singles

​@@amandamedlin8087 t I've been looking over Bravewriter another literature based curriculum called Blackbird.. your feedback is super helpful, thank you!

This edition has been out for several years so I would recommend checking homeschool used book/curriculum sales or even Facebook groups that are set up for selling used homeschool materials.

You are very welcome! He was 8 when I filmed this. He is now 13! I am getting ready to begin LOE Essentials with my third child who is now 8.

Hi Mary, I think Essentials is great to use with older kids, especially those who don't have a firm foundation like you mentioned. It is also set up in such a way that it is easy to teach multiple levels at the same time. It is very customizable. Hope that helps!

Hi Julie, I would recommend finishing the LOE Foundations program. Foundations D is more advanced than C, and teaches some important spelling concepts that you don't want to skip. The workbook is also more colorful and fun than the Essentials workbook, so I think it would appeal to your 7.5 year old more. Hope this helps!

Hi Freda! I have never used the Essentials readers so I cannot give you an honest opinion on those. I have used the Foundations readers with my younger children, and was very pleased with those. Spelling is a large focus in the regular Essentials lessons, so that would definitely help your struggling speller. However, reading is not focused on in the regular Essentials lessons, so I would suggest adding the readers since your 4th grader is struggling in that area. Everything Logic of English creates is so well-thought out and intentional to teach the students in a "logical" way, that I'm sure they would be beneficial to your 4th grader!

There are some fun games in Essentials, but not as much as Foundations. I would recommend getting the Phonogram Game Cards (found under Core Materials in the LOE store, they also come with some of the Essentials sets). They have also come out with a Game Book/Set (the Phonogram Game Cards are in the set) that would make things extra fun! I would recommend reading through this flow chart to see which programs/supplements would be right for you. assets.logicofenglish.com/downloads/loe-help-me-choose.pdf

We skipped Level A because he was ready for Level B after completing Foundations. Sometimes I would include some of the Level A content if I felt it was helpful for review. Essentials is designed to take 5 days to complete 1 lesson, and there are 30 lessons. So if you plan to work on Essentials everyday, you can definitely complete that level in 1 year. It is a lot of content, so you would need to block out 30-45 minutes a day for this. If you would prefer to stretch it out a bit more, you can cover one lesson over 2 weeks, and take 2 years to complete that level. That is what we did. When you go back to complete Level C, you can just focus on teaching the Level C content and review what you already taught in Level B as you feel necessary. So Level C would probably just take 1 year. Hope this helps!

Amanda Medlin this is helpful! Thank you for the great review and feedback!

I think Essentials A would be perfect for your second grader!

Check out the Logic of English Phonics with Phonograms app! My kids love to play it and it's a great way to review all the phonogram sounds.

@@amandamedlin8087 friend, this app is one of my least favorites, because i’m scared.

Check out this post on the LOE website... logicofenglish.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360019542892-Can-Logic-of-English-be-used-for-ELL-

The workbook covers all levels, some parts where all three levels are combined for an activity, and some parts specific to a certain level. If you wanted to just go back and complete the level B and then the level C specific activities, you could re-use the same workbook. If you feel like your student would benefit from redoing the combined activities, you could purchase a new one. I believe they also sell the workbook in a PDF format, if you wanted to print the worksheets.

@@amandamedlin8087so does that mean you don’t do the “all” stuff when you go back to use Level C? As in, some activities say “all” so they can be used at whatever level the child places into at first and then doesn’t need to do them again the second or third time through on the next level? If you did all of the “all” worksheets during level B, do you just exclusively do the Level C activities the next year without redoing the “all” worksheets? (Hope I’m making sense.)

@@Lilc97Jax If you covered the "all" material/worksheets in Level B, I would just go back and do the specific Level C activities, only repeating the "all" in the areas you feel your student may need a good review or further practice. Essentials is really customizable in this way.

@@amandamedlin8087 okay, thank you so much for explaining!

Yes! Check out this link to their website for more info on using Logic of English Essentials for ELL. www.logicofenglish.com/ell

Yes, the Foundation series is much more colorful and visually engaging for the younger students.

Hi A M- Have you used The Good and the Beautiful Lang. Arts curriculum? I am looking into both LOE and G&B to see which one is more beneficial. Any feedback or suggestion would be very helpful?

Not at all. Level C is completely new material and spelling lists.

Since I have made my review, they have broken Essentials down into 4 sets vs 2 sets because when the sets were broken down into Lessons 1-15 and 16-20, the teachers book was huge and cumbersome. That being said, yes, you would be buying a new set every 8 lessons and the lessons are covering 1 week at a time. I, however, have never managed to complete a lesson in one week. There is so much covered in each day of the lesson that it usually takes us longer to complete. If that was the case for you as well, you could spread your purchases out a bit more. There is also the three levels to cover, so after completing the lessons at Level B with my son, I am now going back and teaching him the Level C material while I am teaching my younger son Level B. LOE can be expensive, but I personally feel it has been worth the investment for us. Hope this helps!

@@amandamedlin8087 That helps tremendously! I was wondering about each lesson only taking one week, because it seemed like it was so rich in material. Another question I had, would I then use the same book to go back through the materials but add in the "b" and "c" items the second and third time through the material? Also, are there student sheets (it looked like there were from your video) similar to the sheets we use in foundations? Do the sheets vary from "a" to "b" to "c"? Thank you for all your help! It's so overwhelming to figure things out at first, but then you get into them and it seems easier. At least thats what I found when we started foundations with LOE. Overall we have absolutely loved the foundations so I am excited to move into essentials in the fall!

@@carissa-explains-it-all Yes, both the teacher's book and student book have all levels, so you can reuse them. Coming straight from Foundations, you will probably be able to jump into Level B. I feel like Level A is more like Foundations for those who didn't go through Foundations first. But there are assessment pages at the beginning so you can determine what level your child needs to begin with. We started with Level B and then went back and focused just on the Level C areas, reviewing the general areas as needed. It will make more sense once you have the book in hand.

Thank you!

@@amandamedlin8087 i just pause the video for me to explore the page if i want to.

LOE presents a lot of "rules" and I think a child could get overwhelmed if made to memorize all of them. We personally just memorize the most used ones like "English words do not in I, U, V, or J" or "to make a noun plural, add the ending -s, unless the word hisses or changes, then add the ending -es." Like any curriculum, I think it is important to feel freedom to adapt the lessons to best fit you and your children. We occasionally opt out of things that I don't feel are necessary, but overall, I think LOE is the best out there for teaching handwriting, reading, spelling, and grammar.

It would be a lot if you try to do a complete lesson for each of them everyday, but manageable if you break each lesson down to teach over a spread of 2-3 days. This is what I do and it works well for us. This way we can take our time to really get into each activity in the lesson vs rushing through them just to check them off my list. It's a great program and so thorough, I think it is worth getting and going through at a slower pace if necessary. Hope this helps!

Amanda Medlin - thank you for responding. Funny enough I was just reading your blog and had no idea until I saw the video LOL. How does this sound to you? Foundations A for my K and then do Essentials with my going to be 2nd grader and my current 4th grader. I would just implement this program as soon as it arrives instead of waiting until next school year. Does that seem doable? That way I’m only doing 2 instead of 3. Also, to make Essentials a full LA program, do you use anything else?

That sounds like a good plan. Essentials has parts of each lesson broken down into 3 levels (such as spelling words), so you could easily go through the book with both your 2nd grader and 4th grader, using the appropriate level for each one. There is a pre-test in the beginning of the book to determine their levels. Essentials covers everything except Creative Writing. I implement some of BraveWriter's philosophies and writing activities along with LOE, but very casually as to not overload myself or my kids.

I do feel that LOE is strong in grammar, especially when you get to Essentials, which I started with my son in 2nd grade. For math, we have only used (and love) Math-U-See. I feel it also teaches using a logical and hands-on approach using manipulatives. My boys also really enjoy the DVD lessons that introduces the new concept for the week.

Thank You! : )

Each lesson is broken down into 5 days, and each day takes about 30-45 minutes to complete. Because I am homeschooling multiple children, that is a bit long for my schedule, so I would often take two days to complete one day's lesson, so as to only spend 15-20 minutes on Essentials at a time.

Thank you! That's really helpful in the planning!!

It is a little pricey, but you can use it for several years because of the 3 levels. It also works in our homeschooling budget because I buy it for my oldest and then use it again with my younger children.

Thank you so much! I am glad you found it helpful!

There are 15 lessons (weeks) in the book and each lesson is broken down into 5 days, which each take roughly 45 minutes to complete. Each day is broken down into smaller sections, so you can easily find a mid-way stopping point if you would rather spend less time each day on this subject and use the Volume 1 for 2 semesters instead of 1 semester. Because it is not grade specific and has various levels, you can easily use this curriculum for several years. That is my plan.

Thank you! I am glad you found it helpful. Essentials is broken into 3 levels all within the same book, and I think Level C would be great for 9-10 year olds. I don't think it is too late at all. I have learned so much about our English language by teaching LOE!

Thank you:)

I would start him in Essentials. Foundations is designed for ages 4 - 7 and spends a lot of time on basic phonogram sounds and handwriting. Essentials also teaches/reviews the phonograms and spends more time on spelling and grammar. With Essentials, you will still cover most everything you would with Foundations (except the handwriting instruction), but Essentials is specifically targeted toward his age group so I think you will both be much happier.

Thank you so much for your advice!

My boys picked up some basic manuscript awareness in their pre-school years simply by writing their names and other simple activities, so went we started Foundations I focused on teaching cursive but also reviewed proper manuscript formation of the letters as we went along, so I never ended up needing to go back and formally teach manuscript.