Step by Step Sentences Placement

[MaestRita]

Hey, I just wanted to get some advice about placement for Step by Step Sentences for my daughter.
She is currently in second grade and does not have any special needs, of which I am aware, although she is young for her grade and is working more on a first grade level this year.
Next year she will officially be in "third" although her work will be more "second."

I do like a lot of MP's publishings although Step by Step would be the only piece by MP for her next year.

In 3rd grade, we plan to do...

AAR 3 (and maybe 4)
AAS 2
CLE Math 2
HWT Cursive (3rd grade)
Step by Step Sentences

plus readalouds for other subjects

She enjoys cursive, is used to copying a sentence or two at a time, and my initial thought was that Step by Step 1 would be too easy for her. However, I wonder if 2 would be too much for her reading level, at first. We are currently halfway through AAR 2 and hope to finish it early to mid-summer.

She hasn't learned parts of speech yet. She understands answering in a complete sentence (orally) although we haven't talked about parts of a sentence yet.

Should I just go with Book 2 and take it slow? Or should I start with Book 1 and move quickly to give a foundation? By the way, I was so excited to find these courses as they look like just the right "grammar" to round out her language arts next year. :-)

Thank you,
Rita

[cherylswope]

Hi, Rita. Your plan sounds good to start with Simply Classical Writing: Step-by-Step Sentences Book One. After 8-10 weeks you might accelerate the pacing if it seems feasible!

[howiecram]

Considering your AAR/AAS levels, I would agree that the step-by step sentences book 1 would be the better choice for now. We have had success with doing AAR/AAS in the morning, and then after lunch, doing the Bible version of the Step by Step Sentence book 1. At the beginning she could not read the Bible included, but now she can. I like have two separate reading sessions a day. I feel like this really boosts the reading. She was able to read the Bible at mid AAR2 - so she might be able to do it right away. You might consider getting the SC2 Bible/Copybook as well. In the beginning she would probably just write the 1 sentence a day. Then, as she gets develops, you might be able to do the writing in 3 days, with the copybook from the SC2 Bible on the other days. Day 1 would be two sentences, Day 2 would be the last two sentences and day 3 would be the picture + sentences telling about her picture. Day 4 would be the copybook. Day 5 would be "editing" her copybook (fixing any errors, etc). SC3 Enrichment might fit /round out nicely with all the rest of your plans! After this year and if you complete AAR4, you could probably move to Simply Classical 5/6.