TOS REVIEW: Progeny Press Literature Study Guides

 

"To teach our children to think clearly, to understand literature, and to rely on the scripture for truth and values, and enjoy themselves while they do it!"

Progeny Press has over 100 study guides for literature, covering kindergarten through high school. Progeny Press study guides concentrate on critical thinking, comprehension, literary analysis, and Christian application. Our goal is to teach our children to think clearly, to understand literature, and to rely on scripture for truth and values, and enjoy themselves while they do it! from the website

We have been allowed to choose up to two study guides to review from Progeny Press. Fortunately this lined right up with what we are studying for school! I love it when it all comes together so easily… We chose The Bronze Bow, taking place in Roman times when Jesus walked the earth for Fox (appropriate for grades 6-8) and The Screwtape Letters, written by C. S. Lewis, presenting letters from the “Enemy’s” point of view, for Lee (appropriate for grades 9-12).

*I did have to purchase The Bronze Bow to do this review (but it was on my list to buy anyway) and we already own The Screwtape Letters. Progeny Press does offer the books needed for each study guide on their site as well.

The study guides are interactive, which means that you can type the answers on the pdf, or print them out. We chose to use the type-in-pdf. The only problem I found with this was that it was a little difficult to be in the ‘same place’ as my student. We use one computer, generally, to do this type of work- so when they are using it, I cannot- and vice versa. Printing it may have worked better- perhaps print out a copy for myself and let them do the type-in-pdf. We are not completely done with this yet so perhaps I may still try that. They suggest taking 8-12 weeks to work through a single guide- I completely agree with this. I mistakenly thought that it was going to be a quicker study (because the book is read within a week- according to the suggestion in the Note to the Instructor) but there is no way to cover all the guide in such a short amount of time. It would take us between 10-12 weeks to complete these two guides, I would guess.

Each study guide “provides easy-to-use, reproducible lessons on literary terms, comprehension and analysis, critical thinking, related scriptural principles, vocabulary, and activities, plus a complete answer key.” When they say ‘critical thinking’, they are not kidding! Some of the questions really made me think and were a challenge for my kids. You can see a sample of the study guides at each of the product pages (here for The Screwtape Letters and here for The Bronze Bow).

I had not read either of these books previously but we did not do them ‘together’- as a read aloud. Fox read The Bronze Bow in one week but Lee is taking longer to go through The Screwtape Letters. Because I have two using these- and different levels and books- I’ve been catching up. As they move to a new section (or group of chapters) in the guide, I make sure to have that much read before time. This is where I am very grateful for the answers that are included with this (independent pdf)! I am much a student as well as my kids are for these.

Each guide has

• Note to the Instructor
• Synopsis
• About the Author
• Prereading Activities
• and Additional Resources at the end of the guide.

The Study Guides can be purchased in the following formats

• Booklet
• CD
• CD & Booklet
• Email Download

The prices vary for each product so be sure to check the website for current pricing. At the time of this posting, The Bronze Bow  is available for $18.99, $16.99, $23.99 and $16.99 –respectively. The Screwtape Letters is available for $21.99, $18.99, $27.99, and $18.99 –respectively. Don’t forget the books! You can purchase The Bronze Bow for $6.95, and The Screwtape Letters for $13.99.

Bottom-line:

I think these are good products. I enjoy the books that are offered as well as the philosophy behind Progeny Press. They are more in-depth than I first realized and that is a good thing. It stretches our minds and makes us think differently perhaps than we had before.

I try to think of pros and cons to products but really can only see pros for these. Even for slower readers or those with comprehension issues, if these are taken at a pace most productive to the learner, they can be a great resource.

I would recommend these to others looking for literature resources in their homeschool (or even for ‘extra’ studies). The formats available for these should please a multitude of buyers.

Have a look at the other books that were reviewed- and read what others think- at the TOS Crew blog.

***Disclaimer: I received the two study guides above free from Progeny Press via the TOS Homeschool Review Crew in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated are mine or those of my family. I only recommend products that I truly feel would benefit others, based on my experiences with the product. See Disclosure/Policies.***