Curriculum Review: British Literature by James P. Stobaugh {New Leaf Publishing}

British Literature Pack, Student Text and Teacher Text, by James Stobaugh
ISBN: 9780890516737
Available individually in paperback (464 pages) or digital (mobi or epub)
Publisher: Master Books/New Leaf Publishing Group, Inc.
Retail: $38.99 for the set (see website for current pricing)

1 year Curriculum
10^th - 12^th Grade
1 Credit

About this curriculum (from New Leaf Publishing):

From reformers and rogues to poets and playwrights, a study of British literature will take you through some of the most popular works ever written. Using easy to find public domain works (we tell you where to look) and helpful selections included, this is one of three literature courses easy to enjoy and easy on your budget!

“A well-crafted presentation of whole-book or whole-work selections from the major genres of classic literature (prose, poetry, and drama), each course has 34 chapters representing 34 weeks of study, with an overview of narrative background material on the writers, their historical settings, and worldview.

The rich curriculum’s content is infused with critical thinking skills, and an easy-to-use teacher’s guide outlines student objectives with each chapter, providing the answers to the assignments and weekly exercises. The final lesson of the week includes both the exam, covering insights on the week’s chapter, as well as essays developed through the course of that week’s study, chosen by the educator and student to personalize the coursework for the individual learner. (from product description at NLPG)”

About the author- James P. Stobaugh:

Dr. James Stobaugh was a Merrill Fellow at Harvard and holds degrees from Vanderbilt and Rutgers universities, and Princeton and Gordon-Conwell seminaries. An experienced teacher, he is a recognized leader in homeschooling and has published numerous books for students and teachers. He and his wife Karen have homeschooled their four children since 1985.

See a sample of the British Literature.

What’s included in the Student Text:

• Each chapter has five lessons with daily concept-building exercises, warm-up questions, and guided readings
• Suggested reading schedules and daily calendar
• Directs students to think critically about philosophy and trends in culture, and articulate their views through writing

The beginning of the book has a portion directing students how to use the textbook. It covers “How this course has been developed”, “Throughout this book you will find the following” (–which is pretty much the same as I listed above under What’s included…), “Earn a bonus credit!” (–this tells that by covering information and assignments in a corresponding History Connections textbook, also written by Stobaugh published by Master Books, extra credit can be earned), “What the student will need each day” (-here it lists the basics of pencil/pen and paper or computer and a prayer journal but the last one I didn’t see at all where this was necessary during the book), “Increasing your vocabulary”, and “About the Author”.

Included at the end of the table of contents is a list of readings that will need to be acquired to complete the book. Many of the books from the earlier years can be found free online (Project Gutenberg, The Online Books Page, Bartleby, and sometimes Google Books). This is helpful so that the student is aware of what’s coming and doesn’t have to rely solely on the teacher for this information.

The book is broken down into seven time-frames, each with 2-8 chapters dealing with that time period. 3

1. The Anglo-Saxon Age (Parts 1-2)
2. The Middle Ages (Parts 1-2)
3. Elizabethan Age (Parts 1-4)
4. The Seventeenth Century (Parts 1-5)
5. The Eighteenth Century (Parts 1-7)
6. The Nineteenth Century (Parts 1-8)
7. and The Twentieth Century (Parts 1-6)

Within those time periods the book does indeed include a variety of literary works.

What’s included in the Teacher’s Text

First, the teacher text is a copy of the student text except it also has answers where the student text only has questions. It also has in the “Using Your Teacher Guide” section “Grading Record Options” with a chart for three options, which it explains briefly. At the end of the book it also has Chapter Tests which are all essays.

In both books are corresponding chapters in the History Connections books by Stobaugh at the bottom of the chapter’s first page. They also have a little blurb about “Reading Ahead” that includes the work they should read before going on to the first lesson in the chapter. Each lesson has assignments such as reading, “warm-up”, “Concept Builder”, and essays –writing, rewriting and final draft.

The book suggests that each lesson should take 45-60 minutes. Well, for the writing portion I can see it taking that long but some of the assignments, such as the “Concept Builders” only take a few minutes at most. The reading and writing is what takes the most time in this course. It is reading and writing intensive.

What we thought of the course

We used only a portion of this course because it was near the end of our school year. I had high hopes it would be a good addition to help us with our literature study. But I’m not overly convinced it was really what we needed. We did not do the essay writings but did do some of the warm-up and concept builder exercises, as well as the readings for the portions we used.

The main reason I felt this wasn’t that great of an addition for us personally is because we simply don’t have the base knowledge of literature to tackle this type of course. And without that knowledge there are parts that will not make sense because it doesn’t explain it, even in the Teacher’s Text. For instance, we jumped in at the Nineteen Century, with Pride and Prejudice. One of the Concept Builders talks about ‘themes’ of the story. We did not understand the themes of the book. I used the Teacher’s Text but it did not explain well it’s answers.  It just confused and frustrated us. We did not find a greater appreciation for the literature after completing the portions of the textbook.

Now that doesn’t mean that this won’t be a great fit for someone else. There may be others who understand the fine points and details, the underlying meanings and themes, of literature and this would most likely work well for them. If you don’t, it will require more effort than it states in the book(s). The Student Text says that this is an independent course, for the most part, with discussion and grading to be handled by the teacher. But in our case that wasn’t how it turned out.

***Disclaimer: I received the above set from NLPG for free to review. All opinions are my own. No monetary compensation was given. See Disclosure/Policies.***