Is YEAR 4 really for 12th graders?

[mama'spearls]

My 9th grader is starting Rhetoric level this year, in Yr 4. Can anyone comment on whether the content of Yr 4 is for any Rhetoric student or for older/12th grade R students?? Marcia?? We just completed Unit 1. I'm getting the impression that the workload and the exam requirements blow 9th grade out of the water. Thanks!!!

[Marcia]

It's a complex question, really. Here's why. There's an intersection of storyline, content, and maturity that meet in Year 4.

It's the end of the story of humankind so far. It's the end of the story of how God has dealt with us so far. Therefore, if a student has never learned well the details of the early parts of the storyline (and how could a fifth to seventh grader really be expected to with any maturity?) then there is the real possibility of being overwhelmed by the horrific details of the storyline as it unfolds in the 20th century. This is why, for younger students, we focus as much as we can on advances of science and technology, fun things that evolved, and positive evidences of grace in this era.

The content of Year 4 is mostly DARK, however. It was a century in which dark things came to fruition--God resisting worldviews were adopted, Biblical wisdom was abandoned, and God did not restrain mankind in its mad pursuit of wholesale murder. It is surely a season of judgment and of the fruits of despair ripening into fullness. HOWEVER, God is always merciful in judgment, and this is on full display as well. We need eyes to see it, and for this we must turn to Father and ask. Then, we must submit to His wisdom in all circumstances and see the ways that the humbling of mankind exploded many of the lies of the Enemy. We believe that He was with each individual soldier or civilian who perished in that century, and He was just often, and also merciful to many, though we do not know their full stories. We are meant to be horrified by the carnage and apostasy: it is a cautionary tale!

But, the views I just expressed require maturity. If our students are not mature, then we must be. We must seek the Lord's help to become biblical in our thought categories and modes of expression. We ourselves must wrestle with the events of the 20th century and ask God for His revelation as to the eternal meaning of it all. We must notice the ways in which He was merciful in the midst of judgment. We must set ourselves to respond in faith to the evils of those times, and trust Him. When our vertical dimension is thus rightly ordered, then we will be able to lead our younger rhetorics in these things.

Younger rhetorics CAN do Year 4 studies, therefore. They'll need more help. They'll need us to fill in details from the earlier parts of the story that they may have been too young to fully grasp. They'll need us to interpret the content with/for them, so that they can bear it. (We also need to pick and choose here: some of the content will simply be too heavy for younger youths to bear! This is where the spectrum of resources is so helpful: feel free to dip down into D offerings when R ones are too heavy!) They'll need our maturity to bolster and shape theirs.

The thing that ties all this together is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is HIS story. The content was of HIS sovereign ordering. The maturity that we need, we find in plumbing our relationship with HIM. Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ (Romans 8). HE is working all things together for the good that He defines. His gospel is our hope, and our anchor beyond the dark events of the 20th century. It is because of Jesus that we hope and persevere, though the world is so broken and dark. He alone is the light of the world, and the gate to salvation. We will all die. The history of the 20th century clearly shows us that we as a race and as individuals NEED a Savior. Walking without Him, by the light of the torches that we have made, bring despair and death.

In the end, the decision about whether or not to do Year 4 with younger rhetorics is a personal one and a spiritual one. You and your husband need to get wisdom from one another, God, and friends. As with all secular offerings, TOG is not right for everyone in every circumstance. May the Lord lead you and your husband as you consider these things before Him!

[Pat]

Might I add that when I look at this year compared to the previous two that I am happy that my second child will have this as his first year of Rhetoric? The literature reading level for years two and three for Rhetoric students is much higher than year four.

For my oldest student who will do this his last year of high school, I'm even thinking of subbing out much of the science fiction and some of the shorter works and replacing them with longer more difficult novels because I know him and I know that at that point he'll be ready to tackle those longer, harder works?

[Jewel7123]

Originally posted by Pat not Pattie:
Might I add that when I look at this year compared to the previous two that I am happy that my second child will have this as his first year of Rhetoric? The literature reading level for years two and three for Rhetoric students is much higher than year four.

For my oldest student who will do this his last year of high school, I'm even thinking of subbing out much of the science fiction and some of the shorter works and replacing them with longer more difficult novels because I know him and I know that at that point he'll be ready to tackle those longer, harder works?

Interesting......just curious, if you could start with a child in 1st grade, which Year would you start with? I have been assuming I should start with Year 1 (ancients) but I've recently been reading that Year 2 is the hardest level of R, and I'm wondering if I really want to try and have my then 10th grader do Year 2? Should I start Ancients in 1st and then do D level for Years 1 and 2, and then move to R level for Years 3 and 4?

Or should I actually start with Year 3 now, so by the time my oldest gets to high school, she would do Year 3 for 9th, Year 4 for 10th, Year 1 for 11th and Year 2 for 12th?

Of course there are my younger two children to consider as well. My youngest would follow the exact same rotation as my oldest, since there are 4 years between them, but my middle child is 2 grade levels below my oldest, so I would have to rethink her cycle.

Any thoughts?

[CovenantMom]

Hi,

A couple of thoughts on this. My oldest was in 12th grade the year I discovered ToG. Because of what he needed we did Year 2 that year. My second oldest finished up two years later with Year 4. The works of literature may not encompass as many pages and the style may be some what less wordy, and therefore easier for modern readers to decipher, but there are other reasons to save Year 4 for the senior year. The subject matter dealt with in the Year 4 literature is much darker. For the most part these authors are not Christian and have a most depressing worldview. The theme's are definitely easier to deal with when working with a more mature student. My daughter has repeatedly stated how much Year 4 helped to prepare her for college. She is a history major and loved the literature from Year 2, but Year 4 was what helped her most in learning to handle outlooks and attitudes encountered in college.

Just my two cents,

[Jewel7123]

Thank you Sharon. This is exactly the kind of opinion I needed to hear, from a Mom who has been there and done that!

[Pat]

Originally posted by Jewel7123:
Interesting......just curious, if you could start with a child in 1st grade, which Year would you start with?

I think so much depends on the child and the family. As I noted originally, this is my second child. I also did not begin Tapestry when either of my children were in first grade.

In the end I am pleased by this turn of events, and even feel the gentle touch of God's hand in the result.

It is certainly worth it to look at all your children when beginning Tapestry. I would be cautious about planning too far in advance, but I would ask what would my child like to study now. I've noticed that a lot of children want to study their own country's history, so it might be good not to start in year one with a child who really wants to do that. But that is such an individual choice that you should make it with your own family in mind.

[CovenantMom]

I think Pat has a very good point. Each family must find what is right for them, and for each child in the family.

My family uses ToG very differently than many other families. I now actually only use it for my RH students, 9th and above, taking each of them through all four years in order in high school. My younger students really had too much trouble seeing the whole picture and got very frustrated with what they felt were just random books being thrown at them each week. They work much better with a textbook to follow where they can see the road map. I then add appropriate books from ToG to supplement their textbook studies.

My RH students have adjusted well to following ToG as written and have benefited tremendously from it (though my oldest only had one year of it). Whatever order they approach the RH level of ToG in, it helps them to adjust to the methods of study they will need to use in college.

But this is not the way most use ToG - each family must prayerfully consider how ToG will best fit their particular situation. It will look slightly different with each family.