Lightning Lit & Comp Eighth Grade Student Guide

In each course, there are 36 weekly lessons grouped into chapters. There are twelve chapters in Grade 8; one for each of the major pieces of literature that are studied throughout the year plus some on short stories and one on poetry, but the chapters do not necessarily correspond to a specific time period. There is a consistent pattern in the chapter contents, however: Introduction (to the literary work), While You Read (what to look for), Vocabulary List, Comprehension Questions, Literary Lesson, Mini-Lesson (writing lesson), and Writing Exercises.

There are 8-12 exercises per chapter, in seven different coded types - L for literary lessons, M relating to mini-lessons, C practicing composition skills, T for thinking skill pages, G exercises that review grammar and mechanics, P for puzzles, and E for extra-challenge (the last two being the optional ones). There's a nice variety in these exercises and a well-thought-out relationship between the literary and composition activities. Frankly, I like the step-by-step skill building that is integral to the course.

The Student Book includes instructional text, shorter works (i.e. poetry, excerpts), author background, discussion questions (comprehension, thought, literary), and writing exercises. The Student Worktext provides workpages practice the skills and concepts learned in the lessons, along with composition skills (writing from note cards, rewriting in your own words, etc.), thinking skills (e.g., differentiating fact from opinion, identifying bias), and grammar review (e.g., capitalization, pronouns and antecedents). There are also optional puzzles and extra "Challenge" workbook pages. The Teacher Guide provides answers, schedules, teaching/grading tips, rubrics, project suggestions/checklists, and grade-tracking records.

There are required literature resources to use with each course. While you may be able to locate some or all of the books at a library, we also offer the Grade 8 Pack that include the necessary books plus the student and teacher books. This pack is available either with or without the Stories and Poems book that is also used in the 7th grade course.

Grade 8 literature selections include: Hobbit, To Kill a Mockingbird, Day of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw, My Family and Other Animals, Christmas Carol, Treasure Island,and Stories and Poems for Extremely Intelligent Children of All Ages.

Lightning Literature's author, Elizabeth Klamath, wants students to enjoy reading. There is good variety in terms of genre in the reading selections. The lessons are effective vehicles for grade-level skills with thorough coverage of vocabulary, comprehension, literary elements, and writing instruction along with grammar, usage, and mechanics. To give you an idea, in Chapter 6 of the 7th grade course, Helen Keller's autobiography, The Story of My Life, is covered. Lessons, in addition to the usual background, vocabulary, and comprehension, include these writing skills: lists about yourself, developing an idea, putting ideas into a paragraph, identifying resources, determining fact or opinion, identifying a biased viewpoint, and identifying sentences plus a crossword puzzle, a word search and an extra challenge exercise on autobiography and culture.

In each course, there are 36 weekly lessons grouped into chapters. There are eight chapters in Grade 7 and twelve in Grade 8, one for each of the major pieces of literature that are studied throughout the year. The chapters vary in length. For instance, in the 7th grade course, Chapter 5 is covered in two weeks, Chapter 6 in four weeks, Chapter 7 in two weeks, and Chapter 8 in nine weeks. There is a consistent pattern in the chapter contents, however: Introduction (to the literary work), While You Read (what to look for), Vocabulary List, Comprehension Questions, Literary Lesson, Mini-Lesson (writing lesson), and Writing Exercises.

There are 8-12 exercises per chapter, in seven different coded types - L for literary lessons, M relating to mini-lessons, C practicing composition skills, T for thinking skill pages, G exercises that review grammar and mechanics, P for puzzles, and E for extra-challenge (the last two being the optional ones). There's a nice variety in these exercises and a well-thought-out relationship between the literary and composition activities. Frankly, I like the step-by-step skill building that is integral to the course.

The Student Guide includes instructional text, shorter works (i.e. poetry, excerpts), author background, discussion questions (comprehension, thought, literary), and writing exercises. The Student Workbook provides workpages practice the skills and concepts learned in the lessons, along with composition skills (writing from note cards, rewriting in your own words, etc.), thinking skills (e.g., differentiating fact from opinion, identifying bias), and grammar review (e.g., capitalization, pronouns and antecedents). There are also optional puzzles and extra "Challenge" workbook pages. The Teacher Guide provides answers, schedules, teaching/grading tips, rubrics, project suggestions/checklists, and grade-tracking records.

There are required literature resources to use with each course. While you may be able to locate some or all of the books at a library, we also offer Literature Packages for each guide that include the necessary books.

If your goal is to prepare your student for high school literature and composition skills, then Lightning Lit & Comp is a good, solid choice. Although there is a conservative moral "feel" to the series and an occasional mention of God (by authors Stephen Crane and Mark Twain, for instance), there is no obvious Christian content. ~ Janice

"Reading should be fun, and writing should be satisfying." The author of this series believes this, and she has produced courses that try to keep that goal ever present. She WANTS students to enjoy themselves! Accordingly, reading assignments are comfortable - two novels, two non-fiction books, two short stories and several poems for the 7th grade course, for instance. Lessons are well-constructed and the excellent and thorough coverage includes vocabulary, comprehension, literary elements, composition, grammar, and mechanics.

The three components of this program are designed to be complementary and to be used together. The Student Workbook is the student's textual companion as they study the literature selections. This consumable book is the place for the student to "do" their work. It provides worktext space for all the essential exercises as well as some optional fun/reinforcement exercises.

The Teacher Guide is the "glue" that holds the whole program together providing a philosophical and methodical overview of the program and a weekly planning schedule (lesson plans) as well as chapter-by-chapter answers and teaching helps.

The last component is the excellent Literature Selections that are the heart of the program. Classics, familiar, non-familiar, poetry, and, occasionally, surprising choices all find their way onto the book lists for each grade level. While you may be able to locate some or all of the books at a library, we also offer Literature Packages for each guide that include the necessary books. You and your student are encouraged to read, enjoy, and profit from the year's literature studies. ~ Janice