NEW Language Arts from The Good & The Beautiful: Is it Better?
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Almost all of the levels of new Language Arts from The Good & The Beautiful have been released now.
I’ve had a chance to get my hands on both level K and level 1. In this post, I want to share with you my thoughts on the new editions of Language Arts.
As someone who has used the previous editions and many other curriculum components from The Good & The Beautiful, I do feel as though I can give some fair insight into the worth and quality of this new curriculum.
Everything You Need to Know About the New Language Arts from The Good & The Beautiful
If you’re new to this curriculum then you should know a few things.
It was founded by Jenny Phillips who is a homeschool mom herself. Her deepest desire is to provide a wholesome homeschool curriculum that is both good and beautiful.
The curriculum is a Christian curriculum in the sense that it mentions God and many beautiful morals and character traits that are taught in the bible.
It is Not a Secular Curriculum
There is some controversy over the fact that it is labeled a Christian curriculum when Jenny Phillips herself is LDS. You can read my thoughts about that in this post addressing the controversy over The Good & The Beautiful curriculum.
As someone who identifies as a born-again, bible-believing Christian, I have never noticed any LDS doctrine in the curriculum itself. It should also be noted that while the founder is LDS, the curriculum is put together by a large group of writers all from varying beliefs and backgrounds.
It is not an LDS homeschool curriculum.
They Offer it for Free
As I mentioned before, Jenny Phillips has a heart to get wholesome curriculum into the hands of as many homeschoolers as she can.
It still blows me away that her company offers so much up for free.
To clarify, as of June 2022, The Good & The Beautiful offers levels K-8 of both Language Arts and Math 100% free as a PDF download.
They also offer some other items free which you can check out here.
This makes it so very accessible for many families who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford it.
Related: How to Print The Good & The Beautiful Homeschool Curriculum
What has Changed with The Good & The Beautiful Language Arts Levels K-2?
Let’s start talking specifically about the new editions of language arts that have recently been released.
I am not reviewing level 2 today as that has yet to be released. I’ve also not had any experience with the previous edition of that level.
I have, however, used the older versions of both level K and level 1 Language Arts.
When The Good & The Beautiful announced they were releasing new editions of levels K-2, here is what they claimed the features would be:
- More gentle and slower-paced – Lessons would be shortened and the whole flow of the course would be slowed down. Their old levels were at least a year to a year and a half ahead of the public system.
While some would see this as a good thing, it also had its problems. I’ll talk about this more down below. - Streamlined phonics – All of the components of the new Language Arts will be streamlined and work together in a very open-and-go way.
- App integration – The Good & The Beautiful developed two apps to use with these new levels. Their homeschool app actually works with a lot of their other curriculum as well.
The Language Arts still include geography, art, spelling, and picture study along with all the traditional areas of Language Arts.
What Was Lacking in the Old Language Arts?
As I touched on before, I have experience with the previous editions of level K and level 1 Language Arts.
Level K was what we moved to when my son was 5 and after he had completed their preschool course and level K prep course.
It didn’t go well.
We stopped fairly soon after beginning Level K because it just moved too quickly.
The issues that I personally dealt with were:
- It was too advanced – For some families, this would not be an issue. However, as someone with a child who took a little longer to catch onto reading, it was frustrating.
Children who are advanced could simply move forward. A child who wasn’t advanced or just not catching on had nothing to fall back to.
The gap between level K Prep and Level K was just too vast. Ultimately, this left us looking for a new curriculum to use. - The mini-books were frustrating – The mini-books were sweet but also frustrating. There were words and phonics blends that they were expected to read before having been taught them. My son really didn’t enjoy these.
- There was too much writing – As an entry-level Language Arts program, it is my opinion that there was too much writing expected of a kindergartener. We altered a lot to make it work.
- There was not enough phonics emphasis – I love a good phonics program. I was homeschooled using the Abeka program. It’s traditional in its method, but it certainly is thorough on teaching phonics.
The old Language Arts levels from The Good & the Beautiful lacked thoroughness in this area.
Key Features in the New Language Arts from The Good & The Beautiful
So what’s new? What key features have they added to make it better?
Here’s what each level now includes:
- A workbook
- Booster Cards
- Booster Books
The previous editions consisted of a workbook, phonics cards, mini books (for level K), and a reader.
The new editions are more streamlined and far easier to use.
The workbook is set out in a very similar fashion to the old edition in regards to the layout and illustrations. However, the lessons are shorter and more age-appropriate.
I’ve also found that the independent work is truly independent. I can leave my five-year-old to work on it while I work with her older brother. There was no way I could have done that with the old editions.
The Booster cards replace the phonics cards. They remind me of a cross between the fluency sheets from All About Reading and the Handbook for Reading from Abeka.
They are self-explanatory to use and my children are both really enjoying them.
Something that really needs to be realized is that it is the Booster cards that set the pace for this course, not the workbook. The booster cards always come first. The booster books are referred to from the booster cards as well.
New Features
So, here are some features to be aware of (and that we really like):
- Your child needs to have mastered certain booster cards before beginning specific lessons. You’ll see a target sign at the top of some lessons indicating which booster card they need to have mastered. If your child has not mastered the booster cards up to that point, you do not continue with the workbook until they have.
- The letter tiles app is referred to in the workbook and is an optional way of having your child practice their spelling. We personally really like it. You dictate the spelling word to your child and then they use the letter tiles to spell it. Alternatively, you can have them write the words or use physical letter tiles to spell.
- The Homeschool App from The Good & The Beautiful contains many useful video lessons, audio narrations, and geography books. While screentime isn’t for everyone, we do really enjoy these and find they enhance the lessons a lot. However, they are optional. You can have your child complete the Language Arts courses without using the apps at all.
Will This Replace All About Reading and other Orton Gillingham Methods?
As many of my readers and Youtube viewers know, I used All About Reading with my eldest child after finding that The Good & The Beautiful Language Arts was not a good fit for him.
Those who have children with dyslexia or other reading difficulties may wonder if these new editions of Language Arts will replace the need for All About Reading.
The short answer is no. The Orton Gillingham method is still going to be relevant for many children.
The Good & The Beautiful Language Arts isn’t an Orton Gillingham method. It is phonics-based but they also teach sight words.
If you’re a parent wondering if it will work for your child then I suggest downloading the free PDFs and perhaps doing a lesson or two.
That way you’re not out any money if it doesn’t work for your child.
I still firmly recommend All About Reading. It is a proven and solid program. You’ll just need to figure out what is best for your own unique child.
Summing it Up
I am not someone who attaches herself to a homeschool curriculum as though it were the bible. The beauty of homeschooling is that we make individualized curriculum choices for each of our children.
If I sing the praises for a curriculum, it is because it works for our family. Always do your own research and don’t necessarily let the opinions of others have too much of a sway on your decisions.
However, if you used the old editions of Language Arts from The Good & the Beautiful and found them too advanced or overwhelming, then I suggest giving them another go.
You’ve got nothing to lose with the option of a free PDF download and everything can be printed at home if you can’t afford the physical copies.
We’re loving these new editions. They are exactly what I was hoping they would be and that is a big blessing!
