Diogenes Student Guide Poll

[greengables]

We here at Classical Writing are looking for some help and feedback from you teaching parents who are using Diogenes - Maxim. We would really appreciate you taking the time to answer our little survey, as we are trying to figure out the best way to serve you and meet your needs.

We are considering changing the way we offer Diogenes – Maxim, and all future upper level books. Currently, we have a Core Manual with an optional Student Guide (which requires you to buy and use both). We plan to keep the Core Manual available for families that like to have the flexibility to make their own lesson plans and use their own models. But we would change the format of the Student Guide so that the Core Manual is incorporated into it, and you would only need one book instead of two. We think this will also be easier for students to use. We would also make available a Student Model book so that the Student Guide could be non-consumable.
Here’s where you come in. Could you provide us with some feedback, either

1. here on the CW Diogenes board as a reply to this post

or

2. as an email to [e-mail]

If you own Classical Writing – Diogenes, are you currently using it? If not, will you be using in the future? When do you expect to use it?

If you are currently using Diogenes - Maxim, we’d like to know if you are using the Core alone, or the Core plus the Student Guide.
How is it going? What do you particularly like and/or dislike? What would make things easier for you and your student to use Diogenes – Maxim?

We would love to hear any suggestions you have.

Thank you so much for your time and help with this!

Lene Jaqua, Carolyn Vance, and Kathy Weitz
www.classicalwriting.com

[Kim T]

I currently own CW Diogenes and have read through much of it but it will be a while before we begin using it. My oldest is in 5th and just started CW Homer so I anticipate that we would start Diogenes in two years.

Though I haven't had actual experience with CW Diogenes, I love what you are proposing. I think it would be wonderful to have the Core Manual incorporated into the student guide. Thank you so much for continuing to think of us and of ways to meet our needs!

Kim

[Diana]

I own Diogenes and am using it with my oldest son without the student guide. We only just started Unit 2, but so far it is going well. If I decide to buy the student guide for my other three children, and the core is in the guide, that means I will be purchasing the core three more times.

Is this right, or am I misunderstanding something?

[greengables]

No, you will definitely NOT need to purchase the Diogenes Core three more times. The Core is not consumable. Since you are not using the Student Guides, you really don't need to buy the new Core at all.

We have just finished the long process of revising the Diogenes Maxim books, and they are being edited. We settled on keeping the format of the Core as is, although we did reduce the A&I lessons by a good number. Basically, we removed Unit 4 & 5 Modern Essay Analyses, and spread the Modern Essay Analyses from Units 1-3 over all 5 units. So, Silence Dogood is analyzed in Units 1 & 2, and Spectator No. 10 is analyzed in Units 4-5. We also shortened these analysis lessons considerably. We didn't change Unit 3 A&I. The theory lessons in all units remained the same, as I recall; the only exception being that the last four lessons of Unit 1 became optional. The analysis lessons we removed from Diogenes Maxim will be used in later books in the CW series.

The biggest change is that we really pared down the Student Guide, so it contains weekly overviews, models, charts, and tables, but not so much explanation. The new SG follows the lessons in the revised Core, so it would be less confusing to buy a new Core if you are planning using the SG in the future.

We are very happy with the results and think it is an excellent course for middle to high schoolers. The shorter format of the Core and the shorter Student Guide schedule allow time to begin Intermediate Poetry, and spread it over the two years it takes to complete Diogenes Maxim and Chreia.

I hope this helps. Let me know if you need further clarification.

[Diana]

Thanks for the reply. I guess I was confused. When I read that the Core Manual would be "incorporated into" the Student Guide, I thought you meant in the same book. I thought I would be getting something I didn't need and already had.

What I understand now is that you are revising the Core book and making the Student Guide to match the revised Core book. Thanks for the clarification.

Diana

[Classical Mom]

I will be using Diogenes the second half of the upcoming year and think that it would be a time saver as well as a money saver for my family to have the Student Guide with the Core Manual incorportaed into it. I would also cut down on some of the confussion I have had when trying to plan Aesop and Homer for the Older Student.


Thanks for asking our opinion. ;D


Denise

[Nancy]

Yes, I think just having everything in one book would be very helpful. I have five children and have them sharing the core manual, which is very difficult, because we are always losing it in the house between uses!!