Review: Lampstand Press - Tapestry Of Grace

I was very excited to get Tapestry of Grace to review. This is a curriculum that I had looked at at the beginning of the year. The product we reviewed was the digital copy of the curriculum. It originally came as a printed version. They have decided to add the digital curriculum to their list of products and you can click HERE to read why. Over all I think this is a great decision for them. There are a lot of people who like digital copies, e-books, and the like. Then there are people like me who like to have a physical copy of what I have purchased.

More about Tapestry Of Grace by Lampstand Press

Lampstand Press was started by a homeschool family. They wrote their own curriculum to use for their family. I think they have done a phenomenal job at writing and publishing such a rich and meaty curriculum.

The curriculum comes in a 4 year cycle that covers world history that you recycle year after year, adjusting to your child's needs. The older they get, the more in depth they go.

• Year 1 - Creation to the Fall of Rome




• Year 2 - Byzantium to the U.S. Constitution




• Year 3 - Napoleon to Roosevelt




• Year 4 - Roosevelt to Current Events

Subjects that you may cover:

• Writing




• Geography




• Literature




• Church History




• Activities like Art, Field Trips,




• and much more

They also offer support that includes book updates, corrections, supporting links, and a community forum.

They also offer some supplemental materials that you can purchase on their site.

So what are some topics? Here are some of the topics for the Year 1 Unit 1 that we reviewed.

• Egypt




• The Nile River




• Pharaohs




• Pyramids




• Mesopotamia ( which we found interesting since we had learned about Meso. from Drive Thru History)




• Moses




• The Tabernacle and Worshipping God




• the list just goes on....

I could just go on and on about what they have to offer but I am here to let you know what I thought about them.

My Preface:

So I will start out by saying that I did review the digital copy, but I had to print it because I found it very frustrating to me not to be able to flip from page to page. When I needed something I could not just flip to it, I had to get on the computer and find it. So after I printed out the unit, it was much easier for me. Though I would not do that again. It used A LOT of ink! I would rather pay a bit more and receive a copy. That is my personal preference, though others would like to have it all organized on the computer instead of taking up space on a book shelf or were ever.

My Experience:

At first it did not go to well. We were given the opportunity to pick the year and unit we would like to review. We went through and picked a unit in year 2 because it just looked like it would be fun to learn. We were frustrated and I felt very confused about it. I think that stemmed from us "jumping" into the middle and not the beginning (not to mention this is really our first experience with this type of curriculum). So I emailed the publisher and asked if I could change to year one unit one. This seemed so much easier to us, probably because it is a bit more familiar in topics.

I did have a hard time finding the books at the library. So what I did was use this curriculum more as a guide line for what to teach. I picked up books from the library and I tried to correlate with the teachings. This worked fine for us. Your library may have all the books it lists or you can buy them if you choose.

We went to Staples and picked out some cheap 3 ring binders to keep all our papers in. We did some note booking, copy work, reading, and some other activities.

Over all, I think the curriculum is a great choice for other homeschoolers who like a very in depth study. I, on the other hand, like things to be more simple. I like "meaty" learning, but I do not want to spend hours trying to find things like many books at the library or planning in general. I do love that I can be guided and I am not stuck doing exactly what they suggest. It has become easier for me after working through MY issues that are not a reflection of the curriculum. Again, this is my first experience with this type of curriculum and it took some major adjustments on my part.

But to be honest, it is just not for me as an "everyday only curriculum" as I would be very overwhelmed. It has opened up some idea's and I learned a lot about another homeschooling option.

I do like that you get to learn bible history and this is very important as this is one of the things we had started earlier in the year. I want my girls to learn bible as the basis of all things. So this curriculum fits into that category.

So if you like unit studies, meaty in depth study, and lots of things to do, then this is for you. If you like things simple, this may not be for you unless you are fine with using it as a guide of what to teach when or what topics to cover. But it does offer so much more. I plan to keep using it as a guide of what to teach for the rest of the year.

You can receive a free sample by visiting their site and I would suggest checking it out before you buy it.

Happy Learning! 



Awards
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine 2007 Educational Excellence Awards
First Place
Best Unit Study Products
Best Classical Resources
Second Place
Best History Products
Best Geography Products
Best Literature Products
Best Writing Products
Third Place
Best Resource Book
Best Bible Curriculum

From Practical Homeschooling Magazine 2005 & 2007 Reader’s Choice Awards

First Place or Tied-for-First Place
Best High School Curriculum
Best Middle School Curriculum
Best Elementary Curriculum
Nominated for Best Unit Study Curriculum and Best History Curriculum
Reviewed & included in Cathy Duffy's prestigious 100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum




You can read more reviews from the Crew HERE.