MCT Language Arts (Michael Clay Thompson)
Michael Clay Thompson · Royal Fireworks Press · Grades 1–10 (ages 6–16)
A complete classical language arts program in five strands: grammar, vocabulary, writing, poetics, literature. Each strand feeds the next.
$30–$525 per level depending on configuration
Overview
A complete classical language arts program in five strands: grammar, vocabulary, writing, poetics, literature. Each strand feeds the next. Grammar informs vocabulary, vocabulary feeds writing, writing draws on poetics, and literature ties everything back to real language by real authors. Treats children as intellectuals from the start.
Strengths
- •Five strands integrated, not bolted together
- •Latin and Greek stems as the foundation of academic English (etymology, not memorization)
- •Poetry at every level, even the youngest
- •Literature courses use annotated unabridged classics
- •Poodle books at the entry level charm six-year-olds into caring about clauses
- •By Level 7, students read Plato and write advanced academic essays
- •Royal Fireworks Press provides free downloads, video clips, online support
Limitations
- •Very high parental involvement; not self-teaching
- •Demanding. Will not work for unmotivated students.
- •Difficult to enter midstream because the strands build cumulatively
- •Total cost across all levels is significant
Best fit for
- •Gifted and academically motivated learners
- •Classical-leaning families who want one program for everything language-related
- •Families willing to do the parent-side reading and discussion
- •Kids who light up at wordplay, poetry, etymology
What's in the line
8 separate products in this brand. Pick the right one for your child's age and stage.
MCT is sequential. Start at Preliminary (Poodle) or Level 1 (Island) depending on your child's age and readiness; the strands build cumulatively across all seven levels. Free placement guide at rfwp.com/mct-language-arts/packages-and-guides/.
Preliminary: The Poodle Level
6-9 · 1st-3rd · Gentle entry to grammar via Poodle adventures
Adventure tales with Gold Mom's Choice Award–winning illustrations. No formal grammar pressure. Wordplay that lasts.
Level 1: The Island Level
8-10 · 3rd-4th · True entry: grammar, vocabulary, writing, poetics, literature
Grammar Island, Building Language, Sentence Island, Music of the Hemispheres, the Mud Trilogy.
Level 2: The Town Level
9-11 · 4th-5th · Caesar's English I introduces Latin stems
Grammar Town, Caesar's English I, Paragraph Town, Building Poems, the Alice/Peter/Mole Trilogy.
Level 3: The Voyage Level
10-12 · 5th-6th · Essay writing emerges
Grammar Voyage, Caesar's English II, Essay Voyage, A World of Poetry, the Search Trilogy.
Level 4: The Classic Literature Level
11-14 · 6th-7th · Bridge to secondary tier
The Grammar of Literature, 4Practice, The Vocabulary of Literature, The Poetry of Literature, the Shadow Trilogy.
Level 5: The Lens I Level
12+ · 7th-8th · Adult-level work begins
The Magic Lens I, The Word Within the Word I, Advanced Academic Writing I, Poetry and Humanity, the Time Trilogy.
Level 6: The Lens II Level
13+ · 8th-9th · Plato, poetics, and the question of beauty
The Magic Lens II, The Word Within the Word II, Advanced Academic Writing II, Poetry/Plato/Beauty, the Fog Trilogy.
Level 7: The Lens III Level
14+ · 9th-10th · Plato and truth; college-prep writing
The Magic Lens III, The Word Within the Word III, Advanced Academic Writing III, Poetry/Plato/Truth, the American Autobiography Trilogy.
The honest read
There is nothing else like it in print. Most language arts curricula are modular: a grammar workbook here, a separate vocabulary book there, another writing course on the side. MCT is the opposite. The cost is parent time and intellectual commitment. The payoff is a child who, by adolescence, reads and writes like an adult.
Get MCT Language Arts (Michael Clay Thompson)
A complete classical language arts program in five strands: grammar, vocabulary, writing, poetics, literature. Each strand feeds the next.
SHOPRelated in Language Arts
MCT Language Arts (Michael Clay Thompson)
$30–$525 per level depending on configuration