Landmark's Freedom Baptist Curriculum (LFBC) literature courses cover reading skills and vocabulary. McGuffey's Eclectic Readers are used with courses for grades one through six. For seventh and eighth grades, reading material is contained within the courses themselves. Quizzes and answer keys are included. Courses originally had attractive, black-and-white illustrations, but these are gradually being replaced with color images as LFBC updates the look of their courses in new printings.
Literature 1
The first-grade level course uses the McGuffey First Eclectic Reader as its main text and provides worksheet activities to round out the reading program. The main emphasis is on phonics exercises to support the Reader, although there are also character trait instruction and Scripture verses to memorize or practice writing. Opportunities for art and creativity are included. There are many activities that deal with our American heritage such as Thanksgiving, the flag, and President Lincoln. It seems a useful resource for use with the McGuffey Reader. [Kath Courtney]
Literature 2
This literature course includes McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader; the Art-Literature Reader, Book 2; student study guide; quizzes; and answer keys in one complete package. Lessons include reading, vocabulary, and comprehension skills as well as a few broader language arts activities such as dictionary skills and sentence writing. The study guide consists of daily lessons that students who are fairly proficient readers can read on their own, completing a variety of exercises such as matching columns, filling in blanks, identifying the number of syllables in words, arranging words in alphabetical order, and answering in complete sentences. Students are directed to read assignments in their readers upon which many of the questions are based. Parents will need to listen to a child's oral reading to ensure that they are learning proper pronunciation as well as developing the ability to read expressively and with understanding. The content is morally uplifting, occasionally mentions God, and features related Bible verses in boxes within lessons.
Literature 3
This literature course includes McGuffey's Third Eclectic Reader; the Art-Literature Reader, Book 3; student study guide; quizzes; and answer keys in one complete package. This course is very similar to Literature 2, although the readers and questions are at a higher level.
Literature 4
Literature 4 includes McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader, student study guide, quizzes, and answer keys in one complete package. Lessons include reading, vocabulary, and comprehension skills as well as a few broader language arts activities such as book reports, dictionary skills, and sentence writing. The study guide consists of daily lessons that students can read on their own, completing a variety of exercises such as matching columns, filling in blanks, and answering in complete sentences. Students are directed to read assignments in their reader upon which many of the questions are based and from which vocabulary words are drawn. Weekly quizzes and answer keys are included. Book reports are required every six weeks, and instructions and forms for the book reports are included in the study guide. Parents will need to listen to a child's oral reading to ensure that they are learning proper pronunciation as well as developing the ability to read expressively and with understanding. Parents also need to oversee completion of lessons, signing off when students are ready for their quizzes and approving book report selections. The content is morally uplifting, occasionally mentions God, and requires memorization of some Bible verses.
Literature 5
This course is very similar in format to Literature 4, although it includes McGuffey's Fifth Eclectic Reader. Vocabulary development receives the most attention with weekly quizzes focusing exclusively on vocabulary words drawn from current reading lessons. Three book reports are required, two written and one oral. Instructions and forms for the book reports are included in the study guide. Parents need to oversee completion of lessons, signing off when students are ready for their quizzes and approving book report selections.
Literature 6
This course includes McGuffey's Sixth Eclectic Reader and adds lessons on essay writing. While vocabulary development receives much attention, weekly quizzes focus on both vocabulary and reading skills. Book reports are required every three weeks, with one-third of these presented orally.
Character-Building courses for grades 7, 8 and 9
Character-Building is the underlying theme for all three of these courses. Seventh grade uses stories and legends, eighth grade features stories and biographies, and ninth grade uses a mixture of genres. Lessons include comprehension activities, vocabulary work, and a weekly Bible verse to memorize.
High School
For high school, LFBC incorporates literature into their English courses, but they also offer separate courses: the Character-Building Favorites for ninth grade, The Pilgrim's Progress course for tenth grade (using the complete book), a study of John Bunyan's The Holy War for eleventh grade, and Literature Classics for twelfth grade. Note that Part 1 of The Pilgrim's Progress is also studied within the twelfth grade English course, so there is some redundancy.
