I am a Chrustian mom and I firmly believe that LDS is not Christian. I have personally used TGTB for several years and I can say with confidence that I did not see any LDS doctrine in their student materials, also the curriculum is not developed by Jenny alone, she has an amazing team working with her, all from different Christian denominations. When using TGTB you are not teaching your children LDS, Christians can use TGTB curriculum with peace and confidence, it is a beautiful wholesome curriculum, teaching your children about God and the gospel is up to the parent to teach and live out.
I am a evangelical, Christ-following Believer. And after 15 years of homeschooling, I am in a different season with more kids now and use TGTB. I have studied many of their materials in science, language arts, math, and readers. I have not found any mormon-specific language. And I tend toward “high alert critical thinker”. We are always looking for lies in culture and ideas. I would commend people who feel led to boycott TGTB if they also didnt fill their homes with items from Target, didn’t buy any items made by morally and religiously questionable people. Each person has to determine for themselves what is suitable for their home. We are not called to hide from the world but to live among the sick and bring them to the Healer. It allows us opportunities to talk about these theological differences if I should ever find one in the lessons we use.
I definitely understand what you are saying but, what we support with our dollars when it comes to the education of our children, matters. I wouldn't personally put it in the same category as purchasing ibuprofen at Target (although I personally don't purchase from Target anymore). Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to know who we are/are not supporting with every single purchase and some things are just impossible to avoid, but this is an easy no. Like is mentioned in the video, there are soooo many other amazing options that this curriculum is easy to pass on.
Amen!! I agree with you! WE are discipling our children not the curriculum. No one is ever going to find a curriculum that each one of us agrees with 100%. It’s up to us as the teacher and parents to avoid/discuss/disciple around any material we disagree with. We have the freedom to use this curriculum just as the early church had freedom to eat meat sacrificed to idols. Now obviously if it is an area of conviction for you then you should not do it and doing so would be sin. But it is an issue that each one of needs to bring before the Lord in regard to our home and our children. I don’t believe that it should be just a blanket statement from any Christian that no Christian homeschoolers should use it. That’s imposing their conviction on everyone else. I’ve used every level of TGTB math multiple times and most of their LA levels and I have not found any “Mormon doctrine”. I also have so much respect for the fact that they offer this very well done and academically rigorous curriculum for FREE! That is a HUGE blessing to homeschooling families, many of whom have multiple children and one income. So the fact that she is going to cause guilt for some families who choose to use it does frustrate me immensely. For some this is the difference of whether they are able to homeschool or not. It’s by FAR better that they be able to homeschool using the TGTB then have to put their kids in public school. Rant over. 😉
@sondraguy5108 if families start feeling guilty because of what Elizabeth said; then deep down, they know she is right and are too stubborn to allow the truth to change them.
If I were to grab a religion and then compare it to a curriculum and then try to fit that religions doctorine by interpretating certain things... I'd probably be able to do it. There was just a lot of nit-picking, and I was hoping to see more evidence than just assumptions. Videos like this actually help me see how the enemy even uses christians in many ways. Definitely convinced even more after this video that the devil is angry at how this curriculum is allowing families to homeschool and get closer to Christ. So many testimonies on how families who never believed in God started seeking the truth through the Bible... and not becoming mormons or LDS but actually opening up the KJV of the bible. Ive never heard yet... i became a mormon after using this curriculum... I get that people get this convinction and want people to see what they might be seeing. But this seemed quite forced. I get your and many hearts behind this.. but if the good and the beautiful never said from the beginning that the owner was LDS or whatever... no one would even be having this conversation. Most curriculum companies we have no idea what their domination is but I'm sure there would be so much nit-picking if we did. And if you look online and actually have used the curriculum, you'll see that it's made by people with so many different faiths.
This is per their website: The focus is on general principles of moral character such as honesty and kindness. The King James Version of the Bible is used when quoting Bible verses. The Good and the Beautiful curriculum takes a general Christian worldview, focusing, not on the doctrine of any particular Christian church, but on high moral character and basic Bible principles such as gratitude, honesty, prayer, and kindness. Parents can add in their own doctrinal beliefs as desired. The curriculum is reviewed by members of many different faiths to make sure that the curriculum does not include doctrine specific to any Christian church. We have reviewers and users of the following denominations and more: Lutheran, Assemblies of God, Catholic, Baptist, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mennonite, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nazarene, Methodist, Non-Denominational, and Seventh Day Adventists.
Wow, that statement from their website is a validation of how “evil people and imposters will go on… deceiving and being deceived” from 2 Timothy 3:12-15
My main concern is not so much the curriculum itself. There is no way the subtleties Elizabeth mentions is enough to convert anyone or even be perceived by children. I have used it for years, and because I'm teaching it as Christian, I go ahead and infuse my beliefs and worldview into my teaching, using GTB as a basic spine. However, I have had pause about the fact that buying this curriculum means that I am supporting Jenny Philips through my purchase. Mormons give a portion of their money to support the church like Christians do, and knowing how much money is going to Mormonism makes me a bit uncomfortable. Also, when thousands of us buy this curriculum, it means that thousands of us are NOT buying curriculum that supports people who are spreading the true gospel (such as Apologia). So just another aspect for consideration.
Dear Elizabeth, I follow your channel faithfully and it’s been a true blessing to our family. It’s hard to find points where I have any disagreement from you. But on this one, not only I disagreed, but I was also confused. If you could follow up on it, I’d greatly appreciate. Forgive my long comment, I don’t know if here is the proper place to write such a long response, but I’d like you to have as much on my thinking as possible. So here’s why I’m confused and do disagree from your standing on this one: On a different podcast you mentioned how you didn’t recommend the use of Christian curriculum bc their academics tend to have low standards. I kind of agreed with you on that. On today’s episode it seems that you do not recommend TGTB for not being Christian, regardless of their academics. Which to me would logically follow that we should then look for Christian curricula, since all others, including secular ones, will have a faulty understanding of Jesus, salvation and the state of humanity. For example, many people who aren’t “religious” will say that we are all children of God. So, on that earlier podcast I thought, “okay I don’t choose a curriculum bc it is Christian, but I’d definitely will not NOT choose one bc it is Christian, and I’ll certainly prefer one that has Christian values along with academic standards, but yeah, the focus is on academics and we then supply our children with our religious instruction. So I guess I don’t 100% agree with this one.” So its being Christian or not wouldn’t turn me off. Being too expensive or too simplistic (as in not challenging enough) would. So I indeed chose TGTB for math and ela and some sciences. Bc it has high academic standards, good values, pleasing aesthetics and 🎉🎉🎉 it’s affordable!Almost too good to be true. I did not choose it bc it was a Christian curriculum and I had no expectations of it being so. I would not purchase their Bible study if they had one. And I constantly remind my children that even though they talk about Jesus and they think they follow the true Jesus, they do not. Their Jesus is a different one than ours and so is their theology. We haven’t done a deep study of Mormonism. For now it’s sufficed to say, “what we learn in Bible study counters what they believe, so we will be careful with their ideas of Jesus.” I went to Catholic school (presbyterian actually, but ran by Catholics) and it was simple to me - I learn theology in church and the 3 Rs in school. If the teacher says something against what I learn in church it’s her loss, not mine. So all that to say - how else will you choose a math and ELA curriculum for your child, if Christian ones aren’t good enough, Mormon ones insert mormon ideas in the curriculum…. Do we go secular? Don’t secular ones insert secular ideas? Isn’t secularism itself a religion? Shouldn’t we just prepare our children to deal with ideas that are wrong anywhere, since we will encounter them anywhere?Even from our own church pulpit sometimes? Again, please, forgive the length, but if you can follow up on this, I’d appreciate. And I think a lot more people would too.
To give some context- my dad was raised LDS and many of my family members are still LDS. Though the Lord has saved several from the deceptive doctrine. I might not word this well, but the greatest evil for our children is not wrong vs right (ie secular vs Biblical Worldview) BUT right vs almost right. Though, I would agree that it is important to say to your young children that some people say they are Christians or believe in the God of the Bible but do not actually... when kids are young, they do not have the understanding yet to determine right from almost right. This means that though it may seem harmless at first, over time, as they hear incorrect doctrine, they will inevitably build their understanding on it. It's the same reasoning behind why her curriculum ages 4-8 is building a Biblical Worldview, and then her later ages curriculum compares worldviews. I will agree with that I wish she would have clarified why she said not to use a truly Christian curriculum but then focused on a widely used curriculum that seemed to fit that bill. However, having also grown up in a Christian school and having some teachers who now I know did not have a Biblical Worldview, I can look back and see where I struggled for years to rectify the God of the Bible with the "god/jesus" that I had created with a variety of worldviews. I went down a long, hard road bc of this. Thankfully, the Lord rescued me from my faulty thinking, and by His grace today, I am saved! I will be praying for you as you wrestle with what to do. Also, I understand affordability. My husband is a blue-collar worker, and I stay home and homeschool 3 kids. It's definitely challenging to find affordable things that are academically strong, but if the Lord has called you to homeschooling, I have seen how he provides again and again. Praying for you and your precious family. God bless.
Thanks for posing this question. In the previous podcast episode you referenced, we recommended considering a secular curriculum for two reasons: 1) finding a curriculum with greater academic rigor (if the Christian curriculum being used is academically weak) and 2) preparing children to confront the secular ideologies they will face outside of the home while still living within the home. As you saw in this episode, we have given multiple examples of Mormon doctrine being subtly woven throughout the materials. For many Christian parents, this will be incredibly difficult to discern (unlike secular ideologies that are usually easier to pick up on). Also, unless one lives in Utah, Mormonism is not a worldview most children will encounter daily. So, while using a secular curriculum can be very helpful in developing discernment of ideologies children will encounter daily, spending so much time developing discernment of Mormon ideologies is not as wise of an investment. However, as you saw, in the final few minutes of the podcast, we give recommendations for what parents who still want to use the curriculum can do to help their children discern the Mormon doctrine embedded throughout. As an organization, we are not recommending that authentically Christian curriculum be completely abandoned (so long as it is academically rigorous). What we are advocating is exposing children to resources that contain secular ideologies so that they can develop discernment and critical/biblical thinking while they are still within our homes. For different families, this will look different. For example, some families may choose to use only Christian curriculum yet include secular novels in their literature choices to help their children develop discernment. Others may use Christian ELA, lit, and history curriculum while using secular science and math materials to help their children learn to discern secular assumptions about science and math vs. biblical ones. No matter what families choose, we simply advise against only exposing children to Christian resources as it will leave them unprepared for the barrage of secular ideas they will face outside of the homeschool setting. (And we advise against TGATB, as outlined in this podcast, because it is masquerading as Christian while actually stemming from unbiblical LDS teachings.) We hope this explanation offers clarity. :)
Thank you for making this video. I only this year started using this curriculum, and I didn't know it was made by Mormons. I appreciate that information but honestly, a lot of these ideas are not just from the Mormon church, and I've already had to talk to my children about many doctrines that are different from what we believe. I love opportunities to go deeper with my kids and discuss what things mean or what's real according to scripture. We are constantly talking about and studying the Bible in my house, and these few things you mentioned seem quite minimal that I'm not worried about it at all. Again, I'm glad I know, but I was already watchful of such things, so it doesn't really change my approach or make me consider switching curriculums. I really love the way this curriculum is set up and probably won't change unless it isn't working for my kids for some reason in the future.
Guys please 🙏🏼 is math and language it’s not religion or doctrines 🙄. Please think for yourselves, many also use secular curriculum, many of us went to public schools, we are not less Christians for that. Parents leading the spiritual world view not curriculum, curriculum is for academics
The LDS church is very evangelistic. They work very hard to convert people to their religion. This curriculum is written to convince that Mormonism is just another denomination of Christianity. It is an evangelical tool.
I'm going to disagree with the word Evangelical. The LDS do many things, including creating this curriculum, to pretend that they are like any other religion which solely follows the Bible.
Thank you Elizabeth for taking the time to look through this curriculum and spot those things. For many Christians who don’t know, those things can be hard to see! I’ll admit, I didn’t have an open heart to hear what possibly wrong things you were going to bring up at first, but I snapped out of it and opened my heart to hearing you out so that afterwards, I would then make my decision. I praise and thank God for you. Although I have enjoyed the way the curriculum teaches, I want to give no room for the enemy to deceive my child. Children’s minds are sponges and will absorb whatever teachings presented to them. 🙏🏻
Thank you for sharing. We are encouraged to hear of your humility and willingness to consider whether it is wise to use these materials with your children. May God bless you as you continue to disciple your children.
This is really important. I am an ex Mormon and used TGTb when I was Mormon. We have still used it occasionally since we left and became Christian, but we have found that it has been harder to use since then and we notice the little lds touches that might not be as noticeable to those who aren’t as familiar with it or those that are still Mormon. We used it since it was still a small company and back then (I’m not sure if it’s been taken out or not) they had many quotes from lds church leaders in the curriculum. And yes, lds is nothing like Christianity. It takes everything, used the same words, and twisted it just enough that it is completely different, but seems the same without further study. Jesus is different but also God the Father. The belief is God the Father was once a man that became a God after his death and had a wife (heavenly mother) that are the parents of Jesus, Satan, and the rest of us.
We’ve been using this curriculum for 2 years now, over 2 grades, and there is nothing in it that points to Mormonism. It’s a great curriculum that works amazingly for my children and just as I would use a secular math/history curriculum, I feel fine using this Mormon language/science/math curriculum. It’s actually really great and has been a life changer for our family! My kids are finally enjoying learning and retaining what they learn!
I'm glad you actually listed examples in the curriculum text, thank you. I don't find those examples to be explicitly Mormon, or contrary to scripture. It's also misleading to speak as if Jenny Phillips or the LDS people are the only ones curating the material. There are other people of many other denominations creating the curricula. The fact that Jenny Phillips is mormon and the founder of the curriculum is the biggest drawback of this curriculum for me but I have been using it with my kids, and we sit together going through each page, we read the books together, and I've yet to come across anything concerning regarding Christian doctrine. It isn't a Bible curriculum, and there is so much to be applauded in the way they've put the materials together. If I find another curriculum that is as beautifully done, open and go, and filled with art and poetry and good things, then I may consider switching, but so far I have been very pleased with the good and the beautiful and my kids have really enjoyed it. I agree, mormonism is a grievous false religion, and God will not look over their affront. I have and will continue to proceed with caution! We also incorporate much more than just the good and the beautiful curriculum into our homeschool. The actual Bible, of course, and more.
Great analysis. Thank you. When dealing with Mormons always remember they are living embodiments of the “imposters” who are “deceiving and being deceived” that Paul speaks of in 2 Timothy 3:13. They are the mission field, not partners in the education of godly, biblically literate children. “Discernment is not simply knowing the difference between right and wrong, but knowing the difference between right and almost right.” Charles Spurgeon.
We should also beware of false prophets like Jesus warned us about. Especially people who believe there are no longer prophets and God is not the same as he was in the past.
Thanks for a thorough breakdown of the subtle LDS influence in the curriculum. Of course the comments are filled with LDS members defending their position and attacking your gracious, critical analysis. Thank you for all you do to equip our children and bless the body of Christ.
Elizabeth, you did such a wonderful job with this subject! As a Christian homeschool mom i have decided not to use TG&TB.. i so appreciate all your research on this subject!
Thank you so much for doing this. I direct an eclectic co-op where we offer academic and elective classes. We do not allow this curriculum for our classes for some of these reasons. However, the primary reason is that we are a Christian co-op and giving the impression that we are the same as LDS is not a message we want to send to our members or children. As soon as you blur those lines, it becomes harder to distinguish the differences. Christian children who grow up thinking that LDS is the same may be pulled into it, thinking they are Christians. The negative reviews here are from LDS or Christians who are defensive about their use of TGATB because of the benefits you first mentioned. I wish they would consider the potential harmful results if they don't make this distinction clear to their children. This review was so good and I will be sharing with our members!
This curriculum is not just created by Mormons. There are Christians helping create it, as well. I’ve been using this curriculum for five years and I have not seen anything that goes against my Christian views. I’m fully aware the differences between what Mormons believe and what I believe. That being said, I dug deep to make the decision to continue using this curriculum despite the fact it does have Mormons creating it. If I ever see a red flag while teaching, I will reconsider.
Just a thought to consider.... Would you feel the same way if the creator were a Muslim? Would you use a Christian curriculum created by someone who wasn't a Christian?
I am a homeschool grandma. I struggled to find a good language arts program all the years that I taught my 8 children. I agree with everything that you say about the LDS church. I have studied it enough to know that it is not Christian. However, I am using the Good and the Beautiful language arts curriculum with my two granddaughters. I only wish that I had something like this when I was teaching my children. I have never seen a curriculum that was so well put together. I think that many home school moms and kids can greatly benefit by using the language arts program. I would say that the good far outweighs the few problems. A teacher can easily talk about the few places where it is iffy. Perhaps it gets worse in the upper grades. I only have experience up to the 3rd grade. I don't know of any other curriculums that compare to this, but if there isn't a really well-put-together alternative, I would encourage a struggling mom to at least consider it.
I agree with this! I've stopped using TGAB though at level 1 and have switched to memoria press for a variety of reasons, and the lds possible doctrine wasn't really a huge one. It was more style, method, and rigor based. The curriculum is also low cost which makes it low risk to try also
Agreed! I am using the Language Arts with my upper grade child - there is intentionally not ANY Mormon teaching. The founder made a video to address this very issue and stated very clearly this is NOT a Mormon curriculum whatsoever. It is created by people of multiple faiths - many evangelical believers giving input - and they intentionally keep it free from any persuasion while still maintaining the basic Judeo-Christian ethic with respectful honor towards God and biblical values - the same standards our country maintained for decades in public schools with curriculum like McGuffey Readers.
I really want to use the curriculum because of the price and its beauty. After watching Mike wingers video on UA-cam about a year ago about the Mormons I decided against it.
@@dinubiankween2533 don't let a youtube influencer influence your decision. Go to God. Maybe that curriculum is right for your family. I love it and have never found anything unbiblical that doesn't align with my beliefs. They have a panel of a VARIETY of different faiths and backgrounds that work on the content. Just because one of them belongs to a belief system you dont agree with doesn't mean the whole curriculum is bad.
I’d love a good list of Christian curriculums that would be a good replacement. It was so hard to choose one already so to go back to searching from scratch feels overwhelming.
I honestly will not go back to search from scratch. I did a lot of searching when I had the time to search. I settled on something that met my needs, not bc it was a Christian curriculum, though it helped that they had Christian morals. But it was simply a curriculum that was beautiful, easy to use, structured and challenging enough. I do tell my children that even though they talk about Jesus, they are not recognized as Christians and we are not learning our religion from them. I went to a Catholic school my whole life (well, it was presbyterian, but by the time I attended it it was most ran by Catholics, except for one religion teacher in second grade) and I simply knew that their theology and their views were different than mine. I was taught good doctrine at church and I was around Catholicism enough to see the difference between us and them. That did not stop me from learning my school subjects. I feel that in the case of my children they are even more prepared than me, as I never had intentional theology teaching at home like my kiddos do. …. I should write about this in the main comments section. But yeah, if I were you I’d not start from scratch. I won’t. But you do what you feel convicted about. After all, they’re your children. If Elizabeth’s arguments were so convincing to you, why don’t you start with easy peasy? That’s where I started.
I found Ambleside Online, very different from an open up and read from the worksheet style, but it has transformed our homeschool. Free resources and weekly plans on AO. You've probably heard of Charlotte Mason, this is a CM curriculum.
I am using memoria press and am loving it right now. Others you could check out are my father's world, sonlight. I have used masterbooks but I left it because I didn't find the progression of the LA to be a good fit for us. I use well trained mind first language lessons as well and it's great. I use math with confidence for math.
Thank you, Elizabeth. I am a Christian and use TGTB. I am very particular about curriculum in general and it took me a while to decide to use TGTB. I think it's because I do have a teaching background and look very closely at details. I am actually very surprised that you are taking this view on TGTB particularly because I have read some of your movie reviews and how it's important to have an open dialog with your children about what is going on in the movie and how we can point them to the truth. I see the TGTB in this way. Yes, some things are faulty and point to the Mormon Doctrine, but as parents, we are led by the Holy Spirit to make corrections where needed. I believe your view on this will deter parents from getting using a solid curriculum. Have you looked into the Charlotte Mason Philosophy of education? If you dive deeper into it, you will find a lot of why they have such a wide 'feast' of good and beautiful things. This truly goes deeper than the Mormon Doctrine within the curriculum. As a mother who studies apologetics, and theology, I feel this review devalues a parent's role to lead their children toward truth. If anything, when something comes up in the curriculum, what a great opportunity it is for parents to use that as a teachable moment. I really feel that this review should be re-evaluated and that this is a deeper dive into the Charlotte Mason philosophy of Education. Thanks for your time.
Thank you for this. I started out using it because of everything you rightly expressed, but then as we went through it something seemed off it didn’t align with scripture. and i must thank the Holy Spirit for giving discernment (because on my own i dont even know the details of mormonism). so glory to Jesus. thanks for putting this message out. God bless.
A political POV here: I use TGTB but over the years I've had to screen for what I consider progressive ideas in the LA's as early as 2nd grade. I was taught to be skeptical of stuff that is offered free. Level 3 reader books forced me to cut out her literature choices. I believe they are teaching kids to act ways that would put your kid in danger and be a victim (Heather and the Pony). So with each new updated level, they seem to be also injecting more CRT related ideas ie generational guilt (Kingdom of kind book.) Also, they mentioned creating their new history program with the help of a diversity panel. This isn't 2019 anymore and when you use wording like that that either means you are trying to appease the left followers or you are a politically left leaning company.
@@Svargasc3In the level 3 reader, the main character is a little person and every time someone is mean to her she think it’s because she is different and being discriminated against. It is so heavy handed that it spoiled the story. Level 2…I think just once it mentioned slavery and something else so it depends when you want to talk about that issue with your kid. Early presentation of a this topic is another aspect of crt so they can poison the well. They need to be developmentally ready in my opinion. No lqbt stuff in level 2, but level 3 there was a questionable picture used for a manly looking geisha in level three to explain FANBOYS for prepositions. Also the reader for level 4 talks about Jim Crow but at that age I think it may be ok then. Again this depends on each family and whether you want to discuss this topic in your LA’s.
Living in Utah and having LDS marry into my family the last 10 years, I have become pretty well versed in Mormon culture and beliefs. I’ve also been a Christian for over 20 years and do not believe LDS is Christian. I have used TGATB and the only thing LDS I have noticed is that it only uses the KJV. We have tried various curricula for language arts and this has been what has worked best for us.
We use ACE for the core of our homeschooling. TGTB was not a good fit for us. I wanted my kids to gradually be able to teach themselves and learn on their own and ACE was more conducive of that particular habit. I did not think TGTB was too obvious with their beliefs but it is in there and I did not want to have to nit-pick and critically counsel through their daily curriculum. I don't think there is anything too detrimental to using TGTB as long as you are aware and it may be beneficial to mix it up with other brands so your kids can have a first-hand example of doctrinal differences and an opportunity to build critical thinking skills. But thank you for going thru and analyzing TGTB for us! It is always helpful and useful
Thank you for the detailed deep dive. We tried a few of their free items a while back, but something gave me pause. Something just didn't seem right and I couldn't put my finger on it. As a Bible believing Christian who has family who are mormon, this was helpful to help me understand a few concepts and encouraged me that avoiding this curriculum for our family, was the correct answer.
Thank you SO much for this video. I just bought their handwriting curriculum for my kids and had no idea they were an LDS company. I’m looking forward to purchasing your worldview curriculum soon, to educate both myself and my kids!
I loved this podcast and was sharing the info with a homeschooling friend. I pulled up the transcript you linked in the description so I could quickly find the specific examples. Well the page numbers don't align, at least with Levels 1 & 4 in the purchased worktexts. We were able to find one reference in Level 4, which your transcript states is on page 12, but is really on page 5 (of the current version).
When I was looking at curriculum a few years ago I clicked on the good and beautiful website and read what they put on there . And I was like wow it looks so pretty but no I’ll have my children stand on the word of God not water down / misleading.
As a reading specialist, I find it lacking as it relies heavily on flash cards for sight words and random phonics. Anything that still pushes whole language learning gets a no from me before I even get to the cult side of it.
Not this again 🤦♀️ their church doctrines are not part of the curriculum. It isn't produced by their church. Do you research religious beliefs of every creator of curriculum, learning program, or books your child consumes?
When we first started homeschooling, I would do minimal research on the curriculum. Just tried what I could get my hands on. But as time went on, I started to feel convincted to look into the authors of the curriculum. After looking into Story of the World and the women who wrote it, there is no way that I would use it or financially support her or her ideology. I don't expect every Christian to do this. But I just think it comes with time and the Holy Spirits prompting. I wouldn't use or financially support a curriculum that funds the spread of a false gospel. Just like Christians tithe, so do mormons. A part of the profits of TGATB goes to the Mormon church.
@@Scvaldez03what is it that the Story of the World curriculum believes that is disturbing? I have their year one book. Now I’m concerned. Don’t want to buy level 2 if they have bizarre teachings.
@@Goldenretriever-p9e I'm not sure the texts have bizarre teachings, but after listening to some talks from the author of SOTW, I am not a fan of supporting her or her creations.
Honest question- I dont use tgtb, but what about singapore math, or story of the world or any other curriculum written by people with a sucular or new age worldveiw? We dont know the worldveiw of a lot of the authors of our curriculums, so how far do you apply this?
Thank you for this question. It is an important one to consider. As an organization, we do encourage parents to consider using some secular curriculum both for academic rigor and for preparing children to confront the secular ideologies they will face outside of the home while still living within the home. However, using TGATB is different. When you use Singapore math, you know the creators of the curriculum will be including some secular ideas, and you will stay alert for them. TGATB claims to be written from a "non-denominational Christian" perspective. Therefore, many Christian parents will put their guard down and not realize that LDS doctrine is subtly woven throughout. As you saw, in the final few minutes of the podcast, we give recommendations for what parents who still want to use TGATB can do to help their children discern the Mormon doctrine embedded throughout. However, for many Christian parents, this will be incredibly difficult to discern (unlike secular ideologies that are usually easier to pick up on). Also, unless one lives in Utah, Mormonism is not a worldview most children will encounter daily. So, while using a secular curriculum can be very helpful in developing discernment of ideologies children will encounter daily, spending so much time developing discernment of LDS ideologies is not as wise of an investment of our children’s time.
When we first started homeschooling, I would do minimal research on the curriculum. Just tried what I could get my hands on. But as time went on, I started to feel convincted to look into the authors of the curriculum. After looking into Story of the Word and the women who wrote it, there is no way that I would use it or financially support her or her ideology. I don't expect every Christian to do this. But I just think it comes with time and the Holy Spirits prompting.
This was so good! Thank you for taking this on and doing such a thorough job! We need more Bible believing Christians taking a stand. So many well intentioned parents are being drawn to these deceptive curriculums and we have to be bold enough to point out the fallacies. We don't need just what's good and beautiful we also need what's true. Thank you again.
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This makes me sad. This is only my second year home schooling and I’ve been very interested in the large Christian community that has chosen to home school their kids. As a member of this church I teach my children from the Bible and I love the Savior, Jesus Christ with all my heart. I don’t understand how I am not a Christian when Jesus is my standard for the all the choices I make in my life. I feel like in the world we live in today, believers in Christ should be supporting each other, regardless of the differences in our faith. I use this curriculum with my kids because it is so easy to follow and when my daughter was throwing tantrums about math, this was the curriculum that helped her want to do math again. But on the side of all our standard learning, I spend 15-30 minutes everyday with my kids in the scriptures. That is where I am teaching them our faith. I hope “Christians” will think twice about taking such a strong stand against members of my faith as “non-Christians.” We all love Jesus. Doesn’t that make us friends?
@ it all points us to Christ. The symbols we use all point us to the sacrifice and atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Our temples are a place where we worship Him. The Book of Mormon is a testament of Jesus as well. I know that’s where other religions get hung up with our faith. Why do we need another Bible? I can get that. And I can also get where people think our religion is weird and Joseph Smith seeing an angle is pretty far out there. I’m sure I would think the same thing if I hadn’t felt a witness from the Spirit that it’s true. But I can tell you I have felt that witness and that’s why I believe it. But I also respect others for not believing it. My hope is just that other religions will accept us as brothers and sisters in Christ. Because we are. No matter how we are practicing our faith, we are all trying to Come unto Him and be more like Him. 🩵
Mark 9 39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. 40 For he that is not against us is on our part. Of all the ideologies i passionately dissagree with, i think there are bigger fish to fry 😅 I am certainly not worried about the good and the beautiful compared to any other curriculum. I have never found anything unbiblical in it at all.
*sharing my own journey with this* As a christian, I agree with some of what elizabeth has said. I had these same concerns when i realized the curriculum was founded by an lds member. I could not figure out why i felt off about it because it was so widely reccomended and also asthetically pleasing. Ive been on a journey with it. Because i that conviction i started with masterbooks simply K and moved on to their first grade math and LA picks. After doing all that. I eventually ran into holes in masterbooks (which were more academic because its not lacking in its theological connections). So i switched math to math with confidence (which has no theology), and i switched us back to TGAB LA k in 1st grade because I already had bought it. Academically TGAB LA k plus the reading booster set taught my kid phonics and reading much better than the track that masterbooks offered. And masterbooks progressed so quickly without any real mastery it just wasnt sustainable. On the math side I didnt think it progressed enough. It was easy, open and go, required no prep and i could count on it to be teaching reading skills which at that point i didnt trust masterbooks to be doing so as well. Ive now switched over to memoria press for our core curriculum and am so impressed with how they teach phonics through spelling and reading actual classic literature. At the end of the day TGAB is too fluffy and girly and and stays too little kid like in the workbooks for my liking. And a few other factors im choosing not to use it. But its not because of the LDS factor at this point. I enjoy their science curriculums still. So the reason Ive left TGAB for now is more academic and method based. I dont have any concerns about the worldview in it, and there is no doctrinal teaching in the levels ive used. At this point i wouldnt put it off my options list but im not sure I would use it beyond 1st grade. But you never know how things change especially after more children come along. I also am going in a more traditionally classical direction. As well as wanting something that was a complete k-12 curriculum that is cohesive and includes actual literature and real worldview studies and moral development. One big lack for me in GAB langauge arts is that they create their own literature for their ELA programs. Its cute but, I want an ELA program that uses actual classic literature rather than their GAB books or leveled readers.
Correct. We have been using the good and the beautiful for literature and math and I just saw this video. My third grader is using it and at this point this makes me want to cry because I have loved TGTB And finally felt like I found the curriculum that was so easy to use and understand. Even I'm learning more as I'm teaching it. I really don't have the time to try to start over on another curriculum, but we have also done very well at teaching our kids the truth and I completely agree with you with everything. If I ever see something that seems off, I make sure to remind them of what is true. But very few times. Have I seen anything that seems weird. Until you've pointed it out. Now I'm just sad. I find it overwhelming trying to find something similar that I don't have to worry about the gospel being manipulated in the wrong ways. I would love some direction for next year for different curriculums because there's so many out there and I just find it overwhelming.
Abeka is very solid and it has colorful pictures in it. Rod and Staff is black and white but it does a wonderful job as well. Even just using Easy Peasy (workbooks or online) is better than TGATB
Girl, I dont see any reason why you should stop using a curriculum that works for your family based off of youtube videos. Let God guide your path not influencers.
We are a Christian family (not LDS) and I fell into this trap of “we can’t use TGATB because someone online told me it was bad”. The problem with discernment influencers on the internet is they all discern different things and then you can’t listen to anyone, read anything, and can’t find a church. We are going back to TGATB this year after 2.5 years of struggling with finding a curriculum that fits and that doesn’t break the bank with multiple children. We also do a Christian coop, a separate Bible curriculum, and are very active in our local church. The anti TGATB content feels very much like the “Harry Potter is letting demons into your house” argument. 😂
The sex Ed is not bad, but there is a verse used where the wording is changed to fit mormon theology. I read it from the Bible to my daughter rather than from the book. There are so many other Christian curriculums that I will take a pass on using it in the future.
We used Pre-K to 1st and some 2nd grade TG&TB and loved it. It IS good & beautiful and we printed off the lessons for free 🆓 because we just can't afford some of the curriculums. We would have the beautiful curriculum on the computer but do the work on black and white. (People can print it in color if they want but my granddaughter didn't mind that it wasn't in color) We aren't using it now because we had heard they may have Mormon doctrine within it. But I do miss it. My granddaughters are now using Miacademy now. I hope that curriculum is ok 🆗🙏🏻.
People should point the doctrine they found on this curriculum… I just want my kid learn academic things from the curriculum, is there any Christian curriculum affordable not on line?
@@pamelalima5401 masterbooks is a really great christian curriculum as well as chistian light education. Both affordable and offline. Make sure you check the guides of either to place your child on the correct level for each subject
Hi! I'm not entirely sure how this video ended up in my feed but I am LDS and I do use this curriculum so that probably accounts for it... As a Latter Day Saint I found this video interesting to watch. I will say that she is not wrong on how she summed up much of our beliefs even though the interpretation for those beliefs that she gave I didn't always agree with. That being said she was making some bold claims about the authority of "traditional" Christians that I would like to ask some questions on. First: That in order to qualify as Christian you must believe that the Bible is 100 percent infallible. But what version of the Bible then are you referring to? We all know that the Bible has been changed into so many different versions with very different meanings. Do you believe in all of them? Second: That Christ must be a member of the Trinity. The interesting thing here to me is that the word Trinity isn't even in the Bible. This idea of the Trinity wasn't solidified until the first council of Nicaea in 325 CE so basically 300 years after Christ. So if you believe you should not add or take away from the Bible wasn't the council of Nicaea doing that? Third: works are not a part of being a Christian. Romans 2:17 "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." And if you read the rest of Romans 2 it keeps talking about the importance of works. Also why aren't Catholics disqualified then from being Christian because they require baptism and other works, as well as many other Christian denominations? Fourth: LDS discount archeological evidence and just rely on prayer. Doesn't Christianity do a bit of that too? I'm sure there is a ton of non Christians out there who claim they can debunk Christianity. But this is why faith is required. That being said as a member of the LDS faith there is plenty of evidence out there too to justify our faith regardless of your claim to the contrary. With all of these points I appreciate that she isn't really hostile, but I just wanted to point out that she doesn't seem to see her own inconsistencies and that she is just expressing one biased interpretation of things and painting it as authority.
Thank you for this. I started attending a local homeschool meet up group. Many of the moms say they are Christian but they all use this curriculum. I immediately felt disappointed and am wondering if I should continue to try and fellowship there. I just know this conversation will come up as they try to push that on me and it’s annoying always have to be the one warning others. I am so grateful the Lord has built up my discernment through his word that we have found much better Biblically sound curriculum for my kids.
Lady you are expecting the curriculum to preach too deep… tgtb it’s not for you, they focus on character and keep the kid level on the stories and arguments they do not turn the lesson on a sermon.
All my friends use this curriculum and tell me how put together and easy it is to use. My concience won't allow me to use it. Even if you don't agree with her analysis of the curriculum, you probably do agree that mornonisim is not christian and perhaps dangerous to those seeking God. I personally won't use this curriculum for those who are unbelievers or for those who are weaker in faith and don't understand the difference between morminsim and Christianity. I would not want to allign myself with their beliefs and allow others who pay attention to what I do into thinking morminsim is okay.
So you don’t homeschool at all, but you’re here criticizing homeschooling curriculum? Have you addressed what children that attend public school are being exposed to on a daily basis? 🤯
@daniellebraga2880 I highly encourage you to watch all of her other videos. You will find the answer to your question. Also, her entire excellent foundation worldview curriculum prepares kids for what they are being exposed to on a daily basis and equips them to think Biblically. I know this, bc we use it. I have a hunch you and several others on here are not actually familiar with her and her important work at all.
It's an easy to use curriculum and busy moms find it convenient. Their are many better options available, but few as simple and affordable. I don't like it and don't use it but those who do aren't going to appreciate this video. The religious background of it's creator isn't as compelling of an argument for them. Frankly, I'm tired of hearing about it. It's a very trendy curriculum for homeschool moms here on youtube and it seems to be taking over. My two favorite homeschool youtubers grace and grit and angela braniff use it as well. So many higher quality options available, I don't get the hype.
Ugh. I had no idea this was made by Mormons. There is a lot I love about it, but it seems legalistic and idealistic in a weird way. This explains it. I’ll finish out the year aware of what to look out for and not reorder.
I mean exactly what I said. Legalistic and moralistic. Teaching values and how to be good without showing our need for Christ and Him alone to redeem. The obsession with books that only show goodness in high school levels. I want to have the hard discussions with my teens and to challenge them. I’m not Mormon and don’t want their theology inculcating my curriculum. I love the grammar and spelling integrated with the literature and geography and art. It’s truly beautiful and well done and I will look for a similar replacement for next year.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a Math curriculum? That's the only subject I've been using the Good and Beautiful for. I haven't found any doctrinal problems with it (so far) but I'm wondering if I should find a different Math curriculum anyways?
My kids have liked: Khan Academy Easy peasy homeschool (they have all the subjects but my kids especially like their math) Math Lessons for A Living Education (by Master book)
The main reason I use their curriculum for my children is cost. I don't have the budget for expensive Christian curriculums. My options are limited. It's either this or completely secular options. There is no truly Christian language arts course that is available for free. Free Christian options do not exist. There is an abundance of secular curriculums free to download, but no Christian alternatives.
We shouldn't use the dollar bill either... It has an iluminati symbol in it! The reference she used for the books level 1 and 3, is off! I do not find that on the books..but overall is very good explanation about Christianity vs Mormonism...
I found easy peasy to be too low key and not challenging enough. I bought the books bc I did not want my children depending on a computer to do their school work. Especially bc we don’t have enough computers. Anyway… I started using it with my children and was very disappointed by it. But, if it meets your standards. Some people I talk to find TGTB not challenging enough. I’ve settled on TGTB not bc it is a Christian curriculum, but bc it’s affordable, open and go, and challenging enough to my standards.
@@vikawinters Interesting, I have found EP very challenging for our needs. Infact, their reading is very advanced. I think if you just look at a few lessons it seems light but when you work through it day by day and year by year you get a better view and it is very solid and challenging.
19:18 wait…. I thought we were all God’s children… because God made us all. I thought that’s what they meant… then what is everyone else that is not a Christian yet?
@kita3256 So, i grew up thinking the same. This verse made it clear for me. But there are more that say the same. Romans 8:14-16 ESV "[14] For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [15] For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” [16] The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God..." So all people are made in God's image and because of that, have a great value. but we're only children of God (through adoption) when we are saved. I hope this helps! I not the most articulate lol
Raised Mormon. Mormons believe that God the Father has a physical body and a physical, exalted (made god/dess) wife and that our spirits are their children (because “like begetting like” makes for physical beings birthing non-physical children). They believe that there is a number of spirits waiting for bodies and that, once all spirit siblings have earthly bodies, the Second Coming will happen. They also believe that both Jesus and Lucifer are our spirit brothers, not God and a fallen angel. The terms are the same but the meaning is incredibly different.
We are children of Satan and our father is the devil until we are saved. John 8:44 ESV You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 1 John 3:10 ESV / 76 helpful votes By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. 1 John 3:8 ESV / 70 helpful votes Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 1 John 3:10 ESV By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother 1 John 3:8 ESV Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil
Just as a little caveat to your "all Christians believe the bible is the complete word of God." This is not a true statement. The original Christian Religion, Catholicism does not teach that the Bible is the complete word of God. The Bible, all 73 books, was taught to be completely the word of God by the teaching authority of the magisterium of the Church, the successor of Peter and his fellow apostles (the Pope and Bishops in communion with with). A lot of what you have said about Mormonism's beliefs is true, but some of your reasoning is wrong because your definition of what is Christianity is also wrong. As far as the use of TG&TB, I think proposing a discerning parent to be active in the discipleship of their child and in constant discussion. The use of the subjective conscious in our daily decisions is normal and good advice to every person. It is also true and important that every person forms their conscious so that they can follow it with confidence in its guidance (its receptivity of the movement of the Holy Spirit).
Great job! This was very logical and I appreciate that you used the LDS website. I had definitely been tempted by the TG&TB curriculum and so thank you.
The name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Insisting on calling us “Mormons” is unchristian of you. If you think you can decide who is sincerely “Christian” and who is not, I might remind you that Jesus taught “Judge not that you be not judged.” I disagree with your views of my Lord and Savior but have not stooped to discount your faith. I would appreciate others doing the same for mine - particularly among people who profess to follow Him.
Ok, the awkward thing about what you just said is that it validated everything she said in the video about the LDS faith and its flawed, subjective approach to its own doctrinal claims. And you did that while judging her for the perception of her judging you, which you then admonished her for with a Bible verse about not judging, which was misapplied out of context. With respect, please consider objectively exploring the claims she made against the LDS church before subjectively finding offense and writing her off. If she is wrong, prove her wrong; though I fear you may not, lest you find she is quite right. There is freedom from the legalistic, works-based false salvation of LDS in the biblical Christ. Please read the Bible asking God to open your eyes.
@@LaraJubber Judging and discerning are too different things. All tchristians believe in the same basic truths of who Jesus Christ is regardless of denomination. Jesus is co-eternal with God the Father and God the Holly Spirit, He is co-creater, not created, always was, always will be God. He did not become a god. This is a core nonnegotiable for Christian in ALL denominations. Denominations can differ on secondary issues like baptism but not on who Jesus was/is and if they do they are not Christians.
@@LaraJubber I love the "judge not " strawman argument because Jesus also said to judge by their fruits when we need to know who is a born again Christian and who is not. Matt. 7:16-20
Oh my this is way too much. We love math ans language art and we have been doing it for 3 years. I dont use science or other subjects so i dont know about it but I doubt they teach mormons beliefs in there. Now tell me do you stop buying from Walmart or Costco or any other shops that are not Christians? I understand that if a store promoted abortion t Or other things that doesn't lie down with my beliefs well i avoid but here we are really looking for something i don't see in there.
This is such a wrong representation of The Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints it should be taken down. Or you should go back and correct it. We DO NOT believe we are responsible for our own salvation that is a terrible misrepresentation. You happen to be incorrect on a lot in this video. It is very sad you would even act like an authority on someone else's beliefs. When its very apparent you have no idea what The Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints believe. Please if you want to tell people to not use a certain curriculum do that, but do not represent yourself as an authority on a religion you did a 20 min search on. Very very sad you have no idea how offensive it is. I doubt you would do the same to another religion.
Obviously there wouldn't be any archaeological evidence on the Doctrine and Covenants it was written in the 18'20's and on. 😂 Your ignorance on things to do with this religion is very obvious.
@@jenalynhancock3874 Mormon Articles of Faith 1:3: “We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.” LDS is a work based religion. Please note the little word “by” if you are LDS you are saved, according your own bible, by obeying the law and ordinances of their gospel. Where as Christiams believe “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” Ephesians 2:8-9
@@jenalynhancock3874 Articles of Faith 1:3: “We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.” Please note the little word “by” LDS hold that a person is saved by obeying the laws and ordinances of their gospel. Also the Newsroom states “our destination after this life depends on whether we participate in the essential rites (such as baptism) that aid us in the process of repentance, progression and sanctification.” Notice the phrase “depends on ….participate in essential rites”. This is different then what Christians hold “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9
@@jenalynhancock3874 You realize she quoted your own material from your own website??? Also, I have done my own research and the Mormon doctrines she stated are taught by the Mormon church...so maybe you don't know your own Churches teachings...I have seen that even in Christians, so no shame.
Yes good job doing your own research I would love to correct you as well if you think her information is accurate. Yes we don't believe in the Trinity like the early Saints didn't either before the creeds. Yes we believe that we are all children of God. No we do not believe that we are responsible for our own salvation we're not earning heaven we're learning heaven. We know that it is only through Christ that we are saved. which is why we follow Him @@abundanceintheson_316
Christian faiths are faiths that believe in Christ and his teachings. This includes the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They are, in fact, different from other Christian denominations, but that does mean that they are not Christian. They believe in Christ and his teachings, which is the exact definition of Christianity.
Unfortunatly this is not true. They believe in a twisted version of a Jesus but not the Jesus of Christianity. Their Jesus Christ is VASTLY different then the core beliefs of christians, even among different denominations. One important example is Mormons hold that their Jesus was created and not God from eternity past. He had to become a god. True Christians believe Jesus is co-equal and co-eternal with God the father and God the Holly Spirit, and that Jesus was not created but instead is a co-creator. Christian denominations can differ on secondary issues like baptism but there are still primary tenets that ALL Christians must hold to be considered Christian and Jesus being God, co-existent, co creator is a nonnegotiable for all Christian denominations. Mormons also believe we can become gods and populate our own planets, they believe in polygamy after death, and satan is Jesus’ brother, and baptizing for the dead. Please be careful bc satan is the master deceiver and the easiest way to deceive is by twisting the truth just enough to fool you.
They do not believe in the Jesus Christ of the Bible. Their Jesus has a brother named Lucifer. Their Jesus has a many brothers. He is not the one and only son of God (the only begotten).
Listening to you compliment the font and word count per page was so obvious that you were pretending to try to find something positive to say about the curriculum. Its attitudes like this that make me dislike living in places dominated by people of all the same theology. It leads to a haughtiness and un-Christlike culture among Christians because they start to persecute those not of their sect or religion. Please leave that attitude to the previous centuries.
I am not currently homeschooling, but I appreciated this video. You did a great job on breaking down the beliefs of Mormons. When I was homeschooling my daughter, I did use their handwriting book for two years. Even in a handwriting book they had quotes by Mormon leaders, so I could see that while they claimed their church teachings were not in the curriculum, it was not true. Here are reasons I chose not to use the rest of the curriculum: -There are so many other curriculum choices that align with my Christian worldview (this is the top reason and I could just stop here). I did not want science, literature, and history coming from someone with a different worldview. -There are so many other curriculum choices that have years and years of research and a complete scope and sequence that moves from year to year building on the year before. -The cost of printing the free curriculum would outweigh the fact that it is free. -Some of the curriculum is not bound, and all the teacher/student work is together.
I am a Chrustian mom and I firmly believe that LDS is not Christian. I have personally used TGTB for several years and I can say with confidence that I did not see any LDS doctrine in their student materials, also the curriculum is not developed by Jenny alone, she has an amazing team working with her, all from different Christian denominations. When using TGTB you are not teaching your children LDS, Christians can use TGTB curriculum with peace and confidence, it is a beautiful wholesome curriculum, teaching your children about God and the gospel is up to the parent to teach and live out.
I am a evangelical, Christ-following Believer. And after 15 years of homeschooling, I am in a different season with more kids now and use TGTB. I have studied many of their materials in science, language arts, math, and readers. I have not found any mormon-specific language. And I tend toward “high alert critical thinker”. We are always looking for lies in culture and ideas. I would commend people who feel led to boycott TGTB if they also didnt fill their homes with items from Target, didn’t buy any items made by morally and religiously questionable people. Each person has to determine for themselves what is suitable for their home. We are not called to hide from the world but to live among the sick and bring them to the Healer. It allows us opportunities to talk about these theological differences if I should ever find one in the lessons we use.
I definitely understand what you are saying but, what we support with our dollars when it comes to the education of our children, matters. I wouldn't personally put it in the same category as purchasing ibuprofen at Target (although I personally don't purchase from Target anymore). Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to know who we are/are not supporting with every single purchase and some things are just impossible to avoid, but this is an easy no. Like is mentioned in the video, there are soooo many other amazing options that this curriculum is easy to pass on.
Amen!! I agree with you!
WE are discipling our children not the curriculum. No one is ever going to find a curriculum that each one of us agrees with 100%. It’s up to us as the teacher and parents to avoid/discuss/disciple around any material we disagree with. We have the freedom to use this curriculum just as the early church had freedom to eat meat sacrificed to idols. Now obviously if it is an area of conviction for you then you should not do it and doing so would be sin. But it is an issue that each one of needs to bring before the Lord in regard to our home and our children. I don’t believe that it should be just a blanket statement from any Christian that no Christian homeschoolers should use it. That’s imposing their conviction on everyone else.
I’ve used every level of TGTB math multiple times and most of their LA levels and I have not found any “Mormon doctrine”.
I also have so much respect for the fact that they offer this very well done and academically rigorous curriculum for FREE! That is a HUGE blessing to homeschooling families, many of whom have multiple children and one income. So the fact that she is going to cause guilt for some families who choose to use it does frustrate me immensely. For some this is the difference of whether they are able to homeschool or not. It’s by FAR better that they be able to homeschool using the TGTB then have to put their kids in public school.
Rant over. 😉
@sondraguy5108 if families start feeling guilty because of what Elizabeth said; then deep down, they know she is right and are too stubborn to allow the truth to change them.
@@mamadragon733 I don’t agree. I think it’s pretty easy to heap guilt on Christians for things that they have freedom in.
I understand this but as an ex Mormon I promise it is there.
If I were to grab a religion and then compare it to a curriculum and then try to fit that religions doctorine by interpretating certain things... I'd probably be able to do it. There was just a lot of nit-picking, and I was hoping to see more evidence than just assumptions. Videos like this actually help me see how the enemy even uses christians in many ways. Definitely convinced even more after this video that the devil is angry at how this curriculum is allowing families to homeschool and get closer to Christ. So many testimonies on how families who never believed in God started seeking the truth through the Bible... and not becoming mormons or LDS but actually opening up the KJV of the bible. Ive never heard yet... i became a mormon after using this curriculum... I get that people get this convinction and want people to see what they might be seeing. But this seemed quite forced. I get your and many hearts behind this.. but if the good and the beautiful never said from the beginning that the owner was LDS or whatever... no one would even be having this conversation. Most curriculum companies we have no idea what their domination is but I'm sure there would be so much nit-picking if we did. And if you look online and actually have used the curriculum, you'll see that it's made by people with so many different faiths.
Yes!!!
This is per their website:
The focus is on general principles of moral character such as honesty and kindness. The King James Version of the Bible is used when quoting Bible verses.
The Good and the Beautiful curriculum takes a general Christian worldview, focusing, not on the doctrine of any particular Christian church, but on high moral character and basic Bible principles such as gratitude, honesty, prayer, and kindness. Parents can add in their own doctrinal beliefs as desired.
The curriculum is reviewed by members of many different faiths to make sure that the curriculum does not include doctrine specific to any Christian church. We have reviewers and users of the following denominations and more: Lutheran, Assemblies of God, Catholic, Baptist, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mennonite, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nazarene, Methodist, Non-Denominational, and Seventh Day Adventists.
Wow, that statement from their website is a validation of how “evil people and imposters will go on… deceiving and being deceived” from 2 Timothy 3:12-15
My main concern is not so much the curriculum itself. There is no way the subtleties Elizabeth mentions is enough to convert anyone or even be perceived by children. I have used it for years, and because I'm teaching it as Christian, I go ahead and infuse my beliefs and worldview into my teaching, using GTB as a basic spine. However, I have had pause about the fact that buying this curriculum means that I am supporting Jenny Philips through my purchase. Mormons give a portion of their money to support the church like Christians do, and knowing how much money is going to Mormonism makes me a bit uncomfortable. Also, when thousands of us buy this curriculum, it means that thousands of us are NOT buying curriculum that supports people who are spreading the true gospel (such as Apologia). So just another aspect for consideration.
Thank you for mentioning this! Not many Christians think about how their money goes on to spread a false gospel when they purchase a Mormon product.
Great point. Our Christian dollars are supporting the expansion on a false religion.
Dear Elizabeth, I follow your channel faithfully and it’s been a true blessing to our family. It’s hard to find points where I have any disagreement from you. But on this one, not only I disagreed, but I was also confused. If you could follow up on it, I’d greatly appreciate. Forgive my long comment, I don’t know if here is the proper place to write such a long response, but I’d like you to have as much on my thinking as possible. So here’s why I’m confused and do disagree from your standing on this one:
On a different podcast you mentioned how you didn’t recommend the use of Christian curriculum bc their academics tend to have low standards. I kind of agreed with you on that. On today’s episode it seems that you do not recommend TGTB for not being Christian, regardless of their academics. Which to me would logically follow that we should then look for Christian curricula, since all others, including secular ones, will have a faulty understanding of Jesus, salvation and the state of humanity. For example, many people who aren’t “religious” will say that we are all children of God.
So, on that earlier podcast I thought, “okay I don’t choose a curriculum bc it is Christian, but I’d definitely will not NOT choose one bc it is Christian, and I’ll certainly prefer one that has Christian values along with academic standards, but yeah, the focus is on academics and we then supply our children with our religious instruction. So I guess I don’t 100% agree with this one.”
So its being Christian or not wouldn’t turn me off. Being too expensive or too simplistic (as in not challenging enough) would.
So I indeed chose TGTB for math and ela and some sciences. Bc it has high academic standards, good values, pleasing aesthetics and 🎉🎉🎉 it’s affordable!Almost too good to be true. I did not choose it bc it was a Christian curriculum and I had no expectations of it being so. I would not purchase their Bible study if they had one. And I constantly remind my children that even though they talk about Jesus and they think they follow the true Jesus, they do not. Their Jesus is a different one than ours and so is their theology. We haven’t done a deep study of Mormonism. For now it’s sufficed to say, “what we learn in Bible study counters what they believe, so we will be careful with their ideas of Jesus.”
I went to Catholic school (presbyterian actually, but ran by Catholics) and it was simple to me - I learn theology in church and the 3 Rs in school. If the teacher says something against what I learn in church it’s her loss, not mine.
So all that to say - how else will you choose a math and ELA curriculum for your child, if Christian ones aren’t good enough, Mormon ones insert mormon ideas in the curriculum…. Do we go secular? Don’t secular ones insert secular ideas? Isn’t secularism itself a religion? Shouldn’t we just prepare our children to deal with ideas that are wrong anywhere, since we will encounter them anywhere?Even from our own church pulpit sometimes?
Again, please, forgive the length, but if you can follow up on this, I’d appreciate. And I think a lot more people would too.
To give some context- my dad was raised LDS and many of my family members are still LDS. Though the Lord has saved several from the deceptive doctrine.
I might not word this well, but the greatest evil for our children is not wrong vs right (ie secular vs Biblical Worldview) BUT right vs almost right. Though, I would agree that it is important to say to your young children that some people say they are Christians or believe in the God of the Bible but do not actually... when kids are young, they do not have the understanding yet to determine right from almost right. This means that though it may seem harmless at first, over time, as they hear incorrect doctrine, they will inevitably build their understanding on it. It's the same reasoning behind why her curriculum ages 4-8 is building a Biblical Worldview, and then her later ages curriculum compares worldviews.
I will agree with that I wish she would have clarified why she said not to use a truly Christian curriculum but then focused on a widely used curriculum that seemed to fit that bill. However, having also grown up in a Christian school and having some teachers who now I know did not have a Biblical Worldview, I can look back and see where I struggled for years to rectify the God of the Bible with the "god/jesus" that I had created with a variety of worldviews. I went down a long, hard road bc of this. Thankfully, the Lord rescued me from my faulty thinking, and by His grace today, I am saved! I will be praying for you as you wrestle with what to do.
Also, I understand affordability. My husband is a blue-collar worker, and I stay home and homeschool 3 kids. It's definitely challenging to find affordable things that are academically strong, but if the Lord has called you to homeschooling, I have seen how he provides again and again. Praying for you and your precious family. God bless.
Thanks for posing this question. In the previous podcast episode you referenced, we recommended considering a secular curriculum for two reasons: 1) finding a curriculum with greater academic rigor (if the Christian curriculum being used is academically weak) and 2) preparing children to confront the secular ideologies they will face outside of the home while still living within the home. As you saw in this episode, we have given multiple examples of Mormon doctrine being subtly woven throughout the materials. For many Christian parents, this will be incredibly difficult to discern (unlike secular ideologies that are usually easier to pick up on). Also, unless one lives in Utah, Mormonism is not a worldview most children will encounter daily. So, while using a secular curriculum can be very helpful in developing discernment of ideologies children will encounter daily, spending so much time developing discernment of Mormon ideologies is not as wise of an investment. However, as you saw, in the final few minutes of the podcast, we give recommendations for what parents who still want to use the curriculum can do to help their children discern the Mormon doctrine embedded throughout.
As an organization, we are not recommending that authentically Christian curriculum be completely abandoned (so long as it is academically rigorous). What we are advocating is exposing children to resources that contain secular ideologies so that they can develop discernment and critical/biblical thinking while they are still within our homes. For different families, this will look different. For example, some families may choose to use only Christian curriculum yet include secular novels in their literature choices to help their children develop discernment. Others may use Christian ELA, lit, and history curriculum while using secular science and math materials to help their children learn to discern secular assumptions about science and math vs. biblical ones. No matter what families choose, we simply advise against only exposing children to Christian resources as it will leave them unprepared for the barrage of secular ideas they will face outside of the homeschool setting. (And we advise against TGATB, as outlined in this podcast, because it is masquerading as Christian while actually stemming from unbiblical LDS teachings.)
We hope this explanation offers clarity. :)
Thank you for making this video. I only this year started using this curriculum, and I didn't know it was made by Mormons. I appreciate that information but honestly, a lot of these ideas are not just from the Mormon church, and I've already had to talk to my children about many doctrines that are different from what we believe. I love opportunities to go deeper with my kids and discuss what things mean or what's real according to scripture. We are constantly talking about and studying the Bible in my house, and these few things you mentioned seem quite minimal that I'm not worried about it at all. Again, I'm glad I know, but I was already watchful of such things, so it doesn't really change my approach or make me consider switching curriculums. I really love the way this curriculum is set up and probably won't change unless it isn't working for my kids for some reason in the future.
Thank you for your research! I appreciate your kindness and attention to detail. ❤
Guys please 🙏🏼 is math and language it’s not religion or doctrines 🙄. Please think for yourselves, many also use secular curriculum, many of us went to public schools, we are not less Christians for that. Parents leading the spiritual world view not curriculum, curriculum is for academics
I agree we love it. We do math and language art and we love it
The LDS church is very evangelistic. They work very hard to convert people to their religion. This curriculum is written to convince that Mormonism is just another denomination of Christianity. It is an evangelical tool.
I'm going to disagree with the word Evangelical. The LDS do many things, including creating this curriculum, to pretend that they are like any other religion which solely follows the Bible.
Exactly. Our dollars are going towards expansion of a false religion. Easy pass.
Thank you Elizabeth for taking the time to look through this curriculum and spot those things. For many Christians who don’t know, those things can be hard to see!
I’ll admit, I didn’t have an open heart to hear what possibly wrong things you were going to bring up at first, but I snapped out of it and opened my heart to hearing you out so that afterwards, I would then make my decision.
I praise and thank God for you. Although I have enjoyed the way the curriculum teaches, I want to give no room for the enemy to deceive my child. Children’s minds are sponges and will absorb whatever teachings presented to them. 🙏🏻
Thank you for sharing. We are encouraged to hear of your humility and willingness to consider whether it is wise to use these materials with your children. May God bless you as you continue to disciple your children.
@@FoundationWorldviewthank you! And may God continue to bless you and give you wisdom and use you and your resources to bless families! ❤️
This is really important. I am an ex Mormon and used TGTb when I was Mormon. We have still used it occasionally since we left and became Christian, but we have found that it has been harder to use since then and we notice the little lds touches that might not be as noticeable to those who aren’t as familiar with it or those that are still Mormon. We used it since it was still a small company and back then (I’m not sure if it’s been taken out or not) they had many quotes from lds church leaders in the curriculum. And yes, lds is nothing like Christianity. It takes everything, used the same words, and twisted it just enough that it is completely different, but seems the same without further study.
Jesus is different but also God the Father. The belief is God the Father was once a man that became a God after his death and had a wife (heavenly mother) that are the parents of Jesus, Satan, and the rest of us.
Praise God you were saved!
We’ve been using this curriculum for 2 years now, over 2 grades, and there is nothing in it that points to Mormonism. It’s a great curriculum that works amazingly for my children and just as I would use a secular math/history curriculum, I feel fine using this Mormon language/science/math curriculum. It’s actually really great and has been a life changer for our family! My kids are finally enjoying learning and retaining what they learn!
I'm glad you actually listed examples in the curriculum text, thank you. I don't find those examples to be explicitly Mormon, or contrary to scripture. It's also misleading to speak as if Jenny Phillips or the LDS people are the only ones curating the material. There are other people of many other denominations creating the curricula. The fact that Jenny Phillips is mormon and the founder of the curriculum is the biggest drawback of this curriculum for me but I have been using it with my kids, and we sit together going through each page, we read the books together, and I've yet to come across anything concerning regarding Christian doctrine. It isn't a Bible curriculum, and there is so much to be applauded in the way they've put the materials together. If I find another curriculum that is as beautifully done, open and go, and filled with art and poetry and good things, then I may consider switching, but so far I have been very pleased with the good and the beautiful and my kids have really enjoyed it. I agree, mormonism is a grievous false religion, and God will not look over their affront. I have and will continue to proceed with caution! We also incorporate much more than just the good and the beautiful curriculum into our homeschool. The actual Bible, of course, and more.
Great analysis. Thank you. When dealing with Mormons always remember they are living embodiments of the “imposters” who are “deceiving and being deceived” that Paul speaks of in 2 Timothy 3:13. They are the mission field, not partners in the education of godly, biblically literate children.
“Discernment is not simply knowing the difference between right and wrong, but knowing the difference between right and almost right.” Charles Spurgeon.
We should also beware of false prophets like Jesus warned us about. Especially people who believe there are no longer prophets and God is not the same as he was in the past.
Thanks for a thorough breakdown of the subtle LDS influence in the curriculum. Of course the comments are filled with LDS members defending their position and attacking your gracious, critical analysis. Thank you for all you do to equip our children and bless the body of Christ.
@@jannad3406 I was totally about to put something like this!
Love this!!!
Elizabeth, you did such a wonderful job with this subject! As a Christian homeschool mom i have decided not to use TG&TB.. i so appreciate all your research on this subject!
Thank you so much for doing this. I direct an eclectic co-op where we offer academic and elective classes. We do not allow this curriculum for our classes for some of these reasons. However, the primary reason is that we are a Christian co-op and giving the impression that we are the same as LDS is not a message we want to send to our members or children. As soon as you blur those lines, it becomes harder to distinguish the differences. Christian children who grow up thinking that LDS is the same may be pulled into it, thinking they are Christians. The negative reviews here are from LDS or Christians who are defensive about their use of TGATB because of the benefits you first mentioned. I wish they would consider the potential harmful results if they don't make this distinction clear to their children. This review was so good and I will be sharing with our members!
This curriculum is not just created by Mormons. There are Christians helping create it, as well. I’ve been using this curriculum for five years and I have not seen anything that goes against my Christian views. I’m fully aware the differences between what Mormons believe and what I believe. That being said, I dug deep to make the decision to continue using this curriculum despite the fact it does have Mormons creating it. If I ever see a red flag while teaching, I will reconsider.
Just a thought to consider.... Would you feel the same way if the creator were a Muslim? Would you use a Christian curriculum created by someone who wasn't a Christian?
I am a homeschool grandma. I struggled to find a good language arts program all the years that I taught my 8 children. I agree with everything that you say about the LDS church. I have studied it enough to know that it is not Christian. However, I am using the Good and the Beautiful language arts curriculum with my two granddaughters. I only wish that I had something like this when I was teaching my children. I have never seen a curriculum that was so well put together. I think that many home school moms and kids can greatly benefit by using the language arts program. I would say that the good far outweighs the few problems. A teacher can easily talk about the few places where it is iffy. Perhaps it gets worse in the upper grades. I only have experience up to the 3rd grade. I don't know of any other curriculums that compare to this, but if there isn't a really well-put-together alternative, I would encourage a struggling mom to at least consider it.
I agree with this! I've stopped using TGAB though at level 1 and have switched to memoria press for a variety of reasons, and the lds possible doctrine wasn't really a huge one. It was more style, method, and rigor based.
The curriculum is also low cost which makes it low risk to try also
Agreed! I am using the Language Arts with my upper grade child - there is intentionally not ANY Mormon teaching. The founder made a video to address this very issue and stated very clearly this is NOT a Mormon curriculum whatsoever. It is created by people of multiple faiths - many evangelical believers giving input - and they intentionally keep it free from any persuasion while still maintaining the basic Judeo-Christian ethic with respectful honor towards God and biblical values - the same standards our country maintained for decades in public schools with curriculum like McGuffey Readers.
I really want to use the curriculum because of the price and its beauty. After watching Mike wingers video on UA-cam about a year ago about the Mormons I decided against it.
@@dinubiankween2533 don't let a youtube influencer influence your decision. Go to God. Maybe that curriculum is right for your family. I love it and have never found anything unbiblical that doesn't align with my beliefs. They have a panel of a VARIETY of different faiths and backgrounds that work on the content. Just because one of them belongs to a belief system you dont agree with doesn't mean the whole curriculum is bad.
I’d love a good list of Christian curriculums that would be a good replacement. It was so hard to choose one already so to go back to searching from scratch feels overwhelming.
I honestly will not go back to search from scratch. I did a lot of searching when I had the time to search. I settled on something that met my needs, not bc it was a Christian curriculum, though it helped that they had Christian morals. But it was simply a curriculum that was beautiful, easy to use, structured and challenging enough. I do tell my children that even though they talk about Jesus, they are not recognized as Christians and we are not learning our religion from them. I went to a Catholic school my whole life (well, it was presbyterian, but by the time I attended it it was most ran by Catholics, except for one religion teacher in second grade) and I simply knew that their theology and their views were different than mine. I was taught good doctrine at church and I was around Catholicism enough to see the difference between us and them. That did not stop me from learning my school subjects. I feel that in the case of my children they are even more prepared than me, as I never had intentional theology teaching at home like my kiddos do. …. I should write about this in the main comments section. But yeah, if I were you I’d not start from scratch. I won’t. But you do what you feel convicted about. After all, they’re your children. If Elizabeth’s arguments were so convincing to you, why don’t you start with easy peasy? That’s where I started.
I found Ambleside Online, very different from an open up and read from the worksheet style, but it has transformed our homeschool. Free resources and weekly plans on AO. You've probably heard of Charlotte Mason, this is a CM curriculum.
Masterbooks
Masterbooks and Generations are the ones we use and love!
I am using memoria press and am loving it right now. Others you could check out are my father's world, sonlight. I have used masterbooks but I left it because I didn't find the progression of the LA to be a good fit for us.
I use well trained mind first language lessons as well and it's great. I use math with confidence for math.
Thank you, Elizabeth. I am a Christian and use TGTB. I am very particular about curriculum in general and it took me a while to decide to use TGTB. I think it's because I do have a teaching background and look very closely at details. I am actually very surprised that you are taking this view on TGTB particularly because I have read some of your movie reviews and how it's important to have an open dialog with your children about what is going on in the movie and how we can point them to the truth. I see the TGTB in this way. Yes, some things are faulty and point to the Mormon Doctrine, but as parents, we are led by the Holy Spirit to make corrections where needed. I believe your view on this will deter parents from getting using a solid curriculum. Have you looked into the Charlotte Mason Philosophy of education? If you dive deeper into it, you will find a lot of why they have such a wide 'feast' of good and beautiful things. This truly goes deeper than the Mormon Doctrine within the curriculum. As a mother who studies apologetics, and theology, I feel this review devalues a parent's role to lead their children toward truth. If anything, when something comes up in the curriculum, what a great opportunity it is for parents to use that as a teachable moment. I really feel that this review should be re-evaluated and that this is a deeper dive into the Charlotte Mason philosophy of Education. Thanks for your time.
You did an excellent job with this, thank you!
Thank you for this. I started out using it because of everything you rightly expressed, but then as we went through it something seemed off it didn’t align with scripture. and i must thank the Holy Spirit for giving discernment (because on my own i dont even know the details of mormonism). so glory to Jesus. thanks for putting this message out. God bless.
A political POV here: I use TGTB but over the years I've had to screen for what I consider progressive ideas in the LA's as early as 2nd grade. I was taught to be skeptical of stuff that is offered free. Level 3 reader books forced me to cut out her literature choices. I believe they are teaching kids to act ways that would put your kid in danger and be a victim (Heather and the Pony). So with each new updated level, they seem to be also injecting more CRT related ideas ie generational guilt (Kingdom of kind book.) Also, they mentioned creating their new history program with the help of a diversity panel. This isn't 2019 anymore and when you use wording like that that either means you are trying to appease the left followers or you are a politically left leaning company.
Can you say what was sketchy about level 2? We’re about to start it, and would like to know. Also, a victim how?
@@Svargasc3In the level 3 reader, the main character is a little person and every time someone is mean to her she think it’s because she is different and being discriminated against. It is so heavy handed that it spoiled the story. Level 2…I think just once it mentioned slavery and something else so it depends when you want to talk about that issue with your kid. Early presentation of a this topic is another aspect of crt so they can poison the well. They need to be developmentally ready in my opinion. No lqbt stuff in level 2, but level 3 there was a questionable picture used for a manly looking geisha in level three to explain FANBOYS for prepositions. Also the reader for level 4 talks about Jim Crow but at that age I think it may be ok then. Again this depends on each family and whether you want to discuss this topic in your LA’s.
Yes, their free offerings are for a purpose. To subtly confuse our Christian kids, and parents.
Living in Utah and having LDS marry into my family the last 10 years, I have become pretty well versed in Mormon culture and beliefs. I’ve also been a Christian for over 20 years and do not believe LDS is Christian. I have used TGATB and the only thing LDS I have noticed is that it only uses the KJV. We have tried various curricula for language arts and this has been what has worked best for us.
We use ACE for the core of our homeschooling. TGTB was not a good fit for us. I wanted my kids to gradually be able to teach themselves and learn on their own and ACE was more conducive of that particular habit. I did not think TGTB was too obvious with their beliefs but it is in there and I did not want to have to nit-pick and critically counsel through their daily curriculum. I don't think there is anything too detrimental to using TGTB as long as you are aware and it may be beneficial to mix it up with other brands so your kids can have a first-hand example of doctrinal differences and an opportunity to build critical thinking skills. But thank you for going thru and analyzing TGTB for us! It is always helpful and useful
Thank you for the detailed deep dive. We tried a few of their free items a while back, but something gave me pause. Something just didn't seem right and I couldn't put my finger on it. As a Bible believing Christian who has family who are mormon, this was helpful to help me understand a few concepts and encouraged me that avoiding this curriculum for our family, was the correct answer.
Thank you SO much for this video. I just bought their handwriting curriculum for my kids and had no idea they were an LDS company. I’m looking forward to purchasing your worldview curriculum soon, to educate both myself and my kids!
I loved this podcast and was sharing the info with a homeschooling friend. I pulled up the transcript you linked in the description so I could quickly find the specific examples. Well the page numbers don't align, at least with Levels 1 & 4 in the purchased worktexts. We were able to find one reference in Level 4, which your transcript states is on page 12, but is really on page 5 (of the current version).
When I was looking at curriculum a few years ago I clicked on the good and beautiful website and read what they put on there . And I was like wow it looks so pretty but no I’ll have my children stand on the word of God not water down / misleading.
You performed a very detailed analysis!
As a reading specialist, I find it lacking as it relies heavily on flash cards for sight words and random phonics. Anything that still pushes whole language learning gets a no from me before I even get to the cult side of it.
Is that the old version? The new version is phonics in the booster cards.
Not this again 🤦♀️ their church doctrines are not part of the curriculum. It isn't produced by their church.
Do you research religious beliefs of every creator of curriculum, learning program, or books your child consumes?
When we first started homeschooling, I would do minimal research on the curriculum. Just tried what I could get my hands on. But as time went on, I started to feel convincted to look into the authors of the curriculum. After looking into Story of the World and the women who wrote it, there is no way that I would use it or financially support her or her ideology. I don't expect every Christian to do this. But I just think it comes with time and the Holy Spirits prompting.
I wouldn't use or financially support a curriculum that funds the spread of a false gospel. Just like Christians tithe, so do mormons. A part of the profits of TGATB goes to the Mormon church.
@@Scvaldez03what is it that the Story of the World curriculum believes that is disturbing? I have their year one book. Now I’m concerned. Don’t want to buy level 2 if they have bizarre teachings.
@@Goldenretriever-p9e I'm not sure the texts have bizarre teachings, but after listening to some talks from the author of SOTW, I am not a fan of supporting her or her creations.
We use math and language art and we love it. We do not do science or other subjects with them.
Great points! We must be like the Bereans and test everything!
This was excellent. Ty
Honest question- I dont use tgtb, but what about singapore math, or story of the world or any other curriculum written by people with a sucular or new age worldveiw? We dont know the worldveiw of a lot of the authors of our curriculums, so how far do you apply this?
Thank you for this question. It is an important one to consider. As an organization, we do encourage parents to consider using some secular curriculum both for academic rigor and for preparing children to confront the secular ideologies they will face outside of the home while still living within the home. However, using TGATB is different. When you use Singapore math, you know the creators of the curriculum will be including some secular ideas, and you will stay alert for them. TGATB claims to be written from a "non-denominational Christian" perspective. Therefore, many Christian parents will put their guard down and not realize that LDS doctrine is subtly woven throughout. As you saw, in the final few minutes of the podcast, we give recommendations for what parents who still want to use TGATB can do to help their children discern the Mormon doctrine embedded throughout. However, for many Christian parents, this will be incredibly difficult to discern (unlike secular ideologies that are usually easier to pick up on). Also, unless one lives in Utah, Mormonism is not a worldview most children will encounter daily. So, while using a secular curriculum can be very helpful in developing discernment of ideologies children will encounter daily, spending so much time developing discernment of LDS ideologies is not as wise of an investment of our children’s time.
When we first started homeschooling, I would do minimal research on the curriculum. Just tried what I could get my hands on. But as time went on, I started to feel convincted to look into the authors of the curriculum. After looking into Story of the Word and the women who wrote it, there is no way that I would use it or financially support her or her ideology. I don't expect every Christian to do this. But I just think it comes with time and the Holy Spirits prompting.
This was so good! Thank you for taking this on and doing such a thorough job! We need more Bible believing Christians taking a stand. So many well intentioned parents are being drawn to these deceptive curriculums and we have to be bold enough to point out the fallacies. We don't need just what's
good and beautiful we also need what's true. Thank you again.
Yes!! 100%!❤
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This makes me sad. This is only my second year home schooling and I’ve been very interested in the large Christian community that has chosen to home school their kids. As a member of this church I teach my children from the Bible and I love the Savior, Jesus Christ with all my heart. I don’t understand how I am not a Christian when Jesus is my standard for the all the choices I make in my life. I feel like in the world we live in today, believers in Christ should be supporting each other, regardless of the differences in our faith. I use this curriculum with my kids because it is so easy to follow and when my daughter was throwing tantrums about math, this was the curriculum that helped her want to do math again. But on the side of all our standard learning, I spend 15-30 minutes everyday with my kids in the scriptures. That is where I am teaching them our faith.
I hope “Christians” will think twice about taking such a strong stand against members of my faith as “non-Christians.” We all love Jesus. Doesn’t that make us friends?
What about the stuff that happens in the temple and book of Mormon?
@ it all points us to Christ. The symbols we use all point us to the sacrifice and atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Our temples are a place where we worship Him. The Book of Mormon is a testament of Jesus as well. I know that’s where other religions get hung up with our faith. Why do we need another Bible? I can get that. And I can also get where people think our religion is weird and Joseph Smith seeing an angle is pretty far out there. I’m sure I would think the same thing if I hadn’t felt a witness from the Spirit that it’s true. But I can tell you I have felt that witness and that’s why I believe it. But I also respect others for not believing it. My hope is just that other religions will accept us as brothers and sisters in Christ. Because we are. No matter how we are practicing our faith, we are all trying to Come unto Him and be more like Him. 🩵
Mark 9
39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me.
40 For he that is not against us is on our part.
Of all the ideologies i passionately dissagree with, i think there are bigger fish to fry 😅 I am certainly not worried about the good and the beautiful compared to any other curriculum. I have never found anything unbiblical in it at all.
*sharing my own journey with this* As a christian, I agree with some of what elizabeth has said. I had these same concerns when i realized the curriculum was founded by an lds member. I could not figure out why i felt off about it because it was so widely reccomended and also asthetically pleasing. Ive been on a journey with it.
Because i that conviction i started with masterbooks simply K and moved on to their first grade math and LA picks. After doing all that. I eventually ran into holes in masterbooks (which were more academic because its not lacking in its theological connections).
So i switched math to math with confidence (which has no theology), and i switched us back to TGAB LA k in 1st grade because I already had bought it. Academically TGAB LA k plus the reading booster set taught my kid phonics and reading much better than the track that masterbooks offered. And masterbooks progressed so quickly without any real mastery it just wasnt sustainable. On the math side I didnt think it progressed enough. It was easy, open and go, required no prep and i could count on it to be teaching reading skills which at that point i didnt trust masterbooks to be doing so as well.
Ive now switched over to memoria press for our core curriculum and am so impressed with how they teach phonics through spelling and reading actual classic literature.
At the end of the day TGAB is too fluffy and girly and and stays too little kid like in the workbooks for my liking. And a few other factors im choosing not to use it. But its not because of the LDS factor at this point.
I enjoy their science curriculums still.
So the reason Ive left TGAB for now is more academic and method based. I dont have any concerns about the worldview in it, and there is no doctrinal teaching in the levels ive used. At this point i wouldnt put it off my options list but im not sure I would use it beyond 1st grade. But you never know how things change especially after more children come along.
I also am going in a more traditionally classical direction. As well as wanting something that was a complete k-12 curriculum that is cohesive and includes actual literature and real worldview studies and moral development.
One big lack for me in GAB langauge arts is that they create their own literature for their ELA programs. Its cute but, I want an ELA program that uses actual classic literature rather than their GAB books or leveled readers.
Correct. We have been using the good and the beautiful for literature and math and I just saw this video. My third grader is using it and at this point this makes me want to cry because I have loved TGTB And finally felt like I found the curriculum that was so easy to use and understand. Even I'm learning more as I'm teaching it. I really don't have the time to try to start over on another curriculum, but we have also done very well at teaching our kids the truth and I completely agree with you with everything. If I ever see something that seems off, I make sure to remind them of what is true. But very few times. Have I seen anything that seems weird. Until you've pointed it out. Now I'm just sad. I find it overwhelming trying to find something similar that I don't have to worry about the gospel being manipulated in the wrong ways. I would love some direction for next year for different curriculums because there's so many out there and I just find it overwhelming.
Abeka is very solid and it has colorful pictures in it. Rod and Staff is black and white but it does a wonderful job as well. Even just using Easy Peasy (workbooks or online) is better than TGATB
Girl, I dont see any reason why you should stop using a curriculum that works for your family based off of youtube videos. Let God guide your path not influencers.
We are a Christian family (not LDS) and I fell into this trap of “we can’t use TGATB because someone online told me it was bad”. The problem with discernment influencers on the internet is they all discern different things and then you can’t listen to anyone, read anything, and can’t find a church. We are going back to TGATB this year after 2.5 years of struggling with finding a curriculum that fits and that doesn’t break the bank with multiple children. We also do a Christian coop, a separate Bible curriculum, and are very active in our local church.
The anti TGATB content feels very much like the “Harry Potter is letting demons into your house” argument. 😂
It's perfectly fine. It's very Bible generic.
The sex Ed is not bad, but there is a verse used where the wording is changed to fit mormon theology. I read it from the Bible to my daughter rather than from the book. There are so many other Christian curriculums that I will take a pass on using it in the future.
The curriculum is fantastic and at least until 4th grade, there's no doctrine whatsoever. So the answer is yes, we should use it.
Wow. This was sure nitpicky. Quite a stretch if you ask me. Do you dissect every curriculum to such a degree?
Yes
Or every book of literature.....
@@rooteddeephome exactly! My goodness 😅
We used Pre-K to 1st and some 2nd grade TG&TB and loved it. It IS good & beautiful and we printed off the lessons for free 🆓 because we just can't afford some of the curriculums. We would have the beautiful curriculum on the computer but do the work on black and white. (People can print it in color if they want but my granddaughter didn't mind that it wasn't in color)
We aren't using it now because we had heard they may have Mormon doctrine within it. But I do miss it.
My granddaughters are now using Miacademy now. I hope that curriculum is ok 🆗🙏🏻.
Try easy peasy homeschool (also free but from a true Christian)
People should point the doctrine they found on this curriculum… I just want my kid learn academic things from the curriculum, is there any Christian curriculum affordable not on line?
@@pamelalima5401 masterbooks is a really great christian curriculum as well as chistian light education. Both affordable and offline. Make sure you check the guides of either to place your child on the correct level for each subject
Hi! I'm not entirely sure how this video ended up in my feed but I am LDS and I do use this curriculum so that probably accounts for it... As a Latter Day Saint I found this video interesting to watch. I will say that she is not wrong on how she summed up much of our beliefs even though the interpretation for those beliefs that she gave I didn't always agree with.
That being said she was making some bold claims about the authority of "traditional" Christians that I would like to ask some questions on.
First: That in order to qualify as Christian you must believe that the Bible is 100 percent infallible. But what version of the Bible then are you referring to? We all know that the Bible has been changed into so many different versions with very different meanings. Do you believe in all of them?
Second: That Christ must be a member of the Trinity. The interesting thing here to me is that the word Trinity isn't even in the Bible. This idea of the Trinity wasn't solidified until the first council of Nicaea in 325 CE so basically 300 years after Christ. So if you believe you should not add or take away from the Bible wasn't the council of Nicaea doing that?
Third: works are not a part of being a Christian. Romans 2:17 "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." And if you read the rest of Romans 2 it keeps talking about the importance of works. Also why aren't Catholics disqualified then from being Christian because they require baptism and other works, as well as many other Christian denominations?
Fourth: LDS discount archeological evidence and just rely on prayer. Doesn't Christianity do a bit of that too? I'm sure there is a ton of non Christians out there who claim they can debunk Christianity. But this is why faith is required. That being said as a member of the LDS faith there is plenty of evidence out there too to justify our faith regardless of your claim to the contrary.
With all of these points I appreciate that she isn't really hostile, but I just wanted to point out that she doesn't seem to see her own inconsistencies and that she is just expressing one biased interpretation of things and painting it as authority.
Can you do this exact review of TGTB for the highschool years language arts please??🙏🏼
Thank you for this!
Thank you for this. I started attending a local homeschool meet up group. Many of the moms say they are Christian but they all use this curriculum. I immediately felt disappointed and am wondering if I should continue to try and fellowship there. I just know this conversation will come up as they try to push that on me and it’s annoying always have to be the one warning others.
I am so grateful the Lord has built up my discernment through his word that we have found much better Biblically sound curriculum for my kids.
You're not alone. Trust me. I always feel like I'm warning people and then seen as being "legalistic".
Keep your faith in the Lord sister
Lady you are expecting the curriculum to preach too deep… tgtb it’s not for you, they focus on character and keep the kid level on the stories and arguments they do not turn the lesson on a sermon.
All my friends use this curriculum and tell me how put together and easy it is to use. My concience won't allow me to use it. Even if you don't agree with her analysis of the curriculum, you probably do agree that mornonisim is not christian and perhaps dangerous to those seeking God. I personally won't use this curriculum for those who are unbelievers or for those who are weaker in faith and don't understand the difference between morminsim and Christianity. I would not want to allign myself with their beliefs and allow others who pay attention to what I do into thinking morminsim is okay.
So you don’t homeschool at all, but you’re here criticizing homeschooling curriculum? Have you addressed what children that attend public school are being exposed to on a daily basis? 🤯
@daniellebraga2880 I highly encourage you to watch all of her other videos. You will find the answer to your question. Also, her entire excellent foundation worldview curriculum prepares kids for what they are being exposed to on a daily basis and equips them to think Biblically. I know this, bc we use it. I have a hunch you and several others on here are not actually familiar with her and her important work at all.
It's an easy to use curriculum and busy moms find it convenient. Their are many better options available, but few as simple and affordable. I don't like it and don't use it but those who do aren't going to appreciate this video. The religious background of it's creator isn't as compelling of an argument for them. Frankly, I'm tired of hearing about it. It's a very trendy curriculum for homeschool moms here on youtube and it seems to be taking over. My two favorite homeschool youtubers grace and grit and angela braniff use it as well. So many higher quality options available, I don't get the hype.
Ugh. I had no idea this was made by Mormons. There is a lot I love about it, but it seems legalistic and idealistic in a weird way. This explains it. I’ll finish out the year aware of what to look out for and not reorder.
What do you mean by that?
I mean exactly what I said. Legalistic and moralistic. Teaching values and how to be good without showing our need for Christ and Him alone to redeem. The obsession with books that only show goodness in high school levels. I want to have the hard discussions with my teens and to challenge them. I’m not Mormon and don’t want their theology inculcating my curriculum. I love the grammar and spelling integrated with the literature and geography and art. It’s truly beautiful and well done and I will look for a similar replacement for next year.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a Math curriculum? That's the only subject I've been using the Good and Beautiful for. I haven't found any doctrinal problems with it (so far) but I'm wondering if I should find a different Math curriculum anyways?
I’ve started using Life of Fred, and that’s also what my mom used for my siblings’ homeschool! So fun!
I use master books and LOVE it! It's super simple and truly christian. It's really simple and short lesson.
Christian Light Education has a great math program
Math-U-See
My kids have liked:
Khan Academy
Easy peasy homeschool (they have all the subjects but my kids especially like their math)
Math Lessons for A Living Education (by Master book)
The main reason I use their curriculum for my children is cost. I don't have the budget for expensive Christian curriculums. My options are limited. It's either this or completely secular options. There is no truly Christian language arts course that is available for free. Free Christian options do not exist. There is an abundance of secular curriculums free to download, but no Christian alternatives.
You covered this beautifully! Thank you!❤
We shouldn't use the dollar bill either... It has an iluminati symbol in it! The reference she used for the books level 1 and 3, is off! I do not find that on the books..but overall is very good explanation about Christianity vs Mormonism...
Which sound curriculum would you suggest for ELA and math and also science/history.
Easy peasy homeschool by Lee Giles (available for free)
I found easy peasy to be too low key and not challenging enough. I bought the books bc I did not want my children depending on a computer to do their school work. Especially bc we don’t have enough computers. Anyway… I started using it with my children and was very disappointed by it. But, if it meets your standards. Some people I talk to find TGTB not challenging enough. I’ve settled on TGTB not bc it is a Christian curriculum, but bc it’s affordable, open and go, and challenging enough to my standards.
@@vikawinters Interesting, I have found EP very challenging for our needs. Infact, their reading is very advanced. I think if you just look at a few lessons it seems light but when you work through it day by day and year by year you get a better view and it is very solid and challenging.
Masterbooks, BJU, Apologia, classical academic press
Memoria press , math with confidence, first language lessons from well trained mind
19:18 wait…. I thought we were all God’s children… because God made us all. I thought that’s what they meant… then what is everyone else that is not a Christian yet?
@kita3256 So, i grew up thinking the same. This verse made it clear for me. But there are more that say the same.
Romans 8:14-16 ESV
"[14] For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [15] For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” [16] The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God..."
So all people are made in God's image and because of that, have a great value. but we're only children of God (through adoption) when we are saved.
I hope this helps! I not the most articulate lol
@@kita3256 according to Eph. 2:1-3 we were "children of disobedience" before salvation.
Raised Mormon. Mormons believe that God the Father has a physical body and a physical, exalted (made god/dess) wife and that our spirits are their children (because “like begetting like” makes for physical beings birthing non-physical children). They believe that there is a number of spirits waiting for bodies and that, once all spirit siblings have earthly bodies, the Second Coming will happen. They also believe that both Jesus and Lucifer are our spirit brothers, not God and a fallen angel.
The terms are the same but the meaning is incredibly different.
We are children of Satan and our father is the devil until we are saved.
John 8:44 ESV
You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
1 John 3:10 ESV / 76 helpful votes
By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
1 John 3:8 ESV / 70 helpful votes
Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
1 John 3:10 ESV
By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother
1 John 3:8 ESV
Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil
Thank you for that insight. It’s confusing because a lot of the “lingo” sounds similar, but as you mentioned the meaning is completely different.
Just as a little caveat to your "all Christians believe the bible is the complete word of God." This is not a true statement. The original Christian Religion, Catholicism does not teach that the Bible is the complete word of God. The Bible, all 73 books, was taught to be completely the word of God by the teaching authority of the magisterium of the Church, the successor of Peter and his fellow apostles (the Pope and Bishops in communion with with). A lot of what you have said about Mormonism's beliefs is true, but some of your reasoning is wrong because your definition of what is Christianity is also wrong.
As far as the use of TG&TB, I think proposing a discerning parent to be active in the discipleship of their child and in constant discussion. The use of the subjective conscious in our daily decisions is normal and good advice to every person. It is also true and important that every person forms their conscious so that they can follow it with confidence in its guidance (its receptivity of the movement of the Holy Spirit).
Are people still making videos on this????
@@DK-tq3fy it gets good views 👌
Great job! This was very logical and I appreciate that you used the LDS website. I had definitely been tempted by the TG&TB curriculum and so thank you.
The name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Insisting on calling us “Mormons” is unchristian of you. If you think you can decide who is sincerely “Christian” and who is not, I might remind you that Jesus taught “Judge not that you be not judged.” I disagree with your views of my Lord and Savior but have not stooped to discount your faith. I would appreciate others doing the same for mine - particularly among people who profess to follow Him.
Ok, the awkward thing about what you just said is that it validated everything she said in the video about the LDS faith and its flawed, subjective approach to its own doctrinal claims. And you did that while judging her for the perception of her judging you, which you then admonished her for with a Bible verse about not judging, which was misapplied out of context.
With respect, please consider objectively exploring the claims she made against the LDS church before subjectively finding offense and writing her off. If she is wrong, prove her wrong; though I fear you may not, lest you find she is quite right.
There is freedom from the legalistic, works-based false salvation of LDS in the biblical Christ. Please read the Bible asking God to open your eyes.
@@LaraJubber Judging and discerning are too different things. All tchristians believe in the same basic truths of who Jesus Christ is regardless of denomination. Jesus is co-eternal with God the Father and God the Holly Spirit, He is co-creater, not created, always was, always will be God. He did not become a god. This is a core nonnegotiable for Christian in ALL denominations. Denominations can differ on secondary issues like baptism but not on who Jesus was/is and if they do they are not Christians.
@@LaraJubber I love the "judge not " strawman argument because Jesus also said to judge by their fruits when we need to know who is a born again Christian and who is not. Matt. 7:16-20
Oh my this is way too much. We love math ans language art and we have been doing it for 3 years. I dont use science or other subjects so i dont know about it but I doubt they teach mormons beliefs in there. Now tell me do you stop buying from Walmart or Costco or any other shops that are not Christians? I understand that if a store promoted abortion t
Or other things that doesn't lie down with my beliefs well i avoid but here we are really looking for something i don't see in there.
This is such a wrong representation of The Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints it should be taken down. Or you should go back and correct it. We DO NOT believe we are responsible for our own salvation that is a terrible misrepresentation. You happen to be incorrect on a lot in this video. It is very sad you would even act like an authority on someone else's beliefs. When its very apparent you have no idea what The Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints believe. Please if you want to tell people to not use a certain curriculum do that, but do not represent yourself as an authority on a religion you did a 20 min search on. Very very sad you have no idea how offensive it is. I doubt you would do the same to another religion.
Obviously there wouldn't be any archaeological evidence on the Doctrine and Covenants it was written in the 18'20's and on. 😂 Your ignorance on things to do with this religion is very obvious.
@@jenalynhancock3874 Mormon Articles of Faith 1:3: “We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.” LDS is a work based religion. Please note the little word “by” if you are LDS you are saved, according your own bible, by obeying the law and ordinances of their gospel. Where as Christiams believe “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” Ephesians 2:8-9
@@jenalynhancock3874 Articles of Faith 1:3: “We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel.” Please note the little word “by” LDS hold that a person is saved by obeying the laws and ordinances of their gospel. Also the Newsroom states “our destination after this life depends on whether we participate in the essential rites (such as baptism) that aid us in the process of repentance, progression and sanctification.” Notice the phrase “depends on ….participate in essential rites”. This is different then what Christians hold “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9
@@jenalynhancock3874 You realize she quoted your own material from your own website??? Also, I have done my own research and the Mormon doctrines she stated are taught by the Mormon church...so maybe you don't know your own Churches teachings...I have seen that even in Christians, so no shame.
Yes good job doing your own research I would love to correct you as well if you think her information is accurate. Yes we don't believe in the Trinity like the early Saints didn't either before the creeds. Yes we believe that we are all children of God. No we do not believe that we are responsible for our own salvation we're not earning heaven we're learning heaven. We know that it is only through Christ that we are saved. which is why we follow Him @@abundanceintheson_316
100%
Christian faiths are faiths that believe in Christ and his teachings. This includes the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They are, in fact, different from other Christian denominations, but that does mean that they are not Christian. They believe in Christ and his teachings, which is the exact definition of Christianity.
Unfortunatly this is not true. They believe in a twisted version of a Jesus but not the Jesus of Christianity. Their Jesus Christ is VASTLY different then the core beliefs of christians, even among different denominations. One important example is Mormons hold that their Jesus was created and not God from eternity past. He had to become a god. True Christians believe Jesus is co-equal and co-eternal with God the father and God the Holly Spirit, and that Jesus was not created but instead is a co-creator. Christian denominations can differ on secondary issues like baptism but there are still primary tenets that ALL Christians must hold to be considered Christian and Jesus being God, co-existent, co creator is a nonnegotiable for all Christian denominations. Mormons also believe we can become gods and populate our own planets, they believe in polygamy after death, and satan is Jesus’ brother, and baptizing for the dead. Please be careful bc satan is the master deceiver and the easiest way to deceive is by twisting the truth just enough to fool you.
They do not believe in the Jesus Christ of the Bible. Their Jesus has a brother named Lucifer. Their Jesus has a many brothers. He is not the one and only son of God (the only begotten).
Satan is happy that anyone believes in Jesus as long as it's the wrong Jesus. I hope the true God reveals himself to you
Look into LDS doctrine, and you'll soon find they are polytheistic with many tenets that are decidedly unbiblical
Satan believes in Jesus. Mormons are not Christians.
Listening to you compliment the font and word count per page was so obvious that you were pretending to try to find something positive to say about the curriculum. Its attitudes like this that make me dislike living in places dominated by people of all the same theology. It leads to a haughtiness and un-Christlike culture among Christians because they start to persecute those not of their sect or religion. Please leave that attitude to the previous centuries.
Oh come on ladies. Go get some more life experience and quit being so judgemental. 🤯 This curriculum is awesome...
I am not currently homeschooling, but I appreciated this video. You did a great job on breaking down the beliefs of Mormons.
When I was homeschooling my daughter, I did use their handwriting book for two years. Even in a handwriting book they had quotes by Mormon leaders, so I could see that while they claimed their church teachings were not in the curriculum, it was not true.
Here are reasons I chose not to use the rest of the curriculum:
-There are so many other curriculum choices that align with my Christian worldview (this is the top reason and I could just stop here). I did not want science, literature, and history coming from someone with a different worldview.
-There are so many other curriculum choices that have years and years of research and a complete scope and sequence that moves from year to year building on the year before.
-The cost of printing the free curriculum would outweigh the fact that it is free.
-Some of the curriculum is not bound, and all the teacher/student work is together.