Any Five-In-A-Row users?

Question:I'm considering using FIAR with my 6 & 7 year old sons. They are finishing up kindergarten and 1st grade through a home based charter school which uses What Your _____ Needs to Know curriculum and individual language arts and math. I like the approach this series takes but I'm considering going independant next year and am checking out curriculums.

So parents that use FIAR, how do you like it overall?
How long have you been using it?
What are the ages/gender of your children?
What do like best about FIAR?
What do like least?
What would/do you change?
Any other info I could use please.

Thank you.



Answers:
I used FIAR with my son (now 13) and will dive again this year with a disabled 10yo, 6yo and 4yo. I think it will also hold the attention on my 3yo!

FIAR is fantastic. It's a unit study approach, so even my eldest is excited about playing along. Years later, he remembers EVERY book we did. We read one book for one week, every day right after breakfast. It made a huge impression on him! Today he is a summer missionary with CEF and reads at college freshmen level.

Yayyy for FIAR!!

Your questions:
I used four of the books. I personally would skip Before FIAR.
The son I used it with is now 13, and as I said above, I'm ready to use it again.
Best about FIAR: memory retention of concepts. High "fun" factor. Easy to adapt to let other children learn along.
Least about FIAR: some of the books are no longer in print. Interlibrary loan is a good source for these books, but it is a step harder than just looking things up on amazon or ebay!
I wouldn't change anything. I also think that once you've done it for a while, you get the feel of it... you can pick up any quality children's book and turn it into a unit study.

We loved FIAR... it was also VERY cost effective as beginning homeschoolers... we didn't know if we were in homeschooling for the long haul, but we sure are now! FIAR was (and I believe, will be) a very positive experience for our family.
Sorry, I haven't used it, but a number of years ago I had a friend that used it with her son, who was an only child. I knew them when he was 5, 6, & 7. He knew a WHOLE LOT about things, far more than the average child. They really liked it. I've read good things about it.
I too am considering FIAR. The only help I can give you at this point is to check your local library for a copy of one of the books. Try it on for size over the summer. That is what I am doing, I am still on the waiting list for it though. I guess that says alot ;)
If you really like the Core Knowledge approach (_What Your _X_ Grader Needs to Know_), you should check out their website (see link below). You can buy their curriculum direct from them.

As for FIAR, I've never used it but have also (as other posters have said) heard good things about it.

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