Through the years, there have been many – and I mean many – changes in curriculum in our homeschool. In fact, I’d be pretty embarrassed to tell you the times we’ve changed curriculum.
The reasons for our many curriculum switches is a post for another day that I hope to write soon. As much as I hate being vulnerable (don’t we all?!), I would love for you to learn from my inexperience and mistakes.
That being said, one of our only mainstays in my past 10 years of homeschooling has been Rod and Staff English. It’s a workhorse and the fruit it has produced in my older children is invaluable!
Side Note: I know that some homeschool parents only teach grammar through 5th or 6th grade. We choose to teach grammar and formal writing, in addition to learning Latin, so our children can read well and articulate their thoughts in speech and also through writing. More importantly, we teach the subjects in the way that we do so our children can learn to think critically about not only their subjects in school, but the world around them. That’s why we do it this way!
➡ Browse through all of the homeschool curriculum posts here at Mama’s Learning Corner.
Over the past few years, I’ve written some reviews and ‘How We Use ____ Curriculum’ that are not paid in any way. While I do insert my affiliate links if that’s a possibility, no one is paying me to write these reviews, nor did I receive the material in exchange for a review. These opinions and experiences are completely my own.
You’ll find a complete (and growing) list of my honest review posts at the end of this post.
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About Rod and Staff English
The Rod and Staff English series is actually called the Building Christian English series, and it ranges from Grade 2 to Grade 10.
It is an interesting blend of grammar instruction and composition practice. Each unit contains 2-3 lessons of composition practice, starting with very simple paragraphs in Grade 3.
The amount of units vary by grade, but the approach for each grade is similar in that a new concept is introduced in baby steps and there are ample practice exercises that continue throughout the book.
This series is unapologetically Christian, as are all Rod and Staff materials. Most of the exercises in the book center around a Bible account, or sometimes a historical event or inventor.
Another aspect that is important to note: Rod and Staff is written for the classroom setting. While that might be a stumbling block to homeschoolers that need a word-for-word script for teaching (a la All About Spelling), it is easily adaptable in my opinion.
From Grade 3 and up, a unit is taught with a few quizzes throughout, and then a unit test is given at the end of each section. Rod and Staff English does not include a final exam in their test booklet.
Lastly, each grade includes a textbook, Teacher’s Manual, workbook packet, and test packet. I’ll explain how I use each of these below, as they haven’t all been necessary for us.
How We Use Rod and Staff English in Our Homeschool
We have three non-negotiables in our daily homeschool: math, Latin, and literature.
I’d like to say that English is a non-negotiable, and it would be if we didn’t also do daily Latin work. I teach English 3-5 days per week in our homeschool.
How I use Rod and Staff English varies based on my child’s grade and ability. I teach my 3rd grade directly every day, I teach my 5th grader about 3-4 times a week, and my 7th grader comes to find me with trouble spots.
I’ll break each one of these grades down for a bird’s eye view.
3rd Grade Rod and Staff English
3rd Grade English focuses heavily on sentence mechanics, and introduces 5 of the 8 parts of speech.
While the concepts in 3rd Grade English are certainly simple enough for me to teach without the Teacher’s Manual, I use the Teacher’s Manual daily. It’s where the good stuff is.
Before the lesson:
Each lesson, I do the ‘Oral Review’ and quickly cover any other concepts that need attention. We also go over the previous day’s material if it wasn’t covered in the Oral Review. We go through a few gray boxes from previous lessons. This takes about 5 minutes.
→ I equate this part of the lesson to the flash card drill you would do before the beginning of a math lesson. It’s a warm-up of concepts they should know, and those that only need brief reinforcement.
The Lesson:
I put any examples on our big white board for the day’s lesson. We go over all of the examples from the book up on our white board. I make sure I teach every teaching point in the ‘Class’ section in the Teacher’s Manual, including all of the examples.
The gray box on each lesson is always what the student has to know. I have my child read the box, I read the box, and we read it again. Because we teach to mastery in most of our homeschool subjects (not just exposure), I require them to memorize the gray boxes.
We then go over the directions in detail for her written part of the assignment. We answer a few aloud and I make sure she understands how to number her paper and what I’m looking for in each answer.
I have found that it’s much easier to teach these types of concepts explicitly in the younger years so I don’t have to do quite so much reinforcing in the older elementary years. This varies by child, of course, as my current 5th grader seems to require a reminder for every single paper she writes.
Quizzes and Tests:
The quizzes are listed in the Teacher’s Manual, however, there is not a paper copy of these quizzes. Prior to the beginning of each year, I duplicate those quizzes in Word and have them printed and all ready to go in my teaching file.
Because we teach to mastery, I tell my daughter what will be on the quiz the day before and we do an example if needed.
I buy the test booklet each year since it’s so cheap. Like quizzes, I make sure that my daughter knows exactly what is on each test before she takes it. We always practice the day before.
Workbook:
I very rarely use the workbooks in general, as they’re is always so much practice in the daily lesson. I find I use the workbook most often during the 4th grade year, when the content steps up a bit and there needs to be more reinforcement.
I never assign a workbook page in addition to the daily lesson exercises, as that’s just too much written work for my children. If there is a struggle with a concept, I’ll reteach it the next day and then use the exercises from the workbook for that day’s practice.
5th Grade Rod and Staff English
I love the 5th grade Rod and Staff English book. If you have a child in 5th, 6th, or maybe even 7th grade, the 5th grade text would be a great place to start if you’ve never used Rod and Staff English before.
The concepts are fundamental and worthy of learning.
Rod and Staff builds on itself year after year. While parts of speech are introduced in 2nd grade, the teaching becomes more indepth with those parts of speech as the years progress. By 7th grade, the concepts have moved on past parts of speech, since it’s assumed those are mastered, and onto much more difficult grammar concepts.
Before the Lesson:
Just like in Grades 3 and 4, I go through the ‘Oral Review’ section and hover on any concepts that need more help. We go over quite a few of the previous gray boxes, re-explaining any concepts that need more attention. Again, this is only about 5 minutes.
The Lesson:
I can wing it with 3rd and 4th grade English, but I try to glance over the Grade 5 English in the few minutes prior to class time. While the concepts are not hard for my adult brain, I want to make sure I cover everything included in the ‘Presenting the Lesson’ section.
If there are examples in the Teacher’s Notes that aren’t in the student text (and there usually are), I make sure to write those on the board for me to explain as we go through the lesson.
After presenting the lesson and going through several examples, I make sure my daughter reads the gray box aloud to me at least twice. Again, the gray boxes are the main facts to know from the lesson, and those must be memorized and understood.
We then go through several, if not all, of the Oral Drill section from her textbook. Assuming she understands all of those, I give her the assignment, which is almost always in the ‘Written’ section.
Depending upon the lesson, I have her complete 2/3 of the written exercises. If there are 10 or less, I have her complete all of them. Usually there is an A. B. and C. section, and she must complete at least a few (and often all) from each section. I almost always assign from the ‘Review’ section as well, as this particular child needs quite a bit of spiraling back through concepts.
In 5th grade, I consistently go over the directions for each section. Often Rod and Staff English has 2- and occasionally even 3-step directions, and my kids are famous for not completing all of the directions. This particular trait seems to subside just a little in 6th grade, so I’m assuming it’s tied to maturity and attention to detail in my kiddos. 🙂
Quizzes and Tests:
The quizzes for 5th grade are also listed in the Teacher’s Manual and I already have those ready to go like in 3rd grade.
Tests are also the same as in 3rd grade, in that I tell them what will be on the test the week of or the day before so they can prepare. The end of chapter Review is excellent as test preparation and I always have my children complete at least a portion of it.
Workbook:
I rarely use the workbook in 5th grade, as there is ample practice in the book.
6th Grade Rod and Staff English
Even though my oldest girl is in the 7th grade, she’s finishing up the Grade 6 Rod and Staff English book. I intentionally only had my 7th grader complete a little over half of the 6th grade book last year, working at a pace of 3-4 lessons per week, and occasionally only 2 per week.
My 7th grader is in her 2nd full year of Latin, and it is very grammar heavy. She has consistent reinforcement and introduction of new grammar concepts through Latin, so I feel fine about her completing the Grade 6 book at a slower pace.
After she finishes Grade 6, which will be by Christmas break, she will just move on to Grade 7.
The Lesson:
I do not teach this particular child English at all. She teaches herself straight from the book, and comes to me when there is help needed.
I pre-read all of her English assignments for the week, so I usually have a good feeling of when there will be trouble spots. I also correct her work nightly, so I know when problems arise and she needs to go over concepts with me one-on-one.
While this method of self-teaching has worked beautifully for my older two children, I’m not sure how it will go with my others since all children are not the same. I’ll evaluate for each child when they reach this stage.
Quizzes and Tests:
I treat quizzes and tests in the 6th grade exactly as I do in the younger grades – I tell them what is going to be on the test or quiz prior to its administration.
Do you use Rod and Staff English in your homeschool? Do you use it differently in your homeschool? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
More Honest Homeschool Curriculum Reviews
Browse through more homeschool curriculum reviews:
– Our Experience with Traditional Spelling I
– How I use Handwriting Without Tears in our homeschool (with a video)
– Why Math Mammoth is a Good Fit For Our Family – although I must tell you that we now use Rod and Staff Math. I went to R&S Math kicking and screaming because I didn’t want to change math yet again, but I am tickled we did. I’ll try to have a post up about Rod and Staff Math this month so you can compare the two curricula for yourself. 🙂
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I love your posts! I would love to read a post from you about changing curriculum.
I chuckled at your math comment at the end of this post. I, too, changed math curriculums (kicking and screaming) this year and I am so thankful now that I did. It’s been especially a good move for my oldest child.
Anyway- thanks for another great post.
Hey Elaine! I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to reply!
Oh math curriculum. Sigh. It seems like math is one of the hardest curricula to choose! I’m so happy for you that you found a good fit this year!!
Yes, I will write that post in the next month about changing curriculum!
xo, Lauren
Looking forward to it!
The post on R&S Math is half-way written, so hopefully in the next week or so!
xo, Lauren
Hey, I’ve been using Rod and Staff math for almost 3 years now ! And I am so so happy with it as well as my child ! Material is clear, very well structured and easy to teach and along with that covers all needed mathematical concepts to a mastery level. Love it!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! We switched to R&S English three years ago when my oldest finished “First Language Lessons” (at the time, the curriculum didn’t go past 3rd grade – and it was too teacher intensive for this homeschooling mama of four). We have floundered through R&S. My gut said it was a good curriculum for us; I just wasn’t confident in implementation. I felt like my kids should be able to read the lesson and do the exercises independently. My system worked well for my oldest, but fell way short for my younger three. Your walkthru has been extremely helpful!! Thank you!!!!
Another area in which I need help: each grade book contains so many lessons! At 3 lessons a week, and 32-36 weeks a year, we will never finish all the lessons. Last year, I stopped where everyone was and “promoted” them to one grade level below their current grade. I.e. My 8th grader began the 7th grade book; my 6th grader the 5th grade, etc. Here we are in the next school year, and they are all still working through the same levels (7th, 5th, etc.). How do you ever finish? With 130+ lessons, the books seem never ending.
Oh goodness, I TOTALLY understand! I, too, believed my kids should easily be able to read the lessons and then just do the work. But I have found this is NOT the case. One of my kiddos (the super diligent one) could do that in fifth grade. I had one of my others do it independently in fifth grade, but it was like pulling teeth. My current fifth grader is completely capable academically of doing it independently, but still needs an immense amount of what I call “herding.” Herding = being under my thumb so the work will get done. Sigh.
All of that to say, it is NOT just your kiddos. It’s been a whole lot of trial and error (with each child!) to figure out what works best and where the bulk of my teaching time should go.
As for finishing the book, we never do. We never do the chapter on answering the phone, or how to introduce people. We have enough real life scenarios that we just use those. I also skip the lessons on writing a business letter, although we definitely do the friendly letter and addressing an envelope.
So we cut the lessons down to 115-120. And as you see from the post, we’ve done some of the books over 1 1/4 or 1 1/2 years. It’s super dense, so I feel okay with that. 🙂
Hope that helps some! Hang in there, Mama.
xo, Lauren
Hi Lauren,
Thank you! This was so thorough and helpful! My 7.5yo son and I love R&S math, and I think their English would be a fabulous fit for both of us, too. Question for you, though. I’m very drawn to CAP’s Writing & Rhetoric progym curriculum, as well, and think my son would thrive on it, as well. I don’t know whether you’ve seen it, but given your classical approach, I’m guessing you’re familiar with the concept. W&R is just that–writing, and needs a grammar program to go alongside. R&S English encompasses grammar as well as writing. Do you think it would be too much to do both? He’s a language arts kind of kid, and I’m a big stickler for short lessons, but still… both… ??? Alternating days would probably take ages to get through, and might not flow very well…. They are vastly different approaches, I know, which is probably why I can’t find anyone else asking this on the web, 🙂 and I don’t want to overwhelm him, but they just both seem so excellent, and both potentially excellent fits for us. I’d hate to have to choose one!
Thanks!
Ashley
Hey Ashley! I’ll try to help:
I don’t personally start formal writing until 4th grade, and even then it’s not a main subject. What works best for my children – and I’ve had a range of abilities over the years – is to do all of the writing exercises in Rod & Staff through the 4th grade book (the yellow one). Once they start 5th grade, I only do the writing activities if they’re creating an outline, writing the steps of an activity in order for a paragraph, etc.
My main focus 4th grade and younger is writing very solid sentences and simple paragraphs.
I am very familiar with CAP’s Writing and Rhetoric. Even though I’ve never implemented it with my own kiddos, I’ve read the first three books cover to cover in trying to decide if it would be the right fit for us. I ended up going with Memoria Press’ progym curriculum because I thought it required a bit more thought and analyzation and would fit my learners better.
But is CAP’s program excellent? Oh for sure! It has the “fun” element that MP is lacking, but “fun” is never MP’s goal.
So with that background regarding my thought process and how I teach my own kiddos:
“Do you think it would be too much to do both” –> YES if you you’re going to both in their entirety. And I see that your boy is only 7.5. That’s really young to do much formal writing at all, so grammar plus formal writing would be too much for my own philosophy of homeschooling. 🙂
“Alternating days would probably take ages to get through” –> Yes, it would, which is why I drop most of the writing lessons from Rod & Staff once my kiddos hit the 5th grade book. From 5th grade up, we do a grammar lesson each day and composition 2-4 days per week, depending on the child and the week.
As you try to decide, keep in mind that the two curricula are teaching two totally different things: Rod & Staff is teaching grammar while W&R is teaching your child how to organize their thoughts and then put them into words on paper. It’s teaching *thinking*.
Feel free to ask if you have more questions! I’m happy to try and answer them if I’m able. 🙂
xo, Lauren
I should also add that I work super hard on grammar through 7th grade, and VERY hard on writing starting in 6th grade through middle and high school. For my older two children, this has seemed to work out well. By the time 7th and 8th grade roll around, they have an excellent grasp of grammar and syntax and I see them apply that to their writing.
Now my current 6th grader has thrown a kink in this set of best laid plans (!), and my strategy with her needs another level of … intensity.
I need to come back to this when she’s in the 8th or 9th grade and see if I still stand by this process! 🙂
Lauren
Cabot Mama…I feel you! My recommendation is to quit beating yourself up and just keep going. You decide how many lessons a week and then do that. I do the oral with my boys and I have them do the written exercises but I choose about 5-6 for them to do, and that’s it. I stay with them to guide them if needed. Afterwards, I have my older son read one small section of The Story of the U.S.A. and he reads the questions at the bottom and I have him write about what he read answering 4 of the questions so that he can learn to apply what he learned into his writing. (Writing practice) Otherwise, I ask them to write about an event that happened today and to use what they learned. It can be two sentence or 4. It’s up to them. Also, if I know my boys have mastery of a certain area, then we’ll review a few oral ones together and then I’ll make a note in my teachers book that it’s mastered, and I’ll skip areas of the book until we are were they will actually be learning something they may not be familiar with. I have a 6th and 8th grader and we only got through half of the 5th grade book, and that’s okay too. Why? Because my sons are learning and improving. I also know that as they get older they’ll be able to go at a faster pace as they will be more mature etc., I do have a preposition list etc., typed out on our board, one that is a handout they can refer to, and I’ve had them write them out daily so that they are familiar with the words and memorized. If I say, “am, is, are, was, were…” They respond, “be, being, been.” We have gone over the list to the point of having memorized them. Sometimes I make a note to go back and review at a later date, and other times I skip ahead time teach a concept I see that they need to fix in their writing and then Ingo back to their place. I know they are improving and learning and so long as they are enjoying the journey and we are all laughing and enjoying each other, we are successful. If you find that you are upset, frustrated or angry, then re-evaluate the book you’re using. Sometimes being back a grade level or to is the merciful and loving thing to do. Splitting a book into two years is also acceptable. Better to learn with a lot of love and joy, then to know some stuff with a lot of bad memories that become mental blocks. Best wishes!
*two ug…! I do want to say that my older son is 24 and he was in public school for a short time so that is why I have kept him in a lower grade level. His confidence was low and he highly disliked English so I chose to keep him at the level I felt he would benefit the most from, and that happened to be the 5th grade Rod and Staff. We’ll continue doing some work over the summer, along with reading and math.
we used r and s with our older children..and yes! I needed to walk with each of them…it was abit labor intensive, but our 2 oldest are esp amazing at writing (one is a pro photographer and blogs a lot, while the other is in university studying English…and was just encouraged to join the honors program) (our3rd hands on son doesn’t love to write…at all…haha)
after adding more children to our little flock, I found that it was perhaps abit tooo labor intensive (atleast too much for me) and so we swapped it out for Christian Light Publications…I find our younger children are just as strong grammatically as the older ones..and yet they are mostly able to do the work themselves….
just a thought for some busy mamas. (we have 11)
that being said…I love R and S!! and…our older children did really really well with it and have been told that their grammar is incredibly strong. if you feel this is a good fit with your family, don’t second guess! you will reap the benefits 😉
blessings!
Hey Tammy, I really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with R&S! I have looked at Christian Light for phonics/grammar through the years, but I never thought the spelling being integrated into the grammar would work for us. (Some of my kids are STRUGGLING spellers and needed a more intensive approach. Sigh.)
But the CLP curricula we’ve used in the past has been absolutely lovely and worthy of our time. I love their simple and methodical approach – very Rod & Staff-ish!
Loved reading your response!!
xo, Lauren
Hi– thanks for sharing your experience. I’m a new homeschooler (2nd year for us), and I’m wondering if I need a writing program in addition to R&S? My 5th grade daughter (who is an excellent reader) is still in r+s 3, which we starred in the middle of last year. We have been moving through it slow… about 2-3 lessons per week. I want to bump it up to 5. Anyway, I’m loving how it teaches grammar. I’m just wondering if I need a separate writing program, or if it will be covered if I just stick with it. I need simplicity.
Also, what do you do for literature? Last year I got Drawn into the Heart of Reading (from Heart of Dakota), and the book selection is awesome. I don’t know what I stopped, actually… I think maybe I should just try it again.
Anyway, language arts is hard to piece together because there are so many components… grammar, writing, reading (I guess literature fits here…? I don’t know if technically that would be separate?), spelling, and vocabulary. I just want to know that 1- I’m teaching it all, 2- it’s as condensed and yet complete as it can be (the less separate programs, the easier?).
I’m sort of drowning with teaching 2 kids (3rd and 5th). I want them to have a great education but since they left the public school system 2 years ago, they haven’t advanced much. (My fault… I’m not very disciplined and am learning to be better at that still.) They would actually be further ahead if they stayed in school. I want a solid program for them (I saw your blog on memoriapressand it looks good), and I need something to follow… but the good programs are so intensive, I don’t know how to do it with 2 kids who are close in age and who would both need to be individually taught?
Do you teach one kid in the morning and another in the afternoon? What do your other kids do when your focused on your teaching time with one? My son (3rd) just runs off when im with my daughter (5th) and then I have to get him back on track. I just don’t know how to do it all.
Sorry this was long. Maybe just say a prayer for me. I need it! 🙂
Oh how Rod & Staff set a fabulous foundation for my kids! After beginning with the Pathway Reader Series from the publisher, we quickly added in R & S at the 2nd grade level. I attest to the methods & materials presented in this fabulous series of education materials…. so, so very sad that we have ended our homeschooling journey, as child #3 graduated from high school in June. These materials are being saved for our grandchildren! Tried & true, God-centered stories that we treasure!
Hey Lisa! Thanks for leaving your experience with the lovely Rod and Staff. 🙂 Giving you a hug and a “job well done, Mama” on graduating your children in your homeschool! What a labor of love.
Appreciate you stopping by today.
xo, Lauren
I found this helpful post when searching for a review of Rod and Staff English. Would you recommend the 5th grade level if we are new to Rod and Staff English. I have a 10 and 12 year old who I am able to keep together in language arts. We have covered parts of speech but no diagramming.
Thank you for this helpful review.
Mary, I am so sorry it has taken me so long to respond to this comment! Please forgive me!
Yes, I think 5th grade would be the perfect place to start with a 10 and 12 year old. You could probably move faster with the 12 year old, but I certainly understand needing to keep children together. 🙂
The 5th grade book is so solid, and you can’t really go wrong with it.
I hope that helps!
Lauren
Thank you Lauren!!
Hi Lauren! I just stumbled up your review, so thank you for writing!
I have been going through the Well Trained Mind Bible (that is what I call the main book with all grade levels and curriculum/schedules.) and my mind is swimming.
My rising 8th grader has little passion for writing. He is a literal learner, my first born… and did I mention he is very literal? Anyhow, we’ve homeschooled on and off for the past 3 years along with attending classes at a local school (a University Model School type). In 6th grade I did a lot of grammar (Easy Grammar) and reading, but not a lot of writing with him, honestly. For 7th grade he was at the school and they did Strategies for Learning, Worldly Wise, and English from the Roots. This year, we will be doing more homeschooling and I want to really focus on helping him get over his writing fear. He is more math minded, building, and music oriented.
Anyhow, I am torn between R&S and Well Trained mind Writing with Skill and the grammar program for Intermediate. My main goal is to help him conquer his fear of putting thoughts together and ordering them to make sense for the reader.
Sorry for the long reply, but I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the matter? I know you don’t know us …but still…I’m listening 🙂 Thanks!
Hey April!
Hmmm. I wonder if IEW would work for your son? I would be tempted to try Rod and Staff using the grammar part only (skip the writing assignments) and do IEW for composition. He would fall in their ‘Level B’ ability and grade level. Their customer service is excellent for helping you place him in exactly the right spot.
I’ve only used Level A of IEW, and that was many years ago prior to their recent revisions. Their method is very detailed, and the student has similar expectations from week to week. I’ve heard some parents complain that the writing is too “formulaic” in the middle school and high school years, but that might be just the approach your son needs.
I know they have a week or two that you can download for free as a sample. It might be worth a look!
IEW and R&S English would be a very solid course for your son.
Best wishes in making a decision! Curriculum decisions can be paralyzing at times!
xo, Lauren
Hello Lauren,
Thank you for sharing your homeschool experience on your blog!
How much teaching time does a R&S English lesson take?
Also, when your start teaching Classical Composition, do you stop requiring your children to complete the composition lessons in R&S English?
Thank you in advance for taking the time to answer my questions. Blessings!
Sunny, I am REALLY sorry to not respond sooner! Clearly I do not check the comments often enough!
The teaching time depends on the grade level, to be honest. 2nd through 4th grade is less than 10 minutes, and that includes the quickie review listed in the Teacher’s Manual. 5th grade is just a little bit more time, as it often involves 1 or 2 examples on the board (diagramming, for instance). 6th grade is around 20 minute or so, I would guess. The 6th grade book has some MUCH harder concepts – clauses, etc. – and those are more difficult to grasp.
In all honesty, I am not very good with keeping up with Classical Composition, sadly. We don’t complete a year’s worth of material, so for that reason, I DO continue to do a lot of the writing exercises in R&S. Any writing assignment that involves a paragraph is definitely assigned, along with a simple book report, any outlining, and those types of assignments. I don’t assign the lessons on giving a speech or writing a business letter.
The lessons in R&S English are so completely different from Classical Composition – they’re totally different birds. I see a huge benefit in practicing all of those different types, so I work them in.
I do have some rather resistant writers, so that certainly plays into my decision to do both. 🙂
xo, Lauren
Dear Lauren,
Not a problem in the least! You are a busy woman doing a great work! I am truly so thankful for your reply 🙂
I am so glad to hear that the R&S Grammar lessons do not take very long.
Do you foresee always using the upper level Classical Composition “combo” MPOA classes to, in a way, “complete” each level?