I think I’ve nearly got this coming homeschool year sorted. Maybe. Kind of.
Some of it depends on whether or not we’ll have some spending money (new business start ups always take longer than we think), but I have back up plans just in case I’m not wallpapering my bathroom in hundred dollar bills one dollar bills by September.
| Subjects | J: 5th grade | N: 3rd grade | K: 1st grade |
| Math | TT 5 Singapore 5A & B Xtramath Rightstart games |
TT 3 Singapore 3A & B Xtramath Rightstart games |
Finish Singapore 1B Start Singapore 2A Rightstart games |
Penmanship | Getty Dubay E | Getty Dubay D | Getty Dubay C |
| Grammar Language Arts Writing |
MCT LA Dictation |
MCT LA WTM Writing 3 Copywriting |
WTM ELL 1 FIAR? LLATL? |
| Solo Reading | 1 hour each day | 1 hour each day | 15-20 min daily |
| Spelling | Spelling Power Spelling City |
Nothing formal | |
| History Geography |
A Child’s History of the World The Story of the World CDs Timeline, notebooking Table map games |
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| Science Nature Study |
Science Adventure? Wild Days / Nature Journals |
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| Music | Violin, Choir | Piano | Core Choir |
| Art | Various art projects Lots of ideas from Deep Space Sparkle |
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| Memorization | Memory boxes with selected scriptures and poems | ||
| Foreign Language | Rosetta Stone Spanish as interest dictates. | ||
Language Arts Indecision
I really like the Ruth Beechick and Charlotte Mason ideas that simplify homeschooling by wrapping grammar, spelling, reading, and writing into one big whole, but I’m not so great at executing it in real life. I’ve tried various language arts programs over the year, none of which have felt like a really good fit. I am mostly decided on trying Michael Clay Thompson Language Arts for the older boys, I really like everything I read about it.
For Miss K, I rather like the idea of Five in a Row or Learning Language Arts through Literature. But I think I can create our own Five in a Row / LLATL type program with the books we already have. Hmmm.
Science (say it like that dude on Nacho Libre)
I’m also stumped on science. My kids love science but I haven’t found a curriculum-type science that I really love. I think we’ll fly by the seat of our pants this year, using the Usborne Encyclopedia of Science as a spine. Of course we could just keep going with astronomy since they love it and I’m up to my ears in lesson plans and awesome books for the co-op, but I think it’d be fun to shift to biology or earth science.
Everything else is working nicely so we won’t fix what ain’t broke. Did I just type “ain’t” on a homeschooling post? My, my.
Teaching Textbooks Math will be new for the older boys this year… I’m still trying to see if I can swing the cost. They’ve taken all the demo lessons and practice sessions offered for free and can’t get enough. I think they’ll love it, but we’ll keep going with their Singapore workbooks, too. Maybe. I don’t know!
Lots of unknowns this year, but that is half the fun isn’t it? Are you a homeschooler? Do you have everything sorted and ready to go?
We really like R.E.A.L. Science — every lesson is followed by an experiment. Your schedule sounds a lot like ours! We are trying Bob Jones Language Arts this year. Last year I made my own combination of writing, grammar, and poetry, but I’m hoping BJU is a little easier on me this year. Good luck!
Oh thanks, I will look it up. Will you let me know how you like BJ LA?
Oh, I love it when people talk about what they’re planning on for the year! It drives me crazy at times, but I love searching out new curriculum ideas. Thanks for the memory box ideas- I just put on card boxes on my list of things to buy! FIAR can be so fun and fairly easy to make up on your own if you feel so inclined, otherwise there are so many pre-made resources for the recommended books. I’m just using Happy Scribe copy work for my DS in 1st, but may have to look into Getty Dubay if it’s not a good fit. Have fun finalizing plans!
Me too! It often gives me good ideas, and I find out about curriculum I didn’t know about before. But yes, it can be overwhelming. I was reading a blog the other day where her 2nd grader was doing 6th and 7th grade work… which, rad! awesome! but oy, makes ya kind of nervous and feeling not-good-enough too.
Sweet, thank you!
We’re 13 weeks into Sonlight B and I just ordered C and D used with LA and science. I also ordered the science for B to add that in. I had realized that while I liked Getty Dubay for handwriting print I wanted real cursive and so did my son so I think we’ll switch to handwriting without tears. We love singapore math and recently added explode the code which has been fantastic for my kids. We don’t take summers off anymore since we have not schooled regularly the last two years due to life. So we do four days on, three days off and even do it on vacation. It works really well for my boys. So I figured I’d just get everything I needed for the next 2 years and not have to constantly order stuff.
I had really good intentions to do that this year — just keep going. We did alright with math and nature study but everything else kind of fell to the wayside. I love the idea though.
I tried Sonlight LA our first year with it and I just didn’t love it. Maybe the older levels are better… I’ll have to revisit.
I’m almost ready. I can’t believe you posted about MCT (which I keep writing as MTC, har har Mormon humor) because I have been eyeing it too. I feel a tad intimidated by it, but when I preview the materials I practically get goosebumps.
I totally know you and you can totally make your own FIAR like thing, even using the books you already own and the library. In fact, when you do I hope you’ll share all your actvities and how you lined things up because I will copy.
And??! Your solar system and Africa stuff? WANT. Keep us psosted.
Ha. For the rest of y’all: MTC = Missionary Training Center.
ME TOO! I wonder if I’ll be able to present the material correctly, but I just love what I’ve seen so far. Wish I could handle some book in person but alas… nobody carries it of course.
I sure will, thanks!
Oh geez.
*activities
*posted
We are giving Teaching Textbooks a try this year too! You are way ahead of me with planning, I am still coming to terms that today is the first of August. I need to get going since I have to start ordering in a couple of weeks!
Your domain link is always broken, but I found you today by going to typepad and trying to locate you. Is your domain supposed to redirect or is my blog stripping something vital from the URL when you’re leaving a comment?
This is unusual for me. Usually we’re on our last little swim vacation in August when I start panicking. Ha!
Our kids go to public school, but nothing makes me want to try homeschooling more then seeing the big stacks of cool books. What does that say about me and my love of books? :)
Hee hee, HS is such a great excuse to buy all the books I can reasonably (and sometimes unreasonably) afford! Who needs groceries anyway?
My daughter read through most of the USBorne Science Encyclopedia last year. I’d just assign 2-4 pages per day, depending on how much was on each page. She was in 4th grade last year. When she took her Iowa Basic Skills Test in May, she scored at 11.7 grade level for science! I’d say the encyclopedia was pretty thorough, lol!
She’s reading through the rest of it this year, and also doing TT7. TT takes about an hour to complete each lesson for her, but she’s really liking it. It’s not as advanced at the Singapore that she was doing last year, so we took the placement tests and she ended up at TT7 from doing Singapore 4A.
Oh this is so helpful, Jennifer. Thank you. I really like hearing that. I’m feeling better and better about using it as our spine, reading through it and doing any experiments that come to mind.
Also I didn’t even think to do the placement tests, and they’ve been doing Singapore since the get go, so I should make sure the levels are right, thank goodness I did not order yet. Thanks!
Can I ask you how your weekly schedule goes? I did homeschooling last year for the first time and I kinds flew by the seat of my pants and it didn’t take so well. I am still deciding what I will do this year. In Canada school doesn’t start until September, but it doesn’t end until the bitter end of June, so I guess I still have some time left to decide on continuing with the homeschooling or sending him back to public school.
We take Wednesdays off for our co-op classes. I always start out the year thinking we’ll do a few things before we head out, but it never happens. So Wednesdays are our off days. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday we try to stick to somewhat of a schedule that looks like this:
- Devotional (pledge of allegiance, prayer, primary song, memory boxes)
- Math, the boys can work mostly on their own while I help K.
- Boys head to sofas for their solo reading while I help K with her reading lessons, LA, and do a chapter in her read aloud.
- History & Geography all together
- Lunch (or snack if we started late, which we often do)
- Help boys with their spelling, grammar, LA while K. has a little recess or works solo on a workbook/activity of her choosing.
- Everyone does handwriting together.
- Science all together
- Art all together (usually only on Fridays)
If I need someone doing something by themselves they might do Spanish. There hasn’t been huge interest in it so it’s just kind of as they want to, I’m not pushing. So it mostly just fills a hole where I need it to. The boys practice their violin / piano in the morning before breakfast.
During nice months we try to keep Friday afternoons open for Wild Days / Nature Journals.
I’m not one that starts at 9 am sharp every day. Sometimes we do and we’re done by the early afternoon or by lunchtime. But usually we start later so they’re done when their friends are getting off the buses. Sometimes we might even get a really late start and be doing school into dinner time, but I try not to let that happen too much… some days just turn out that way though.
I hope that helps! Email me if you want help/support, it does take a while to find your groove and figure out what is fun for both of you.
xx
We homeschool too. My eldest is in year 1 equivalent at the moment, and we really like the All About Reading/All About Spelling. I first got AAS, but when AAR came out we decided to get it as well. As a program I think it works really well, although I can’t say how great it works because my child isn’t really “into” reading. She thinks she can’t read, but I think she just doesn’t want to, yet. My 4.5 year old listens during lessons and picks up SO much from it. I think she is going to be reading before 6.5 year old ;)
I prefer the functionality of AAS, but my little one isn’t quite ready for that – she is moving at a snails pace due to lack of interest but prefers the AAR as we have been starting from the beginning and she already knows 90% of what we’re covering.
PS the arrows that change you to the next topic are really annoying when editing your post. I just lost mine and had to go back, then write it all again! lol
Oh they’re supposed to be really far away, off in the yellow background. Are you viewing the site on a mobile device or something small that sticks them up in your business while writing a comment? Can you send me a screenshot?
We do teaching textbooks and Love it! (we do supplement with math games and a few other things) BUT On the “other side ” of Rigby we sorta have a teaching textbooks swap going. I currently have 3, 4 and 5. So if you want to check them out even borrow them let me know. They get sort of expensive buying them all!