When I was around the age of 10, my sweet grandmother gave me one of my most treasured possessions:  her McGuffey’s Second Reader.  Having grown up in the public/government school system, I was always amazed that my grandparents had to actually buy their school books.  Wouldn’t they laugh if they knew that I now homeschooled and we, too, have to buy all of our children’s books?

But when my grandma gave me her old, worn book; when she could still recite stories and poems that she had memorized from them as a child, I just knew that there had to be something special about them.  That simple gift began a life-long love for books.  Especially the collection of old books.

Once I began homeschooling I would find old books at antique shops, garage sales or on the web.  But I had little idea that some old books were being re-published…even whole sets…and I have since used these books time and time again.  The two sets we will discuss here will McGuffey’s Eclectic Readers and Ray’s Arithmetic. 

The first set I happened upon were the McGuffey’s Readers.  I couldn’t believe my eyes!  There, in the gift shop of a historic park, was a whole set of seven readers!  And what they contained didn’t disappoint me; the stories and the art work are exactly as the antique volumes were.  Little did I realize, until I owned the whole set, that those seven volumes do not actually follow grade years; the seventh reader could actually be considered college-level reading by many.  But let’s start from the beginning…

McGuffey’s Eclectic Primer begins with display pages of the upper and lower case alphabet and continues on as a wonderful reader for beginners.  If your child has already begun by using other reading programs (such as last month’s Teach Your Children to Read in 100 Easy Lessons or Hooked on Phonics) this will be a great treat.  The lessons start with up to six new words being introduced; each showing the common diacritical markings as in long vowel/short vowel/hard consonant markings.  Lesson One begins with simple, one-syllable words such as:  A cat and a rat.  A rat and a cat.  Lesson Five is a review and introduces the student to “slate work.”  This is a writing lesson that, of course, you are free to use or ignore.  These writing exercises are written in 1800’s cursive, so even if your little one has begun to use cursive writing, they still may need a little help deciphering some of the older script, like the open lower-case “p” or “f.”  By the end of this little book your children will be reading lovely poems such as: 

When the stars, at set of sun,

Watch you from on high;

When the light of morn has come,

Think the Lord is nigh…

The First Reader is more of the same with the addition of two-syllable words and a little more emphasis on cursive (“script”) penmanship.  The Second Reader is a more progressive reading plan; it has a more detailed “Table of Vocals,” which is a more detailed phonics table and punctuation mark definitions.  This volume not only introduces three- and four-syllable words, but is the first reader to actually present each lesson in the form of actual stories.  Each story not only uses the newly introduced words, but also teaches lessons in poetry, family values, sibling relationships, forgiveness, animal stories and over-coming fears in priceless prose such as “Afraid in the Dark,” “The Broken Window” and “Kitty and Mousie.”  I can still hear my grandma reciting:

“Two black eyes had little kitty,

Black as a crow;

And they spied the little mousie,

Long time ago…”

Moving into the Third Reader, we broaden our range of phonics sounds by adding Diphthongs and Subvocals, along with Exercises in Articulation which includes double vowel sounds and blends.  This reader also introduces emphasis by using italics and CAPITALS.  Punctuation is expanded by including marks and pauses such as hyphens (-), commas (,), Semicolons (;) and colons (:), among others.  Stories are more detailed and expansive as this reader could carry children into sixth or seventh grade.  Once again, these stories not only teach but they are a joy to read. 

McGuffey’s Fourth Reader, ideal for Junior High level readers, draws readers deeper into phonics and develops the learner’s articulation.  This is re-enforced through practice with inflection.  Examples being:

Rising Inflection:

                                                                         come?

Has she come?    To be read thus:   Has she

Falling Inflection:

She has come.    To be read thus:    She has

                                                                     come.

In this reader you will begin to find familiar stories and poems like Robinson Crusoe’s House by Daniel DeFoe and Hugh Idle and Mr. Toil by Hawthorne.  And just as the reading matures, you will find that the drawings do as well.  Beautiful old ingravings with fine detail.

The Fifth Reader not only brings a reader into upper Jr. high but into Sr. high school level reading.  With more complex phonics development, the reader will also learn more about inflections:  circumflex, monotone, accent, emphasis, pitch and poetic pauses.  The Sixth Reader, high school and college level, jumps right in with articulation and dives further in with more on inflection, accent, emphasis and reading verse.  The Fifth and Sixth Readers are books that I simply enjoy “just reading.”  Here you will find many treasured old stories and poetry:  The Village Blacksmith by Longfellow, The Snowstorm by Thomson; Death of Little Nell by Charles Dickens, Patrick Henry’s Speech Before the Virginia Convention…sections of Shakespeare, the Bible, Washington Irving, Daniel Webster.  These are lessons that will be well learned.

Another happy find was the whole set of Ray’s Arithmetic.  This eight-volume set not only covers Primary to “Higher” math, but also contains a Parent-Teacher Guide, Test Examples and two Key books.

The Parent-Teacher Guide, a new addition to the re-produced set, has great ideas and teaching schedules, of sorts.  Even if the publisher had stopped at the Introduction, it would be worth having.  You know, right off the bat, that you have a stellar teaching/learning aid when the intro says:  “While learning arithmetic, children develop their God-given, natural, Biblical mode of thinking.  Biblical thinking begins with the premises that God created everything and that basic truths of the creation are self-evident to us…With this mode of thinking and study, it is natural to view God’s creation as orderly.  Stars keep time more perfectly than clocks can ever manage, crystals teach solid geometry, musical tones…vibrate in the mathematical patterns that man discovers rather than creates.  The heavens declare to us the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork.”  Isn’t that wonderful?

Also in the introduction you will find a chart that shows the suggested grade levels for each book:  Primary = first and second grades; Intellectual = third and fourth grades; Practical = fifth and sixth grades; Higher = seventh & eighth grades.  Another nice find is a suggested Scope and Sequence and Teaching Tips.  My recommendation?  “Suggestions” are always fine and appreciated, but remember…these are YOUR children and your school is YOUR school, do what works best for you and yours.

As you may suspect, Ray’s New Practical Arithmetic starts right out with Numbers and Figures…every student must connect one object with the numeral 1 and the name “one.”  I was never a “sentence problem” kind of student, but the beginner “Oral Exercises” can be so much fun with the little ones.  There is NOTHING like watching those little light-bulbs click on!  It has been my experience with other math programs that, in my humble opinion, they start the children on multiplication and division far too early.  Even though this Primary book introduces multiplication and division, it’s done in one of the simplest ways I have seen.  But, once again, you know your children best, use your own judgment as to when to dig deeper with your children.

Ray’s New Intellectual Arithmetic begins with a review of addition and subtraction including sentence problems, tables and written problems.  Since the recommended grades for this book are third and fourth grades, it is a more appropriate time to work into multiplication and division.  The tables are laid out perfectly and this would be a good time to memorize them.  You will NOT want for exercises; this book is replete with material.  From there we move on to Fractions, Tables, Ratios, and Percentages.  The detail covered in this volume is something to be admired and you will certainly understand how such a little book can easily be used for two years.

For grades 5 and 6 we move on to Ray’s New Practical Arithmetic.  This book takes students into the differences between the Arabic and Roman Systems of Notation and place value.  After a review of addition and subtraction, we move into contractions of multiplication and division.  From there we move into what my children always considered the “fun” side of math:  money, measuring, time, miscellaneous tables, compound numbers, Longitude and time; then on into factors.  This point would be a good stopping point for fifth grade so that in sixth grade we can move on to decimals, the Metric System, percentages, interest, exchange of monies from different countries, insurance, taxes, ratio, and beginning geometry.  These are very full years. 

The last volume is Ray’s New Higher Arithmetic suggested for seventh and eighth grades.  Here, you will have the option of reviewing addition and subtraction or moving on to higher multiplication and division.  Upon first glance at the Table of Contents it would seem that there will be a lot of review; true on one hand, but not on the other.  Once again there will be work on properties, fractions, decimals, ratio and percentage; but we will work at a much deeper level to include what is essentially introductions into accounting principles, taxes, stocks, profit and loss, commission and Algebra. 

If you want to teach your children using the tried and true methods that worked so well for our fore-fathers and our grandparents, you will thoroughly enjoy using these wonderful reproduction books.  There’s truly nothing like them.

Contacts

You will find both sets available through Christian Book Distributors (CBD) at www.Christianbook.com or 1-800-247-4784.  Books can be purchased in completed sets or separately.                   

Blessings from Ohio, Kim Wolf<><

The Tortoise or the Hare?  Does Slow and Steady Always Win the Race?

As a child I enjoyed reading Aesop’s Fables.  What I always liked best about fables was that they used animals and they always taught a lesson.  Jesus used parables when He taught, often using farm life or some other part of daily life that His hearers would recognize and relate to. 

Probably my favorite Aesop’s Fable is The Tortoise and the Hare.  You know the story…One day a Hare came across a Tortoise and began making fun of him because he was so slow.  Tired of being teased once again, the Tortoise challenged the Hare to a race.  His victory assured, the Hare took the old Tortoise up on his offer.  After the fox had set the course, the race was on!  The Hare was ahead in no time and decided that he had plenty of time to take a nap.  Upon waking he looked toward the finish line only to see that the Tortoise was crossing the finish line and he had lost the race!  Lesson:  “Slow and steady wins the race.”

Slow and steady…does that always win the race in every circumstance?  Well, let’s put that in homeschool terms.  What about reading?

When a homeschool family begins their journey from the beginning, reading is one of those scary subjects on the list.  Can you remember how you learned how to read?  I couldn’t.  With such a huge variety of reading programs out there, some guaranteeing fast results and some out for the long-term, scope shaping journey, how does one pick and choose what will work for their children?  I’ll show you two tried and true favorites, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons (the Hare) and Hooked On Phonics (the tortoise).  Both of these methods are fine phonics-based methods and I have used both with great success.

Why phonics?  Simply because it works!  Several years ago, at a Christian Home Educators of Ohio convention, I listened to Samuel Bloomenfeld discuss the utter failure of the “Look-Say/Whole Word” method that so many public schools have been using.  This method attempts of teach reading by causing children to “memorize” what certain often used words “look” like.  Basically, once these key words are memorized by sight – not sounding out, but what they look like – the rest of their reading instruction ends up just being a guessing game.  This Look-say/Whole Word method was originally created to teach deaf people how to read.  The program was such a failure that it is no longer used in them – BUT – it is still used in three out of four government schools.  Sounds like one more reason to teach them at home.

Enter:  The Hare

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons is a product of DISTAR, published by the Science Research Associates, Inc. (SRA).  Remember those fun and teachable SRA’s we used to do in third grade?  These are the same folks!  I always enjoyed doing those little SRA’s and I was thrilled to find out that this was the same company. 

In the Introduction, they take what Samuel Bloomenfeld told us at CHEO by quoting Robert Benjamin from his book Making Schools Work, “Many schools continue to employ instructional methods that have been proven ineffective.  The staying power of the look-say or whole-word method of teaching beginning reading is perhaps the most flagrant example of this failure to instruct effectively.”  As we all know, if a child is a good reader, the whole world opens up to them.  DISTAR has proven to be very effective with young readers; especially pre-schoolers.

As the title implies, the book consists of 100 lessons that last roughly one-half hour each day.  My advice is to NOT skip any lessons, as they build upon each other.  By the time your child finishes the book they will be reading at whopping second grade level!  And your child will not be the only one who benefits…as the book says, “After you complete the program, you’ll know more about teaching reading then most public school teachers, because you will have carefully observed and participated in the step-by-step development of your child’s reading skills.”  As we all know, parents learn, or re-learn, right along with their children.

Once you have read through the Introduction you will then turn to the Parents’ Guide.  This portion will give you the outline for “an effective sequence for teaching reading.”  The basics of which are:  1) to begin with simple exercises, 2) teaching reading skills, 3) exercises change slow, in small ways, so that it is easy for the child, and 4) very clear communication with the child.  From there, you will cover the development of the DISTAR program and the research involved, Communicating Clearly with the Child and Making Teaching Easier.

Then, we get into something interesting.  DISTAR uses a very special “funny” print and how words are spelled, or their “orthography.”  As we know, because our language is a peculiar mixed of  Greek, Latin and French, many of our letters do not make the same sounds every time they are used.  DISTAR helps a child understand these difference early one by using a “funny” print.  Something I can’t do here is show it to you, but only inform you that it includes all the phonics-related symbols that we grew up with:  long/short; blends such as qu, ch, sh, th, sh, etc.

Walking further into the book we come to Getting Ready.  DISTAR has produced a Pronunciation Guide.  This is very simple, easy to use and will probably look slightly familiar to most as your memories of learning to read take shape.  The guide will give you the letter Symbol (m), how the letter is to be pronounced (mmm), a word example (as in ram), voiced or whispered (the symbol for voiced is v, whispered is w) and the guide will let you know which lesson this concept is introduced in (lesson 1).  Or…

Symbol        Pronounced          As in           Voiced or              Introduced

   m                 mmm                ram                    w                      1           

Two of the keys to phonics is saying the words slowly and sounding out words.  The first few lessons will begin with saying letter sounds slowly.  Each sound, and words (as you get further into the book), will be written in the way you should teach your child to say them.  Each word will begin by you putting your finger on the BIG dot, you will quickly move your finger to the letter to be sounded out and move on.  If a word has more than on letter/sound, you will move quickly to the next letter/sound.  After you have shown your child the sounds that the letters make, then they will do it with you two or three times, then they will sound out the letters/sounds themselves.  If it is an actual word, each time you will repeat the sounds a little faster until the sounds mmm, eee run smoothly together to form the word “me.” 

As mentioned earlier, DISTAR insists NO SKIPPING ALLOWED!  They recommend that even though a child may read at a faster rate than the program’s sequence, we must remember that “The goal of decoding instruction is to make decoding an automatic practice, not something that requires and great deal of thinking or a great deal of effort.”  A person who reads well spends very little time mentally sounding out words.  By learning in sequence, one learns wholly.  If your mind has been trained well, the sounding out process is automatic and produces and person who, not only reads well and reads quickly, but absorbs and maintains more of what he has read.

Now before this all sounds too overwhelming, and as we get into what a lesson actually consists of, one thing you must know is all lessons are scripted!  Your script is written in red – but don’t let it go to your head!  J  You don’t have to worry about not explaining a concept or new sound correctly, it’s all laid out for you on every page.  Even what to expect from your child is there!  Making the program easy on the parent is one of the reasons TYC has been such a success.

The daily lessons, divided up by “tasks,” may conclude in as quickly as 10 minutes, but I would recommend that you schedule 20 minutes, especially in the beginning, until you are your child are more familiar with what is expected.  These lessons should take place everyday for 5 or even 7 days per week.  DO NOT COMPROMISE!  As mentioned earlier, these lessons build upon each other and continuity, just like consistency in discipline, is the key to your success.  You may even have days when you do two lessons in one day, as some lessons go quickly.  However, use your own judgment so as not to load your child with too information.  If only working on reading is enough for your child at this time, do not overwhelm him with Sound Writing.

On occasion, once you actually get started, there may be times when you wonder what the exercise has to do with anything your child is learning; as some things seem to go off on a completely different tangent.  Hang with it…Have you ever noticed that if you have something weighing on your mind, or if you child has a big test coming up, that if you get your mind off of that particular thing for a few moments and go to something else, that you are better able to deal with it a little later?  This, to me, must be the idea that the writers had by the time you get to task 4 of the lessons.  By the time you get to task 4, you will review what was already taught in task 1; task 5 will review what was taught in task 2.  You will be amazed at how successful that first lesson will have been and what your child retained! 

I use a similar technique when I am teaching form a book (what Charlotte Mason referred to as Whole Book Learning).  While am reading, my children will be doing something with their hands – drawing, coloring, painting, latch-hooking a rug, etc.  The act of keeping their hands occupied helps to keep their minds free to accept what they are learning on an auditory level.  Their retention level is far greater than if they were only half-listening because they were so bored their hands were looking for something to do.  So, when TYC begins with one task and seems to an entirely different way only to come back to the original task, I believe that this same concept is what they are aiming at…teach something meaningful, get away for just a short bit so that the information can sink in and…bingo!  Lesson learned!

Enter the Tortoise

Hooked on Phonics

This was the first reading program that I had used.  Hooked on Phonics (HOP) now has several programs to offer, but, why mess with perfection?  Their original program, which we will discuss here, is now called Hooked on Phonics Classic.  It is SO much fun when that big HOP box arrives!  Inside  your will find 7 workbooks with lessons, stories and activities; 9 audio cassettes; 3 sets of fun stickers; 9 sets of flash cards; 1 parent guide.  Yes, what TYC is in simplicity, HOP has ALL the bells and whistles!  Another find…remember those SRA’s that we talked about earlier?  THEY ARE HERE!  But let’s not get ahead of ourselves…

The first thing to do is to listen to Tape 1, the instruction tape.  This will give you a great run-down of what you can expect as your use HOP.  You next step will be to open up the yellow Book One, grab the yellow flash cards and the white tape 1.  Each tape will lead your child, completely through what they are to say and do.  (Of course, brand new readers will need your help until they become familiar with what is expected.)  The tapes take the child through the sounds and letters that are on the flash cards.  After they are familiar, then you will move to the book and Read Out Loud!  The first section is “Say the Sound.”  Each letter is represented by an object beginning with that letter: a-apple, b-bell, c-cat…  In no time at all, your child will be moving on to the letter “a” and actually putting together words!  From one of the first lessons they will be putting “a” and “t” together and READING the words: at, bat, cat, fat, hat, mat, pat, rat, sat.  Each lesson ends in review and by the time you get to the third review, your child will know 25 words!  By the time they finish the very first book, they will have gone through the whole alphabet and will be reading whole sentences!  My children were SO excited when they could read sentences.  Book 1 focuses on sight words that everyone reads time and time again, day after day.

Each book works in progression as their reading abilities grow.  HOP teaches children to read in a deeper, more complex way.  Book/tape/flash cards 2 teaches ending sounds, more complex sight words and beginning sounds.  Book/tape/flash cards 3 teaches more complex beginning and ending sounds and long vowel and other sounds.  Book/tape/flash cards 4 gets a little more in-depth with diphthong, “schwa” and other sounds, plus more vowel and combination sounds.  Set 5 covers combination sounds, silent letters and prefixes.  Set 6 gets deeper into suffixes, silent letters, and gets into larger, 4 and 5 syllable words.  Book 7 is a complete reading review book; this book is actually referred to at specific points during the whole lesson plan.

Now, we can’t forget those SRA’s.  I’m glad to say that  my daughters enjoyed these just as much as I had as a child.  There are 100 SRA’s, called Power Builders, that range from beginner’s reading level to advanced and are divided up into 3 levels.  The beginner’s level has a short little story of one- and two-syllable words, then has various activities such as comprehension questions, sounding out words and “yes” or “no” (true or false) questions.  The intermediate section is for those who have completed approximately to Book 3 and has a much longer story (one and a half pages, smaller print, more complex words), comprehension questions, Lean About Words (definitions, etc.), and thinking questions.  Upper level has far more complex stories, comprehension questions, vocabulary, and word studies.  In all three sections the stories are everything from fiction, non-fiction, science, mini-biographies.  They are all very interesting.  A small word of warning: these are not necessarily from a Christian perspective and may mention evolution as fact, millions of years, etc.

You Decide…

So, now it’s up to you.  Which is better, the tortoise or the hare?  You decide.  But I warn you – your child’s excitement in learning how to read may even rekindle a long lost love for reading in you that was misplaced long, long ago.

Contacts:

Teach Your Children to Read in 100 Easy Lessons is available in multiple resources.  Some are:  Christian Book Distributors (CBD) www.Christianbook.com, 1-800-247-4784; Farm Country General Store www.homeschoolfcgs.com, 1-800-551-FARM.

Hooked on Phonics www.hop.com, 1-800-ABCDEFG.

Blessings from Ohio, Kim Wolf<><

One of my pet peeves – and I’m sure yours, too – is when someone makes the comment that homeschoolers do not live in the “Real World.”  If those people only knew how silly that remark made them look and sound to homeschoolers, I’m sure they would think twice about what they were really saying.  However, as I have been a county coordinator here in Ohio for many years I HAVE noticed something.  In years past, homeschoolers have been so eager to prove nay-sayers wrong that some of us have concentrated a little too hard on academics.  Now don’t get me wrong, homeschoolers must and DO receive a top-notch education, academically…but…I have witnessed a few homeschool grads who made all the grades but couldn’t even boil an egg!  Home education is not JUST academics.  We wanted a more well-rounded foundation for our children.

We are very eclectic homeschoolers, but I have to say that one of our favorite educational methods is the Unit Study.  We’ve even written several of our own.  But I needed some serious help in gathering information and research for many of the everyday things that come across our lives – things that come up that you never think of.  For example:  Everyone has been to a funeral, right?  But how many people have actually had to plan one?  You would be surprised at how few.  Unfortunately, my husband and I were forced into this reality one sad day when our oldest child died of SIDS when she was three months old.  We were faced with all the hard, must-be-quickly-decided-upon, costly decisions that are involved in funeral arrangements.  We were just kids, ourselves.  Life – and death – had hit us full-force in our faces and we didn’t want that happening to our children/teens.  Life’s decisions aren’t always fun and easy, even though certain life experiences must be lived out to be fully understood, one thing we could do was take the mystery and scariness out of it; maybe that could be somewhat abated by knowing what to expect.

Now, we wanted to know, where can we find resources that truly teach about real life? 

Let me show you…

Most Unit Studies are made to be used for a week, a month, maybe even a year.  And they are great!  But I have found two incredible life skills Unit Studies that can take our children through anywhere from four years to seven years!  Of course, like all homeschool materials, we are not bound by the books and we also may pick and choose what we will use and when we will use it.

These unit studies have greatly helped me to “wrangle” the teaching and introduction of life skills and needed life knowledge.  Having all girls, I will be telling you about two studies made specifically for girls, but please note that there ARE counter-parts for boys! 

Enter Far Above Rubies (FAR) written by Lauren and Lynda Coats.  (The boy’s version is Blessed is the Man.  This can also be used simultaneously with FAR.)  This brave endeavor was created to be all you need for FOUR YEARS!  All the way through high school.  Granted, if you want to dive deeper into upper math or sciences you will need other texts – remember, this unit is about LIFE; not everyone uses calculus in every-day living.  Suggestions for higher learning can be found in the FAR Appendix.

If you specifically follow their guide, you will travel through 20 units that each cover lessons under the subjects of:  Bible and Christian Character, Cultural Studies, Reading and Literature, Composition, Math and Personal Finance, Science, Health and Physical Fitness, Practical Arts (Home Ec in disguise), and Decorative and Performing Arts – all based upon Proverbs 31:10-31 – “A virtuous wife, who can find?  Her value is far above rubies…”  [KJV]

The authors have written very detailed and descriptive Guidelines beginning with their reasons for writing such a tome, bios of the authors and the philosophies behind FAR; a few being:  #1) God created each of us as individuals, #3) Salvation is in the blood of Jesus Christ and in no other, #5) God gave each child to specific parents for a reason, #7) ALL education is religious, #9) Teaching should be done in a natural way, #12) The purpose of teaching and parenting is to work ourselves out of a job (I like that one!).

FAR also covers the four different learning styles and gives us questions to ponder so that WE can better serve our children.  They also explain their “Six R’s of Education” – Reading, (w)riting, (a)rithmetic, research, responsibility and righteousness.  Be sure to read their suggested instructions for using FAR as there are codes to follow and understand.  But, again, these are guidelines and suggestions – I do not advocate becoming a slave to the order of ANY book, text or curriculum.  This is YOUR school!

You will find suggestions on record keeping, transcripts and other final records, and Using Credits for Graduation which will come in handy and may give you great peace of mind in keeping orderly accounts of what has been studied in the high school years.  Also included are planner pages, goal planning check list, a high school cumulative record and even report card page – all ready to be copied at your convenience.  You will also find a beneficial list of materials and suggested items.  Most can be found in a local library if you don’t have them in your home library.

Other learning tools the authors suggest is the making and using of Timelines and Mindmapping.  Learning to use these aids helps students keep their thoughts contained onto on chart or paper. 

Here’s How…

Now, let’s get into some meat, shall we? 

Each of the 20 units is not only based on a segment of Proverbs 31:10-31, but is also divided into “Mini-Units.”  Here’s what I mean: 

Unit 15

Strength and honor are her clothing;

She shall rejoice in time to come.

Prov. 31:25

A quick glance at the unit Overview will lead you to the titles of the mini-units with a brief description.  For instance, Unit 15’s mini-units will deal with:

A.  Dignity and Strength in all Circumstances

B.  The Family Cares for its Own

C.  Prophecies of the Future

A slice of each of the above mentioned mini-units will be covered under the earlier mentioned subjects (Bible and Christian Character, etc.).  And you will NOT lack for anything to cover!  If you decided to try to do all activities suggested, you may even be using this volume for MORE than seven years!

The Dilemma…

Initially, when I imagined the “perfect” unit study to help me teach Life Skills to my daughters, I had in mind something with more hands-on time.  FAR is an excellent resource and couldn’t have been better put together…but…it is nearly all research and reading.  Very little actual hands-on for what I had in mind.  What to do?

Once again, I set out and looked through all of my catalogues, searched the internet and bugged my friends who have a similar educational philosophy.  A resource that kept popping up was Training Our Daughters to be Keepers at Home [TOD].  For a little while there was a problem, the first publication of TOD was a multi-volume, EXPENSIVE, resource.  As I did some more probing, I discovered that Ann Ward (Smiling Hearts Press) had done an ingenious thing!  She had taken ALL of the material from TOD and put it onto a CDRom!  This not only knocked down the cost of the product but now, as the user, we can simply copy off the portions that we need/want and create our own Life Skills notebook!  What an incredible idea!  I, for one, couldn’t have been more grateful!

Now, as FAR is a four-year Life Skills Unit Study, Training Our Daughters is a seven-year Life Skills Unit Study!  What FAR is in research, TOD is in hands-on!  Mrs. Ward has generously laid out the framework for all seven years, along with the anticipated number of weeks involved in each course of study – each year is about 36 weeks.  Again, remember – this is YOUR school, YOUR study and YOUR children – YOU are in charge of how you use this or any other curriculum.

Ann Ward has given a summary of each project by category, unit and year.  For instance:  Each year covers Godly Womanhood, Sewing, Cooking, Gardening, Knitting and other home arts and is expanded and further explored each year.  This can be a great asset to a family who has already mastered some of the categories offered as you can then move on to the level that best challenges your students.  Through the years you will also cover such womanly life skills as Care for Children and the Elderly, Care for the Sick and Injured, Hospitality, Card Making, Family Finances, Raising Animals, Soap and Candle-making, Childbearing, Women’s Health Issues and Home Business, among others.

As this Unit Study is SO hands-on, you will find very thorough directions – many with pictures – to teach some of the skills with.  So, even if you don’t knit, you may still successfully get your daughter who has always wanted to learn to knit off on the right foot, simply by following the directions! 

Let me tell you what we have done…

Our family has combined these two great Unit Studies!  And what has come out of it has been large notebooks – one for each of our daughters – FULL of basic and necessary Life Skills.  As we have been learning, we have been collecting our information in those notebooks.  Our daughters will take these books with them throughout their lives to refer to time and time again.  These books contain directions for knitting, cooking (we have added all sorts of great recipes – both those suggested in the study and our own family favorites!), child care, elderly care, funeral arrangements, how to recognize good gem stones, home remedies, basic family medical care, stamping and card making, marriage and courtship…yep, they’re BIG notebooks!  But just think of the treasure of skills and knowledge they now have that will even be a benefit to their families.

Teaching life skills is teaching LIFE.  It’s multi-generational and so needed.

Honorable Mention…

I can’t let you go without mentioning another valuable resource.  How many of you had a mom or grandma who kept a book chock-full of her favorite recipes, cleaning know-how, patterns, family records – Grandma’s “Go To” book? 

Martha Greene has put together just such a book!  Treasury of Vintage Homekeeping Skills has been put together with Grandma’s Go To Book in mind.  If you would like to start the tradition of a Life Skills notebook for your children or teens – boys, too! – this would be a great place to start and then to add to. 

Martha has included chapters covering:  Homekeeping, Hospitality, Home Duties, First Aid in the Home, Gardening, Cooking & Baking, Reserves for the Family, Handiwork, Business of the Home and Family Records.  You can even design your own family crest and family creed! 

I was SO excited when I found out about this book!  THIS was exactly what I had in mind when we began our own Life Skills notebooks!  Martha has done such a great job.  You just know that this was a labor of love; a labor of her heart.  As it should have been and as YOURS will be.

All Good Things…

Life Skills is such an important lesson to teach our children.  It’s an on-going, never-ending School of Life.  While academics ARE important, we must not forget to include the things that our children will need their whole lives through.  What good are the best academics if they can’t help you change the oil in your car?  A well-rounded education makes for a well-rounded person – ready to take life by the horns and hang on for the ride!

Contacts:

~  Far Above Rubies:  http://www.farandblessed.com/FAR.shtml or through TOS contributor, the Urban Homemaker, at http://www.urbanhomemaker.com.

~ Training Our Daughters to be Keepers at Home:  Smiling Heart Press, P.O. Box 130, Imbler, OR, 97841 or through the Urban Homemaker.

~  Treasury of Vintage Homekeeping Skills:  http://www.marmeeskitchen.com. 

~  Questions?  Contact Kim Wolf at:  http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Buckeyeblog.

Originally printed in the Spring 2007 issue of The Old Schoolhouse magazine.  http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com

{Continued from Part 1)

The Dilemma

     Inititally, when I imagined the "perfect" unit study to help me teach life skills to my daughters, I had in mind something with more hands-on time.  FAR is an excellent resource and couldn't have been better put together, but it is nearly all research and reading, very little actual hands-on for what I had in mind.  Now what do I do?

     Once again I set out and looked through all of my catalogs, searched the Internet, and bugged my friends who have a similar educational philosophy.  A resource that kept popping up was Training Our Daughters to be Keepers at Home (TOD).  For a little while there was a problem -- at first publication TODwas a multi-volume, expensive resource.  As I did some more probing, I discovered that Ann Ward (Smiling Hearts Press) had done an ingenious thing.  She had taken all of the material from TOD and put it onto a CDRom!  This not only knocked down the cost of the product, but now, as the user, we can simply copy off the portions that we want and create our own life skills notebook.  What an incredible idea!  I, for one, couldn't have been more grateful.

     Now, while FAR, is a four-year life skills unit study, Training Our Daughters is a seven-year life skills unit study.  What FAR is in research, TOD is in hands-on.  Mrs. Ward has generously laid out the framework for all seven years, along with the anticipated number of weeks invovled in each course of study -- each year is about 36 weeks.  Again, remember -- this is your school, your study, and your children -- YOU are in charge of how you use this or any other curriculum.

     Ann Ward has given a summary of each project by category, unit, and year.  For instance, each year covers godly womanhood, sewing, cooking, gardening, knitting and other home arts, and each area is expanded and further explored each year.  This can be a great asset to a family that has already mastered some of the categories offered, as you can then move on to the level that best challenges your students.  Through the years you will also cover such womanly life skills as Care for Children and the Edlerly, Care for the Sick and Injured, Hospitality, Card Making, Family Finances, Raising Animals, Soap and Candlemaking, Childbearing, Women's Health Issues, and Home Business, among others.

     As this unit study is so hands-on, you will find very thorough directions -- many with pictures -- to help teach some of the skills.  So, even if you don't knit, you may still successfully get your daughter off on the right foot, simply by following the directions.

     Let me tell you what we have done -- our family has combined these two great unit studies!  And what has come out of it has been large notebooks -- one for each of our daughters -- full of basic and necessary life skills.  As we have been learning, we have been collecting our information in those notebooks.  Our daughters will take these books with them throughout their lives to refer to time and time again.  These books contain directions for knitting, cooking (we have added all sorts of great recipes -- both those suggested in the study and our own family favorites!), child care, elderly care, making funeral arrangements, how to recognize good gemstones, home remedies, basic family medical care, stamping and card making, marriage and courtship ... yep, they're BIG notebooks!  But just think of the tresure of skills and knowledge they will have that will benefit their own families.

Honorable Mention  

     I can't let you go without mentioning another valuable resource.  How many of you had a mom or grandma who kept a book chock-full of her favorite recipes, cleaning know-how, patterns, family records -- Grandma's "go-to" book?

     Martha Greene has put together just such a book!  Her Treasury of Vintage Homekeeping Skills has been put together with Grandma's go-to book in mind.  If you would like to start the traditoin of a life skills notebook for your children or teens -- boys, too! -- this would be a great place to start and then add to.

     Martha has included chapters covering Homekeeping, Hospitality, Home Duties, First Aid in the Home, Gardening, Cooking & Baking, Reserves for the Family, Handiwork, Business of the Home, and Family Records.  You can even design your own family crest and familiy creed.

     I was so excited when I found out about this book!  This was exactlly what I had in mind when we began our own life skills notebooks.  Martha has done such a great job.  You just know that this was a labor of love, a labor of her heart, as it should have been and as yours will be.

All Good Things 

     Life skills is such an important lesson to teach our children.  It's an on-going, never-ending school of life.  While academics are important, we must not forget to include the things that our children will need their whole lives through.  What good are the best academics if they can't help you change the oil in your car?  A well-rounded education makes for a well-rounded person -- ready to take life by the horns and hang on for the ride!

Contacts:  

Far Above Rubies:  www.farandblessed.com/FAR.shtml or through TOS contributor the Urban Homemaker at www.urbanhomemaker.com.  Also through Farm Country General Store at www.homeschoolfcgs.com.

Training Our Daughters to be Keepers at Home:  Smiling Hearts Press, PO Box 130, Imbler, OR 97841, or through the Urban Homemaker.

Treasury of Vintage Homekeeping Skills:  www.marmeeskitchen.com. 

KW<><

The Spring '07 issue of The Old Schoolhouse magazine introduced a new column of mine:  The Lesson Planner; in which I compare/contrast similar curriculums and learning resources.  From this post on, as the new issue hits the market, I will post the previous issue's Lesson Planner column.  I hope you enjoy.  And...as always...if you would like to see any curriculums &/or learning resources in The Lesson Planner, please let me know!

Blessings from Ohio, Kim Wolf<><

      Welcome to the inaugural installment of the The Lesson Planner!  We know that everyone enjoys the great product reviews in the back of each TOS magazine, but sometimes there are products that you wish you could have a little more -- or even a lot more -- information about.  One of the hardest parts of choosing curriculum and other resources is that most items have to be chosen sight unseen.  We can't always count on finding a fellow homeschool family nearby who has a certain product in their possession so that we can take the time to see if it is something that will be right for our family.  What to do?

     Here's where I hope I can help you!  In this and future issues, I will be thoroughly comparing and contrasting curricula and learning aids on similar subjects.  our hope is that a more thorough review will help you make better decisions regarding what will and will not work for your family.

     And...on with the show!

     I'll start this first installment of The Lesson Planner with something that hit home in our house.

     One of my pet peeves -- and I'm sure yours, too -- is when someone makes the comment that homeschoolers do not live in the "real world."  If  those people only knew how silly that remark made them look to homeschoolers, I'm sure they would think twice about saying it.  However, as I have been a county coordinator here in Ohio for many years I have noticed something.  In years past, homeschoolers have been so eager to prove naysayers wrong that some of us have concentrated a little too hard on academics.  Now, don't get me wrong; homeschoolers must and DO receive a top-notch education academically.  But I have also seen a few homeschool grads who made all the grades but couldn't even boil an egg!  How would they function in society or benefit their future families?  We didn't want that for our children.

     We are very eclectic homeschoolers, but I have say that one of our favorite educational methods is the unit study.  We've even written several of our own.  But I needed some serious help in gathering information and research for many of the everyday things that come across our lives -- things that come up that you never think of relating to our children.  For example, eveyone has been to a funeral, right?  But how many people have actually had to plan one?  You would be surprised at how few.  Unfortunately, my husband and I were forced into this reality one sad day when our oldest child died of SIDS when she was three months old.  We were faced with all the hard, must-be-quckly-decided-upon, costly decisions that are involved in funeral arrangements.  We were just kids ourselves.  Life -- and death -- had hit us full-force in our faces, and we didn't want our children to as blind-sided as we were.  Life's decisions aren't always fun and easy, and even though certain life experiences must be lived out to be fully understood, the mystery and scariness can be somewhat abated by knowing a little about what to expect.

     Now, we wanted to know, where can we find resources that truly teach about real life?  Let me show you what we found.

     Most unit studies are made to be used for a week, a month, or maybe even a year.  And they are great!  But I have found two amazing life skills unit studies that can take our children through anywhere from four to seven years!  Of course, as with any other homeschool materials, we are not bound by the books and we also may pick and choose what we will use and when we will use it.

     These unit studies have greatly helped me to "wrangle" the teaching and introduction of life skills and needed life knowledge.  Having all girls, I will be telling you about two studies made specifically for girls, but PLEASE NOTE that there ARE counterparts for boys!

     Enter Far Above Rubies (FAR), created by Lauren and Lynda Coats.  (The boy's version is Blessed is the Man, which can be used simultaneously with FAR.)  This brave endeavor was created to be all you need for four years -- all the way through high school!  Granted, if you want to dive deeper into upper math or sciences you will need other texts -- remember, this unit is sbout life; everyday living, not everyone uses calculus in everyday living.  :-)    Suggestions for higher learning can be found in the FAR Appendix.

     If you specifically follow the guide, you will travel through 20 units that each cover lessons under the subjects of Bible and Christian Character, Cultural Studies, Reading and Literature, Composition, Math and Personal Finance, Science, Health and Physical Fitness, Practical Arts (skills needed to operate as an independent adult in society), and Decorative and Performing Arts -- all based upon Prov. 31:10-31 -- specifically:  "A virtuous wife, who can find?  Her value is far above rubies."

     The authors have written very detailed and descriptive guidelines, beginning with their reasons for writing such a tome and the bios of the authors.  They also explain the philosophies behind FAR, a few being:  that god created each of us a individuals, that salvation is in the blood of Jesus Christ and in no other, that God gave each child to specific parents for a reason, that ALL education is religious, that teaching should be done in a natural way,and that the purpose of teaching and parenting is to work ourselves out of a job (I like that one!).

     FAR also covers the four different learning styles and gives us questions to ponder so that we can better serve our children.  They also explain their "Six Rs of Education" -- reading, writing, arithmetic, research, responsibility, and righteousness.  Be sure to read their suggested instructions for using FAR, as there are codes to follow and understand.  But, again, these are guidelines and suggestions -- I do not advocate becoming a slave to the order of any book, text, or curriculum.  This is YOUR school!

       You will find suggestions on record keeping, preparing transcripts and other final records, and using credits for graduation, which will come in handy and may give you great peace of mind in keeping orderly accounts of what has been studied in the high school years.  Also included are planner pages, a goal planning checklist, a high school cumulative record, and even a report card page -- all ready to be copied at your convenience.  You will also find a beneficial list of materials and suggested items.  Most can be found in a local library if you don't have them in your home library.

     Other learning tools the authors suggest include timelines and "mindmapping" (brainstorming).  Learning to use these aids helps students keep their thoughts contained on paper or a chart.