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Excited About Some New FindsWell last week was just one of those fun weeks off. The boys and I spent the mornings watching Star Trek and the afternoons playing games. Those Professor Noggin games are wonderful and Xander had a blast. He did quite well. He remembered a lot of the Ancient History that he's learned so far this year. He even amazed me a couple of times when he asked to do the hard questions and was able to get them right. Well, not only did we do a lot of fun things I also did a lot of research on new curriculum and so forth. I'm always on the look out for some new stuff. Even if I won't use it for a few years. I won't buy it or anything... but I like to get an idea for what I might like down the road. And let me tell you... I found some wonderful things. I just have to give a small shout out to the ladies on the Well Trained Mind forums, they have been a wealth of information!And this is what I found... Starting in third grade for Science I will be using Real Science 4 Kids (Gravitas Science Programs). In third grade we will be using Level 1 Chemistry and in fourth grade we'll be using Level 1 Physics. And in fifth grade we'll probably be using Level 1 Biology. And we'll be using Level 2 Chemistry in 7th Grade. I'm hoping they'll come out with more. I really like their approach to giving the information and they have a lot of depth. I've only heard wonderful things about them. Not to mention a lot of science minded people have given wonderful reviews. Now my next discovery took me by surprise. Starting in middle school I will be using History Odyssey from Pandia Press. I had always heard of it... but never actually looked into it. Well I finally did and wow... I can't believe I didn't look into it sooner. I was blown away by it. It's exactly what, I, as a classical homeschooler could want. I won't be using it until middle school because to be honest... I love Story of the World and it's perfect for us right now. But it's only for our first round of history. History Odyssey will be the perfect fit for us. Blessings everyone! I'm Waiting For Boxes!Well, the other day I placed an order into Rainbow Resource and it was a big one. And the worst part... I'm not even done ordering for next year! And this doesn't even include all the 'living' books we buy either. I know, I know... I shouldn't complain. We don't spend nearly as much as we would if we sent the boys to a private school. Okay enough of the book bill woes. I'll get to the good part and tell you what we ordered.Xander (second grade) History- Story of the World Volume 2: Middle Ages Accompanying Activity Guide Science-More Mudpies to Magnets First Encyclopedia of Space First Encyclopedia of Our World Night Sky (Spotter's Guide) Spelling-Spelling Workout C and D Bible-Beginnings II: Jesus, My Shepherd Handwriting-Writing With Prayer Lucas (Kindergarten) Math-Singapore's Earlybird Kindergarten Handwriting-In the Beginning General Merriam-Webster's Elementary Dictionary Just For Fun Professor Noggin's Ancient Civilizations Card Game Professor Noggin's Human Body Card Game Things I still have yet to buy (all for my 2nd grader) A Beka's Arithmetic 2 (work text, speed drills and tests, etc) Writing With Ease (along with 2nd workbook) (The text doesn't come out until May and the 2nd workbook doesn't come out until July) I will also be using First Language Lessons Year 2 for Xander. But I already have the text for that. (Yay one less book to buy) Hits and MissesOkay so I'm one who goes around checking out various homeschooling message boards. Mostly I'm just a lurker. It's actually really rare that I post anything on them. There are two that I will post on, but even those are sparingly. But one of the posts I come across often are ones about hit or missing texts and work books. Some times I agree with what's being said and other times I don't. And that isn't a problem, it's a matter of opinion and what a child needs. I myself have come across things I just don't like.Let me tell you... I live by The Well Trained Mind. Okay well, maybe I don't follow it to a tee. But so far the suggestions they've given have been wonderful for my household. (Trust me the times they suggest in the book are just that... suggestions. Even the authors know that the time suggestions are a bit outlandish and were put in there only to appease editors.) But the general books suggestions have been wonderful. I've already posted my book and spine selections before and for the most part, and they're hits. So I won't go through those again. Keep in mind that with things for history and science.... the books I choose are spines. We do a lot of extra reading. But here are my misses. Sing, Spell, Read and Write- We used the preschool program. I won't use it again and I wouldn't order the next stage. Nothing bad with the actual program... I know many people who swear by it. And it does work. I just didn't think it was worth the price. Especially when I know for a fact that there are many other phonics programs that are not even a third of the price and work just as well. Alpha-Omega's LifePacs- We used their Kindergarten Program. Which consisted of a Math and Language Arts package. This program I did not like one bit. First off... their phonics program moved much too slowly for my liking. My goal was to teach my child to read as soon as possible in the easiest way possible. I had to enhance their reading program with The Websters Phonics Handbook. Using this Language Arts program was probably my biggest mistake in homeschooling so far. The math was fine at least for the Kindergarten year. It gave Xander a big enough start so that he could easily transition to Abeka's Arithmetic 1. But as I studied the scope and sequence I realized again went at a lot slower pace then I liked. I didn't even get through the first year of these texts. There you have the two programs I didn't care for. Hopefully this will be a help to someone out there. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I love seeing on the news that we might actually have a little bit of a warm up in the weather on the way. I'm so ready for spring and the mild weather and that springy smell. -I love when we have a nice family night just watching a movie and enjoying each other. It doesn't seem to happen, that's why it's really special when it does happen. What I'm UsingSo I guess sooner or later you'll figure out that I'm a fan of both Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer. When I read The Well-Trained Mind last year, it pretty much changed all my ideas of homeschooling. I can't imagine doing anything but the Classical Method. It just works for us. So it will be no surprise to you when most of my texts and spines come from recommendations from The Well-Trained Mind.Xander who's 4 soon to be 5 is at a first grade level. (Little over achiever... he's going to be smarter then his dad and I, I just know it) First Grade Texts Math- A Beka. This was the one text that he wanted me to use. He used it when he was homeschooled and loved it. History- The Story of the World by Susan Wise Bauer. Xander absolutely loves this book. I've never seen a kid so excited about history. The other day he said to me... "Mom, I want a library like Ashurbanipal someday, only with books not clay tablets." Language Arts- First Language Lessons for the Well Trained Mind-I wasn't too thrilled about this books at first. I loved the short lessons and how they taught the parts of grammar and what not. But I was worried that they wouldn't cover the writing aspect of it. Especially as they went up in grades (there is a Level 3 and soon to be published Level 4). Well I needn't worry, come May Susan Wise Bauer has written a series on writing called The Complete Writer. I'm so excited. Science- Right now we're using Kingfisher's First Animal Encyclopedia and shortly we'll move to Kingfisher's First Human Body Encyclopedia. They're great as a starting point. It's full of information and it's easy enough for Xander to read by himself. Reading- We don't have an actual text for this. He did use The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading though after to other phonics programs didn't deliver. Now he just reads and narrates a lot. He flew through this with ease and he was reading quickly. Spelling-Spelling Workout, which Xander actually flies through. I like that they go over phonics rules Bible- Beginnings II: God's Promises, Old Testament Lessons for Young Readers It's from the Explorer's Bible Study curriculum. It's an easy read for first graders and they give you questions to check comprehension. I use it along with the Bible. Spanish- We use Power Glide. While I'm not completely impressed with the program it does keep my kids interested. They think the story lines are funny and a little goofy. And heck they do remember certain words. So it's not a complete waste. Although if I wanted my kids to seriously study Spanish at this level. I'm not sure this would be the way to go. Lucas who's 3 and doing preschool work is a normal child. He loves to have fun and he loves to learn. He even tries to learn what Xander is learning. Especially when we read science books. He loves to sit down and just take in the pictures. For Preschool- I simply use an on-line resource called Letter of the Week. It's simple straight forward and he absolutely loves it. I'll post some pictures of his 'learning posters' up sometime soon. |
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