Curriculum Choices 2022-2022

I started planning for Merry’s junior year (grade 11) about Christmas of last year. I started by looking at what her sister had done. Then I looked at what Merry was currently doing. Made a list of what was going well, what was going poorly, and what we seemed to be doing just for the sake of doing. 

What was going poorly was easiest to identify. Last year we were doing too much. Her schedule was overwhelming. But I was unwilling to cut academic classes and she was unwilling to give up her electives. So we had settled with the block scheduling. I resolved to not give her such a heavy schedule this next year.

I also realized she was getting bored with her classes. They were requirements that she didn’t have much say in. So this year I gave her a say. Over spring break I made a list of possible classes. Some were required for graduation, so I italicized those. Some were my preference for teaching, I bolded those. And most were simply classes she could take, if she wanted. 

Next was the hard part, I gave her the list and let her choose. She only picked one of my bolded classes (Latin online), she only picked one of the graduation required classes (the other three will have to be done next year), and she definitely showed interests.

Do what does Merry’s junior year schedule look like? Much to my surprise she chose two science electives, marine biology and astronomy. We will be using Apologia for both of those. In that science vibe, she also chose Sci-Fi literature. I was unable to find a curriculum for that so I’ve spent my summer putting one together for her.  And she is taking computer programming again this year from CompuScholars. Along with her STEM heavy choices are her required classes, world history and foreign language. We will be using Notgrass for history again this year, and Latin will be with an online class again.

Notably lacking from her list is math. She had finished the required levels and I decided making her take calculus would not benefit either of us. Besides there is always next year.

We start next week! And I’m excited to see how the year turns out!

Curriculum Review: Science

So while writing my math review last week I realized there was another subject which Merry has used one curriculum exclusively, science. 

Her older sister had used public school text books I had bought from a library sale for the first 3 years, but when Merry started first grade I wanted something they could use together. So began our journey with Apologia, the Exploring Creation series.

We started with Birds, which was by far our favorite, then Water Creatures followed by Land Creatures. While the main focus of each of those was exactly what you would expect, the different types of animals, I appreciated the amount of other science stuff they threw in. For example, while studying birds we also learned about aerodynamics and how planes get lift.  The curriculum also did a great job preparing students for the observation side of science class.

So even when I was back to one child in the elementary grades, we continued with the series; studying Astronomy, Physics, and Botany. Now these courses were very much designed for elementary, so while they were very well rounded, they were not intense or all inclusive.  To me elementary science was a subject that was meant to be fun, not meant to take a lot of time.

Middle school science is a different ball game. It was important to have a more structured class with experiments as well as textbook learning. Middle school is also when subjects like science and history start having the same value as math and writing. Apologia General Science was a great text for starting this more intensive class schedule. It even has a daily work schedule mapped out for students at the front of the notebook.

The Student notebooks that are a part of the upper level courses were easy to use and familiar to Merry since they were similar to the elementary version. And I still wanted science to be fun, so using a curriculum with easy to follow experiments was important too.

Now we haven’t been entirely successful with the curriculum. Biology in particular was rough because of the amount of microscopic things we were supposed to look at. With my older daughter we tried using a hobby grade microscope but we were unsuccessful and it was more frustrating than educational. With Merry we opted instead to YouTube videos of microscopic images. That was more successful but not a perfect solution.

That brings us to this year, we will be using Apologia Chemistry. From previous experience I know we will want to use the lab kit, just to make sure we have all the supplies on hand. And Merry will be using the notebook that goes with the textbook. So yep, we will keep on keeping on.

Curriculum Review: Math

Hopefully this will be a series were I look back at our previous curriculum choices and see how we got to where we are. Starting with Mathematics since for Merry it’s been a constant.

We first started Life of Fred in September of 2011, in fact I even made a blog post about it. (https://caytw.blogspot.com/2011/09/happiness-is-new-math-book.html?m=0)

In the beginning we supplemented with a lot of math practice tools, like flash cards, dollar store workbooks, and various math games.  Now that she is in high school math it is much harder to find extras that we can add on and it is less of a necessity. Math starts with a lot of facts to memorize, addition tables, multiplication tables, and orders of operation being prime examples. But in higher levels it is less about memorizing and more about a way of thinking, the logic behind it.

Life of Fred emphasizes that way of thinking even in the lower level book, which since I love mathematics appealed to me. Merry also would rather think about one problem for ten minutes than do ten problems in one minute, so the curriculum has been a good fit.

That’s not to say that we don’t supplement a little, even now. I discovered math vocabulary posters from Virginia’s state government page. (https://www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/mathematics/resources/vocab_cards/index.shtml) And we have been using these as part of our “morning time” for the past 4 years. Math can be like a foreign language, so knowing how to express yourself and what you are thinking is important.

This next year we will also be using YouTube, https://youtube.com/user/numberphile, and learning about various American mathematicians using Wikipedia and Google. 

While I’m excited for Merry to move forward with Trigonometry, I also want her to have a better understanding of math in the real world and how mathematicians have made impacts.

2021 School Year Here We Come

Nothing like a new school year to get you all excited about curriculum and learning goal!  I love planning so Merry’s cart has been prepped, restocked with supplies, and waiting for September since early July.

Despite it being a very full cart, there are some subjects that aren’t even on the cart, namely her computer programming course which will be completely online through “CompuScholars” (https://www.compuscholar.com/homeschool/). Her other elective will also be online. A digital art class though “school house teacher”, she’ll be learning how to use Inkscape (https://schoolhouseteachers.com/school-subjects/art/inkscape-online-adventure/).

She’ll still be doing her core subjects with me, and we’ve found our groove, so to speak, with those curriculums.

Math will once again be Life of Fred. She is now in Trigonometry. Science will be Apologia again, this year she is in Chemistry. And writing will be WriteShop, starting book 2 this year.

History, we took a break from last year but will be using Notgrass again. She’ll be doing American History. To go along with the history she’ll be studying American Literature as well. The curriculum for that will be Lightning Literature. While she’s used that curriculum before this will be her first time with the high school level.

Which just leaves one more subject, for her notably full load, Latin. She will be continuing to use Latin Alive, but since she is now beyond my level of Latin we have decided to put her in an online class. Unlike the other online classes, which are independent study, this will be a classroom setting with a teacher and other student for her to interact with. And since it is a completely new set up she will be retaking level 3. 

So there are the plans for next year. Always subject to change of course. We’ll see how much she is able to keep up without being overwhelmed by the amount of work. But I’m excited!

School, Here We Come!!!!

I don't know about you but I am excited to be starting school soon, in fact we have already started a few subjects.  So what are we doing this year?

Charry, 7th Grade

Math: Life of Fred Pre-algebra; She completed the first of Fred's three pre-algebra books last year and is excited to continue to read about that quirky math professor from Kitten's University.

Spelling: All About Spelling; I'm hoping we can power our way through two levels this year.  It is my least favorite subject so I have trouble sticking to my schedule.

Latin: Latin Alive Book 1; This is by far my favorite subject and I'm excited for this curriculum.  We did a preview of the first unit at the end of last year and she seems to really enjoy it too.

Science: Apologia's Exploring Creation with General Science; This is the subject we have already started.  Charry is enjoying the experiments and handling the new requirements well.  It was important to me to have an actual middle school level text book.  I want to make sure she is ready for high school in two short years.

History: Oregon History; We will be using a workbook I found on Amazon by Georgia Pennington Sligar.  I'm also hoping to include various projects though out the year.  State history is generally covered in fourth grade so I am a little behind.

Writing: Cover Story; I haven't actually ordered this yet.  This is the subject I let my daughter pick.  We looked online as well as in stores at different options and she is adamant that this is the one she wants to do.  Charry is excited to design her very own magazine.  And she has been looking at steampunk all summer to prepare. 

Dailies: Along with two English related Dailies from Evan-Moor (Reading Comprehension and Language Review) she is using a Math Daily Warm-up workbook from Teachers Created Resources.  Now that she is out of elementary school it was harder to find general practice at her level.

Merry, 4th Grade

Math: Life of Fred Intermediate Series; that's right she is out of the elementary books and on to bigger things!  We love Fred so she's excited to start her new books.

Spelling: All About Spelling; Merry spells like I do, and that's not a good thing.  All about Spelling seems to help a little.  It is also helping me to see what she can do if she takes the time to slow down andd think about things.

Latin: Latin for Children book A; this is a repeat of what we did last year.  I'm hoping the review will help build confidence in what she knows.

Science: Apologia's Exploring Creation with Astronomy; I let her pick which area of science she wanted to study and I was surprised by what she picked!  She will also be doing the companion notebook.  This is the first year she is doing a different science than her sister so it will be different.

History: She will be studying Oregon history along with her sister but instead of a workbook she will be creating a lapbook that goes along with each unit.

Writing: Writing Strands level 3; This is the subject she has already started.  After each unit the author suggests that student take a break from writing to read so I found some of my favorite classics, like Harriet the Spy, the Princess and the Goblin, and Matilda, so she can do some guided reading this year.

Dailies: Merry has four of the Evan Moor Dailies that she will be using this year, Math, Reading Comprehension, Language Review, and Handwriting.  She is excited to start cursive this year!


So there you have it, our year is going to be a full one! 

Whatchadoin? #8, math in action

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was math time.  My kids have a love/hate relationship with the subject.  This year there is more love which means more fun for me.

For the most part our math looks exactly like I had planned. "Life of Fred" is their favorite part of the day.  They love to curl up on their bed and read about Fred's adventures.  I didn't feel Merry was quite ready for multiplication so I had her start the series over.  She is enjoying the second time around just as much as the first.  Charry now has to pass a short test in order to advance through the books, this is teaching her patience.  She has to be careful to get things right the first time.

Their daily math is less enjoyable but gives opportunities to see what we haven't studied yet.  It also encourages the girls to try even if they are not sure.  Teaching them to infer how to do things they have not been specifically taught is a challenge.  They are willing to try because they want to color all the squares.

This year we have been stressing the math facts.  I carry flash cards with me all the time and quiz the girls often.  We also decided to work on money (coin recognition was one area daily math showed was lacking.)

Besides fact drills we are trying to use the flash cards in other ways too.  I have the girls work on fact families by matching the addition/multiplication fact with the correct subtraction/division facts.

With the money cards we work not only on remembering which coin is which but then I have them put the amounts in order.

Absent this year have been the wrap-ups.  We will probably bring them out after facts are mastered to stay fresh.

Wrapping up our math is an online site called "xtra-math."  I'm not sure if it is the novalty of using the lap top or trying to get all smiley faces but the girls enjoy the site.

Math is a bit fuller than I had intended, with flash cards and computer time but I've already noticed the improvements so it has been worth it.

"Whatchadoin?" #3, English

English is kinda a funny subject if you ask me.  It contains a myriad of mini-subjects that are taught at different points in the schooling spectrum.  Reading, writing, grammar, spelling, phonics, handwriting, literature, and vocabulary all show up under "English."  To add to the complexity, many of these small components have thier own curriculums or are left out of all in one curricullums.

It can be a bit tricky trying to figure out which components you want to work on for the year.  After debating with myself and weighing the options here is what we've decided to try this year.

First spelling, as a student I was awful at spelling.  Every week I dreaded the pretest, then diligently wrote out the words over and over and over... only to still miss them all on the post-test.  It was terrible!  So as a teacher I put off teaching spelling as long as I could.  When I found out about All About Spelling I was so excited.

This is our third year using the program and I love it.    The combination of using tiles and phonographs with scripted lessons has made the program easy to use and easy to understand.  We will be making a few changes as we go this year.  I want my natural speller to be able to move a bit faster and my just like me speller not to get discouraged.

Next handwriting, cursive for my 5th grader and manuscript for my 2nd grader.  We will be using daily handwriting practice workbooks from Evan-Moor.

I bought the student books this year because, honestly, I got tired of making copies.  Besides with only two students paying more now for something I might not use again doesn't make sense.

For anyone who hasn't used the daily practice books I like the format.  Just a small bit of copy work with a common theme each week.  This will be something the girls can do by themselves while I'm cooking or cleaning.

Finally writing, I found a writing program online that I used last year also.  It has a good balance of writing and grammar.  The only down side is it has to be printed out.  I had a few weeks I forgot to buy ink  last year so we had to skip writing, oops.  This year I printed it all out ahead of time.

We will be taking a break in October and November for NaNoWriMo (national novel writing month). Last year Charry had a blast and wrote a fabulous story.  This year I am more prepared with my Young Writers Guides all printed out.

We will spend October doing activities and developing the story line with the guide.  Then in November they will be on their own creating a novel.

You may have noticed reading and literature are not on the list there are a few reasons for that.  Mostly I haven't found a curriculum I like.  So instead I'm making an effort to read the classics at bed time.  It helps that most classics are available for free on the Kindle. 

So there are the plans, I'm not sure how they will change through out the year but I look forward to finding out.

"Whatchadoin?" #2~ Mathematics

Now anyone who has known me for more than 10 minutes or so knows I LOVE math.  I watch math related videos, laugh at math jokes, read math books and dream of going back to school to study math.  So I, of corse, hoped my kids would share the love of all things mathematical.  To be honest, they don't.  Especially my oldest, math is her least favorite subject.  I will never forget the time I caught her cheating on her division workbook.

Because of that math was a tricky subject for me to plan.  I wanted to teach not just the math facts but the fun that came with them.  Luckily I discovered "Life of Fred."  I know I've mentioned these excellent books before but I can't help but want to go on and on and on about how much I love them and how happy my kids are using them!

Because my girl are eager to learn more about Fred and his adventures I don't worry about how fast they go through the books.  It makes lesson planning easy, I don't have a set amount of time for them to complete the books as long as they work on them every school day.

"Like of Fred" is not based on standardized  grade level achievement charts, i.e. They do not cover the concepts you will see on end of year tests during any given year.  Instead some "higher" concept are introduced early and some "lower" concepts are not introduced until later.  There is also a lack of stress given to test concepts.

If I lived in a non-testing state I would not worry about it, as long as the kids are prepared for the next book grade level specifics can be a bit arbitrary.  But this is a testing state so I want my girls prepared for testing.

Last year I bought simple grade level practice workbooks for them to complete at the end of the year.  Turns out a page of 50 multiplication problems was the equivalent of having to walk across hot coals for my older daughter.  There were tears, days of staring at the same page, fits and no fun for anyone.

So this year I decided to try something different, "Daily Math Practice."  Most teaching stores sell the teachers book, complete with class room copy right permission but since I was only planning to use them with one, maybe two kids I decided to order student books instead.   As a child I remember the teach handing out these short worksheets before class, I loved them!  Now I know they are part of "busy work," designed to keep kids quiet while the teacher changes subjects, then I only knew they were fun.  I'm hoping my girls will also find them fun.

Instead of the repetitive page of 50 problems, these have 5 slightly diverse problems and on Fridays just 1 harder problem.  The goal is for the girls to see and experience the types of problems they will be tested on while not overwhelming them.

When Charry first saw the workbook she defiantly groaned but when I showed her it was just a few problems a day she relaxed.  I think these will be a good compromise for us.

One more school year done!

Now that our year is done it is time to start planning for next year.  I have to admit I love lesson planning and curriculum exploring.

For the most part I will be keeping with what I have from this year, with one major exception: Science.

Next year for science we will try a Christian curriculum, Apologia.  When I first decided to homeschool, 5 years ago, I was against using "Christian" text books.  I didn't want my kids to be ignorant about what was being taught to other kid and I never wanted them to think of the Bible like a text book.  Besides I went to public school and never had my head filled with scientific sounding fables so why should I worry about text books, especially when I will be the one teaching.  My change of heart isn't from concerns about secular teachings but from concerns about the church.

I am a firm 7 days of creation believer and it surprised me how few fellow Christians hold that view.  So many think it is unimportant or that science has already disproved it.  Young earth science is being dismissed as "religious" and people who still believe are being called, "uneducated."  I want my daughters to have a firm foundation for their faith. So I started to look for a curriculum that would show the science behind creation from a young earth perspective.

So next year we will be trying out Zoology 1.  There are two things I really like about this curriculum.  The first is that my daughters can work on it together.  The second is that it is more exploratory than fact memorizing.  My favorite science lessons this year were the ones we did together and started by just asking questions.