Which Subjects Don’t Need to Be Done Every Year?

[JumpyTheFrog]

I have my 6th grader doing Easy Grammar 5 (because we already owned it). He is finally starting to get it. Should I have him do Easy Grammar 6 or 7 next year? How many years will be enough?

 

My kids are also doing Evan Moor Daily Geography practice. Is every other year good enough for elementary school?

[forty-two]

I think of both spelling and grammar as subjects that can be stopped (as their own discrete subjects) once sufficiently mastered.  I define "sufficiently mastered" as they've learned what they need to know in order to successfully apply those skills in their other subjects. 

 

For spelling, it would mean being able to correctly spell the 1,000-2,000 most common words in their writing, and having the tools to be able to analyze and learn the spelling of less common words (being able to break words into sounds and syllables and morphographs, knowing the most common spellings for sounds, knowing how to spell common morphographs and the spelling rules for combining them).  Enough spelling that they have the tools needed to successfully work through whatever spelling problems they may still have or might encounter in life.

 

With grammar, we're planning to do intensive Latin, so grammar-wise my focus is enough English grammar to be able to do Latin - parts of speech and basic syntax - basically to have mastered FFL4.  I didn't accomplish that with dd11, so we're cobbling together some just-in-time English grammar as it's needed in Latin (which I suppose is what I'd be doing for more advanced grammar anyway, but it would have been nice to start Latin with basic grammar mastered).  Minus Latin, my grammar goal would be to have mastered grammar sufficiently to be able to analyze others' writing and the student's own writing - use grammar knowledge to figure out what people are saying and how they are saying it, and to figure out how to improve the clarity of the student's own writing.  So probably through Grammar for the Well-Trained Mind.

 

IOW, subjects that are used in other, more advanced studies - like spelling, grammar (and arithmetic) - I figure I can drop them as their own separate subjects once they're learned well enough that the student knows and can do all that those advanced studies will require.  Then using those skills in those other, more advanced studies is sufficient practice.

 

 

(I have no real geography plan, outside of enough geography to aid in history and current events and general life skills like navigating via map.  But unlike spelling/grammar, I don't have a great idea of what that comprises.  Right now I've been basically unschooling geography - I keep maps on the wall, and atlases, and pull them out as situations call for.  It's worked great on my oldest, but not so well so far on my middle.  Might need something more formal/intentional.  But I suppose I'm treating geography as similar to spelling, etc - enough to be able to use the knowledge in other things.  Once they've mastered what those other things require, that's probably enough "formal" geography.  Except I'm not even teaching the "formal geography" formally right now, and I have no concrete sense of how much is enough - suppose there will be a lot of just-in-time geography teaching where I find holes, especially with oldest.)

[Targhee]

Responses will probably vary. As to grammar, I don't know what easy grammar covers each year, but judging by the fact that it numbers at least up to seven tells me that it is gradual and not comprehensive each year. I am of the opinion that somewhere around 5th grade you can begin grammar proper (they should understand parts of speech already) and do it with intensively through the logic stage. We like MCT for its beautiful explanations and it's format of a few weeks of grammar focus followed by daily practice/application. Then there's another grammar inoculation the next year, followed by practice. We actually start with Town and move through Voyage and ML1. I am quite satisfied with their knowledge by then, and we change to properly using grammar in academic writing. Honestly, if you get through Magic Lens 1 I think you have more grammar instruction than most high school English instructors! I have not used it but I've also considered Analytical Grammar for a similar structure- 2-3 years of solid grammar with practice for retention, then moving on to writing.

 

i don't have really strong opinions about geography, but we do not teach it directly every year.

[Dmmetler]

I consider the big four and foreign language (once it gets started) to be what has to be done every year. Everything else is extra. And Science and social studies/history can be pretty basic some years.

[Hunter]

One thing I learned was that NOTHING needs to be done every year. With at least one of my boys, every subject was put away at some point, even math, with the older one.

 

Yes, with a skill like math, a long review period is necessary, but the amazing thing is that sometimes their brain has matured, and when you start back up and finish the review and dive back in, you realize way less time was lost than you thought. Often subjects take so dang long to teach, because we are pushing too hard at the student's developmental level.

 

Work, real work, leads to increased focus, stamina, and problem solving abilities. Americans are so against "child labor", but in my experience, child labor leads to giant academic jumps afterwards.

[Targhee]

One thing I learned was that NOTHING needs to be done every year. With at least one of my boys, every subject was put away at some point, even math, with the older one.

 

Yes, with a skill like math, a long review period is necessary, but the amazing thing is that sometimes their brain has matured, and when you start back up and finish the review and dive back in, you realize way less time was lost than you thought. Often subjects take so dang long to teach, because we are pushing too hard at the student's developmental level.

 

Work, real work, leads to increased focus, stamina, and problem solving abilities. Americans are so against "child labor", but in my experience, child labor leads to giant academic jumps afterwards.

Very true! This is why I can't follow WTM very closely, or use repetitive curricula like Saxon, or start Latin before at least around age 10... "pushing too hard at the student's developmental level" and/or trying to teach them over the course of years what they can learn, without disadvantage, over the course of weeks later in their schooling.

[Coco_Clark]

I think there are many subjects that can be pursued until mastered and then dropped; cursive typing, spelling. Grammar I personally never full drop but next year I plan on scaling back and reverting to review-only through diagramming with my 5th graders.

 

Other subjects I don't necessarily drop but I cycle. We only study Geography formally every 5 years (we do a history cycle then geography then another history cycle). On off years we study it informally through history and interest.

[vonbon]

:bigear:

[vonbon]

I consider the big four and foreign language (once it gets started) to be what has to be done every year. Everything else is extra. And Science and social studies/history can be pretty basic some years.

 

What are the "big four"?  

 

I usually only think of the (big) 3 R's...

 

Thanks!

[Dmmetler]

English/Literature/Composition

Mathematics

Something for Science

something for history/civics/geography.

 

Some can be combined (We might do a heavy year of non-fiction reading and writing, where English is combined with history or science,or a year of physics which incorporates a lot of math), and they all don’t get equal emphasis every year, but all four, every year.

[Momto6inIN]

We only do light grammar through elementary, ramp it up a bit in middle school, and drop it when mastered.

 

Geography is only studied informally through history during elementary, a bit more purposefully throughout middle school, and drop it after that.

 

We sometimes alternate grammar and writing in the younger grades so we're not always doing both subjects at once.

 

 

 

 

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