Mommybostic
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Posts posted by Mommybostic
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I saw a thread on here about schedules for folk who start their school years in January along with the new year.
We are starting homeschooling after Christmas break on Jan. 3. I was worried that we would be off kilter with all of our work because we were starting halfway through the year.
It seems perfectly feasible to start the year in January instead of in the fall. I just never really thought about it. The only concern I see is that our reporting deadline is June 30 of each year. Does that even matter?
I'd love to hear some thoughts on this. It's hard to break out of the whole institutional mindset, isn't it?
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Those come up throughout history. As soon as you go beyond just listing dates and explore why things have developed a certain way, these issues must be brought up.
It is impossible to thoroughly study Ancient Greece without discussing the political system of Athens, early ideas of democracy, limits to citizen participation etc. these themes have to be revisited when studying Rome, because an understanding of a republic is important. Feudalism as a different form of government is crucial to an understanding of the Middle ages. And our current political system will naturally arise when American history is discussed, because it is central to the whole development of the country. At that point, I am planning to go a bit more into depth and cover details of the government system.
Supply and demand, too, is a central theme in history. It begins early on, when an agricultural surplus enabled a division of labor that made it possible to have specialists who produced other things than food. It is a central aspect in trading, and economics had a big impact on the development of civilizations. Economics and geography come up when comparing Greek to Roman civilization etc.
So, I think a good history course deals with these aspects "as you go".
Are concepts like this explained in SOTW? I'm only in Volume I, so we're just getting started. We will also be using the Usborne Internet Linked Encylopedia of World History. I guess that's why one chapter will be covered for a whole week (or longer!) We will be supplementing our own reading and studying on these various topics as they apply. It just makes sense that they will be easier to understand in context.
I guess economics and specific government classes will come later. I just noticed in our 5th grade CSOs for our state, it has a lot of government based knowledge listed, both state and national. I don't particularly care about that, but I know at some point TWTM recommends letting the kids take some standardized testing to get them used to it, and that stuff will undoubtedly come up on the tests.
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I remember reading something about taking some time to study your own state's history, but that would be later on I think. Maybe I need to do a re-read!
I'm not going to get too worked up over my state's CSOs, but it's still an interesting thought. If you were going to sort of incorporate it along with the history, it would be best to begin at the beginning, right? They had supply and demand in Greece and Rome and Egypt, too. He's a fifth grader, and he's interested in that kind of stuff, so could we go ahead and do that sort of thing? It seems like it might take a little planning on my part to cover those topics in context. Do you think that's the best way to do it, or would it be more teachable and retainable as a seperate subject? Hmmm.....
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I had an interesting thought as I reviewed our state's CSOs (Content Standards and Objectives) this evening. I saw a thread on this forum about this information and thought it might be worth a look.
We are using SOTW, Usborne's Encylopedia, an atlas, globe, various maps and real books for our history study. I am completely in support of studying history chronologically.
How do you incorporate various aspects of social studies into this? Having never seen volume 4 of SOTW, I'm not sure if this is an issue, but what about things like how government works, supply and demand, agricultre, citizenship, and various other topics that aren't exactly history? I know they are part of history, but how (and when) is that covered? It seems more like economics, but not entirely. When I was in ps, we had a Civics class in middle school that taught such concepts.
I'd love to hear thoughts and ideas about this. This is stuff my son is very interested in anyway, so I'm not overly concerned about it being very difficult, I'm just not sure how to implement it. Thanks!
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Sorry, Uhura, but I'm fresh out of patience. If I find any extra, I'll let you know. Maybe.
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This was my experience too. As long as my kids were in ps they were very difficult for me to work with. When they became full time homeschoolers, most of those frustrations disappeared. I think it was a combination of things that helped. First, they weren't already tired when we started. Second, I learned their true level in each subject and how much was a challenge and how much was too much. Sure, we've had frustrating days, but not nearly as frustrating as ps days.
This is my view--NOTHING could be as frustrating as dealing with the public school system, especially in this county!
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The attention span is definately an issue--just like you said, so little is required of him now in ps. He can pay attention to something that interests him, just like any of us, I guess, but there again sooner or later you have to learn things that aren't necessarily your favorite subjects.
I already see holes, and I think that is probably how we ended up where we are right now. When I started formally afterschooling this year, more and more came to my attention.
I suppose I'll just have to let the past go and forget about what we did or didn't do, stop trying to "catch up," and just move forward from here.
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I found homeschooling to be completely different from afterschooling.
I pulled DS out of 5th grade in January, too. He was not challenged, but yet would not want to do anything after school - to him seven hours of school was enough! Even though I understand that and can't blame him, I was very worried about homeschooling him. I was afraid he might fight me about work.
Homeschooling him surpassed my wildest dreams. It was like having a different child at home. Not being forced to spend all those hours on busy work, he was excited to tackle new subjects, to learn new things. He developed interest in his work.
I am not saying it will be like this for every child - but you may be surprised to see the changes in your son.
Oh, and we did jump right in with NEW stuff. We left behind the whole school curriculum and began by giving HIM choices about topics to study. For teh first time, I had a say in his education. He was thrilled and motivated.
I appreciate this post. Quite honestly, I do dread that he will fight me on every single subject and that every day will basically be one long argument. While I know that's not reality, that's just what the little voices in my mind say, you know? And I ALSO know that there will be some arguments, especially in the beginning and especially about the writing!
I want him to study what interests him, but sooner or later everyone has to study something that isn't going to be at the top of their list. I guess it's a fine line to walk, pushing them without going over the top. It's a learning process for everyone, not just him!
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Is it unavoidable....I'd say it depends on the kid but from what you are saying, perhaps not. I believe I cautioned you about this in your previous thread. It was a HUGE blow to my DS's self-esteem and believe me, I eased him into it. He still says that HSing is hard but not in a negative tone. It just took repeating over and over and over....that's why we're HSing, so you'll be challenged. I'd rather him have this awakening now rather than high school or college like so many I've read about it. We have time to pick up the pieces and lesson the damage. I don't think my son thinks of himself as smart any longer b/c he has to work just a little in some subjects....but I think that is a good thing. I want him to learn that focus, perseverance, and hard work is what ultimately matters.
AMEN! I think this happened to me in college, and that was what finished me. I do remember you mentioning it. It's a wonderful point, I guess, that he can learn to overcome that hurdle while I am there with him to help him and guide him. The frustrating part for me is convincing him that he is still a very bright kid. You don't know everything from day one--all of us have to learn. And to me, he learns very quickly.
I could really kick myself for not doing this from the start. I think I mentioned THAT in a previous post, too.
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My son is leaving ps during Christmas break. We are already afterschooling.
So far, we haven't covered any topics that he wasn't at least a little familiar with. Finally, today, we started working with circles in pre-algebra, and it was new material to him. He became very frustrated because it was tough, though he was able to get it in what I considered a very reasonable amount of time.
Here's my worry: when we start homeschooling in January, I have no intentions of spending the remaining part of what was his fifth grade year reviewing what he already knows. I will be introducing, though slowly, Latin and logic. This child has never really been challenged outside his comfort level. I don't want to push him too hard and make him VERY frustrated, but the point of my homeschooling in the first place is to educate him in a way that will never be possible in ps. Isn't some frustration during the adjustment period unavoidable?
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I just received National Geographics World Atlas for Young Explorers, and it's really cool! It has tons of Internet links in it for the NatGeo site with games, videos, still photos and articles. The atlas itself has articles, full color photos, and is very user friendly, imo. My son loves it.
We also have two globes. We have a large globe that I have had since school and which is probably outdated, but my son likes to compare the atlas with the old globe to see if anything has changed. He also has the Leap Frog interactive globe--it has a little pen, and when you touch the globe it gives you information. It has a dial by which you chose what information you want--continent, country, capital, populaton, etc. It also has a game where it calls out a country, state, etc., and the child (or adult!) touches that country, and you see how many you can get in a set amount of time. This is a wonderful learning tool, and even though it is small, I would recommend it for anyone. I haven't seen much mention of it in any of the threads I've browsed on here, but I think it is a fabulous resource.
Sorry I got off track there, but I do think having the atlas is really good idea.
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Is Tolkein grounded in Scripture? My interpretation of TLOTR series was Tolkein's disgust with the industrial revolution and "war machines" that were covering the world in his time, destroying the natural world and people who wanted to live a simpler life. I watched a show on The History Channel about this a long time ago when the movies were out, and I wish I could remember some more of the information they gave to support this thought. I remember the comparisons of the evil dictators and the mindless, powerful soldiers who fought for them for no other reason than the glory of fighting. There is no character that strikes me as Christ-like, and no hero that is Godly based upon the description of being grounded in faith. I suppose the Narnia series could be deemed as such, with Aslan being a representation of God, but when my son and I read any of these books, HP included, we read them as entertainment, and I had read all of them first. We discuss certain aspects that I suppose are concerned with morals, ethics, whatever, but we get our Scripture from the Bible.
It really doesn't matter either way. Some people simply don't care for the story, and everyone has to make their own judgement based on whatever their reasons may be. As a previous poster said, you have to "read it yourself." Incidentally, if you have only read the first four, then you are just getting to the darker themes. The fifth book begins to introduce this, imo. I also agree, though, that once the child starts, they will probably want to continue and read them all, so that is always a consideration.
I suppose Tolkein, Rowling, or ANYTHING, is interpreted just exactly as the reader wants it to be, plain and simple.
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Did you see Rainbow is doing the low total free shipping deal through the 16th?
Yes, I did. Thanks for mentioning it, though.
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I have always been perplexed when folks say books like Harry Potter are damaging and encourage witchcraft, etc. It is a STORY, and a pretty good one at that. It covers the basic issues of any good story (and life!) Good versus evil, love conquering all, loss, sacrifice, friendship, acceptance, you name it. However, at the end of the day, it is simply a story. It does not encourage children to engage in witchcraft (what does that even mean, anyway?) and it doesn't cover anything morally inappropriate that I could tell. I have read all seven books many times over.
I will say the books do get darker as time goes on, and the only issue would be an age/maturity one, just as with any book, movie, etc. Even at that, it's not hard core gore or mature themes. As always, it's left up to a parent's judgement. The first book makes a great read and is on a pretty easy level. Good luck!
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Since it isn't all that expensive, I may go ahead and order the first two books of the Blast Off series. It doesn't seem really childish from what I can tell. I can sort of watch and learn as we go through it and see how he takes it. Live and learn, I guess. I already started off two easy with the spelling, and he's done half the book, but he likes being able to do it and likes to tell me how easy it is. Since we are just afterschooling for another couple of weeks, I figure he will just about be finished and we can start on the appropriate level.
Thanks.
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I have to satisfy my own curiosity here. I really cannot tell you how I was "taught" to read, because I can't ever remember not being able to read. I am a very quick reader to this day, and my spelling is very good. I do know the rules and can usually "sound out" words, so perhaps I was taught via the phonics method and just don't know it. I also have a very sharp eye for proofreading (if there is a typo in this message, sorry, I'm hurrying.)
That's wasn't my point, though. I assume a lot of you are familiar with Glen Doman? I know I read his name in something, and I was thinking it was TWTM. I met him and attended the parent's seminar "What to do About Your Brain Injured Child" a couple of years ago in Philadelphia at the Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential. This is a wonderful place that does absolutely amazing things for special needs children. They believe in "re-training" the brain to perform the functions that most of us take for granted. This is obviously a very simplified statement considering all that they do and all that is involved in the treatment programs, but reading is one of the components and they use the whole language approach, or at least that's my intepretation of it. Little children who couldn't walk or talk because of Cerebral Palsy (a diagnostic term which holds no water with them, incidentally) speed read pages of a book and then correctly answer questions. I have to say, as both a parent and sister to severely disabled individuals, I was impressed. Perhaps because most people would assume that people with that level of disability could never read, it is all the more impressive and meaningful. All I know is that it certainly seemed to be working for some of the folks.
Just a little FYI, it did NOT work for my daughter, but neither do phonics, so.......thoughts?
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I think that the myths included ARE part of the historical fact. You can't study ancient Egyptian, Greek, or Roman history without studying the myths and legends of the gods that were so integrated into their culture. I think some of that is even presented in regular textbook history. I've only read the first volume, but it seems fairly clear in what's real and what isn't. I think you could actually get into some pretty good discussions about what people did believe in those times. Just my $0.02.
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I was told they could be started at grade level. I started with the middle one with my 10 year old. He had done similar things before.
You could always try the first one and whip through. Is he the type to get annoyed? My son figured out quickly that discretion is the better part of valor AKA don't tell mom it's too easy or she will fix that.
That's funny! I don't think he's thought about it from that perspective before, but I bet he figures it out fairly quickly. I think there's a lot to be said about building their confidence while challenging them at the same time. I guess it's a fine line. He's never done that type of study before formally, but he's a very bright kid, so I'm wondering. I shall ponder......
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So, do you think it would be prudent to start with Logic Countdown? It says grades 3-4. The reviews read like the three books go very well together, and I don't mind if it is a fun, simple program in the beginning, but I don't want it to be too childish--I'm afraid he'll balk. Can you start in the middle of this series without losing too much? Also, should I still get a Mindbenders book, or do you think that is redundant? Forgive my absolute ignorance. I am SO glad I found this forum and TWTM before we started homeschooling!!!!!!!
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I was considering starting him with Building Thinking Skills and the MindBenders puzzle books. He has never studied "formal logic" before, although he does word searches and cryptoquotes and various little puzzles like that. He likes it, so I thought we would start out very lightly.
However, I just read a thread where some people didn't really recommend the BTS series, and that was for a first grader! Now, I know logic begins in the middle years, and I don't want to start him on something too challenging, but I don't want it to be a joke, either. What level is in the neighborhood for a ten-year-old? Is there a better program? I have ZERO experience (and therefore input) in this particular area.
Thanks!
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I'm sure this won't answer your question, but is Dolciana a whole course or what? My son does K12 pre-algebra, and the text book was written by Dolciana (or someone with that name, anyway!) I actually prefer this text to the student pages that came with the program. Forgive me if this is obvious, but did you google it?
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I am curious about this one as well! I saw another thread that sparked my interest. I am a grammar nerd, and I am at a loss to answer this question. Perhaps I was only taught one way, and therein lies my ignorance.
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As a new MCT user, I'm very curious to see how this thread plays out! We have the first Magic Lens series.
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Really?! I can't find the drills on Polka Dot Press site. Could you link to them for me?
Thanks a million.
Susan
ETA: Do you mean the Home Companion?
Yes, I did mean the home companion! I was just reading through the stuff in the back of my LoF book and was reading about more practice. It says there are a lot of extra practice problems. Sorry about the confusion.
Anyone interested in starting January together?
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted
Well, I just started a thread because I'm pulling my son out of ps over break and starting homeschool on Jan. 3. I was concerned about starting all new stuff in January. It seems like a lot of folks on here do that, so it must not be a big deal, right?
Anyway, my son is a 5th grader. He will be 11 in January. We are also starting SOTW, with Usborne's Internet Linked Encyclopedia of World History to go along. We will outling, use the timeline, and still work on narrations since writing is a weak area for him.
I have been very nervous about this decision, but I know it is the right one. We live in a VERY rural area and I have basically no local networking available. I love this forum and I would greatly welcome anyone to chat with about what's going on.
FYI, we are going to try Latina Christiana I, Writing Strands 3, Wordsmith Apprentice, MCT Magic Lens level 1, and Logic Countdown. We already do K12 pre-algebra and science. I've been doing those two along with Spanish for an afterschooling program since school started.