farmwife
-
Posts
349 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Classifieds
Store
Posts posted by farmwife
-
-
I saw it last night, and I also saw the one about India, Afghanistan, Brazil and Japan. I think this was an excellent documentary. The girl from India truly saddened me - she had been going to night school because she had to work all day. Then during a drought she had to take her cattle farther out to graze and missed so much school that she was behind. Once she got behind her peers, she was unable to catch up and ended up dropping out. After a few years of being out of school, she gave up her dream of becoming a teacher.
This series has been really making me think about how we educate and how much we take for granted our education.
Did you notice the older girl in Benin last night offering her chalk to the girl in the film? They don't have books and struggle to afford chalk yet know that their education is the best way to raise them out of their poverty.
And the girl in Romania - she has tutoring most nights and her parents were happy that one night of her tutoring was for Japanese which she was doing for fun.
A global perspective on education is interesting. I spend a lot of time looking at other Western education systems to make sure that I'm giving my kids the best I can, but looking at countries that are fighting for literacy and a place in the developed world gives me a lot to think about.
I've been thinking about it all day! So much food for thought! The two mile walk to school, the boy who lives alone in the slums with his siblings, the afgan girl who helps her mom while her brothers do nothing! There is just so much to ruminate on!
It makes me so thankful, and makes me feel so sheltered in this wealthy(compared to the rest of the world) and priviledged society.
-
It was facinating. It was a semi-documentary about children around the world being educated. I was able to see the girl from Romania, and the boy from Kenya. Anyone else see it? It gave me a huge appreciation for the opportunity I have to home educate our children and how we live in such a privledged nation.
-
I really like the Calvert 'Melody Lane' videos.
Also, I signed up my 5yo & youngers up for Music Together class this fall.
We sing every morning as we start schooltime. It's a wonderful way to start the day!
-
I don't have OM 1st, but I do have The Heart of Learning, Home Teacher's Process Manual, and the K First Book of Crafts.
If you like the Waldorf philosophy and artistic and gentle approaches to teaching, you will like OM. Traditional waldorf doesn't start teaching letters/reading/writing until 1st, but OM teaches letters in K. Out of all the waldorf hs curriculums I've seen, OM and Christopherus are the easiest and most open and go.
The OM craft book is ok, it's all natural style like leaf rubbings and flower chains, etc., so maybe a little overpriced for what it offers. I'll probably get the recorder books when my ds is older. The teacher's books are mostly just about the way to teach in a waldorf style. Some of the ideas have really helped me in parenting as well as teaching, and help to really understand natural childhood. I wasted too much money on Enki Ed stuff that was a ton of reading and left me still wondering what I'm supposed to do and needing more. OM and Christopherus were much more practical and easy to implement, less expensive and re-sellable.
I wasn't into the fairy stuff and the fairy tales, which is one reason why I'm not so waldorfy nowadays. My ds also didn't like any of the circle songs I tried. We just dance to our favorite songs now instead. I also have state testing required and I was worried waldorf style would leave my ds behind academically. I did go to a waldorf/montessori style school as a child and loved it, though.
I didn't go to a waldorf school as a child but my friend did, she loved it also. I really don't want to do the whole fairy thing with my kiddos either. Thanks for the recommendations, I'll have to look into them more.
We had used OM K and enjoyed it, so we tried OM 1 with our oldest. I did not use it for long. I actually didn't want to delay academics that much, plus my son didn't really get into the whole gnome/fairy thing, which made it more difficult. The other thing that bugged me was the lack of continuity with the science/social studies lessons. I like things that make sense together and flow, which I didn't find with the OM 1.
I know it works really well for many people and feel uneasy posting a negative review, but for us at least, it did not work nearly as well as I was hoping it would based on how we felt about OM K.
Excellent review, just what I was needing to know. Thank you for being honest!
-
I'm hoping for any Oak Meadow review. Anyone?
-
I would combine your 8 & 9 yo for FLL 3. I don't use it but I looked at the samples and I think it would work well for those ages. It starts with review so I think anything that they didn't catch in Shurley they would pick up quickly.
I started AAS this year and I try to do two at a time. I just sit one on one side of me and the other on the other side and we go back and forth between the two. It seems to work well so far.
Have you tried workboxes? It has really helped me to be more organized.
Also, I LOVE MFW for combining history & science. I wasn't sure how it was going to go but it is working so well. My 5yo LOVES to join in the fun! We are doing Adventures this year.
-
Oh, so you are not reading the lesson with her? I find it so helpful at that age to read the lesson and interact with my boys throughout it. Nothing seems as bad if they get to do it with me.
I would love to do the lesson with her but I need to hop...from one child...to another child....to another child....to another child.....to another child.
Life with many littles...make homeschooling very interesting.
-
Hi~ I just wanted to encourage you about your Dd and her English tears.
I have had this same thing happen to my Dd but with Math.
Turns out it wasn't because she didn't like the curriculum, it was because she just didn't quite understand it and she gets frustrated really easy.
I looked at her and held her and said, "It's o.k., don't get discouraged, we will do this together. This is all new and it might seem hard, but we will learn it together."
She was then fine after and has since.
From what I know R&S is good and I'm using it as well for a few subjects. If she's retaining, then I would stick with it. You don't really want to start hoping curriculums, because they are all a little different and your child might get a learning gap.
HTH, and good luck!
Very encouraging.
Guess what, we had a good day!!! NO CRYING!:D I had her read through the lesson. She found the sentences. Yay!! Then I had her work on the worksheet (Lesson 4-worksheet 2) I just gave her a bit at a time and each time she got finished she did the next part. It was great! All together it took us maybe 10 minutes. She did a great job!
So thankful for all the encouragement and ideas! I feel more confident with the curriculum and less stressed about trying to do it all as written.
-
May I just say that the word LAZY and (homeschool)Mom of 6 kids do not belong in the same sentence.
sorry...had to interrupt
Please don't insult yourself
-
thanks so much for the replies. I know the biggest problem is the writing....she's not much into writing. I am so glad I got "permission" to do it orally.
thank you
-
Hi all!
We are done with day 3. I used R & S Grammer 2 last year with my dd. She did well with it. I have always planned on using it. In fact I have all the R & Staff Grammer books up to 6. (Very pathetic....I know) Anyhow, I was planning on just forging ahead on this particular grammer road. My good friend used it with her daughters with great success.
As stated we are on day 3. Day 1: Daughter opened up her workbox and sat down with the book and cried....we just did it orally. I had no idea she dis-liked it so much.
Day 2: I introduced her to a worksheet yesterday...again crying.
Day 3: I wanted her to do one small exercise.....more crying.
I really don't want to torture the poor girl. She is more emotional than some, but I seriously am questioning if this is the 'right' program for her or...do I just ditch the worksheets and do it all orally.
Any ideas, thoughts, encouragement?
-
I would use MFW first grade, even if she is reading....the phonics moves very fast in this one.
The Bible/Science parts are wonderful also.
In my opinion of course. ;)
-
Have you tried doing it as an audiobook? There is one online. I think as SWB wisely stated that you need to read(listen?) through a book several times and start an internal dialogue.
Pilgrims Progress is a tough book, which I think makes it worth the battle. I personally am listening to it for the first time (after dropping out of reading), it is much easier to digest when listening than reading. IMHO!
-
I used it last year and really liked it. We read through the lesson together did a few samples (when suggested) and away we went. I didn't have her write everything out. We did a lot orally.
The only beef I have is that the definitions are not drilled as well as they are in FLL 1/2. I had to add that in.
-
Veritas Press has one on the AE & OT c.d.
-
I beg you not to.
I'm fairly certain you will regret it, at least I did.
Our contract runs out in Feb. We are not renewing.
-
Just got the latest ed WTM from the library. Before my oldest turned 5, I read WTM & thought this is exactly the kind of education I wanted my kids to have! I was in it to give my kids a superior education & classical seemed to fit the bill. Since beginning to formally hs, I find my ideals & reality completely at odds! I have a dd (now almost 9) that doesn't want to work hard. I don't want to work hard (lol). After 2 hours of school, we're both DONE (I'm drained and she's ready to play!) Now I'm schooling 2 kids, and have a baby. Reading WTM once again, I think this is exactly the way we should home ed, but gosh...I'm already doing such a shoddy job of teaching my kids from our TMs, and finding it hard to do school when the lessons are dependent upon me. I do what we have to do in order to crank out those workbook pages, but I don't spend any time making the kids do math fact practice, write narrations, or memorize historical dates (for example). And if we can get the bare essentials done in 2 hours, I'm happy and completely done for the day. I find homeschooling sooo exhausting emotionally. Of course, it's even worse now that baby is here, and my already low standards have gotten even lower. I would love to give my kids a better education than what they are currently getting, but not sure how when I already feel at my wits end.
I completely relate to your post, having said that I also realize that home education is a choice. I have made this choice for our family, and it is up to me to carry out that choice. That means I have less choices about what I want to do or feel like doing. It is hard, and draining, and just planning everything has me thinking "How am I going to get it all done?".
I'm all about practical, here's what helps me get through the day.
1. Have a routine everyday. Let your children realize that x, y, and z will happen in a certain order each and every school day. This requires some self-discipline. Schedule if you have to. Give yourself a little flex time to teach with the baby, but a baby can be held, fed, or rocked while you are teaching (trust me, it's the only way it can be done sometimes!)
2. Turn off/down the phone and computer(unless needed for something school related!), interruptions kill me!
3. Consider workboxes. I think the idea is brilliant, whatever way you decide to use it, the concept is wonderful. Get file folders, drawers, boxes whatever and put your material in order.
4. Have a goal/ plan for each day, semester and school year. Write it out. Example: Today we will do math, spelling, grammer, writing, history, narration etc., By Christmas we will have 50 lessons done in book x. By June we will finish this book, or have x much narrations done.
5. Plan it out. I need a piece of paper telling me what to do next because otherwise I would stop when I felt like it. If I know we have to do bible, reading, math, grammer, writing, spelling, history or science(and I know what to do in each area!), then it is more apt to get done. Plus checking it off when it is complete is a huge motivator for me!:D
If you aim at nothing you will hit it every time ~Zig Ziglar
I hope this is an encouragement to you, it helps if I take my own advice sometimes. ;)
P.S. I do need some down time during the day. Snack time in the morning or Quiet/reading time in the early afternoon are two suggestions. Allow some time to recharge your batteries.
-
Where is your husband in this? Has he changed his mind given this new information?
Have you considered sending your dd and keeping your ds home?
First speak with your husband.
-
First, relax. :)
FLL covers grammer and you can easily do a lesson a day and complete Levels 1 & 2 in one year. I prefer to do it that way anyway. Have you considered WWE 1 for writing? It is an excellent program and I am using it a year behind, which is fine.
As far as spelling goes, there is so many options to choose from. I would recommend All-About spelling level one and then you could always breeze through that and get into level two later in the year.
Sounds like you have math covered.
Our children love the SOTW c.d.'s. You could play those and add in some of the map/timeline stuff if you wanted. Your kids are still little.
I just got back from a conference and what was re-iterated over and over was CHARACTER counts more than academics. So bear that in mind. ;)
-
Rod & Staff
-
I share your concerns.
Pray. Schedule. Train. Teach.
That's what I'm trying to focus on.
Also on a more practical note, I use a modified Managers of Their Homes schedule, and I LOVE the SOTW c.d.'s. I am going to be using that to supplement our school instead of reading it aloud. Also, we are leaning toward the MFW bent in order to better work together. I am also going to try workboxes this year, I know it won't take away any of the actual teaching time but it will save the "I can't find my book etc," problem (I hope!) . We'll see.
You are not alone.
P.S. Loop scheduling, I think it is just moving from one subject to the next and what you don't finish you just start up the next day. Please someone correct me if I'm wrong! I personally couldn't handle it, I would never get much done, thinking it would get done the next day! ;) Procrastination is a problem here, I don't want to encourage it!
-
Don't feel too bad - I saw the deal with Deep Discount DVD and still ordered from Amazon. Maybe it's just me, but in the past the shipping from DD DVD has been soooooooooo sloooooooooooooooooowwwwww with no updates, etc. I'm not patient enough I guess to order from them :) Plus, I have never had a problem with Amazon, they are fairly quick and they have an excellent return policy (should something be damaged). I also can check my order status easily.
Thanks to the OP for posting the deal - I've seen some of these before and they are going to be really nice when we do HOD Beyond ;)
I hate to disagree with you but I recieved my DVD's yesterday, so that was TWO DAYS!!! WOW, talk about fast ship out, faster than Amazon.
-
I love WWE; we did WWE 1 loosely last year and are doing the workbook for WWE 2 this year. I love CW; I have Aesop and am reading it all right now. But I can't decide how I will manage the two at the 3rd/4th grade overlap. I've had a few ideas and would love to hear opinions and/or new ideas!
1. In 3rd grade do Aesop A and 1/2 (every other week) of WWE 3. Then in 4th do Aesop B and 1/2 of WWE 4. I think this option tries to get the most out of both programs.
2. In 3rd do WWE 3. In 4th do Aesop A&B, skipping WWE 4. This feels less chaotic in my mind but misses out on WWE 4.
3. In 3rd leave WWE entirely in favor of CW. Do Aesop A A&I one week and the Writing Project the next week. Do the same with Aesop B in 4th grade. This helps my sanity by cutting the intense CW time in half but misses out WWE 3 and 4.
Yes, I think too far ahead, but planning is the only thing that keeps me calm when I consider tackling a classical education with 4 kids. :D
Thoughts?
I'm behind where you are. I plan on using WWE 2 for my third grade year. Then I plan on using CW Aesop for 4th. I'm not planning anything in stone yet, that is what I am planning now but depending on how it goes this year will determine next year. I wish I knew for sure which way to go but I don't yet. We'll just have to see how my dd responds to WWE.
Sorry I'm not any more help!
-
I haven't listened to it but I found this one.
I just wanted to encourage you. My fourth grade teacher read HOBBIT out loud and I still have fond memories of sitting in class listening to him reading it.
I think I'm going to pick up the cds in a year when I have a fourth grader.
Anyone catch Wide-Angle on PBS tonight?
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
I think it's fixed now, thanks for letting me know.