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  1. We are very interested in using WVWW for 10-12th grades. I'm wondering, though, if it covers enough on history. Any thoughts from those who have used it? Also, it looks like they've split Year 2 into two years of study. My daughter is a freshman this year, so we only have three years ahead of us. How doable is it to cover Year 2 in a single year rather than spread it out over two? Any recommendations are so welcome. You all are fabulous. Thanks so much for weighing in.
  2. Here goes: History & Literature: TOG Geography: Mapping the World by Heart Writing: IEW SWI-B, Elegant Essay Language: Spelling Power (review), Vocabulary from Classical Roots, Daily Grams Spanish: Tell Me More Math: MUS Geometry (will supplement with Life of Fred this summer) Science: Apologia Biology (with co-op and weekly "class" with a wonderful neighbor) Fine Arts: Cello, daily practice, weekly private lesson, Youth Orchestra, also an outside visual arts class (9 weeks so far + more this summer) Logic: Fallacy Detective & Thinking Toolbox (last fall), Introductory Logic (this semester...will finish this next year) Other: Red Cross Babysitting Class, Community Service, Starting Points (stretched out over two summers and a full school year) We will be doing WVWW for the rest of high school, MUS math + supplements, Apologia Science, Windows to the World from IEW, Logic, Spanish, Latin, Cello, + other electives and community service Almost forgot to mention the field trips: SE Louisiana to visit the plantations (studied the Civil War this year), local Civil War reenactments, Gettysburg, PA, Washington, DC + some fun outings when we visit family in MO later this year, Institute of Texan Cultures, Toyota Plant Tour (fascinating), and hopefully a mission trip to Nicaragua soon
  3. Here's my preference, but it is only a preference. I'm getting ready to do IEW's Elegant Essay with my 9th grade DD. This easy to follow curriculum gives a great overview of the essay model along with some truly practical tools. This year and next, we'll focus a lot of energy on writing essays. Then, in the later part of 10th grade, we'll do the Essay Intensive to prep for the SAT. OK, there's my plan. I hope it helps.
  4. What is your favorite atlas? I have a 5th and 9th grader, so I'd like to find an atlas that would work well for both. What say you?
  5. We need a good atlas, and I'm wondering which ones are your favorites. I'd love to hear from you.
  6. We began Mapping the World by Heart this year, and I'm loving. I agree that it lacks specific instructions on how to implement the program, but I've been in regular contact with the author via his email link on his mapping.com site. He's been incredibly responsive and helpful. In our talks, I've discovered that he intentionally left out a lot of instruction with the intent that students would develop skills in teaching themselves. Like many who have tried the program, I was at first unsure of how to proceed, but I've asked lots of questions and am liking what I see so far. The author recently posted the following on amazon: The biggest criticism that seems to appear in the reviews here is that the material doesn't tell people "how to teach their children how to draw the world". This is completely on purpose. Read on. In my view, the job of the teacher is not to TEACH how to draw the countries and land masses, but to give children lots of opportunity to FIGURE IT OUT FOR THEMSELVES, to TEACH THEMSELVES. And the program is designed to help teachers and homeschoolers to find ways to help children teach themselves, and has worked succcessfully for 20 years. Also note that the new publisher does not ship a VHS tape, and that the maps and contents are all new since the Summer of 2010. How to prepare kids to map the world by heart... I suggest doing nothing at all about learning borders and continents and so on during the school year -- to impose an overlay of "memorization" on all the regional maps creates a constant sense of panic. Instead, the students teach themselves how to draw the boundaries and borders during the "getting ready" time, in the 3 weeks before they make their final memory maps. They study and memorize the borders, they create their own mnemonics, and they teach them to each other. Here's the general order of what I do... 1. Run off lots of blank maps in the grid you've decided to use. 2. For each student, run off one filled-in map to be used for checking. 2a. Post one filled in map on each available window in the classroom, so students can hold their hand-made maps on top and check their work. 3. Students practice every night -- start with the point where 0 degrees of longitude meets zero degrees of latitude, and learn the coast of Africa, each night a little more. Africa generally takes a week. But by then, they are already "learning how to learn..."; some students will be very "right-brained", and try to do connect-the-dots and other literal techniques; others will be very "left-brained", and will focus on shapes and general relationships. Most students find a method somewhere in between that works for them. 4. In class each day, hand out a blank map and say "show me what you learned last night". This will give you a good idea of how they are doing. 5. Let students ask questions of each other -- I call them coping questions. They can ask these out loud, or if they think everybody else knows it and they'll embarrass themselves, then they can drop a card in the classroom "suggestion box". For example, you might get "I know the countries in Central America but not the order they are in; how have others learned this...", to which one or more will reply with a mnemonic ("beware of hot gorillas eating nitrates casually, pop" for example); "I can't get the top of Russia to look right...", to which somebody might say "it's a triangle, and here's how I make it..."; "how did you learn the African countries on the Mediterranean, to which somebody says "a MALE from Tunisia..."; etc., etc. 6. Bit by bit, students make sense of it all; during the actual map-making, they can review at home each night for the section they plan to do in class the next day. It really does work. I hope that helps. David Smith, author of "Mapping the World By Heart" Here are some things I've done with my children: We were working on the US map the other day. After filling in the state names and capitols along with most major features, I gave my son another blank US map. I asked him to look at the shapes of the states to see if they look like anything to him (kind of like finding shapes in the clouds). I told him he could color in any shapes he saw. That was all it took. Florida became a gun. Minnesota a gnome. Oklahoma a pot like Johnny Appleseed might have worn. He has had such fun learning the states this way, and we're all happy. Yes, Mapping the World takes a little extra thought on our parts, but in the end, our children will have a map in their heads that makes the effort well worth the additional work. I hope this helps many of you who would like to look into this curriculum.
  7. We are beginning our first year of TOG next week with Unit 2. I have had the same question, so I did some googling this morning and found this site, which should be pretty helpful. I'll do some more searching online for resources and may end up purchasing an atlas. http://www.atlapedia.com/
  8. We are entering a new phase this year as we join a co-op for the first time ever. Here's what I've planned for the year...so far. History, Literature & Writing: TOG (with IEW videos to supplement) Algebra: MUS Science: Apologia Physical Science Here's where I have questions: Do I need an additional grammar program? How about vocabulary? Is TOG vocab. enough? Need logic suggestions. We've done Thinking Toolbox and Fallacy Detective. Not sure what to do next. Also, I'm considering using an online Latin program this year. Never have done this before either. It will either be online or Latin Road to English Grammar. I'm rarely so indecisive but feeling a little insecure about preparing for high school. Amy I missing anything? I haven't included outside activities like art, cello, swim team, etc. here, but we have those in the mix as well. I'd love to hear your thoughts
  9. Anyone know of an excellent online or video Latin program? Just considering options. We used Latin Road to English Grammar last year.
  10. I just received my TOG yr. 2 and did not order binders. I'll simply buy my own at Costco.
  11. We're doing SOTW as the spine for history along with Sonlight Readers. I'm interested in finding a 3-day schedule. Anyone know of such a thing?
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