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coralloyd

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Posts posted by coralloyd

    Why Homeschool? Why Well-Trained Mind?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Very exciting stuff! Right now I'm definitely leaning toward homeschooling. The part that overwhelms me when I start to think about it is the planning and gathering of resources. I taught K and 1st grade in public school but this is still daunting!

     

    It is overwhelming at first but you will soon be addicted to it! Those boxes of books and resources coming in the mail will give you such a thrill.

    Why Homeschool? Why Well-Trained Mind?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I homeschool because they are my kids, no one else's, and I will do my darndest to make sure they get a good education. I really dislike the whole model of public education (The ringing of the bell, the textbooks, the segregating of kids by age, the having to sit in desks, the tests, etc.....). We love freedom, it is very important to us, especially since my dh works for himself. We can take 2 months and go on an rv trip if we want. We want to be the biggest influences in our kid's lives. I want to be with them since they are such amazing little human beings. The relationships between my kids is another huge reason. They are best friends and love each other to pieces and I wouldn't trade that for anything. I could go on but I think you get what I am saying.

     

    I am not necessarily a classical educator. I am very eclectic.

    If you could start fresh at K, What would you do?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Well I am on child #3. I have done things very differently with him than with his sisters. We do Phonics Pathways with lots of easy readers, copywork, memory work (Bible verses), and lots of fun math games or just math throughout life (I use Ray's and MUS Alpha as a spine. But I would not buy them if I did not already have them.). He listens in for history and science, but nothing is required of him. If I just had him I would read lots of picture books. I don't get to do as much of that as I would like, but his sisters read to him quite a bit. Nothing else would be formal, scheduled, or packaged.

    I need some advice on history for 1st grade

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    More than likely you WILL change your mind. Believe me. If you want something planned for you or to save you money, TOG is not it. TOG & BP both use SOTW by the way. I think if you are set on planning so far ahead, BP would be your best bet. It is planned out. It uses SOTW in the younger grades then other resources in later grades. If you use SOTW now your only added expense would be the AG. All the other programs are going to cost a lot, lot more with all the added books required, plus the very pricey teacher's guides. I agree that it is not a great idea to use SOTW for older grades (junior/high school), but it will not cost you more in the long run to use just SOTW now then something something else later, I promise. Who knows when they are older you might have more to spend. I highly caution you about planning so far ahead. You will change, your children will change, your ideas about what you want, how you want to teach, etc.... will all change.

    Hashing out our educational goals... how do you decide what's important?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    This is a great question. Character, faith, and relationship are #1 in my book. I want my kids to be awesome people that love God, others and their family. #2 I want them to be self starting leaders. I think all success comes from being able to self start and lead, not being afraid to take chances, degree or not. #3 Really knowing and feeling competent in Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. My oldest would be staring Algebra in 7th, if we just kept on trucking. However, I think she will benefit from taking a little time off, and do a lot of real world math. We are going to do one of the Your Business Maths from SCM and some more LOF, and some other things I've got planned. They need to be able to communicate well though their writing. Reading is a no brainer to me. #4 Time and energy dedicated to their passions and interests. Set aside time for them to research, study, and explore interests; with me being as much of a help as possible. Creativity is as huge part of this. Without an outlet to be creative in some way life gets boring imo. #5 Learning about the world around us with an inquisitive mind through history and science. #6 Seeing and experiencing things. We just got home from a month long rv trip to Texas. We do this about once a year. We are trying to visit all the States. So far we have done most of the western states.

     

    I will have to think about it more and see if there is anything else to add.

    stopping school to work on character

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Well Simply Charlotte Mason has a new resource that they just released called Laying Down the Rails for Children: A Habit-Training Companion http://simplycharlottemason.com/store/laying-down-the-rails-for-children-a-habit-training-companion/ it goes along with their original Laying Down the Rails http://simplycharlottemason.com/store/laying-down-rails-charlotte-mason-habits/. I have found habit training very very useful. We focus on one habit at a time. You will see from the table of contents that habits include character traits.

    help me troubleshoot this 3rd grade egypt history list? (Great Books Academy)

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I personally would not use those books with a 3rd grader. I think it might bore them quite frankly, when there are so many great book on Ancient Egypt for kids. That is just me though. You obviously know your child better and the ones I list might be too babyish.

     

    I have used and will use again:

     

    Mummies Made in Egypt http://www.amazon.co...s made in egypt

     

    The Great Pyramid http://www.amazon.co...ywords=pyramids

     

    Tut's Mummy: Lost and Found http://www.amazon.co... Lost and Found

     

    Boy of the Pyramids http://simplycharlot...f-the-pyramids/

     

    The Egyptology Handbook http://www.amazon.co...tology Handbook

     

    Growing up in Ancient Egypt http://www.amazon.co...s=ancient egypt

     

    Cleopatra

     

    Seeker of Knowledge

    If you had to...

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    This is what I would do:

     

     

    Math: Ray's Arithmetic set (these are small books)

     

    Language Arts: Phonics Pathways & Harvey's Grammar & Composition (small)

     

     

    Science:

    The Complete Book of Science, Grades 1-2

     

    The Complete Book of Science, Grades 3-4

     

    The Complete Book of Science, Grades 5-6

     

    I am not sure what for junior high.

     

    History: Bible

    Picturesque Tale of Progress Vol. 1-8

    The Complete Book of American History

    If they would fit, I would take the H.A. Guerber Histories too.

     

    Art:

    Picture Study Portfolios by SCM (These are very flat.) I would have my kids do picture study then try to recreate the art art piece themselves.

     

    That would completely fill the boxes. It might be too much too.

    Road trippers--preparing your home before you go

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    For those of you who have taken road trips of 4+ weeks, how have you prepared? I'm talking about things like turning off your water, getting someone to mow your lawn, etc. What about your finances? Do you pay all your bills ahead of time? What do you do about your mail? Do you just hold it? Forward it? Do you have someone stay at your house or come regularly to check on it? I need to make a list of all these things, and I'm sure there are many I haven't even though of yet. Thanks in advance for your help!

     

    Well we are on a trip right now. I am not a supper organized person. So I do things as easy as possible.

     

    Where we live weather is pretty mild right now. We just turned the heat off.

     

    We don't have a lawn. But we have scheduled our yard guy to come and clip the bushes pull weeds etc. before. We know him well so we pay ahead or when we get back. We didn't do that this time. We might have a jungle when we get back lol.

     

    All our bills are either automatic withdrawal from the bank or paid online.

     

    My parents live about 3 minutes away. They pick up our mail and check on the house everyday. They offer to do things sometimes that are hard to get done when you are home; like clean the stove (because of the awful smell) or clean out the fridge really well. They also take any leftover food we have in the fridge. Yes, I am very blessed to have such great parents.

     

    I also try to leave the house as clean as possible and with as little laundry as possible because I don't like to come home and take care of the rv mess and the house mess.

     

    ETA: We do unplug everything. We do not turn off the water or put anything in the toilets or sinks. We have never had a problem with smells, etc...

    How do you choose peace?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    One of my favorite lessons from Charlotte Mason is the story she tells about not repeating yourself. She tells a story about a little boy that continues to leave the door open when he leaves a room. The mother doesn't yell from the other room, "________, come close the door!" or "Why do I always have to remind you to close the door?". Instead she calls him to her, looks him in the eye, gives him that knowing look and just looks in the direction of the door. She has told him enough times in the past that he should shut it behind him, that he understands the look. If he doesn't understand she can gently say something like "What are you forgetting?".

     

    This works so well. I cannot tell you how much it helps (when I remember to do it). Getting your child to think "Oh yeah, I forgot to close the door." or say "I forgot to close the door, sorry." will do miracles! Your stress level will go way down when you don't have to nag. Plus, when they have to do the work of thinking it or saying it, they are teaching themselves. They tend to listen to themselves better than us :). It really works!

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