TC5
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Posts posted by TC5
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So, Colleen, what did you decide? I was about to place my Rainbow Resource order and wanted to check some more on the science parts first. Now I don't want to use CHEM C2000. (Thanks everyone for this very helpful thread!) Although I now have lots of ideas, I haven't decided for sure what to use when we start chemistry next month. Since you start Monday, I assume you've decided? :tongue_smilie:
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We also have a scheduled "class time" I'm calling "Independent Study" where ds can spend time learning whatever is interesting to him at the time.
I love that idea!
I'm still working on a plan for 5th grade -- starting in a few months :eek:
Math: Math-U-See fractions (Epsilon?) and Math Mammoth and real-life math to be determined
History: WTM way w/ SOTW 3 and Kingfisher and lots of books. We'll probably take 3 years to get through SOTW 3 and 4 because I want to add a lot of U.S. history.
Grammar: Rod and Staff 5
Spelling: some SWR, moving back to Spelling Power
Writing: WTM method, across the curriculum
Science: CHEM C2000, etc.
Latin: continue Lively Latin Big Book 1, then? start Spanish?
Logic: Mind Benders
Art: Artistic Pursuits
Music: Piano lessons
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I haven't used these, but they look intriguing:
http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=335&products_id=10696
The entire 10-pack includes:
- Firefighter,
- Veterinarian,
- Chef,
- Military,
- Doctor,
- Police Officer,
- Missionary,
- Artist,
- Pilot, and
- Farmer
- Firefighter,
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My fourth-grade son has almost finished going through Levels 2-4 this year. We have skipped a lot based on what he needs work on. We spent the most time in Level 3, and then I saw that Level 4 starts out with the same things as the end of Level 3, so we jumped ahead. He has been doing narrations for history and science, so we are now focusing more on dictation to get him up to the longer passages. Even if we were to stop now, I would be confident that he had gotten what he needs from WWE. My goal in pushing him through quickly was to have him ready for logic-stage writing by the middle or end of his fifth-grade year. He is ready now.
So yes, you can definitely get through WWE 3 and 4 in one year, using the suggestions others have given. Skip or double up.
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Thanks, Michelle. I'll check that out.
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Kathy,
My children are similar in age to yours, and I, too, have been considering ways to be a little more relaxed.
Others have already mentioned RightStart and SWR. I used RightStart B with my second son for a while, but it was painful for us both. We started it in K and used it half way through 1st grade and barely got anywhere. I was going to use Math U See Alpha, but I was waiting for a revised edition. While I was waiting, we started using Math Mammoth, which I'd heard compared to RightStart and Singapore, and my son took off! It was much easier for us both, and I could tell he was really learning something (I never knew with RightStart).
We have been using SWR since last summer, but it is too time-consuming for us to use it as intended. I only ever planned to use it for spelling, not so much to write and read or for grammar, so that may be why I have less patience for it than I might. I have started changing the way we use SWR to make it better fit our family. For my 9yo, after having completed all the reference pages, we finger spell and dissect the word only if he doesn't know how to spell it, which is rare. My 7yo needs much more instensive word analysis than SWR suggests. For both of them, I find I am moving closer to the Spelling Power method (which I found used for $5), using SWR as a word list and resource on rules. This is more relaxing for us and the only way I can get spelling done right now. I'm still doing spelling only once or twice a week, but it's better than the nothing we were doing for months.
I haven't seen Classical Writing but keep being drawn toward it. But I keep hearing that it is more complicated than I might like right now. We use Writing With Ease at the moment, which is very painless with the workbooks (I didn't have time to do it without the workbooks). It takes only a few minutes each day with no prep time for me (except to prepare copywork pages for my 7yo, but I did all of that months ago for the rest of the year).
As for Latin, my 9yo is using Lively Latin, which is mostly independent work for him. I had intended to keep up with him, but I am on chapter 3, and he is on chapter 10. When he asks a question, we search until we find the answer. I thought he'd be closer to chapter 14 by now, but considering how little effort it costs me and how much I can see he is learning, I am not too worried about his pace.
I also think about how some of the subjects I really want to teach will be a bit easier when my younger 2 are a little older. I'm sure your young ones add to the feeling of not being able to accomplish what you hoped to each day. I have been trying to give myself permission to have more "reading days" and more "minimum days" with only a couple of core subjects. Those days are more relaxing to me than a day completely off, when I just think of all we should be doing and how far behind we're getting.
One of the biggest problems I'm having right now is that I am exhausted by 1 p.m., so I can't even consider doing the fun projects and activities I hear about others doing. On the bright side, for the past couple of weeks we were studying the explorers of the late 1400s and early 1500s. We read lots and lots of books and looked at maps, and I was too tired to think of doing any more. One afternoon, my sons decided to build boats and race them because they'd had so much fun learning about explorers and their ships. When they really want a project, they'll come up with one on their own. They're very creative and active in imaginary and historical play in the afternoons, so I have stopped feeling guilty for not initiating the projects for them.
I love the WTM methods and have been afraid to get very relaxed. But I am excited by some plans I am working on to try a unit study here and there and see how they go and to try some more child-led learning and see what I think. Maybe experimenting with different things, a little bit at a time, would help you, too. I don't see myself leaving the WTM way, but I do think I could be more flexible within it. And with increased flexibility comes decreased stress, I've found.
I hope something here might help you. Good luck!
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I just looked at Winter Promise American Story 1 -- very briefly -- and it says it is for K-3. My oldest will be in 5th-6th grade when we study U.S. history. Any more ideas?
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I am interested in how others have done this, too.
We are using SOTW 2 right now, and I am thinking we will take three years to get through SOTW 3 and 4, so I can spend lots of extra time on U.S. history and government. I don't know yet how I'm going to do it -- probably lots of different resources. Maybe more of a unit study approach for parts of it (we normally don't use that method) and more projects. Maybe just lots more library books. I need to start planning all of that very soon, so I'll be watching this thread. :D
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Thank you for your posts. I have been struggling lately with how to have both structure and more freedom. You have given me some great ideas to consider.
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That's the one! Thank you, Colleen!
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Thank you, Colleen. I mostly noticed I was missing the titles of books and authors when I was listening to the high-school writing lecture. I had the 2009 WTM open to help with names, but I think SWB mentioned a resource I don't see in the book. On page 468, under How To Do It, in the second paragraph, there are three books mentioned. She mentioned a fourth just before these. She said the prose in the exercises isn't very good in that book but the other information/exercises are great. If you have that title, it will save me some time. If not, I can go back and listen later.
Thanks!
Also -- for anyone wondering, there's still very little about integrating IEW in either the middle--school or high-school writing lectures. Basically just what she's said elsewhere, that she doesn't care for keyword outlines and prefers the method she explains in WTM. The high-school part was also in the book already (and more in-depth in the book).
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I found the handouts here: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/workshops-handouts/
But I don't see anything for the 3 writing lectures. Am I missing them? People earlier made it sound like we didn't need to furiously write notes, which I am now trying to do as I listen to the high school writing lecture.
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Thanks to you both! Still deciding, but SWB's method sure looks simpler. The trouble is, I recently bought IEW to start using it in the fall for my rising 5th-grader. Now I have to decide whether to buy, sell, or hold for another child. :tongue_smilie:
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I thought I had read on here somewhere that SWB talks about IEW in one of these writing seminars, probably the middle grades one. I finally listened to the middle grades writing mp3 this morning, and there's nothing about IEW (except a comment that she prefers sentences over key words for outlining -- but no actual mention of IEW). Has SWB talked about implementing IEW more than what is in the WTM book?
Thanks for everyone's comments! Special thanks to Colleen. I always learn so much from your posts.
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I was just looking at her site for the first time this morning, too. I downloaded the math to try with my 7yo and younger sons. All of her games look wonderful!
Her chemistry curriculum looks like it would be great to go along with more experiments. Has anyone used it?
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We've used Rod and Staff English 3 and are now in 4. My son and I think they are fabulous. They have given him a far-better understanding of grammar than he ever had before. We do most of it orally because my 9yo son doesn't like to write unless absolutely necessary. That also makes the lessons very quick.
It seems like there's not a lot of writing, but I think the approach to that is gentle at this level. Now we're about half way through Level 4, and he recently wrote a report with 2-3 sources and a book report. He has also had opportunities to write poetry and lots of sentences and paragraphs. I think he will get a strong writing foundation as we continue with R&S -- maybe not creative writing, but he does that on his own.
I think the grammar coverage is excellent. I was a professional editor and technical writer, but I have been out of that for several years; Rod and Staff is a good review for me to feel competent again!
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I just got released as Enrichment leader and am now VT Coordinator. I am doing it all long-distance for a while. We found out a couple of days before I got the call that we'd be leaving the state for 3-4 months for my husband's job. The bishop and Relief Society president still wanted me to do it, so I am using the phone and email only for now. No first-Sunday VT messages until I get back home.
Teonei
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I switched my first-grader from Right Start B to Math Mammoth. He didn't like all the manipulatives, either. Yes, there are a lot of worksheets with Math Mammoth, but we skip some and sometimes go back later for review. Also, we do a lot of the problems orally to help keep him on task. He speeds through the pages that way much faster than if I ask him to write the answers. It is good for me to have options, though, for independent work. :) A few times, I have given him 10 tiles to use similarly to the abacus, but he hasn't used them. He does sometimes like to use a plain wooden ruler, though, since he learned about counting on the number line.
Math Mammoth also has a few suggested games, but if your child likes the ones that came with Right Start, you could certainly continue with those. That is what we have done so far.
It was difficult to tell whether my son was really learning much while we were using Right Start, but now I can see clearly what he knows and what we need to work on. We are both happy with the switch.
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We started on Math U See late, but here's what we're doing:
My son completed MUS Gamma in 9 weeks (he was 8, and it was mostly review, so I already had Delta ready). Then he went straight to Delta. He's on a track to finish it, too, though, with nothing left for the last 5-6 months of the school year. So, I made some changes over the Christmas break. I decided to have him do just one MUS lesson each week and then use his other days for Math Mammoth (I downloaded Grades 1-5 for $99, and I started using it with my first-grader, too). I am also adding in CWP, some challenging problems from Ray's Arithmetic (available free online somewhere like google books), and more games.
I'm planning to use Math Mammoth in its entirety, in order, not coordinating with MUS topics. I used some Math Mammoth with this first son last year when we were struggling to find a math program for him. At the time, I looked at it as a good review or supplemental program. But the more I have looked, the more I think it is complete in itself and similar to Singapore. I have also found good reasons to use more than one math program, and we like MUS, so we'll keep it, too.
If we didn't have time for two full math programs, I think I would still try to fit in CWP or something similar and more games to reinforce and review math facts.
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I just finished reading this, from the Math Mammoth web site. Maybe it will give you some ideas.
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We've also used the gospel art pictures and read the stories and scriptures that go with them.
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We do our family scripture study at night before bed, but on school days we start each morning with a devotional. We went through the new nursery manual, even though my oldest is 8. We read Friend articles. Or we read and discuss scriptures or character-building stories. There's always plenty to talk about for the devotional. When we studied ancient history last year, we had about 10 lessons, that fit in chronologically, about the Book of Mormon. My boys always enjoy these lessons because they're already familiar. Also had lots of Bible lessons as part of history last year, and it was a chance to discuss how our beliefs are more complete than other Christians (we used MOH).
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Even after I told her we're taking a break from homeschool because I'm too sick to teach, she asked me to do something else. I don't think there's any chance of being released, short of begging the R.S. pres. (who also knows my condition already)! And I do think I'll be OK to plan the next meeting, so that's fine. We have a pretty big ward, but we also have lots of pregnant women, so if we all got released every time we had a baby, there'd be constant calling changes.
Teonei
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jcooperetc, Thanks for your concern. I actually went to a committee meeting Wednesday night to plan a November R.S. meeting. I had the plan for the Nov. meeting all written up for the others, but I dragged myself there to help finalize plans. The 2nd counselor was there, and I had to tell her three or four times that I'm really not going to be able to do anything else for this Nov. meeting. I was practically falling out of my chair and was sicker than ever that night because of the exertion (I should probably go lie down now). But I was surprised by how many times I had to tell her I couldn't do any more for now.
DIY chemistry course for logic stage children?
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted
Is the workbook you mentioned Mastering the Periodic Table? My oldest is getting ready for 5th grade but has never had any chemistry before, so I'm not sure whether that book would be too much for him. On the other hand, he may not have time for that and all the other work when he does chemistry again in high school. Also, have you seen Fizz, Bubble, & Flash? It looks like an introduction to the periodic table, too, and I'm wondering whether it will be sufficient for this year.
As always, I have learned a lot by following your threads! Thank you.
Teonei