Jump to content

Menu

S/O Reposting the really good thread... has reading any of this


Recommended Posts

changed your thought process as you approach the logic stage, and if so, how?

 

For me, it was more of a solidification. I started sensing a year ago that we were running into "maturity" issues with my DS (then 10). I went ahead and re-enrolled him in the "on-ward and upward" virtual school program and have been regretting it since October. The constant push forward has been rather counterproductive.

 

I am currently pouring over materials, and planning for next year. This is where I currently am... if you get my meaning.

 

Bible: Who is God? by Summit Ministries (we're doing this as a family).

Art: I Can Do All Things (technically, he's old for this... but he's not an artist, and I don't want to start God and the History of Art until next year... something easy, fun, and light... that frankly I won't care if he doesn't do on those brain fog days!)

Grammar: MCT Grammar Voyage (I have been working on scheduling this out, and I really think it will be an excellent fit. I think my son will like only having to really work through grammar a sentence at a time. I think his retention will skyrocket... and it will be good for him to have some "me" time with mom.)

Vocabulary: MCT Caesar's English II -- I think he will enjoy some of the history reading. He also likes to believe he has an incredible vocabulary -- and this will play into this ideal.

Composition: MCT Sentence Island/Paragraph Town/Essay Voyage. I may purchase Killagallon as well... but right now I really am planning on focusing on the basics of good writing. Writing a good sentence, a good paragraph and a good essay. For this goal, MCT probably has more than enough. I like the idea of Killagallon... and using some of the imitation there, so I may bring that in as a resource. I don't think we'll be doing any extra reports, or assigned creative writing though (ds is busy writing several "novels"...lol, so I'm much more interested in building a strong base for academic writing right now!)

Literature: Of People (Abeka). We'll be using this as a literature overview. He has really done best with this approach. I know that this will be his "easiest" subject. But, going back to what I want out of him -- I want good sentences and good paragraphs, and the comprehension questions at this level will be good for that, without being too "thoughty." ;) In addition, I plan to have him do 4 Progeny Press Guides (A Wrinkle in Time, Johnny Tremain, the Witch of Blackbird Pond, and the Hiding Place). Two of those books he read in elementary school, so I'm attemting to take the study a bit deeper. Two he has never read, and I think he should. We will also be doing MCT's A World of Poems.

History: World History Overview from Ancients to Modern Times. This is pretty much on my own, of course Veritas now has a Transition Class doing virtually the same thing(maybe they will have a study guide I could purchase!!), Our main resources will be VP Cards, and SOTW 1-4. I have Kingfisher's and Usborne's Internet Linked. He'll be doing a timeline project and focusing on the chants/songs. Unlike previous years, we will NOT be doing tests and worksheets. Each week he'll have to "sing me the song" or "songs" as we check on progression, and I'll get to look at his timeline... but my focus here is a solid understading of major history events. There will be some additional reading with written narrations (I copied the booklist from the VP on-line transitions class). He's not quite ready for Omnibus -- and I feel like this will be something relatively enjoyable.

Math: Algebra I: Expressions, Equations & Applications (Foerster); and Kinetic Textbooks Algebra I. These will be the main books. I'm going to merge the topics... he can start with the Kinetic Textbooks, and then he'll do the applicable written work from Foerster's. I also have LoF. My son really likes Kinetic Textbooks, but I don't like that the off-line written work doesn't have full solutions. So, I'm going to merge two programs (hopefully). I'm not sure how quickly he'll progress... so this may take us two years, or I could be pleasantly surprised (he did test into Algebra I for AoPS...fwiw)

Science: Physical Science from Abeka. This is an exercise in learning to study from a textbook. Abeka is easy to outline. The concepts are well thought out, and this will appeal to DS' interests (well, the content will... the outlining, not so much!). I haven't decided whether or not to get the DVD classes or just the lab demonstrations. I have some time to figure it out, though.

Language Study: He'll be taking the Secondary Latin 1 class on-line with VP. This will give him some exposure to an outside class before high school. I expect he will take all 3 Latin courses from VP. In addition, he is going to start Mandarin with Tell Me More. We'll switch to an on-line class/tutor for this when he reaches high school. This is to provide a foundation of exposure to make the on-line courses later easier.

Logic: Whatever we do will be fairly gentle. I hope to have him ready for Introductory Logic by next summer.

 

He still will be doing swimming and scouts... When I write this all out it looks like a lot, but in so many ways, it is "less" than what he's currently doing. Part of this is because I'm taking him "sideways" in Language Arts/Literature, and History.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

changed your thought process as you approach the logic stage, and if so, how?

 

For me, it was more of a solidification. I started sensing a year ago that we were running into "maturity" issues with my DS (then 10). I went ahead and re-enrolled him in the "on-ward and upward" virtual school program and have been regretting it since October. The constant push forward has been rather counterproductive.

 

 

 

That thread was most helpful with my planning for this year. I started looking at skills vs. content and trying to find ways to reach the skills goals I had, versus cramming him full of content.

 

I've kept the mindset of making sure the curriculum fits my goals, not the other way around, if that makes sense.

 

It also helped me realize that I needed to strengthen his foundation in writing. Instead of floundering, thinking we would somehow survive with the leaky boat we were using we switched to WWE, which has been a great fit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, it changed my thought process as I was planning for logic stage. :D

 

For starters, it was very reassuring to me to know that I could and should take whatever time was needed for my girl to totally nail math concepts. If it seemed to be taking a long time, so be it. One day the hormonal fog would clear or brain growth would happen or the planets would align, and life would be easier for her. I am here to tell you, it happens! Math was our biggest nemesis for so long, but we stayed the course and now she is moving forward with confidence. Without reading that thread (and others) I might have assumed I was going at it all wrong and was going to have my Mom License yanked.

 

Also, being reminded about teaching skills - no, make that *Skills* - came along at the right time. I'm seriously not sure teaching note taking was on my radar enough before that. I think I was modelling it, but nothing consciously.

 

But the greatest thing I think I pulled from that thread is just hearing others say how important it is to keep on loving the little fluff-brains and help them through these middle years because they really are going through so much! Instinctively I was sending her outside to work with Dad on a car or to help with a woodshop project, but to hear others explain exactly how it's good for her in so many ways was nice!

 

I went from thinking "We are new at this homeschooling, and we have a lot of catching up to do. I need to make a huge list NOW of what I need to cover before highschool!" to "How can I help my girl be ready to tackle highschool, whether that is at home or somewhere else?" Huge difference in our focus, here.

 

7th grade is turning out to be a blast. I wasn't necessarily expecting that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...