mommatomany Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 I'm in my second year of homeschooling. We've been using HOD. LHFHG and now Beyond. I just recently found this board and I have so many new questions. What are unit studies? I've noticed people mentioned those with FIAR. How do they differ from using a complete curriculum like I'm using? What makes a math program mastery or spiral? We use singapore. I'm not even sure what it is and what makes it either of the 2 choices. What does classical vs. CM really mean? Does it mostly mean a difference between living books and textbooks? :blush: This is all so new to me. Thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 What are unit studies? I've noticed people mentioned those with FIAR. How do they differ from using a complete curriculum like I'm using? Unit studies are where you spend a period of time (weeks or months) studying one topic. For example, you might do a unit study on horses for science, or you might do a unit study on the Civil War for history. What makes a math program mastery or spiral? We use singapore. I'm not even sure what it is and what makes it either of the 2 choices. Singapore is sometimes considered a "soft spiral" and sometimes considered "mastery", but not "extreme mastery". It's a good choice in math, so if you and your kids are doing well with it, I'd stick with it. Some kids need more spiral review, and in that case, CLE or Saxon or Horizons are all common choices (some people even use one of those alongside Singapore). Those programs will have multiple types of problems in one lesson, with tons and tons of review of previously learned concepts (for example, a lesson where subtraction with 2 digit numbers that involves regrouping is being taught as a new concept might also have problems on addition of 2 digit numbers, time, measurement, subtraction of 1 digit numbers, etc.). Some kids need that kind of daily review. Some kids go nuts with it. Here's a thread that talks about mastery vs. spiral definitions. Most people don't agree completely on the exact definitions, and there are various degrees of spiral and mastery. Confusing! :lol: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=256735 What does classical vs. CM really mean? Does it mostly mean a difference between living books and textbooks? :blush:Classical and CM both use living books. :) Here's an article that SWB wrote about Classical vs. CM: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/charlotte-mason-education/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommatomany Posted April 21, 2011 Author Share Posted April 21, 2011 Unit studies are where you spend a period of time (weeks or months) studying one topic. For example, you might do a unit study on horses for science, or you might do a unit study on the Civil War for history. Singapore is sometimes considered a "soft spiral" and sometimes considered "mastery", but not "extreme mastery". It's a good choice in math, so if you and your kids are doing well with it, I'd stick with it. Some kids need more spiral review, and in that case, CLE or Saxon or Horizons are all common choices (some people even use one of those alongside Singapore). Those programs will have multiple types of problems in one lesson, with tons and tons of review of previously learned concepts (for example, a lesson where subtraction with 2 digit numbers that involves regrouping is being taught as a new concept might also have problems on addition of 2 digit numbers, time, measurement, subtraction of 1 digit numbers, etc.). Some kids need that kind of daily review. Some kids go nuts with it. Here's a thread that talks about mastery vs. spiral definitions. Most people don't agree completely on the exact definitions, and there are various degrees of spiral and mastery. Confusing! :lol: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=256735 Classical and CM both use living books. :) Here's an article that SWB wrote about Classical vs. CM: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/charlotte-mason-education/ OH! Thanks for all the info! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 More specifically, a unit study (as opposed to doing a unit on horses or the Civil War) is where you cover all subjects while studying godly character traits (KONOS), or the Old Testament (the Weaver) or the Little House on the Prairie books (Prairie Primer). Usually English skills (grammar, composition, etc.) and math are taught separately, although the unit study may include reading or writing assignments or some math. Unit studies lend themselves particularly well to teaching all of your dc together for everything except math and English skills. So you would only have to buy KONOS, plus a math, grammar, and reading/phonics for each child as necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommatomany Posted April 21, 2011 Author Share Posted April 21, 2011 I realize it's all personal choice but what reasons would make someone NOT want to go with unit studies? Are they easier when teaching multiple children? I'm wondering b/c next year I'll have 2 in school and one dd (4 year old) on the brink of formal schooling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RachelFlores Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 I realize it's all personal choice but what reasons would make someone NOT want to go with unit studies? Are they easier when teaching multiple children? I'm wondering b/c next year I'll have 2 in school and one dd (4 year old) on the brink of formal schooling. Well, I can only speak for myself, but I don't prefer unit studies because I need more continuity. Unit studies don't last all year, most last for a few weeks to a few months. I really didn't like switching books every week when I tried using FIAR (five in a row). I felt we didn't have anything that put each week together into an overall "bigger picture". I'm now using HOD LHFHG and the history timeline gives me that feel of "bigger picture". Next year I will be switching to the WTM aproach and will tie everything into our history program. Some parents and kids have no problem with switching units several times durring the year. I really like the IDEA of unit studies, but have found that they are just not for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 Well, I can only speak for myself, but I don't prefer unit studies because I need more continuity. Unit studies don't last all year, most last for a few weeks to a few months. I really didn't like switching books every week when I tried using FIAR (five in a row). I felt we didn't have anything that put each week together into an overall "bigger picture". I'm now using HOD LHFHG and the history timeline gives me that feel of "bigger picture". Next year I will be switching to the WTM aproach and will tie everything into our history program. Some parents and kids have no problem with switching units several times durring the year. I really like the IDEA of unit studies, but have found that they are just not for me. Most unit studies, such as KONOS, the Weaver, and the Prairie Primer, are all one-year programs, although I know that each volume of KONOS and the Weaver can be used for [at least] two years without studying the same things. Where the Brook and the River Meet, a unit study using the Anne of Green Gables books, is also one year (or more). Now, if you're just doing a *unit* on something, that might be different. But a *unit study* can certainly be a whole-year study. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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