mommyagain Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 How many will be using CK this fall? I will be using the lesson plans from the Baltimore Curriculum Project. I'm going to combine my kids and pull from the 1st and 2nd grade plans. Anyone else?:bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yucabird Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 I will. We will be doing other things (FIAR, Singapore/Miquon, OPGTR/ETC, etc.), but we will cover what is in Hirsch's book too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyagain Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 We'll also be using Singapore and ETC.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peacefully Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 I use the CK Sequence, Teacher Handbooks and other resources (everything in their starter kit), but only very loosely. I've used a few of the BCP and Colorado units too. I tend to use all the CK materials as support resources rather than the focus of how we homeschool. We did first grade last year. I think we'll have an easier time integrating CK into our homeschool this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BetterthanIdeserve Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 For Kindergarten last year, we used CK regularly as a supplement to FIAR. We covered almost everything in the book. This year, I have some sort of curriculum for almost every subject (many WTM suggestions), so I don't think we'll spend as much time with CK 1st grade. I'll probably keep it in the car for carschooling or use it when we need a break from our regular studies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 I use the What Your.....Needs to Know Books from Core Knowledge. I use a lot of other stuff too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicAnn Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 Last year we did all of What your Preschooler Needs to Know. This year we'l be doing most of the Kindergarten edition. They are great supplements and I plan to use them at lest through 4th grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Twain Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 (edited) I use the Core Knowledge Sequence as a guide to planning some subjects (especially ones like history and geography). I also go through it at the end of the year to make sure we cover all or most of it. I leave about two or three weeks at the end of the year to do this. ETA: I also have the What Your __-Grader Needs to Know books, and we read through most of them, too. Edited July 22, 2011 by Mrs Twain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mama25angels Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 I will be using them as a supplement and then over the summer for review:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 I use the Sequence, Teacher Handbooks, and Books to Build On. I use CK for literature, history and science. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 I like to use them as a backbone or spine, (especially for American History) since I couldn't find something I liked. I already owned all of the What Your _ Needs to Know books and realized this would be perfect. Essentially, I just needed a basic foundation to keep the flow of history in order and from there I add historical fiction, biographies, etc. I also like having all the books from which to have a basic foundation for all subjects...World History, Science, Geography, Art, Music, etc. and the access to lesson plans which correspond with them. The lesson plan sites are perfect for filling in gaps or for new fresh lesson ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papillon Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 (edited) We'll be using some CK, too. My favorite things are the K-8 Guide, which is like the K-8 Sequence but this resource breaks down what to teach by month; What Your _Grader Needs to Know books; and Books to Build On (resource guide by subject). Oh, I almost forgot, we'll be using their history and geography, too. It's the Pearson Learning/Core Knowledge History & Geography series ~ we love it! The student text is wonderful, and the teacher's guides for each unit are great, too. Edited July 22, 2011 by papillon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 We are using it for Science and Lit- I go back and forth on their art, but I do not think I will be using it though. I am using BCP lit and BCP and Colorado plans for Science. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WIS0320 Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 I'm using the art cards, literature selections, and science topics for unit studies for first grade this year. I'm doing my own history (world overview), Singapore + McRuffy Math 1 (with a little Miquon thrown in!) K12 music and Phonics Road 1. I do have the CK Grade 1 Teacher's Guide and it was worth every penny I spent on it. As a new homeschooler I like the explanations of why and how to cover certain topics and I really like how integrated the content is each year and how it flows into the next year. I've heard SWB in one of her talks mention CK and disregard it because it is content based rather than skills based and I've taken that to heart and adjusted where I think it matters. Still, it is the most comprehensive guide I've found for what a child is capable of doing content-wise and the program has been developed to a point that it is very user-friendly and makes a ton of sense to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbgrace Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 (edited) I'll be using CK for history, science, literature, art (perhaps...I just saw a link I love and may switch), and music this coming year. We do math and writing/spelling/grammar as well as a bible curriculum outside of core knowledge. I used CK for the same last year combining 1st and some of the K concepts and it was a great year. I rely a lot on the Baltimore plans for my base though I do make additions and changes. I find I modify and add ideas to the history plans a lot more than the others. Actually, I've been posting a lot of the plans I use on my blog. I linked the history we've done here if anyone wants some extra first grade lesson ideas. We're doing Lewis and Clark now and I'll put them up soon which puts us through the 1st grade US history objectives I think. I'm doing all of US history for 1st and 2nd and then doing the ancient history objectives for 1st and 2nd at the close of 2nd. I think I may start the history cycle in 3rd grade so it made more sense to structure it this way for us. Edited July 22, 2011 by sbgrace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PollyOR Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 I'm using Core Knowledge for my youngest. She is 9yo but a slow nine, so I think CK will be a better fit for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelBee Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HootyTooty Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 We'll be using some CK, too. My favorite things are the K-8 Guide, which is like the K-8 Sequence but this resource breaks down what to teach by month; What Your _Grader Needs to Know books; and Books to Build On (resource guide by subject). This is what I am do to help me plan for my kids. I've found a few things like (Singapore Science & Math) that are perfect fit for us and work great with the CK sequence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 Can you all give links to the resources that support the books? I was looking at these books at the library and at Borders. If any are left at Borders when the prices come down, it might be a good time to pick up a few. Reading them makes me feel stupid :-0 Does anyway just use free and cheap math worksheets to support the math section? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 Can you all give links to the resources that support the books? I was looking at these books at the library and at Borders. If any are left at Borders when the prices come down, it might be a good time to pick up a few. Reading them makes me feel stupid :-0 Does anyway just use free and cheap math worksheets to support the math section? I used a $10.00 math workbook I picked up at Target for the Math portion in Kindergarten. For first grade we are using Singapore (and he scored 94% on 1A placement test and 90% on 1B; so we are starting in 2A!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 (edited) Here are three sites that correspond with Core Knowledge: http://www.ckcolorado.org/units.asp http://www.coreknowledge.org/mimik/mimik_live_data/view.php?id=1833&record_id=269 http://www.baltimorecp.org/lessons/draft_lessons.html Edited July 23, 2011 by Kfamily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 Here are three sites that correspond with Core Knowledge: http://www.ckcolorado.org/units.asp http://www.coreknowledge.org/mimik/mimik_live_data/view.php?id=1833&record_id=269 http://www.baltimorecp.org/lessons/draft_lessons.html Wow! Thanks. I can't believe I didn't know about this :-0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto2Cs Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 I like to use them as a backbone or spine, (especially for American History) since I couldn't find something I liked. I already owned all of the What Your _ Needs to Know books and realized this would be perfect. Essentially, I just needed a basic foundation to keep the flow of history in order and from there I add historical fiction, biographies, etc. I also like having all the books from which to have a basic foundation for all subjects...World History, Science, Geography, Art, Music, etc. and the access to lesson plans which correspond with them. The lesson plan sites are perfect for filling in gaps or for new fresh lesson ideas. This is what I have planned too. Since we're new to the What Your _ Needs to Know series, we're backing up in it a bit and are pulling topics from the lower grade books, though I plan to cover 2 books/"grade levels" a year for a while. We are using them as the primary history, geography, and science backbone, and from there I can expand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 The more I look at this, the more I don't like it. I'd love to have it for a resource along with my encyclopedias and other reference materials; but...there is a...coldness...about learning things by grade, that I have never enjoyed. Even when just teaching one student, or myself, I have always been attracted to family curricula, especially k-12 curricula that are meant to be rotated through more than once. Cycles attract me. Multiage activities attract me. This is linear and narrowly defines where a child SHOULD be at, without seeing him as a whole or in context with his family. It feels cold and judgemental somehow. Shiver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WIS0320 Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 The more I look at this, the more I don't like it. I'd love to have it for a resource along with my encyclopedias and other reference materials; but...there is a...coldness...about learning things by grade, that I have never enjoyed. Even when just teaching one student, or myself, I have always been attracted to family curricula, especially k-12 curricula that are meant to be rotated through more than once. Cycles attract me. Multiage activities attract me. This is linear and narrowly defines where a child SHOULD be at, without seeing him as a whole or in context with his family. It feels cold and judgemental somehow. Shiver. It was developed for use in public or private schools not for homeschoolers. Obviously there is some tweaking that goes on when you are taking a curriculum like this and using it in a family environment. The positives to a curriculum like this is that it is comprehensive and integrated. If a parent not capable due to circumstance to map out a longterm plan, this is a good one to hop on board with. I've looked at the plans extensively and find some of the resources invaluable and much better organized than anything I've found that homeschool curriculum writers are offering. For instance, the text resource packet for Language Arts per grade is extremely affordable and saves a homeschooling family so much time to not have to gather that many resources of poetry, literature, fables and so on. Of course this material can be used for multiple grade levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Twain Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 The more I look at this, the more I don't like it. I'd love to have it for a resource along with my encyclopedias and other reference materials; but...there is a...coldness...about learning things by grade, that I have never enjoyed. Even when just teaching one student, or myself, I have always been attracted to family curricula, especially k-12 curricula that are meant to be rotated through more than once. Cycles attract me. Multiage activities attract me. This is linear and narrowly defines where a child SHOULD be at, without seeing him as a whole or in context with his family. It feels cold and judgemental somehow. Shiver. I can see how people may react negatively to a "This Is What Your Kid Should Know By This Age" list. On the other hand, how many times have you heard people say (or wondered ourselves) if we are doing enough, or covering what we need to, or just doing a quality job with homeschooling? I like the K-8 Sequence because it gives me peace of mind that my homeschool program is covering the basic subjects and skills that are generally expected for educated students. I don't often worry that I am not doing enough or that I may be missing something because I have this basic list to reassure me that my plan is solid. Also, you don't have to look at it as if it is locking you into only teaching what it has on the list in that order or by its specified time period. I use it as a rough baseline or as a possible strategy for covering each subject, and then I add and build onto it in most subjects using my own objectives and plans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 Don't get me wrong, if someone is looking for a linear, age specific curriculum, this is an AWESOME resource, maybe the best of the best. But, that said, PERSONALLY my learning/teaching style is cyclical not linear. Round and round she goes and where she stops nobody knows :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcnlvr Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 We use CK for History, Civics, Geography, and Sciences. Intellego Unit Studies is our *favorite* website (VSL learners at my house)! Bcn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 I'm not slamming the series, and I did look at copies at the library and bookstore. It's just not for ME as a PRIMARY curriculum. I love my dictionaries, but I don't read them through from beginning to end. I use them as reference. It would be a chilly, sad things of me to just read my dictionary each day. I've realized I don't like to USE as my PRIMARY curricula LINEAR textbooks. And that is okay! :-) I...LIKE...CYCLES. Cycles ground me and make me feel hopeful and connected. I was IMPRESSED with the series even before I saw all the support materials which are just...well...even more impressive...BUT...it is NOT the curriculum for ME; except as a RESOURCE. I was looking at the kindergarten book, and sigh! It contains things I haven't mastered and if space and money and time were unlimited I would buy the series and all the supportive resources. But they are not. So I pass. I'm very impressed in general, but not impressed at the idea of using them for myself instead of other things that are currently available. I'm impressed, but I pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto2Cs Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 Now see' date=' in my brain, I have blocked out the X grader part, because honestly, there is stuff in the K book I do not (or well did not) already know (if I had heard it before I had forgotten it), and things I know my now 7th grader also never was told about. I have decided to mentally label them by letters.. like Sonlight, and we will move through them at what ever pace. Before you decide that you don't like it based on it's title I highly suggest seeing if your library has them and skimming through them.[/quote'] :iagree: I'm pulling bits and pieces from the first, second and third grade levels for my kids, ages 8 and 10. I don't care that they are those grades... I care that they have valuable information, and I like the way things are laid out. From there, I can build a comprehensive set of unit studies for both my kids. I can see where the linear approach might bother people, but they don't have to be used that way. We're learning from the "kindergarten" book right now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HootyTooty Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 For those who are using it for History for 4th & 5th, I found the Time Travelers series to be a great great for Revolution through Civil War years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peacefully Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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