lorrainejmc Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I love unit studies. I love how everyone can learn together at their level and I love finding books and resources and the variety of activities and topics. Most of the time anyway.:001_huh: Other times I am overwhelmed with not knowing where we're headed so I start to long for a box checking curriculum with books, schedule and ready to print notebook and/or lapbook components included. Does anyone successfully balance a scheduled curriculum with occasional unit studies? Because I think that might be a better solution for us....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrissySC Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Are you asking if we all go off on trails that spark our interest or get lost and fixated on a particular topic entirely too long? No, of course not. LOL Oh, how I wish that were the answer. Yes, all the time. We are still stepping out on MOH for some interesting investigations into Noah's Ark. :) I do not think that once you have a set "guide" that you will plan the study as detailed as before having the guide. I know that I do not. In this case, we take more of a Charlotte-Mason styled approach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2_girls_mommy Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 We have taken months off to do a unit study at times. We take a month off of our WTM science sequence for the science fair every year, and we do art with that, writing with that, reading with that, etc, so it is like a unit study. We keep up math and grammar or phonics, but will substitute everything else. And sometimes we use the unit study for the grammar and vocab and everything else too :) We don't do this often, but it is nice once or twice a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennW in SoCal Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Well, if you are someone who loves to pull together your own resources, then you may find you hate the constraints of a boxed program. You'll likely end up doing as much outside the box as inside, and unless the core components of the program are brilliantly useful, it will be a waste. What I did until high school was to have a loose plan for a year which we'd do through unit studies. We'd stay a long time immersed in topics that the kids loved and we'd just dip our toes into topics that didn't grab their interest. Science, history and literature were all covered in this way, with no detrimental effects. Both kids did well with organized courses in high school and both are doing fine in college. The benefit of this approach is that they are well rounded, know the subjects and disciplines in which they excel, and they genuinely still have a love of learning. Sure they have gaps -- doesn't everyone? But they are the kinds of people who love to fill in those gaps instead of shrugging off their ignorance. Do what you love, and if it is unit studies, don't abandon it. There is nothing wrong with having a back up plan for those times when no one is particularly motivated. It is also ok to take the month of December off and just do crafts and baking!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I always thought I would do unit studies but became petrified by the perceived immensity of long term planning and simultaneous flexibility I thought I would require. :tongue_smilie: I just wanted to tell you that we do (flexibly) scheduled curriculum, and I still get burned out after a while. Everything needs a little bit of work from me (even if it is just getting everybody to the table) and some days I just don't feel up to it. Maybe what you need is to choose your preferred style - like unit studies, and then have an occasional week where you pull out a math workbook, a few grammar rules, an 8 word spelling list, and, say, a geography workbook and do those (and only those) for a week. So, whenever you plan your unit studies, you could plan those too - it's OK if they turn out to be review, or a gentle introduction to something you haven't covered yet! All it would take is a little of your time...... (If I hear that phrase again this month I will curl into a ball and roll in with the dust bunnies in the closet.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorrainejmc Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 I think the difficulty I have is switching off. I am always on the look out for ideas and it can be too mind consuming. I need a better plan, but from next week we are just doing the 3 r's and lots of crafts up to Christmas. Maybe I'll feel refreshed in the new year, if I can get unit study ideas out of my head...:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristinannie Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I just wrote a LONG response and the hive ate it. :willy_nilly: I can completely see how one could get burned out doing unit studies. I also completely understand how you can never turn it off (you are constantly on the look out for new ideas). I have lots of stuff that I have found already for future unit studies. I haven't been doing this for long, but I do LOVE the way that unit studies tie everything together. My kids learn so much through this form of teaching. When we read a book or see something on TV, the kids have a working knowledge of so many things from unit studies. The key for me keeping my sanity (and I am new at this so take this with a grain of salt if you want to) has been to realize that I don't need to teach them every.single.thing about each topic. I had just finished a unit study and found a book that would have been great as a read aloud and I was so upset that I had missed it. Then it dawned on me that I could still read that book and that the kids would get more out of it because of our unit study. I think you are doing the right thing taking a break until after the holidays. As soon as we finish this current unit study, we are doing the same thing. A few weeks of the 3R's, crafts and other fun stuff is a good idea once in awhile! The great thing about homeschooling is that we can adjust things to meet our current needs and the current needs of our children. Give yourself permission to do what you need to do. The kids won't get as much out of it if you are burned out anyway! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morosophe Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I've been toying with the idea of doing unit studies during the summer. I figure, as long as I don't require the incremental lessons (like handwriting, spelling, grammar, etc.) and really focus on something that the kids love, it'll be like a break. Plus, I can schedule more easily for the occasional week off here or there for camp or VBS. I haven't tried it yet, but I really want to. There are so many neat things out there! (I'm really looking forward to Further Up and Further In when my boys get old enough. I'm just sad that I don't have any daughters with which to do Anne!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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