Which do you find easier to stick with.... "boxed" or pieced together?

[Katydid]

I have been homeschooling my kids from birth and my oldest is in 2nd. Up to this point we have been very relaxed, but, come January, I would really like ramp up our frequency of "doing school".

 

Apparently, I have a really hard time sticking with things. :glare: So far, we've tried AO, Oak Meadow, SOTW, WWE, BFSU, topic "units" that I pulled together, and we just started MFW K for dd (my second child). MEP and copywork/narration are the only things we've stuck with consistently.

 

MFW K looks cute, but I'm not all "woo hoo" about it. :tongue_smilie:But I've been thinking about going with Adventures for my 2nd grader. I wanted to do some American history with him this year instead of continuing with SOTW 2.

 

But I am also tempted to just pull some units together myself this year, starting with Native Americans and moving on to different topics based on our history or science interests. I do enjoy researching different materials, but I am not very organized.

 

So what do you think would be easier to implement and more enjoyable: Something already planned out that we can just hunker down and get done, or piecing together things based on interest or whim to keep things fresh?

[Mom22ns]

I think that is completely dependent on you.

 

If you need something prepared and ready to go because otherwise it doesn't get prepared so you put it off... get something well planned.

 

If you are quickly bored by following someone else's plans and long to chase rabbit trails, make your own.

 

I don't think anyone else's opinion on this matters. It is YOUR opinion that counts.

 

ps I'm a planner. I want it planned and laid out. I can plan it or someone else can, but it has to all be done well in advance so it is ready when I need it. Just my personality.

[JessieC]

I don't know, but I'm wondering the same. I'm piecing together this year (our first year), and I've enjoyed the research and trying different curriculum options. I am consider MBTP for next year. It looks great, but I wonder if I'll miss being involved in all the choices. It's a tough decision!

[Katydid]

 

I don't think anyone else's opinion on this matters. It is YOUR opinion that counts.

 

 

Yeah, except I can't make up my mind because both methods sound good for different reasons! :lol:

[boscopup]

I really think it's just how you function that matters.

 

I bought MFW K this year for DS2. I like it a lot, but I'm NOT using it as written or on the schedule listed. I'm finding that I don't function well on a boxed curriculum's schedule. :tongue_smilie:

 

My older son (2nd grade) has his different subjects pieced together, though I'm not currently using my own curriculum (tried that last year in science and I found that I can't even follow my OWN schedule :lol:). I do great with an individual subject that is just do-the-next-thing. For example, SOTW... We read 1 section per day, 3 days per week. Easy peasy. I add in the extra books, do some notebooking, do the mapwork, etc. I don't have a problem following this, but it isn't dependent on any other subject either. If we don't get to history a couple days one week (um... this week :glare:), it doesn't throw off math, grammar, science, or anything else. I like that aspect of piecing together.

 

I was going to do HOD Bigger next year, but then I really thought about it, and yeah, I wouldn't keep up with it day-to-day. Seriously, what was I thinking? :lol: So I will piece together American history. We'll see how that goes. It won't be like SOTW, so probably won't be as good. But I'll make it work. It's just 3rd grade, so it doesn't have to be perfect! And I have enough resources that I should be able to put together a loose plan that will work for us.

 

I won't be getting MFW 1st next year, since I'm not doing the phonics and such in MFW K. I'll just stick with 3R's for DS2 like I'm doing this year, and add in some good read-alouds from FIAR, Sonlight, AO, etc. lists.

[G5052]

We used Sonlight history/lit for six years, and I have no regrets. Of course I didn't like a few of the books and at times didn't like how they ordered things, but having a plan each day helped me immensely. I used it mostly as written. Somewhere in that period I used MFW K with my youngest, and it was lovely too. We skipped a few of the books, but it was just right at the time.

 

I'm a professional educator, and you wouldn't think that I would like that, but I did. It met my goals 90% of the time, and that was close enough.

[morosophe]

I do great with an individual subject that is just do-the-next-thing. For example, SOTW... We read 1 section per day, 3 days per week. Easy peasy. I add in the extra books, do some notebooking, do the mapwork, etc. I don't have a problem following this, but it isn't dependent on any other subject either. If we don't get to history a couple days one week (um... this week :glare:), it doesn't throw off math, grammar, science, or anything else. I like that aspect of piecing together.

 

The program I use for putting my schedule together is Homeschool Skedtrack (free online here), and this is exactly how it operates. I love that the calendar only comes in when you say you're completing something. It has honestly helped me SO MUCH.

 

That said, I need something planned, or at least the bare bones, to help keep me accountable. But that doesn't mean I like "boxed" terribly much. Yes, I'm using Sonlight for my history, read-alouds, and readers, but I'm doing WWE for my composition and R&S for my grammar and MUS for my math...

 

And, actually, Sonlight itself is built so that you piece together different parts for the different subjects. Their (not-terribly-good) LA is tied into the readers somewhat, but the rest of it--science, Bible, etc.--certainly isn't attached to anything. (Although, actually, Bible is included in the core. It just doesn't have anything to do with what you study in history, and you aren't required to buy those resources when buying a Core.)

 

To do your own, here's an idea for history: find a spine you like (good luck with American history!), and add in some read-alouds of your own. All Through the Ages is the resource I personally like best for this, since it organizes possibilities so well for you, but there are loads of historically-themed lists floating around.

 

God bless whatever you do!

[Lisa in the UP of MI]

For me, I prefer to pick a different curriculum for each subject, but for it to be planned out already so that I just do the next thing. I like doing this because my kids are on different levels in different subjects. So, something like Sonlight, Winterpromise, or Heart of Dakota won't work for me, because it has EVERYTHING together. But we love AAS, RightStart math, Singapore math, MEP math, WWE, FLL, etc. I love the idea of planning out my own thing, but in reality I know that it just won't happen.

[boscopup]

The program I use for putting my schedule together is Homeschool Skedtrack (free online here), and this is exactly how it operates. I love that the calendar only comes in when you say you're completing something. It has honestly helped me SO MUCH.

 

Yes, I use HST+, and that helps immensely! :D

 

To do your own, here's an idea for history: find a spine you like (good luck with American history!), and add in some read-alouds of your own. All Through the Ages is the resource I personally like best for this, since it organizes possibilities so well for you, but there are loads of historically-themed lists floating around.

 

I just got All Through the Ages a couple weeks ago. I think I will definitely make good use of that resource. ;) I also have Guest Hollow and a bunch of other lists and such to use. :)

[Katydid]

 

To do your own, here's an idea for history: find a spine you like (good luck with American history!), and add in some read-alouds of your own. All Through the Ages is the resource I personally like best for this, since it organizes possibilities so well for you, but there are loads of historically-themed lists floating around.

 

God bless whatever you do!

 

Thanks for your help! I was thinking I would use Betsy Maestro's books for my spine. And I do have All Through the Ages. I think I will start by planning out a Native American unit and see how it goes. Since my focus will mostly be on the time before Columbus, I don't think there would be too much overlap with Adv. if I decide I want to go in that direction.

 

Off topic, but I see you are using A Child's Geography with your 2nd grader... do you find it to be a good fit for that age? I've been curious about that program. :001_smile:

[Myeightkiddies]

So what do you think would be easier to implement and more enjoyable: Something already planned out that we can just hunker down and get done, or piecing together things based on interest or whim to keep things fresh?

 

Yes. Through the years I've done both, and both have been best thing during those times.

 

Often when I do a planned program, I find myself tweaking it. I remove excess busywork that the child doesn't need - typically due to mastery so only a brief review is needed. Monthly (or weekly) I look through the upcoming lessons and search the net (or other books that I have) for additional projects, activities, reading lists, etc. Then I add them. If adding them creates too much work, I decide whether or not to eliminate something in the planned curriculum. Also, I think of field trips, foods to cook, games, etc. that are related to the topic in the curriculum, and we do that for fun.

 

Basically you can take a pre-planned, out-of-box program and keep it fresh.

[Mrs Twain]

Off topic, but I see you are using A Child's Geography with your 2nd grader... do you find it to be a good fit for that age? I've been curious about that program. :001_smile:

 

We're using A Child's Geography (Expore His Earth) with 1st and 3rd graders, and it is a very nice fit.

 

As far as you initial question--

In my experience, to be a piercer-together-type, it really works best if you have an organized, planner-type of personality, or else you can force yourself into it. If you are not a planner, then I think a big risk is that a lot of subjects or important concepts may fall through the cracks.

 

For a person who doesn't like to plan or who doesn't feel organized enough, a boxed curriculum could be the best way to make sure that all of the relevant subjects and material get covered throughout the year. If you still want to be involved in some of the planning and researching, you could add in supplements according to your interest. That way, you could stay on track in the school year by using the box, but also be able to chase the rabbit trails of your choosing. I like to add in various supplements to some of my open-and-go materials, especially in math, writing, science, and history.

[Ellie]

Well, I can't answer the question you asked, because you seem to have a different definition of "boxed" than I do. :-)

 

In fact, "boxed curriculum" has no meaning to me. "School in a box" does, though, or "box of books."

 

I would not lump MFW, TOG, Beautiful Feet Books, or SL into the same category as buying a box of books from ABeka, BJUP, R&S, etc.

 

I can't lump MFW, TOG, Beautiful Feet Books, or SL into the same box, either.

 

To me, it has more to do with my philosophy of education (unit study, Charlotte Mason, classical, Principle Approach, traditional textbook/just-like-school) than whether I buy something published from one author or put together many different resources.

 

I can buy a box of books from ABeka, BJUP, ACE, CLP, R&S, et al, and do every day just like school.

 

Not in this lifetime. :D

 

Or I can decide that I really like teaching using good trade books instead of textbooks, in which case I might go with Sonlight, or just do my own stuff. I would probably do my own, because I don't work well with someone else's schedule.

 

Or I can decide that I really like unit studies, in which case I might do KONOS, and I'd probably stick with that, because I like the emphasis on godly character traits.

 

Or I might decide that I'm definitely a Principle Approach person, in which case I might do the Noah Plan, which I might not stick with (see above) or buy study guides for different books like Heidi, or I might do Beautiful Feet Books just for history and do something else for science.

 

I don't consider KONOS, Sonlight, Noah Plan, or Beautiful Feet Books to be "boxed curriculum." :)

 

So, um, what was the question?? :D

[MissKNG]

I use a combo of both - Noeo and Sonlight are scheduled for me. I find it very easy to tweak the schedules to work for us whether it be extra days for books/projects/experiments or cutting stuff out or whatever. If you use a schedule, you don't need to follow it to the T.

[QuirkyKapers]

I like to piece things together. I find that if I get the box, I usually end up not using or doing everything.

[SorrelZG]

I personally seem to need to piece things together, keeping lots of flexibility and freedom to change things up. It's the only way I've been able to keep moving forward. I have a horrid history with boxed curricula.

[Alte Veste Academy]

I have been homeschooling my kids from birth and my oldest is in 2nd. Up to this point we have been very relaxed, but, come January, I would really like ramp up our frequency of "doing school".

 

Apparently, I have a really hard time sticking with things. :glare: So far, we've tried AO, Oak Meadow, SOTW, WWE, BFSU, topic "units" that I pulled together, and we just started MFW K for dd (my second child). MEP and copywork/narration are the only things we've stuck with consistently.

 

OK, I don't know you from Adam, so don't let this offend you at all if it doesn't apply. :D

 

When you say that math and LA are always consistent and you have a hard time sticking with things, my first thought is that your actual problem is not deciding between an all-in-one package or a cobbled curriculum. Rather, the real issue may be simply deciding to make homeschooling all subjects a priority, regardless of what materials you choose.

 

Once you decide to take the other subjects more seriously (start planning now, for taking seriously in January :D), I agree with this...

 

In my experience, to be a piercer-together-type, it really works best if you have an organized, planner-type of personality, or else you can force yourself into it. If you are not a planner, then I think a big risk is that a lot of subjects or important concepts may fall through the cracks.

 

For a person who doesn't like to plan or who doesn't feel organized enough, a boxed curriculum could be the best way to make sure that all of the relevant subjects and material get covered throughout the year. If you still want to be involved in some of the planning and researching, you could add in supplements according to your interest. That way, you could stay on track in the school year by using the box, but also be able to chase the rabbit trails of your choosing. I like to add in various supplements to some of my open-and-go materials, especially in math, writing, science, and history.

 

...because it's not about what we find easier to stick with. It's about what you find easier to stick with. :)

 

I am also tempted to just pull some units together myself this year, starting with Native Americans and moving on to different topics based on our history or science interests. I do enjoy researching different materials, but I am not very organized.

 

So what do you think would be easier to implement and more enjoyable: Something already planned out that we can just hunker down and get done, or piecing together things based on interest or whim to keep things fresh?

 

If I've learned one thing about myself in the past year and a half, it's that when I try to be who I'm not, I fail. Miserably. Be who you are. When you say that you are not very organized but that you want to pull something together and teach based on interest, you are setting yourself up for failure. Better to take someone else's map and stay on course while adding a few side trips than to attempt navigating the entire excursion on your own while simultaneously steering the ship. :tongue_smilie:

 

Just a guess? I bet you're very creative with a million wonderful ideas. I've lived the pain of having wonderful ideas...too many to implement them all and stymied by time and real life. I have often thought I could invent the perfect HS curriculum if my kids were in school. :lol: Ironic. What has worked for me is baby steps.

[Joyofsixreboot]

I find I do better with boxed. I'd rather research than actually teach when I pull mine together. It becomes a huge time suck for me.

[Mommy22alyns]

Different strokes... I actually like things pre-scheduled and I don't feel the need to tweak like so many here.

[boscopup]

When you say that math and LA are always consistent and you have a hard time sticking with things, my first thought is that your actual problem is not deciding between an all-in-one package or a cobbled curriculum. Rather, the real issue may be simply deciding to make homeschooling all subjects a priority, regardless of what materials you choose.

 

 

This is me! :D There are certain subjects that I could easily fit in, but I don't make them high priority, and thus they don't get done. Art is one, and I'm fine with that. I really could care less about art. :leaving: Science is another one, though I actually LIKE science. It's the experiments that throw me, because I don't want to get stuff out and spend time doing stuff. I hate cleaning up messes, and my kids aren't old enough to do projects and experiments on their own (though DS1 can do some Science Wiz kit experiments on his own, which is how we've gotten "science" in last week ;)).

 

Math is important to me, and DS loves it, so we do that every day, regardless of what else is going on. We never skip math. This week has been hectic, and we missed a couple days of school, but we still did math. Tomorrow we'll be catching up on grammar and writing (need to do one lesson in each subject for the week), as well as spelling (I think we got 2 lessons behind there). We're even a couple lessons behind in history. Man, we were total slackers this week! But usually, I at least get math, grammar, and writing in every single week. History gets done most of the time because it's easy to do - the boy goes off and reads SOTW, he comes back and narrates or notebooks, and I hand him whatever library books we got on the topic so he can go off and read those. The funny thing is that our science this year is a textbook, so we can do the same thing, but it's like I know that next experiment is looming, so I just put off the whole subject completely. :tongue_smilie:He still gets plenty of library books on science topics, reads the Apologia books, etc. So it's not like he's not learning science. He's more unschooling science, I guess.

 

So yes, I completely agree. In my case with art... it isn't the curriculum - it's the fact that I hate art and really just don't want to do it. In my case with science, it's the fact that I dread experiments and don't want to do them. It's all me, and that's going to be the case no matter what curriculum I use. I'm trying to change the science part. I don't really have much desire to change the art part. We do some art now and then, and that's enough for me.

[Katydid]

OK, so to clarify, when I say "boxed" I mean any program with subjects scheduled out for you (ie. "read this chapter of this book on this day"). As opposed to pieced together, which, to me, means I decide on each book/movie/project/ect. we will use and come up with my own plan for when/how to use them.

 

And when I say we have only been consistent with MEP and copywork/narration, I mean that whenever we have "done school" those things have gotten done, along with bits of various other programs we have tried, but that the doing of school has not been very consistent here. :thumbdown:I had a baby in September and the pregnancy/new baby thing has really thrown me off. That's why I'm looking for perspectives on what would be easiest to get done consistently starting in the new year. And I realize it's a decision only I can make, but I find it helpful to "talk" it out with other homeschoolers. :001_smile:

 

This thread has been very helpful to me, so far. Lots of ideas to consider. Any other thoughts would be appreciated. :bigear:

[...................]

Calvert has been the only boxed we have finished.

 

Boxed We have tried:

CHC (sold)

Sonlight Pre K (we used the Pre K and loved it, actually.)

Sonlight 3 - borrowed from a friend, tried and gave back

Calvert (used and loved Pre-K, K and 4. Returned 2 for a refund)

 

We've also tried and sold lots of other stuff but when I'm piecing together, disliking something is much less traumatic!

 

All in all, I will never try another boxed again. It's either Calvert or eclectic for us, because there are only so many box trauma experiences I'm willing to have.

[FairyMom]

That's a hard one. There are great boxes for certain seasons. When I first started out, I did Sonlight's PreK Cores (A & B). Loved them. After that I did Oak Meadow K, loved that. During that season of my life when I had one child in "school" and was searching, those programs taught me so many wonderful things.

 

Then I went haywire for a year and tried... no laughing... HOD, WP, Oak Meadow 1, MFW, Oak Meadow 1 again, HOD again, sold it all, bought some of it again ... you get the picture. It's very difficult to try to find a box to be everything for me.

 

Right now I piece together from things I love and leave it at that. :)

[Amy Jo]

Originally I thought a pieced together approach, as there would be less monetary loss / guilt over dropping one piece of a curriculum than dropping an entire year's box.

 

But I don't know. I like to plan. (I recommend Simply Charlotte Mason's "How To Plan Your Charlotte Mason Education" book to help structure your learning.)

 

However, even though I like to plan, I've felt I'm not challenging my eldest enough, and not giving enough 1-on-1 to my 7yo. So we're doing a trial run of HUFI (from charlottemasonhelp.com - basically AO but much easier). It has a week by week reading list. So far I'm just dividing the number of reads by the number of days, and going from there. I think that will give me more time to (a) focus on my house & related habits for the family to keep it tidy and (b) allow me to have more fun with science and math, because I'm not planning everything.

 

If you want the best of both worlds and have the time to lay things out in the beginning, Simply Charlotte Mason has the SCM Organizer. If I go back to piecing together I am going to subscribe. It is pricy compared to other schedulers though.

[mom31257]

I pm'd you about a free American history study I pieced together last year. I enjoyed piecing it together, and it went well. I am using Biblioplan this year, and I've enjoyed having it planned out for me, although I naturally tweak it being the overzealous planner I am! I really think both ways can be good as long as the planned program has components you really like.

[Bloggermom]

I bought Memoria Press 1st grade and tweaked it so much we are only using it as a read-aloud guide. I like getting my own components and scheduling them out. For my older two kids I am having them do Veritas Press New Testament Greece and Rome (NTGR) so I got all the literature books listed in their catalog to go along with that. I figured that would give us PLENTY of reading to go along with their history. My kids are all using CLE for math and 2 of my kids are also using it for LA.

[Mommy_of_4]

We do better with boxed. I am afraid we are going to miss going over something if I piece it together. That will probably change though the longer I home school the kids. I have tried to branch out and use different things but we always end up going back to LifePacs.

[mytwomonkeys]

i prefer piecing together most subjects but tend to use publishers that sell boxed curriculum, if that makes sense. so we use CLE for math, BJU for english & spelling (with my daughter), R&S with my son for english & WWW for his writing, etc. a lot of these sell full curriculum by grade, but i prefer to pick and choose by subject.

 

in history and science, i prefer to use a lot of library books. with history, we read a lot of historical fiction.

[SorrelZG]

I personally seem to need to piece things together, keeping lots of flexibility and freedom to change things up. It's the only way I've been able to keep moving forward. I have a horrid history with boxed curricula.

 

By "boxed" I really just meant anything with multiple subjects scheduled for me. Still, I am hoping to do AO next year which has somewhat of a schedule. It will be a minimum cost risk, keeping plenty of flexibility though so I'm willing to try it.

[Katydid]

I really think both ways can be good as long as the planned program has components you really like.

 

Yeah, that is the key. I'm finding myself drawn to several different programs for different reasons, but none of them seem to use everything I want to use, the way I want to use it.

 

I'll throw this out there just for fun. Here's what I like about each program I'm drawn to:

 

MFW: I really like the history rotation and a lot of their book selections

AO: Love many of the book selections and the fact that it is free. I've learned a lot about how to schedule just by looking at theirs.

Oak Meadow: LOVED the science and the layout of the TM's

SCM: Lots of wonderful resources!

TWTM: Straight forward, easy to follow

 

There are several other programs I look at just for their book list: Sonlight, LBC, Guest hollow, HOD....

 

I feel like I have learned enough about teaching methods from TWTM, CM, Beechick, etc. to apply them to pretty much any book list (at least in the grammar stage). So I feel like I would be wasting money if I bought a laid out program and then proceeded to tweak it to include different resources I like better. If I'm going to buy a program, I feel like I need to use it pretty much as-is.... otherwise, what's the point?

 

Then again, as everyone says, there is no "perfect" curriculum and the best one is the one that gets done. So back to my quandary.... which one is most likely to get done here: the "less perfect" one that is already laid out, or the "more perfect" one that I have to put together..... think, think, think.... :tongue_smilie: