Help! I'm wavering with my plans for this coming school year!

[runningirl71]

For about a month now, I've started to really second guess my plans for this coming year. We are in the last year of the history cycle, our first time through, so we are studying modern times this year. Daisy is going into 5th and so if I were to do two more history cycles, one year of a cycle would be missed.

 

What I'm wavering about is I've been really trying to think through if studying modern times would be more beneficial to do in 8th grade and then again in 12th. If I do it this year she'll study them in 5th and then again in 9th. I've been REALLY questioning whether I should hold off and go back to Ancients this coming year.

 

Going back to Ancients really excites me and Daisy, although I've talked myself out of it every time I give serious thought to it. I guess I would feel a little bad {guilty?} if I were to skip a year of the cycle. But, we're going to have to drop one year anyway. I picked up the local newspaper yesterday and there was an ad for an Egyptian exhibit at the art museum, which got me thinking about this again!

 

I already have all my materials for modern times. I did buy some primary source books that are actually high school level, which I was going to glean from, so I know I could hold on to my books and use them later. We have education money saved up, so that isn't an issue either. WWYD?

[Tammyla]

History can be so exciting...hook her now with the Ancients study;). Fifth grade is such an amazing year full of discovery. The museum exhibit will be what she remembers with wonder for years to come.

 

(I have two kids and the 4 year cycle has been tweaked and worked out just fine. My two love history & I'm glad I was flexible way back when.)

 

Enjoy your year which ever cycle you choose.

 

For about a month now, I've started to really second guess my plans for this coming year. We are in the last year of the history cycle, our first time through, so we are studying modern times this year. Daisy is going into 5th and so if I were to do two more history cycles, one year of a cycle would be missed.

 

What I'm wavering about is I've been really trying to think through if studying modern times would be more beneficial to do in 8th grade and then again in 12th. If I do it this year she'll study them in 5th and then again in 9th. I've been REALLY questioning whether I should hold off and go back to Ancients this coming year.

 

Going back to Ancients really excites me and Daisy, although I've talked myself out of it every time I give serious thought to it. I guess I would feel a little bad {guilty?} if I were to skip a year of the cycle. But, we're going to have to drop one year anyway. I picked up the local newspaper yesterday and there was an ad for an Egyptian exhibit at the art museum, which got me thinking about this again!

 

I already have all my materials for modern times. I did buy some primary source books that are actually high school level, which I was going to glean from, so I know I could hold on to my books and use them later. We have education money saved up, so that isn't an issue either. WWYD?

[AllSmiles]

I’d say if you are feeling drawn to the ancients this year, I would go ahead and cover that time period. I would take advantage of the fact that you have an Egyptian exhibit at your local museum right now. What a great way to see first hand some of the things you are studying about.

 

If you still feel guilty over skipping a cycle you could have your daughter listen to SOTW 4 on CD while you are covering the ancients.

[King Alfred Academy]

I would go ahead and do the Ancients this year and do the modern times in 8th and 12th. Especially since you both are excited at the thought of it!

 

She's not going to get "behind" by not doing modern only twice. Personally, we are only going to make the rotation twice anyhow.

 

I say go for what excites you! It'll make the year much more enjoyable!

[PeterPan]

Well see I would say just the opposite, to stick with your modern. It doesn't preclude you handing her some books on egyptian and going to that exhibit. Your life could change and you find yourself never hitting that cycle again (noticed your oldest is going to ps this fall). What would be good is to take 6 weeks around the time when you want to do that exhibit and do a crazy fun study of egyptian in preparation for it. Then go back to your normal modern history.

 

Part of the reason for cycling through and hitting history again and again is so you can come at it at a deeper level. You want enough space between your times through that it's significantly different (at the next level, making more connections, etc.). I wouldn't jump the gun on that, just me personally. It's something I mention because my dd likes history too and tends to cycle quickly. I've actually slowed us down, realizing I don't want us to get to ancients again while we're still at the same thought level. Also, I spent a ton of time this summer planning through modern, and there's some really good, thought-provoking topics to it. I just don't see skipping. Take 6 weeks and do some study on egypt, have your fun, go to the exhibit, then go back to your modern history study.

[MIch elle]

That's what we'll be doing;

 

grade 6 - SL6 schedule with SOTW 1 & 2

grade 7 - SOTW 3 with A History of Us books 1-5 - Biblioplan or other

grade 8 - SOTW 4 with A History of Us books 6-10, Biblioplan or other

 

OR

 

gr. 6 - SL 6

gr. 7 - SL 7

gr. 8 - SL 100

[runningirl71]

Thanks all for your replies! I appreciate your thoughts! :) My dilemma with whether I should go back to Ancients is more on the line of which year in history in the future will be skipped? Daisy is in 5th and so will miss one year of a cycle. I have to figure out which year would be best. The only reason I would skip year 4 now is b/c of where she's at. She is ready to take on the work of the logic stage. She is ready to think deeper now. She'll learn how to outline this year and will start a formal writing program. As I've been going over my modern times material, it seems real "heavy." There are so many topics to think deeply about along with some really good literature that may be better to wait until she is older to go through. I realize the grammar stage is for exposing them to history and that the logic stage is to really go deeper into their studies. Daisy is ready to do this, but I'm not sure if modern times studies would be good to start with this stage. It seems better to end with it. I just don't see how I would combine two years later in the logic stage with so much to cover, meaning one year would be left undone. I'm not sure if I want Daisy to study modern times for the last time in 9th grade. I think I would want to go through this part of history as an older middler and than an older highschooler.

 

You've all given me good things to think about! :)

[threetreasurs]

I say go for the ancients!

[LanaTron]

Yes, go with your gut!

[Laura W.]

Go back to ancients this year. The things you've listed are good reasons for choosing to wait a little on modern history. Of course you don't know what will happen 3 or 4 years down the road, but an excitement and love of history will give her a good foundation for anything she might end up doing in a classroom setting.

 

Blessings,

 

Laura

[FO4UR]

I vote for Ancients:) You've put a lot of thought into it...and I agree with choosing modern study in 8th and 12th, rather than 5th and 9th. You can also do a quick 6wk survey over the basics of the modern time line and maybe read a biography or two, before delving back into the ancients.

[runningirl71]

Thanks all! I appreciate all the comments and helping me think through this. I'm still not sure which way to go but will think and meditate on it more.

 

I don't know what the future holds, but the plan is to homeschool Daisy through highschool. Her brother and her are extremely different kids. I started homeschooling out of need {we lived in a foreign country when I started} and Daisy just fell in love with it. Forest has always been looking for a way out since starting. :) Thanks again, you all are THE best! :)

[momto2Cs]

I like your idea of holding off on the moderns until 8th and 12th, as I think many children would be able to go more in depth with some of the subject matter at those ages.

 

Personally, we're doing kind of a 5 year cycle with a couple of years for deeper exploration of U.S. History, so I am all for tweaking the ideas of the program to meet personal needs.

 

And most of all, follow your instincts, as others mentioned. Do what you find exciting, and what Daisy will find exciting too.

[materursa]

My vote is to go for ancients too. As you mentioned some of the modern era topics are a bit more "mature" and is best studied by older students. The ancients did some brutal things but we are more removed from them, and most books and resources on the ancients don't dwell on these things as much as studies on modern times do.

 

I think that the younger crowd gets more out of studying ancients, and tend to be more excited about studying them.

 

Amanda

[Rhondabee]

I'll vote here - I have a rising 5th grader studying Modern this next year. But, I also have an 8th grader! And, I've been waiting for *3 lo-o-o-ong years* to get to the Modern Literature lists!!!! I couldn't bear to go back to mythology and miss all those books! =)

 

One thing I have thought of doing (but most likely won't) is doing a 3-year cycle after doing Modern in 9th grade (like Omnibus - but using my own stuff).

 

Whatever you do will be great, though!

Rhonda

[Staci in MO]

My vote is to go for ancients too. As you mentioned some of the modern era topics are a bit more "mature" and is best studied by older students. The ancients did some brutal things but we are more removed from them, and most books and resources on the ancients don't dwell on these things as much as studies on modern times do.

 

I think that the younger crowd gets more out of studying ancients, and tend to be more excited about studying them.

 

:iagree: You want to do ancients, she wants to do ancients: do the ancients. When you get to the modern era she'll be more mature and better able to understand all the complex things that were happening then.

[runningirl71]

I'll vote here - I have a rising 5th grader studying Modern this next year. But, I also have an 8th grader! And, I've been waiting for *3 lo-o-o-ong years* to get to the Modern Literature lists!!!! I couldn't bear to go back to mythology and miss all those books! =)

 

One thing I have thought of doing (but most likely won't) is doing a 3-year cycle after doing Modern in 9th grade (like Omnibus - but using my own stuff).

 

Whatever you do will be great, though!

Rhonda

 

What literature books will you be using with your 5th grader? I love the modern era too. And, we have been looking forward to studying it. I did listen to SOTW4 on audio cd in the car, and I wasn't so excited about it anymore. It was draining to listen to, if that makes sense! That is not an excuse for sure, but it seems like the really good literature for this era is for a more mature student. I know there is other literature too. We were going to study Number the Stars for one. I was just curious what you were thinking for your 5th grader!

[runningirl71]

:iagree: You want to do ancients, she wants to do ancients: do the ancients. When you get to the modern era she'll be more mature and better able to understand all the complex things that were happening then.

 

Did you study Ancients with TOG this past year? I see that you use TOG in your siggy. If I go back to Ancients, I want to use TOG. :)

[runningirl71]

Stacey in Mo! I just have to say that your'e my favorite bee! I loved being a honey bee!:) {sorry, just couldn't help myself!}

:lurk5:

[Mom2GirlsTX]

I had been wondering the same thing, so we decided for dd10 going into 5th that we are going to do the Ancients for 5th. I can't say what you should do, but I think do what interest you the most.

[PeterPan]

I still say you're making a lot of assumptions about how you'll do history come high school. You may chuck the 4 year thing and do a year of american, a year of government/econ, and a year of something totally off the wall like church history or modern history. You may be SICK of the 4 year cycle and want to break the mold with some SL or (wowsers) a textbook by then! You can't know what you're going to do, and I guarantee you some things are going to catch your eye then just like they are now.

 

Do what you want, but I still say I would finish what you started. A break to do egyptian for 6 weeks would be good. Perhaps what you're really seeing is that your plans for american got too heavy. Perhaps you need a lighter spine or a different focus. Has it gotten heavy on wars or something? You could totally change it and do a survey of presidents wives and influential women of modern. (Cokie Roberts -mispelled,sorry- has a book on this) You could cut it down to 6 months and do your egyptian survey the other months.

[Rhondabee]

Well, if you have ever read how Nan (on the high school board) does her lit studies, we are going to try something similar.

 

Since I have an 8th grader we're going to read along (each person will have his/her own book) as we listen to the books on CD. For this, we'll be using the 8th grade "Required" reading list in WTM.

 

Then, they will read the unabridged books from the 4th grade list, and historical fiction for "free" reading. Yeah, I know that means it's no longer *completely* "free"! But, they tend to spend all their free reading time moping around saying, "I just can't find a good book." - so, problem solved. I have a list (from WTM and SL), and probably I'll let them read one true "free" book for each book (or two) read from the list.

 

I am sacrificing our historical read-alouds to make this work, and I hate that! But, this was the best I could come up with knowing that I wanted the boys to be reading the same lit book at the same time to help facilitate our lit discussions.

 

btw - I was very nervous about doing that 8th grade list. So, I did check, and the reading level for the 8th grade list is basically 6th grade. That's the same as the 5th grade list. I didn't think twice about throwing that 5th grade list at my older ds, even though he was so far behind after coming out of public school. He rose to the challenge, so I'm cautiously optimistic that all my fears of doing the 8th grade list in 5th grade will be for naught.

 

Actually, the literature on the 8th grade list has *not* been that dark so far - I haven't read it all, yet. (The Importance of Being Earnest is hilarious!) I wonder if the historical fiction might be darker because it is dramatizing the darker moments - while the fiction of the time maybe tried to escape?

Just theorizing....

 

=)

Rhonda

 

What literature books will you be using with your 5th grader? I love the modern era too. And, we have been looking forward to studying it. I did listen to SOTW4 on audio cd in the car, and I wasn't so excited about it anymore. It was draining to listen to, if that makes sense! That is not an excuse for sure, but it seems like the really good literature for this era is for a more mature student. I know there is other literature too. We were going to study Number the Stars for one. I was just curious what you were thinking for your 5th grader!