Does anyone have a progressive list of goals per subject?

[Melissa B]

I would like to write out my goals to be met before graduation - subject by subject. A progressive list, not necessarily linked to grade level of what I hope my children will accomplish or acquire for each subject from beginning to end. I would love to see other people's goals or objectives, if anyone has written their own list and would like to share?

 

Thanks!

[Aletheia Academy]

I don't have mine all written out yet, but when I am ready to tackle that task, I plan to borrow liberally from the work that Veritas Press has done. Go to www.veritaspress.com. Navigate to "Resources," and you can "Download" their goals and objectives for free from the file called "Curriculum Guide." They have it organized both by grade level and subject area. At least it's a place to start, and you can tweak to your individual needs without re-inventing the wheel. There is a Mircrosoft file that can be edited and a PDF file that can't be edited.

 

HTH!

[Plaid Dad]

Are you thinking of particular skills, or a particular body of knowledge, or both?

 

I can share how I look at this. I divide our curriculum (LCC) into two parts: mastery subjects and other subjects. Starting from where I want my dd to be by the end of grade 12, I worked back to create a course of study that would get her there.

 

The mastery subjects are the classical languages (Latin and Greek), mathematics, and composition (writing). I want her to be able to read Latin fluently; to be able to read basic Greek prose (e.g., the gospels, the easier dialogues of Plato, Xenophon's Anabasis) and to have read at least a bit of Homer; to have mastered at least Algebra I, II, and Geometry; and to be able to write a variety of types of essays.

 

For the other subjects, I have a list of books I want her to have read or subject matter that I want her to have covered. It's what is laid out in The Latin-Centered Curriculum.

 

I have no doubt that some of the specifics will be modified along the way, but the overall shape and direction of the curriculum is in place. I can't imagine setting about homeschooling without having that kind of road map!

[TolleLegeAcademy]

I've been using Home Learning Year by Year

to help me with this as well as the Core Knowledge Sequence. If your library or bookstore has either of these they might also be a good starting point----though the Core Knowledge Sequence goes only through 8th grade. (Home Learning goes through 12th)

[Melissa B]

Thanks for the responses!

 

I do have the Veritas Press curriculum objectives bookmarked. And I own the Core Knowledge series (and I've read the Latin Centered Curriculum :).)

 

So I do have a general idea of what I want to accomplish. I know what subjects I want covered, etc.

 

My problem is that I feel I am too curriculum-focused rather than goal-focused.

 

I like to work backwards as well. I know what I want for the children by the time they graduate. But rather than a set of curriculum to complete, I would like goals or objectives to be met that progress in difficulty. Does that make sense?

 

So, since I know I want them to read Latin and Greek with some fluency and be able to write several types of essays, I would like to have a set of progressive goals or benchmarks to get to that point - rather than just do this Latin curriculum, this writing curriculum, etc. For some reason, I am having a much harder time writing this out than I would have thought. This makes me think I am too dependent on the curriculum and don't really have a solid understanding of what I want to accomplish year to year. Or I don't have a true understanding of how to get from A to Z and am just focused on choosing a decent curriculum and hoping for the best.

 

OK, I'm rambling. :blush:

[Mama Lynx]

Thanks for the responses!

 

I do have the Veritas Press curriculum objectives bookmarked. And I own the Core Knowledge series (and I've read the Latin Centered Curriculum :).)

 

So I do have a general idea of what I want to accomplish. I know what subjects I want covered, etc.

 

My problem is that I feel I am too curriculum-focused rather than goal-focused.

 

I like to work backwards as well. I know what I want for the children by the time they graduate. But rather than a set of curriculum to complete, I would like goals or objectives to be met that progress in difficulty. Does that make sense?

 

So, since I know I want them to read Latin and Greek with some fluency and be able to write several types of essays, I would like to have a set of progressive goals or benchmarks to get to that point - rather than just do this Latin curriculum, this writing curriculum, etc. For some reason, I am having a much harder time writing this out than I would have thought. This makes me think I am too dependent on the curriculum and don't really have a solid understanding of what I want to accomplish year to year. Or I don't have a true understanding of how to get from A to Z and am just focused on choosing a decent curriculum and hoping for the best.

 

OK, I'm rambling. :blush:

 

I'm in the same boat, if it helps you to know that you're not alone :)

 

I hate making decisions about things like this. I like to follow curriculum because I don't have to make those decisions. However, the time has come where I cannot bury my head in the sand any more.

 

Writing is one of my current problems. I write essays well. I can write an essay about anything. I know what kind of writing is expected in college. But I cannot for the life of me break down "writing" into a series of progressive goals ... and we're at a problem point in our curriculum.

[obiandelismom]

I don't have mine all written out yet, but when I am ready to tackle that task, I plan to borrow liberally from the work that Veritas Press has done. Go to www.veritaspress.com. Navigate to "Resources," and you can "Download" their goals and objectives for free from the file called "Curriculum Guide." They have it organized both by grade level and subject area. At least it's a place to start, and you can tweak to your individual needs without re-inventing the wheel. There is a Mircrosoft file that can be edited and a PDF file that can't be edited.

 

HTH!

 

This is great! Thanks for posting it!

[Colleen in NS]

My problem is that I feel I am too curriculum-focused rather than goal-focused.

 

But rather than a set of curriculum to complete, I would like goals or objectives to be met that progress in difficulty. Does that make sense?

 

rather than just do this Latin curriculum, this writing curriculum, etc.

 

Or I don't have a true understanding of how to get from A to Z and am just focused on choosing a decent curriculum and hoping for the best.

 

Yes, all these comments totally make sense to me. I think this is a great topic to bring up here. I posted something somewhat similar on the high school board recently, but had a hard time getting my thoughts across on what I was looking for.

 

:lurk5:

[Kimber]

I should probably write my goals down. But here goes--

 

Pre-calc before college. I'm using LOF and 1960's text books to get there. For math, there is no avoiding the textbook thing. But Fred fractions and decimals & percents books are very focused on the concept and not grade levels. They do have some geometry and other concepts covered, but not in the traditional way of focusing on grade levels.

 

For writing, I am switching from CW (for now) to WWE. And one of the main reasons is that Susan has done with writing exactly what you're talking about. She's taken the end result of being able to write at a high school level and backed it up to the beginning--without the unnecessary drill and fluff that most curriculum comes with. It's so straight forward toward the goal--grammatically correct, well written sentences and paragraphs. In WWE, she's done if for us. Since she won't have WWE completed for my older child to use in 6, 7, and 8, I plan to use Diogenes when she's ready.

 

For Latin, I plan to just follow the curriculum until we're ready for testing. Spanish, work at fluency until they leave for college.

 

 

For Science, I've not yet figured it out. I haven't spent much time on it to be honest. I think RS4K is probably one of the few programs that backs up the higher level material for the younger kids, teaching them what they can understand.

 

Basically, I am moving more toward curriculum that is organized similar to what you've talked about. I'm looking for curriculum that makes the subject matter accessible to younger grades without the unnecessary stuff built in. I don't mean without the fun, just the fluff.:)

 

ETA For history, I'm working towards Veritas Press Omnibus. It resonates with me and dh and I like where they take it. I don't think we completely agree with their theology, but I think it's a good place to start.

[Kimber]

I posted off of your op, but I was not so succinct. Basically, I look for curriculum that is organized in the way you're described. The reason is that I am not educated enough in each subject to this on my own. I think I could probably come up with it over time, but I know that I would have never come up with covering the progym if I hadn't been exposed to it in curriculum first.

[sagira]

I use Teaching Children by Diane Lopez from Child Light Publications, as I'm using the Charlotte Mason method. It includes a section on Kindergarten as well, which I'm using this coming year.

[angela in ohio]

I have "end goals" for each area, and then we work backwards from there.

 

Some areas I flesh out more than others. For example, for math in the elementary years I use the standards from Mathematicallycorrect.com, but then the pace differs based on how each dc does. For Bible, I have a progression I created of exactly what will be learned each year. For history, it is more of just an overview of what topics we will cover each year.

 

It is helpful to look at different curriculum to get an idea of how they get to the end point, and then make up your own series of skills. It is sort of like writing a research paper, LOL. I take notes form all of the different sources and then write my own thing. Then I learn it myself really well and then decide what resources I will use to help me teach it.