Does anyone here put an emphasis on science/math over other subjects?

[Luanne]

Does anyone here put an emphasis on science/math over other subjects such as history and literature? ... or other topics?

[Dana]

I probably spend the most time on math, second English, then science, then history.

[Kyr]

I do with one of my children, but it is more because he has expressed a strong desire to go on to an engineering type career so I feel we need to do lots of math/science to help prepare him.

[Farrar]

I emphasize science more than I think other homeschoolers do as a whole... but maybe not more than other subjects.

[Chrysalis Academy]

Math, then Writing, then Science here.

[Dmmetler]

We've changed our emphasis at times-it really comes down to "what is DD fascinated about at a given time" as opposed to anything else-right now, it's Math.

[Arboreal TJ]

It will depend on the child. Right now science is brain candy :) I'm an egghead, DH is an egghead. We are not skimping on early Math and Science however we currently emphasize LA specifically Reading. As my children grow I plan to push writing. The greatest minds in the world are useless if they can not articulate ideas well.

 

 

[Mandy in TN]

We spend the most time on math and music. It isn't that I emphasize these subjects but rather this is where my ds's interests happen to be. This spring I hope to encourage more writing for the same reason already mentioned.

 

I voted other.

Mandy

[jar7709]

Science is life here, so even though we are immersed in it, I don't need to "push" it, iykwim. The stuff in which I have to make more of an effort is LA skills and math.

[blondeviolin]

We do math then language then history. Science seems like play to them right now even though I add a fair amount to RSO.

[violamama]

We tend to do those more because we love them. It's not really intentional. For balance, I'm doing my darndest to get my ds6 reading fluently so he can read his own directions and figure out his own math problems!

[mom4him]

I voted other as my son, especially has struggled with reading/writing. I put reading and math first on the agenda and we go from there.

[ccolopy]

I find that I put more emphasis on the areas that my kids are less interested in (history and writing for DS, math and science for DD), but that we end up with a fairly even coverage of the main subjects.

[Alte Veste Academy]

I strive for balance and integration here. Balance because I don't know yet who my kids are going to be and because I think most subjects have inherent beauty and value. Integration because no subject is an island unto itself. Math is science and nature. Art is science and history...and philosophy. Nature is art and science. Music is language, and art, and history. Language expresses all. Etc. etc. etc...

 

Literature and History, however, are everything! :D

[TarynB]

Math, then Writing, then Science here.

 

Ditto. Skills subjects rank higher than content subjects. So math and writing (including grammar and vocabulary) are priority here (in order to advance in content subjects), then science content b/c that's his main interest. If he liked history more, it would take a backseat to science.

[lewelma]

We formally study math, science, violin and writing; and informally study history and literature (meaning no tests or writing or textbooks/curriculum but LOTS of discussion).

 

Ruth in NZ

[boscopup]

Math is probably our most emphasized subject because both of my schooled kids are good at it. While I focus on reading for my K'er, we don't spend as much time on it, because he gets tired pretty quickly (10 minutes of intensive phonics instruction is all he can handle). My oldest taught himself to read, so I didn't have to focus on reading with him - he already knew how to read and was reading to learn when I started homeschooling him in 1st grade. He reads a LOT, so again, I don't need to focus on it. I just have to try to keep books available. :D

 

My oldest loves history, so history is actually getting more focus here than science. I also found that every science curriculum we've tried so far has caused us to be bored with science, so I've done library book science this year - picking up random science-related books and letting him read them whenever. While I have a checkbox on the schedule for "science", it never gets checked off. Instead, he reads about science some days, history other days, fiction other days. We talk about science topics a lot, but we aren't formally *doing* science much right now, whereas we spend a lot more time reading about history. Again, he LOVES history. DS2, otoh, isn't being taught history yet, and it won't be as much of a focus for him for a while. I'm trying to read good literature stories to him, which may include some history now and then, but is mostly fictional fables/tales. We may end up with more science for DS2, as he is really into science topics. I have watching Magic Schoolbus on the schedule for each week now that we have the full DVD set, and we're also going to do Ellen McHenry's "The Brain" starting today (this is for the 8 year old, but 6 year old will tag along and probably like it), so we'll see how that goes. I tried doing some chemistry books from the library at the beginning of the year, but DS1 wasn't really into them (I'm not a fan of chemistry myself either... except the math part). We might try a physics curriculum next year, as I think he would enjoy that, but we'll see. I'm still deciding. I have 6 months!

 

I don't like doing science demonstrations where I have to do all the work, and my kids are still young enough that that's what every "experiment" becomes. My kids really don't learn much from such things. They're not doing it themselves. So as they get older, we might do more formal science that includes projects and such, but so far, I've nixed most projects. They have some Science Wiz kits they can do mostly on their own, but they still need my help with some things (like blowing up a balloon and sticking it on the end of a pipe - they don't have that kind of lung power yet, and their fine motor skills aren't good enough to quickly get the balloon on the pipe). Sometimes they do nature study, and they've used a hammer on acorns, soaked pine cones in water, that sort of thing. They like nature study. :D

[GailV]

Our emphasis has changed through the years. When the kids were younger we spent more time on lit and history. As they reach high school, math and science take more and more time.

 

Part of the reason is akin to what Boscopup was mentioning -- they've now reached ages where science and math can take more time. On the other hand, little hands-on history or lit projects aren't so appropriate at this age. Also, these days "history" can include an in depth dinner table discussion on Afghanistan with AuntV (masters in history), or "literature" can include talking with AuntE about a genre (MLS) -- in other words, they're starting to actually participate in the grown up world on those subjects.

 

Both are considering STEM careers. They're at the age where that informs the subject choices.

[Mom22ns]

I emphasize math and LA. I have a science degree and we do a lot of science, but science is about content. It can be learned any time. You must have reading, writing and math skills in order to work in content areas. They are key in my opinion and are the most emphasized.

[....]

Oh, yes. Our #1 emphasis is Math.

[Luckymama]

Definitely math and science. If I thought language arts and history were most important, she'd be back at her former school.

[SevenDaisies]

My oldest is only in 3rd so math, reading and writing are emphasized here. I love science, so I think we probably emphasize it more than many. As they get older I expect there will be an even stronger emphasis on science.

[Wheres Toto]

Math is our emphasis because that is what ds is really good at and likes. Reading and other language arts probably comes next. We do the 3R's before the content subjects.

 

Dh and I both have science degrees so of the content subjects, science tends to get more attention than history.

[regentrude]

Math is the only subject for which we follow a rigorous structured curriculum, because math needs to be studied in a systematic manner. But that does not mean we emphasize it over other subjects - we do lots of literature and history and science, just in a much less structured way (until high school science)

[RoundAbout]

Now that my son is reading well, math is our number one subject. I like teaching it and he is very good at it, so when I need a feeling of accomplishment that's what we do. I have a STEM degree and worked at a lab for years so I consider math foundational and probably the least likely skill to be picked up naturally.

[Joshin]

We are pretty science and math focused, especially with my youngest. My youngest excels in math and my oldest has troubles with it, so a lot of focus is placed upon it with both. My youngest is also obsessed with all things science (especially physics and chemistry) and part of the reason we HS is because our local PS doesn't put much emphasis on the sciences. Although neither DH nor myself have hard science degrees, we are both science geeks so we are naturally drawn to those subjects. We do science every day, which doesn't seem to be the norm, especially with younger kids. My youngest also is involved in a couple of science-oriented extracurriculars. We also do history and language arts everyday, so we are probably pretty balanced.

[UrbanSue]

We do probably spend the most time in "official school" doing math but I think reading/history are more important. So far my kids naturally spend most of their free time reading or reading history so it doesn't take up a lot of "official school" time. I would absolutely allow a math or science loving kid to emphasize either of those subjects but if I had a kid who was mostly into art, for example, I would, personally, make them do more reading and history than math and science (the choice of art was arbitrary, by the way).

[justkeepswimming]

We haven't - but are in the process of putting more focus on science and math. Two of my kids are definite science/math kids and the other is equally "tolerant of all school subjects..." so she won't mind if we change the focus a bit.

 

It's taken me this long to realize that none of my kids are going to be English/Literature people like me. They love to read, and love to discuss what we've read... but science and math really like their fires.

 

Weirdos. :lol:

[Crimson Wife]

Math definitely, because it's going to be the "limiting factor" in terms of their futures. They are both strong readers and decent writers, so I'm not worried about their skills in those areas. However, having strong quantitative skills is a prerequisite to many (if not most) decent-paying jobs today. And even if they decide to go into a non-STEM field, they will still need a competitive transcript and test scores to get into college.

[Arcadia]

I vote other because I don't put emphasis on any subjects, all need to get done. However my boys emphasize science than math because they enjoy those.

[FairProspects]

I definitely didn't intend to focus on science and math, but since my oldest lives and breathes science and really needs a lot of math for even the projects he currently wants to do, that is how we have evolved. In all honesty, we do a LOT of history too.

[Aurelia]

We spend more time on English than anything else, then math. Science comes after that, but this year the curriculum also includes some art and literature.

[dollie*]

Math and language (reading, writing, spelling, vocabulary). I get so fixated on those that I run out of time to do the rest! I need to do better in incorporating other topics, as I know we will get the language portions from doing the other subjects as well.

[m0mmaBuck]

Our primary areas of focus are math and language (reading, writing, spelling, vocab). After that, science and history get equal billing. After that, art, music, and foreign language all tend to go on the back burner because we run out of time.

[Jilly]

When my kids are young I try to spend time on all subjects. As they get older I encourage them to pursue their passions. For my older son that means he spends a good deal of time on math and science.

[JFJ in IL]

We focus most heavily on reading, reading comp, and math.

Sadly, I do not spend as much time on science as I want too.

[Penguin]

I emphasize math and literature.

And we spend a lot of time on foreign language - we are trying to learn the local language as quickly as possible, and my son enjoys the process.

 

 

For the middle school years, I plan to keep science and history at about a 50/50 split. I think that science is important, but I have realized that the best thing that I can do for this child is to make sure that he learns enough math in middle school to do math-based science in high school.

[Guest Officeronin]

The classical curriculum seems to emphasize language arts, but I stray to place additional emphasis on math (to the extent I can -- my kids are quite young).

[Jayne J]

Not really sure how to vote, so I voted other. At our house, the order of importance is math, Latin, writing, everything else. And generally science is at the very bottom of the list, first to fall off the "official" list. We do a lot of informal nature study type things, ds loves reading science books on his own, and dh is an engineer so we get lots of informal physics fun (catapults and air guns), but curricula-based science generally gets the ax first.

[AimeeM]

Yes. Well, with my older (11 year old).

[momto2Cs]

Math, then Writing, then Science here.

 

 

Yep... math, then reading/writing, then science. That's actually one of the things that drew me to this schedule, in that it has science daily.

[Faithseed]

Our emphasis is reading and math. Science is often an offshoot of that beginning in 4-5th grade or so, and then more emphasis is placed there. Our early grades are very very informal, but I make sure that math is rock solid and I get them reading well as quick as possible. All other learning really comes from those two skills.

[Papillon Mom]

we emphasize music, reading, and math

[Mukmuk]

Following ds' interests, our emphasis is math. Science has been spotty, depending on what i can find (hard!). It was good for awhile with Ellen McHenry; now i feel I'm grasping again (I had settled on something for this term but baulked before I even whipped it out). I now insist on some writing and language arts, following his NP evaluation. Lately, I'm helping ds with music theory and Chinese as well. All these have become fun and interesting for ds. He's just a lot more open to suggestions than before. It wasn't always so. Ah the joys of development!

[PeacefulChaos]

My #1 thing is Language Arts type stuff. I've seen WAY too many people graduate high school and still be incapable of writing. It's a huge pet peeve of mine.

After that, math, I guess? It would be either a smidge above or equal with everything else. :)

[Jenn121]

We spend the most time on math and music. It isn't that I emphasize these subjects but rather this is where my ds's interests happen to be. This spring I hope to encourage more writing for the same reason already mentioned.

 

I voted other.

Mandy

 

 

 

WSS :)

[Mukmuk]

 

 

 

WSS :)

 

Ooh. What is this?

[freerange]

Ooh. What is this?

 

WSS = What she said

[jolley]

Language arts and math first, history second, then science. We live on a farm so biology is part of life.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I'd say my order of emphasis is Language Arts, Math, History, then Science, with all of them being the main focus of our school. Everything else is filler.