SOCIAL GROUP: Atheists, agnostics, free-thinkers, non-believers

[jar7709]

We have liked the few Intellego units we've used.

 

I think sometimes that 'secular' means something different to certain Christians. In one group I am in, I have seen people ask for secular recommendations and the Christians always come back with SOTW, RS4K, etc, which doesn't feel secular to me. At least the first volume of sotw (it didn't work for us so I don't know if it gets better later.) To me 'secular' doesn't mean leaving out evolution. It is kinda fundamental to recognize things change and have been around a long long time, ya know?

[dbmamaz]

Yeah, thats a struggle. I hear SOTW gets hit from both sides, xtians who say it isnt biblical enough and seculars who say its presenting the bible too much like fact. I still think a lot of xtians dont get that there are people who are not christian, dont want to be christian, dont want to teach their kids anything about the bible stories (unless they decide to do a course just on that) and still home school. I know i heard of one person who, when she finally explained to another homeschool mom that she wasnt xtian, the response was "Then why do you homeschool?"

 

But you do worry that people dont even know what they are missing. I've seen people argue that the applogia upper level sciences are really strong, and if you dont agree with some of what they say, thats a great opportunity to discuss your values. Um, ok, but how are they supposed to learn about evolution, which is kinda crucial to the understanding of biology? From a values talk? I fear that some of these people who've been raised with YE stuff really have no idea what evolution is. I hear some grown kids on the internet saying that when they learned what evolution really is, they were horrified, because their homeschool 'science' taught them total lies in order to make evolution look like bunk.

[Guest inoubliable]

This is why we're not using SOTW much beyond a very loose way to keep track of a timeline. We ended up skipping several chapters in the first book last year and it's been the same experience for this year. We've switched over to using Human Odyssey.

 

We've also gotten the bewildered "But why do you homeschool, then??" response from people when they find out that we're not Christian and that we don't have a Bible study. Letting them know that we did a Bible study as part of a larger course on mythology in general didn't help.

[dbmamaz]

we did world history from the Usborne encyclopedia as a spine. I never used any history curriculum. we're using hakim (and zinn and chester comix and netflix and the library) for US history.

[Izzy]

 

 

I honestly don't feel that anything SL has to offer is worth giving my money for them to further their very particular brand of evangelical mission.

 

I have thought this many times. I hate that I'm helping to fund their fundamentalist beliefs but then I look at the other options and I feel like SL is a lot less fundie than the others.

 

The fact is we need more curriculum choices. Maybe we can all put our heads together and come up with something. :D

[Izzy]

Double post

 

[Izzy]

 

We've also gotten the bewildered "But why do you homeschool, then??" response from people when they find out that we're not Christian and that we don't have a Bible study. Letting them know that we did a Bible study as part of a larger course on mythology in general didn't help.

 

 

The homeschool group I was in when I first started homeschooling was really big on character development and bible. It was okay if you didn't get around to getting school done because we were homeschooling to develop their character and to develop a close relationship with God. I never understood that.

[Izzy]

Aack!

[Izzy]

Triple post!

[Lady Florida.]

but then I look at the other options and I feel like SL is a lot less fundie than the others. The fact is we need more curriculum choices. Maybe we can all put our heads together and come up with something. :D

 

I would like to see a secular version of Winter Promise. It's classical and very Charlotte Mason-ish. I have always liked CM and incorporated much of it in our homeschool style.

[Guest inoubliable]

I would like to see a secular version of Winter Promise. It's classical and very Charlotte Mason-ish. I have always liked CM and incorporated much of it in our homeschool style.

 

 

Gack! Now I want to look into that, too!

 

I think I might have found my other-than-homeschooling gig. DH is ecstatic. LOL.

[Audrey]

I have thought this many times. I hate that I'm helping to fund their fundamentalist beliefs but then I look at the other options and I feel like SL is a lot less fundie than the others.

 

The fact is we need more curriculum choices. Maybe we can all put our heads together and come up with something. :D

 

 

I felt that way for a long time, too. I still feel that way, somewhat, about Canadian history. I really don't want my kid learning history from an American standpoint because that is not at all the totality of the world of history. Right now, I'm especially disappointed that in SOTW 4 there are only 2 half-chapters that discuss WWI, and those skip just about everything until the US gets into the war (late as usual). Canada was heavily involved in WWI -- critically so -- it shaped the individual identity of the nation and the aftermath shaped the labour movement of the continent.

 

But I'm digressing... my point is that there are secular resources out there -- tons and tons of them. But, they are not tidily packaged up with rote scripts and cute little boxes to tick. If you want good curriculum you have no further to look than a good library and the companies already producing quality secular materials. What you will not find (or rarely so) is a secular someone out there to tell you how to do it all, what order to read it all and exactly what to ask your kids as you go forth.

 

It is more work to homeschool secularly. It always has been. But consider this... you are a secular homeschooler in a Christian filled homeschooling world. You already do not think like the standard homeschooler. You think for yourself. The scripted/packaged Christian curriculum is for homeschoolers who don't want to have to think about what they are teaching. They want to be told exactly how to do it, when to do it and with what to do it. Why do you want a secular company to tell you what to do, when to do it and with what to do it? If you are a freethinking homeschooling parent, do you not also aspire to have freethinking children? Do you not also have individual children who respond differently to different methods and materials? Do you not want to encourage and expand on that inherent individuality?

 

To put it bluntly, if there were a secular version of SL, I would not buy it. Yes, I, too, sit here and b!tch about how much time I have to spend planning, but I signed on for homeschooling for my kid, not for me, not for my convenience, not so I could open a book and walk away. Every year, I have to re-evaluate what is working and what is not and then track down alternatives or supplements that I hope will work. It's an endless cycle of sourcing and planning and testing and sourcing and planning and...

 

I have to remind myself of that every time I whinge to my dh about spending all that planning time and tracking down books and writing up tests and activities and going over projects and assignments and papers. Luckily for me, he will lay it out and just tell me "this is what you signed up for, babe. Get over yourself already." I take my b!tchslap and get on with it not because I have all this fabulous free time, but because my kid would be unbearably miserable and oppressed in that sh!thole that is our local school system.

 

Now... I realize I've been VERY blunt here and at the same time, I know that not everyone knows where to find good secular materials, so if anyone wanted to start making a list of good stuff, I'd certainly add the lists of what we've used (that was successful -- because not every secular item is good or useful). I remember how overwhelming it all seemed when ds was younger, so I'm not unsympathetic to that. I've bought my share of duds and I've even been a curriculum junkie. It takes a while to figure out what actually works for your kid, and to put aside what YOU want. I hate Saxon Math, but it works for my kid, so we do it even though I personally wanted the lovely Miquon series and then the Singapore math. Tough noogies for me. It's about the kid, not me. I still struggle with things like science because I only really understand textbook-ese when it comes to science. Ds couldn't care less -- he wants to "do" science, not read it. I go back and forth on that and probably always will. Our compromise is Galore Park supplemented with TOPS units.

 

Anyway.... that's my 2-cents FWIW and of course YMMV.

[Izzy]

I actually like and agree with everything you said but designing my own curriculum would require me to have a lot more confidence in my self than I currently have. I'm still trying to convince myself I have the ability to teach my kids, never mind coming up with the curriculum *to* teach them. :D

 

I think it's a great idea to have a list of secular rescources maybe on the first page so we can easily find it. I'd also like to discuss how you create your own lesson plans. I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it.

[Izzy]

 

 

I would like to see a secular version of Winter Promise. It's classical and very Charlotte Mason-ish. I have always liked CM and incorporated much of it in our homeschool style.

 

 

I've looked at Winterpromise and I like the looks of it too. I've heard there are a lot of projects though and I'd go crazy. lol

[Guest inoubliable]

I see what you're saying, Audrey. I agree, too. I think that some homeschoolers, though, get overwhelmed with putting things together. Especially in the beginning. I'd like to help those homeschoolers who don't have the confidence in putting something together, kwim?

 

I like how you brought up the American viewpoint on world history and politics. I've had many a discussion with friends in Canada and in South America. It's incredible the difference in viewpoints and what we're taught here in the U.S. versus what, well pretty much EVERYone else says happened. I am even now looking for more accurate sources of information for my kids for history.

[Audrey]

I see what you're saying, Audrey. I agree, too. I think that some homeschoolers, though, get overwhelmed with putting things together. Especially in the beginning. I'd like to help those homeschoolers who don't have the confidence in putting something together, kwim?

 

I like how you brought up the American viewpoint on world history and politics. I've had many a discussion with friends in Canada and in South America. It's incredible the difference in viewpoints and what we're taught here in the U.S. versus what, well pretty much EVERYone else says happened. I am even now looking for more accurate sources of information for my kids for history.

 

 

But it isn't hard. It just takes some work to go get the stuff and then sit down and organize it. Take SL for example. ALL they do is select a bunch of books, then break down the reading of those books into daily chunks. That's it (when you take out the religious commentaries). Their LA has always been light. There are much better secular resources (GWG, SWS and MCT all come to mind immediately).

 

Math? Take your pick of many (Saxon, Miquon, Singapore, etc. etc.) and just go through them lesson by lesson.

 

History? Either select books or topics and organize those. You can use a spine if you like. The original WTM did not use SOTW because it hadn't been written yet. It used the Kingfisher Encyclopedia of History. Other spines could be the Usborne Book of World History. There are numerous history books for children on nearly any topic to supplement reading. Just grab and go and you see need or interest.

 

Science? Believe it or not, there are science course that don't reduce everything down to the "God-did-it" mentality. Or you could use a spine by taking any number of children's science encyclopedias and going through that a section at a time.

 

Languages? Well, take your pick, just steer away from any Latin programs that use Ecclesiastic pronunciation. That's easily deciphered code for "not secular" anyway. If you desire to be a bit less Americentric, Galore Park is a great resource. Pure academics, reasonable rigour and the proper amount of "u's" in the proper words. Their Latin is great, but they cover almost every other subject as well.

[Guest inoubliable]

You ought to be doing speeches for this sort of thing. You are so absolutely right and you make it all seem so easy!

[Izzy]

Does anyone think telling kids about hell falls under psychological abuse? As someone who spent the majority of my life fearing hell, I have to wonder if it's abusive. Here is a page I was reading and it got me thinking about it.

 

http://www.richarddawkins.net/foundation_articles/2012/12/31/facebook-what-fears-you-faced-based-on-religion#.UP2ZVb-9Kc0

[Lady Florida.]

I've looked at Winterpromise and I like the looks of it too. I've heard there are a lot of projects though and I'd go crazy. lol

 

Maybe there are in the lower levels. I bought the middle school American History a few years ago and don't remember projects. Well, maybe there were in the time traveler book or whatever it is, but I didn't get that. I just used the IG and library books, and pulled out anything that wasn't secular.

[Guest inoubliable]

I've heard this before from a lot of angry atheists, new non-believers, and people who were physically or sexually abused. IMO, it IS abusive. And I'm coming at it from looking at abuse cases I've seen personally. Where a child was sexually or physically abused and told to act/speak a certain way OR someone was going to get hurt. Telling a child they'd better adhere to a set of rules (and most of the time there's no reason for these rules given - just that god expects it) or they're going to a fiery place filled with tormented and disfigured (demons? I'm remembering a particularly ghastly looking poster in one of my classrooms as a child) figures, where they'll spend eternity in pain and loneliness and terror. Yeah. I'd say that qualifies.

[Izzy]

 

 

Maybe there are in the lower levels. I bought the middle school American History a few years ago and don't remember projects. Well, maybe there were in the time traveler book or whatever it is, but I didn't get that. I just used the IG and library books, and pulled out anything that wasn't secular.

 

Did you like the American History one? I remember looking at the American Cultures because DS wanted to study American history. It looked fun.

[Izzy]

I've heard this before from a lot of angry atheists, new non-believers, and people who were physically or sexually abused. IMO, it IS abusive. And I'm coming at it from looking at abuse cases I've seen personally. Where a child was sexually or physically abused and told to act/speak a certain way OR someone was going to get hurt. Telling a child they'd better adhere to a set of rules (and most of the time there's no reason for these rules given - just that god expects it) or they're going to a fiery place filled with tormented and disfigured (demons? I'm remembering a particularly ghastly looking poster in one of my classrooms as a child) figures, where they'll spend eternity in pain and loneliness and terror. Yeah. I'd say that qualifies.

 

I was told I would go to heaven since I was saved but I was still scared of hell for all of my unsaved friends. I don't know how many hours I spent praying for my dad as a child because he was going to hell. Knowing the rapture could happen at any time was scary too. But is it freedom of religion or psychological abuse? I'm not sure. I used to think not believing is just a personal decision but religion does trample human rights at times.

 

[Guest inoubliable]

Speaking of Jesus Camp *shudder*, anyone see http://www.therevisionariesmovie.com/index.html ?

I'm trying to get a copy of it.

[Rosie_0801]

I was told I would go to heaven since I was saved but I was still scared of hell for all of my unsaved friends. I don't know how many hours I spent praying for my dad as a child because he was going to hell. Knowing the rapture could happen at any time was scary too. But is it freedom of religion or psychological abuse? I'm not sure. I used to think not believing is just a personal decision but religion does trample human rights at times.

 

 

*shrug* I'm not opposed to religion in theory since everyone needs a system and religions provide systems. It saddens me how *ugly* some people make religion. Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I wish the average moderate didn't need to wonder if it is "freedom of religion or psychological abuse." There's a lass on here who has been afraid I might hex her, of all the ugly, ignorant and insulting things...

[Guest inoubliable]

 

*shrug* I'm not opposed to religion in theory since everyone needs a system and religions provide systems. It saddens me how *ugly* some people make religion. Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I wish the average moderate didn't need to wonder if it is "freedom of religion or psychological abuse." There's a lass on here who has been afraid I might hex her, of all the ugly, ignorant and insulting things...

 

Yes. Said better than I have. People can make religion "ugly". I take no issue with people using religion in their lives, except for when they use it to trample other people's right or to abuse other people in the name of their almighty.

 

Someone is afraid you might...hex??...them?! :svengo:

[mamajag]

One reason I would love a secular SL is because it was easy to pull all this together for one child and even when there were 2 I combined a few things. Next year I will have 3 children in school and I am already spending all my spare time planning. My husband will also be gone every other month so I am looking to lighten my load. It's not that it's particularly hard; it's that I will have to do a lot more next year in less time with less help.

 

I am considering K12 for some subjects and doing CHOLL. If all else fails, we might be going back to Calvert, but I would rather not do that. If there were a simple secular box curriculum, it would help a lot.

[LaxMom]

 

 

*shrug* I'm not opposed to religion in theory since everyone needs a system and religions provide systems. It saddens me how *ugly* some people make religion. Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I wish the average moderate didn't need to wonder if it is "freedom of religion or psychological abuse." There's a lass on here who has been afraid I might hex her, of all the ugly, ignorant and insulting things...

 

I agree. We all need a system of belief. I hope mine promotes my desire to understand people rather than label and condemn them.

 

Is it wrong that I laughed out loud at your insult? Because that is just funny. I'm sure there's a back story there...

[StartingOver]

<---Heathenish, Paganish, Mutt who walks her own path. LOL

[Izzy]

 

 

*shrug* I'm not opposed to religion in theory since everyone needs a system and religions provide systems. It saddens me how *ugly* some people make religion. Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I wish the average moderate didn't need to wonder if it is "freedom of religion or psychological abuse." There's a lass on here who has been afraid I might hex her, of all the ugly, ignorant and insulting things...

 

I would say I'm surprised someone thinks you are going to hex her but I remember being taught the same. Anything pagan had evil roots. I was actually looking at Pagan blogs the other day to learn what is what about which turned into me looking at Wicca and Wiccan websites which led me to look into magic and I found myself thinking God was going to punish me. I'm 38 years old and no longer believe in that God. The indoctrination is that powerful.

 

I'm not opposed to religion either. I don't like religions that contain damaging messages, especially aimed at young children. :( An eternity in hell is hard for an adult to comprehend. I don't have the words to describe what it feels like to a child.

[StartingOver]

I would love a Secular Sonlight. I was able to secularize for many years, but there were changes made last year that just makes it not worth it to me anymore. I purchased the IG's for D and E and have everything before that, but I won't purchase another complete core, unless there are major changes in the reverse. SIGH! Of course I invested to become Heirloom before the major overhaul...... so I still use the free shipping and discounts for individual books.

[Izzy]

I would love a Secular Sonlight. I was able to secularize for many years, but there were changes made last year that just makes it not worth it to me anymore. I purchased the IG's for D and E and have everything before that, but I won't purchase another complete core, unless there are major changes in the reverse. SIGH! Of course I invested to become Heirloom before the major overhaul...... so I still use the free shipping and discounts for individual books.

 

We are doing F this year. Maybe we could do a trade when we finish this year. :) We just started this month.

[StartingOver]

We are doing F this year. Maybe we could do a trade when we finish this year. :) We just started this month.

 

I have one behind, they aren't working on the same level, so we do them two years in a row. But I will be for sure looking for older sets, or at least older IG's soon. I used Sonlight with my older kids, but sold everything when I was done, as I was sure I was done with children and needed the money for the next orders. Sigh. If I only knew then.

[StartingOver]

This is why we're not using SOTW much beyond a very loose way to keep track of a timeline. We ended up skipping several chapters in the first book last year and it's been the same experience for this year. We've switched over to using Human Odyssey.

 

We've also gotten the bewildered "But why do you homeschool, then??" response from people when they find out that we're not Christian and that we don't have a Bible study. Letting them know that we did a Bible study as part of a larger course on mythology in general didn't help.

 

I use SOTW at this level, and just preface things with..... Some people believe. I did skip a couple of chapters in each book though. I am ok with it, we will move to Hakim as soon as we are done with SOTW.

[mamajag]

 

 

I use SOTW at this level, and just preface things with..... Some people believe. I did skip a couple of chapters in each book though. I am ok with it, we will move to Hakim as soon as we are done with SOTW.

 

We are using SOTW at this level as well, and we treated Christianity just like all the other religions we don't believe in. We didn't skip anything that I remember. I remember hesitating at first, but "some people believe" are the go to words around here, too. :)

[LaxMom]

We are using SOTW at this level as well, and we treated Christianity just like all the other religions we don't believe in. We didn't skip anything that I remember. I remember hesitating at first, but "some people believe" are the go to words around here, too. :)

That's what we do, too.

[StartingOver]

I am determined not to influence my children's paths...... I will teach about many religions and respect their individual beliefs. In our family we have Baptist, Atheist, LDS, Catholic, Pagan, Agnostic and a few undecided. So the statement "Some people believe" is perfect for us.

[Guest inoubliable]

I use SOTW at this level, and just preface things with..... Some people believe. I did skip a couple of chapters in each book though. I am ok with it, we will move to Hakim as soon as we are done with SOTW.

 

I'd like to try Hakim next year. We're using HO and Kingfisher and Usborne encyclopedias along with lit from CHOLL. I did pick up one of Hakim's science courses this year and we've been MOST impressed. (And that is exactly how we ended SOTW last year. Lots of prefacing and skipping of some chapters entirely - like The Beginning of Christianity - because we'd already gone over Christianity in a wide study of world religions and mythology. This year we're using it just to go in an orderly timeline using our other resources. We don't read from it at all, I just use the chapters to plan out our weeks.)

[mamajag]

I am determined not to influence my children's paths...... I will teach about many religions and respect their individual beliefs. In our family we have Baptist, Atheist, LDS, Catholic, Pagan, Agnostic and a few undecided. So the statement "Some people believe" is perfect for us.

 

I am also of the same mindset. I want my kids not to have the same baggage over their heads that I do when they make their choice.

[LaxMom]

 

I'd like to try Hakim next year. We're using HO and Kingfisher and Usborne encyclopedias along with lit from CHOLL. I did pick up one of Hakim's science courses this year and we've been MOST impressed. (And that is exactly how we ended SOTW last year. Lots of prefacing and skipping of some chapters entirely - like The Beginning of Christianity - because we'd already gone over Christianity in a wide study of world religions and mythology. This year we're using it just to go in an orderly timeline using our other resources. We don't read from it at all, I just use the chapters to plan out our weeks.)

I sat next to her during a very intimate (read: poorly marketed) talk she gave at B&N in Salisbury the summer before last. She (and her husband) talked about the amount of research that goes into each book, and how she makes the kids in their neighborhood read manuscripts and give her honest feedback. She's lovely.

[Rosie_0801]

 

Is it wrong that I laughed out loud at your insult? Because that is just funny. I'm sure there's a back story there...

 

 

The usual story. Her church teaches something along the lines of pagans being Disney style witches who like to drug innocent housekeepers for kicks and any pagan who says otherwise is really Satan out to sway them from the right and true path. I don't care to be accused of wanting to hex people, but I can deal if someone is asking an honest question. I'm all for education. ;) I really don't care to be judged a liar or for someone to be afraid of me when the worst I do around here is ramp up my Aussie slang when I have the pip.

 

I would say I'm surprised someone thinks you are going to hex her but I remember being taught the same. Anything pagan had evil roots. I was actually looking at Pagan blogs the other day to learn what is what about which turned into me looking at Wicca and Wiccan websites which led me to look into magic and I found myself thinking God was going to punish me. I'm 38 years old and no longer believe in that God. The indoctrination is that powerful.

 

See, that's just depressing as far as I'm concerned. That god has kookier ideas on magic than I do so there's no need for good Christians to be worried about me!

[Desert Rat]

Joining in late. :seeya:

 

Atheist daughter of a Methodist minister here. I married a lapsed Catholic who was only Catholics because the nuns who saved his great-grandmother from Auschwitz told her to be.

 

I have never found a science curriculum I loved. I'm using CK12 for my 7th grader. I used a text someone else had built.

 

I came to atheism after much hemming and/or hawing. Mostly, I hid my (lack of ) belief because I was raised so religious. Now, I just don't care either way. But, I do feel more comfortable around non-Christians. In our city, we have a Freethinkers group. Most of them identify as unschoolers though. So while we see eye to eye in some aspects, scholastically we're worlds apart. And most of them have under 8 girls. Not a good fit for my boys.

 

Funny story: Three friends and I were hanging out the park with our kids when missionaries attacked. The other 3 ladies were Christian. I wasn't interested in crazy talk. I very blatently yelled, "What's that Son? Momma's coming!" You should have seen the look on my son's face. LOL After 30 minutes the missionaries finally left. I walked back over to my friends. They were mad at me! They said that, being the atheist, they expected me to get rid of the missionaries and 'save' them! :laugh: I told them I don't engage zealots. You never win.

 

 

Thanks for starting this group!

[Izzy]

 

 

I'd like to try Hakim next year. We're using HO and Kingfisher and Usborne encyclopedias along with lit from CHOLL. I did pick up one of Hakim's science courses this year and we've been MOST impressed. (And that is exactly how we ended SOTW last year. Lots of prefacing and skipping of some chapters entirely - like The Beginning of Christianity - because we'd already gone over Christianity in a wide study of world religions and mythology. This year we're using it just to go in an orderly timeline using our other resources. We don't read from it at all, I just use the chapters to plan out our weeks.)

 

 

What is CHOLL? Is HO Human Odyssey? I've also been looking at History Odyssey. What did you use to teach world religions? I know, so many questions. :p

 

 

 

 

[Izzy]

 

See, that's just depressing as far as I'm concerned. That god has kookier ideas on magic than I do so there's no need for good Christians to be worried about me!

 

 

True that. :p

[deannajo]

One reason I would love a secular SL is because it was easy to pull all this together for one child and even when there were 2 I combined a few things. Next year I will have 3 children in school and I am already spending all my spare time planning. My husband will also be gone every other month so I am looking to lighten my load. It's not that it's particularly hard; it's that I will have to do a lot more next year in less time with less help.

 

I am considering K12 for some subjects and doing CHOLL. If all else fails, we might be going back to Calvert, but I would rather not do that. If there were a simple secular box curriculum, it would help a lot.

 

 

 

Yup yup. Like I said before, I have three kids homeschooling, I work from home nearly full time, my husband travels from Mon-Fri, and I get stuck in the planning and prepping stage and never move to the implementation stage. Plus my own education in history was really lacking - so I don't trust myself not to miss some important event or time period. By trying SL, I'm hoping that having it all prepared and schedule for me will actually result in us doing something beyond math. Because math and spelling was about the only thing we did with any regularity before, and even that wasn't all that regular :bored: - so I'm trying out SL - we're doing Core F with the older one and D with the younger two....today marks the start of week 2, which isn't much, I guess, but seems like we're doing better than we have with anything else.

 

I feel conflicted about it though, for many of the same reasons outlined in earlier posts. I do really wish there were a secular program that was similar. Maybe I'll revisit History Odyssey, but when we tried it out years ago, it was pretty "projecty" which doesn't work for us. We've done SOTW with the activity guide, and it was ok, but the only reason it got done was because we were doing it with a co-op, otherwise, no way would I have done all those projects.

[Izzy]

Joining in late. :seeya:

 

Atheist daughter of a Methodist minister here. I married a lapsed Catholic who was only Catholics because the nuns who saved his great-grandmother from Auschwitz told her to be.

 

I have never found a science curriculum I loved. I'm using CK12 for my 7th grader. I used a text someone else had built.

 

I came to atheism after much hemming and/or hawing. Mostly, I hid my (lack of ) belief because I was raised so religious. Now, I just don't care either way. But, I do feel more comfortable around non-Christians. In our city, we have a Freethinkers group. Most of them identify as unschoolers though. So while we see eye to eye in some aspects, scholastically we're worlds apart. And most of them have under 8 girls. Not a good fit for my boys.

 

Funny story: Three friends and I were hanging out the park with our kids when missionaries attacked. The other 3 ladies were Christian. I wasn't interested in crazy talk. I very blatently yelled, "What's that Son? Momma's coming!" You should have seen the look on my son's face. LOL After 30 minutes the missionaries finally left. I walked back over to my friends. They were mad at me! They said that, being the atheist, they expected me to get rid of the missionaries and 'save' them! :laugh: I told them I don't engage zealots. You never win.

 

 

Thanks for starting this group!

 

 

:seeya: I have a 7th grade boy too. Plus 3 younger ones. :)

 

I'm not very good with the missionaries. I actually had a sweet older Jehova's Witness that came to my house once a month to talk and drop off literature. I got to where I missed him when he didn't come around. lol I'm terrible at saying no and my DH has to come shoo away the solicitors or I'd probably end up with a bajillion magazine subscriptions.

[Audrey]

You ought to be doing speeches for this sort of thing. You are so absolutely right and you make it all seem so easy!

 

No. I didn't say it was easy. It is certainly far easier to purchase a boxed curriculum than to cobble an education together yourself. However, that boxed curriculum doesn't know your children, or his strengths and weaknesses, nor his quirks or passions. You do. You are truly the only one who can select the educational materials that are going to speak to him and help him find success in his education.

 

But it also isn't hard. It just takes more time than opening a boxed curriculum. I would argue, though, that the time you spend on crafting your child's personalized education is time that you, yourself, spend learning about your child and about homeschooling as it applies in your own household. There is no single answer for everyone. We all have different children! However, we, as parent-educators, can craft the answer that works for each one of our children -- if we are willing and able to invest the time to do so.

 

Hey, I b!tch and whinge about not having enough time. A LOT! But, if I am honest with myself, I really do not regret any of the time I spent searching for and crafting a curriculum for my ds. I've learned a lot about him in the process, and a lot about myself as well. It is definitely time well spent and very much worth the work.

[Guest inoubliable]

Joining in late. :seeya: Atheist daughter of a Methodist minister here. I married a lapsed Catholic who was only Catholics because the nuns who saved his great-grandmother from Auschwitz told her to be. I have never found a science curriculum I loved. I'm using CK12 for my 7th grader. I used a text someone else had built. I came to atheism after much hemming and/or hawing. Mostly, I hid my (lack of ) belief because I was raised so religious. Now, I just don't care either way. But, I do feel more comfortable around non-Christians. In our city, we have a Freethinkers group. Most of them identify as unschoolers though. So while we see eye to eye in some aspects, scholastically we're worlds apart. And most of them have under 8 girls. Not a good fit for my boys. Funny story: Three friends and I were hanging out the park with our kids when missionaries attacked. The other 3 ladies were Christian. I wasn't interested in crazy talk. I very blatently yelled, "What's that Son? Momma's coming!" You should have seen the look on my son's face. LOL After 30 minutes the missionaries finally left. I walked back over to my friends. They were mad at me! They said that, being the atheist, they expected me to get rid of the missionaries and 'save' them! :laugh: I told them I don't engage zealots. You never win. Thanks for starting this group!

 

Welcome aboard!! LOL @ your missionary story. We had some missionaries come around a few months ago and I was downstairs in the basement trying to find a bolt for our umbrella on the deck. I hear DS12 talking at the front door and I'm a bit concerned since no one ever comes over and the UPS guy usually does a knock and toss, kwim? As I'm coming up the stairs I hear DS12 say, "No thank you, I'm not interested. But have a reasonable day!" As I peeked through the blinds, I could still see their amused faces.

 

What is CHOLL? Is HO Human Odyssey? I've also been looking at History Odyssey. What did you use to teach world religions? I know, so many questions. :p

 

Classical House of Learning - it's a lit program. :) And, yes, Human Odyssey. I hear that there are workbooks and teacher texts and whatnot for the series. I happened upon another WTMer's timeline matching HO up with SOTW chapters. So we just look up the chapter in HO for that week and read there. Then we go to our Kingfisher and Usborne encyclopedias for more information and then Netflix or Hulu for any documentaries. The CHOL program matches up with SOTW chapters, too. So we have a nice lit program that ties it all in together. After all of that, we sometimes find more books at the library or find some interesting stuff online to check out.

 

For world religions we have a bunch of books. Hmm. Let me see if I can link a few that we really liked.

One World, Many Religions

World Religions

 

We've got a few on Buddhism in general and a few on ancient Egyptian, Roman, and Greek religions. I'd really like to find something on Paganism, Judaism, and something with a little more meat for Buddhism. My oldest is getting really interested in all the differences and similarities. He likes hearing about specific rituals and traditions.

[LaxMom]

 

 

The usual story. Her church teaches something along the lines of pagans being Disney style witches who like to drug innocent housekeepers for kicks and any pagan who says otherwise is really Satan out to sway them from the right and true path. I don't care to be accused of wanting to hex people, but I can deal if someone is asking an honest question. I'm all for education. ;) I really don't care to be judged a liar or for someone to be afraid of me when the worst I do around here is ramp up my Aussie slang ...

Well I assumed that part. I'm left wondering why on earth someone would come to the conclusion you, of all people, were going to hex her. Snort. Must have been that Aussie slang. ;)

[Desert Rat]

We are using K12's Human Odyssey for history. It's for 7th grade but I'm reading it aloud and modifying writing assignments for ds9. I picked up a used copy from Amazon and do not go through K12 for any of the extra material. I have written review questions and outlines, project ideas, etc. for each chapter (well, through chapter 35 so far).

 

I really like this curriculum so far. I like the text with lots of pictures, etc. It's engaging. And some chapters have literature selections as an extra. I teach all religions from a mythological point of view. This year we're in ancients so I'm really emphasizing OT and classic Greek/Roman/Norse/Hindu mythology. I realized that I over corrected when it came to Old Testament stories and didn't teach them at all. I think it's important that my boys know the big stories because they are referenced not only in literature but also popular culture: Moses, burning bushes (recently in a Supernatural episode!), Noah, the plagues of Egypt, etc.

 

I supplement with my own literature selections roughly following the time periods, when possible. I also use Khan Academy to teach art history for that time period. We aren't a project-y family. My boys aren't huge fans of crafts. And, if I'm honest with myself, I can't stand the mess. There I said it. I try to be "that" mom, but find I'm clenching my teeth and smiling the entire time. As my boys have gotten older, I'm relieved by less projects and mess.

 

Anyone interested in using K12's HO, let me know and I will send you my little study guide. There are typos. It's not perfect as it was intended to be used just for my little family and my friend who was using it as well, but I'd be happy to share. PM me.

[Guest inoubliable]

PM'd you, DR.

 

For those using K12's HO, there was a post with an offer to a notebook put together for HO Vol 1. I've tried to find out if there will be another notebook coming, but I've not heard from that member just yet. We're not a notebooking family but I found that my DS12 was able to get a good sense of what he was expected to get out of each reading by having some space allotted for each section for notes and drawings. Maybe it'll help someone here, as well