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Choosing best curriculum for teacher and children


kahlanne
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I really need advice choosing my curriculum this year for A age 11, E age 6, and Z age 4. Primarily I am asking for suggestions on the younger two and encouragement with A. I feel like I have failed miserably many times with A. Backstory...I schooled my eldest to from K-3 using Abeka which was very successful despite the difficulties of finishing all the pages. (Yes, I am a check marker.) C and N tested above level when they entered public school and are top in their classes today, still ps. Due to A's age, she would get the least amount of my time by default. I found it very difficult to figure out how to get it all done in a day. When older two went to ps, now was my time to get back on track but soon realized Abeka wasn't a good fit for A. We tested many other curriculum and finally settled on several that were successful coupled with her maturing age. Later it became quite apparent that A struggled with dyslexia. This past year was to be extremely difficult so we chose to use Switched on Schoolhouse due to it not being teacher intensive. A thrives on setting and achieving goals, and being organized. Independence is very important to A as well. Each of these things SOS offered but it became more teacher intensive than I expected. I had to help her with much of the reading, print out many worksheets to extend lessons, and quiz her time and again to make sure she "got it". Even so we saw drastic improvement in the quality of her work. A would love to use SOS again but due to strained finances and amount of hands-on teaching, I am considering other options. Ace's Paces are at the top of the list even though they are not popular due to lack of hands on teaching and slow approach possibly making them behind other curriculum both of which could be an asset to A. The slow approach to new skills would allow A the extra practice she needs while boosting her self-esteem and allow me to focus on my younger two school age children and 2yr old toddler. I would still be available for hands-on teaching but hopefully not as much as sos required. Am I making a mistake diverting from what is working even if time consuming and expensive?

 

Can you advise me on the best curriculum for E and Z, age 6 (1st) and 4 (K)? I don't want to make the same mistakes I did with A with them and cause them to be behind. All of my children are very intellegent, of course, but I believe E and Z will be the easiest to teach. E is quick to learn new concepts, eager to learn, has outstanding memory recall, and a long attention span. Z is eager to learn but has short attention span due to his young age. His memory is excellent but I have noticed it can be quite random at times. He struggles with sequencing. Both E and Z enjoyed the worksheets I printed last year leaving me to believe workbooks are a good fit. I don't believe E will need as much review built in as Z does. In theory, I think Abeka may be a great fit for both but am concerned I will get bogged down. I remember it being so difficult to get it all completed without knowing if it all was necessary and if not what to cut. Maybe my memory is tainted due to A finding it so difficult or maybe it is just "too much." If I don't choose Abeka, I have several leftovers during our trial days but am second and third guessing everything I do. Below is a list of my bookshelves.

 

Abeka: all teacher manuals, keys, and readers for K-3. (workbooks is all needed)

 

Phonics Pathways and Reading Pathways (A found it boring but it helped tremendously.)

 

ETC : level b-c, level 5 and 6 workbook (E loved working level a-b last year and A loved 2-4 when she did them) (only complaint I remember is lack of color)

 

Abecedarian Phonics: don't have level A but have teacher manual level b ( A enjoyed level B)

 

Sequential Spelling 1 (loved and used same concepts for spelling words in sos)

 

Apples and Pears level A workbook and teacher manual (given by a friend but never tried with A) (new condition)

 

RightStart Math Level A and B entire kit (used but complete from yardsale.. found recently but haven't had opportunity to try)

 

Singapore Math levels 1-3 teachers guides and some workbooks (A enjoyed SM but I had difficulty teaching it. I had trouble juggling guides, textbooks and workbooks and knowing what to teach exactly. Mental math isn't my strong suit although A excelled with it. She was grouping back in her Abeka days before it was taught to her because she could memorize her math facts, etc. I am strongly considering it if I can make the time fit.)

 

Miquon Math all levels and books (never understood it and don't think I will attempt again)

 

Apologia Zoology

 

FLL 3: (too dry for A)

 

WWE manual and workbook (A hated it. Sorry.)

 

Winston Grammar (bought new at yardsale recently)

 

Easy Grammar 6 (new at yardsale recently)

 

Beautiful Feet timeline and books

 

Story of The World (given to me by a friend...looks interesting)

 

 

 

 

BTW, I love the idea of more literature based learning such as sonligIht but know it will be difficult with three kids and a toddler. The expense is too much as well. I am not sure it is a great fit for anyone in my family other than me, the only avid reader.

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