Newbie Help! Planning for 1st year of pre-k, 1st & 6th grades

[elah]

First let me start with my confession... I am reluctant about homeschooling. There I said it. Most of my friends home school and I have never had an 'issue' with it. However, I felt like my kids were receiving a high quality education in our local Catholic school. Unfortunately, things have changed. They have bought into the common core curriculum and after 1 1/2 years of this we are done. As of the end of this school year we will homeschooling.  As I am 100% sure I can provide a higher quality education then what they are getting now. 

 

Saying that... I have lots of questions to help me be less reluctant and ready to jump in with both feet! 

 

I will be starting in August with a baby, a 3 yr old, a 1st grader and a 6th grader.  Looking to use classical education that is either Catholic or at least doesn't undermine our faith teachings. I would also prefer a 'package' style instead of me creating my own yearly plan. I just don't want to make it to hard on me knowing what life will be like with the littles demanding my attention too. 

 

1. My daughter in 5th grade is currently using Envision common core math by Pearson and Journeys ELA by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.  Do you have any 6th grade curriculum suggestions that would make the transition easier going from these textbooks to classical? 

 

2. Another thought I have for my soon to be 6th grader is to enroll her in Fisher More Academy or a different online school.  She is not going to be one bit happy about homeschooling so my thought was that this might be a bit easier of a transition for her. Thoughts and recommendations? 

 

3. My soon to be 1st grader is bored at school. Her teacher is giving her 1st grade math worksheets to help keep her from getting into trouble. My soon to be 6th grader has really fallen behind in math thanks to the lack of depth in the new curriculum. However, she is still getting really good grades which is upsetting since we know she really doesn't understand it. Do you know of any type of testing we should do to assess what grade level of material to use? Does it really just depend on which curriculum we go with? 

 

4. For the daughter that will turn 3 yrs old this fall I was just going to do a loose preschool of learning while playing. Nothing structured since I will have a big learning curve with the older two. Does that seem okay and not irresponsible? 

 

5. Any other words of wisdom that I might be in need of but missing would be openly accepted!  Thanks so much.

[Guest]

Have you looked at Seton or Kolbe? They are both Catholic based.

[Aspasia]

As far as math levels go, most curricula will have a placement test that you can give her. The level definitely will depend on the curriculum you choose.

 

My personal opinion about the online school: If your daughter isn't going to be happy about homeschooling, I would actually try something different from the public school model (which online schools most definitely are). If she's basically doing public school at home, then in her mind the only difference is that she is *missing out* on all the social stuff. But if you offer the academics in a different style, maybe she'll be able to see some of the advantages of homeschooling and appreciate it more. Of course, that all depends on how your daughter feels about school now. If she enjoys the public school model, then maybe an online school would be a good way to hold on to one of the things she would otherwise be missing out on.

 

For your 3-year-old, I HOPE what you're describing is okay, because it's what I have been doing with my 3-year-old! He seems to be learning a lot and doing just fine. Most people on this board will tell you it's more than fine to let your daughter learn through playing.

 

Good luck!

[KristenR]

I can't really be of much help since I don't really use a packaged curriculum but I wanted to wish you luck. 

Also, keep in mind you can always tweak curriculum at home to suit your family's needs.  My family is rather secular but we are utilizing and loving our local Christian co-op - Classical Conversations.  I did a blog post entitled Can My Secular Family Utilize Classical Conversations  -  I realize you are not in the same boat but you can see how materials and resources can be adjusted to fit your lifestyle and beliefs. 

[thefragile7393]

I agree, most math curricula will have placement tests you can use to see where you child is.  There are many great ones out there, just depends on what you think your older kids can work with.  What you are doing with the 3 year old is very on par...that is what a 3yo should be doing :) 

 

I would say for your oldest child, see what kind of learner she is and see what it is about brick and mortar school she likes.  An online school can be a good choice for some...many of the public online charters have clubs and field trips for instance.  If she is used to a B&M school it could work out.  If the whole structure of public school has her messed up then an online school may not be the best solution for her.  Online schools are good if you have a child who can manage their time well or does not need a lot of pushing to keep up with schoolwork.  It is easy for many to slack off when doing online courses (I know I do).  If you had issues with her getting things completed in a B&M school then its quite possible you will have the same challenges in an online school as well.

 

[Incognito]

FWIW, if your Ker is bored in school now, is there are good reason for you to leave him/her there to develop bad habits and a dislike of school/learning for the rest of the school year?  I am assuming you are already home with the toddler.  If I were you, I'd pull the younger one, get your feet wet with that, and have a half year under my belt before bringing the older child home.  School for a Ker is short.

 

As far as what curriculum to use - Cathy Duffy has a book (and website) that can be very helpful for figuring out what you might like.  I found the book helpful for considering what kinds of students my kids are, and what kinds of learning environments people choose to use (classical model being one of them).

 

 

[NASDAQ]

Kolbe and Seton are both Catholic and well-respected. Calvert is secular. I don't think that most curricula would undermine a Catholic education, unless you picked something that was very, very strongly identified with certain strains of Protestantism (ACE Paces would be a bad choice I'd think).

 

I'm not totally sure I'd want to go with a package, though, for a reluctant sixth grader. They are not very flexible, and this seems like a time that it might be worth it to you to be able to jettison things easily and, when possible, to follow her interests. You need a certain amount of buy-in with a middle schooler that you don't necessarily need with a kindergartener, kwim? Selecting your own work doesn't have to be arduous, whereas enforcing a boxed curriculum may be arduous.

 

For math, do a placement test. She may well place back a grade or two. It's fine. She will probably motor through the easier stuff. It can be a nice, confidence-boosting start. A program such as Singapore Math (which is very popular) can be moved through very, very quickly. A few (Saxon) cannot.

 

All I do with three-year-olds it to try to keep them from destroying my house and sabotaging the other children's work. Any schoolwork given (here, colour this) is given for that purpose.

[My3girls]

I don't do a packaged curriculum, either. I agree about the placement tests for math. My dd12 was not enthused when I pulled her from ps, either. I let her have some say in her schedule and literature selections. That has helped. Also, I have made sure that she has been able to stay in contact with her close friends and has plenty of opportunity to connect with other homeschoolers through Girl Scouts, 4H, and athletics. Her biggest worry about homeschooling was the social aspect so as long as I continue to address that I think we'll be ok.

 

As for the 3 year old, I wouldn't worry about any kind of curriculum. Just read to her and let her tag along with her sibligs. They are total sponges at that age.

[elah]

I agree, most math curricula will have placement tests you can use to see where you child is.  There are many great ones out there, just depends on what you think your older kids can work with.  What you are doing with the 3 year old is very on par...that is what a 3yo should be doing :)

 

I would say for your oldest child, see what kind of learner she is and see what it is about brick and mortar school she likes.  An online school can be a good choice for some...many of the public online charters have clubs and field trips for instance.  If she is used to a B&M school it could work out.  If the whole structure of public school has her messed up then an online school may not be the best solution for her.  Online schools are good if you have a child who can manage their time well or does not need a lot of pushing to keep up with schoolwork.  It is easy for many to slack off when doing online courses (I know I do).  If you had issues with her getting things completed in a B&M school then its quite possible you will have the same challenges in an online school as well.

 

She LOVES the social aspects and the sports. She lives to play sports and she is really good at it. She gets her work done on time and is not afraid to ask us for help when she is stuck on something. She is self motivated to study the night before a test etc. 

 

Good to know that most do have placement tests! I did sign up for K5 learning trial to see if that helps my 5th grader with her math until the end of the year. I thought that it was interesting that all the tests for math and English came back mid-year 5th grade level. However, the questions where all multiple choice and she has become an excellent guesser b/c of the way they teach the kids to do that in their current math classes. :( My K daughter tested at mid-year or end of year 1st grade on every subject. Both girls loved the lessons online and ask everyday to do another lesson on the computer. 

[elah]

FWIW, if your Ker is bored in school now, is there are good reason for you to leave him/her there to develop bad habits and a dislike of school/learning for the rest of the school year?  I am assuming you are already home with the toddler.  If I were you, I'd pull the younger one, get your feet wet with that, and have a half year under my belt before bringing the older child home.  School for a Ker is short.

 

As far as what curriculum to use - Cathy Duffy has a book (and website) that can be very helpful for figuring out what you might like.  I found the book helpful for considering what kinds of students my kids are, and what kinds of learning environments people choose to use (classical model being one of them).

We have discussed pulling her mid-year. There are 4 good reasons why are not going to be doing that. One big one is that I am due in mid-March. There are 3 other reasons as well.   I will have to see if I can get Cathy's book from the library. Thanks!

[elah]

I don't do a packaged curriculum, either. I agree about the placement tests for math. My dd12 was not enthused when I pulled her from ps, either. I let her have some say in her schedule and literature selections. That has helped. Also, I have made sure that she has been able to stay in contact with her close friends and has plenty of opportunity to connect with other homeschoolers through Girl Scouts, 4H, and athletics. Her biggest worry about homeschooling was the social aspect so as long as I continue to address that I think we'll be ok.

 

As for the 3 year old, I wouldn't worry about any kind of curriculum. Just read to her and let her tag along with her sibligs. They are total sponges at that age.

 

Your 12 yr old DD sounds like mine! I think that the key will be keeping her connected and involved with kids outside our home. She is a social butterfly and a very good athlete.  She really gets most of her self-esteem boost through sports. 

 

She is also an avid reader. She is always sneaking away to her room to hide and read where it is quiet.

[elah]

The soon to be 6th grader is not really a reluctant students. She is self motivated, works really hard, and is not afraid to ask questions. She gets all A's and B's in school. The reason she is falling behind in math is that the curriculum is moving to new topics to fast so the student's don't have time to really get it down before they have to learn another new concept. Her math grades are still great but we feel it's only b/c the tests are multiple choice and you can see her math work on the side is wrong but she is a good guesser. Her NWEA assessment from this fall shows that she is right on par with where she should be. BUT to watch her do the math you can see really quick that she doesn't really get it. 

 

So the oldest is a big time reader. She would read all day if I let her! I was looking into a couple different programs and would love to hear any feedback. I was looking at the Angelicum Academy. It seems like they are heavy on the lit side which might be good for her. Also, she would have the ability to have some discussions about what she is reading which would help with the social aspect. They do let you break it up so I could start her at different level of math then her other subjects.  When I looked up reviews it seemed like older reviews were very negative but the more recent ( last 2-3 years) where positive.  I really like having someone else grade the papers and look over the girls' writing. I am not the best at grammar and don't have much confidence in my ability to correct it properly. 

 

Thanks so much for all the feed back so far! It has been a huge help and I hope you keep sharing your wisdom with me. I'm green and I know it :) 

[2queens&1princenmyhouse]

Mother of Divine Grace may be an option as well.  It is Charlotte Mason meets Classical meets Catholic.

[elah]

Mother of Divine Grace may be an option as well.  It is Charlotte Mason meets Classical meets Catholic.

 

Do you know if they grade written work or just tests?