Guest Muppet Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Alright, first I understand how asking for an unschoolish curriculum is a bit of an oxymoron! But my daughter likes to "do" school. Traditionally we have used Enki as my daughter loves stories. But I am tired of all the preparation Enki takes and all the political drama going on... So I am looking for a change and I have been out of the loop for awhile. My daughter is a new 7 year old who does not read (I am not worried about her not reading...). I also have a 3.5 year old boy. Preferably I would like an out of the box solution because I am a bit lazy! We do have RightStart math already. But my daughter loves to learn through stories and wants to start learning a little bit about reading. I would also like science addressed (evolutionary style). I like something with no busy work (or busy work that can be ignored) and more holistic (which is what I LOVED about Enki). So great minds, any suggestions? Thank you so much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Above The Rowan Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I haven't actually USED this, so take this with a grain of salt. Have you looked at the Global Village School curriculum? Essentially, it's a really big book list with a suggestion as to how to plan it out and implement it. I haven't found many reviews kicking around the net, other than the testimonials from their own site, but I have been emailing back and forth a little with GVS as I'm thinking about picking them up after the summer for both my little ones. Yes, it's $125-$175 for a book list, but honestly the time I'm spending to find living books that fit my particular ideals and values is worth the cost of the curriculum, I think. I'm going to try it with my 8yr old and see how I like it. But it is holistic, learning through reading and investigating and experiencing, and they offer suggestions for math/science/LA etc. I wish I could find someone who has USED it and has real experience with it (not just the testimonials on the GVS site). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 An oxymoron, indeed. :-) What about Ambleside Online? As an unschooler myself, I still find Ambleside Online appealing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BugsMama Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Oak Meadow. Absolutely.No busy work. Story based (I've only seen up to grade 3). Very flexible. Very easy to accomplish. It sounds perfect for what you are looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paceofnature Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 What about Five in a Row? Very relaxed, story based and you can add more science if you would like. We sometimes add in some Magic School Bus videos/books to tie into what we are reading. My 6yo loves it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susie in MS Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I like both Ambleside Online and Five in a Row. They are vastly different, but both, in their own way, feel very unschoolish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Oak Meadow. Absolutely. No busy work. Story based (I've only seen up to grade 3). Very flexible. Very easy to accomplish. It sounds perfect for what you are looking for. :iagree: If you like Enki, this is a good place to go. Both Enki and Oak Meadow are Waldorf-inspired (but not Waldorf - they both took out the anthroposophic stuff, which Waldorf purists would argue is what makes something Waldorf). They both use stories to teach things like math and science. I think they both use a lot of Waldorf-inspired art and a Main Lesson Book? I know Enki focuses more on they yearly Seasonal cycle/festivals rather than the more Christian-oriented Waldorf ones, I'm not sure about Oak Meadow, but I believe it is secular. Someone more familiar with Oak Meadow could tell you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Oak Meadow has everything you're looking for, especially in the early grades. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna A. Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Ambleside and/or Five in a Row :thumbup1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyfaithe Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I am giggling a bit because I never realized Ambleside was unschoolish until I began using a very schooling curriculum!!! I miss my Ambleside days MORE than anyone can imagine and I am praying to have the freedom to return to it. Ambleside can be as schooly or as unschooly as you want it to be. Remember, you will be using many outdated books that may really get your bloomers in a twist. Feel free to exchange those for ones you like better, or fit more into your own philosophies. CM changed up books often...tossing ones once she found better. Use your Google search and virtual field trips often...CM would have went NUTS for Google Maps and online tutorials. Be creative within the framework! Good Luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Above The Rowan Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Is Ambleside not a Christian curriculum? Or is it easy to tailor that one to secular needs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Is Ambleside not a Christian curriculum? Or is it easy to tailor that one to secular needs? Ambleside Online may have been put together by Christians--I'd have to go look at it again--but it is a Charlotte Mason method, which is secular, and it would be easy to not include any religious stuff at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyfaithe Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 It is very easy to use however you will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muppet Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I looked at ambleside and it does appear to be somewhat religious. It starts off its schedule with the bible...I know one can just ignore that but it does raise questions about other book choices... I also don't like some of the phonics recommendations. So not as all encompassing as I would like. Oak Meadow and Live Education seem to be the most interesting at the moment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I looked at ambleside and it does appear to be somewhat religious. It starts off its schedule with the bible...I know one can just ignore that but it does raise questions about other book choices... I also don't like some of the phonics recommendations. So not as all encompassing as I would like. Oak Meadow and Live Education seem to be the most interesting at the moment For the most part, Ambleside Online uses trade books--that is, books you can find in the library. Some are old, copyright-free books that are available on-line. In short, most of them are not overtly Christian. Some historical figures were Christians, and you cannot really discuss them without bringing their religion into it, but the books are not proselytizing. And if you don't like the phonics, skip the phonics. You could do just the history selections, or just the science selections. I don't think you're going to find a nice box of books from a single resource that fits your needs. I think you're going to have to tweak everything. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I looked at ambleside and it does appear to be somewhat religious. It starts off its schedule with the bible...I know one can just ignore that but it does raise questions about other book choices... I also don't like some of the phonics recommendations. So not as all encompassing as I would like. Oak Meadow and Live Education seem to be the most interesting at the moment Just FYI - while Enki and Oak Meadow are Waldorf-influenced, Live Ed is full-on Waldorf - from what I've heard the most "authentic" Waldorf curriculum available for homeschoolers. Which is great if that's what you want - from what I've read (used to spend a lot of time on Waldorf hsing lists), Live Ed expects the parent-teacher to do a lot of work to get the philosophy behind the program. It's got a lot of how-to-teach and why-to-teach-what-when, not a lot of daily lessons. Maybe this has changed? Oak Meadow I think is much more open-and-go - do these nice gentle lessons but don't sweat the heavy philosophical underpinnings. This is why a lot of Waldorf purists scoff at Oak Meadow. I'm also not sure how secular you need the program to be - Live Ed would have both elements of anthroposophy and Christian festivals central to the program - filtered again through Steiner's understanding of Christianity and the incarnating soul. I took what I liked from Waldorf and left the rest, but that's why I wouldn't have personally liked Live Ed as a curriculum - couldn't swallow it whole. We used Enki for 2-3 years along with other stuff, and I'll admit I've completely wandered away from things Waldorf as the kids got older. I did love elements of it when they were young. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeindeed Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Another vote for Oak Meadow here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I had also thought about Oak Meadow, but I just read a comment recently--can't remember where--that someone used it with her child but it was heavy on reading so they gave it up because her ds wasn't up for it. Muppet said her dd isn't reading at her age level yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I had also thought about Oak Meadow, but I just read a comment recently--can't remember where--that someone used it with her child but it was heavy on reading so they gave it up because her ds wasn't up for it. Muppet said her dd isn't reading at her age level yet. But maybe that was an older kid? At the younger grades, I think Oak Meadow is slow and gentle with the reading? As a new 7yo mid-year, her dd would be 1st grade now - I believe at that age, OM is doing learning-to-read and read-alouds. Looked it up and yes, they start 1st grade with an introduction to "uppercase and lowercase letters" and "word families" (in a similar way to Enki and Waldorf). Ambleside ramps up the reading level and amount way faster. :confused1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 But maybe that was an older kid? At the younger grades, I think Oak Meadow is slow and gentle with the reading? As a new 7yo mid-year, her dd would be 1st grade now - I believe at that age, OM is doing learning-to-read and read-alouds. Looked it up and yes, they start 1st grade with an introduction to "uppercase and lowercase letters" and "word families" (in a similar way to Enki and Waldorf). Ambleside ramps up the reading level and amount way faster. :confused1: IDK. As I said, I don't remember where I read it, and I don't remember how old that child was. I have always thought that OM sounded interesting. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Have you read anything about Reggio Emilia? I highly recommend the book 'The Hundred Languages of Children'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna A. Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Uh yeah, how is Ambleside not religious? Just don't do the Bible portion. Bible and the other subjects are not integrated in Ambleside the way they are in HOD or MFW. Ambleside is more like Sonlight in that way, except that you don't have a teacher's manual with discussion notes about the Bible/religious aspect of it. Ambleside is a list of books put together in a particular order, period. YOU provide the discussion material. No wait, if done in a truly CM way, it's the child who provides the discussion per their own observations and narrations. As a matter of fact, there's a section on the website somewhere where the gals who put the curriculum together actually defend the books they've chosen to Christians who are questioning the many secular resources. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 You can easily skip the bible stuff in Ambleside, just as many gloss over the more Christian part of Waldorf. It is your schedule to make and you decide what is an is not in it. Not a big deal really. But, you might find Oak Meadow the most appealing. I spend time with lots of unschoolers and if they make the move to more 'schooly' stuff it always seems to be Oak Meadow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I have not seen Enki to see how it compares in prep time but if you like waldorf inspired curriculum, waldorf essentials is a great one. Both y youngers really enjoyed it last year, dd6 has asked me to do stories with super sam again this year (the gnome her K curric focused on) grade 3 last year for ds10 focused on the old testament but not in a Christian sense, it was more about the festivals and stories in it rather than as a religious study, I never looked at the 2nd grade stuff but based on what we did do it was very nice (and a great price to boot) Another option would be konos, it is a unit study approach, my youngers are using it now with my teens tagging along for fun. They really enjoy it and don't find it to be like school at all. There is projects you need to prepare for but they are worth it, but kids are retaining so much from listening to the read alouds, and then doing projects together. It is as involved or not as you wish. Each unit has pages worth of book titles and projects you can pick and choose from like a buffet, do a little or do a lot what ever you are feeling up to. Now it is a Christian curriculum so far as they tie the character traits into biblical learning and there is a scripture offered to memorize in each unit but it can be done 100% secularily as character traits of attentiveness, honesty, responsibility, truthfulness are a great focus regardless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I had also thought about Oak Meadow, but I just read a comment recently--can't remember where--that someone used it with her child but it was heavy on reading so they gave it up because her ds wasn't up for it. Muppet said her dd isn't reading at her age level yet. From what I understand, it doesn't even begin phonics until grade 1; the UPPER grades are heavy on the reading (the curriculum ramps up significantly around grade 4, I believe). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BugsMama Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 What grade level are we talking about here? OM 1 is appropriate for a non-reader. It's VERY gentle and wonderful like that. OM 3 still would work well for a struggling reader. The lessons are based in stories, but they are stories I tell to my children. OM3 has classic books assigned for the child to read, but there is no reason they couldn't be swapped out for other books, or done as read alouds. In the early years, OM is flexible enough to meet the needs of all sorts of different kinds of learners.I have a review of OM3 up, as well as week in the life and other OM posts on my blog if you want to see it in action. I am very much a secular homeschooler that hates to be "tied down" LOL. Oak Meadow is the anti-box, boxed curriculum. We are eclectic and try lots of things, and OM works with our heavy on travel and playing outside lifestyle. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 From what I understand, it doesn't even begin phonics until grade 1; the UPPER grades are heavy on the reading (the curriculum ramps up significantly around grade 4, I believe). Kewl then. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecclecticmum Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 Um.....I know of an unschooling curriculum......................................... Living is Learning Curriculum Guides on Fun-Books: http://www.fun-books.com/homeschooling.htm (scroll down). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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