Newbie needs 2nd grade curriculum help! :)

[Guest captain_mommy]

Hi everyone.  :)

 

We're planning on pulling DD1 out of private Catholic school at the end of this year and begin homeschooling. The school just didn't meet my expectations on a number of levels. WHEW it feels good to say that! I am struggling with how to tell the mothers of her friends without sounding like a jerk. They think the school is great.

I have read the Cathy Duffy book. DD1 is like 150% Wiggly Willy.  She is the oldest of four...so in the coming school year, she will be 7. And we have three younger children who will be 5, 3, and 1. (yikes)

The 5 year old I am not so concerned about...she will be repeating one final year of Pre-K and then we will probably ease into a Kinder curriculum when we feel the time is right (maybe mid-year, maybe sooner, maybe when she is 6).

DD1 is finishing up first grade now. I am struggling to find things that are good for a Wiggly Willy but have a strong Classical bent, which is what I want.

PLEASE chime in! So far this is what I am pretty sure we're doing. We are attending the Great Homeschooling Convention in Cincinnati in April, so hopefully that will give us more insight into what we do or do not want...so this is subject to change!  For the other subjects, I need suggestions!

Math: Math-U-See (Beta)

History/Social Studies: Story of the World

Language: Song School Latin

Handwriting: I think we're using Handwriting Without Tears but I'm not sure. Thoughts? Her handwriting is terrible. I think because she is soo busy and in a hurry and there is a lack of effort or attentiveness or SOME thing. I thought the manipulatives - though probably intended for littles - might make it more interesting but IDK. There comes a point...like maybe when you are almost 7...where you just need to write. Right? LOL Really need advice on this.

Spelling/Vocab: NEED SUGGESTIONS

Phonics/Reading/Literature: NEED SUGGESTIONS (I've considered Teaching the Classics...but I'm worried she'd freak out with too much book work.)

Grammar/Composition NEED SUGGESTIONS (I've considered Structure & Style...again, worried about it being too much sitting and book work.)

Science: NEED SUGGESTIONS

Religion: NEED SUGGESTIONS

And I'm thinking of adding the Critical Thinking Company for an added component. IDK, it might be too much. I'm trying to be realistic about all the littles we'll have running around; at the same time, this is our first crack at homeschooling and I want to do it right...I want to be ahead of the curve, not falling behind.

In our current curriculum through the school, her vocab/spelling is tied in with her Reading, which makes sense to me. I think it's weird how the homeschool curriculums I've seen are separate. Or maybe I'm not looking at the right ones.

 

Thank you for any insight you can give.  :)
 

[arcara]

I'm assuming you're Catholic since you're pulling her from Catholic school??? Then, for Religionthe two main programs are Seton's Religion series (that's what we use - go to www.setonbooks.com) or Faith & Life. You could also go with the Bsltimore catechism. I also include Bible and saint readings as part of our religious studies.

 

Are you familiar with the main Catholic homescho providers? You may want to look through their websites to see what they offer to see if any of it interests you. The major ones are Seton, Kolbe, and CHC (Catholic Heritage Curricula). There's also Angelicum and the Catholic Charlotte Mason site, Mater Amabilis. There's also RC History for a Catholic history program.

 

I use a mix of Catholic and secular materials in our homeschool - 7 kids ages newborn to 13 years.

 

Good luck with your planning!

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

Hi!  I have kids of similar ages- next fall I'll have 7.5, 5.5, 2.5, and newborn.  :-) 

 

For math, I use Right Start B, followed by Singapore Math.  I love both of these programs, don't know anything about MUS

Science- I love Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding.  This is not an "open and go" book, but if you are willing to do a lesson plan on the weekend, it is a wonderful foundation.

History- We are doing SOTW as well!  I use the audio CDs to save my reading voice.  The kids color the coloring page while the CD is on, then we talk about it and DS narrates back what he remembers

 

And now for Language Arts!  Language arts are such a can of worms. 

 

Personally, I am not doing spelling in 2nd, I'll wait until 3rd. 

 

I make copywork for my son.  I used to write it out by hand on handwriting paper and skip lines, but now he copies it from a separate source.  I've tried several handwriting programs and not liked any of them.  Ultimately, the only way to get that handwriting to improve is to be "mean"- sit right next to the child, and watch the formation of every single letter.  Letters that are not formed correctly or are sloppy get erased and re-done.  Only give her as much as she can do *nicely* in 5 minutes.  Once she has mastered that, you can either increase the time or decrease the supervision and see how it goes. 

 

Literature- I would just pick some good children's classics that you think she'd enjoy.  There are MANY lists of these out there!  This year, we've read The Princess and the Goblin, We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea, Trumpet of the Swan, 21 Balloons, Dr. Doolittle...  We do not "analyze" these particularly at this age, though we do talk about them.   My goal is simply to train the ear to listen to complex language and enjoy it.  We have many years to worry about "plot elements", etc.

 

We have no separate vocabulary.  If you are reading good books out loud, vocabulary will come naturally. 

 

Phonics- For children who are past the basic decoding stage, but not yet strong independent readers, I really like the McGuffey Readers.  The complexity of the language increases gradually, the lessons are very short, and the vocabulary is slightly antiquated, which is good prep if you want to read classic children's lit with your kids.  The reader number is not the same as grade level.  The 2nd reader corresponds to 3-4th grade reading level, for example, so pick a few passages from the first readers and see where she is at.  These are very simple to use.  We basically just read the passage.  If my son makes more than 1-2 errors, we re-read the sentences with errors, and then re-read the whole passage the following day.  If he breezes through it, we just move to the next lesson.  We do this, and then we read a few pages from a challenging chapter book.  When I want son to read "for fun" or independently, I provide him with easy books below grade level, which helps to encourage speed, fluency, and enjoyment. 

 

Composition:  Again, I am not using a curriculum.  I do recommend reading the book "The Complete Writer: Writing with Ease" and getting the workbook if you want to make your life easier.  Otherwise, you can simply use the history readings and science lessons to practice "oral composition" (a.k.a. narration).  If she hasn't been doing this, I'd probably spend half a year in the WWE1 phase and then go on to 2.  I don't use the workbooks, but I do use the ideas to help work on narration skills. 

 

We do the following two things:

- Free Writes

- Writing "projects"

 

For writing projects, DS and I sit down with the whiteboard.  He chosses a subject, usually something he has recently watched a documentary on, or read a book about or just likes in general.  He comes up with 3-5 things to say about that subject, and i write down key words for each idea to help us remember.  We talk about what order to write the 3-5 ideas, usually talking about going from big ideas down to more detailed ideas.  He then dictates his first sentence to me.  He then writes it down, and I can dictate it back to him if he forgets.  We do this for each idea, until he has 3-5 sentences. 

 

We stop there for the day.  I will rewrite his paragraph below if I think his spelling is so terrible that we will forget before the next day.  :-) 

 

The next day, we look at what was written.  We check that it makes sense.  We add little details, move things around, or add in an opening sentence or closing sentence if one feels necessary.  (I do all the writing here).  I then write out a final draft.  He then gets out a clean sheet and uses my final draft as copy work and copies his final draft in neat handwriting.  He then illustrates. 

 

Ta-da! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

Oh, for Catechism we are just doing the Baltimore Cat and Catholic Mosaic booklist.  I converted to Catholicism and my husband did not, so I tread lightly in terms of not making the home overwhelmingly Catholic.  I hope you are able to better than me! 

 

p.p.s.  I would not do Song School Latin unless you are just looking for something extra to do.  :-)  It's a whole lot of gimmick for the amount of learning, IMO.  I'd either pick a modern language, or hold off on Latin until you can start the Latina Christiana/Prima Latina stuff.  Just my opinion! 

[My3girls]

We are about 2/3 of the way through 2nd grade, and this is what has been working for us.

 

Math:  Math Mammoth 2A/B.  We didn't go with MUS, because my kids need the variety.  MM is still a mastery program, but it has just enough review in it to keep ideas fresh and the girls interested.

 

History:  Story of the World Vol.1, Usborne Encyclopedia of World History, and good books from the library.

 

Handwriting:  Zane Bloser 2M for one dd and 2C for the other.  I just couldn't get past the paper in HWT.

 

Spelling/Vocab:  SpellWell A and Aa.  It's not your typical boring spelling program.  It does include some vocabulary.  The girls love it, especially, the spelling tic-tac-toe games.

 

Phonics/Reading/Literature:  We use Explode the Code for phonics.  I use the teacher book as well for the lessons and extras not just the workbook.  My kids would not get anything out of just doing the workbook.  The girls enjoy it, because it can be so silly sometimes.  As for reading, they each read aloud to me for about 15-20 minutes a day.  They get to choose a history or science book from our library basket.  This way we are supplementing our content subjects, and they get some say in what they are reading.  As for Literature, right now, I don't believe you need to teach the classics; you just need to expose them to them.  Now is the time to develop a love of reading not squash it.  That's just my not so humble opinion. lol  I usually present them with 3, they choose, and then we read them popcorn style (I read a paragraph, one reads a paragraph or 2, and the other reads a paragraph or 2, repeat).

 

Grammar/Composition:  First Language Lessons 2 and Writing With Ease 2.  We do FLL orally.  WWE I use with their Literature readings.  I do not use the workbook.

 

Science:  I have not been able to find a Science curriculum that I like AND will use.  I really, really like BFSU, but I just don't have the time needed to make it work for us.  Others I have found to be too light, too expensive, or too religious.  We study science and religion separately.  What has worked for us is BrainPOP Jr., library books, documentaries, field trips, and nature walks.  DD12 is using CK12 for science at the middle school level so we follow her sequence, and I just keep it at their level.  I am finding through some of ther homeschool field trips that this is working just fine.

 

Religion:  We correspond this to our history, and study it from a secular perspective.  Probably, not what you are looking for. lol

 

 

 

 

[IceFairy]

My DS is a wiggler....we solve a lot of that by doing lessons on the floor, the picnic table by the creek, the couch.....it really works!!! Our second grade line up is looking like this:

 

Math: Singapore 2A/2B and CLE 2

Language Arts

   English and Grammar: Abeka Language 2

   Penmanship: Writing with Diligence

   Spelling: Abeka Spelling 2

   Reading: Sonlight 3rd Grade Readers

History: Beautiful Feet Early American

Science: Apologia Astronomy

Latin: Memoria Press 

[joyfulmomSDG]

I would recommend All About Spelling (for spelling) & FLL (for Grammar). Both are short scripted lessons that are done with you rather than via a workbook. Also, both are deceptively effective considering the length of the lessons!

[jdarling]

My Father's World is an all subject curriculum that is an excellent program.  

[NASDAQ]

I have a 7 yo finishing second, five-year-old doing K, three yo and 1 yo.

 

Math: Math-U-See (Beta)

Math-U-See is not my thing, but if this is what you have, no worries. Did she start with MUS? It has a weird sequence.

History/Social Studies: Story of the World

We listened to the Veritas Press timeline song and she read stuff. Very back burner though.

Language: Song School Latin
Didn't do any Latin.

Handwriting: I think we're using Handwriting Without Tears but I'm not sure. Thoughts? Her handwriting is terrible. I think because she is soo busy and in a hurry and there is a lack of effort or attentiveness or SOME thing. I thought the manipulatives - though probably intended for littles - might make it more interesting but IDK. There comes a point...like maybe when you are almost 7...where you just need to write. Right? LOL Really need advice on this.

Have her write less. I used HWT for printing but Memoria Press for cursive.

Spelling/Vocab: NEED SUGGESTIONS

We started with AAS but gave it up at AAS 3 because I cannot justify spending that much time teaching something relatively minor. She's doing Rod & Staff now, which is okay. Second graders don't need vocabulary separate from their reading.

Phonics/Reading/Literature: NEED SUGGESTIONS (I've considered Teaching the Classics...but I'm worried she'd freak out with too much book work.)

She did the Hay Wingo Primer to review phonics and is reading through the Canadian Readers. She's in the fourth reader, and it is tough going. She reads it aloud and we discuss vocabulary.

Grammar/Composition NEED SUGGESTIONS (I've considered Structure & Style...again, worried about it being too much sitting and book work.)

She has also been doing Classical Writing Aesop since the new year. Previously we tried Easy Grammar but it didn't stick. We did the Sentence Family and a diagramming workbook.

Science: NEED SUGGESTIONS

We do this informally.

Religion: NEED SUGGESTIONS

Can't really help you here.

And I'm thinking of adding the Critical Thinking Company for an added component. IDK, it might be too much. I'm trying to be realistic about all the littles we'll have running around; at the same time, this is our first crack at homeschooling and I want to do it right...I want to be ahead of the curve, not falling behind.

I am not sure that adding things is a good idea. I like my daughter to have strong progress in math and reading. She is a very good reader for her age (not naturally so we had to work on it) and she's solid with the math she does. But wanting to do more than the schools is not necessarily a great idea. Also, be aware that American schools in particular expect a great deal in the earliest grades right now. Unless you have a gifted child, you probably don't want to go faster than Common Core math in the second grade. A great deal of Common Core writing in K-2 is unrealistic for most children.

[Homeschoolmom3]

Spelling/Vocab: We have used Spelling Workout from the beginning all the way through and it worked well.  This could be used as a voc. list in the upper years as well.  We also supplemented with Spelling Wisdom (Charlotte Mason)

Phonics/Reading/Literature: I don't know if you need a curriculum per say at that age would get a good list of good books and go through them asking questions and making sure she is comprehending it.

Grammar/Composition:  We used Shurley English up through Middle School and it has done it's job.  Can be repetitive but my kids learned it.  :)  They also include vocabulary so I used this along with Spelling Wisdom for the voc. aspect.  They also started Latin when they were in 2nd grade so that helps with the voc. as well.

Science: We used the Apologia texts as a base but at your child's age I would just get a lot of good books and read through them discuss and do some fun science experiments!

Religion: We did various studies focusing on Bible characters, themes, reading the Bible through and just adding memory verses and discussion as we went along.  You don't have to have a set curriculum.  There are many good books out there for character studies we also added with our Bible time good biographies of Christian leaders of the faith. 

 

HTH

 

[CCelebi]

I would recommend that you take a look at the Build Your Library curriculum. It is a really inexpensive ($35) lesson plan that uses a literature-based approach. It also incorporates SOTW. I am using this with my second grader (and letting my 4yo tag along) and adding:

 

MUS - alpha and beta

Life of Fred Apples and Butterflies

R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey Life 1

Writing with Ease

First Language Lessons

Explode the Code 3,4,5

 

[MotherOfBoys]

I'm just going to add that your going to want to set some time to do the pretests to any curriculum you choose. Second grade b&m school doesn't mean exactly second grade in every subject. Homeschooling can be a nice customized education.

 

Explode the Code phonics is nice because you can move quickly through it to fill in any reading holes then switch to the McGuffey readers.

 

I don't know about MUS or your budget but with the amount of kids you have coming up in the ranks you might want to check out the Homeschool buyers coop website. They have a math mammoth program grades 1-6 really cheap and it's easy to accelerate or slow down. It works as a frame work for each years math and you can adjust as needed for each child. I do some verbally and on the white board we have to mix it up. I also hear of printing the worksheets with a bigger font to make less appear on a page. It's pretty open and go though too.

 

Writing with Ease teachers book is a good way to add in writing without too much for your first year. I pair it with SoTW. We do our history lesson and he narrates the story back to me then I write it down and give it to him to copy.

 

I wouldn't do song school latin either. You can do Prima Latina/Latina Christiana. It is a religious(I thought catholic) latin for K-3 but involves a good amount of writing so people wait till 2nd a lot it seems. It comes with a corresponding cursive writing book. You could kill multiple subjects with one. Handwriting, Latin, writing(copywork), and grammar. Latin includes a fair amount of English grammar. I am only doing Prima Latina to cover grammar next year. English grammar, some say, can actually wait to be started till third grade. First and second grade grammar is usually just an extension of phonics. Second grade could be better used to push reading fluently.