lindsey Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 I feel just about set -- but there seem to be a couple of holes, and I don't know, my science might be weak. Third (*June starts, the rest in fall--don't want to start it ALL at once) *MATH: After much debate, I bought the 3A set of Beast. He likes math, does well in it, loves logic puzzles and being challenged re: mental math, etc. If my choice proves to be a mistake I will likely go with MM. SPELLING: R&S GRAMMAR: FLL3 WRITING: WWE3 (have also considered Fable for the occasional change of pace) *READING: He's a strong reader and he and my husband pick out his books. We'll have a set time each day for reading (for everyone!), but he will exceed it just because he's always got his nose in a book. *HISTORY: SOTW 1, library (I have a good list started), maps, and honestly documentaries, 'related' movies, crafts, etc. Admittedly, history and science might seem academically weak, but I'm trying to keep them fun for a 1st grader and preschooler who is interested, too. And just trying to not overwhelm everyone. *SCIENCE: Bio first...we have several kid encyclopedias for the body, plant life, and the animal kingdom. Books with cool pictures, field trips and hopefully some notebooking at the zoo, Conservatory, gardening-Grandpa's yard, our own gardens, etc. Bill Nye, Animal Planet.... Is this enough? *I will have him practice cursive/copywork this summer, but probably no formal writing program until fall. Should I consider anything additional for math? How about a typing program? Are my science plans seriously lacking or okay? First (*June starts): *MATH: We've started Miquon, will continue. SPELLING: I have AAS, don't plan to start until fall at least. GRAMMAR: FLL1 *HANDWRITING: I got the HWOT first grade book. We'll finish this before starting AAS and WWE. WRITING: WWE1 *READING: So far my plan is to just keep reading with him like we are now. He's on the level 2 Bob Books (almost done). *Same history and science as above. Any glaring issues? Do I need to do more for reading? With my oldest we just read a ton--both have had public school kindy so that's what we've done. I think that's it. The only thing I'm still feeling REALLY anxious about is just how much trouble my near-2yo is going to cause during this transition. Thank you!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Relax, plan plenty of time for field trips, outside and inside play. It's going to be great. Enjoy! You won't ruin them. :D 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 The science sounds fabulous to me, and you have all the major bases covered otherwise. Make sure to put the focus on the math and language arts. I'd probably stagger the history and science so only one of them is done each day. When my kids were all little mornings were for math and language arts, and after we'd had lunch and a family wide quiet-time we dug into science and/or history. *Everyone* took a quiet time. Babies, toddlers, and some preschoolers all napped. Anyone who'd outgrown naps could take a pile of books to their bed and be as quiet as possible, even if they couldn't read. Depending on bedroom sharing, good readers could take their reading to a quiet nook somewhere else. Mom? Mom got to defrag from the morning and prepare herself for the rest of the day. That left the rest of the day open to get absorbed in history/science, playing in the backyard, feeble attempts at housework, and dinner preparation. Enjoy the journey! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebbyribs Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Sounds good! Depending on where your oldest is with writing, jumping into WWE3 might be hard (especially if he hasn't done dictation before), and you might consider starting with WWE2 or just going with CAP Fable. The SOTW activity books will take care of a lot of the library and map parts for history and they also have discussion questions and additional projects. Pandia Press History Odyssey does this as well. Your science plans sound fine, but science is an easy subject to let slide when things get busy. You might find that it helps to have more of a plan for what to cover throughout the year. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindsey Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 (edited) The science sounds fabulous to me, and you have all the major bases covered otherwise. Make sure to put the focus on the math and language arts. I'd probably stagger the history and science so only one of them is done each day. When my kids were all little mornings were for math and language arts, and after we'd had lunch and a family wide quiet-time we dug into science and/or history. *Everyone* took a quiet time. Babies, toddlers, and some preschoolers all napped. Anyone who'd outgrown naps could take a pile of books to their bed and be as quiet as possible, even if they couldn't read. Depending on bedroom sharing, good readers could take their reading to a quiet nook somewhere else. Mom? Mom got to defrag from the morning and prepare herself for the rest of the day. That left the rest of the day open to get absorbed in history/science, playing in the backyard, feeble attempts at housework, and dinner preparation. Enjoy the journey! This is basically just what I'm planning! The basics in the morning and once the babe is down for nap, we'll snuggle in for history or science reading and quiet time. My 4yo still naps too, but I don't know if he still will several months from now! We have always done a post-lunch rest period for all, so no difficult schedule change there! Writing for 3rd--I think he will do okay. I have WWE3 and have been exploring it--it seems to be near his level but I will definitely keep it in mind thay WWE2 might be a better fit if he starts to struggle! Thank you everyone! Edited March 10, 2016 by lindsey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindsey Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 I don't have the SOTW activity books...do they photocopy well? I am sure I'll need 3 of everything. :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindsey Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 Your science plans sound fine, but science is an easy subject to let slide when things get busy. You might find that it helps to have more of a plan for what to cover throughout the year. Sorry I am apparently incapable of multi-quoting, lol! But I do have a plan drawn out for what to cover (for history and science) each week! Not that we will necessarily achieve that, but we have a plan. ;) We are kind of...well, fitting four years worth into 2.5 years, because we're just having fun with it for now and hope to get back to ancients in time for my oldest to enter fifth grade/third son to enter 1st grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 I would probably schedule art. If I sent my kid to school, I'd want him to have art, music, and fun classes, and I know if I didn't schedule them at home and plan for them, we'd go weeks without it. So I sit down and look at what I would want someone else to provide for my kid in an ideal situation, and then look to meet that at home. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendyroo Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 I don't have the SOTW activity books...do they photocopy well? I am sure I'll need 3 of everything. :p You can buy them as pdfs. They are filled with lots of great stuff...coloring pages and map work that I print for everyone, comprehension questions that I read from the tablet, narration prompts that I ignore (we do narration in WWE), lists of supplementary reading (fiction, non-fiction, read alouds and books for the kids to read) and lots of craft and activity ideas. Wendy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janice in NJ Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Hi Lindsey, Your plan looks great. I haven't posted on the K-8 board in years, but I saw your heading "Gaps" and decided to pop in. (Mine have all graduated from hsing.) As I said, your plan looks great. I'm sure you have heard this before, but I'll say it again. Reading, writing, and mathematics are the priority. (Spelling and grammar are obviously the important supporting players.) If you get those right, everything else works out wonderfully. History and science offer you something to read, discuss, and write about. You don't cover history or science. (You can't!) You will always have enormous gaps. I've been at this for nearly twenty years. I have accumulated a massive library. I read in so many of the disciplines quite diligently, and the more I read, the more I become aware of my gaps. Education is like that. The more you know, the more you know that you don't know. So if you chase your gaps with an eye toward filling them, you only end up trying to run faster. It's excruciating. Learning to think about this differently can be a wonderful way to cultivate a healthy homeschool. (Not saying this is you. I'm just throwing this out there.) My current reads are linked below. Learning to think about what you have read and responding to it is the college-and-beyond skill you are working toward. (You respond by thinking about what you have read, talking about what you have read, and then writing about what you have read.) Don't stress about covering all four SOTW books with your kids. It's fine if you don't. IMO, the most obvious benefit of working through a chronological history program when your kids are little will be evidenced with you, not them. Most folks don't really feel confident when it comes to teaching high school history and literature. They know they are supposed to have meaningful discussions with their kids but aren't sure how to do it and don't feel they have the knowledge-base either. If you're anything like me, working through the SOTW series will create a nice structure for you - a structure you can continue to build on during those 5-12 years. You may be beyond it; I wasn't. That said, it's fine if you don't get through all of it with your kids. Just try to develop a habit of reading together and then talking about what you have read. Writing about it is wonderful - practice on the level that matches your writing curriculum. And if you can't get through them with your kids, read through them yourself. Same with science. Dabble and enjoy. Use science to practice reading, discussing, and writing together. You are going to be a very busy lady. You have a beautiful family. Focus on the three R's. Get those right and you all will sail right on through. Peace, Janice Enjoy your little people Enjoy your journey P.S. Here is my current reading: The Silk Roads: A New History of the World (9781101946329): Peter Frankopan http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1101946326/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687702&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0190218428&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1C56CKE4SPMKJE61FEZQ Mathematics Form and Function (9781461293408): Saunders MacLane http://www.amazon.com/Mathematics-Form-Function-Saunders-MacLane/dp/1461293405/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457701284&sr=1-2&keywords=maclane+mathematics Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power (9780812979480): Jon Meacham http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Jefferson-Power-Jon-Meacham/dp/0812979486/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457701342&sr=1-1&keywords=thomas+jefferson The Math Myth: And Other STEM Delusions: Andrew Hacker: 9781620970683 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1620970686?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetpea3829 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Not necessarily something you NEED to add for Math...but you may find it helpful in reviewing previous concepts... Prodigy Math. My kids love it because it's a game. I love that I can choose assignments for them, targeting specific concepts I want them to practice. Or they receive grade-level questions that the game chooses for them. And...it's free. You can buy a premium membership, but the paid version does not alter the educational aspect of the game at all...it just gives them more GAME options. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbes Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 I don't have the SOTW activity books...do they photocopy well? I am sure I'll need 3 of everything. :P You can buy the PDFs and print as many copies as you need. I have also bought the hard copy, sliced the binding off, had the teacher section spiral bound, and made copies of the student pages. That worked well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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