Guest princessp Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 Hi. I'm new here. I just recently bought The Well Trained Mind book and I love it. I couldn't put it down. I read the first fifty pgs the same night I bought it. I'm new to hs'ing. My son is in week two of hs'ing and it's going ok, (it would be great if not for some issues still hovering over us from ps and his not wanting to read). I knew I could hs before but now after reading the book I am more excited about it. Now, to my question :) I hadn't intended on buying a formal curriculum but after browsing through a few different hs'ing forums it seems everyone uses one. I do plan on eventually using on but didn't think I really needed one for first grade. DS was enrolled in K when we withdrew him. We've been taking it slow these first few weeks and have only been spending about 10-20 min a day working on phonics and math worksheets. Both from a workbook I bought and some I made myself. He is very resistant to reading right now, I need to find a way to get him to read even just five min a day but I know that will come in time once I find a secret formula, lol. So, do I need to rush out and buy a formal grade one curriculum? We're in Texas btw... Jenn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 I wouldn't tell you to rush out and buy a formal grade one curriculum in a box or anything, but I did find that actual curriculum made my job a lot easier and made teaching my youngest the things he wasn't getting at first, much easier. KWIM? I am 100% for taking it nice and slow at first. However, my 1st grader does 1-2 hours a day of sit down work with me. I can not imagine that 10-20 minutes would be enough...and 5 mins of reading a day will definitely not be enough as you go on (though you probably know this already). Without the curricula to guide me, I am not sure I could give my kids 100% of what they need. Heck, even with a curriculum (or various ones in my case), I still miss stuff. We all do. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmdjm5 Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 My DS is in the 1st grade too. He has always fought me on reading since he started ps in Kindergarten. I read WTM a couple of months ago after reading Thomas Jefferson Ed. It totally opened my eyes. My DS was always behind and I felt hopless because he would fight me sooooo bad at home when I would try to supplement. I finally got up the guts to take him out and hs him (I was worried I wouldnt do good enough). Getting the right curriculum is a must for me! But keep in mind different methods work different ways for your DC. Some might not work at all! I have been using Phonics Road to Reading and Spelling by Barbara Beers and it has been working great! I slit it up into 3 15min sessions a day. Plus I do structred reading broken up into 3 15min Sessions ( He just has too hard a time sitting there for that long! I think boys are just like that!) The changes have been unreal! My ds is starting to enjoy his reading. I say starting because we still have our days! I let him pick his books from the library, He loves animal books and insects. He wont even think about reading "girly books". The 3 15min sessions are a must, and he has learned that, but he can read longer if he chooses too, usually doesnt. But his reading is getting so much better. I totally do about 3 hours day once everything is combined. That includes the reading. Well I hope anything Ive told you helps! Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted March 13, 2009 Share Posted March 13, 2009 I don't use a curriculum and never have. I've always had the impression that "most" people on these forums mix and match quite a bit. BTW, I have an 11th grader, 8th grader and 6th grader, and have been homeschooling for three years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 There are things you can do to make it fun. You can work from a white board instead of a book, whatever book you are working from, just write the words on a whiteboard. I did that with Webster's Speller in K, my daughter liked it much more than working from a book. You can read about how I used it in the Webster's Speller link in my signature and more in this thread: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70153 I also have a fun game you can play, it's easy to make and use (and free!): http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Phonics/concentrationgam.html And, here are some more tips on how to teach a young child to read: http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/newstudents.html Did he get a list of sight words when he was in school? That can cause problems with reading and wanting/being able to read, you can read about why here: http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/aliterate.html If he did a lot of sight words, here's advice about how to unlearn the reading habits caused by sight words and learn new good left to right sounding out habits: http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/remedialstudents.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetbaby Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 I wouldnt by any curriculum especially at your child's age. I would work on phonic type things and just have fun. Our homeschool has really transformed over the years starting with boxed curriculum then slowly tapering away to more literature based as the years have passed. I didn't really realize our complete transformationuntil I read your post. This year, our only formal curriculum is really math and english. We are not using any formal curriculum in the upcoming year. Sounds like you are already on the right track.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AudreyTN Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 Ruth Beechick's The 3 R's is an excellent book to read if you're interested in NOT buying curriculum. ... well it's an excellent book even if you DO buy curriculum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arcara Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 I've gotten the impression on this board that most people make a list of the subjects that are important for their dc to learn that year, and they decide on their goals and focus for each subject, then they look for a curriculum in each subject that would best fill those needs. For instance, last summer, I was planning our 1st homeschool year following TWTM. I looked at my 3rd grader and her strengths and weaknesses. I also knew that I was adding a 1st grader this year, and that I still had 2 other little ones, so I needed her to be independent where possible. She needed something in math, grammer, lit, spelling, latin, history, science, writing, poetry, and religion. Our math program was working, so I knew I wanted to stick with that. Grammar she was strong in, and I knew she could do this pretty independently with the right program, so I chose Growing with Grammar. For literature, I found several lists of appropriate books for her reading level, and I compiled a list of my own of what I thought was most important for her to read this and what I thought she was enjoy the most. I checked for the books that we already owned and checked to make sure the library had the other ones on the list. Then, spelling...this was one of her weak points, so I decided on All-About-Spelling, because it's rule-based and multi-sensory and because it WASN'T independent. I knew I needed to work with her directly to help her improve her spelling this year. I'll not bore you with the rest, but you get the idea :) Make a list of your goals for your dc next year and your needs at the teacher, and then start looking for things that will best fill those needs. Ask lots of questions on this board, too! We've all received lots of help here! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in NS Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 Hi. I'm new here. I just recently bought The Well Trained Mind book and I love it. I couldn't put it down. I read the first fifty pgs the same night I bought it. I'm new to hs'ing. My son is in week two of hs'ing and it's going ok, (it would be great if not for some issues still hovering over us from ps and his not wanting to read). I knew I could hs before but now after reading the book I am more excited about it. Now, to my question :) I hadn't intended on buying a formal curriculum but after browsing through a few different hs'ing forums it seems everyone uses one. I do plan on eventually using on but didn't think I really needed one for first grade. DS was enrolled in K when we withdrew him. We've been taking it slow these first few weeks and have only been spending about 10-20 min a day working on phonics and math worksheets. Both from a workbook I bought and some I made myself. He is very resistant to reading right now, I need to find a way to get him to read even just five min a day but I know that will come in time once I find a secret formula, lol. So, do I need to rush out and buy a formal grade one curriculum? We're in Texas btw... Jenn It sounds like your ds is decompressing, and that he's in K this year? I'd spend the rest of this year reading to him, teaching him to read, and playing around with math ideas and other life/family skills. Then for 1st grade, continue to teach him to read/have him practice reading aloud to you, get a spelling program, a grammar program, a math program, a writing program. Get those skills going, then add in reading/projects in science, history, music, and/or art. I think these four content areas are meant to be fodder for practicing the skill areas on, but when the content areas are done in some type of order, it makes the content easier to learn, too (like chronological history or one science per year). So you can get in lots of reading and have fun with the content areas. Not everyone buys a complete graded curriculum - many piece things together based on what skills/content we want our kids to learn. However, within those skills you may see grades - for example, my dd is doing First Language Lessons 2 because she's in 2nd grade and it's the level she can do. Ds is doing Rod and Staff grade 5 English book, but not ALL of R&S grade 5 curriculum. Just English because I like their English grammar/writing series. Have fun!:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 I hadn't intended on buying a formal curriculum but after browsing through a few different hs'ing forums it seems everyone uses one. I do plan on eventually using on but didn't think I really needed one for first grade. DS was enrolled in K when we withdrew him. I wouldn't worry about what everyone else uses.:D You have a little person who's just 5 (or pushing 6). You live in a state with zero accountability to government. I say just enjoy having the little guy home. Read aloud from good books. Go outside and play. Take field trips. Enjoy.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritaserum Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 I've gotten the impression on this board that most people make a list of the subjects that are important for their dc to learn that year, and they decide on their goals and focus for each subject, then they look for a curriculum in each subject that would best fill those needs. :iagree: Curriculum (for math, spelling, etc.) makes my life easier. We also read great books. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiegirl Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 I have used curriculum (piecing it together from different sources) with my two oldest but I am slowly moving away from it and am only using it now for math and the language arts. For my youngest, who will be in Grade 1 next year, I am not using any curriculum. I use the internet and games for reading. For math, I use ideas from Family Math and Games for Math by Peggy Kaye. We read lots of math storybooks and play games. I am hoping to continue this for next year as well, although I will probably use a curriculum for reading as I think my dd is dyslexic. I would second Ruth Beechick's books as well. I love teaching my kids without curriculum. It is very freeing but it is alot of work. Also, I wouldn't have been able to do this when I first started hsing. We have been at this for 5 years so I have gained lots of confidence as the years have peeled away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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