a couple questions

[Murphy101]

I have 2 questions that I'm not finding answered anywhere in relation to having an accelerated schedule.

 

1. how to you assign work? for example, it's fairly easy to say 1 lesson per day. do you just change that to 3 per day or what?

 

2. how do you handle the mature content of high subjects that your younger children might be taking. (thinking of the Swann family and wondering how to approach an 11 yr old reading Madame Bovary or the Scarlet Letter for example)

 

Unlike the Swanns, it is not neccessarily my goal to graduate my children early. But I would like to have concentrated schooling during our 3-4 hour time frame that is set aside for that purpose.

 

thanks!

[Donna]

I think you can't find answers to the first question because it is different for every learner and family.

 

I don't really "assign" a lot of busy work so I wouldn't say to any of my kids...do 3 chapters in math and 2 lessons in spelling. I am a bit more hands on and less bookish than that. For example, when I cover a lesson in math with my dd...suppose she is learning long division that day, we cover everything about long division that she can handle. I know her so it is easy for me to tell by having her work a few problems what she gets or doesn't get. We go until she is challenged. Now the book might just have been teaching a simple long division for that day like 55/5 but I find we have covered things like 1307/5 so when those chapters come up, we skip them provided she understands the concept. Does that make sense?

 

Except for math, our other subjects are generally covered with a variety of different sources so I put them together to cover the material in the depth I am looking for.

 

As far as mature topics...that depends on my child and what I think she can handle. There are some topics she brings up on her own that others might never think to discuss with a 6yo and other topics I try to avoid. There is plenty of great literature out there that I can find plenty for her to read without going near the books discussing topics I might object to until I am ready for her to be exposed.

[Storm Bay]

We're going deeper now rather than faster, at least in math. Sometimes faster. For eg, ds is doing Singapore Math & MEP, and then MUS is for math facts. We also have CWP. Of course, my dc aren't chomping at the bit to go quickly as they'd rather play/read/draw/swim than work at school. I have one that goes deeper in history, too, and one that is a walking stem these days, so I'm just happy if she gets through everything in a day (however, she has told me she's started thinking about algebra when she's not doing it. She was working on a craft and told me about the formula she thought up for it for fun--it had to do with how much she could/would do.) Algebra, apparently, is only boring if it's what's assigned to you.

[Laura Corin]

I have 2 questions that I'm not finding answered anywhere in relation to having an accelerated schedule.

 

1. how to you assign work? for example, it's fairly easy to say 1 lesson per day. do you just change that to 3 per day or what?

 

If the child is enjoying the work and moving fast, then I might assign extra lessons each day. I'm more likely to look at the curriculum and cut out busy work, or jump forward though.

 

2. how do you handle the mature content of high subjects that your younger children might be taking. (thinking of the Swann family and wondering how to approach an 11 yr old reading Madame Bovary or the Scarlet Letter for example)

 

We are pretty liberal in teaching about how the world works, so I wouldn't have a problem with the themes of Madame Bovary or The Scarlet Letter with an 11yo. However, I do tend to choose books which might appeal more to the emotional level of the child. There's lots of Dickens, for example, which is challenging but contains themes that are emotionally more attainable. There is time for the rest after puberty.

 

 

thanks!

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

[chai]

We also try to go deeper rather than faster. I have switched from a lesson-based day, to following a time schedule. For example, I "assign" 45 minutes of math each day. The number of lessons covered in that time, varies a lot. Very often, it include supplements and computer-based games. Because we are ahead of grade-level in math, I don't feel the pressure to finish a certain number of lessons in a year. (I admit that I was a bit concerned when we slowed down sooo much in Singapore 4, but with hindsight, I see that dd needed to solidify her math facts. After LOF- Fractions, she finished Singapore 5 in a month.)

 

I have a set topic in history for each week, then we read as many books as we can fit into an hour a day. I have assigned reading that dd needs to read on her own time.

 

For language arts, I found a program (CW) and level that fits her needs, so I am able to follow their schedule almost exactly. I try to keep that at an hour a day. If she doesn't need the full hour, I have other supplements to fill in the remaining time.

 

As for mature subjects: my dd is super sensitive, so I have to be very careful about any mature themes. I try to pre-read anything that I think will be an issue. I'm saving many of the classics because of her sensitivity until I know that she can handle it. For now, she is reading books that are generally easy for her. I try to choose some books that have older language to challenge her a bit more.

[wimseycat]

In terms of math, grammar, and history, yes, I just assign additional lessons. Literature is a trickier subject because of content matter and experience. In this area I have gone for more breadth. I read an interesting article once where the writer discussed reading the classics as a young girl. The argument was made that just because (as a child) you CAN read something doesn't necessarily mean you should. The reason being that as a child you don't have the point of reference or knowledge of the world that is acquired simply by age and experience. So while a younger, gifted child could potentially understand the gist of say, The Scarlet Letter, it doesn't mean they can appreciate it the way they would iif they were 5 or 10 years older. I think this argument makes sense, but I also think that as an adult, it is interesting to reread books you read as a child and then be struck with "aha!" moments because as an adult you understand it better.

[LisaKinVA]

Both... it depends upon the child, the child's age, subject area...

 

With history, science and LA I tend to go deeper, add projects (hands-on), add additional reading, etc.

 

With math... there is only so much "extra" you can really do. I have some math readers I ordered from Veritas Press -- but for the most part, we just go faster in math. Although, I do periodically just NOT do formal math with the younger kidlets, and let them play math computer games, ALEKS, etc. My 7yo is 2 levels ahead right now, and my 5yo is 3 levels ahead... most of that "ahead-ness" isn't due to formal instruction, its just what they've picked up from older brother's math lessons (yeah, gets a bit freaky when the 5yo tells the 9yo... "You have to DIVIDE!")

 

We also back off and do other things too. My 5yo can accomplish quite a bit in an hour -- but making him work at that pace for 4 hours a day would be just too much. So, we keep the telly off, and he plays with LEGO, gets out a stack of books, etc. Still learning -- but I'm not pushing it.