Category: Curriculum Reviews

May 17, 2016 Book Reviews: Books for Children, Curriculum Reviews, Curriculum Reviews, Morning Basket Post a Comment

In My Morning Basket: G is for Googol

I am constantly on the search for ways to make math fun and meaningful in my homeschool. Math really is cool when you’re playing with it, and I like to show my kids that there can be a reward for all of the hard work they do in their daily math books. One way I inspire love for math is by making sure my morning basket always contains a living math book.

Currently our morning basket math book is G is for Googol: A Math Alphabet Book. It’s by David M. Schwartz, the same guy who wrote How Much is a Million?

I seriously love this book.

We read one page every morning. Sometimes it just takes a few minutes as when we read “H is for Hundred.” We learned that cent means 100 and then examined some of the words with cent in them – centipede, centenarian, centennial. Five minutes and we’re done.

Other days, this gem of a book prompts further exploration of an interesting math concept. “R is for Rhombicosidodecahedron” prompted us to test Euler’s formula (vertices + sides = edges – 2) on the polyhedrons in block box.  Come on. You know you want kids who say rhombicosidodecahedron and actually know what Euler’s formula is. It makes you feel like one of those super awesome homeschooling moms with super smart homeschooled kids. This is reason enough to pick up this book.

polyhedron

Most often, this book leads to an amazing sense of awe and wonder. “M is for Mobius Strip” prompted cries of alarm. “How can it only have one side????” We also learned how many miles are in a light year (5,878,512,843,200), and that the closest star to our solar system, Proxima Centauri, is about 4 light years away. That’s four times that huge number there. Whoa.

lightyear

David M. Schwartz clearly loves math. And reading his books can go a long way toward inspiring a love of math in your children. Morning Basket has been the perfect time to share this book because it’s a low key time where all I ask of my kids is that they wonder along with me.

mobius

August 29, 2015 Curriculum Reviews, Morning Basket 1 Comment

Our Homeschool Curriculum for 2015-2016: Morning Basket

 

Finally! I’m ready to share the curriculum and resources we are using this year with our 5th grader, 2nd grader, and preschooler. In this post I’ll share what’s in our Morning Basket.

Morning Basket Resources

As far as I know, Jennifer Mackintosh over at Wildflowers and Marbles invented the brilliant idea of Morning Baskets. If you’re not already familiar with the idea, head over to her blog and check it out. You’ll also want to spend time just combing through the hundreds of pages of amazing resources she has there. She’s a genius.

The quick version is this. A Morning Basket is literally a basket filled with good things to share with your children. It’s a place to put all of those delicious subjects you never seem to fit into your day – poetry, Shakespeare, composer study, etc. On a “bad day” your Morning Basket can stand alone as school for the day.

There’s no end goal for these books. The idea is to savor each one and have it be as enjoyable as possible. So if people start to get fidgety, we just stop and pick it up again the next day. We’re not doing everything every day but rather plan to work through these by the end of the year. For example we’re starting with The Song of Hiawatha and when we finish it we’ll move to the Oxford poetry book. The Shakespeare is worked on for a couple of weeks at a time, and then set aside for a week or so.

Here’s what’s queued up right now, but it could easily change with my fancy. Clicking on the book image for most of these will take you to amazon.com, but there are no affiliate links on this page.

 

How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare by Ken Ludwig

This is on recommendation from a friend who always recommends the most wonderful resources. If she says a book is good, I just get it. This one is fabulous. It teaches you to help your children memorize carefully selected passages from Shakespeare. And Mr. Ludwig’s website has a bunch of fun extras to help you out as well. My kids (and I!) have already memorized this passage from a speech by Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream:

I know a bank where the wild thyme blows. Where oxlips and nodding violet grows, quite over-canopied with luscious woodbine. with sweet muskroses and with eglantine. There sleeps Titania sometime of the night, lulled in these flowers with dances and delight. And there the snake throws her enameled skin – weed wide enough to wrap a fairy in. And with the juice of this I’ll streak her eyes and make her full of hateful fantasies!”

I typed that from memory! Even my 4-year-old has memorized the first half of it. And it was painless. And fun!

The Song of Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Illustrated by Margaret Early

I wish that picture was bigger. I picked up this book at our local Goodwill without realizing how amazing it really is. Having read Paul Revere’s Ride last year, I was eager to share some more Longfellow with the kids. Ms. Early’s illustrations are a perfect complement to Longfellow’s beautiful words. We read just a page or two a day, studying the pictures, reading the poetry, and then narrating the story together. It took the kids a few days to get into it, but then they couldn’t get enough.

Wee Sing America

This is part of the Book Shark curriculum. Because it only takes a few minutes a day and it’s fun for everyone, I’ve put it into our Morning Basket. We’re learning a song a week. I love that we’re expanding our repertoire of singable songs.

The Oxford Illustrated Book of American Children’s Poems Edited by Donald Hall

This is also from the Book Shark curriculum. We’ll select a poem a week to enjoy and maybe memorize. I’ll probably follow the suggested schedule in the Book Shark curriculum guide.

 

My Path to Heaven: A Young Person’s Guide to the Faith by Geoffrey Bliss, S.J. and Caryll Houselander

A dear friend brought this one to my attention and I picked it up at the Rocky Mountain Home Educators Conference a few months ago. I cannot wait to share this one with my kids. It’s a guide to Ignatian Spirtuality for young people. Each section has an elaborate line drawing with hundreds of little details and one simple thought to ponder. This is followed by a couple of pages of simple text to help one reflect on the idea. For example, the first idea is that everything in your life was placed there by God to help you to better love Him. I have been pondering this for weeks after reading it in this book. I plan to read a passage a day, or maybe just one a week, while the kids look at their own photocopy of the image. They’ll be invited to color it if they like.

 

American Tall Tales by Mary Pope Osborne wood engravings by Michael McCurdy

This is another Goodwill steal. It will be a perfect complement to our American History studies this year.

Praying the Rosary with Mary by Angela Burrin, illustrated by Maria Cristian lo Cascio

We’re not one of those families that prays the rosary together every day. We do that in my fantasy family, but in my real family, it just never happens. But I do want my kids to have some familiarity with the rosary. This is a nicely illustrated book in which each of the mysteries is explained through the voice of Mary. Each mystery ends with a short prayer asking for Mary’s help with a particular virtue. We’ve been reading one mystery a day and saying one Hail Mary. It’s been a gentle introduction to the devotion of the rosary.

Memory Work

Latin responses for the Mass. We attend a New Order Mass done in Latin and so I’d like to work through memorizing the plain chant version of the Latin responses for the Mass. I found a little booklet to help us with this. It’s a little slow going.

Math Fact Memory Work. My oldest is dismally behind on math fact memorization. I don’t want to make the same mistake with the other kids, so we’re adding this to our morning basket routine. We went way back and started with the “plus 1” facts. I’m following the order recommended at Mrs. Houlin’s eSchool Class blog. I really like what she has to say about memorizing math facts. 

Although this seems like a lot, it actually takes very little time and I’m looking to add to this part of our day because everyone really enjoys it. I’ve decided I’m going to add in some basic grammar instruction and I’m looking for some appropriate Saint study resources. I need to shop my shelves for those. It’s also a great time to share favorite picture books because we normally do this work all snuggled up on the couch together.

It’s taken me awhile to implement Morning Basket time for our homeschool, but I am so glad we’re doing it because it really is the best part of our homeschool day.

 

 

 

 

July 17, 2015 Curriculum Reviews, Schedules and Routines Post a Comment

Homeschool Planning Series: What I’ll be Teaching This Year

 

I promised I would share the subjects I’ve chosen for my homeschool curriculum this year. I will be teaching a 5th grader, a 2nd grader, and a 4-year-old preschooler. I want to offer the disclaimer that this is in no way what I think you should be teaching your homeschooled 5th grader, 2nd grader, or 4-year-old preschooler. Your kids are not my kids. They know different things. They have different strengths and weaknesses and different interests. And you have different strengths, weaknesses, and talents than I do!

I’m sharing this because I always find it interesting, inspiring, and informative to know what others are doing. When I read or hear about a bunch of different people doing a bunch of different things, it helps me realize there’s no one right way and I feel a little less anxious about what I’m doing.  If reading what I’m planning to teach is going to make you all angsty, skip it.

When I completed the process I described in this post I had the following list:

Henry (Grade 5)

  • Improve spelling
  • Write a solid paragraph
  • Complete Singapore 4A
  • Memorize all math facts
  • Improve handwriting
  • Work more independently
  • German (with dad)

Helen (Grade 2)

  • Sacramental preparation
  • Phonics
  • Addition/Subtraction fact memorization
  • Character virtues: responsibility and humility

Thomas (Age 4)

  • Become more “regular” with eating, sleeping, and daily rest periods
  • Improve mental flexibility, be less bratty and demanding
  • Learn to ride his bike
  • Scale back on screen time, limit exposure to Henry’s screen time
  • Share good picture books – including alphabet books
  • Expose to preschool fine motor opportunities such as playdough and drawing
  • Preschool field trips with mom and buddies on Fridays

All Children (Stuff we’ll do as a family)

Note: This is a sort of “inspire don’t require” time of our day. I’m hoping the content and material will excite and delight my kids. I’m going to try really hard not to force anyone to participate in this part of our day but rather to make it something they don’t want to miss out on.

  • Participate in daily family prayer time and catechesis
  • Gain an age appropriate understand of US History from Civil War to Present Day
  • Gain an age appropriate understanding of electricity and astronomy
  • Memorize some Shakespeare
  • Share good literature (favorite picture books and novels, history related literature)
  • Nature Study
  • Poetry
  • Folk Songs
  • Memorize Parts of the Mass in English and Latin

This comes pretty close to being All The Things. But there are some things I did leave out rather intentionally. For example, I won’t be studying grammar as a stand alone subject with any of my kids. I’m not adding handicrafts to the list of things I feel required to do. We’re not studying Latin as a stand alone subject this year. Picture Study didn’t make the final cut, though I long to make that happen at some point. I don’t have any specific, do-or-die reading or writing or math goals for my 4-year-old. (If you haven’t read my posts on a relaxed approach to the early years, check them out here.) There are times when I get all heart-poundy about leaving out these things. That’s why I’m being very intentional about setting my goals this year. It doesn’t mean we’ll never study grammar or Latin or handicrafts. It just means that this year, I’m not holding myself accountable for these things.

Also, there are a few things on this list that are a little aspirational. I really would like to do some sort of nature study this year, but I’ve never managed to make it happen in the past. I’m hoping to figure out a way to make it less overwhelming and more fun. I’ll share more thoughts on that later. Also, memorizing the parts of the Mass is something I see going out the window on all but the most perfect days. I’m hoping to figure out a schedule that makes sure that doesn’t happen.

In the next post, I’ll talk about my process for pulling together all the curriculum, books, and other resources I’ll use to teach these subjects.

 

So what are you excited about teaching this year? Anything you’re intentionally letting yourself off the hook for?

October 1, 2014 Curriculum Reviews, Curriculum Reviews, Writing 2 Comments

The Phonetic Zoo {Curriculum Review}

This year we are using quite a bit of curriculum from the Institute for Excellence in Writing. We’re using Primary Arts of Language for Helen’s phonics, Teaching Writing: Structure and Style for Henry’s writing program with our co-op group, and The Phonetic Zoo for Henry’s spelling.

Andrew Pudewa, president of IEW has been a mentor of mine from the beginning of my homeschool career when I saw him speak at the Rocky Mountain Catholic Home Educators Conference. The talk that most inspired me, Teaching Boys & Other Children Who Would Rather Make Forts All Day,  is available on his website for a couple of bucks and is totally worth a listen.

There are many things I like about the IEW materials. First, they are all based on reaching auditory learners as well as visual learners. This can be hard to find, particularly in language materials which are often highly visual. Second, the folks at IEW totally get kids – lessons are short, interactive, and based on quick mastery of tiny pieces of information. Pudewa understands that kids want to do what they think they can do, and will often refuse to do anything they think will be too hard.

I have heard others describe IEW materials as “intense” or “parent heavy,” but I think these people may be falling into a common trap of homeschoolers – failing to use the curriculum as a tool and allowing it to be your master. I like the materials because they provide you with a lot of really good material to teach. However, the authors also frequently and insistently encourage you to use the materials as they best suit you and your child. Attempting to cram a lot of information into a passive and even resistant mind is NOT what IEW is about. If it takes you a week to get through a single day’s lesson plan, your child is still greatly benefiting from this high quality material, and you are in no way failing as a homeschooler. Why use subpar material just because the pace is slower? Why not set your own pace using quality tools?

I like Andrew Pudewa and the IEW materials so much, that Pudewa is a household name here. In fact, my son thinks I like him a little too much. During a particularly challenging Phonetic Zoo lesson, my son threw down his headphones and launched into the following tirade.

“This is too hard! I can’t do it! Why do you even like Pudewa so much? You like Pudewa more than you like your own family! You worship him like he’s some sort of god!”

Ahem. I guess I shouldn’t have been so upset when this child chose not to enroll in our enrichment program’s theater class. Clearly, he is already quite skilled in drama.

Fortunately, using some of the skills I’ve learned from Master Pudewa, I was able to navigate this little bump in the road and get us back on track.

So onto the nitty gritty of the Phonetic Zoo. The program is intended for students beginning in 4th grade and is designed to be self-teaching. It comes with an audio CD that the child listens to for each lesson.  Each lesson consists of two audio tracks as well as a large card printed with the lesson’s spelling rule, a list of spelling words, and a picture of an animal or two whose names also illustrate the spelling rule (for example, caiman and ray for the ai/ay lesson).

When the child sits down to do his spelling lesson, he listens to the audio CD with headphones to minimize distractions and to help channel the information directly into his brain. The audio lesson consists the spelling rule repeated every 3-5 words, followed by dictation of the spelling words. The child writes each of the 15 spelling words as they are dictated while also listening repeatedly to the spelling rule. The following track is a self-check with the proper spelling of each word dictated back to the child. The whole thing takes about 10 minutes. As a mastery program, the child repeats the lesson every day until he spells each of the 15 words correctly. This might take one day or a couple of weeks. Once he has mastered the list, he receives a small trading card with a picture of the lesson’s animals on it.

I want to note that these cards are not childish. They have nice line drawings of interesting animals. The program is designed for later elementary kids, and it does not insult them with cartoonish, childish trading cards.

This program has been brilliant for us for three reasons. First, it is something Henry can do entirely on his own. Second, it is short and finite – Henry knows exactly how long it will take and when it’s done, it’s done. This is key for a kid who has trouble focusing on school work. Finally, Henry is a highly auditory learner, so hearing the words spelled back to him is essential. Incidentally, Pudewa asserts that this piece is critical for any type of learner because when we just look at words we don’t really see the order of the letters. You can learn more about the theory behind the program here.

The one bump we hit in the road, the one that prompted the aforementioned accusations of my preternatural adoration of Andrew Pudewa, was caused by my failing to properly introduce the lesson. Henry had done such a good job with lesson one, that I thought I could get away with just throwing lesson two at him with no introduction. While it is a self-teaching program, if your child is a particularly poor speller (as mine is), there are a number of ways you can introduce the lesson to help him succeed. First, you can read through the large lesson card together and have him copy the list of words while saying each letter out loud. Second, you could simply have him listen to the second track of the lesson and write each word as it’s proper spelling is dictated. He could even do this for several days until he is confident enough in his ability to pass the “test.” The point is to learn the material, not to make your kid cry.

While we are only on lesson three (that second lesson took a loooong time to master!) I have seen an improvement in Henry’s spelling, and more importantly, in his confidence around spelling. I really like the self-paced mastery approach because by the time a child can spell the more challenging words, all of the words are solidly cemented in his brain.

I highly recommend this program for anyone teaching spelling, especially if you hate teaching spelling or if your child has struggled with it in the past.

 

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