So, how many have started "deciding" on curriculum for next year?

Ha! I am such a compulsive planner that I sometimes feel like I am in a perpetual state of planning. I do have the better part of the next two years planned out because we are moving overseas and I wanted to gather the materials we needed to take with us. We also sort of start our school year in January (although we are easing in this year because we are getting ready to move overseas in just a couple weeks. We’ll start ‘for real’ when we get settled there.)

THis year we are planning to do (first grader with preschooler and toddler tagging along):

Bible and Personal Development: Family Bible Reading and Doorpost’s Put-on Chart and Study

History: Overview of history using selections from Heritage History Young Reader’s Collection

Geography and Culture: various books about and experiences while we are living in France

Science/Nature: Nature Study focusing on Seasons using Outdoor Secrets, a couple of the Clara Dillingham Pierson books, and the Handbook of Nature Study blog challenges

Math: Math Mammoth 1 with RightStart Games

Literature: Various read-alouds from a variety sources, but mainly from SCM Modules 1 and 2 and Sonlight Cores B and C

Reading, Phonics and Spelling: Pathway Grade 2 Readers and Sonlight Grade 2 Readers, All About Spelling finish level 1 and start level 2

Handwriting, Grammar, and Composition: Copywork (point out various usage and grammar elements as they come up in copywork selections), Cursive (we are using New American Cursive), develop oral narration skills

Fine Arts: Artist Study: Monet and Matisse, Composer Study: Gershwin and Debussy, Poetry: Nursery Friends from France

Foreign Language: French by immersion, since that’s the whole reason we are going to France! (We are preparing for a missionary assignment in West Africa)

The following year (2nd) we will do many of the same things just the next level higher, with the exception that for Geography and Culture we are planning to do a geography overview using CM’s Elementary Geography and some of the Yesterday’s Classics books (Seven Sisters who live on the Round Ball, some of the Twins books), Science and Nature we will use the Animals book from the God’s Design for Life series and heavily supplement with various living books, and I’m not sure what artists/composers/poetry we will do yet.

We plan to start SCM History Module 1 when my oldest dd is in 3rd grade. Originally I was going to do it this year, but since the next two years are going to be big transition years for our family I wanted to keep things a little simpler. It also seems from various posts that some younger children struggle a little bit with some of the resources used in Mod 1, so I thought she’d get more out of it by being a little bit older…my younger kids will be K and 1st by that time too so they will all be able to enjoy it together. We’ll still finish all 6 by the end of middle school, leaving our options open for high school.

OK, more than anyone wanted to know…but I do love planning. =)

Jen

Me, me, me!!!

I’m using SCM for the first time and I can’t wait!

Oh, you girls help me feel so good, like I am not the only nerd out there!  Planning is a top three reason I homeschool.  I can’t lie, I like it at least as much, if not more than teaching!  We will be starting Mod. 4 for all subjects this year with a 2nd and 4th.  Our youngest that we are adopting will be 2 1/2.  Lord willing, she will be home by Sept so that will be a new challenge.  Our oldest will be starting 5th 1/2days at our local Christian school continuing their special ed program.  I feel so blessed to do this with my children!  

Lindsey….are you using the Junior Apologia Science Journal or the regular one?  I’ve been looking at them for our 2nd grader and leaning toward the Junior version.  I would love more feedback from someone actually using one.  Thanks, Melissa

I should say that I absolutely LOVE to plan as well.  It’s interesting and encouraging to see so many other planners here.

Yeah, I’m a nerd too – I seem to be constantly planning. lol

I assume we are talking September???

So – I will have a 9yo, 6.5yo, 4yo, and 2yo at that time.

I have to say that so far I’m really pleased with what we are doing this year, even though we are doing it a LOT slower than the plan would say….  I’ve been doing a “mostly CM” program for LDS families (Mormons) with http://www.learninghomeschoolmentor.com  It really similar in some ways to AO (including having a LOT to it) and so we are just going our pace.  To let you know how that is… after about 15 or 16 weeks of homeschooling, in a lot of subjects we are in only week 6!  I did do a bit of jumping around in a couple of topics as I learned to fit this curriculum to my family… and it has taken some time to decide that the pace we are doing is fine for us at this time.  So that said – I think we will be continuing this.  Below, Learning HomeSchool Mentor will be called LHS

Devotion / Character: – I have been updating a Study originally created by BookWorm to use our churches (Adult) – Gospel Principles Manual at a pace and with child-friendly resources.  We started it this week and have been enjoying it.  That should last us to December.  I haven’t decided for after that – this has been a subject area that I’ve had trouble finding something that I felt fits.  This does – but not sure what we will do after that.    1 Day a week we will do the Character Development Devotion from Learning Homeschool (lhs).

History & Geography: continue the World History & Geography for LDS Families (lhs).  We started with Ancients this year – not sure how far we will have gotten by next year.  There will surely be Cartography, as my kids LOVE this in the program.

Science: Discovering the Days of Creation (lhs) – I imagine we will still have some of the “First Day” to complete.  

Nature Study: I imagine I’ll be resolving to do better next year… lol

Math: Continue RightStart where-ever we are in it.

Literature: Various read-alouds – also my oldest should be starting Plutarch and Shakespeare! ACK! He actually used to enjoy the “Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare” but haven’t been doing them this year…

Reading/Phonics/Spelling: I’ll need to evaluate where they are… we are just doing Alphaphonics now for spelling, hoping it will help with both spelling and reading abilities around here for my 2 oldest.  My 3yo (will be 4) will probably be finished 100 easy lessons (she is on lesson 31 or so now)  Hope to start my oldest with Spelling Wisdom.

Handwriting, Grammar, and Composition: Copywork, Copywork, Copywork.  For my oldest, will probably do GrammarLand, then start the LHS Language Arts Level B – which is for the +8 students…. but haven’t totally decided on this…  I may leave it for another year or so.

Humanities/Fine Arts/Peforming Arts:  

The History of Art for Young People (LHS).  May decide to do a seperate Picture Study as my kids love those.)

The History of Classical and Sacred Music (LHS). – not sure which composeres we will be at

Poetry. Memorize poetry selections from LHS

Folk Music – Listen to my dh’s music! LOL.  He keeps saying we need to do more Folk music… as our kids sing things like “The BlueNose”, “The Crusader”, “One Tin Soldier”, “Puff the Magic Dragon”, “The Highwayman”, “The Edmund Fitzgerald”, “The Mary Ellen Carter”, and “McDonnell on the Heights”.   And that is just a small selection of what they know and sing! (some of these you might not recognize as some are very Canadian)

Suzuki Violin: Book 2, Book 1, Pre Twinkler, Audience (respectively for each child.)  Actually the Audience (age 2) will probably start learning how to clap the patterns and how to hold the “Boxilin”.  Hopefully the Pre-Twinkler will be a Twinkler soon (as she started clapping and using the Boxilin when she was 2… she now can play on open strings…)

Foreign Language:

German – will keep plodding along. Not sure if we are getting anywhere or not.  Some days it doesn’t seem like it.  But then, the other day one of them was walking around singing a German song in German.  (I’m learning it too so I’m not sure they had it all right….) Some days I wonder if we should have done French instead, as there are a lot more resources around here!

ASL – we just started this a few weeks ago (although the kids did a sign-language for preschoolers about 3 years ago so they are picking it up fast.)  Watch Signing Time Videos – at some point probably use the lifeprint website “classes” – but will have to take it slow.

Latin – not sure when we wtill start this… sometimes it feels like we are doing so much already!  And it isn’t even like it will help us in our German… sigh.

Phys Ed – Teach how to ride a bike.  Continue Swim Lessons at the Y.  Run around crazy.

Other – Scouting

We school year-round, so of course I am planning year-round. I have an ongoing notebook of ideas and then I also plan every term a little more in detail.

We have used the Apologia science. My kids enjoyed it, but I do think it is better geared toward older children, like age 7 and up more than grade k and up. I may try the junior notebook next time. We used a lapbook for Swimming Creatures Zoo 2 and it was fun. But I had my ds7 do narration before the lapbook. Although the lapbook was fun and helped them remember what we discussed, it took more time than I had planned on. So I need to plan for more science time.

Kind of sad but for the first time in 25+ yearws I don’t think I have any planning to do. Christy, my baby, will be a senior and I just plan to continue with what we’re currently doing. We should be in SCM module 6 by the fall and it is suppose to come out this spring.

@jeaninpa, Thanks for the reminder.  Now that I think about it, my 9yo would have been fine with whatever the “free” notebooking pages came with.  I try to keep my 9yo & 6yo in the same program as much as possible (even during the day, they’re usually doing the same subject at the same time) and I hate to purchase something that is totally over their heads, or just too much, iykwim. 

We are schooling year-round for the first time this year and I don’t know exactly when my 9yo will be finished with Zoology 2, but he has not done the Astronomy book. I think he would like that and my 6yo will do whatever my 9yo doing, but I don’t think a whole journal would be necessary for either of them.  Just my opinion of my 2 boys, of course.