I’m pretty new to CM, and just wanted to run this by the board 🙂
New-8 DD (beginning/just past beginning reader (it finally clicked, but slowed down, and stopped):
-Delightful Reading 3 days a week
-Reading Aloud 4 days a week
-Click N Read 2 days a week (we already have the subscription, and she’s been working her way through, so I would like to continue)
-Oral Storytelling 1 day a week (she loves telling stories, so Im making it a habit to be there for her 1 day a week, intentionally, to write down her stories for her)
-Delightful Reading 3 days a week (tweaked to make it more towards his interest of Star Wars, and using some printable Star Wars worksheets found around the place which also helps work on his wrist movements).
-Oral Storytelling 2 days a week: I thought getting him to tell star wars stories with him concentrating more on his speech would help. I will also write down his stories as well. In a busy household, he doesn’t get to work on talking as much as I would like, so this creates an intentional, long, speech/talking time.
– Reading Raven 2 days a week. He loves the ipad, and games, so I thought I would use this to give him something he loves to do, as a reward for doing other things, and also to sneakily help with reading.
-Speechercise 3 days a week. More time to concentrate on his speech, and having fun with momma, AND getting him moving & shaking, whats not to love?
5 DD:
-Delightful Reading 4 days a week
-Starfall 1 day a week (already subscribed to More Starfall, and she loves it).
Basically, on Fridays, we have less lessons, more Art, Movement, etc. So items like Oral Storytelling & Starfall would be Fridays, and no DR lesson.
Obviously I want each childs daily lesson to not be more than 15-20 minutes, and if more than 15, I will probably split it up.
Screens (computer) and IPAD, dancing/movment, are done at the end of the school day, as more of a relxing/winding down to the day.
I would love to know what others think. 🙂 My girls are both hands-on crafty, wiggly kids who talk a lot! And my son needs interesting fun stuff to keep him focused.
Hi! Well, I’m no expert either, but I found with my DS (when he was around 7 and reading was progressing, slowing, then progressing, then slowing) once I added an audio book alongside printed copy of the book being read aloud – THAT was when his reading really took off.
Even better – the addition of this element to his school day provided an easy way for me to get excellent, QUALITY literature in front of him at a time when his truest and most comfortable reading level was bascially a Henry and Mudge reader from the library!! Sometimes (though seldom) it was a book I’d already used as one of our family read aloud (and that he’d orally narrated), but I felt it was still okay because I just wanted him to have this exposure of following along word for word as something is read.
If you have a printed copy of Aesop’s Fables or 50 Famous Stories Retold or Beatrix Potter’s Complete Collection – you could try these with your DD (they are all on Booksshouldbefree.com – the stories these particular choices are short; even if your daughter doesn’t follow every word as read aloud at least she would have a good chance of catching up when we she gets a bit lost. After she’s got the hang of following along in a printed copy when an audio reads to her, you could try slightly longer books (but with short chapters) such as the Adventures of series by Thornton Burgess (many of these are on booksshouldbefree.com).
At ages 8-10, my boys spend at least 30 minutes per day following along in a printed book while an audio reads aloud (usually through booksshouldbefree.com). It’s one of their favourite things to do (in fact right at this moment, they are arguing over who’s going to go first on it today….so I’d better run!!!)
In general, it sounds like a good plan. However, I would encourage you to look for activities other than reading instruction for your youngest kiddo, and rounding it out for all of them. Charlotte Mason advocated spreading a feast for our children’s education, not feeding them pre-packaged tid-bits of information. Your oldest obviously needs to contunue with reading instruction, and probbaly your 6yo too, but your little one it may be too early. If they are interested. by all means don’t refuse them the opportunity to read but at those ages there are so many more important things to do.
I would pursue nature study with them all. If you live in a cold climate and getting outside to run and explore on their own isn’t possible in win ter, then maybe an ant farm or something similar? You could also read aloud Thornton Burgess books for some fun nature exposure. Handicrafts at this age can be wonderful for working on small or large motor issues and giving them real life skills and practice solving problems which gives them so much confidence and helps when they start ont he academics. In our home, Bible is the most important lesson at any age, and the little ones love to soak it up.
By giving our little ones broad exposure to ideas, events and information they can form their own connections and through this we prepare them to be better readers and *thinkers* when they are older. For some more ideas, check out the SCM Preschool guide. http://simplycharlottemason.com/planning/preschool-guide/
Angelina – Thank you, I shall look into that for my oldest. I’ll leave it a bit at first, and bring it in a little bit down the track (I don’t want to overwhelm her 😀 ) Thank you.
Curlywhirly – Thats just my reading plan, we have a very science/animal interested household, and my kids usually spend at least 4 hours outside everyday. Except for right now, because I live in rural/farm area of Australia, and its currently getting into insane temperature (45 degrees celsius etc) and we live in a deadly snake rich area, so mid-summer we don’t really get outside much. But nature comes to us. We use the verandah outside our classroom/kitchen to encourage animals. We have stray/farm cats and kittens we watch (we don’t encourage these, but they come anyway) and a large variety of birds come to feast on our verandah, plus our dogs & cats keep us company.
Since we can’t get outside much for the next few weeks, we’ve been trying to do family nature walks on the weekend to collect things, and do more nature-y stuff inside. We just created a stick tree for the dining table, and are currently growing/sprouting sweet potato on the windowsill, plus growing some grass. Our cats love these rofl.
My kids are really close, so if one person is doing a subject, they all want to be doing it, lol. I was just planning on trying to get DD5 to acquire a few more letter sounds (she really doesn’t know any) and I have the Montessori large wooden letters I can use. So I’m not really trying to do anything super formal with her.
I have the early years guide book. But I will check out the link given.
Thank you so much, its hard to figure things out sometimes when you are new!