60-day returns • free shipping on USA orders $129+
MFW vs SCM HELP!
- This topic has 5 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 6 months ago by
.
Viewing 6 posts - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)
- Posts
Hi y’all!
This Momma is getting ready to homeschool for the first time. My oldest is going on 2nd grade. I have fallen in love with SCM but as a beginner I’ve been told MFW would be better for several reasons:
– complete curriculum package – no planning needed
-Charlotte mason style
– plenty of worksheets and activities included
I’m not sure if some of those points are even true. I’ve researched it but I cannot tell how MFW is like SCM. Seems more like unit studies but I’m not sure if that’s a bad thing. SCM seems like it will be difficult to keep a detailed portfolio with all the reading and verbal narration. I really like the living books but how can keep a record of her progress without actual paper work? Could MFW & SCM be blended? Like maybe use MFW curriculum and add SCM living books? Please help! I would appreciate any information.
I think MFW Adventures is full of living books. I think you can do MFW and use it how you want on your own schedule and add in or omit what you want. Or make life easy and do it as written. It’s a great program.
My first year of homeschooling I started off with Sonlight for Kindergarten and I was so overwhelmed with too much material for her age. Then we did MFW for 1st and 2nd Grade and felt the material was cut in half which I loved (sorry, I know you didn’t ask our opinion on Sonlight). Overall we really enjoyed Adventures though. Even though I was excited that it was all planned out for me I still struggled with the schedule of things. I felt like I was making the schedule more important than I should and it was hard for me not to check off each box when I didn’t complete something! Some things we didn’t do and I felt overwhelmed skipping around the schedule (just my personality).
Even though we loved the material and books with MFW I stumbled across SCM and learning about Charlotte Mason more so we tried SCM for this year, 3rd Grade. It has been the best year for us so far. I think that I realized I don’t like “boxed curriculum” and can’t handle a laid out schedule for me for all subjects. But as a first time homeschooler I think I did appreciate it to get me started so MFW may be a good place to start.
Do you have to keep a portfolio or record of her progress for your state? We do not have to, just a test is done each year. So I am not sure how to answer that one. I think you could combine MFW and SCM. I think MFW has alot of great living books as it is and I believe you are right, that it is also like Unit Studies which I don’t think are bad. I think MFW had a little more hands on projects (busy work) and worksheets that weren’t as necessary or not like a Charlotte Mason style and may be too much for a young child.
If you are really wanting a Charlotte Mason style I would recommend reading more of what her method is all about and what you want your homeschool experience to look like. I have been reading “A Charlotte Mason Companion” by Karon Andreola lately and really wished I had this book from the very beginning. For next year we will be doing some SCM but focusing more on learning from living books and less from a planned out curiculum. It is a learning process and I am still learning and will probably be changing things up each year! I think you have to realize that may happen and it’s ok to do that to fit the needs of your family. So I do think MFW is a great start but SCM would be also if you are willing to do a little more planning. When I first looked at the SCM website I was quite confused since not everything was laid out for me in a “boxed” curriculm but this discussion forum has been a great resource to help figure out what you need to start out!!
Sorry I rambled on, and may have not made any sense. Best wishes on your new journey of homeschooling!
Some thoughts about SCM & portfolios- we are in PA, so this is something we’ve had to think about, too! The “links & tips” pages for the history guides have several optional activities to add in (& there are plenty more to be found on the web!) You could take photos of whichever things you choose to do & include those with a description; for narrations, once/month, quarter, or per book, or whatever- do a “dictated” narration, where you write it down for him/her as it’s given. You could do this at the end of studying some time period/event/person/etc., similar to an “exam”, and you might say, “Tell me everything you remember about Alexander the Great” (or whatever), and ask them what exactly they want you write down for them, just as if you were helping put a story they were thinking up onto paper. For things like nature journals, you can always photocopy some of the best pages with a description of what was learned (in the child’s own words); for things like the science literature & activities from SCM (106 Days of Creation, Burgess Birds, etc.), you could keep a separate binder for the activities/experiments/drawings, and include some of those in the portfolio. For things like copy-work (handwriting), you could occasionally print out one of those blank handwriting sheets from the internet to have some ready-made 8.5X11 samples. Just some ideas 🙂
Hope that helps!!
Have you looked at Queen Homeschool? It’s a wonderful curriculum and is CM too. Not much teacher planning either.
Viewing 6 posts - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)
- The topic ‘MFW vs SCM HELP!’ is closed to new replies.