60-day returns • free shipping on USA orders $129+
Moving to SCM with 6 1/2 year old
- This topic has 7 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 9 years, 2 months ago by
.
Viewing 8 posts - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)
- Posts
I would love if anyone could share some input for me as I begin to transition my 6.5 year old (turned 6 in May) to a Charlotte Mason approach with SCM. We were working through a 1st grade program with a boxed curriculum and in October, I decided it was just not what I wanted for us, and my 6.5 year old was fighting against it every day. So we stopped all together and I began reading a lot about the Charlotte Mason approach, which I had originally resonated with. Now it’s November and I am wanting to begin with SCM’s recommendations for Grade 1. However, I am wondering if I should just begin working on reading (he knows letters sounds and short words) and start with Right Start right now and then add in the History Module, Science, etc. in January. He will be turning 7 in May, so I would then just continue through with Grade 1 for the remainder of next year. We actually will not be that busy this year for the holiday season coming up so I thought I could utilize this time, but at the same time I want to make sure I give him enough of a break from our previous methods so that we can start fresh without the struggle and complaints. We also are staying temporarily with a family and house hunting so a move will be sometime in the future, but just not sure when, so I want to make sure I allow some time for the move in all of this. Thoughts?
Bumping this hoping someone with a similar experience will chime in.
My thoughts are to continue with reading and math instruction as you said. I would not worry too much about history/science at this point. However, I would encourage him to get outside in nature on a regular basis. I would also highly recommend reading aloud to him, possibly from a biography, missionary story, or historical fiction, having him narrate after each single attentive reading. Or, rather than start a science curricula, consider reading aloud from a Thornton Burgess book.
The Burgess Bird Book for Children
The Burgess Animal Book for Children
The Adventures of Jimmy Skunk
The Adventures of Lightfoot the Deer
The Adventures of Reddy Fox
Blacky the Crow
etc., etc.http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=thornton+burgess
Blessings,
Melissa
http://reflectionsfromdrywoodcreek.blogspot.com/Melissa, thanks so much! It is always so helpful hearing other’s thoughts! And thanks for the book suggestions!
Tina,
Personally I’d keep up with the 3Rs and add in some fun things. Maybe pick up some library books from the library on different topics of interest. Another thing we’ve enjoyed is some sort of special study around Christmas. We studied Christmas in other countries one year. Another year we focused on Bible stories and decorated a Jesse Tree (ours was just on posterboard). One year I found a Tomie Depaola unit study online that we enjoyed. We created so many memories with these activities!
I know moving is a stressful time, so I wouldn’t try to take on too much at the moment. There will be plenty of time to add in formal history and science after the new year (and your move).
I have not had this same experience, but I DO have a 6.5 year old boy! Of course he knows nothing of Charlotte Mason yet, but we all especially enjoy those “extras” that go along with the method. Maybe you could stick with the 3 R’s until after the move, but add in some of those fun things, to sort of help him transition? Like going out for a walk together once a week, and looking at nature then drawing a picture of what you found (nature study, but in a VERY relaxed way)? (& pointing out to him that just by going for a fun walk, he’s actually doing SCHOOL!!) Or one of the things we enjoy is to have poetry & tea once a week. The kids listen to a classical music piece while I make the tea, and then we read a few children’s poems while we drink it. Again, it’s very simple & laid back but he just thinks it’s the coolest thing in the world when I point out that all these fun things we enjoy so much are really, truly, SCHOOL. 😀 Maybe that could be a way for him to start seeing school time differently, and then naturally move into history, etc.?
We came to CM homeschooling this year with my 7 year old. I’ve always liked CM, but we used other curriculum, and like you, we started to burn out with it. It has been a real conscious effort on my part to slow down and realize that there are things that are important and things that might not be quite so important at this point. For me, number one importance was my daughter’s spiritual well-being. We started working on the motto (I am, I can, I ought, I will) with Scripture interlaced in it. We spent August on that. The second important thing to me was the “feast of ideas” that CM gives your child (and yourself!). We started scripture memory, poetry reading, art study and listening to classical music more often. And for sit-down work, we pretty much just focus on reading, handwriting, and math. We’re using Pathways readers along with Delightful Reading. We’re using Delightful Handwriting, and regular copy work for handwriting. And we’re using Ray’s for math, with math games. We try to spend time in nature each week also and make observations and keep a very loose nature journal. We are slowly, s-l-o-w-l-y working through some history with Genesis through Deuteronomy and Ancient Egypt, but my daughter just isn’t big into it, and I’m not pushing too hard on it.
Like I said, sometimes I freak out and wonder if I should be doing more of this and more of that, but overall my daughter is very happy, we’re learning, and she has a great heart and spirit. So that must count for something right? 🙂
I would do what you’ve planned, but throw in some nature study if the weather where you live holds out until January. I wish I had known about and started my kids with CM methods that young.
Mine were 9, 10, and 11 when we switched from an online charter school. We did this at the beginning of the academic year, so they had all summer to wean off of the old methods. I remember, following our first day of school (which included a “family meeting” about what we would be doing, looking at many of the books we would be using, and short lessons for 2 or 3 subjects), my son commented, “I like this. School is not so hard after all!”
Viewing 8 posts - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)
- The topic ‘Moving to SCM with 6 1/2 year old’ is closed to new replies.