curriculum rundown
We’ve been on summer break for 17 days & yes I have to already be posting about what we are using NEXT year!
It takes planning to educate my children well.
This coming school year we will have homeschooled children ages 12, 11, 7, 6, 6 and 4 (This is the first year in many, many years that we have ZERO kindergarteners, I’m not sure how I feel about that! But my three-year-old is begging to “do school”, so that helps).
I’m just going to be really simple & list what we are using for each with some notes if needed!
Preschool:
Once upon a time, I spent $600 on a preschool curriculum that I had zero clues how to even use correctly. First year homeschooling mom and I totally caved and bought a box set. I can’t say that I totally regret it because we still have all of the amazing books that came with it, BUT I have learned my lesson. My daughter is 3, turning 4 but is already able to recognize many of her letters and letter sounds thanks to all of her older siblings. She is begging to “do school” with us, so I purchased the letter set from Peaceful Press and that + number and shape printables online- she will be golden! Oh! And lots and lots of reading of course.
First Grade:
Math: Abeka. Note: I am not a big Abeka fan, Math is the only thing I have used from them for younger kids because it’s to the point, very repetitive (which fits into the Classical method), I love all of the memorizations of facts and bought the big box of math fact cards from them. Math with little guys is pretty basic, and Abeka has just been the one that has worked well so far so we’re sticking to it. In the past, we’ve done Singapore, Rodd and Staff and Math U See, none of them clicked for us.
Reading: All About Reading
History, Art, Geography, Science, Public Speaking will all be covered with Classical Conversations foundations program.
However, I want to dive a little more into History + Science at home so we will also be doing both using The Good and The Beautiful curriculum.
Typing: The Good and the Beautiful.
I really try to keep the younger grades simple and fun with more outside and leisurely reading than school-book time. CC will take up one of our days, and then we will only work on the above studies 3 other mornings in a week, leaving one day open for the library, play, errands, etc.
Extracurriculars: Karate
Third Grade:
Math: Teaching Textbooks. We use the regular textbook, not the discs or online program. Just personal preference.
English Grammar: Rodd and Staff. We’ve always used Rodd and Staff until 4th grade when they can be in Essentials with Classical Conversations. It has prepared and primed my kids well!
History, Art, Geography, Science, Public Speaking will all be covered with Classical Conversations foundations program.
However, I want to dive a little more into History + Science at home so we will also be doing both using The Good and The Beautiful curriculum. We will also be using Draw the World by Kristin J. Draeger.
Typing: The Good and The Beautiful
Extracurriculars: Ballet and Lyrical, Piano
Fifth and Sixth Grade:
My girls are very close in age and have always done most of their schooling together. My fifth grader has never had an issue doing work that is a grade level higher- she needs to and loves to be challenged. I am not sure how much longer we will be able to continue doing this before it does begin to make a difference, but for now, it’s working.
Math: Teaching Textbooks. Again, just the textbook!
English Grammar and Writing: The Essentials program in Classical Conversations will cover all of this for them. We will just be reviewing at home! They use IEW for writing within CC, but you can use it even if you are not doing Classical Conversations, and I highly recommend!
Typing: The Good and The Beautiful
History, Art, Geography, Science, Public Speaking will all be covered with Classical Conversations foundations program.
However, I want to dive a little more into History + Science at home so we will also be doing both using The Good and The Beautiful curriculum. We will also be using Draw the World by Kristin J. Draeger.
Extracurriculars: Ballet, Lyrical, and Acro-Dance, piano
Phew! That’s our roundup, CC covers a lot for me so that my load is a bit lighter. If we don’t get to science and history at home, it’s ok, I know that they are also covering in on community day as well. If you are interested in the classical method, I highly recommend the book “The Well Trained Mind” by Susan Wise Bauer. Not everything we do is recommended as “classical” but we try to stick to the way as much as we can and be flexible where we need to be.
We will also be reading many books and read alouds this school year which is a new post entirely, and one that I am not prepared for yet, so stay tuned! I should also mention that there is a plethura of extra things that you can do along with Classical Conversations, many resources and books and just an overwhelming amount of things. Some families are super into it all and do all sort of extra add on things- we don’t. If you are looking for extras and resources, my favorite place to find these things are farmhouseschoolhouse.com and halfahundredacrewood.com