"I have a question though. HOW do you plan all of your children’s assignments? Sunday nights are filled with filling out assignment sheets for everyone and heaven forbid if we are busy all weekend with other things! Is there a better way?"
Here's the massively overwhelming answer: I do it all at once over a weekend or two in the summer.
I hated the Sunday night thing- just what you've described- and so years ago my best friend and I asked for an overnighter to spend planning and thinking through our upcoming school year. We have students of similar ages and grades, so bouncing things off of each other is helpful. So is a little dark chocolate and a phone call to have lunch delivered.
When I say I do everything during the summer, I mean everything. I'll try to break it down step by step:
1. Make a list for each child of the subjects they will be studying during the upcoming school year. I typically do this in January, and the rest begins to flow from there. In years without babies, I can be totally ready to go by July, then relax the rest of the summer. This year? Nope.
2. List all curriculum you are planning to use, purchase, borrow, etc. Mark prices next to each item and begin to bargain shop. As with anything else, if you have a plan you can avoid spending too much for items you don't really need.
3. Go through each subject individually and make a spreadsheet or other type of lesson plan that works for you. For me, a good old Excel spreadsheet works for most subjects. Here's an example of our Mystery of History Year One spreadsheet:
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Click to Download (PDF document)
Be realistic with step number three. It is going to take up a lot of time, but what you plan in the summer means NO MORE SUNDAY NIGHT SCRAMBLING! Keep repeating that to yourself when you get bogged down.
4. Make a list of everything that needs to be photocopied. The list can be as detailed or as broad as you like. You can list "history coloring pages" or you can list actual books and pages- "Medieval Coats of Arms, p. 32"
5. Are you ready for this? Photocopy EVERYTHING for the ENTIRE year. Now. All at once. Make binders for each child and each subject with their already photocopied items, in order. For history, my kids' binders have tabs for each week and the pertinent items are all in order. Maps, coloring pages, word searches, biography pages, etc. are ready to go.
Ever told your kids, "Just a sec. I need to go copy this."? What happens when you turn your back or walk out of the room? That's right. Chaos! Now you've lost one to the bathroom, one to a drawing he "has" to finish, and two to an argument. But when the photocopies are ready to go, so are your students.
6. Make a "Mom List". I keep mine on my clipboard so I can just glance at it and remember what each child needs to accomplish daily:
16-year-old: Constitutional Law, Math, Science, French, Rhetoric, Lit and Composition, CLEPS
14-year-old: Math, Science, Latin, Logic, Theory, Italic, Copywork, Guitar
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If this seems totally overwhelming to you, just say to yourself, "Kendra has six students this year". :) You can do it!
Right off the bat this week I think I should tell you that I have my BA in Music (Voice) and I have absolutely no artistic ability other than walking around art museums.
This means two things:
1. Although I have high standards for music curricula in our home, I'm not very good at implementing them. I think I just live music with my kids, and the formal let's-sit-down-and-talk-about-music teaching of it goes by the wayside.
2. I am the opposite with art curricula. I have used quite a few things with varying degrees of success, and I think I've given my kids an appreciation of a wide variety of art in a more formal way than I have with music. The older ones can recognize historical context, several notable artists, and important art works to a level at which I think is appropriate.
Those two caveats in place, let's talk about music curriculum:
Purchase compilations of classical works and listen to them. Read the liner notes and tell your children, "This is Bach". As you become familiar with each piece, you will soon find yourselves able to recall pieces as you hear them in the store, on the radio, or in movies and commercials.
A fun series to familiarize yourself with individual works are the books by Anna Harwell Calenza, such as The Farewell Symphony, The Heroic Symphony, and Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. The books are nicely illustrated, each telling the story behind the piece and each containing a CD of the piece as well. Very nice.
If you want to familiarize yourselves with classical composers, you can check out any number of Mike Venezia's books in the series Getting to Know the Worlds Greatest Composers. The books are written on a kindergarten- 3rd grade level, and cover the greats: Mozart (my favorite), Bach, Beethoven, and many more. I don't think these books are the ultimate resource, but they seem to be the best that's available at the present time. Many libraries carry them, so check there first if you're not sure you want to invest in them all.
When I was in college studying music, I had the driest, most uninteresting music history teacher humanly possible. What a pity. Now that I am past that part of my education, I have discovered that music history is indeed exciting and interesting, for art and music truly are a reflection of what is going on in our culture at any given time. Just to make sure we're on the same page, I'm talking about the history of Western Music; Eastern, indigenous, and tribal music is quite another subject altogether.
My favorite stand-alone resource for music history is a series of books by David W. Barber, the first of which is called Bach, Beethoven, and the Boys. These are extremely light-hearted books needing some editing as appropriate for the ages you're teaching. Great for Circle Time, great for a fun summer read-aloud. I realize they aren't the Norton Anthology, but they are memorable.
Do you have a child who is interested in taking voice lessons, but you're either not prepared to incur the cost (voice lessons can definitely be a luxury item) or don't know where to turn? I highly recommend Singing for the Stars by vocal coach extraordinaire, Seth Riggs. My personal interest is vocal physiology, with a particular emphasis on good vocal technique. Mr. Riggs teaches healthy singing, and he does so across the genre spectrum: everything from pop like Michael Jackson to the demands of opera.
As for music theory, most music students will be given a workbook to use by their instrumental teacher. If your child is learning at home, however, and you are looking for a straightforward approach to theory, I'd recommend the Theory Time series.
And now for art...
Years ago we participated in a lovely little once-a-month co-op in which a mom used the Meet the Masters curriculum. It has been a long time and my memory regarding specifics is fuzzy, but I know I loved it. In a nutshell, the program highlights one artist at a time from the point of view of the artist. The students are introduced to several of the artist's works, then have the opportunity to try their hand at a work in the style of each particular masterpiece. If you're interested, you can read all about their downloadable curriculum on the Meet the Masters FAQ page.
We've also really loved Discovering Great Artists, which also teaches a bit about each artist and their style, then presents a project in the style of the artist. These are accessible projects, things that can be achieved even by an art-impaired mom like me.
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Raise your hand if you're a lover of lists. Don't you adore crossing something off after you've accomplished it? Me too. However, in this current crazy season of my life, my to-do list has had to morph into something that matches my reality.
I fondly remember the days when all of my children took an afternoon rest, or at least a quiet time. They do now, too, but the two little guys are on slightly different schedules so there's only an hour when they're both down. I do rest for an hour or so, but I also need to capitalize on the sleeping babies and spend time helping the older kids with school.
What this means, practically, is that my to-do list has become sort of a running "extra projects" list rather than a day-to-day list, because the day-to-day just doesn't vary all that much. I use this printable check list for the daily stuff. You can alter the fields for your own use.
Then I add and delete things from the ongoing to-do list as necessary. Currently the list is:
1. Where are my jeans? (I have one pair in my current size and they're nowhere to be found)
2. Fill in names on family tree as far back as possible (This project could go on for years)
3. Paint- girls’ accents (This one is particularly pathetic. A friend is doing the painting for me. All I have to do is buy the paint, but I haven't even done that yet)
4. Sew hammock and cabana pillows (I'm not a good seamstress. I've put this off for months, but the hammocks are now on the back porch and I really can't ignore this any longer)
5. Hang shells from andy’s office (Too long an explanation)
6. 5yo Kindergarten doctor visit, 16yo tetnus booster (I know, it only takes a phone call...)
7. Find videos to send to Shane (ummm... find them... )
8. TOS reviews (Due June)
9. Christian’s Stocking to Sandy (all I have to do is send this to a friend but...)
And now a word about expectations. Years ago, maybe when I had five children or fewer, I could look at this list and know it could be tackled in a week's time. Now, however, the tyrrany of the urgent is where I spend most of my time, and so this list has become just an ongoing thing that continues to grow faster than it shrinks. If I were to expect to finish the list in a more timely manner, I would be frustrated, angry, and ready to throw in the towel, perhaps blaming homeschooling or any other number of things to which God has called me at the moment (like two babies, 14 months apart).
One thing I can say God has taught me over the last year is to make my expectations match my reality. Actually, more than that, I have no expectations. I don't expect time to myself, time to complete projects, family members who remember my birthday, dinner to come out well, perfect kids, or my haircut to be stunning. As a result, when any of those things do work out, I am utterly surprised and delighted!
How can you change your expectations to meet your current reality?
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Latin is being studied in our home because of its obvious ties to the roots of Romance languages, but also because there are several fields which demand a knowledge of Latin terms and a solid foundation in Latin can be very helpful to the student. My husband wishes he'd gone into dental school with a basic knowledge of Latin roots, as I'm sure anyone in the medical field would agree.
We also like Latin because studying Latin grammar only strengthens the student's knowledge of English grammar, and every little bit helps.
Initially we began with Latina Christiana, but my firstborn was nine at the time and he found it difficult to stay motivated. At about the same time, we learned about Latin for Children and thought it was worth a try. We loved the DVDs and the format, and he continued very happily with Latin for Children until he completed all three levels. The writers of Latin for Children have made the study of Latin in the elementary years very approachable, yet they maintain a rigorous enough pace that the student emerges from all three levels with a substantial amount of vocabulary, Latin grammar, and usage knowledge. Although the program is designed for 3rd-6th graders, we found that starting later was better- around 5th/6th grade. Perhaps because we don't have a Latin teacher and a class to keep pace with, it was difficult for my younger children to really get what was being taught.
And so as our firstborn was continuing on with his Latin study, our second son asked to try a different approach when it was his turn to start. I had been given the Latin's Not So Tough curriculum to review, and as a ninth grader in the fall, he will be finishing up his Latin study after having completed all six levels. You can read my review of Latin's Not So Tough for The Old Schoolhouse magazine here.
There are certain moments in the life of a homeschooling mom that stand out as strange and wonderful. The day our then eight-year-old third son approached me and asked, "Can I study Greek instead of Latin?" was definitely one of those moments. As if I'd say no. Providentially, not a week later I was asked to review the sister curriculum of Latin's Not So Tough, Hey Andrew, Teach Me Some Greek! That review can be found here, but I will tell you that we have been very happy with what we have seen in the life of that son. He writes in Greek, reads his interlinear Bible in Greek, and is looking forward to translating the book of John in Greek. Stunning, really.
We also have enjoyed Classical Academic Press's Greek Alphabet Code Cracker during Circle Time. Our Greek guy helped me teach the 4th grader and the 2nd grader the Greek alphabet, and we all enjoyed solving the mystery in the book. The graphics are well done, and Classical Academic Press even offers free support materials online.
After completing basic Latin (and Greek, as it were) studies for three years, we give our kiddos the option of continuing in that language or choosing a modern language. Because of the French exchange students who have lived in our home, our first child to have moved beyond Latin chose to study French. I sat with a Canadian friend of mine who lived on a Canadian island where only French is spoken and poured over potential curricula. In the end, I chose Breaking the French Barrier for its solid grammar foundation and its user-friendly format. Our high school junior has been enjoying it, even getting together with two friends to practice their accents and conversation.
For our littlest learners, we love all the Signing Time DVDs, which teach copious American Sign Language vocabulary. Our two-year-old signs nearly everything he sees in the DVDs, and it's a joy to see him signing and speaking at the same time. I love giving the babies the skill to sign "please" or "more", "all done", and "thank you". It sure beats having them yell for what they want!
Don't forget Cheryl's Marvelous Monday post! Gotta love her photo of the Windex guy :)
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Academic confession #2: I am not a logical thinker by nature, therefore I tend to run from logic problems and study. There's probably a logical fallacy to disprove the above statement, but I couldn't tell you what it is.
Thanks to the encouragement of a friend years ago, we began with The Critical Thinking Company materials. I use these books as "fillers", having the elementary-age kids go through them when they've completed other math assignments or need a little something to do. They think they're a fun challenge.
The first book I'll take out is Building Thinking Skills. I find that doing the little exercises (for example, figuring out which shape doesn't belong in the sequence) helps my young children to stop and analyze something before diving in and offering an opinion or a quick answer before having thought it through.
Mathematical Reasoning Through Verbal Analysis is usually next, but not until we've done a level or two of Building Thinking Skills. The emphasis in this book is on solving mathematical problems and I like to have an intro to thinking skills before introducing the math series.
Last year I purchased Revenge of the Logic Spiders for our then-fifth-grade son, who was immediately drawn to the fact that it is a computer game. He enjoyed the format and was challenged to think through each of the 116 multiple choice questions because ultimately, he needed to escape the hungry spiders and the only way to do so was to answer all of those logic problems. I love being sneaky like that :)
We move into more formal logic study around seventh grade with an introduction to logical fallacies. Its hard to find a more fun and un-intimidating start than Nathaniel and Hans Bluedorn's The Fallacy Detective.
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