2015 Curriculum Plan

   

                   

            

As we soak every moment out of summer, I am simultaneously planning and purchasing for our upcoming school year. This year I will officially have five students, although my oldest student is only in my school this year, because I discovered through trial and error that trying to get scholarship funds to a Christian college is much easier if you are applying as a freshman than as a transfer student. For this reason, my oldest son will do one more year of high school to better prepare him to transfer as a freshman, and hopefully get some financial help with his schooling. I will update next year, with the results of this experiment

I will also be sending my other high school student to community college with the oldest three. This is another experiment. Only time will tell if it is a good one. He took an online class at the community college last year and scored well, so I feel it is worth a try to let him take two days a week of classes with his older siblings. Although I am presently not willing to send my children to public school (aside from my spiritual objections, I feel that high school wastes a lot of time) I do believe that older boys especially might benefit from the instruction of someone other than their mother as they grow. Especially this mother. I love teaching the younger years, but because I tend towards being a little better at relationships than consequences, having the experience of a classroom with a teacher who doesn't love them, might benefit my kids as they grow. So far, it has worked well for my students, and we will see how this one does.

Without further explanations, here is the plan.

                              

1st Grade Boy

Math Mammoth, Level 1

Prescripts Scripture Cursive

Spell To Write and Read/All About Spelling

Explode The Code Book 2

    

Rod and Staff Reading, Grade One, readers only

Mystery of History, Ancient Times

    

Apologia Flying Creatures

    

4th Grade Girl

Math U See Delta

Bible Copywork

 Jr. Analytical Grammar

I.E.W. Ancient History Writing Lessons

Spell To Write and Read

    

Memoria Cursive

Ancient History Reading List

Mystery Of History Ancient History

Apologia Flying Creatures

8th Grade Boy

Life of Fred Algebra

                                             

Bible Copywork

Jr Analytical Grammar

 (I will do this as a class with the younger sister,

 followed by Jr. Analytical Grammar Mechanics or R&S Grammar)

Theme Essays with Co-op

I.E.W. Ancient History Writing Lessons

Ancient History Reading List

Apologia General Science

Studies in World History-Stobaugh

                                             

  

10th Grade Boy

Algebra-Community College

Theme Analysis with Co-op

Ancient History Reading List

Beginning Painting-Community College

Philosophy 1 (audit Community College class with older siblings)

English 1A (semester 2)

Studies in World History-Stobaugh

Spanish 2-BJU

12th Grade Boy

Study hard for SAT

Chemistry- Community College

Geometry- Community College

U.S. History

The children also do martial arts and ballet for physical education, as well as music lessons, for, well, music.

For science and history, we will focus more on notebook pages with illustrated and written narration than on using tests or worksheets to assess their progress. We will do experiments and hands on work in our co-op.

For Bible, I am using Long Story Short and The 18 Inch Journey as my curriculum. We will also be reading through the Old Testament and copying Bible verses. 

                                            

    

This post has affiliate links. 

Daily Worship-The Best Part of Homeschooling

When my children were all young, our daily Bible time consisted of simple devotionals such as Leading Little Ones to God, memory verse work and simple Sunday School songs mixed in with some classic hymns. 

A few years ago, we found the devotional Long Story Short which was just what we needed. I had been so oblivious to what the Gospel really was, I was placing way too much emphasis on good behavior, and way too little on the finished work of Christ on the cross. Long Story Short was all about the redemptive work of Christ, and it came at a time when we desperately needed hope that our behavior wasn't what got us saved, but that it was what Jesus had done for us that brings salvation.

Fast forward a couple years. We had tried and failed to produce good children by focusing solely on good behavior, and so most of my children who are old enough to remember the intense years when we hit the brick wall of failed human goodness, are very, very thankful for a God who saves, despite our failures. This has brought some big changes to our daily worship time. 

Our morning Bible time still has some memory work, and some coloring pages and simple Bible stories for the little ones, but now the bulk of the time involves pouring our hearts out in worship to our amazing Lord. We are a musically developing family, so we might stream a Bethel Redding worship service to get passionate worship dropped into our living room on a Monday morning, or it might be my teen boys on their guitars or cajon leading us in some songs which they have been working on. 

                                          

Whether it is Jeremy Riddle at Bethel leading our worship, or my boys on their guitars, we are thankful. I still love the hymns, and we still occasionally sing the B-I-B-L-E for the sake of the younger children, but to see my teens seek God because they have tasted and seen how good He is, is the most amazing gift this momma could imagine. 

I have blown it as a mom in a million different ways, but God has been only good, and the joy of worshipping Him with my children is just one of the millions of ways He has shown just how merciful He is.