I don't know if every new person throws up a post like this - but I read all the way through someone else's and there was such good feedback that I thought I would ask you folks to give opinions and advice on what I'm doing. First off - I just plain could not afford any kind of curriculum - at least nothing that I knew anything about. So, I spent about $17 on a book called "Everything Your 6th Grader Needs to Know". It's based on the National Standards - which aren't really the same as our state standards but it was something. I wanted a guide because I was afraid to try and wing it and I couldn't afford to buy a lot of stuff. It has four sections - Promoting Literacy, Math, Science and Social Studies. I've been looking at what the topic is and then doing some of the activities from the book and supplementing with websites and other resources. So far it is really labor intensive for me because I have to look at all the websites to see if they are any good and to try and find ones that my daughter will respond to well. I also, often have to learn the stuff myself so I can teach it. Anyway, I am already using the basic Homeschool Tracker and I've started printing a list of the day's assignments and giving them to my daughter in the morning. I think this helps us stay on track and lets us know when we are slacking off. I'm trying to be productive without increasing her stress or mine. (It doesn't always work that way, but that's the goal). A typical schedule is this: Math Fact Practice (Almost always with a game of some sort - we started out playing cards, then dominoes, then we made and Abax, and now she's playing Timez Attack - Great Game!) Grade Level Math Currently we are finishing up a whole segment on Fractions. Language Arts Three pronged strategy - Worksheets from a book called "Got Grammer"; Type to Learn; and Reading (we are co-reading "The Sign of the Beaver") Science Following the Pattern of the Book I bought we are about to start studying DNA (we did plant and animal classification and Minor Cell Biology prior to this) Social Studies We are studying ancient history (have already looked at The Fertile Crescent Area and Ancient Egypt and we are now doing Asia and Africa. I also want to add Spanish and Geography - maybe not daily, but at least as supplements. So, does this sound good, full of holes, too much, too little. Does anybody else do this "flying by the seat of their pants" approach? I know I have a lot to learn and I have been thrilled to read the posts on this site so far. Sorry for the novel - perhaps I have aspirations of being a writer too.
The only thing I don't see is writing and you could be incorporating that into other subjects. When you co-read are you also discussing the reading maybe introducing her to literary terms (plot, setting, etc.). You could definatly assign some writing in conjuction with the reading - from something simple like asking your dd to describe what she would do if left at home for weeks to a research paper on how Native Americans were treated during this time period.
sounds great to me, pm me your address and we can talk I might be able to find some books to send you to use.
Hi & welcome, Your plan sounds great. My ds is 6th grade this year, dd 7th. We do calendar year here in Oz, so we are 3/4 of the way through our school year. We do the 'seat of your pants' thing too. I use bits & pieces from all over - lots from free websites. If you are looking for a particular kind of website or topic, I may be able to help....or pm me your email address and I will send you my list of useful websites. It is way to big to post here in it's entirety. Have you thought about doing some art or music?
Welcome to the group, sounds like you're doing great. You have realized the biggest thing of hs'ing. You can find most of what you need online. I was going to do that myself with most of the subjects BUT my time is so crunched that I wouldn't be able to. Maybe when I finish up college I'll be able to. I have used the earlier versions of that book (for k and 1st grade). Do you know about their website? They have full lesson plans then all you'd need is to pick up the books from the library. http://coreknowledge.org/CK/resrcs/lessons/index.htm just pick your dd's grade. Best of luck and please come to us with questions. The ladies here are so nice and helpful!
Welcome! If I only had one to HS, I would probably be much more "seat of your pants" but with 3, I just don't have the time. I agree with another poster about writing (which I really assume you're doing with the other subjects). There are a ton of free websites in the Websites area here at the HS Spot which could help too. If you need/want inspiration for good books to read, order a Sonlight (SL) catalog (or check their website). Many folks use their reading lists but don't buy the whole program. Many of them are available thru the library system (either locally or thru interlibrary loan). My oldest uses SL and The Sign of the Beaver is one of her books to read. I'd also register at www.currclick.com They have one freebie download per week. Several of them recently have been ones that I've previously purchased () Another SL book that my oldest liked was The Witch of Blackbird Pond. I know that Total Language Plus has an entire Lit study guide for it for middle schoolers. Welcome again!
Welcome to the board! I'm an "eclectic" homeschooler, too. It definitely is more labor-intensive, but it's budget-friendly and I find I actually enjoy all the research. I agree with the others: with the addition of some writing, you're covering all the bases. We're in GA, too!
I hate... I hate to be the spoil sport and your plan sounds great but definitely keep looking for a reasonable accredited program. I'm afraid if you give up looking completely, your daughter might not have such an easy time down the road with college funding and entry. I had problems myself being a home school graduate.
You're right, we do need writing. One of the reasons we are homeschooling is that she is dyslexic and dysgraphic. Her reading is steadily improving and I think we may completely overcome those problems. The writing is a whole other story. Her handwriting has improved dramatically - but she has to do it slowly and her spelling is so poor, you would have to already know what she is writing about in order to understand it. That's why we are focused on learning to properly type. I think it will ultimately be easier and with spell check built in she will at least know where she needs to make adjustments (although right now she stresses too hard about the spelling). I figure, in the long run, it will be easier to re-write in a word processing program.
I respectfully disagree here. Not saying accredited programs aren't beneficial but I know LOTS of homeschoolers who do not use an accredited program and have successfully entered college with and without scholarships. It really is a personal family decision. If we ever use an accredited program, I know it won't be until high school and even then, I think we'd do it mostly for AP type classes. The schedules imposed by such programs are sometimes too strict for a child with dyslexia and dysgraphia. Thus the great diversity in homeschooling....we can all do it the best way for each family (and each family member). Cool, huh!!! Rhonda C.
Autumnleavz: Thanks for the website - I did not know about it. rcmx5: Thanks. There was an excerpt from "The Sign of the Beaver" in the book I'm using for a guide. It was in "Promoting Literacy" as an introduction to Novels. We decided to read the whole thing. mamamuse: I'm definately learning a lot and I also enjoy it - I'm kind of a nerd anyway. I do get overwhelmed though - I also run my own business and it can get hairy trying to find all the time to do it right. elc: No spoiler. I asked for opinions and advice. The reason I got the national standards book was to try to keep us from getting off track with the school system (mainly because she wants to go back). But, had I left her in the school system, she was not likely to make college anyway. Their solution is to modify her work and let her fall farther behind. I felt what she really needed was modified instruction (me). We have free K12 here (that's an online school in case you are not familiar) but for this year I wanted to take it at her own pace - concentrate heavily on Math and Language Arts and allow her to go back if she wants. I felt K12 would put too many time limits on her while we are trying to target specific areas. I do appreciate your input as someone who has been a homeschooled student - thank you. And thanks to all who posted. This site is just the support I have been looking for.
You'll find, we here at the Spot love to offer our opinions (good and bad :lol. Fortunately, we try to do it respectfully...sometimes that's easier than others depending on the topic of course but we try). I would be interested in some of the things that you're doing for your daughter's dysgraphia. I have been recently researching it because I really think my 8 year old may have it. She's not dyslexic (or if so, mildly) and reads slightly above grade level but hates to read and is not a fluent reader...very choppy. But writing.....that's another story. We've only been HSing for 18 months and at first I thought some of her issues were due to vision issues she had at the time. Now that those are fixed, things aren't different with writing (but better with reading) and her spelling is horrible too. Her previous school in KY never said anything but she was always the last one done but it was attributed to her trying to "do her best" because generally the answers were correct and she wasn't "behind" elsewhere. Fast forward and she's still about the same writing level as when she was in 1st grade/2nd grade even though she reads at a 4th grade level. She's incredibly slow, has the writing grip of many dysgraphic kids, etc. On the general checklists (which differ but are similar) she has about 5 of the 10 characteristics and is questionable on another 2 or 3. I've increased her oral answering and we're saving her writing for when it's crucial (and not distracting from learning...if that makes sense). We've also started cursive to hopefully cut down on some reversals although it doesn't work for every kid. She's really not ready for much typing instruction but we're headed that way too. I haven't really told her that Mom thinks that her writing issue has a name but that Mommy is looking into way to make it "not so hard". Bless her heart. She's a super bright kiddo and so artistic but you wouldn't know it from her stories unless she dictates them to me. Ok, sorry for the novel....probably should have just PM'd you.....lol. Rhonda C.
Accredited programs really are not necessary. All you need to do is follow your state's regulations or standards. I know plenty of kids that completed a homeschool course that was not accrediated and are now in four year colleges (some very good ones too).
Sure... Sure you're right, but I would have cut through a lot of red tape quicker with a program that was more widely used then the ICS program I used. Although I don't regret my decision and I enjoyed the program immensely. I am hoping to start college sooner with my own child and that is one reason why we are home schooling. Did any one see the Sunday Morning show about home schooling?
She certainly can do writing on the computer. Just the fact that she is thinking through a prompt and giving a response in written(typed) form is a good thing to do on a regular basis. I think you will find homeschooling will take her a long way. You are doing a super job!
It looks fine to me! Even if your curriculum isn't accredited, your kiddo can still get into college early if they are ready. We have a lot of homeschoolers around here and I see this from time to time.
Hi--Since my son is "in" kindergarten I decided to not buy a curriculum this year and possibly next -- from there I'll most likely purchase different subjects from different publishers......Anyway what I wanted to tell you is that I found a web sight called InstructorWeb.com that has all kinds of topics, worksheets, and lesson plans. You can check it out for free and print some of the information but to get total access you do have to pay a membership fee--it is $30.00. Personally, I have found it to be so worth it. I print up all kinds of math worksheets, social studies lessons, and some basic science lessons. I don't know if it is something that would help you but it can't hurt to look. Peace Amy
Again thanks to everyone who responded. This is such a nice active forum. I could easily get addicted. I've already checked out tons of websites since I joined. I have another question - does anyone know of any test making software that will produce a good - user friendly math test? I have a membership to mathworksheets.com and I've looked at a bunch of other math quiz/test builders. But they all do one operation at a time. We are finishing up a segment on fractions and I just want to give her a test with a few problems of each type - but none of the programs seem to have that capability. I looked at some websites for some pricey software but I don't want to buy it if it's not going to meet my needs. I tried to make my own test - I'm pretty good with all of the Office Suite of products but none of them work well with fractions. Since my daughter struggles with visual displacement and stresses sometimes with new things I want to give her a "normal" looking test.
I haven't used it but this is a site I was given recently for different worksheets. http://worksheetworks.com/
