Anyone use it? Is it functional with a active, kinesthetic-visual learner? Appropriate for 1st grade level?
I've known a couple of people who have used it - and from what I understand it's all grade levels. No actual reviews of it - but when we started I thought it looked pretty good but I was afraid to give it a shot.
I have looked at it, but have you read the philosophy behind it? Kids sit at a desk 7 days a week for hours and hours and hours. They read, read, read and then read some more. Then they are required to write a report every day about what they read. Kids are trained to do it all on their own, once they can read, then it's all hands off for the parents. I couldn't imagine my kids doing this, it's not hands on (not kinesthetic at all) and all words, very little in the form of pictures..so not visual either. Honestly, I have found with my kinesthetic-visual kids that videos and games are the best way to get them learning. I can't tell you everything they pick up from shows on TV or videos we watch on specific subjects.
Thank you so much!! That would be a disaster! My kid does so much better with videos, online stuff, etc. I had not read the specifics on that curriculum...guess I should have. That would have answered my own question !
http://www.robinsoncurriculum.com/view/rc/s31p59.htm Ok so I mis-remembered, it's a 1 page essay every day, then they read history and science for the rest of their 5 hour day. The essay is written after 30 math problems each day. The list and the whole "These are not, however, "suggestions." They are rigorous requirements." makes me want to puke, then cry for his kids (and any other kid who is taught this way).
I think I would have a heart attack personally. I love reading - but don't force me to do it. Though if it was "required" (lol) maybe I could get out of house work......
Um, wow. Well. Hm. We use Robisonson Curriculum, almost (not quite) exclusively. One example: we add in a history curriculum (more because we/the kids like it, than because it's needed). Dr. Robinson may have had his children sit for 5 hours a day. Mine don't, unless they choose to. His family also never ate lunch (two meals a day). That would NEVER fly here. If you read all of the documentation that comes with the curriciulum (it's probably all on the site, I haven't looked) you get a different picture. He says lessons should be exclusively math, reading and writing...yet his children lived on a working farm with livestock (science much) and all play piano. But he didn't consider those part of their (formal) education. After reviewing the curriculum broadly, here's my position: It is complete in that, aside from math, everything you need is there...it's just ALL integrated into literature. Good, high quality works of literature. Dr. Robinson and I disagree about spelling. He believes studying spelling is unnecessary. We study spelling...but more as an extension of phonics, examining patterns of spelling in English, and language arts (recognizing and differentiating between homophones, etc). We also use two different math curricula (Rays and Life of Fred). Both very different, but each fills a specific gap for us. I have several years' worth of Saxon stashed back just in case we decide to move to it, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. My ideal school day looks like this: Bible reading, followed by history reading on some days, math, spelling (intergrated with handwriting work), reading. When that's all finished, the children practice musical instruments, take care of/train pets, do crafts and do puzzles (usually selected to work a specific skill). None of this after reading stuff is written work. Right this moment, we are not writing essays. My 1st grader is still working on letter formation (print), my 3rd grader is doing the same for script. My 5th grader did the free, one page essays last year. We re-start our school year in January, and I've had him working on some different kinds of writing exercises for me. Sometime in the next couple months, we'll re-introduce the essay work. If they focus on their work (and don't dally), my 1st grader is done all of the above in 1-2 hours; my 3rd grader in about 3-4, and my 5th grader needs a solid 4 hours. The one thing I will say: I don't think there's very much useful in it until (approximately) 3rd grade level. Basically, until they can read, you are pretty much working one on one, and while there are some phonics and math facts cards...<shrugs> I really thought the way we did phonics and learned math facts (through Rays) worked just fine. Now, my 1st grader is kind of a precocious reader, and he is making just fine use of the literature included. But really -- for emergent reader, in the curriculum, there is McGuffey's Primer and then McGuffey's First Reader, and with my sons, whether fast to learn to read or less-fast-than-the-fastest, they just needed more materials to read at that level before moving on. It's working extremely well for us. Oh, and my kids eat TONS of sugar. I'm not bragging -- I'm actually a little distressed about that -- but it doesn't get in the way of them using this curriculum successfully.
I should have probably mentioned....Dr. Robinson has never been to my home, and even if he ever dropped by...I'm the Mom, not him
I haven't used it, but I did some reading about it. I found out most of the stuff you have heard here already. Here is the key. Like eyeofthestorm said, we are the parents. We can still give our kids sugar and use a curriculum like Robinson. I watched a speech by him and he seemed pretty reasonable as far as that goes. Some families thrive with a highly disciplined lifestyle. Goodness knows we could have used some more discipline in our home all these years (we are in the middle I would say). I really think that it is up to us to take curriculum and work it around what our children need and tweak where necessary. How much tweaking depends on the family and the individual children. If you have to tweak a lot, it may not be worth it. I like the idea of learning by reading and not by using endless textbooks. If I could start all over again and if I started homeschooling my son from the beginning, I would have used a VERY informal type of "schooling" with lots of reading out loud and by himself just to explore and discover and wonder, etc. Then as he got older, I would require a little more "schoolish" type of stuff, but not to the extent modern day schools require. Oops, I am going on a rabbit trail....
