I saw there was a question about what grade we're doing for the kids and figured I should just make a new post 'cuz not sure if it'll be seen otherwise :) The big hugaboo is doing a mix of K-2nd grade stuff. Age wise he's technically supposed to be in K (and maturity wise too I guess) but academically he's a 1st grader and thats what he tells people when they ask. This year we have 1st grade books for Bible and Science and 2nd grade books for Social Studies - these are all LifePacs from Alpha Omega Homeschooling I love that religion is incorperated in all the subjects. For math and reading he's doing the second half of the grade K Horizons books left over from last year. They are handwriting heavy and probably not a good fit for him right now (too boring.) We're also going to be using volume 1 of Story of the World which is made for 1-4th grade. Last year he did My Father's World for Kindergarten. What really got him reading though is ReadingEggs.com
That all said, we aren't really using much of any of this! I've come to the realization that a classical education is not a good fit for him (and me!). He's not a workbook kid. At all. Its just not gonna work for him. While I really like the Charlotte Mason ideas thats still too rigid for us. And I worry that the minimums I expect won't be met by unschooling. So, that makes us Eclectic using the best of various methodologies to work for our family.
Why homeschool? Why not? If your kids are in a regular school because you checked out all your options and decided thats the best choice for your family then I applaude you! But if your reason is simply because its the norm or what your social network expects, then I'm a bit disappointed. When it comes right down to it, we decided to homeschool because I didn't have an overwhelming reason to send my kids to a "regular" school. Before our kids were even born my husband and I had decided we wanted just a few things in life for our kids 1.) Happiness 2.) Good Health and 3) to do 1&2 with help from God. I just don't think these basic needs can be met for our kids at this point in time at a regular school. This may change. We may decide that these needs can be met at regular school in the future, but for right now, this age, this is the best way to do the best for our kids. More of my random ramblings to come later I'm sure....
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Good for you! Really! If our family still lived in the city I am fairly certain we'd home, the big schools there are just not what kind of values I want my kid to absorb. I am SO happy with our current town's public school. There are 22 kids in the entire grade 2. They are all at about the same level learning-wise, and the teachers are fantastic about adjusting their class to meet the kids' needs. There is no way the kids would get the same quality in "the city". But there's no reason for their education to stop at the door of the school!
ReplyDeleteYep, I agree about the big school/small school thing. There's definately a difference! The only catch is if you're the one that gets picked on in a small school there's NO way to stop it because you can't change classes or have any sort of avoidance. Hmm, sound like I have experience with this topic? LOL I certianly do, but that said I'd still be looking for a school with smaller and personsonalized classes for our kids if/when they need to go.
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