No baby, but we've got curriculum!

Took me awhile to post this since I keep packing my camera just in case baby comes. And, I'm telling you this has been the longest wait in my life! I was expecting WEEKS ago that he'd be here and yet here we are.

Anyway...

In the meantime to keep my mind busy I have been busy planning and with some extra finances I've been able to do some ordering too! How exciting to start out with lots of new things that will bless our school.

I have so much to say and I'm having a hard time figuring out where to begin.

First of all, I am SOO super excited for this year!! It looks like we are going to have a great time. Looks like lots of science experiments, but I think we can handle them. I've spent time looking over them and I think the will be doable. I LOVE the way the bible corresponds to the science study each week. I was able to spend awhile looking at our library system online and mark whether our library has each book or if I need to make requests. That will cut down on my weekly preparation. I also plan to do all of my copying at once so that will make each week a lot less stressful. Comparing the prep for ECC, I think I might struggle with the week to week plan vs. two-three weeks at a time. We'll see how all that works out.

"I Can Do All Things - Art" seemed very complicated at first, but I think I've got a handle on it now. I spent some time looking through it and it seems to make sense now. I was disappointed that it is more of a consumable workbook than I had thought. I was under the impression I could save this for my upcoming children. It's pretty pricey whether you choose to copy the whole thing (which you have permission to do) or buy a whole separate one. This would be a problem for larger families I would think. But, then again this is an optional program so it just might be something to opt out of. My son is very excited to have an art class this year.

Another thing I found kind of complicated when I first looked at it was the Singapore Math. Now that I have looked the entire thing over (and read MFW's booklet) I think we can handle it. In some ways it appears very simple and maybe too childish. But, then taking another look (and emphasizing those "Key Terms" MFW recommends) I can see how it all works together and is actually very challenging! I did buy under Superkid's ability so that we can adjust to the program before moving on to harder work. It is going to be an adjustment, but I think it will work for us.

In the midst of all of this I also went ahead and purchased some other things - all of which will last for years to come. You can see all that I'm talking about in the "What we're learning" spot on the right side of my blog.

Character Study - Ethics: An Early American Handbook.

This book is going to be such a blessing to our year! I had looked at this last year and I think it's awesome how God worked it into this years study. It is simply a guide with stories written in 1890 for the youth about the importance of character. I think this will give us many good conversations as we read through it.

English- Primary Language Lessons

This one is difficult to explain why I went ahead and switched to PLL from First Language Lessons. Although they are similar, I found that PLL was much more gentle and yet challenging at the same time. We are just finishing up first grade with First Language Lessons so it comes at a great time. Since PLL starts in 2nd grade.

By the way, it won't take long for us to "catch up" in these subjects. We'll be there before we know it. It's completely my fault I let life happen while some of our core learning slipped away.

Sequential Spelling

I have been looking at this for awhile. I spent a day at a friends house while she homeschooled and watched as she used this. I think this is such a smart way of teaching spelling. And very simple too! My son struggles with his writing and I think there is a tie to his confidence in his spelling. Once he feels stronger in his spelling skills I think he will be less inclined to complain about writing. We'll see...

Cursive Handwriting- Start Write

The other day it occurred to me that I hadn't really taught cursive. In fact Superkid has a hard time even READING it. I had waited since I didn't feel that he was excelling in his printing. After hearing from a few people that doing cursive actually helps in the handwriting department and thinking about how it makes sense since they are motivated to write. Plus you can't write "wrong" when you are writing in cursive because you don't lift your pencil. Anyway, I decided we'd head into cursive because it's beyond time to learn. Recently I had heard of Start Write and decided that it was a great investment. I'm still waiting for it in the mail, but the idea of it is great! Especially for my reluctant writer because I can give him copy work from anything he wants to write about. I plan to use this for his memory verses, narrations, etc. Overall I can see how helpful this will be.

Nature Study Books

Handbook of Nature Study

I already did a review of this one on my other blog. I think this is such a must for homeschooling!

Keeping a Nature Journal

This looks like a great book. It explains some common sense ideas on how to keep up and make a nature journal. So far we haven't been doing so good on this, but eventually we'll be better. This book is broken down by the seasons which I love, because it keeps you motivated throughout the year to spend time in God's world.

The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada's

Simply a great guide for the area we live.

Oh kay...

I think I've written a novel here. Hopefully it helped someone as they make their curriculum decisions. I know I didn't make sense in some areas. Maybe when my brain isn't mushy I can review this to fix my grammar and add the links, etc. For right now, I just want to get this up before I get distracted again. :-)