This is How We Are Going to Spend our Year {homeschool curriculum}

Even before we decided to homeschool, I was interested in what kinds of curriculum people used.  I remember pouring over a homeschooling magazine YEARS ago (maybe even before I had kids) thinking of all the wonderful books and activities that were out there.  Once we decided that we would homeschool, I started to research all my options.  I absolutely LOVED looking through so many options.  Really, if I had the money, I would have bought SO MUCH more (and then my kids would be stuck in Kindergarten for their rest of their lives as we tried to get through it all!)

In the end, I made some decisions that I think are a good fit for our family.  I ordered everything through Sonlight (though some of it is not written by Sonlight).  I chose Sonlight for several reasons:

• Being overseas, I knew that I would have to have all my materials shipped.  I did not want to order from multiple companies.  Ordering from multiple companies = dealing with customs multiple times.  And believe me, I got slammed in customs just once and that was plenty for me.
• I have heard nothing but good things about Sonlight.  I have a number of homeschooling friends who love it, and much of my research showed that Sonlight was something that moms loved and kids begged for. That sounds nice.
• I loved that most of the lesson plans were laid out already.  As a mom of four, living overseas, running a website, and involved in all sorts of crafty things, I didn’t want to spend hours and hours every week making lesson plans.  I will deviate some from what is written, but at least I have a starting point.
•  I love the world focus that Sonlight has.  I want my kids to understand that the world is larger than the US.  I want them to be saturated with stories and adventures from all over God’s creation.  The Sonlight books are simply amazing, working to bring the world to the child in great stories, beautiful pictures, and lots and lots of maps.
•  I had to start somewhere.  Most homeschooling moms say that you will, over time, learn what is best for your family, for each individual child, and for you as the mom.  However, until we start schooling at home I won’t know what works best for us.  I made educated decisions, but still, I don’t know how each of the kids will do in each program.  We have a starting point, and in the future I can alter as needed.

That said, here is what our curriculum will look like:

History/Geography: Sonlight Core K for both Alaina and Caleb.  I knew I really wanted to keep these two kids together in their studies so I had to pick a level that I thought would work for both of them.  Most people agree that Sonlight is really above grade level, making Alaina (who would be in first grade) the right age for Core K.  If she needs more, I can add in other books/activities.  Some of it may be over Caleb’s head, but again, we can trade out books and help him along.  I ordered the PK4/5 books as well, so we can substitute as necessary.

Literature and Language Arts:  Alaina will be using Readers 2 and Caleb will have Readers K (both from Sonlight). Language arts time will be separate for the kids (since Alaina is already reading quite well).  I also have Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons for Caleb.  I think he would do well with the structured, ordered approach.  His brain just works that way.

Science: Sonlight K Science: Biology, Botany, and Physics.  The curriculum focuses on the wonderful world that God has made — the world of biology, and the world that He has permitted human beings to create — the world of modern technology.

Math: We have chosen to do Singapore Math. I am very impressed with the focus on a balance between drill (you have to memorize sometime!) and creative problem solving (what really counts in life).  I also like how they aim to teach kids to think mathematically, not just know how to do problems.  And on a more personal note, knowing about Singapore and how they have developed as a country and knowing that this is their national curriculum makes me excited to see how my kids become capable mathematics students. 

Bible: We have the Bible Curriculum from Sonlight for both PK4/5 and the K package.  They include a Bible story book (which will cover the entire Biblical narrative) and a Sing the Word CD.  I think we might supplement the Bible curriculum -- just not sure how yet.  We will see how things go and adjust from there.  Memory verses will be a big part of what we do.  I want them to hide the Word in their hearts while they are still young and their brains are like sponges.

Handwriting:  I am so excited to be using Handwriting Without Tears.  This program was developed by an occupational therapist and is written to be developmentally appropriate.  Handwriting, especially for Caleb who struggles with fine motor skills, is something that will be very important to us.   As much as computers are typing are taking over our world, I want children who can write. I love the hands-on manipulatives and the curriculum is full of great ideas for activities.

Art: I will be doing various art things with the kids.  This is different than crafts. There is a great blog called Art Projects for Kids that is full of great art projects with specific pieces of art work or an artistic method as a basis. I love all the ideas and am excited to take our own spin on them.

Music:  Alaina and Caleb will both attend music class at the International School.  This is for two reasons: 1) I am not musically inclined -- at all. 2) I want them to have opportunities for performance and the chance to try all kinds of instruments. 

PE: Caleb and Levi will do PE at the International School (Jason is the PE teacher).  The schedule doesn’t work for Alaina but we will be doing lots of stuff at home. I really want my kids to have physical activity a regular part of their day -- they don’t have to have planned exercise.  Exercise should be a part of life -- walking the dog, running in the yard, playing with friends.  The biggest motivation for us moving house was so that the kids would have a big yard to play in.  We will talk about things regarding our bodies, how our bodies work, and learn about organized sport.


Indonesian:  It is important to me that my kids have a basic grasp of vocabulary.  They are at an age where language acquisition is still fairly easy for them.  I will be working with them on basic vocab (using an Indonesian My First 500 Words book as a basis) and basic conversation.  In addition, I will be having a private tutor for myself so that I can keep learning.

Other: We will continue doing all the home education things we already do -- cooking, manners, family service, crafts, etc.  I am excited to see how I can tie these things into what we are learning through our books so that we can create a truly multi-sensory and multi-experiential approach to learning. 

...six more days until we start!

Comments

[Leea]

Our school uses Handwriting without Tears, and we love it! Also a few of us went to training on Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons (Tip take book and get spiral bound, so much easier) it came in handy, and now our school added SRA to Core Reading which has some of the same concepts. For Phonics we use another great book Michael Heggerty (http://www.literacyresourcesinc.com/resources/) It is an awesome program. Good Luck!

[Darcy @ m3b]

"...had to start somewhere."

I think you're off to a great start! Interstingly enough, we're here in the states, but choose an asian-based math program.

Enjoy your years abroad. What an opportunity!

[Kristal]

Sonlight users here! Love it! Have a great year.

[Robin E.]

Are you on the Sonlight forums? A lot of people have just started or getting ready to start Core K. I love the Sonlight forums. Oh, we are doing Core K with my 1st grader too, as well as Core 5 with my 7th and 5th graders. We've been using Sonlight since 2002, and love, love, love it. I hope you have a great year. Thank you for sharing on the Blog Hop.

[Amy]

I think you've chosen a great place 'to start'!

We used Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. It was super and I recommend it often.

We also use Singapore Math. Dylan is getting a solid start because of it.

We don't use Sonlight, but we use their book list for our read-alouds.

BTW...I found you on My 3 Boybarians schoolroom post. I love your schoolroom, but was also interested in reading more of your blog. I left it up and haven't been on the computer for a couple of days. So...if you have a stats counter, it probably shows me logged on to your blog for many, many hours. I'm not a stalker...honest.