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Homeschooling a pretty special kid

Grade 5 Plan – The Curriculum

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It’s that time of year again … planning, planning, planning. This year Grace will be in 5th grade … ish. A little ahead in math and Latin, a little behind in writing. Here is what I am planning for the start of the year.

My guiding homeschool philosophy is  definitely classical, and very much rooted in the _Well Trained Mind_ approach. In fact, each year I come back to it and it seems to make more and more sense for us. I do not stick to the WTM prescribed plan religiously, as I see it as an ideal guideline and not a check list, but it is definitely working for both of us.

CCM Co-op: For the 3rd year in a row, we are joining a Classically Catholic Memory co-op. Grace loves the memory work, and it has become the nexus of our social universe. We are on Delta Year, which covers ecology, plants, and the human body for science, and modern times for history. I will be teaching a pilot pre-Logic class for the middle school children, which is not an official part of the CCM curriculum, just something we are trying out on our own. More on that in a future post.

Religion: Once again, we are going with Seton Religion. Grace loves it, and the images are beautiful. She is also able to complete it independently. We are supplementing this with a homeschool catechism class that meets once a month at a local parish.

Latin: Sticking with Memoria Press, moving on to Second Form Latin. We both like this series quite a bit, and Grace has been very successful with it. With the DVDs, she is able to complete this mostly independently. We also buy the CDs and the flash cards, but do not use either regularly (although I am glad to have them when we need them.) We supplement with Lingua Angelica, and will add some Latin copy work to help with the handwriting. We are also adding a little Greek this year, at Grace’s request. She wanted to start another language, but I was not ready to go head-long into a new ancient language, so we will just be working through the Greek alphabet with help from Memoria Press once again. It’s a lot of work, but it’s all at her request, so I am encouraging it.

Math: We are sticking with Teaching Textbooks, although Grace is still a grade-level ahead. I like this because she is able to work independently here, too, and has the choice of either doing the workbook by itself and using the software to “grade” her work, or using the software program as an instructional aide if she needs it. We are supplementing with 15 minutes a day with the XtraMath app on her iPod touch, just to nail those math facts.

English Arts: This is my word for all the mechanical components to English. We have a lot to do here, but I didn’t want to overwhelm Grace with all the different parts of it. I also like “English Arts” better, to distinguish it from “Language Arts” which I had in public school. “Language Arts” sounds like a study in foreign languages to me. “English Arts” also fit better in the planner I had printed – haha. This umbrella subject includes Spelling with “Spelling Power“, Vocabulary with “Vocabulary from Classical Roots“, Grammar with “Jr. Analytical Grammar“, and Handwriting, and occasionally a writing mechanics lesson from IEW. We are going to cover all of these in 30-45 minutes per day, four days a week. It may not seem like much, but this is an area where she is ahead of grade level, with the exception of Handwriting. We will also be doing a LOT of writing mechanics as a part of History and Science.

History and Literature: This is going to be really interesting this year, as this is going to be the biggest evolution from Grammar to Logic. As well it should be, I think. We are going to stick with Story of the World, Volume 1 Ancient Times as a loose spine, and start the school year with Rome. We started this last year a couple of months in, after discovering a different history spine was just NOT a good fit for us (contact me privately if you want details). We both LOVED it, and spent a LOT of time on Egypt, and a LOT of time on Ancient Greece. Talk about your discovery driven learning. We used the Usborne Encylopedia of World History as a primary research tool, adding a Barnes and Noble bargain history encyclopedia for children, and a LOT of library books. Grace’s work products were primarily the  worksheets from the SOTW Activity Guide as well as hands-on projects, which were cataloged in a History Binder by continent. (I initially purchased the bound Activity Guide, but then re-purchased it as a PDF from the Peace Hill Press website … it was just easier to print the worksheets out as I needed them, than to try to pull them from the workbook). We also kept a time-line poster board that was a lot of fun for us.

This year, we are basically going to continue with this approach, but switch to the Kingfisher History Encyclopedia as the primary research tool, and and as she is ready, Grace will do more paragraph writing and less worksheets, although we may continue to use the SOTW maps for map work. She is also going to start a timeline notebook for both history and science (and literature), although I think we’ll still pull out the old time-line poster board when we need to do some hands-on work. I have also spent a lot of time finding library books to reserve and pull for each period of history. I am going to talk about my “method” for doing that in a future post.

As far as literature goes, we are also going totally _Well Trained Mind_ here, as well. I have a list of myths and novels for her to read through that will parallel what we are covering in history. Most of these will be on a Kindle Paperwhite, and I am going to require her to do 30 minutes of “Literature” reading per day, after which she can read whatever she likes in her free time. We started this mid-way through last year, and it’s really working for us. With Kindle FreeTime, I am able to track how much time she reads, and how often she is looking up words, so I can track how she is doing with her reading. I can also setup her profile so she only has access to the “assigned” literature books, and since it is a Paperwhite, there are no games or apps to distract her. I am a little ambivalent about her using an e-Reader at this age, but she is doing plenty of other reading on paper, and there are definitely advantages of her doing her school related reading on the Kindle, so we’re going to continue with it for now.

Science: I am very excited about the new science curriculum we are starting this year. We are switching to Elemental Science “Biology for the Logic Stage.” Last year, we switched to Noeo Science “Biology 2“, which I chose because it is well aligned with a classical, _Well Trained Mind_ approach to science, using the Usborne Science Encyclopedia as a spine. The advantage to just “rolling our own” march through the biology sections of the Usborne spine is that it laid out lessons, week by week, including a number of experiments each week, and it also incorporated some other supplemental books, such as the Usborne Microscope Book and the Usborne Mysteries and Marvels of Nature. What I didn’t like about it was there was no supplemental text to reinforce the key ideas for each lesson, and not a lot of guidance on sketching. Elemental Science is also an excellent classical approach, but adds just a bit of “textbook” instructional text to guide students to and reinforce the key ideas. Elemental Science also cites a number of interesting, but optional, supplemental resources, which are listed on a convenient Amazon store page, so I was able to get the exact right versions of the books, many of which I found for a GREAT price used on Amazon.com. We are going to start with the first section on ecology and taxonomy in August, then skip insects and skip around to stay roughly aligned with the CCM co-op science topics. We will do Science at home twice a week, probably in large blocks of time in the afternoon.

 

What I learned from our first year of homeschool – Part 1

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Last year was our first year to homeschool, and it was glorious. And horrible. I routinely tell people that homeschooling is the hardest thing I have ever done and the most rewarding. And that is actually true!

I went into the year thinking only that I could do a better job serving my daughter’s quirky educational and social-emotional needs than our local, award-winning public school. I finished the school year … exhausted! But also KNOWING I did a great job EDUCATING her, but also UNDERSTANDING her. I now really see where she is challenged, where she is gifted, and why she does the odd little things she does. All that translates into quite a few changes to our overall curriculum plan, and some of the choices we made.

I will preface this with late in the school year, Grace was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. Well, actually, she wasn’t. She was diagnosed with a mild form of Autism Spectrum Disorder, because Asperger’s Syndrome was removed from the DSM-5 as a separate diagnosis and is now placed on the autism spectrum. The Autism Society has a good explanation of the change. But I continue to refer to her diagnosis as Asperger’s, not because I have an issue with the word “autism” but because there are particular set of issues, a cluster of symptoms if you will, that people generally understand when you say “Asperger’s”. When you said mild ASD, or “on the spectrum”, it requires a much longer explanation. Anyway, the point is that a lot of these “key learnings” tie directly to her Asperger’s, but my realizations throughout the year were piecemeal, which is how I am listing them here.

Key learning #1: Reluctant writer

My daughter struggles with writing, both penmanship  and composition. She has some issues with fine motor skills that we have addressed with OT, excessive Lego play, and piano lessons.  In fact, I think we’re due for another run at the therapy gauntlet for this in the near future. But in watching her for a year, I have realized it is more than just grip and hand strength. It is really hard for her to get thoughts from her brain onto paper. And if those thoughts are not already composed? Forget it. And this applies both to composition as well as math … I think the easiest way to describe it is she has a hard time thinking and writing at the same time.

Key learning #2: Memorization is easy, analysis is hard

Analysis may not be the right word, but I cannot think of a better way to describe it. My girl has some mad memorization skills. States and capitals? No problem. Latin vocabulary? Nails it on the first try. Song names and singers for the entire Christian Radio Top 40 catalog? Sure. That paragraph you just read? Let me recite it back to you, nearly verbatim. What was the main idea of that paragraph? { blink, blink } Believe it or not, this took me quite a long time to put together. But this realization has helped me help HER immensely, and has far reaching implications in our curriculum choices.

Key learning #3: Technology is not always the answer

Grace could spend all day, every day on an iPad if I let her. The good news there is iPad access is our single greatest leverage reward we use to get her to complete tasks or being behavior back in line. My first thought was “Great – let’s build a curriculum plan around interactive, online tools.” Haha – not so fast. She still has some lingering auditory sensory issues, and has a very low tolerance for badly produced media. She literally cannot tolerate tinny, scratchy audio. She also is strongly resistant to “talking head” type instructional videos. As in, she leaves the room, completely melts down and just refuses to watch. My theory is she has an overdeveloped sense of empathy, and just cannot stand to watch a video-taped teacher embarrass themselves by droning on and on with no style or appeal. Sound crazy, but my dad has the same issue with the comedy of Will Farrell or Steve Carell. While ridiculous behavior to the point of mockery is the POINT of the humor, my dad is so embarrassed FOR the comic/actor that it becomes uncomfortable for him to watch. Kinda sweet, actually. Anyway, video instruction is not ideal.

Key learning #4: Fear of making mistakes can be paralyzing

I still don’t know how to crack this nut. At her most brittle moments, Grace will melt down or shut down rather than try something she is uncertain about for fear of making a mistake. This runs the gamut – handwriting, recitation, piano playing. We have had MANY heartful conversations about feeling safe to fail, about learning by making mistakes, etc. And intellectually she gets it. But in practice, it is still pretty bad. The only thing, the ONLY thing that I have found to work for Grace is to { gulp } force her to try anyway, and eventually the small success and pride she feels from doing something new takes over and she starts rolling. This means a lot of threats, yelling, punishment and tears. I would love to find something that works in a more positive way, but I haven’t yet.  We have tried stickers, and candy, and checkmark-based reward systems to no avail. But I’ll keep trying.

So that’s is what I learned about my sweet girl this year. Whew! All of these realizations have translated into quite a few changes to our curriculum choices, which I’ll talk about tomorrow.

 

Back in the saddle again … sores and all.

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We finally have almost a full week of school under our belt this semester, after a false start last week. We started last Monday, with much grumbling and whining, and then Tuesday afternoon discovered Grace had the flu. Thanks to a Cannonball Run to the pediatrician and a script for Tamiflu, all was well by Friday, but by then we had given up for the week.

Restarted this past Monday with less grumbling, but certainly less joy than the start of our homeschool journey. We picked up where we left off, but only with the “core” subjects: math, spelling, Latin, Religion, handwriting, geography. I consider them “core” only because they are relatively easy for me to teach, and they elicit the least amount of whining. And if we did nothing else, I would be pretty satisfied. I even included an art project in the plan for the day, which usually diffuses – or at least distracts from – the complaining. But there was still whining and arguing. Lots of it.

By Tuesday, I was already at the end of my rope. I could feel it. I had already had enough of the flack and pushback.

“Do I have to?”

“I don’t want to!”

“I’m sick of this.”

“Why are you making me do this?”

Whining was like fingernails on a chalkboard for me. Not a good sign for me at all. For either of us. Nothing was working … promises of rewards (stickers), threats (loss of iPad time), urging and pleading (OK, begging). In short, I was playing her game. At her level. And I was losing. And I did. Lose it. Big time.

Wednesday, I woke up determined to do differently. We skipped our usual morning routine. It was cold, cold, cold, so we started a fire and sat in front of it for a while. Then I handed her a book – our new Literature unit – and asked her to read the first chapter. She snuggled into a blanket and read. (Woohoo!) Then I grabbed the teacher guide from our Literature unit, and we did the questions and vocabulary orally. No whining about writing. (Double woohoo!) This was not my plan, but I went with it. Grabbed two sets of flashcards, Latin and Geography, and went through them. We both realized how much she retained from before the break, and it was a good shot in the arm for us both. We kept going … instead of breaking out the math worksheets, I grabbed a jar of change and we worked on our money unit, making a game out of it, still in front of the fire. Suddenly is was time for a snack and we had covered four subjects. Progress! At this point we were both feeling warm enough to move around, so she had snack, handwriting and Religion at her desk. Then I called it. Last night she worked on a bit of science with her dad, making it a pretty well rounded day. Finished up the evening with plenty of hugs and kisses and praise for good behavior and pride in what we accomplished. What we both accomplished.

Not every day will be snuggles in front of the fire. Nor should it be. We need structure; we both do. Not everyone does … there are plenty of people for whom un-schooling really does work. But I know myself and I know my daughter well enough to know that is not us. But there are times when we are weary, when we are cold and tired, when we are not quite ready to start full-force. And I need to remember that at those times, it’s OK to take a step back, make a cup of cocoa and just breathe in the warmth of the home fire.

Thoughts on a new semester

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It’s the first day of school around here, both at the eldest’s public school and here at home with my youngest. In years past, with both of them in public, I would be planning a day of indulgent self-care, thinking about my goals for the new year, and reveling in being alone. And probably re-watching last night’s “Downton Abbey.”

© Tammy Mcallister | Dreamstime Stock Photos

© Tammy Mcallister | Dreamstime Stock Photos

But now I a homeschool mom, there is no “alone time” … but I am still excited about the girls going back to school. Both of them. This morning, my sweet eight-year-old Grace and I sat down to talk about how we both thought our first semester EVER of homeschool had gone, and what we’d like to do differently. Here are a few of our thoughts.

What did you like about our first semester?

Grace:

  1. I’m glad I’m not at public school where everyone does one lesson one day, and the next lesson the next day. I can go ahead if I want.
  2. I’m glad I’m not around kids who misbehave … that makes me very uncomfortable.
  3. I like the extra subjects we do, like Religion and Astronomy.
  4. I like we do school in our PJs.
  5. It’s good that we get every-other-Friday off.

Mom:

  1. I like the “extra” subjects, too. Especially Latin.
  2. I like having company at daily mass from time to time.
  3. I like that Grace is avoiding some of the chronic “stressors” she struggled with in public school … she’s a much more relaxed kid compared to this time last year.
  4. I like that I’m really getting to know Grace in a whole new way.

What would you like to improve this semester?

Grace:

  1. It’s too much of the same every day. Too much routine.
  2. I have a lot of frustrations doing subjects I don’t like, like spelling and math.
  3. I want to do more art and more projects.
  4.  I want to do more history and more stories.

Mom:

  1. I want to be more patient when Grace is not on task, and truly understand WHY she balks.
  2. I want to incorporate more fun into our daily work. (I think we are both totally on the same page here.)

What goals do you have for this semester?

Grace:

  1. I want to get an A+ on my next math test and on my next spelling test.

Mom:

  1. I want to do less busy work, and focus more on mastering concepts (and moving on quickly from concepts already mastered.)
  2. I want to plan – AND TAKE! – more field trips.
  3. I want our day to be more about little rewards and acknowledging good behavior than about punishment and shaming bad behavior.

My thoughts on our discussion:

  1. All in all, this first semester has been very successful. Grace is learning a lot, and LOVES being home. It’s not always smooth sailing, but I am 100% validated in my choice to bring her home for school. Especially as I have come to know her better as a student, and had some pretty huge epiphanies about her. This is the absolute right place for her right now.
  2. Grace and I are pretty much on the same page regarding curriculum. Although she doesn’t call it “curriculum.” We both like the enrichment subjects, especially sciences. This is good. She loves Religion and Christian studies. Also good. Very good.
  3. We both work well with structure and achievement-oriented learning. We also both want more “fun” in the day-to-day. This seems like a line to tread carefully. Something I need to think about. One thing that I started after Thanksgiving that seems to have a lot of promise is art journaling. Grace really took to it, and it was great way to get her writing and drawing – and working on those fine-motor-skills – without complaint. Taking “play dough breaks” throughout the morning is something else I am going to try.
  4. Something Grace and I didn’t discuss, but I feel in my heart, is that I need to take better care of myself. By the end of last semester, I was done. DONE. Short temper, house a wreck, wrung-out and spent. I think there are two major factors. First, I did not spend enough time alone, which I desperately need from time to time to recharge. Introvert, know thyself. Second, it was a difficult time emotionally for me, for reasons that have nothing to  do with homeschooling. Many of my loved-ones are going through difficult times, and as a caretaker, that takes a toll on me as well. And that is OK. It’s a blessing, really, to provide support and comfort and care to these amazing people whom I love. But I need to think about my own oxygen mask, too. Breathe.

So it’s not all blank slate here today. Which is a good thing – we don’t need to start over. Mostly just keep doing what we’re doing, while making tiny adjustments here and there. Which is a great way to start the year.

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