Uh.....just getting around to figuring out the homeschool year......
I usually start by a mass classroom clearout. So right now there's a heap of crap on the floor and empty shelves and that's as far as I got.
From the dollar shelves at Target I picked up a planner, a desk organizer for Elaina and some United States Geography cards. I'll use the cards in conjunction with About.com's bi-weekly 50 states study sent to my email all summer that I planned to use all summer but, well, you know how that goes.
One might think with the drop in enrollment at the homeschool it would be a breeze to plan.
Moving on.....
I still have good ol' Saxon Math 5/4. I always think I want to switch, and I kinda do but I don't. There's something about the MCP (Modern Curriculum Press) books I like, and they're reasonable, so maybe.
My wish is to do a year with Five in a Row. I think Elaina would really enjoy this and it would be a nice change for me. I love that Elaina is at an age where I'm not panicking about where her gaps are.
Michele shared an observation with me one day while driving her home from high school. She opined that all the worrying people do about grades and academics is pointless because none of it matters until about Junior or Senior year when you want to decide about college. She offered that one could be a sub-standard student by school system standards until those last years. If a student isn't made to believe they are sub-standard then they could do what is required to get good grades in the 11th & 12th grades and go on to college. All the obsessing by parents and kids about school in the elementary years is unnecessary. All this to say that her observations gave me a break from the worrying and questioning "am I providing enough (academically)"
Five in a Row appears to be fun, engaging and doable with Elaina.
For History we'll continue with Story of the World. I just like it.
Because I love Science it's unavoidable that it will be passed by. I know FIAR covers some but I don't really know to what degree because I've never worked with it. I've used Behold and See by Catholic Heritage Curricula and I loved it. As a focus, though, we'll go over anatomy and the like as I see fit and she seems interested.
Writing and Grammar: Well, I just don't know yet. Elaina loves to write. We'll start there. I love Primary and Intermediate Language Lessons. We'll keep with that.
I considered enrolling Luke in a preschool. I still might for two mornings a week but finances may keep me from that. Because I function better with structure, hence they will function better, I'll just structure Luke's morning around Hubbard's Cupboard outline. Basically, stories, bible verses and letters, numbers and shapes. I also plan to have a bin of "school toys" that will be his to play/work with while Elaina and I are doing whatever.
Just a plan....we'll see how it plays out.
Elaina will be in an art class and continue with guitar lessons. I'll continue doing what I've always done and doing art and music once a month or so or see what FIAR brings us in those areas.
Now I never plan "gym." My kids have always played sports and outside, etc. and I call it gym. This year, however, I am planning to include Elaina in my runs, if she wishes. Moreso to teach her proper running form. In maintaining proper running form one's posture and gait improves naturally. Elaina's posture and gait are compromised due to her brachial plexus injury. My hope is she experiences confidence in being able to see how these small adjustments in her movements improves some of the discomfort she experiences as a result of the imbalance the injury presents.
Did I miss anything? I may have because I just started thinking about it.
Because of the older kids being in school, we'll just follow along the school schedule with modifications.
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Thanks :)