I knew at the end of last year that by this fall, G would be ready and chomping at the bit for a more full curriculum this year, so I spent a lot of time this summer planning and working on what that would be. We did a soft and slow start to the school year this past week, and it’s been fabulous so far. Since we’re linking up with Kelly today, I thought I’d do a Friday post on what school looks like for G.
Religion Curriculum
My goal this year is to have our faith woven into everything we do, and so while I do have a path I want to follow with G for a “religion” class this year, you’ll also find Catholic things popping up in other areas (like geography!).
We are starting our school time each morning with family prayer time. First we use a beautiful interactive rosary made by Kim. The design is beautiful (her MIL painted the image of Mary and Jesus), and my kids love that they add a flower to Mary’s crown with each prayer- it definitely keeps them interested and engaged. They also choose who we pray the decade for, which helps a lot.
The second piece of our morning prayer time uses Sitting Like a Saint, which is a book that teaches kids to pray using their whole bodies. Will and G take turns choosing which saint we do each day. I was so excited when this book came out last year. G works on ways to calm and control her body and get in touch with her emotions and how to express them with us and with her therapist, but I had been searching and searching for a way that bridged the gap and brought faith into the process. Written by a husband and wife team, this book engaged my saint-loving E2 child.
St. Francis calms the wolf- Will’s favorite G scrunching like a wolf
The curriculum part that I chose for this year is Step by Step, a book of activities for each Sunday of the liturgical year. My plan is that each week we will spend some time, probably on a Friday, and read the gospel reading for the upcoming Sunday, talk about it, and then do the little activity sheet. G isn’t old enough for our parish’s Liturgy of the Word for Children, but I do want to her to be more aware of what’s happening in mass.
Also along those lines, I have a sweeet mass coloring book for both Will and G, found at a fabulous used bookstore. Each week we’ll talk about one part of the mass and do a coloring page.
Geography Curriculum
I’ve posted a lot about our geography plans already. So I’ll just direct you here and leave you with some photos of G at work.
Coloring St. Kateri Examining the paws of a lynx Working on her lynx report
I’ll also leave a little reminder to sign up for the newsletter and get your copy of the North American Saints pdf.
History Curriculum
This one has been G’s favorite so far. We’re using the Early American History from Beautiful Feet Books, and it is fabulous. It’s a literature based approach to history, and I’ve been impressed by their choices and pedagogy. We purchased the teacher guide, and then have been buying books one at a time, and finding used copies whenever possible, to keep the cost down. This is definitely a more budget-friendly approach for us. I love the idea of learning through literature, and the opportunities it gives me to have discussions with G about what we’re reading is wonderful.
We’re also going to give their Teaching Character through Literature a whirl, but we haven’t started it yet. I can say that I have loved reading through the teacher guide, and some of my favorite books are on the reading list.
Math Curriculum
We are going to continue using Montessori math. It’s so intuitive and the movement from concrete to abstract helps solidify knowledge and quickens progression. Right now G is practicing subtraction and addition. Will is working on his one to one counting with the red and blue rods and sandpaper numbers.
Reading and Writing
G is working through Bob Books and using their accompanying workbook. Most of her handwriting practice comes in other subjects, and every day she spends time practicing with her handwriting board, which was one of our best purchases ever for our little homeschool.
Practical Life
Part of why I love that we homeschool is because it gives me a chance to teach our kids all sorts of helpful and functional things- like how to load a dishwasher, do laundry, help with younger siblings. We are definitely leaning into the home of homeschool this year, and both Will and G are finding a lot of joy in being capable of accomplishing tasks around the house.