Our Homeschool Day

Life With My 3 Boybarians has been hosting a month long blog hop. I posted about our curriculum on the first week, then missed the next two weeks but here I am for this weeks theme. A Day in the Life of... Visit Darcy to see what other moms do during their day too. It is always fun to see what others do and get ideas that can work in your own homeschool. Or if you don't homeschool yet and are interested to know how homeschoolers do it, this is a perfect way to find out.

If you were a fly on the wall on a typical day while we did school you might have noticed how much time we spend working on a subject together at the table. Unit studies and lapbooks are great for spanning all the grades. Also important people in history (like Da Vinci) are fun to study together. We do our Bible time together first.

Even Little G stays at the table during this time. She has a small white board to write on and a color page to color. When we have out our Bibles, she pulls hers out too. If you keep your littlest with you, they will quickly learn what is expected and when they see the older ones having fun they will want to be a part of all of it.

Right now we are working on memorizing the verse that is the focal point of our school year.

Teach me your way, O LORD,
that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
Psalm 86:11 ESV

But I want this verse to be more than just something they memorize I want it to be something they understand for themselves. So today, we discussed what the word “teach” means and then from there we discussed what the word “know" means. Then we discussed what it is we want to know and where to find it. Here is a pic of the board when we were done today.

At dinner time, the kids tell Daddy what they learned. It helps reinforce what was learned and keeps Daddy involved. It also promotes a lot of discussion at the table. I also try to keep the stuff on the board for dinner time so that the kids can look at it all day and have a reference for discussion.

After we are done with our group/circle time, we take a break to clean up and get what we need for the rest of the day. If it is close to lunch, we don’t do any more until after lunch is over.

Then we do one-on-one time. Math, and reading are our mainstays but we also do the other subjects as needed. (If we aren’t doing a unit study in a subject, then we do the book work instead. Little G does stuff like felt board, sorting manipulatives, or other quiet play stuff during this time. I am still trying to get this part tweaked a bit because she loves being involved with what the kids are doing.

I rotate through the kids and those not with me, do independent work like printing/cursive, math drill worksheets, folder games or computer time.

The subject matter varies from day to day and the time spent together and one on one does too. However, this routine works well for us and we will keep doing it until it stops working. Then we will try something else.

Curriculum Choices

Curriculum… choices, choices, choices. Oh my goodness how overwhelmed can one mom get? When I first started homeschooling, I knew there were a lot of different companies out there but really I had no idea just how many there were. I have learned over the years however just how much curricula is really just a filler, like packing peanuts in a box of breakables. Last year, I started using less textbooks and more real books. I also started doing unit studies and lapbooks. Also, I designated the morning as a time where we all learn together. Preschoolers and Peace calls it Circle Time. I haven’t really called it that though because I get flashbacks of my preschool teaching days. We do all the learning we can do together at that time. We study whatever unit or lapbook we are working on, do our Bible time, science, history, artist study, read alouds or whatever else strikes our interest during the first half of our day and for the second half we do one on one with math, reading and English.
When it comes to text books, my goal is to find those that are Bible centered. I do not want a text that just throws in a Bible verse here and there. I want my kids to see how God’s hand is in everything. I often gravitate towards A Beka for science and history. I also love their readers after the kids have learned how to read. I love that the texts are inexpensive (I do not buy the teacher manuals I just buy the student text.) I also love how the sections are small and quick so the information can be absorbed more easily. Each year builds on the year before. Most of all I love how the texts are God centered.

Language Arts - When I teach reading, I use Teach You Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons I really like how this book works. It seems boring at first but it teaches how words are made of sounds and it teaches how the letters sound alone and together. It is phonics based and it also helps with speech problems. When my son was little he was in speech therapy. When I told his therapist what I was using she said that it was the best choice. What I found is that his speech improved even quicker once I started using this book. I don’t use the writing lessons that are in the book. I used A Beka’s beginning reading when I was a nanny. I found that it confused the kids more than it helped them. And it included a lot of memory instead of sounding out words. With 100 Lessons, your child is reading at a 2nd grade level by the end of the book.
For writing, I use Handwriting Without Tears. I love this program! I tried A Beka and another one and found lots of resistance from the kids. I discovered HWT and love it and so do the kids. It simplifies writing so kids can get the basics down quickly. It takes into account left handed kids so when they copy words the words are on both sides of the page. The lessons take no time at all and best of all, the books are really inexpensive. I bought the first manual for printing and the first manual for handwriting so that I know how they teach each of the letters. I add copy work by having them copy memory verses. So they get lots of writing practice.
For English I am using Scott Foresman’s free printables for Little Man and Miss H. Princess K is going to continue working in Learning Language Arts Through Literature. She does really well with how it is presented. The lessons are pretty quick and not overwhelming.

Social Studies - This year, history is taking a huge turn. I love how strong my kids are in US History because of A Beka’s history and the lapbooks we have done. However, I really want a history program that integrates all of history from creation to present and doesn’t isolate the history of different countries. I want them to know what was going on around the world at the same time as the construction of the Great Wall of China. So, I have been researching Mystery of History and Story of the World. Both are great curriculum choices. For a great evaluation of Mystery of History read Kendra’s review.
For geography we are going to use You Can Change the World. This is going to be incorporated into our morning schedule. We are going to read about a country and what is going on there. Then we are going to locate it on the globe and I am going to have them color a map with that country on it. We are also going to pray for that country. I am super excited about incorporating this into our school day.
Math - Saxon is my favorite math curriculum. Saxon uses manipulatives for K-3 so the kids get a real grasp on how numbers are in real life. I use the manipulatives with Little G too; they are great for little ones. Saxon continually builds on what was taught earlier and they review past concepts often to keep kids from forgetting what they have learned. If the kids know a concept that is being reviewed, I skip the lesson if they are still having a hard time, then we do the lesson.

Science – This year for science we are going to focus on God’s creation using Zondervan’s God’s Creation Series. We are going to do a lapbook to go along with each of the books.

We don’t use the texts books as often as we do unit studies and lapbooks. We do a lot of delight directed studies in whatever they are interested in. I don’t have a lot of money to spend on expensive books so I have gotten creative. I use as many free resources online as I can.

Homeschool Helps - Choosing Curriculum

When the time comes for us to make a decision about what we are going to purchase, we do spend a lot of time researching the different types of curriculum. There are so many types for every learning style just one day of research can be overwhelming and confusing. When I start out on my quest to research different types of curriculum, I ask myself questions.

• What is my goal for my child in this subject? 
• Do I want to use a method that breaks everything into sections and once it is taught, it isn’t touched on again? Or do I want a curriculum that builds on itself over the course of time reinforcing previous concepts and ideas while teaching new ones. (Personally I prefer the latter almost all of the time.) 
• Do I want a curriculum that throws in the Bible and God where it can or do I want a curriculum that is God centered? (Again the latter choice wins out.) 
• How important is it that my child is able to throw out facts in this subject? 
• Do I want a curriculum that encourages them to think on their own and find answers themselves? 
• When do I want them to learn this subject? 
• How will they respond to this approach? 

There are more questions I ask. Your list will reflect your children and where you are in your homeschooling journey.
We actually do not buy a lot of curriculum. We do use some text books but they are actually the supplement to our kids’ education. We want our kids to understand that you do not need a textbook to learn. We use the library and check out many reference books. We also allow our kids to learn through experiences more than reading about experiences when we can. And lapbooking has become a huge part of our science and history curriculum. I also love taking the Bible and turning it into English, grammar, copy work, writing practice and even history lessons. I have heard it said that all you really need is a Bible, a math book and a library card, there is a lot of truth to this statement.
Here are some great resources to help you on your way to finding curriculum that works for you.

Heart of the Matter Online has a lot of great articles written by moms who have used different products along with so much more. It is one of my favorite homeschooling sites.

Homeschool Curriculum and Support also has a huge list of articles written by moms also.

Preschoolers and Peace this year did a series about curriculum for the different subjects along side another blogger. Kendra analyzed what she had used for the different subjects. This is by far one of my favorites because she doesn't just have one type of curriculum that she uses. Also she has what is called circle time. It is not like what you would see in a preschool but something so much better. Last year I started doing a circle time and it changed the way I homeschool.

Life With My 3 Boybarians is hosting a Not Back-to-School Blog Hop this week about curriculum. Homeschool moms are posting what they are using - just scroll down to the bottom of the post and click on a few links to read what homeschool moms are using this year.  So many moms are participating, I am so excited to read what other moms have chosen to use this year.

I love researching curriculum best by talking to other moms. Moms know what works and what doesn't because they have been there done that. I do not trust curriculum reviews from "experts" or curriculum books that were not written by moms who really know. I also love getting a lot of points of view from different moms because no mom and no child is the same. So I figure that if I talk to a bunch of moms I will get a really good idea about what each type of curriculum will offer my kids.

Homeschool Helps - Homeschool Teaching Styles

Once you figure out how your kids learn, you need to figure out what kind of homeschool method fits your family. I am not talking about curriculum right now. I am talking about style. There are many different approaches to home education and each one has its place. Our home is not set up as a school environment; instead it is a learning environment. Daddy Reg and I decided we wanted our children to be able to obtain information and apply it to their lives. We do not want our children to depend on us feeding them information that they regurgitate to us. We want them to always be teachable and always be hungry for more knowledge, understanding and wisdom. We have encyclopedias and books everywhere. We have a globe that the kids are allowed to use whenever. We have a map on the wall and right now, Mr. Bones our skeleton diagram is hanging on our dining room wall. When the kids have a question, we do not usually give them an answer; instead we teach them how to find the answer on their own. We have made homeschooling and learning a way of life in our house not just a set time in the day to pull out the books. We are very eclectic in our school curriculum choices. This means that we use a little bit of everything. We are not afraid to change something if we see that it isn’t working. In our home learning is a way of life not just something we do.
There are many homeschool methods out there. A few include:

Charlotte Mason – Children are taught as a whole person using a lot of literature and and nature studies.

School at Home - Setting up a school environment at home. Usually using a box curriculum like A Beka, or Alpha Omega.

Classical Education - The early grades focus on facts. The middle grades focus on learning through analyzing those facts. The highschool years focus on learning how to express what they learn. It is also called the trivium.

Unschooling - Only teaching what your child wants to learn and not teaching anything else. This is also called Delight Directed.

Eclectic - Basically a mixture of all the different styles is some form.

Unit Studies - Studying a topic in depth while covering every course of study at the same time.

Many homeschoolers will begin using one method (usually school at home) and then gradually and naturally change towards a different style as they discover what works best for their family. Do not be afarid to change how you are homeschooling even mid year or even right after you have started. Being flexible is one of the biggest benifits of homeschooling.