Oh my goodness, I can’t believe another year has gone by, and it’s time to start planning for the 2015-16 school year! I’ve had so many requests for our curriculum choices, so I thought I better put up a post with our choices for next year.
Group and Independent work
I’m listing the full curriculum per grade level below, and anything you see in orange is a group activity. This means that we do it together with all of kiddos combined. I like to choose a variety of both teacher led, independent, and group curriculum so that I’m not too overwhelmed with teaching 4 students at different levels all at the same time. Group activities are done together, and I just expect a little different level of work out of my children depending on their grade and skill level.
Announcing…
But first I’d like to announce the Teeny Tot’s new blog name! Since I’ve started blogging back in 2008, you’ll see that the teeny tot has gotten just a wee big bigger. And since she really isn’t a teeny tot anymore, I’d like to present to you her new and much more grown up alias…presenting Miss Lady Bug!
And yes, I just cried a little.
It was fun finding photos of her for this post. I don’t know if you can tell, but in the photo on the left she’s sitting in one of our workboxes. Her favorite activity used to be dumping out the contents of the boxes and sitting in them. That and climbing up them. Our workboxes took quite a beating that year. Ahh…those were the days!
But she’s all big and independent now. Doesn’t need me as much, and can do just about everything on her own. But she still has the same great smile, and loves hugs and kisses. So I guess I’ll have to be okay with my baby growing up! If you’d like to take a trip down memory lane you can grab a box of tissues and browse through my Teeny Tot School Posts.
But moving on…here is her curriculum for the year. She’s in first grade this year, and wow. For some reason prek-kindergarten always seems like they’re still babies. But first grade. Man. Big kid in the house!
Miss Lady Bug: 1st Grade
- Daily Learning Notebook She’ll be using the Elementary level manuscript version.
- Art: Combo of World’s Greatest Artists 2 , Home Art Studio, and See the Light Art DVDs
- Bible: Grapevine Traceable Units & Word of Life Challenger Quiet Time devotion
- Handwriting: BJU Handwriting 1 Worktext
- Literature: Classical Literature Units (We’ll do read alouds using books from my Vol. 1 list)
- Math: Math U See Alpha, Kumon Dollars & Cents, Kumon Telling Time
- History: The Renaissance & Reformation (We do this as a group)
- Music: World’s Greatest Composers Vol 1 (Continued from last year)
- Language/Phonics: Abeka Letters & Sounds 1, Language 1, & Phonics Road Level 1 (A new product we’re reviewing!)
- Reading: Abeka 1 readers
- Spelling: Spelling You See B & All About Spelling Level 1 (for phonics rules memorization)
- Science: Expedition Earth Geography/Science Curriculum
- Piano: Teach Yourself Piano
- P.E. : Swim Team & Co-op
- Vocabulary: Vocabulary Workshop Grade 1 Level Red (This is a test I’ve never done vocab in grade 1 before, so it might be a bust. TBD)
Tinkerbell: 4th Grade
- Daily Learning Notebook: She’ll be doing the Cursive Notebook this year.
- Art: Combo of: World’s Greatest Artists 2 , Home Art Studio, and See the Light Art DVDs
- Bible: Grapevine Bible Study & Word of Life Challenger Quiet Time devotion
- Spelling: All About Spelling & Spelling You See Level C
- English/Grammar: BJU English 4
- Reading: Abeka Read & Comprehend Skill Sheets Level 4 (I use these to test comprehension and speed.)
- Math: Math U See Delta
- History: The Renaissance & Reformation
- Literature: Classical Literature Units
- Music: World’s Greatest Composers Vol 1 (Continued from last year)
- Science: Expedition Earth Geography/Science Curriculum & maybe a scientist unit if we can fit it in!
- P.E.: Swim Team, Hockey, & Co-op
- Handwriting: Spelling You See (Since it is mostly copy work, I think it works well for handwriting practice too.)
- Typing: Typing Web (This is a free online program and works well!)
- Piano: Teach Yourself Piano
- Vocabulary: Vocabulary Workshop (Orange Grade 4)
- Writing: Institute for Excellence in Writing (We do this as a group and will be using IEW Group A Continuation next year).
Turbo: 6th Grade
- Art: Combo of: World’s Greatest Artists 2 , Home Art Studio, and See the Light Art DVDs
- Bible: Grapevine Bible Study & Word of Life Challenger Quiet Time devotion
- English/Grammar: BJU English 5
- History: The Renaissance & Reformation
- Literature: Classical Literature Units & Book Shark (I will be specifically selecting a list of appropriate books for my kids from this resource since it was free through our options program!)
- Math: Math U See Zeta
- Music: World’s Greatest Composers Vol 1 (Continued from last year)
- P.E.: Swim Team & Hockey
- Photography: The Foto Finch Elementary Curriculum (Review coming soon!)
- Reading: Read & Comprehend Skill Sheets 6
- Science: Expedition Earth Geography/Science Curriculum & maybe a scientist unit if we can fit it in!
- Spelling: BJU Spelling 6 (mainly for list practice), & Spelling You See D (which also doubles as handwriting)
- Typing: Typing Web
- Vocabulary: Vocabulary Workshop (Level A, Grade 6)
- Writing: Institute for Excellence in Writing Group A Continuation
Strawberry Shortcake: 7th grade
- Art: Combo of: World’s Greatest Artists 2 , Home Art Studio, and See the Light Art DVDs
- Bible: Grapevine Bible Study & Word of Life Challenger Quiet Time devotion
- English/Grammar: BJU English 7
- History: The Renaissance & Reformation
- Literature: Classical Literature Units & Book Shark (From our options program)
- Math: Math U See Pre-Algebra (yikes!)
- Music: World’s Greatest Composers Vol 1 (Continued from last year)
- P.E.: Swim Team
- Photography: The Foto Finch Composition
- Science: Expedition Earth Geography/Science Curriculum & maybe a scientist unit if we can fit it in!
- Spelling: Spelling You See E
- Typing: Typing Web
- Vocabulary: Vocabulary Workshop (Level B, Grade 7)
- Writing: Institute for Excellence in Writing Group A Continuation
Extra-Curricular & Group Activities:
We do writing as a group with my 4th, 6th, and 7th graders together. We’ll be continuing on with Institute for Excellence in Writing Group A Continuation program for next year.
We’ll also be using the The Renaissance & Reformation time traveler unit, after we finish up with our Middle Ages one from last year.
And everyone is super excited to be going through my Expedition Earth Geography/Science Curriculum as well this year!
Here are a few other things we do on the side, and I’ll post our schedules by grade as well soon!
- Options: This is a once a week co-op that we go to through our school district. Classes for my younger kiddos are mostly elective types like Spanish, science, art, music, & PE. Strawberry Shortcake has cool things like speech & debate, drama, computers, yearbook, literacy in film, home economics, and game theory.
- Keepers of the Faith
- Contenders of the Faith
- Co-Op: DI Instant Challenges This is a once a month group of friends who get together, previously our LEGO group. We’re going to try making our own set of instant challenges for our co-op this year using the DI list as a guide.
- Hockey & Swimming year round
Whew! Summer is blazing by, so I should probably go get some of this stuff planned eh?
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I was wondering if you feel like the Homeschool in the Woods Time Travelers are enough to stand alone? Do you add to them? I am considering using the American History cd’s, but would love to hear your thoughts.
I don’t add to them, no. They’re pretty good I think on their own.
i am going to use your Road Trip USA next year and my kids will be 1st and 5th grade…do you think adding a time traveler would be a good idea or is there enough history for my 5th grader? how do you like the vocabulary workshop?
Yes Road Trip USA has a ton of US history in it, so I think you’ll be overwhelmed if you try to add in another unit. Vocab workshop is “okay”. Not my favorite. I’m trying vocabulary online with my son this year just to try something new, and he really likes it. But it’s not free 🙁
I am looking for Bible studies to start with my 3rd, 5th, and 7th graders. I would like to do something individually with each of them, therefore I am not interested in getting teacher guides in which I have to comb through for lesson plans, etc. I confess that teacher guides annoy me and I avoid them at all costs. I’m more of a fly by the seat of my pants person. I’d like something simple, but rich that we can sit down and work through with a book on their individual level and the Bible. Any suggestions?
I Like the Word of Life Devotions for kids. They work independently, no teacher’s manual.
Hi Erica,
Where have I been? I just found your site this week and ordered your explore earth program along with some literature ones too! I believe Abeka and BJU was weak in writing as well and have Loved IEW for writing. Do you like easy grammar? Do you feel easy grammar, Wordly wise & IEW would be fine. That I could skip BJU English 5? Wondering now how easy grammar compares to BJU English 5.
Also for math. We love MUS and use that bc it’s so deep in each area but I like to use something that covers a wide spectrum as well. My daughter didn’t like Abeka and was frustrated. We tried BJU online DVD’s but she was skipping parts. Eh, hem. Eye roll! She hates math. So this year I was going to try Saxon 6/5. Any thoughts on the later Saxon? She wanted to do daily math with me one on one.
My son loves math and is going into second grade. We do MUS but again I want something in addition to that that covers more. He rocked BJU math 1 but it was too easy for him last year. Should I do BJU math 2 or Saxon 2 or 3? Anyt recommendations here?
Can your explore the earth be used for science?
Have you ever tried story of the world? Wondering how you felt that vs. the Renaissance? I don’t want a history that kills us and is uber taxing on me since I’m teaching so much.
Thanks for your guidance!!! XO from Atlanta, GA
Hi Christen,
Yes, i think if you’re going to do Easy Grammar, Wordly Wise and IEW you’ll be just fine. We’re going to try IEW and Fix It Grammar this year and forgo BJU English so we’ll see how that works. I’m still deciding if I want to have them do an additional vocab but the FIX It includes a word a day, so I haven’t decided yet. Maybe I’ll put that question out to the COAH Community 🙂
We tried and strongly disliked 😉 Saxon. So we went back to MUS. If I feel like we need extra work I’ll usually add in a story problem from Evan Moor Daily Word Problems or a free 5 minute math drill to refresh skills. But otherwise we’ve loved MUS. No comment on Saxon.
And yes, my Expedition Earth includes science, I wouldn’t add in another science curriculum while doing EE.
I had Story of the World a while back, but we never got into it. That said, I have a friend who loves it. So I think it just depends on what you prefer. We did like the Time Traveler units, they were fun. I will say the reading was brief and then just followed by projects, so sometimes I didn’t feel like it covered enough info. But they were fun. And my kids definitely remember more when they’re doing projects like that.
Hi Erica,
We are starting out our first year of homeschooling for my little girl who will be entering into the 1st grade. I was wanting to know which bible curriculum do you recommend. Which of the ones that you have used, did your children really respond to?
Erica,
I was wondering how you use Expedition Earth for science?
I am understanding no other science book is used?
I just printed out Animals of the World, would that work well with Expedition Earth?
Thank you and God Bless
Yes, EE is used for science! It covers several aspects of science including animal, earth, weather, & natural science. The animals of the world (if you are referring to my printable) is designed to go with the EE curriculum. The lesson plans will tell you when to do each one 🙂