I had no idea of all the choices there were out there until I went to the convention in May. The minute I stepped foot into the vendor fair, I knew I was in trouble! I am a collector, I like stuff, and there was so much stuff there! I had done quite a bit of research prior to going, but all the booths just seemed to be calling me saying " you need me". I waited to make my big purchases until the last day, after I had asked anyone I could what they recommended. I put so much pressure on myself wanted to make the right choice first off. I finally decided to enjoy the process and just do the best I could to find something we would enjoy. Since this is our first year and also having pulled our oldest out of Public School I want it to be fun. There is so much deschooling I will need to do with him. My main goal is to foster a love for learning and it was important to find things that would help with that.
I struggled between Sonlight and My Father's world, ECC, and ultimately picked MFW. I love sonlights rich literature base, but with I knew I didn't have a strong reader. As much as I would have liked to teach that curriculum I decided MFW was a better fit for us right now. I wanted a curriculum that was bible based and helped guide me through the process. We are excited to begin Exploring Countries and Cultures. Last night as I was getting ready for this week, both my DH and I were amazed at how much we are going to learn. It is exciting!
For math I had thought I would pick Teaching Textbooks, but I fell in love with MUS. Owen has been struggling with math this past year. I am not very strong in math so I was concerned about teaching it well enough to help him. Teaching textbooks looked perfect because it was self paced through a computer program. After sitting and working with it at the vendor fair, I realized he would need more help than that. I had quite a few people recommend MUS so I sat through a demonstration and loved the hands on approach. I think it will be just what Owen needs to help him make sense of everything he is learning. We are going to start with Beta and see how he does. I am hoping taking a step back and getting a better foundation for adding and subtracting will help him later on.
Spelling has always been difficult for Owen. I think it is because he never really learned phonics. He was taught in school to read with sight worlds. We are going to start with All About Spelling Level 1. I am hoping learning the phonograms for each letter will give him a better understanding on how to spell. I think we will be able to move fairly quickly through the early levels. I am excited for him to gain confidence in his spelling since he has always struggled.
In a month or so I hope to add in some writing using The Institute for Excellence in Writing. He is a very reluctant writer and right now it takes a lot of effort to get him to write anything. I want to take it slow with him and not overwhelm him. The concept behind this program seems very promising and will helpfully teach him the tools to be a good writer one day.
We are also using A reason for Handwriting level C. I am still deciding on a grammar/English curriculum. I am embarred to say I have 3 I have purchased, but am still debating which we will use. I picked Shurley English first and while I like some of it I am not sure Owen will do well with it. I also found a used set of Language lessons through literature. I love this idea of reading a few books through the year and working with them. I just need to get him to want to read. Then I picked up Easy Grammar and this one seems more like what I could do with him right now.
For my two little one's Wyatt (4) and Pixie (21 months) will be my biggest challenge. At least keeping the entertained while For the I am going to use Before Five in a row. They both love stories, so I think this will be fun and help them both feel included. I have been collecting learning toys and games to use with the littles while I will be working with Owen. Prior to attending the homeschool conference I wanted to do a full Pre-K curriculum for Wyatt. After listening to a few different speakers I changed my mind. They explained a lot about how children's brains develop and it made me realize how important it is to let kids be kids. Let them play, learn fine and gross motor skills, pretend, etc. There is plenty of time to learn to read and to write.
This week we start school, I pray that I can have patience with all three of my children. I just want to do a good job and make it fun. I know it is going to be a process of trial and error to find our groove, I just need to keep reminding myself!
You've made some great choices for your first year! The first year is almost always the hardest as you search for your "groove," but don't worry. It will get better. And no one has more of an interest in your children's success than you do. You're going to do a fantastic job!
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