Our 3rd Homeschool Year 2019-2020
Just a few weeks late to getting this up on my blog, but we made it through our third homeschooling year! My oldest son finished first grade, my second son finished his first year of preschool, and my toddler toddled along :). Of course ending the year in quarantine threw everyone for a loop, and like I’ve said, that “quarantine-schooling” was NOT “homeschooling.” :) I wrote this post in the midst of the March chaos, Staying Same at Home(school). Yet, we made it through another year, and just completed the paperwork to hand into our school district for committing to homeschool again next year! In case you are considering homeschooling next year, I will share some of the routines and resources that have worked for us:
Base Curriculum: We used a Catholic Classical curriculum called Mother of Divine Grace. It is long distance program where everything is offered online, and you have the option to “enroll” your child, where you then have access to a personal consultant who you meet with throughout the year for personalized guidance, and individualized syllabus’ for each subject. You can follow their curriculum without officially enrolling and purchase their syllabus and books through their website. The classical approach to education in the early years focuses on memorization of beautiful works, literature, and exposing the child to the true, good and beautiful. There are many other Catholic curriculums to check out such as Seton, Catholic Heritage, Mater Amabilis, and St. Thomas Aquinas. The Circe Institute is also a great resource for Classical Education. I haven’t used their resources for my kids yet, but read some of their books and podcasts have been very helpful so far!
Math: We used ABeka Arithmetic for 1st grade, and for preschool mostly hands on learning and easy workbooks, even from the dollar store. I also liked this book for preschool math; Preschool Math at Home. I also recommend MathUSee, which I used when my oldest was in kindergarten and may switch back to for next year. I found MathUSee less mom-intensive as you follow along with DVD lessons taught by a professor. You can’t really go wrong with choosing a math curriculum for homeschooling, (as you’ll be avoiding common core!), many use Saxton, Teaching Textbooks, The Life of Fred, or Singapore.
Reading: Truly makes up the bulk of our home education. I’ve gotten so many great ideas these past few years from Read Aloud Revival and now I try to read aloud as much as possible;, during lunch, afternoon or bedtime. I use Audible connected to our kitchen speaker and can play audio books during the day for the boys. RAR gave us the idea of doing family book clubs and discussing the books with the kids. She has seasonal book lists and tips for what questions to ask while reading each book. I also get book list recommendations from Mother of Divine Grace and Mater Amabilis. I use Teaching Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons for teaching reading, you can start it in pre-school if your child is ready.
Routines: One of the hardest part in the beginning. The freedom and flexibility can be overwhelming, but since homeschooling takes significantly less time than traditional school, (younger years you’re talking about 1-2 hours of actual school book learning), you can make it work for you. I know working moms who homeschool around their work schedules, moms who split subjects with their husbands etc. I work best after I’ve had some prayer time, workout and showered, at best that’s by 8:30/9am. And hearing how “most moms are done by 12noon,” has helped a lot! After lunch can be reading time, free play, hands on learning like cooking etc. Evenings can be for your activities and family prayer without the need for checking homework :) I posted some ideas here as well, Simple Homeschool Ideas for Younger Years.
Also check out my:
Feel free to contact me with any questions at all!!!