The 2014-15 School Year

Happy First Week of August!  For the Mobleys, the first week of August means it time to start thinking about school again.  There are many different educational philosophies out there.  If you had asked me before I started homeschooling what my philosophy was, you would have been met with a very long blank stare.  As I've tried different things over the years, some of which we have liked, others of which we have not, I believe myself at this point in time to be some eclectic mix of three philosophies: Classical, Montessori, and Charlotte Mason.  (Don't worry if you don't at all know what that means...I only learned these terms last year through an online Parent Certification Course offered by our charter school.)  I don't follow any one approach to a tee, but I take the parts I love from each and apply them as best I can. I also tend to be fairly traditional in the sense that I choose to use textbooks.  I have friends who don't and formulate lesson plans on their own.  Hats off to you!  Me?  I am lazy and am easily overwhelmed by choices, so I prefer to use curricula that are scripted for me.  And, let's face it, I have almost six kids.  I don't really have a lot of time to sit around and prep materials/lessons.

Now that you know more about me and where I come from, these are the resources I plan to use to teach my kids in the 2014-15 school year.

MATTHEW & JONATHAN--PRESCHOOL
Long Story Short--I love this devotional book!  It's really engaging for kids of all ages!

Before Five in a Row--The idea behind this is to read the same book to your child every day for a week, but each day emphasize a different aspect of the book.  On one day, you might examine the artwork and try to use that same medium; on another you might count the animals.  I really love this curriculum for preschool!

MAGGIE--GRADE 1
Devotions
Long Story Short

Math
Saxon Math 2--I love Saxon math because of its incremental approach.

Language Arts
Spell to Write and Read--It took me a while to get into the swing of this approach to spelling, but I now love it!  This approach makes the seemingly illogical English language actually logical after you have learned the basic phonograms and spelling rules.
First Language Lessons Level 1--I like that this book is very mom-intensive and very logical.
Writing With Ease Level 1--The theory behind this book is that asking young children to formulate an idea and remember that well enough to write it and write it correctly remembering to use proper grammar and punctuation is expecting too much.  Instead this book focuses on teaching children to copy excellent writing from the classics and to begin to practice the skills of narration and dictation.
McGuffey Readers--There are great moral/character building stories in this book.
Handwriting Without Tears My Printing Book--Before joining Spring Charter School, we used Zaner-Bloser, but this is the handwriting that is offered through our online bookstore.

History
Story of the World Volume 4--I love this history series.  It is so interesting and engaging for young children.  The Activity Book is full of lots of fun activities to reinforce the lesson and geography practice with each chapter.

Science
Apologia Science Human Anatomy and Physiology--I love this creation-based science curriculum written by authors that love God and his creation and really try to share that love with young children.

Special Interest
Maps Charts Graphs B
Steck-Vaughn Critical Thinking Level B
Atelier Art Level 2--I stink at art, but I have so much fun watching these DVDs and trying to improve at art alongside my kids!
Draw Write Now #4--My kids are teaching themselves to draw thanks to these workbooks!  I have fun trying, too!
Latin for Children Primer A--This is new for us this year.  I read really good reviews, so we're going to give it a go.
piano lessons, class to be determined

Life Skills

Life skills seem to happen pretty naturally around here, with all the cooking, cleaning, laundry, and gardening that needs to be done.  And, with a family this size, everyone has to help in order for it all to get done.  There's also soccer, running, biking, scootering, and just playing.  Aside from that:

Horizons Health Grade 2--I really like this curriculum because it comes from a Christian perspective and helps me to teach my kids health and safety lessons that I may otherwise just not think about or purposely try to avoid!

MARY--GRADE 3

Devotions
Long Story Short
Inductive Bible Studies

Math
Saxon Math Intermediate 5

Language Arts
Vocabulary from Classical Roots 5
First Language Lessons Level 4
Writing With Ease Level 3
Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Success
McCall Crabbs Standard Test Lessons in Reading Book C

History
Story of the World Volume 4

Science
Apologia Science Human Anatomy and Physiology

Special Interest
Maps Charts Graphs C

Steck-Vaughn Critical Thinking Level E

Atelier Art Level 2
Draw Write Now #4
Latin for Children Primer A

Rosetta Stone Spanish--Another item that will be brand new for us this year!
piano lessons, class to be determined

Life Skills
see above description plus Horizons Health Grade 2

Mobley Art

I really have zero creative genes in my body, so art has never been a source of enjoyment for me. When I was a kid, we used to do art projects in class and then the teacher would hang everyone's creation, no matter what it looked like, up on the wall. Once, a classmate asked me which one was mine, but I refused to tell him because mine was seriously so bad. Then, he pointed to one and said, "Well, it can't be as bad as that one!" Embarrassed, I admitted, "Ummm...that one is mine." Understandably, I feel so ill-equipped to educate my children in anything artistic, but I also refuse to pay for art lessons.  I also refuse to place them in a classroom setting to fumble around on their own like me, for that certainly did nothing for me but to turn me off of art entirely. This year, however, I used some of our instructional funds to purchase a DVD-based art curriculum, Atelier Art. Now, every Thursday afternoon, we sit at the school table and watch an art lesson on the computer, pausing as necessary to keep up with the instructor. Much to my surprise, what was once drudgery is now a delight!  It is so much fun learning and growing alongside my children!

We learned about different lines.

We mixed primary colors to make secondary colors.

This was a lesson in textures.  We each made an animal with an oval-shaped piece of felt.

This past week, we explored patterns drew clowns.

The 2013-14 School Year

A lot of people have been asking what materials we are using for school this year.  For reporting purposes, our schoolwork is divided into six disciplines: English, Math, Science, History, Life Skills, and Special Interest. Below is what we are using for each child for each discipline.

Mary--2nd grade
English:

• Spell to Write and Read (Fall)
• Vocabulary from Classical Roots 4 (Spring)
• Writing with Ease Level 2
• First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind Level 3 
• McCall Crabbs Test Lessons in Reading
• Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Handwriting

Math: Saxon Intermediate 4

History: Story of the World Volume 3: Early Modern Times

Science: Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals

Special Interest:

• English from the Roots Up Volume II
• Draw Write Now Books 2 and 3
• Reformation Heroes
• Maps Charts Graphs Book B
• Critical Thinking Level D
• Atelier Art Level 1

Maggie--Kindergarten

English:

• Spell to Write and Read
• Handwriting without Tears Letters and Numbers for Me

Math: Saxon 1

History: Story of the World Volume 3: Early Modern Times

Science: Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals

Special Interest:

• Draw Write Now Books 2 and 3
• Reformation Heroes
• Maps Charts Graphs Book A
• Critical Thinking Level A
• Atelier Art Level 1

Additionally, the girls are taking a physical fitness class that meets once a week (on Thursdays) in Santa Ana.  There is a Target close-by, so I usually take the three boys shopping while the girls are in class.  I am enjoying being able to leisurely shop the clearance at Target.  So far, I've found a new towel for Mary, a clock for the boys' room, super-soakers to go around, items for our next car trip, butterfly nets, and a parachute!  Yep, before long, David is definitely going to have to pull on the reins!

The girls also practice their computer skills by doing math and reading lessons at i-Ready.com.  Maggie also practices math on IXL.

Additionally, we spend quite a bit of time reading books together.  This year, I am taking a new approach to read-alouds and am reading the girls the books which correspond with Mary's writing lessons.

I know it sounds like an awful lot, but it's totally manageable and fun.  There is even still time left over for soccer, riding bikes and scooters, going for walks, flying kites, knitting and sewing, piano lessons, princess school, fencing and chores!

Our Weekly Schedule

This year, our charter school required that I submit a plan detailing what we expect to complete each week by subject over the course of the year. The plan is in no way rigid or set in stone but serves as a flexible guide.  Each week, I take this plan and make form a more detailed plan for the week.  This is what Mary's schedule for this week looks like:

I love having a plan written down for a few reasons.  First of all, I don't need to remember anything--it's written down, so I just look at the plan and check things off as we complete them.  Also, it's really clear what we have completed.  If there is an x over the box, we completed it; if not, we didn't.  I also like this because Mary can look at the plan and know what is expected of her for the week.  Sometimes, I even allow her a say in the order in which she completes tasks.  I also save the completed schedules and refer to them when inputting attendance and meeting with our Education Specialist.

Anyways, this is the system that works for us at this time.  I have no idea if this will still work for us next year or the year after that, but at this time in life, this works great!