Tales From The Bonny Blue House

Morning Basket Questions

Lots of people have emailed me, and a few commented, on my Morning Basket post last week. Thanks for all of the kindness and warmth!   Especially since I was basically copying a lovely idea orginated by uber-homeschool mom Jen. As an aside I strongly recommend waiting until the kids are in bed pouring a nice cup of tea or a glass of wine and spending an hour or so going through Jen's blog. It's full of lovely ideas.

If you are an Angels, Mets or Red Sox fan, you'll have some time tonight. (hee hee hee)

Sorry. Had to do it.

Anyway. The questions. Lots of people wanted to know how long all of this takes. It really depends but generally it takes between a half hour and forty-five minutes. Which isn't very long. I try to begin at 8:30 but since Brendan is not a sleeper we sometimes start at 9:00. No big deal.

How did I decide what to include in the morning basket?  Well, much of it was inspired by Jen but I also thought that for the basket idea to work for me it would have to include those things that I wanted to get to in my school plans but never seemed to have time for. The workbox system has helped tremendously with that but I always have some little enrichment type things I like to include.  I took the nature suggestions of Jen's by subscribing to Nature Friend Magazine which turned out to be every bit as valuable as she said. The kids love the articles and the photography has inspired some nice drawing.

Katie's rendering of a bird.

I rounded out everyone's religion studies with the catechism (always a good beginning to the day) and the Acts of the Apostles and then I just picked things that are seasonal or tangenital to what we are doing. Does that make sense?

Do you do it every morning?

Ah, no. As a matter of fact I haven't done it at all this week since I have a horrible cold and I actually lost my voice over the weekend and I am still raspy and hard to understand. My voice is grating on my nerves so it must be driving the kids crazy. On the upside they had a quiet weekend :).

Another thing worth mentioning is that the basket pretty much lives on my long dining room table so morning basket can be a lunch or dinner basket if that works better on some days. It's important not to get caught up so much in what I do or in what Jen or anyone else does but make things work for your family and do the things they enjoy. My basket might bore your children to tears so explore your children's interest. Or bookmark this post and categorize it "next year" and don't put pressure on yourself.

Have a blessed evening.

Morning Basket

A few people emailed and asked about my version of the morning basket that Jen so generously shared a while back. There was a lot to inspire me in that post since I had been struggling with how to begin our day.

Since having Brendan I have been having trouble getting up early.  This is due to the fact that Brendan enjoys being up at night and nursing off and on all night.  He also is not a fan of the bottle. Or a binky. Or anything that might allow me to sleep for two consecutive hours. So I have not been able to get up as early as I would like and this creates some chaos for me in the morning. So instead of my getting up at five and getting a head start on the day before waking the children, we are all clamoring around getting up at seven and trying to get going. 

In the grand scheme of life this is a minor problem but I did crave a more peaceful beginning to the day. I often found that while I was caffeinating (totally necessary I assure you) some kids started school, some kids snuck away to watch cartoons and a few actually left the house and went outside.  We were missing prayers and just starting badly. We have been having some chaotic times here and I wanted to anchor our day as best as I could.

I remembered Jen's morning basket post and I went back and re-read and I tried to see how I could make it work here. I wanted the basket to reflect the season and to address our faith and what we were studying as well as some things that I want to include in our day but often don't find time to incorporate.

So this is what I came up with.

Faith

Baltimore Catechism which we work on for about 15 minutes. 

The New Catholic Picture Bible - I try to read the story related to whatever everyone is studying in Faith and Life.

The First Christians, An Acts of the Apostles for Children

Then  I will read something from the following list depending on the day or any virtue I might want to address.

57 Stories of Saints
Catholic Mosaic
Fenestrae Fidei

Nature Studies

I am so glad we are incorporating this into our day regularly. I read from

Thornton Burgess
Nature Friend Magazine

While I am reading the children are sketching. I assign a subject related to the reading, show them a picture and have them sketch and color. I keep their sketch books right there in the basket as well as the Prismacolor Pencils and Lyra Crayons. They have other books and supplies elsewhere but these are kept special for morning time.

I also have a bunch of nature, seasonal books from the library that I will read at this time. A Picture Perfect Childhood by Cay Gibson is helpful as is just asking the librarian.

Poetry

We are really enjoying poetry this year and I wanted a little extra in the day. For this part of our day I thought the poems we read could be more lighthearted and whimsical. So there is :

Zoodoings by Jack Prelutsky
A Children's Garden of Verses, Robert Louis Stevenson
And because I am a nut for Shakespeare I usually read a sonnet from m beaten up copy of the complete works that my parents gave me when I was in high school.

And that is really it so far. After morning basket time we make a morning offering and then we say the Pledge of Allegiance and sing "My Country 'Tis of Thee.

After this they are off to their workboxes and the day begins.  I don't pull this off everyday, although that is my goal, since the little guys take up a lot of morning time but we are managing to do it often and the kids love the gentle beginning. I think the nice pencils and crayons are a draw as well.

I hope you enjoyed reading about our "humble beginnings" to the day.

Have a blessed evening.

Shakespeare Study

Just as I am writing up lessons for next year there is a lovely post on Serendipity about Shakespeare Fridays.

 

Elizabeth and Colleen have generously shared their plans for Shakespeare Friday. I have been doing the bard with the kids for a few years, mostly in the spring, and this is more structured less hodge-podge approach than the way I was going about it.

I was delighted at the generosity and thoughtfulness that went into sharing such lovely plans.

Thanks ladies. I am looking forward to putting your plans in action!

Home again, Home again

It's nice to be home.  We returned last night to a clean, calm home and I was able to just warm up a meal I had in the freezer, put the clean clothes away and start a load of wash and then I was done.

This almost never happens. Often when we return home I walk into a house that reflects the chaos that happens when we leave. I hate that and it makes homecoming as stressful as leaving. I had a secret weapon this time though, two words...

Cleaning lady.

She came after we left, straightened up and cleaned the house. Heaven, I tell you. Absolute heaven.

There now you know my dirty secret. I can't keep my house clean without help.  I can't tell you how much this pains me. It really does. I feel that I should be able to do this and not pay good money for clean toilets but try as I might I can't make it happen.  So I make sacrifices in other areas and I pay. It's money well spent since I don't function well in disorder and I am much happier when the house is neat and tidy.

Ok, justification over.

I have another travel tip for everyone. Check with the Department of Transportation website for the states you will be traveling through. They give really important information regarding construction and road closures. This made the trip home much more enjoyable since we were able to pinpoint where all the traffic would be and plan alternate routes ahead of time. Having the GPS helped with that as well.

I never would have thought to do that but my husband is a genius and actually thought to check while I was driving down after hearing how much trouble I was having on the trip down. North and South Carolina have sensors on the actual interstate that can give real time updates about slow downs and accidents. Pretty cool huh?  He was able to tell me over the phone exactly at what mile marker the traffic slowed and where it sped up. These little things can make or break your trip if you have little ones in the car.

Now I need to get going on clearing out the learning room and planning next year.    I think it would be much easier if I just went over to Jennifer's house and left the children there. Honestly, have you seen that learning environment? It's just absolutely beautiful, a real inspiration.

Jennifer? Honey, could you come here and do that for me? Plllleeeeeaaaasee!  

7th Grade Lesson Plans

Ryan's lesson plans are fiddled with all year long. It all depends on how well he's adapting, how cooperative he is, how many seizures he's having and many other things that effect the autistic mind that are completely unpredictable.

So here is the framework. He will study history and science with his sisters and most of his other work he can do independently. I have to read his literature selections to or with him but I have to say, he is the more self sufficient of my kids.

Mathematics (Daily)
Math-U-See Zeta by Miriam Homer
One Lesson Daily (focus on percents and decimals)

Daily 15 minutes drill/practice basic math facts.

 English

 Writing

Stories with a View: Narrative Inspirations

Two Lessons Weekly

Copywork  (10 minutes daily)

Copy two lines daily from favourite poems, prayers, Bible passages or the Shakespeare play being studied.
Resources

The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist

Shakespeare quotations suitable for copywork.

Composition  (Daily)

Regular written narrations from books set for history, religion, geography, literature and science.

Grammar / English Language

 Primary Language Lessons by Emma Serl (Hillside Education, Lingua Mater Series)

Daily lessons

 

Spelling

My Catholic Speller, Level F (Catholic Heritage Curricula)

Studied Dictation (Twice weekly)

Passages to be dictated from a section (two or three paragraphs) of a history, literature, geography or religion book that has been studied in advance.

Vocabulary
Wordly Wise Book 3, one lesson weekly

Literature

Classic Literature

Q1 - Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

Q2 - Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson (abridged version)

Q3 - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson (abridged)

Q4 – Gulliver’s Travels, Jonathan Swift (abridged)

(NOTE: Ryan’s comprehension problems make the abridged versions more attainable).

 

 Shakespeare (Weekly)

One of the following plays to be studied each term:   

Merchant of Venice

 Hamlet

Resources:
Re-tellings of Shakespeare plays. Choose from:

 Shakespeare Stories by Leon Garfield

 Enchanted Island: Stories from Shakespeare by Ian Serraillier

Background reading:
          Starting Shakespeare by Eric Boagey

Poetry

The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist:
Memorize at least four poems each semester

History

Ancient History

The Story of the World, History for the Classical Child, Edited by Susan Wise Bauer (Peace Hill Press)

 

1st Q: Ancient Egypt   

Chapters 1 – 13 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached.

2^ndQ: Ancient Egypt and Greece

Chapters 13-22 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached.

 

3^rd Q: Ancient Greece and Rome

Chapters 22-32 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached

 

4^th Q: Ancient Rome

Chapters 33-42 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached

 

Current Affairs 
Print:
The National Catholic Register

Online:
Catholic World News

Catholic Exchange

Geography and Earth Studies (twice weekly; plus map work)

Geography (twice weekly)

Map Work

Maps Charts and Graphs Level D (Modern Curriculum Press)

Map work is included in our history lessons and maps of the ancient world will be studied.

Spend a short time each week locating places mentioned in reading for other subjects.

 

Earth Studies

Nature Study

 Take at least one nature walk each week.

 Keep a nature notebook

Resources

Keeping a Nature Journal by Claire Walker Leslie and Charles E.Roth

Wild Days: Creating Discovery Journals by Karen Rackliffe

Introduction to Nature Study by MacBeth Derham (website)

Optional Nature Reading

Insect Adventures by J.Henri Fabre

 

 

Science

This is a continuation of last year’s study of nature and the creatures and plants that inhabit our earth.

God’s Marvelous Works Book 2 (Rod and Staff Publisher’s Inc.)
Q1: Algae and Fungi (lessons 1 – 6); Mammals (lessons 7 – 8)
Q2: Mammals (lessons 9 – 15)
Q3: Mammals (lessons 15 – 23)
Q4: Sponges, Mollusks, Sea Worms and Sea Jellies (lessons 24 -26); Amphibians (lessons 27 - 30)

Reference Book
Kingfisher Science Encyclopedia

Extra Resources

Lyrical Life Science Vol.1

Lyrical Life Science Vol.2 

 

Ryan is enrolled in a homeschool science class at the Long Island Children’s Science Museum in Plandome from October until December.

 

Health

Health 8 (Seton Press)

 

Picture Study (weekly)

One twentieth century artist to be studied each term:

Q1 - Henri Matisse

Q2 -  Pablo Picasso

Q3 -  Marc Chagall
Q4 – Jackson Pollock

To accompany picture study we will use Discovering Great Artists: Hands-On Art for Children in the Styles of the Great Masters by Mary Ann Kohl.

 

Music (weekly)

Ryan takes guitar lessons once a week for one hour and sings in the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Boys choir.

We will also study the Adoremus Hymnal in music.

 

Phys Ed.

Ryan takes twice weekly karate lessons for one hour each.
Ryan plays baseball in the fall and spring in the Challenger League (special ed league)

One quarter long lesson in bicycle safety.

 

Practical Work

Ryan will be learning rosary making and leather work this year.

 

Religion

Bible Study

Ignatius Study Bible: Matthew (Weekly)

Bible Memory Work - memorize one verse from each week's lesson

Catechism  (Weekly)
Faith and Life 8 (Ignatius Press). Read, narrate and discuss one lesson each week.

Extra
Faith and Life Activity Book 8

Saints and Catholic Heroes  (ad lib.)

One saint's biography each quarter from the Vision Books series.

 

Homeschool Lesson Plans Grade 6

Here are the plans for Katie. They are a combination of Mater Amabilis and some Classical Education influences.  This does not include our plans for Advent or Lent and there are a few resources that I did not include in this list yet because I'm not sure how I'm fitting it all in.  How's that for comprehensive planning? However, this is what I sent in to the district and it provides the basic framework for the year. If you see anything glaringly, obviously dopey please drop me a line.

Mathematics (Daily) 
Saxon Math 65 3^rd edition (Saxon Publishers)
Saxon Math 65 D.I.V.E. CD-Rom

English
Grammar and Composition 

Ancient History-Based Writing Lessons (Institute for Excellence in Writing) One lesson weekly

English 6 for Young Catholics (Seton Press) One lesson daily

Language Arts Basic Skills Book 2 (Frank Schaffer Publications) Diagramming Sentences, one lesson weekly.

 

Vocabulary
Wordly Wise Book 3 one lesson per week

 

Spelling
My Catholic Speller Level E

 

Copywork  (10 minutes daily)

Copy daily from favourite poems, prayers, Bible passages or the Shakespeare play being studied.
 

Resources
The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist
www.shakespeare-online.com/quotes

Studied Dictation (Twice weekly)

Paragraphs or passages to be dictated from a section (two or three paragraphs) of a history, literature, geography or religion book that has been studied in advance.

 

Literature

Classic Literature

Q1  Little Women by Louisa May Alcott,

Q2 Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Q3  Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
Q4 Ivanhoe by Walter Scott

Shakespeare 

 Merchant of Venice

 Hamlet

Richard III

Resources:
Re-tellings of Shakespeare plays. Choose from:

 Shakespeare Stories by Leon Garfield

 Enchanted Island: Stories from Shakespeare by Ian Serraillier

Background reading:
          Starting Shakespeare by Eric Boagey

See our Shakespeare pages for notes on selected plays

 Poetry

 The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist: Logic Stage

plus an individual poet to be studied each term (TBA)

 

History

Ancient History

The Story of the World, History for the Classical Child, Edited by Susan Wise Bauer (Peace Hill Press)

 

1st Q: Ancient Egypt   

Chapters 1 – 13 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached.

2^ndQ: Ancient Egypt and Greece

Chapters 13-22 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached.

 

3^rd Q: Ancient Greece and Rome

Chapters 22-32 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached

 

4^th Q: Ancient Rome

Chapters 33-42 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached

 

 

Geography  (twice weekly)

Map Work

Maps Charts and Graphs Level D (Modern Curriculum Press)

Map work is included in our history lessons and maps of the ancient world will be studied.

Spend a short time each week locating places mentioned in reading for other subjects.

 

Earth Studies

Nature Study

 Take at least one nature walk each week.

 Keep a nature notebook

 
Resources

Keeping a Nature Journal by Claire Walker Leslie and Charles E.Roth

Wild Days: Creating Discovery Journals by Karen Rackliffe

Introduction to Nature Study by MacBeth Derham (website)

Optional Nature Reading

Insect Adventures by J.Henri Fabre

 

Science (twice weekly)

This is a continuation of last year’s study of nature and the creatures and plants that inhabit our earth.

God’s Marvelous Works Book 2 (Rod and Staff Publisher’s Inc.)
Q1: Algae and Fungi (lessons 1 – 6); Mammals (lessons 7 – 8)
Q2: Mammals (lessons 9 – 15)
Q3: Mammals (lessons 15 – 23)
Q4: Sponges, Mollusks, Sea Worms and Sea Jellies (lessons 24 -26); Amphibians (lessons 27 - 30)

Reference Book
Kingfisher Science Encyclopedia

Extra Resources

Lyrical Life Science Vol.1

Lyrical Life Science Vol.2

Catherine is enrolled in a homeschool science class at the Long Island Children’s Science Museum in Plandome from October to December.

Health
Health 6 (Seton Press)

Foreign Language (two or three times weekly)
Latin  (twice weekly)

Latina Christiana II by Cheryl Lowe (Memoria Press)
The Book of Roots by Paul O’Brien (Memoria Press)

Extra Resources

Little Latin Readers A&B by Julie Collorafi (Guadalupe Press)

Picture Study (weekly)

1st Year: Realism
Q 1: John-Francois Millet

Q 2: James McNeill Whistler

Q 3: John Singer Sargent

Q 4: Mary Cassatt

 

To accompany picture study we will use Discovering Great Artists: Hands-On Art for Children in the Styles of the Great Masters by Mary Ann Kohl.

 

 

Music Appreciation (weekly)

 Music Masters Set 3 (Handel, Beethoven, Wagner, Dvorak, Haydn, Vivaldi/Corelli).

Recommended Resource

Masters of Classical Music, Vols.1-10 (Box Set) – economical set of 10 CDs, each featuring works by a different composer. Ideal as follow up listening to the Music Masters CDs (includes Beethoven, Wagner and Vivaldi).

Catherine will be singing in a Schola (choir) once weekly.

 

Phys Ed.
Irish Step Dance twice weekly

CYO Basketball November to March

 

Catherine will be attending weekly citizenship club meetings.

 

Home Economics

Cook one dinner weekly

Bread baking

Basic sewing skills

Religion

New Testament (Weekly)

Read the entire Gospel of Matthew

Old Testament   (Twice Weekly)

Bible History by Ignatius Schuster (First Part)
     1st Year: Ch.1 to Ch.44

 Catechism  (Weekly)

 Read, narrate and discuss one lesson each week.

Faith and Life 6: Following Christ

     Q1: Chapters 1 to 8

     Q2: Chapters 9 to 16

     Q3: Chapters 17 to 25
 Q4: Chapters 26-31

Faith and Life Activity Book 6 

Baltimore Catechism No. 3 – read and narrate one lesson weekly.

 

Apologetics (Weekly)

Ist Year

 Prove It! God by Amy Welborn

 

Saints    (Free time reading)

One saint's biography each quarter from the Vision Books series.

 

First Grade Home Education Lesson Plans

That dreadful packet from the school district arrived last week. The one that is an inch thick requesting a pile of papers as my Individual Home Instruction Plan (IHIP).  Every year I hope as the deadline passes that they have forgotten about me and every year they send the request and give me a deadline to meet.  Funny considering how they don't meet their required deadlines.

While I hate having to fork over so much paperwork to the state it does force me to have a plan in place for each child and to think through how I want the year to progress.

So here is the plan for Kelli who is hitting the big time by starting first grade. Remember I am using the format of Mater Amabilis which keeps me sane.

Mathematics (Daily)
Modern Curriculum Press Math Book
Five minutes of daily drill in math facts.

Further Resources
Basic Facts Worksheet Factory - free downloadable software for creating worksheets to practice basic arithmetic facts.

Language Arts
Reading  (Daily)
Q1 – Q4 Modern Curriculum Press Phonics Level A
Faith and Freedom Readers: Here We Come, This is Our Family, These Are Our Friends
Reading for Comprehension Level A (Continental Press)

Writing (10 minutes daily)
Handwriting 1 for Young Catholics (Seton Press)

Copywork and Dictation (Daily)
Taken from Literature, Poetry or History Studies.

Literature

Tales (Weekly)
Read aloud one tale each week from any book(s) of your choice from the following list:
English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs
American Tall Tales by Mary Pope Osborne
The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
The Orchard Book of the Unicorn and Other Magical Animals by Margaret Mayo (and other books in the same series)

Fables (Weekly)
Aesop’s Fables with pictures by Milo Winter. Two fables weekly. Read aloud and narrate. These lend themselves particularly well to narration by drawing or by acting out the fable.

Classic Children’s Literature (Read alouds with mom)
Charlotte’s Web by E.B.White
Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner by A.A.Milne
The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting
Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard Atwater
Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling
The Borrowers by Mary Norton
James Herriot’s Treasury for Children by James Heriot
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

 Poetry  (Weekly)
 The Harp and the Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist.
 When We Were Very Young and Now We Are Six by A.A.Milne

History
American History (Twice weekly)
American History for Young Catholics (Seton Press)

Geography
Maps, Charts, Graphs A: The Places Around Me (1 Lesson Weekly)
Map work in conjunction with saints study (see below)

Nature Study/Science (Weekly)
(Kelli is enrolled in a science class at the Long Island Children’s Science Museum from October to December)

Take at least one nature walk each week.
Begin a nature notebook

Preliminary Reading List (see MacBeth's Nature Reading List )
Henry David’s House
Henry Hikes to Fitchburg
Henry Builds a Cabin
Louisa May and Mr. Thoreau’s Flute
When the Woods Hum
Fog in the Meadow
Fawn in the Grass
Each Living Thing
Wild Birds
Mockingbird Morning
(Weekly, 3rd and 4^th Q only)
Pagoo by Holling C.Holling. Read and narrate in sections of approximately three pages.

Music Appreciation  (Weekly)
 Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra by Benjamin Britten
Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saens
Peter and the Wolf by Prokofiev
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice by Paul Dukas

(Kelli will begin weekly music lessons as well)

 

Picture Study  (Weekly)
Come Look With Me Series by Gladys Blizzard
- Enjoying Art With Children
- Exploring Landscape Art With Children
- Animals in Art
- World of Play
These books include some background information together with some points to look for in each picture. Study one picture each week.

Art Activities
Painting, drawing, model magic and various arts and crafts

Religion
New Testament (Twice weekly)
New Catholic Picture Bible by Rev. Laurence G.Lovasik
    Q1 : Ch.1 to 18
 Q2 : Ch.19 to 36
    Q4 : Ch.37 to 54
 Q4 : Ch.55 to 74
Reference Materials
Children’s Bible Encyclopedia for background information, maps, and pictures of houses, clothing, every day items and locations.

Catechism (Weekly)
 Faith and Life 1: Our Heavenly Father Read, narrate and discuss one lesson each week. 
    Q1: Lessons 1 to 7
    Q 2: Lessons 8 to 14
    Q 3: Lessons 15 to 21
 Q 4: Lessons 22 to 28

  Faith and Life 1 Activity Book

Saints Study (twice weekly)
 Once Upon a Time Saints and More Once Upon a Time Saints by Edith Pochocki
    
*MAPWORK – find the location of each story on a world or European map. Mark it with a numbered sticker. Prepare a key matching each saint to his or her number

Lesson Planning

Well, I'm chugging along. I've managed to complete Erin's plan for the year, it still remains for me to write it out in her lesson book.

You didn't think I'd finish five of them in one weekend did you? 

The rest should go quicker because I finally got smart and started listening to those who know what they're doing and have decided to tandem teach history, science, music, art and Shakespeare making adjustments for the different age levels.  It sounds like it should work and it should definitely lighten my load. I'll let you know in a few months how it goes.

Here's what I have so far for Erin. For the benefit of the state I still have to add in health and a NY State study.  If the format looks familiar that's because I shamelessly lifted it from the Mater Amabilis wesite substituting my resources when necessary. It's a direct lift for Nature Study, Religion, Literature and Art. Hopefully Michele  will forgive me.  Sorry dear but it saved oodles of time.

I am still putting together booklists for history and I will likely revamp the literature list depending on her interest. When I get all of that straightened out I'll post them here on the sidebars.

Here we go...

Erin Grade 3

Religion

(1) New Testament (Weekly)

The First Christians by Marigold Hunt. Read and narrate one section each lesson.

Q1: Introduction; Ch.1 to 3

Q2: Ch.4 to 6

Q3: Ch.7 to 9
Q4: Ch. 10 to 12

(2) Saints (Twice weekly, Ordinary Time only)

57 Stories of Saints by Anne Heffernan   

Q1: 13 lessons, read and narrate

Q2: 13 lessons, read and narrate
Q3: 15 lessons, read and narrate

Q4: 15 lessons, read and narrate

 

Reading 

One saint’s biography to be assigned as independent reading each term.

(3) Catechism  (Weekly)
Faith and Life Series (pub. Ignatius Press). Read, narrate and discuss one lesson each week.
        Faith and Life 4
      

Extras

Faith and Life Activity Book 4.

 
Mathematics (Daily)

Modern Curriculum Press Mathematics D

 Five minutes of daily drill in math(s) facts, particularly multiplication tables.

Extra

Mathematical reading and activities from How Math Works by Carol Vorderman

English

(1) Reading

The books set for history, religion, geography, literature and science will be read by the child, either aloud to me or independently.

(2) Writing and Composition

(a) Copywork (10 minutes daily)

Copy two lines daily from favourite poems, prayers, Bible passages or the Shakespeare play being studied.
 

Resources

The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist

Shakespeare quotations suitable for copywork.
 

(b) Composition (Daily) Regular written narrations from books set for history, religion, geography, literature and science.
 

(3) Grammar / English Language (three times weekly)

English 4 for Young Catholics 2007 Edition (Seton Home Press)

Q 1: Drills 1-36

Q 2: Drills 36 -72

Q 3: Drills 73-108

Q 4: Drills 109-136

 

(4) Spelling

 My Catholic Speller Level C (For Little Folks Press)

 Q1: Weeks 1-9

 Q2: Weeks 10-18

 Q3: Weeks 19 – 27

 Q4 Weeks 28-36

(5) Studied Dictation (Twice weekly)

Short paragraphs or passages to be dictated from a section (two or three paragraphs) of a history, literature, geography or religion book that has been studied in advance.

 

(2) Reading List   

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls 

Swallows and Amazons and other books by Arthur Ransome

The Midnight Folk by John Masefield

The Hobbit by J.R.R.Tolkien

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell

The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

Anne of Green Gables by L.L.Montgomery

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

(3) Shakespeare (Weekly)

The Tempest; Macbeth; As You Like It
 Resources

Re-tellings of Shakespeare plays. Choose from:

Tales From Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare by E.Nesbit (available online at the Baldwin Project )
The Random House Book of Shakespeare Stories by Andrew Matthews

Books about Shakespeare.

William Shakespeare: His Work and His World by Michael Rosen
Bard of Avon: the Story of William Shakespeare by Diane Stanley

 

Books about plays and teaching notes:

 Shakespeare and MacBeth: the Story Behind the Play by Stewart Ross
        Shakespeare Made Easy:
                The Tempest; Macbeth

 Henry V; Julius Caesar; Twelfth Night

(4) Poetry

The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist: Grammatical Stage

Ancient History

The Story of the World, History for the Classical Child, Edited by Susan Wise Bauer (Peace Hill Press)

 

1st Q: Ancient Egypt   

Chapters 1 – 13 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached.

2^ndQ: Ancient Egypt and  Greece

Chapters 13-22 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached.

 

3^rd Q: Ancient Greece and Rome

Chapters 22-32 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached

 

4^th Q: Ancient Rome

Chapters 33-42 Each chapter includes Review Questions, Encyclopedia Work, Map work and additional reading. Reading List Attached

 

 

 

 Geography, Earth Studies and Science

 

 Map Work 

Maps Charts and Graphs Level D (Modern Curriculum Press)

Map work is included in our history lessons and maps of the ancient world will be studied.

Spend a short time each week locating places mentioned in reading for other subjects.

 

 Nature Study (Weekly)

(1) Take at least one nature walk each week.

(2) Keep a nature notebook

 

Resources

Keeping a Nature Journal by Claire Walker Leslie and Charles E.Roth

Wild Days: Creating Discovery Journals, by Karen Rackliffe

Introduction to Nature Study and Backyard Nature by MacBeth Derham (websites)

Wild Monthly online nature study newsletter, also by MacBeth Derham

Science (twice weekly)

1st Year: Science in Ancient Greece

Science in Ancient Greece (Kathlyn Gay)

Archimedes and the Door of Science by Jeanne Bendick

The Librarian Who Measured the Earth (Kathryn Lasky)

Home Science Adventures: Light

Home Science Adventures: Magnetism

Available from Emmanuel Books (US) and Ichthus Resources (UK). Kits include all equipment needed for experiments.

Simple Machines: Starting With Science (Adrienne Mason and Deborah Hodge)

 

Foreign Language

Latin 

Latina Christiana, Vol.1  (Memoria Press)

Q1: Lessons 1 – 5

Q2: Lessons 6 - 10

Q3: Lessons 11- 15

Q4: Lessons 16 - 20

Art  (Twice weekly)

Resources

Discovering Great Artists by Mary Ann Kohl and Kim Solga – lots of art projects in the style of great artists. All projects are given a rating for both difficulty and the amount of preparation required.

The Usborne Book of Art Skills by Fiona Watt – lots of simple but effective projects, using a variety of media.

 

Picture Study

Gothic and Renaissance Art

Q1: Giotto and Saint Fra Angelico

Q2: Leonardo da Vinci and Sandro Botticelli

Q3: Michelangelo Buenarotti

Q4: Raphael

Music Appreciation (weekly)

Classical Kids Series Vol. 1 & 2; Beethoven, Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart, Tchiakovsky, Bach

Weekly flute lessons

Lesson Planning

I need to get all my ducks in a row.  I'm still waiting for a few book orders to arrive but I think this weekend will be the big "sit down and get it all together" weekend.

I'll let you know how it goes.

What's been keeping me busy

I finally absorbed the concept that I can't keep track  of everything in my head. This was my solution. I made a list for each child of what books I needed to order and then I set up a big, ugly folding table right smack in the living room. Each child has a section and as the books come in I check it off on the list and stack them with the appropriate child's name. When everyone's pile is complete I will write out the lesson plans and then hand it all over to them.  This will hopefully avoid this mind numbing conversation I had with an anonymous child at the beginning of last school year.

Me:  "Take out your new math book."
Child: " I don't have a new math book."
Me: "What do you mean you don't have a new math book? What did you do with it?"
Child: "I never got one, you never gave me one."
Me: "Did you realize I forgot to get you a math book?"
Child: "Uh huh"
Me: "Why didn't you say something?"
Child: "I dunno."

By this time my hair was standing on end I was Googling Catholic boarding schools.  So this year I am hoping to avoid this situation. 

I purchased the lovely Student Planners from Michele and my plan was to have the older  children start taking more responsibility for their schedules and assignments. This will work fine for Katie and Erin but upon thinking it over I'm not sure Ryan is up to the task. I might make him a planner that is more specific to his needs. I'm still toying with that one.

I need to have this all done in the next few weeks since our construction is due to start in mid August and we have to move out for awhile. I want to just be able to pick up the books and go and not have to worry about planning in a new living situation.

I also have to finish writing my presentation for the Family-Centered Learning Conference.  I hope to see many of you there.  Alice is the featured speaker and her two talks promise to be wonderful. I am so fortunate as to be able to see Alice in action frequently and I have to tell you whatever you need to do to get to this conference will be worth it. You'll come away with a renewed sense of spirit and that "I can't wait to get started and do all of this cool stuff" feeling. Alice is enthusiasm and joy personified.

I am able to highly recommend Michele and Margot as speakers as well. Both are filled with practical advice and well as good humor and that easy going, I've done this and you can too" feeling. I so appreciate that camaraderie at home learning conferences. I need to feel like those speaking to me get where I am coming from and don't just want me to do it their way.

Does that make sense?

You know what I mean.

So I hope to see you all there, there will be a bunch of bloggers you all know and love attending and some really great vendors. Catholic Heritage Curricula is sending samples to view and offering a sweet deal to those who attend the conference. It will make the gas money worth spending.

Have a blessed day.