Showing posts with label Maths. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maths. Show all posts

Thursday, 1 July 2021

Math Resources for Home Education

Welcome to week 14 of  Blogging through the Alphabet 2021!I have had such a great week.  On Sunday Paul, Nathaniel and I had our  🇦🇺 Australian Citizenship conferred on us. Paul wrote a heartfelt poem about it that I shared on the blog on Monday. Today has been full as I've attended a Universtity Open Day as I'm trying to decide which degree to pursue.  

This week I am excited to share a little about Math Resources available for home educators and my co-host Desiree is sharing M is for Mindstorms.


I am always surprised by how the subject of math fills each of us with dread or fear and I often wondered why.  I don't struggle with math however I do have those anxious feelings whenever I think about math.  Over the years I've been curious about Math and teaching math and have done a little research.  

For me one of the defining moments of understanding teaching math came after I read the article History and Research on the Teaching of Math I highly recommend you read this article before you make a decision on your math curriculum.

Some interesting points I've discovered on the subject of teaching/learning math...

  • . . . early childhood may simply be an inefficient period in which to try to teach skills that can be relatively quickly learned in adolescence.  (Prime Time for Education: Early Childhood or Adolescence ? by W.D.Rohwer, Jr)
  • Mathematics in every form is a subject ill-fitted to the child mind. It deals not with real things, but with abstractions. When referred to concrete objects, it concerns not the objects themselves, but their relations to each other. It involves comparison, analysis, abstraction . . . (Cyclopedia of Education p.208 William H Burnham)
  • . . . successful school achievement in areas requiring use of concepts - such as numbers, classes, and spatial and causal relationships - correlated highly with mental age. Developing these concepts was especially associated with success in arithmetic, problem solving, and spelling. (Feyberg)
Over the years I've shared multiple thoughts on teaching/learning math, you can read more in depth about it here...

Scope and Sequence
When looking at changing math programs remember to take  scope and sequence into account.

  • Scope refers to the content.  In other words these are the topics covered (A to Z)
  • Sequence is the order in which the scope is taught (IE the order in which things are covered within the program)
It is important to know this about your math product or you might end up redoing math your child is already familiar with or you might end up skipping a whole lot of important content that your child needs in order to succeed at math.

Programs I've reviewed

I asked a few homeschool groups online to find out what my friends are using to teach Math and these are the ones they listed: 

Math Programs

 Pinterest

TED talks on math
I have enjoyed TED talks on the subject of math. They have helped me think through my preconceived ideas on teaching and learning math.

What are you using to teach math in your homeschool?

Blessings 

Chareen

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

  1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
  2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
  3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
  4. Delight Directed Education
  5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
  6. For the Children's Sake  
  7. G is for Geography
  8. Homeschool Bloggers  
  9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
  10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
  11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
  12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
  13. Math Resource for Home Education

Featured from Week 10 all things 'K'

 This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is M is for Mindstorms. 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter M for this weeks ABC Blogging

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Tuesday, 4 July 2017

LOGICO Learning Game Review

This morning I'm very excited to share about a new learning game which we've been using.   The LOGICO Learning System is now available in Australia.  Nathaniel has been given two of the LOGICO Piccolo sets to trial for our review.



What we received
  • LOGICO Piccolo - The board is made of durable plastic with ten movable pegs. The pegs are coloured: green, red, blue, orange, yellow and a second set with a white dot in the center. The board is user friendly and compact.  It has no loose parts, is portable (about the size of an iPad) and can be used on the go. The buttons are made of a durable material and are easy to grip and move.
  • Geometry 2 - This set contains 16 cards covering: left and right orientation, mapping skills, comprehension, symmetry, spacial relations, logical thinking and imagination skills.
  • Math Paths 2 - This set contains 16 cards covering: addition and subtraction up to 20, mental arithmetic (addition and subtraction), problem solving strategies and comprehension skills.
About the Card Collections
  • Each of the card sets come in a  plastic coated cardboard folder. 
  • The right inside flap has a contents list, listing each card and it's subject matter.
  • The right hand side contains a pocket for the cards to be stored in and the right hand flap has a pictorial guide on how to use the cards.
  • Each card is numbered from 1 to 16. Each one is printed in colour on quality card stock and plastic coated for durability and ease of keeping clean. 
  • The cards are clearly printed and visually appealing.  They are not busy and the use of colour enhances the experience. 
  • As the difficulty level increases so does the amount of text increase per card.
Working on a problem


  • Visual Discrimination
  • Logical Thinking and Reasoning
  • Spatial and Geometrical skills
  • Mathematical concepts and operations
  • Literacy development
  • Problem Solving
  • Independent learning 
  • Self Confidence

How does the system work?
LOGICO Piccolo is an educational hands on game for children in the primary school age bracket.
Before beginning a new card all the pegs need to be placed along the bottom edge in their slots.  Select a card from which ever set you are working on and slide it into the card slot in the Piccolo Board. The instructions for completing the task are contained in the yellow bar along the top of each card. Each question is colour coded to correspond with a peg.  Once the student/child has worked out the answer they move the answer peg to the corresponding answer along the right hand edge.  Upon completing the ten questions the card is removed from the slot, turned over and reinserted to check the answers.

    You can view a short YouTube clip on how Logico works here: YouTube  LOGICO

    Products Currently Available in Australia
    • LOGICO Primo (board with 6 moveable buttons for pre-school ages 3 - 5)
      • Concentration & perception
      • Logical thinking
      • Colours & Shapes
      • Numeracy
      • Reading Readiness
      • Sequencing
      • Sorting and classifying
      • Language development
    • LOGICO Piccolo (board with 10 moveable buttons for primary school ages 5 - 10)
      • School Readiness
      • Reading Readiness
      • Mathematics
      • Reading
      • Literacy
      • Natural Science
    LOGICO has been translated into 24 languages and is available in over 40 countries.

    Purchase LOGICO 

    Checking the Answers

    Mission Statement
    Play, learn and grow together!
    Play is joyful, educational, creative and inspiring.
    Our educational toys are creative, innovative and imaginative. We believe in the power of play.
    Awards
    • 1996 WORLDDIDAC Award
    • 2000 Netherlands Game of the Year award
    • 2001 is recommended by the Pedagogical University of Lisbon, Portugal.
    • 2005 USA Distinguished Achievement Award
    • 2006 USA Teachers’ Choice Award
    • 2006 Poland “Innovative Product” award
    • 2007 Star Award for Design by the China Toy Association 
     Connect with LOGICO
    Overall I thought
    When  LOGICO Piccolo arrived I was taken back to my childhood of quality hands on learning that is robust enough for children to use without me worrying about.  I couldn't wait for Nathaniel to use it.  I'm impressed with the quality and simplicity of the system.  I love that the learning cards are categorised into different topics across the curriculum.

    LOGICO fulfills its mission to assist children in developing observation, comparison, analysis and reasoning skills.  It is ideal for independent learning skill/task development.  It is portable and can be used when hands and minds need quiet activities.  I love the self-checking aspect of the system as it means that I am not constantly needed to check the answers before Nathaniel can go onto the next card he can do it all himself.

    LOGICO learning is the perfect tool to enhance and support your child's learning.

    Be sure to check the full range of cards and let me know what your children think of their LOGICO experience.

    Chareen

     

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    Wednesday, 8 February 2017

    Times Alive {Review}

    Math was my favourite subject in High School and not so much in Primary School.  Why? Well I hated memory work especially because I could not grasp why I should learn my multiplication tables.  I could add up faster than my friends and get to the correct answer faster than they could do the test knowing their facts. Did you know that only 62% of multiplication facts are retained after one week of route memorization?  Learning multiplication facts has been painfully slow for us so when we were offered Times Alive by Times Tables the Fun Way we jumped at the opportunity to trial it and see whether it would unlock our multiplication facts.



    What we received
    Instant Times Alive Software - Monthly Subscription Online Version access for three months. The online version consists of 18 lessons.

    How we used it
    Once we signed up it was an easy process of logging in at the portal. Once you log in the first step is to do an evaluation test.  The test measures accuracy and speed and gives you your accuracy in percentage. All the tests are self marking and correcting.


     Navigation is simple you have a back and forward button.

    The progress report is a single page giving you the type of lesson completed (movie, song, paint, quiz or test), the section with a lesson description, the fact learned, date completed, percentage score and time taken.

     Here is a sample test after watching four lessons once each.  As you can see there was a HUGE improvement after only four lessons.

    The lesson list shows you at a glance where the student is.  You can see which lessons have been completed, which ones have been viewed as well as which facts have been covered in each lesson.  There are a total of 18 lessons to work through. We used Times Alive for a lesson a day.  We have not repeated any lessons and all the facts have been retained with a gentle reminder for each story.

    Each lesson contains a story which is presented via a picture animation followed by a song reinforcing the fact learned in the story.  This is then followed by a game or an activity such as coloring on screen the picture associated with the story. You can watch a sample lesson on YouTube here: Times Alive 6 x 6



    For the Parent
    In order to use the online version you will need a computer and internet connection.  The software works on all operating systems. You will need a minimum of the following computer specs:
    • 400 mhz or greater
    • 128 MB of RAM or greater
    • Speakers
    • Mouse or other pointing device
    • Video at 1024x768 or higher
    Times Alive does work on an iPad providing you use a Flash app.

    Connect with Times Alive

    Facebook YouTube

    Over All I thought ...
    We're both impressed with the effectiveness and simplicity of the Times Alive  program.  I have learned some of the multiplication facts I have struggled with my entire life in less than a week. Times Alive is available for purchase from City Creek Press here.

    Blessings
    Chareen




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    Thursday, 26 May 2016

    Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Multiplying & Dividing {Sunya Publishing Review}

    In the last few weeks I've shifted our focus in our homeschool to memory work.  When I first started home educating in New Zealand my mentor consistently encouraged us all to start our morning off with chanting the times tables lists. So for the last few weeks Nathaniel has been practicing his math facts before settling in to do his written work.  I really wanted to do something different in testing his math fact knowledge.  To help Nathaniel evaluate where he is at in his memory work we have been playing Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Multiplying & Dividing from Sunya Publishing.



    What we received
    • Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Adding & Subtracting
      • Teacher / Parent hand book (25 pages) - Introduction to the numeral system, Basic game instructions, Game II instructions, Game III instructions, Math activities for young students, Facts and Riddles.
      • Number line tool
      • 30 Math and Science Riddle Cards*
      • 60 Sunya playing cards*
    • Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Multiplying & Dividing
      • Teacher / Parent hand book (25 pages) - Instructions for playing the basic game, Game number II, Solitaire, Team Sunya, Sunya 400, a brief history of Sunya and math, math quotes.
      • Number line tool
      • 30 Math and Science Riddle Cards*
      • 60 Sunya playing cards*
    *The cards are printed on card stock with a plastic coating. The size of each card is 57 mm by 89 mm. The numerical cards have each number printed in the center with the corresponding number of dots representing the numerical value below the number.  The riddle cards have the answer to each riddle printed on the same card.

    How we used it
    The very first thing I wanted to know is what does Sunya mean and how do I say it ? Sunya® (the "u" pronounced as the "oo" in the word "book") is a word from Sanskrit, the ancient and classical language of India. It means being empty or without quantity.   You win a round when you run out of cards to play in your hand and declare out loud Sunya meaning "I am out of cards."

    I chose to focus on the multiplying and dividing game as this is the fact set we are currently working on.  I read the instructions a couple of times to figure out the basic game.



    • In the basic game each player receives four cards to begin. 
    • Your job is to make a true number sentence. 
    • The times and equal sign is placed on the table. 
    • There are a number of rules on how to make subsequent plays and when to draw cards and what to do with the cards which are already on the table.

    The winner of a round gets to read a riddle card.
     We have not progressed to the more complex variations of the game as Nathaniel is still learning his multiplication facts.

    The division game, addition and subtraction basic game works on the same principle.

    Recommended Age Range
    • Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Adding & Subtracting is recommended for ages 7 to Adult (1-5 Players) In the game addition goes up to 9+9=18 and subtraction goes up to 18-9=9.
    • Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Multiplying & Dividing is recommended for ages 9 to Adult (1-5 Players) In the game multiplication goes up to 9x9=81 and division goes up to 81/9=9.

    Over All I thought ...
    One of the things I've enjoyed about the game is the recommendation to begin with all the players cards on the table and to help one another.  Success builds success and enjoyment. It's been fun for me to play as it's helping me brush up on my logic and math facts ...


    Blessings
    Chareen

    Please note:

    Sunya Publishing is a brand new company and this product is newly on the market. The website is currently under construction and purchasing options will be available within the next week. I will update this post with links to the individual product pages when they become available. 

    Click to read Crew Reviews
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    Wednesday, 26 August 2015

    Math, Science, Biology and History in the High School Years

    Welcome to the third edition of this years Homeschool High School Blog Hop. This months topic covers a wide variety of subjects.

    We will be looking at Math, Science, Biology and History. I have shared in depth on these topics here over the years so I will be sharing a short introduction to each subject area and linking to my other posts where you will be able to read more about my in depth thoughts on the particular topic at hand.

    I will also share some links to FREE curriculum you can access from around the web and links to my posts introducing curriculum from around the web to get you started on your research.

    One of the things I realise now in retrospect is that you do not need to change the way you teach when you reach the high school years.  I was under the impression that I needed to change a whole heap of things because my students were now home schoolers and this in turn caused my children stress as well as myself.  Enjoy the journey and allow your students to set the pace for the change.  As they grow and change so will your methods and requirements slowly change along with your relationship.  It is far easier on you and your student to allow this change to naturally occur.

    Things to consider before the high school years
    • Research your options while they are in the primary school years so that you have a clear pathway before you.  The high school years arrive far quicker than you realise.  Use the first four to five years of homeschool to research your options and plan ahead.  Without a plan you will end up floundering.
    • Be clear on your expectations. This is imperative for both you and your student. It's important to know what you want completed in order to graduate from high school at home.
    • Have an understanding of the level of maths required to tackle different areas in the high school sciences.
    • Research and save for more expensive items such as a microscope.  Do you have to have a microscope ?  No but it is a great hands on learning tool that makes the sciences come alive in your home.
    • Find out where to purchase the items you need to do the practical labs.
    • Consider the scope and sequence before changing curriculum or you might end up repeating what you have already done.
    • Get to know your student and what their long term study goals are and work towards those. Make it a priority to achieve what they need to accomplish their tertiary goals in the science arena. 
    • Research your State/Country requirement for graduating High School.
     


    Math in High School

    One of the things I insisted on my children completing was math up to the level of Algebra 1 and Geometry. Needless to say this was one of their biggest complaints!  Why do we have to do that Mom? was a question often heard in our home during the high school years. Math is a subject that is imperative in helping our students develop higher order thinking. 

    Math seems to be one of those topics within the homeschool environment that often comes up in conversation. As homeschooling parents we need to be-careful that we do not transmit our personal negative experience of math at school onto our children.  During our high school years I came to realize this with my first two children that as long as we moved at their pace they were able to easily learn what I found to be difficult at school.

    In our home I chose to use  Teaching Textbooks during the high school years. It's like having a personal tutor on call 24/7! We would work through the lesson in the book. Answer the questions. Pop in the disk and watch the tutor teach the specific sums we got wrong. I like the fact that they don't assume you know the steps. The tutor breaks down the sum into step by step and explains each step as they go through the complete sum.  

     Before we transitioned to TT we used to call on a friend who was a high school math teacher to help us with any sums we became stuck with.

    Here on the blog I've shared

    For me one of the defining moments of understanding teaching math came after I read the article History and Research on the Teaching of Math I highly recommend you read this article before you make a decision on your math curriculum.

    Scope and Sequence
    When looking at changing math programs remember to take  scope and sequence into account.

    • Scope refers to the content.  In other words these are the topics covered (A to Z)
    • Sequence is the order in which the scope is taught (IE the order in which things are covered within the program)
    It is important to know this about your math product or you might end up redoing math your child is already familiar with or you might end up skipping a whole lot of important content that your child needs in order to succeed at math.


    Resources
    Please go to my Math Curriculum page for a full page of links to resources.
    Here are a few links to get you started.

    Pinterest


    Science & Biology in High School

    "Can I teach high school science?  NO. As your student gets older, your role changes from teacher to fellow learner." Dr. Jay L. Wile
    Define: Science

    • The word science comes from the Latin "scientia," meaning knowledge especially knowledge based on reproducible data.
    • Science is the systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation. 
    From this definition we can see that science is not solely about science labs and microscopes, formulas and chemicals it's all about the world around us. The sciences need not fill you with fear the high school years can be a wonderful time of learning alongside your students and discovering amazing things together.

      Here on the blog I've shared
    Resources
    Please go to my Science Curriculum page for a full page of links to resources.
    Here are a few links to get you started.



    History in High School

    The story of life is one of my passions.  I loved history in high school and I've grown to love it even more especially after studying it for two years chronologically with Timothy and Jane in junior high.  In fact I loved the experience so much I am doing it for a second time with Nathaniel now and am planning a third trip through with more of a Charlotte Mason focus when he is in High School.

    his·to·ry noun \ˈhis-t(É™-)rÄ“\

    1. tale, story 
    2. a : a chronological record of significant events (as affecting a nation or institution) often including an explanation of their causes
      b : a treatise presenting systematically related natural phenomena
      c : an account of a patient's medical background
      d : an established record  
    3. a branch of knowledge that records and explains past events
    Studying history in the high school years is an adventure in itself.  Students ask interesting questions and it's a time for deeper understanding.  It's a marvelous time for digging deeper and comparing notes and seeing the cause and effect more clearly of the different things that are happening concurrently in the world.

    There is no need to change the method you use to teach history.  Keep using whatever is working well for you.  Once again watch for the scope and sequence if you want to change curriculum.  The source texts become a little more complex but generally speaking history is an adventure in discovery!


    Here on the blog I've shared
    Resources
    Please go to my History Curriculum page for a full page of links to resources.
    Here are a few links to get you started.

    Home School High School Hosts Share this Month:

    Home School High School Topics

    Over the next seven months we will be sharing some insights into the following aspects of home educating through the high school years
    • Planning for High School {How and When,ways to/how we're planning to earn college credit while still in high school, Meeting High School Requirements, how to assign credit when there aren't tests, What records do you keep? How do you present them? What influences your method, your emphasis in certain areas?}
    • Electives in the High School Years {Following Passions, following interests, fitting a job in with school, and Being intentional in Preparing for what comes after high school, Life skills.}
    • Math, Science, Biology, History {What do you use ? Why do you use ... ? What influences your choices/selection? }
    • 30 September - Language Arts {Poetry, Literature, Composition, writing, What influenced your choices/selection?}
    • 28 October - "How am I going to teach High School ...?" {Addressing the fear factor of teaching subjects we struggle with or know nothing about, How to achieve credit in subjects your student *hates*}
    • 25 November - How do you fit it all in ? {homeschooling high school alongside homeschooling the others, Fostering Independence, Do you generalise or specialise? Schedules,}
    • 30 December - Graduation { Fostering Independence, How do you know when they are done ?}
    Until next month.  Happy blog hopping
    Blessings
    Chareen

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    Tuesday, 5 May 2015

    A Plus Interactive Math Adaptive Placement Test and Individualized Lesson Plan {Review}

    We first used A+ Interactive MATH Grade One two years ago and enjoyed our journey with A+ Interactive Math so much that when I heard about their all new Adaptive Placement Test and Individualized Lesson Plan I was very keen to let Nathaniel use it. This math software specializes in identifying and closing learning gaps in math.  Once the need has been established via placement testing it generates an individualized lesson plan for the student addressing the learning gaps identified. A+ uses multi-sensory presentations to teach math.


    A+ Interactive Math specialize in interactive Math Curriculum. They have lesson plans, automatic grading, interactive teaching, math worksheets, math review lessons, math tests and a full math curriculum covering Elementary to Algebra 1 math.


    What we received
    • A three month online subscription to A Plus Interactive Math Adaptive Placement Test and Individualized Lesson Plan for one student.
    How we used it
    Logging into A+ Interactive Math is super easy via their Homeschool Online Log in page. Our account from two years ago was still valid so we used that.

    Getting started was really easy via their student dashboard.  The tutorials were easy to follow.  We jumped right in with taking an Adaptive Placement Test.

    • The test is run via a number of multiple choice questions.  
    • The top right has two clocks.  The top one shows the student how much time they have available for the whole test.
    • The second clock shows how much time has been allotted for the question you are currently working on.
    • The student has the option of skipping a question, clearing the answer or selecting an answer and clicking Save and Next.

    Upon completing a test you are given immediate feedback of their results.
    They can see
    • the total number of questions presented to them, the number of questions they correctly answered, they got incorrect and how many they did not even attempt.
    • A pie chart showing their results in percentage
    • A speech bubble explaining their results.
    From here they return back to the dashboard in order to access their lesson plans. The lesson plan is auto-generated and based on their test results.

    The individualized lesson plan has two areas: Multimedia Lesson with interactive Q & A and a Practice with Online Worksheets area.

     The lessons are arranged by concept being learned and in each concept folder is the lesson.  When you click on the lesson a short interactive lesson will play followed by an interactive Q & A to reinforce the lesson.

    Once the student has completed their lesson plan they then retake the test. If they pass the test they will get the following report congratulating them on achieving a successful completion of the concepts presented.



    They also receive a Completion certificate to print



    They are also able to access a progress report


    And a Summary Report 


    Parent Log in
    In the parent log in you are able to
    • manage all your student accounts 
    • view each students individual Progress Tracking. 
    • View individual student lessons and worksheets
    • View Student lesson plans
    • View Student Reports
    • Change Grade Levels
    • Add Students

    Cost of Adaptive Placement Test & Lesson Plans
    • You can purchase a 3 month access plan for between 1 and 10 students here. Prices range between $29.99 for 1 student and $184.99 for 10 students.
    • You can purchase a full placement test on it's own here
    • For a limited time A Plus Interactive Math is offering a 50% to 71% on their Family Math Packages and Adaptive Placement Test w/ Lessons programs

    Recommended Age Range
    • Elementary to Algebra 1

    Connect with A Plus Interactive Math

    Facebook Google+ Pinterest Twitter

    Read More about A Plus
    One of the things I appreciate about A+ is the ability for my student to monitor and see their own progress.
    As a parent I can access ALL the math and reporting for each student from one dashboard.

    If you are looking for a program to help your student bridge any gaps they currently have in their math I highly recommend you take a look at  A Plus Interactive Math Adaptive Placement Test and Individualized Lesson Plan

    Blessings
    Chareen



    Click to read Crew Reviews
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    Monday, 9 February 2015

    Year 4 Curriculum {NBTS}


    It's week 2 of the Not Back to School blog hop being hosted here and at Our Worldwide Classroom.  This week we are sharing our proposed curriculum for 2015.  Don't forget to meet some of our amazing homeschool blogging families in Australia.

    Our plan is to take 12 - 18 months with the following books.

    Sonlight Core B

    This year my aim with Nathaniel is to add in some more Charlotte Mason educational principles.  This is a learning journey for both of us as in the past I have followed Sonlight and the Well Trained Mind.  I really enjoy teaching / learning history chronologically so my aim is to complete Sonlight Core B this year and flow into Core C.


    Readers
    Read Alouds
    Last year we did not get to most of our read alouds due to taking the scenic route and reading aloud a whole raft of other books so this year we plan on doing two read aloud periods a day.  In the morning doing Core B and afternoon Core C


     Fine Arts
    • We will continue using The World's Greatest Composers by Confessions of a Homeschooler.
    • The Classical Kids Collection Vol 1 & 2. These are produced by The Children's Group and cover the lives of eight famous composers.
    • Classical Composers Monthly as a supplement to whichever composer we are studying.
    • We will continue with The World's Greatest Artists Vol 1.  We have already studied Claude Monet {FREE Resource List} and will continue and learn about the other seven artists in the unit.
    • We did Shipwrecked earlier in the year and really enjoyed it so we will work our way through Bible Stories by See the Light
    • In an ideal world I would love to do some Hymn study too.  I have not settled on anything.  I think we might alternate Composer Study with Hymn Study.
    • We will be meeting up with a family each week where we will continue to learn to play the recorder as well as work our way through drawing lessons from the Drawing Textbook.
    • I am also in the process of reseaching the Charlotte Mason philosophy on the Fine Arts.
    • This year we also intend on attending a few MSO concerts and a ballet concert.
    Sonlight Core C

    History
    This year we will continue reading Story of The World Volume One and using the Activity Guide which goes alongside it.  Core B and C also do History chronologically so I will be consulting my manuals and using the recommended read alouds and spines from Sonlight.

    Geography
     I haven't decided yet upon a resource to use.  Here are a few I'm contemplating using

     I think we may continue using Expedition Earth: A Journey through God's World.

    I would like to also complete  Trail Guide to World Geography  This particular package is my all time favourite.

    I saw a review on Wonder Maps and really like the look of this program.  Have any of you used it or seen it ?

    Math


    Logic

    Science

    For science we will choose books from our very well stocked home library this year and will be working through Exploring Creation with Astronomy from Apologia.  We will be using the Astronomy Junior Notebooking Journal.  Once we have completed this we will begin Exploring Creation with Botany.

    For hands on Science we shall continue with Science Activities, Vol. 1 
    Language Arts
    Composition
    We will be continuing with WriteShop Primary this year.  This program is an excellent way to introduce composition to reluctant writers and primary school aged students.



    Spelling
    Last year I began using Logic of English with Sir N and was really impressed with his progress.  This year we will continue our lessons with the goal of completing the program.


    Vocabulary
    This is not synonymous with spelling. We will continue to work though Spelling Workout starting with book B this year. I am also compiling a list of classical books we will be using as read alouds throughout the year ahead.

    Grammar
    I haven't yet settled on a grammar program.  I have two books I'm considering.  The first being English for The Thoughtful Child by Mary Hyde OR Karen Andreola's Simply Grammar: An Illustrated Primer.

    Narration
    This is something I want to focus more on this year with Sir N.  There are so many incredible benefits to the student in developing this skill.

    Second Language
    This year we will begin studying two other languages: Latin and French
    For Latin I will be using two programs Prima Latina and  Getting Started with Latin
    For French we will begin using  Rosetta Stone

    No doubt due to our eclectic tendencies and as I learn more about applying a Charlotte Mason approach to our home education this will change.  I will update this list as I make changes to suit our learning.

    Blessings
    Chareen
    This list is current as of 9 February 2015


    It's your turn.
    Looking forward to reading your plans for the year ahead.
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