I would like to be a little more structured this year, and she's demonstrated through Cubbies, Sunday School, Children's Church that she is capable of sitting and listening when required. We have about three fourths of the second Horizons book to finish, mostly practice pages for writing letters and numbers and learning addition. I didn't want to buy another curriculum so a few months ago I asked my soon-to-be 4 year old what things she would like to learn. {this is one of the perks of homeschooling!} Her answers surprised me:
1. The world (geography)
2. Herself (anatomy)
3.Reading
Wow! I felt like my work was cut out for me! She also loves animals and animal facts. With this basic knowledge I was able to start planning out a rough draft of our year. Here's a step-by-step of what I did since we won't be using any one book/curriculum.
{Although I'm a planner I don't have the time to put together complete lesson plans for each day. I have given myself a basic outline of what subjects to do what day and what I would like her to learn in each subject, but that's as far as I'm breaking it down. If my daughter was older I would obviously be using more concrete books, materials and figuring out how many pages we needed to get through each day to finish in a year. Teaching a preschooler has more flexibility and I know the amount of detail I plan will increase each year as she moves along. Some of our days will depend on how Little Brother is doing too.}
This is where my planning started. Just some subject ideas for the year. Some (like months, holidays) I didn't feel needed year-long attention and we'll address them as events happen.
1. I went on Pinterest to see what activities, resources were available for these subjects. Some of what I found was WAY beyond what I could condense for a preschooler. But I found some great maps to print out, coloring pages for all 50 states with facts about each one, diagram of major bones in the body, the nervous system, and various recommendations for phonics help.
{I put what I wanted to use on its own board so I didn't have to remember where I saw all those helpful links. Check out my School Year 2015-16 board.}
2. I figured out what our weeks will look like. We added music lessons and co-op this year, both take place in the morning on different days. I don't want to force her to do school after already being busy all morning so I decided we would do school at home three days a week. I looked at what events I knew were on our calendar and chose my start and end date for both semesters.
{I should note: because my Little Learner is still in preschool, we don't have to conform to a set number of days/year according to our state. Once she starts first grade, that will change and we'll be required to be in school a set number of days per year with so many hours in each day. For now, I'm enjoying the freedom and not putting too much pressure on her or myself.}
I ended up with around 12 weeks per semester. Our co-op meets for ten weeks a semester so we'll go just a little beyond that.
3. I wrote out how I would break these subjects into two semesters and added math and writing practice. There are different thoughts on this point. Some suggested a full month of learning about one thing (like animals) then the next month do something else (geography). I didn't want her to become bored with one topic and I felt in a way they could overlap (what animals live in this country/state?). So I broke down the larger subjects into groups.
Animals - by animal group
Geography - by continent
States - by region (since we live in the US, I wanted to go more in depth than just North America)
Anatomy - by system
Math - addition, subtraction, money, time (we'll also keep practicing counting but she can already count over 50 so I'm not too worried)
Reading and Writing is just practice, practice
I did a separate page for each subject to keep track of everything. This is my geography page. I wrote out the continents and things to learn about each one (weather, food, animals, etc.). At the bottom of the page I listed books the library has that will be useful for this subject, just as a reminder to put them on hold as we need them.
Then I chose 2-3 of these groups to do a semester. And the numbers just worked out perfectly where we will do two subjects a day (for our three days at home) and end up covering each subject once a week.
So this is what we're planning to learn in each subject for the first semester. I have another page with the same subjects but different groups for second semester. We'll also be reviewing.
Our basic week: Tue-states, math Wed-geography, animals Fri-anatomy, phonics
We'll do reading, writing, and Bible things each day as time allows
4. Reading, reading, reading!! My Learner wants to read so much! She received many first readers for her birthday and she will sit and 'read' all afternoon. I'm planning to major on phonics one day a week with worksheets and activities but we'll be reading everyday. I took a poll from FB friends and found some great read-aloud chapter books we can incorporate. My library had all but two of the suggestions. :)
A list of easy-readers and chapter books. I indicated which ones we own and which ones the library has because, let's be honest, my memory isn't what it used to be!!
5. I started printing things off. Once I was sure the things I found on Pinterest were things I wanted to use, I set aside an evening (printing can take some time!) and just printed. Coloring pages, worksheets, games. I filed the papers into my binder with page protectors so I didn't have to punch holes in everything. I also separated it by semester and subject. Some things I went ahead and printed for the whole year (like all 50 states fact pages). Other things I just did what we would need for now. I'm also using flashcards from the dollar section at Target that I found about animals and states.
The binder!! This shows the state coloring/fact pages I printed on Crayola.com (which is an amazing site!! I'll be visiting often!). Then you can see my tabs for the other subjects, each with page protectors for any worksheets I print off. I have a tab at the back labeled (2nd Sem) for anything we'll be learning about after Christmas.
6. I compiled ideas for how I want to teach. We know people from all over the world. Many are missionaries our church supports. So under my geography tab, I started a running list of people we know in that continent/state and questions to email them. I also plan to put a world map on the wall so we can mark where each family is in reference to us.
That's where we are! I want to go on record as saying I'm way more prepared than I was last year. I learned a thing or two about expectations and how quickly time passes and that made me a little more on the ball going into this year. Did this take time? Yes, a few hours over several days because of kid interruptions. Will it be worth it once the school year starts? Absolutely! Any preparing I do now, I don't have to do later (profound, I know). And anything that helps the year run more smoothly is time well spent.
NOTE: Is homeschooling for everyone? I believe homeschooling is a choice and a personal preference. That said, I believe anyone with a little planning and thought has the tools to teach at home. I've found in talking with friends who homeschool, reading blogs, and my own experience, it is hard and there are days you wish you could just take the kids somewhere for someone else to teach!! But it is also a joy. Do I judge those who choose not to homeschool? Absolutely not, in no way, shape, or form. It's a personal choice based on what you feel is best for your family and how your child(ren) best learn. Sometimes the decision changes depending on where you are, your child(ren)'s ages, and the options available. My husband went to Christian school, public school (for certain subjects) and homeschool at different times. I was homeschooled until my sophomore year in high school when I went to a Christian school. My sister started out in public school but was homeschooled 2nd-12th grade. BUT I would encourage you to pray and evaluate your decision, not just assume homeschoolers are weird or awkward and you don't want to be that way. :) If you feel God wants you to do this, He will give the grace and strength and ability for you to do it. That's the only way I make it though everyday. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment