| Author | |
time4tea
Forum All-Star
Joined: June 02 2005
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 511
|
| Posted: May 11 2011 at 11:07am | IP Logged
|
 |
|
Becky and All,
I wanted to add that when we began homeschooling, in the Fall of 2001, I was teaching our two oldest dc and one was in 3rd grade and the other in 1st. We enrolled with Calvert School that first year, and I thought that the program - at that time, anyway - was very gentle as well as being child and mom/teacher friendly. My younger ds in 1st learned to read using Calvert materials (they were not expected to be reading when they entered 1st grade) and we had no problems. However, I cannot imagine trying to push this dc to read as a Kindergartener - and I had been told in the Spring of his K year by the reading specialist at the public school where he attended K that he was one of only a handful of students in the Kindergarten at that school that she thought would be able to succeed with reading in the first quarter of 1st grade. Now that tells me that even in the opinion of a reading specialist, most students are not going to be ready to read as young 1st graders. There will be exceptions, of course, as there always are, but to *expect* all students to fit that mold is probably asking too much.
I like a gentle approach to K-2. I think it makes sense, and allows a young student to develop emerging skills without feeling pressured. But it seems as if the general trend in education is moving away from that to a more accelerated approach, and to some extent it is having an impact on homeschooling materials as well.
__________________
Blessings to you!
~Tea
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Stacy Y
Forum Newbie
Joined: April 24 2009
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 31
|
| Posted: May 11 2011 at 5:04pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
mommy4ever wrote:
Also the comment about reading fluency, Stacy, could you elaborate? |
|
|
I think everyone has pretty much covered this! The early years of CHC lesson plans are about a year AHEAD of where I found my kid's ability level to be on the reading. Everything else has been very LIGHT! But I have never, ever been dissapointed with anything I bought from them. Even though I find the grade levels on thier products to vary greatly with my kid's abilities, they are of the highest quality and have reinforced our faith in such a wonderful way. CHC puts the "fun" into our homeschool, since Seton is mainly a worksheet factory in the younger years 
Part of the problem as to what to expect from a K is also what you consider a child in K to look like. In my house, I have started each of my oldest three in K at 4.5 yrs old. They were more than capable of sitting still and doing about 45-60 min of "school" and the rest being fun activities/crafts. They actually seem to thrive on the structure, even at this young age. But at my local school, most start K at 6.5yrs old. There is a HUGE difference in what should be expected, and I think lesson plans are trying to cater to the older K student, since parents are keeping them home longer to avoid the "full day kindergarten" at 4-5 yrs old.
My 2nd grade (8yrs) daughter basically started the year with LSLF, (CHC would have her placed in K at this reading level) and CLAA petty school reading. She was still struggling through the pink level one readers. Within 6 months, she is reading everything in sight, Betsy Tacy, Little House Books, Vision Books- nothing is off limits. It "clicked" as everyone says. She is now plowing through 3rd grade at a speedy pace.
However, it would have been a shame for me to hold her back YEARS in school when she was perfectly capable of understanding every assignment if I would simply read it outloud to her. I didn't push her, if it was too hard then I would read it. I have done the same with her brother, reading outloud any assignment that is too much, and I am happy with his progress.Hope this helps! Stacy
__________________
Mom to 4 boys, 2 girls, and baby due this fall
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
leanne maree
Forum All-Star
Joined: July 25 2008
Location: Australia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 508
|
| Posted: May 11 2011 at 6:22pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
You have all been very thorough.
We have only one homeschooling now.
We are in yr 7 in Australia.
We usually use between yr7 & 8 material.
I love Seton CHC and use lots of reading material from mater amabilis
religion -apart from living the liturgical year and creating our own traditions, we choose a spine for the year. This year we are using Setons new "Witness to the Faith"- it replaces Story of the Church.
Saint stories are big here.
We have implemented IEW into our schooling and this frees us up quite a bit with English.
We are using Imitating through Poetry, this year and will study Shakespeare in a month or two.
Maths has been Saxon. It just works for us.
History -We are using living books. Famous Men of the Middle ages and A Catholic Legacy- its a Seton yr6 workbook, but we extend on it.
Goegraphy. We have used vrious different ways to implement geography
We are using World Physical Geography. Its right up dds alley.
Nature study- an aussie book called Banksias & bilbies
CHC- all things girls and there books on sewing and tea with the Saints.
Science well that changes, but this year we are using setons science 7 and supplementing with experiments from various sources to highlight Physics.
We will start a The Yearling and using a study guide.
Thats about it for us
Leanne
__________________
God is Love
Leanne
Loving wife to Dermot and Adoring mother to Louise, Kristie, Kieran & Brid
http://leannemaree.blogspot.com/
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
time4tea
Forum All-Star
Joined: June 02 2005
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 511
|
| Posted: May 11 2011 at 6:56pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Stacy Y wrote:
| But at my local school, most start K at 6.5yrs old. Stacy |
|
|
Really??? The public schools here in our state require that a child must be 5 years old by Sept. 1st of the year he/she begins Kindergarten.
__________________
Blessings to you!
~Tea
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
mommy4ever
Forum All-Star
Joined: April 08 2011
Location: Canada
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 596
|
| Posted: May 11 2011 at 7:19pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Here it's March 1st of the current school year. So for this fall, children must be turning 5 by March 1st, 2012 to enter K.
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Stacy Y
Forum Newbie
Joined: April 24 2009
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 31
|
| Posted: May 11 2011 at 9:16pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
time4tea wrote:
Really??? The public schools here in our state require that a child must be 5 years old by Sept. 1st of the year he/she begins Kindergarten. |
|
|
All the mom's hold the kids back. Especially the boys.
__________________
Mom to 4 boys, 2 girls, and baby due this fall
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
SeaStar
Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 16 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 9068
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 11:40am | IP Logged
|
|
|
That does seem crazy to start kids in k so young!
Years ago my mom worked as a school secretary in an elementary school where the principal was very concerned about the young age of kindergarteners. Many were floundering.
To help them, she devised a three year K/1 program. The first year the children did strictly K work. The second year they did K work in the morning and some first grade work in the afternoon. The third year the kids did all first grade work. It was an optional program and worked beautifully. The kids had the advantage of an extra year to do the work and at the same time the challenge grew gradually. Also, there was not the stigma of repeating K or being "held back". That pleased the parents.
I am using a similar approach for my dd, who has a late August birthday.
Last year she did K work. This year she is doing K/1, and I have told her that next year will be "all first grade". She is very content with that, and it
has given me a sense of peace. Although she is doing well overall with school, especially reading, her interest in math is scant and her overall maturity level is very young. Some days she wants to work hard, and some days she just wants to color. Next year she will be a solid first grader and happy instead of being a struggling second grader 
__________________
Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
mommy4ever
Forum All-Star
Joined: April 08 2011
Location: Canada
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 596
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 11:47am | IP Logged
|
|
|
Melinda, that was a very innovative approach!
My dd was in K and grade 1 in a school. We pulled her out last April, and looking at her work, she was being left behind. Even though she was a "B" student on her report card, she was actually failing everything. We pulled her out suddenly, walked in a took all her books and her out, so there was no time for the teacher to cull through. Marks were 2/30, 3/25 etc.
So last April, we started from the beginning. We did phonics, basic math. And she THRIVED. In some areas she has surpassed her school peers, but is behind in other areas, but it's all good, she's learning to tools of learning. She is my strongest reader. When people see her with chapter books, they snicker, thinking she's pretending. Then she'll read a passage aloud, and they are floored. She reads with fluency and expression.  Those people no longer hassle me about homeschooling.
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Mimip
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 17 2009
Location: Florida
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1526
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 2:48pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
SeaStar wrote:
That does seem crazy to start kids in k so young!
Years ago my mom worked as a school secretary in an elementary school where the principal was very concerned about the young age of kindergarteners. Many were floundering.
To help them, she devised a three year K/1 program. The first year the children did strictly K work. The second year they did K work in the morning and some first grade work in the afternoon. The third year the kids did all first grade work. It was an optional program and worked beautifully. The kids had the advantage of an extra year to do the work and at the same time the challenge grew gradually. Also, there was not the stigma of repeating K or being "held back". That pleased the parents.
|
|
|
This is actually what I am doing with my 8 year old for 2/3rd grade. Last year she did strictly 2nd, this year she is doing 2/3rd work and next year she'll be doing 3rd. She is also a late August birthday and a very young 8 so we thought this would be a better fit for her:)
__________________
In Christ,
Mimi
Wife of 16 years to Tom, Mom of DD'00, DD'02, '04(in heaven) DS'05, DS'08 and DS '12
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
cathhsmom
Forum Newbie
Joined: April 25 2011
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 40
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 3:14pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Can those of you doing the combined grades explain how it works?
Dd is in K now, but we still have quite a bit of math and handwriting to finish. She was an early K - started at 4 as she was academically bored and frustrated with not being able to read. I'm trying to see how this might work for us without holding her back in reading {she reads GREAT - east end of 1st start of 2nd grade level} or science which are her strong areas. We use CHC lesson plans as written with all materials FWIW.
__________________
Come visit our blog - http://lifeatthepines.wordpress.com/
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
mommy4ever
Forum All-Star
Joined: April 08 2011
Location: Canada
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 596
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 4:06pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
I have just continued the natural progression. Where she is strong she moves forward more quickly and explore lots of rabbit trails, where she is struggling we sit back and go with the flow!
It won't really matter in the long run, because with a strong foundation, she'll be able to learn ANYTHING.
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
kristacecilia
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 05 2010
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 677
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 4:40pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
SeaStar wrote:
| That does seem crazy to start kids in k so young! |
|
|
Here kindergarten lasts two years, starting when the child is 3/4. They are transitioning right now to having it all day, everyday.
__________________
God bless,
Krista
Wife to a great guy, mom to two boys ('04, '06) and three girls ('08, '10, '12!)
I blog at http://kristacecilia.wordpress.com/
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
SeaStar
Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 16 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 9068
|
| Posted: May 12 2011 at 7:50pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
cathhsmom wrote:
Can those of you doing the combined grades explain how it works?
Dd is in K now, but we still have quite a bit of math and handwriting to finish. She was an early K - started at 4 as she was academically bored and frustrated with not being able to read. I'm trying to see how this might work for us without holding her back in reading {she reads GREAT - east end of 1st start of 2nd grade level} or science which are her strong areas. We use CHC lesson plans as written with all materials FWIW. |
|
|
My dd started K as a 4 yo and was 4 for almost a month before she turned 5.
I had planned to do a lot of the CHC K work with her that year, but quickly saw that I needed to revise my plans. After she finished the initial Little Letters and Little Numbers workbooks, she wanted nothing to do with LSLF! Those were "boy books"- she had seen her brother reading them over two years and wanted "girl" books.
What I did instead with her was pink level Montessori work, then Starfall books with Zac the Rat ( I ordered materials from Starfall and put away the CHC stuff temporarily). For math we did manipulatives and games and some dollar store number books with My Little Pony and Winnie the Pooh themes. Again- not my pick, but she loved them. We started Right Start math only in the late spring with her last year.
Fast forward to this year- she was 5 starting her K/1 year. She dove into the LSLF books, and now is in the level three books. We detoured some with Faith and Freedom readers for variety and practice, and she also did the CHC "WHat Do You LIke to Do?" journal- in depth, coloring all the pictures, writing stories, etc. She completed the CHC K level writing book and the First Grade writing book this year because she love doing them and often did extra pages ( remember- last year they were a complete no-go with her aand were put aside).
Math has been slower going with her this year. She has made steady but very slow progress with Rightstart level B. She enjoys learning math the most through games. This summer I want to continue to work on her math, but it will not be as a continuation of her regular school year math.
We will take a healthy break from that. Instead I have picked up some math board games that I am saving til our summer starts, and we will just have fun playing them. Then, in the fall, we will pick up Rightstart again.
For next year I plan to continue that "natural progression" for her.... letting her work at her own pace, racing ahead with reading and writing if she wants and focusing on math. I plan to go back and start RS math by repeating many of the lessons we have already done to make sure she really has the concepts down. This will all fall under her "all grade 1 year".
I do have the CHC lesson plans, but I use them mainly as a rough guide. I don't try to keep on course to the day with them. They are here to help me; I don't have to be a slave to them. I also combine other subjects like science, history, religion, etc for her with my ds, using the CM approach of everyone working on his/her own level.
I find the "natural progression" approach much easier all around- it works well for us. I love that homeschooling lets children work at their own pace
ETA: And through it all we rely heavily on "living books", as always
__________________
Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
SQUILT Music Appreciation
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
MamaFence
Forum Pro
Joined: May 19 2010
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 139
|
| Posted: May 18 2011 at 3:02pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
I think in practice, much of homeschooling naturally is a combination of "grade" levels! My very young first grader excels in reading, reading already a year ahead of her grade, probably 2-3 (in ability) of her age. Even though she is so able to read, we don't push her to read books too much or at too high a level. She wouldn't understand, and would tire of it, I think. Sometimes she'll pick up a chapter book and read through on her own, but she's only 6 and so fully of bouncy energy that she just doesn't sit still long enough for that quantity of reading, even though she has the ability. So, when we start 2nd grade, we'll probably read many of the 2nd grade level readers, but work up to her reading on her own more at the 3rd grade level when she's ready.
My next daughter is soon to be 5, and we'll begin K with her this fall. Since she's been listening to all our homeschooling lessons, she's already learned many concepts, putting her ahead in math skills and science knowledge, for example. I know I'll be able to go deeper on these things, more than would happen for her in a classroom. It's all about meeting your child's need and abilities, right? 
__________________
Gina, mother to 4
DD 7yr (11.04)
DD 5yr (6.06)
DS 3yr (6.08)
DS 2yr (11.09)
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Shardigan
Forum Newbie
Joined: May 04 2011
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1
|
| Posted: May 21 2011 at 1:16pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
We have been using Seton for 4yrs now and both of my children are enrolled (son finishing 3rd grade and daughter finishing 7th). I love their books, and lesson plans! Their website is easy to use and has great resources. I have also called and asked their counselors for help. They give you lesson plans that are over the top, but they expect you to go at your child's pace and you can modify the work to fit your family. Their catechism and religion books are wonderful! I would highly recommend them even if you don't enroll. They also have wonderful saint stories that are apart of the curriculum. I've learned so much about the Catholic faith from my children's books! Hope that helps!
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
aforb001
Forum Rookie
Joined: April 28 2008
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 59
|
| Posted: May 21 2011 at 9:36pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
I used CHC for my son for K-1. Then for 2nd gr, I got the CHC LP's but ended up using Seton workbooks. My ds has been fully enrolled now for 2 yrs and we love it! Their books are beautiful, the LP's are amazing, and their website and support is terrific. I hope to stay enrolled through high school.
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
|
|
4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: What Catholic Curriculums do you love?
