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mimmyof5
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| Posted: Jan 04 2010 at 9:28pm | IP Logged
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What do you all consider absolutely necessary for 7th/8th grade in order to prepare for high school?
The reason I'm asking is because it has been pointed out to me by my older two dd's how much wonderful literature my 12 yr old dd has missed. Over Christmas break we got to talking about books, and it really hit me how little reading she has done the last couple years. My older dd's said I should be fired!  In 2005 I was nursing my dad and in a moment of panic I enrolled her in the K12 virtual school. The next couple years she used Seton. Although she's not enrolled in any program right now, her school resembles these programs. She has a big load. When school work is done, she is pretty tired and worn out.
So I'm thinking about cutting back so she has more time to read, think and discuss ideas. Math, writing, grammar are at the top of my list. What about history and science? She's been through the Baltimore Catechism a couple of times so maybe more reading on saints, conversion stories. Or have I missed the boat?
Janet
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: Jan 04 2010 at 10:53pm | IP Logged
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Hmmmm...I am waiting to hear some replies. Our day, even after the break, was loooooooong! We need some fresh ideas here!
__________________
Kristie in Canada
Mom to 3 boys and one spunky princess!!
A Walk in the Woods
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mariB
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| Posted: Jan 05 2010 at 6:17am | IP Logged
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Dear Janet and Kristie,
Homeschooling can be such an overwhelming task! What our two oldest boys have done is not and may not be the path of our other children.
May I recommend (regarding literature) books on cd or tape. I say this only because I have a few avid readers and others that really enjoy good literature but prefer listening instead. Usually they listen at bedtime.
Here are the things I consider absolutely necessary:
-Math(Teaching Textbooks Pre Algebra)
-Spelling/Dictation(Using sequential spelling and any piece of literature around the house)
-some sort of writing project (even if it is just a paragraph)
-literature (even if it is just listening)
-and one book that the child actually reads on their own (Right now my eighth grader is reading St. Paul the Apostle by Windeatt
Don't beat yourself up! You should NOT be fired. Just by reading what you have been doing...you are doing a great job! (We used Seton too for awhile.)
OTHER SUGGESTIONS;
For religion...The Prove It series by Amy Welborn is lovely.
Science-lots of field guides along with nature study and lots of drawing and our eighth grader is currently reading The Mystery of the Periodic Table by Wiker.
History-Our eight grader is reading A History of US by Hakim and also we have The Story of the World by Bauer (the first three books on CD) which our eighth grader and fifth grader listen to over and over again.
I got excited when our 12th grader said he had learned so much from these CD's and...he is the most avid reader out of all of children yet at bedtime prefers to listen to books on tape/CD.
Sending you hugs...and believe me, I'm quite sure your daughter is way above her public school counterparts!
And although I cannot recommend the following as of yet, our 11th and 12th grader are using a few video courses from the Teaching Company (Economics and Chemistry). I hope to use a few of their history and science courses in the future for our eighth grader! I know some ladies here at this forum like to use the Teaching Company!
Hope this helps and praying for you and your decision making and for all homeschooling moms and dads!
__________________
marib-Mother to 22ds,21ds,18ds,15dd,11dd and wife to an amazing man for 23 years
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Angel
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| Posted: Jan 05 2010 at 7:42am | IP Logged
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For a 7th/8th grade girl whom you'd like to encourage to read more, I think that the Literature for a Young Lady, written by Jen (Mackfam) and Elizabeth would be excellent. I'm tweaking it this year so that it's appropriate for my 10 yo dd, and she loves it. But it's really written for junior-high age girls. If you're worried that she needs a bit of a break, I think this curriculum would be a good choice. It's a good mix of gentle/challenging, and it is designed (I think) to prepare a girl for life in general -- not just college. To what they've written (and my tweaks to it) I've added Latin, math, and grammar. We're also trying to get started with French, at my dd's request.
I'm curious to see what other more experienced moms say about what they think is necessary in 7th/8th grade. My oldest is 13 and what I notice as I sift through high school programs is that what people consider a "high school level" education varies enormously. I think that in order to be prepared well for college, a child needs to be able to write well, to read and think critically, to be strong in one's faith, to be able to do math at least competently, and to have a decent historical and scientific literacy. I'd add 3 years of a foreign language, because that seems to be the level of foreign language that will gain entrance into the widest range of schools.
But how do you go about this? And, what is the best way to prepare a 12/13 year old to start working at a high school level (whatever that is)? I think that might also depend on the child. Right now we're trying to focus on getting my 13 yo ds to take on more of a workload and to work on his writing (and spelling). I think if I signed him up with Seton his head would explode. On the other hand... we're kind of doing a somewhat modified Ambleside Online Year 7, which is very literature heavy, tempered with some of the ideas and resources of the Latin-Centered Curriculum plus a few of our own original tweaks, and this seems to be promising.  But with a different kid, with a different personality, Seton may, in fact, be the way to go.
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Angela
Mom to 9, 7 boys and 2 girls
Three Plus Two
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jenncatan
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| Posted: Jan 05 2010 at 8:31pm | IP Logged
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I am so glad you have posted this question! This is my second year homeschooling. My son is in 8th grade and we are using Seton. I would love for him to read more but by the time he's done his daily work he's had enough. I've been thinking about which elements of Seton I can skip and just get down to basics. I think we should do Math (saxon). For Religion I'm using the T3 Bible Time line for Teens and the catechism. He does not love reading. It is a chore for him. I'm thinking if he had more time to read "real books" without falling behind in school work he would learn to love or at least like reading. I'm thinking that Seton was not the best choice for us, but being a brand new homeschooler i did not know what else existed. I too would appreciate an experienced homeschooler's advise.
jenn
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drmommy
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| Posted: Jan 06 2010 at 9:35am | IP Logged
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We use Kolbe with a lot of tweaking done.
My 8th grader was homeschooled starting in 6th, she was a very poor reader, and was reading 3rd grade books only...which is why I now homeschool her (the school was ok with her reading 3rd grade books). Last year for 7th, I had her in the Elementary Literature program, and this year we are doing the Jr. High program. She was able to pick out the books she wanted, and to do the questions. I don't always ask for a book report, because it would just be too much for her. I really want her to love reading. She HAS fallen in love with reading, which is something I thought would never had happened.
The Literature for a Young Lady is an excellent program. I am incorporating a few ideas into the Kolbe's one. I am so happy with what these bright women came up with.
For history, we use the Land of Our Lady textbooks, with some supplements suggested by Jen (Mackfam)....thank you SO much Jen!! My daughter got very little history in public school, as it was mostly social studies and political correctness training! So, I hit the history hard, as she has a lot of catching up to do.
Math is Saxon.
Science is Life Science through CHC..she is not ready for Physical Science because of her weak math background. That will be for 9th grade.
Religion is Faith and Life and Baltimore Catechism. We do the questions orally for BC, and written in her workbook for Faith and Life. We do our faith study in the evenings, so we can relax and discuss it.
English is through Voyages in English, except I have to re-learn how to diagram sentences all over again. I am not sure I want to pursue that yet, as it will just be so much more work, when she already has a load, and it will just be more for me!!
Spelling tests are on Friday after park day ( in the evening). I test all of them at once, saying the words quickly one at a time (I have three girls testing!). It is kind of fun, and she still gets in spelling and feels successful at it...I just use her vocabulary words. I have her keep a vocabulary notebook also, as I know that vocabulary is heavy on the SAT test. So, she will have these words at her fingertips in a few years.
I started Home Ec (through Christian Light Education) that we will be doing on Saturday mornings...a great mommy and me time. It is a sweet program, and gets me to teach it formally..because I work outside the home, I am afraid that I will just "do the cooking and homemaking myself quickly" instead of taking the time to show her....so, having Home Ec slows ME down to teach her!
Fridays are journals and writing days.. They do this while I am at work. It is also free read day, so they can read whatever has been approved.
With an 8th grader, I am still trying to find the balance of school, but not too hard or challenging to overwhelm her, but enough work to keep her very busy. It is so nice to have her home learning with love and a great education.
I know high school is a lot of reading with a critical eye in history, English, and Literature, so I am teaching her to read not only just for pleasure, but with thought and questions; and evaluating the reading in a different light. In high school, science kicks into play, so I try to make science uplifting, even though I don't have time to go on too many field trips.
Writing will be more complicated also, so I hope I can help her in that area without tears or frustation. My belief is, if they read good literature and books, writing won't be so difficult, because the language used will be ingrained into her head, and help with her thinking and writing organization.
Just my opinion!! It can be so difficult for them, but for an 8th grader, I try to be enthusiastic and positive, because that is what I want her to remember about school the most. Oh, and the love!! 
Bridget
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Minimum requirements for 7th/8th
