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hereinantwerp
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| Posted: Nov 16 2006 at 7:34am | IP Logged
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I've been taking a break from school and hoping to come back to it in March, after our post-xmas trip to America. I'm trying to think through how to make it less stressful for me.
So, I was asking about Calvert (below), but after really looking at it, I think I just would not be happy giving up the "living books" and going to textbooks. My older son might like it. But I was re-reading CM, and I so want his mind to be trained and shaped by LIVING books, that was the original inspiration for me to do this homeschooling thing. And then, w/the Calvert idea, we choke the pricetag--!
REALLY thinking about this, I think what I am attracted to is some kind of checklist, where the work is organized and listed in one place. I am always feeling "at loose ends", looking things up in different places, and it stresses me out. I gravitated from Sonlight to modified Sonlight to more "rabbit trailing", and in the end I find I just don't like not having an overall plan or schema, & feeling like I don't know where we're going. I know some families might thrive on that , but after attempting it for a year I find it's just not "me", and I think for my older son as well, things need to be more laid out and organized.
Do any of you use a kind of weekly checklist, for yourself or your children? I need to figure out something I will really do. Filling in blanks of a teacher's planbook seems like such a chore, I never stick to it. I downloaded this free homeschool planning thing but the whole thing seemed way too complicated for me. Do I just need more discipline? I'm thinking of basing a plan for each of the boys loosely on Ambleside, starting from their weekly lists but revising them for some of the books I own. I don't want to come up with school "from scratch" anymore, & I don't want to buy a whole new ream of books because I already own many wonderful books. I've been comparing "plans" and AO seems maybe the most workable.
In the end I just want to feel more rest and peace about homeschool, have the day go smoothly. Don't we all--!
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Angela Nelson
Mother to Simon (13), Calvin (9), and Lyddie Rose (3)
my blog: live and learn
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Becky Parker
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| Posted: Nov 16 2006 at 9:48am | IP Logged
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Angela,
I too love the Charlotte Mason methodology but needed some structure to help me out. I considered going with Seton, but with the help of my husband, came up with the same conclusion you did. I did start using the syllabi from Mother of Divine Grace though. I actually ended up enrolling this year, but you don't have to do that to get the syllabi. What I like is that I can change it as I want, but I can also just use it as it is written which takes a great burden off of me as far as the planning goes. MODG is also very close to the Charlote Mason method if you ask me. For example in history, she uses a text as a spine, but everything else is great literature - real books the child learns from.
Another suggestion is to make a chart with the days of the week across the top. Write the titles of the books down the left hand side, and simply write in the page numbers that are to be read or completed. You would still have to accompany this with explanations, especially if it was an activity like a science project or making a specific page for a Book of Centuries, but it might be a simple way to have a working plan.
Just some suggestions. Hope others can offer some help.
Blessings!
Becky
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folklaur
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| Posted: Nov 16 2006 at 12:11pm | IP Logged
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That is why I use Sonlight. Books, books, more books, but a neat little checksheet for me  . I know you mentioned that you had used SL but had to tweak it too much though  . I have tried writing schedules, etc, for us myself, and it just doesn't work for me. I schedule too much, or too little, or whatever. Wish I could be more help,
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: Nov 16 2006 at 9:56pm | IP Logged
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Sounds like Mater Amabilis may be right up your alley.
Mater Amabilis
Totally CM, Catholic, all planned out, and free.
I have not used it, but if I wanted a pre-planned curriculum, it is the one I would use.
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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hylabrook1
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| Posted: Nov 17 2006 at 7:21am | IP Logged
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Angela -
I agree with Theresa that Mater Amabilis is a good place to start. You could certainly tweak it to suit your own preferences, available resources, etc.
In our earlier discussion about Calvert, we didn't talk about cost, but, yes, as you say, it is pricey. Another way you might use some of the wisdom from Calvert, though, is to look at what they say they cover each year. This information is on their website. What I have come to at present is checking out various curricula, largely MA and Calvert, and then thinking how that fits with my goals, the children's needs, etc.
Another resource that has helped me in planning and organizing is Laura Berquist's Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum. Starting with these kinds of resources, I decide which subjects each child should cover that year, how many times a week to work on each, and then which to do which day. When I have located what seem at the moment to be the resources (books, activities, etc.) to use, I make up charts/lists broken down into what I think constitutes "assignments" (how much/what to cover in each session). BUT, since *I* am the one who decided all this, *I* am free to depart from the plan, modify, etc., if something different, possbily better, more interesting, etc. comes up.
In this way, I have structure and flexibility at the same time, as well as a customized sort-of curriculum.
Maybe something along those lines would help you.
Peace,
Nancy
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Carole N.
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| Posted: Nov 17 2006 at 8:44am | IP Logged
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I also love the CM methodology, but I need structure in my homeschool as well. The two resources that I use for guidance are MODG curriculum (I have never enrolled in a program) and Catholic Heritage Curricula. I pick and choose what I want and go from there.
One quality that CM has taught me is to be more relaxed about schedules and finishing the curriculum. I used to panic if we did not complete every subject at the end of every day.  What a disaster for my children! Homeschooling was not interesting for them or me--too much stress.
Now I try to approach each year with new subjects and subjects we did not complete (like languages). Sometimes I add a new subject in the middle of the year (like art, where I have failed miserably).
But I am always open to new ideas. I will have to check out Mater Amabilis. It may be just the guide that I am looking for.
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 Carole ... in Wales
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hereinantwerp
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| Posted: Nov 18 2006 at 3:49pm | IP Logged
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hylabrook1 wrote:
Angela -
In our earlier discussion about Calvert, we didn't talk about cost, but, yes, as you say, it is pricey. Another way you might use some of the wisdom from Calvert, though, is to look at what they say they cover each year. This information is on their website. What I have come to at present is checking out various curricula, largely MA and Calvert, and then thinking how that fits with my goals, the children's needs, etc.
Another resource that has helped me in planning and organizing is Laura Berquist's Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum. |
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Interesting you bring that up--when I became frustrated and with Sonlight, I compared it to Calvert and some others and that was reassuring to me, because I saw that most programs do not cover half the volume of books that SL does. We were able to keep up the pace of SL because my ds read quickly at a young age (it would never work for my 2nd son!), but I felt like he just wasn't digesting things and I wanted to take more time with fewer books. It helped me a ton to do that comparing.
I borrowed the Laura Berquist book from a friend (now moved away) a few years ago and I remember liking that, too. It was at the same time when I was frustrated w/SL and looking for different options and I noticed the same thing, that her recommendations seemed more realistic than the SL ones.
I guess with SL they say you can adapt it--but I found I was adapting it SO much it felt a little ridiculous! Feel like I've been on a bit of a search since leaving it though!
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Angela Nelson
Mother to Simon (13), Calvin (9), and Lyddie Rose (3)
my blog: live and learn
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hereinantwerp
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| Posted: Nov 18 2006 at 4:14pm | IP Logged
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Thank you for the recommendations of Mater Amabalis. I have looked at it and it looks excellent, and very appealing. I was looking at it more closely again after reading this and it actually looks a lot more fleshed out in some ways than the Ambleside one, though the two are a lot alike. We have our own things we do for religion, a very good "breakfast and bible" routine my husband does that we'll stick with, so I am not too worried about this aspect, I feel that some of the books Ambleside uses are on the "reformed" side of things but I can skip those. But I think AO might just work better for me. Part of it is I already have many of the books (like the Genevieve Foster books which we love), and so much of what they rely on is available free online which would be great for me being overseas. The other thing is--the very, very simple weekly lists AO provides with everything on them for each student for each year. I know I'll be making a substitution here and there but these lists make that very easy to do. From what I could tell the schedules Mater Amabalis provides are in different places for different subjects, so you still have to put them all together yourself--? I couldn't find schedules for the upper years, just subject and book lists. Did I not look in the right place? In any case I feel this is the part I really want done for me, the scheduling!
I spent a long time looking at AO the other night and it looks like it might be an excellent fit for us. I've also been dipping in and out of some of Charlotte Mason's original books, and it appeals to me to really arrange school following how she did things. I just don't want to decide and really switch till I'm sure, because whatever we do I want to stick with it!
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Angela Nelson
Mother to Simon (13), Calvin (9), and Lyddie Rose (3)
my blog: live and learn
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: structure
