Home Education Curriculum

[Sher]

So? Which do you use? Recommendations? Serious warnings?

We use a very eclectic mix of Internet, selections from secular textbooks, videos, various books, and Christian-based curriculums.

I posted a question about Abeka science (http://www.theologyweb.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4955) in the Cosmogony 101 area ... but no responses there ... I know we have some home educators here ... has no one used Abeka?

[Patroclus]

From my personal experience, different curricula are more appropriate at different ages, and for different subjects.

Abeka is just fine for lower-level math (arithmetic). It is basically a drill book, which is fine for the more involved parent. If math is not your forté, even for arithmetic, Rod and Staff is a good company. They have rather easy to understand explanations, and sufficient drills. Rod and Staff is Mennonite.

For late elementary math, I found the Hake Saxon series to be quite helpful. The descriptions are adequate, and the drills are cumulative. Homeschoolers can also buy a text packet to go with it. The whole package for a book (text with tests and answer key) can range from $56-$75. Saxon is secular.

For high school, you might want to mix-up the curricula a bit. Using the same series over and over gets tiresome for some students (myself included). There are some decent college level texts out there. Depending on your children, a tutor may, or may not be helpful. Personally, I think I could have used a tutor. I turned out to be much more succesful with math in a classroom environment, when I got to college, than when I was homeschooled.

For sciences, I think it really depends on what you want to get across to your children, and how much you are willing to invest. I tried a couple--Rod and Staff and ACE. I preferred R&S. When a child is younger, ACE is just fine. They use, what they call "paces," that are basically short workbooks that a child completes at his or her own pace. It is a nice concept, but the knowledge acquired seems insignificant. It is far to easy to complete, and there is very little linear reinforcement. R&S is much more well rounded, though certainly from a very conservative Christian viewpoint.

As an English student, I think I know a thing or two more than with respects to the other subjects. First of all, it is really easy for English to get very boring, very fast. Growing up, I always had boring Grammars (The Writing Road to Reading, ACE, and a few others that I cannot remember). From such programs, I learned very little. I also left High School thinking that I hated English. Even though I had been through the lessons, I did not really know how to write an essay until I got to college. Since coming to college, I have found some excellent grammar guides (Sin and Syntax and The Transitive Vampire). These books are a bit on the adult side. However, they might be a good reference for Mom and Dad who want to encourage their children that grammar--yes, grammar--can actually be fun. I encourage you to shop around a bit.

For young children's literature, there is no greater resource than the library. As they get older, I reccomend Madeline L'Engle, and C.S. Lewis. The trick is to make sure that you let your kids continue to read what they love reading. Also, especially when they are younger, it is essential that you are there with your kids, reading along. Samuel Coleridge said that the purpose of literature is "to teach and delight." Keep this in mind, because authors do want to teach your children something. It becomes your job to set the foundation for how your children will filter these messages.

As your children get older, you might want to encourage them to read some of the definitive classics. Directing their reading is very important. A decent literature anthology is a good place to start. I do not suggest Norton Anthologies. They are very good, but each is focused on a time period, and offers little explanation of literary troupes. However, they offer excellent, cursory, biographical information for each author. If you do decide to get a Noton Anthology, try for a "World Masterpieces" andthology. This Anthology will not be limited to region or time period. This also has enough for your child to read through two or three high school careers.

I would strongly reccomend a college level, intro to literature anthology. I have a quite good one from my intro to lit class. It spans the major time periods, and pays special attention to describing Genre and literary troupes.

Also, ask friends which major books they found to be very rewarding. I will give you afew suggestions at the end of this message, which comes now.

1. Paradise Lost - John Milton
2. The Divine COmedy (Mark Musa Translation) - Danté
3. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
4. Oedipus Rex - Sophocles
5. Various poems by people such as Spencer, Keates, Donne, T.S. Eliot, etc.

Here is the information for my Intro to lit anthology:

Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing
Kirzner & Mandell
4th Ed, 2001
ISBN: 0155073508

Here are some grammar books for mom and dad:

Sin and Syntax
Constance Hale
1999
ISBN: 0767903099

The Transitive Vampire: A Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager, and the Doomed
Karen Elizabeth Gordon
1984
ISBN: 0812911016

I hope that helps. I might think of something later.

[Sher]

Hi Pat,

Wow! Great feedback!


Today @ 04:09 AM post located here (http://www.theologyweb.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=111257#post111257)
Patroclus:

From my personal experience, different curricula are more appropriate at different ages, and for different subjects.

Yeah, we are finding that out as well. That's basically why I am soliciting opinion ... and to save money staying away from duds. I have the opinions of my HE group ... but was interested to hear others.


Saxon is secular.

We use Saxon right now :thumb: Even though it is secular, they have no covert themes that conflict with Christianity. The problem is, my son hates it .... for the very same reasons I love it ... because they spread the new lessons over many future lessons as review. He complains about having to do the same thing over and over ... for me, I see a more consistant retention of information. (I do "drop" exercises when he has understood them over several lessons.) We do try to add variety by doing other worksheets, though. I was recommended Abeka for Alg. 2 (next year) but then heard the same thing you said here :huh: I guess I'll need to look into it a bit more.


For high school, you might want to mix-up the curricula a bit. Using the same series over and over gets tiresome for some students (myself included).

We are going to dual enroll him for his junior and senior years (age restrictions before then). I am monolingual ... with no head for languages ... so he will have to take foreign language outside the home ... although I am going to teach him sign language as another alternative.


R&S is much more well rounded, though certainly from a very conservative Christian viewpoint.

We tried some Paces this year. They were okay for filling in some gaps ... for reinforcement. The format is great for my son ... he loves workbooks ... but I agree that they were rather sparce in content. I'll have to give Rod and Staff a look ... I think I have their catalog somewhere.


However, they might be a good reference for Mom and Dad who want to encourage their children that grammar--yes, grammar--can actually be fun. I encourage you to shop around a bit.

OH :eek: What is it with writing and boys? :huh: We are fine with the grammar ... I have various books, game CD's, etc. ... but the writing is a whole different issue. Getting him to put pencil to paper ... or finger to keyboard ... is worse than root canal ... and frustrating for someone as verbose in writing as I am ... (No ... I don't usually TALK this much :lol:)


For young children's literature, there is no greater resource than the library.

When they get older too!


As they get older, I reccomend Madeline L'Engle, and C.S. Lewis. The trick is to make sure that you let your kids continue to read what they love reading. Also, especially when they are younger, it is essential that you are there with your kids, reading along. Samuel Coleridge said that the purpose of literature is "to teach and delight." Keep this in mind, because authors do want to teach your children something. It becomes your job to set the foundation for how your children will filter these messages.

That is another thing ... we have a VERY well stocked ... er ... library ... at home. We have books literally (ha) everywhere! Bookshelves full ... boxes full ... stacked in the corners of the closets ... etc. We love to read ... and while I am very careful to watch ... he has enough variety at his disposal to keep him busy for a long, long time.


If you do decide to get a Noton Anthology, try for a "World Masterpieces" andthology. This Anthology will not be limited to region or time period. This also has enough for your child to read through two or three high school careers.

Thanks Pat ... I've made a note of it and the others you mentioned.


I hope that helps. I might think of something later.

Definately! :thumb: I've copied and pasted that info down for future reference. He will be starting high school very soon and I want to make darn sure we have covered as much as we can to help him be prepared.

Thank you so much for a great post !

Sherry :angel:

[Patroclus]

Quick return,

I hated Saxon past 65. That is why I reccomended it for "Elementary." That model does get uneccessary after a certain point as Algebra is itself a progressive linear construct. The repeating only serves to bore the kid. I reccomend a college level Algebra book.

My mom used to drop lessons once in a while too. But, I will tell you this, the biggest fights that I had with my parents was over Saxon Algebra.

For writing, your son my enjoy Sin and Syntax. It is actually a writing book that begins with a discussion of grammar. I like to use it as a grammar simply because it is concise. You may want to read ahead, however, as I have a suspicion that you might run across some objectional material. The major plus is that it is focused on making writing fun.

Suggestions for beginning writing:

1. Most freshman level college courses do not require papers of over 5-6 pages, double-spaced. When a person is beginning to write, slow is great, especially if they are struggling.

2. Have your child pick a topic for writing, for instance: "I love to play baseball."

3. Now that you have the thesis (the provable statement), have him include three reasons why he loves to play baseball (or whatever topic), and put each into a sentence. Then, have him conclude the paragraph with a sentence that ties it all together.

4. After he has practiced that a bit, have him expand one of the paragraphs into a five-point essay using each sentence as the topic sentence for an outline. It needn't be more than one or two pages long (double spaced), and it reinforces the idea that effective prose is a complete thought.

"I love to play baseball. The grass on the field smells wonderful when it is wet, and cut freshly. The outdoor air helps me forget the many assignments I have waiting at home. Most of all, the feeling of the bat hitting the ball helps me when I am frustrated or tired. All these things, the grass, the air and the feel of a hit, are why I love to play baseball."

I think, if a person can think of three reasons why they like, or dislike anything, that person can write an essay.

Just a suggestion.

[Sher]

Thanks Pat. I agree on the Saxon ... this has been a very rough year mathwise ... but I fear changing now when we are only months away from finishing this grade ... I fear the pulling out of my hair would only worsen trying to figure out what we covered already compared to another Alg. book. I'll look into your suggestion for Alg. 2.

And :thumb: great tip on the writing. The books we have found so far are bo-r-i-ng ... even for me ... and I love to write.

I'd still like to hear more if anyone has any other suggestions ... hints ... great curriculum ... horrible curriculum?

Susan? Eglerio_i_hir? Hadassah? Socrates?

Come on, ya'll ... I know you have some good ideas here ... All you fellow HE advocates? :teeth:

[Patroclus]

Susan? Eglerio_i_hir? Hadassah? Socrates?

Come on, ya'll ... I know you have some good ideas here ... All you fellow HE advocates?

Seriously! And I thought I was the black sheep of the home school community.

[Sher]

Today @ 02:41 AM post located here (http://www.theologyweb.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=114838#post114838)
Patroclus:

Seriously! And I thought I was the black sheep of the home school community.

Heh ... no, you're not

... you've been a big help :thumb:

[Ryokan]

when he is older don't forget shakespeare, or Beowulf!

[Patroclus]

Shakespeare is never forgotten. And we can thank Mr. Tolkien for not forgetting Beowulf.

[Hadassah]

Sherbear:
Hello! I'm so sorry for the long delay. I'm out of town and there's just not a whole lot of time for posting. (I hope to be able to respond to several other posts soon, though.)
Unfortunately, I don't have much at all to offer you concerning curriculum. I'm not even a mother myself! My church, however, is full of homeschooling families, and I might check with them. I know one mother who uses K12's online curriculum. It seems a little too easy and shallow, though. In fact, it reminds me of the government school's curriculum. There's a lack of real substance, real thinking skills, and also seems to completely lack any cohesiveness or systematic integration of different types of knowledge. That is, it seems to simply be a curriculum of "subjects". Have you ever heard of classical education? Douglas Wilson, in his book Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning, speaks on that. This book is actually is a response to Dorothy Sayer's article about "classical education", written in 1947. You can read it online at http://www.gbt.org/text/sayers.html
I'm not sure if you mentioned how old your children are, but George Grant gives some interesting ideas about what to teach.
He's at www.kingsmeadow.org
I'm not sure, but I think that some of the curriculum you've mentioned in the previous posts sounded like textbooks I had in high school, or maybe even college. Just for the record, I think those did just fine. The problem that I find with my learning wasn't as much the textbook as the ways that I was taught from them.

Hadassah

[JillPole]

I'd say whatever curriculum you use, stick with it. I used Abeka as a student pre-school to 8th grade and then in high school we were forced to change programs to a secular correspondence course (for accreditation purposes) and it totally threw off my learning style!! It didn't take long to adjust, but I was never quite comfortable with it. Also, as much as kids complain about Abeka, they'll miss it when its gone. It may be repetitive and "hard", but it's good stuff. lol, I can think back to counting the same paragraph repeated at least 3 times word for word in my 7th grade history book... Ah, good old Abeka.
I'd also like to add that homeschooling was the best choice my parents made for my life.

[iLuke]

Today @ 04:24 AM post located here (http://www.theologyweb.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=121620#post121620)
Jill Pole:

I'd say whatever curriculum you use, stick with it. I used Abeka as a student pre-school to 8th grade and then in high school we were forced to change programs to a secular correspondence course (for accreditation purposes) and it totally threw off my learning style!! It didn't take long to adjust, but I was never quite comfortable with it. Also, as much as kids complain about Abeka, they'll miss it when its gone. It may be repetitive and "hard", but it's good stuff. lol, I can think back to counting the same paragraph repeated at least 3 times word for word in my 7th grade history book... Ah, good old Abeka.
I'd also like to add that homeschooling was the best choice my parents made for my life.


I would say I have to agree with Jill Pole (you'll find I do that a lot).

I have used Abeka my entire life, and I have no complaints. The education they have given me has been very good (in my oppinion). My sister who has done Abeka her entire life just scored a near perfect score on her English section of the SATs (though she always was an acceptional student). Abeka is very very strong in several areas:
1) Bible -- my dad (who is an ordained minister) said that what my sister and I were receiving in our Bible classes was comprable to his cemenary education
2) English/Gramar -- very very good books by James A. Chapman for K-12

I would note, however, that Abeka is "weak" in their math classes.... The Algebra I and II classes were very difficult for most of the kids I knew who took them, though I personally didn't have trouble with them. My sister as well as three of my friends (that I can think of off hand) all hated the Abeka maths...

So that's my two cents! :)

God bless,
Luke

[Sher]

Hadassah, Jill, iLuke ...

Thank you for your replies :smile: ... and welcome to TWeb :yipee:

I was really looking for ABeka high school information as that is where my son is headed very soon. We are still considering the dual enrollment for Jr./Sr. years, but haven't made up our minds yet where ... if, indeed, we decide to pursue this avenue.

In the meantime, I am still open for other ideas, and I appreciate all that I have gotten so far. It takes a lot of work to get ready for a new school year, and even more so now for high school.

Thanks again,
Sher

[Patroclus]

Jill Pole Rocks!