curriculum

2024-25 Curriculum

Wrapping up our 2024-25 school year with one last post…all of the curriculum we used this year! This was my final year with two students…Ladybug was in 12th grade, and Chickadee was in 7th. The beginning of the year seems like a very long time ago, so hopefully this list is complete!

Religion

  • Journey Through Church History

Math

For Ladybug:

  • The Fallacy Detective

For Chickadee:

  • Horizons Pre-Algebra

Language Arts

For Ladybug:

  • On Writing Well
  • The Lively Art of Writing
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book 12
  • The British Tradition Book Three: Poetry from the Romantic to the Victorian Age

For Chickadee:

  • Spelling Workout G
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Seven
  • Writing with Skill, Level Two

Literature

For Ladybug:

  • A Tale of Two Cities
  • The Merchant of Venice
  • Jane Eyre
  • A Farewell to Arms
  • Fahrenheit 451
  • 1984
  • The Great Gatsby
  • Paradise Lost
  • The Screwtape Letters
  • The Art of War
  • Wuthering Heights
  • Murder on the Orient Express

For Chickadee:

  • Tom Sawyer
  • The Trojan War
  • The Bronze Bow

History

For Ladybug:

  • 1491
  • A People’s History of the United States
  • American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America
  • March–Books 1-3
  • Driving the Green Book
  • There are No Children Here
  • Between the World and Me
  • Travel as a Political Act
  • On the Hippie Trail

For Chickadee:

  • The Story of the World, vol. 3: Early Modern Times
  • Underground Railroad and Oregon Trail unit studies

Science

For Ladybug

  • Exploring Creation with Advanced Physics (one semester)

For Chickadee

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with General Science

Electives

For Ladybug:

  • Photography using Understanding Exposure
  • Psychology

For Both:

  • Duolingo
  • Tennis
  • Cooking featuring The Wizard of Oz: The Official Cookbook (and others)

2023-24 Curriculum

Better late than never, right?

I honestly thought I had typed this up months ago. But apparently it was just something I meant to do, not something I actually did. So here’s a look at the curriculum we used for the 2023-24 school year, with one 11th grader (Ladybug) and one 6th grader (Chickadee). I hope I remembered everything, but the beginning of the school year seems like an eternity ago, so there’s a decent chance that I forgot to include one or more resources we used this year!

Religion

For Ladybug

  • Chadwick’s The Early Church
  • Eusebius’ History of the Church

For Chickadee

  • A Bible History

Math

For Ladybug

  • Math-U-See Pre-Calculus

For Chickadee

  • Horizons Math 6

Language Arts

For Ladybug

  • Writing Strands Level 7
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book 11
  • Analytical Grammar

For Chickadee

  • Spelling Workout G
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Six
  • Writing with Skill, Level One
  • A Reason for Handwriting F
  • Grammar for the Well-Trained Mind: Purple Workbook

Literature

For Ladybug

  • The Divine Comedy (all three parts!)
  • The Hound of the Baskervilles
  • Macbeth
  • The British Tradition II: Poetry & Prose from the Elizabethan to the Neoclassical Age (1485-1784)

For Chickadee

  • The Hobbit
  • Anne of Green Gables
  • The Door in the Wall

History

For Ladybug

  • The History of the Renaissance World
  • US History with A History of US

For Chickadee

  • The Story of the World, vol. 2–The Middle Ages

Science

For Ladybug

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Physics

For Chickadee

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy and Physiology

Electives

  • Duolingo
  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Health and Nutrition (Ladybug only)

2022-23 Curriculum

Before we get back to work following our Christmas break, let’s take a look at this year’s curriculum. Ladybug is in 10th grade this year, and Chickadee is in 5th. Yes, I am annoyed that they’re at different places in the history cycle…even though they’re using different texts, it’s much easier on my brain when they’re in the same time, but what are you going to do? They are doing the same religion this year, so I guess that balances it out! The beginning of the school year seems like a very long time ago, so I hope I haven’t overlooked anything we’ve already done.

Religion

  • Treasury of Daily Prayer

Math

For Ladybug

  • Math-U-See Algebra 2

For Chickadee

  • Horizons Math 5

Language Arts

For Ladybug

  • The Creative Writer, Level Four
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Ten
  • Analytical Grammar
  • Poetry, Prose, and Drama–Book One

For Chickadee

  • Spelling Workout E
  • First Language Lessons Level Four
  • A Reason for Handwriting Cursive E
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Five
  • Writing with Ease Level Four

Literature

For Ladybug

  • The Emperor Constantine
  • Romeo and Juliet
  • The Scarlet Letter
  • To Kill a Mockingbird

For Chickadee

  • The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
  • Homer Price
  • Heidi

History

For Ladybug

  • The History of the Medieval World

For Chickadee

  • Story of the World volume 1 and supplemental materials

Science

For Ladybug

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Chemistry and MicroChem kit

For Chickadee

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Zoology: Land Animals of the Sixth Day

Electives

  • Duolingo
  • Cooking (featuring Recipes from the World of Tolkien)
  • Tennis/Personal Physical Fitness

Read-Alouds

  • The Lord of the Rings series (we’ll see how far we get)

2021-22 Curriculum

For the first time in a very long time, I’m only going to have two students in our little homeschool. And, for the first time, I’m going to have only two students, with each in a different grade! Ladybug is beginning high school this year, while Chickadee is starting grade four. (Turkey and Bunny are beginning their first year of college, and Moose will be back to in-person learning as a sophomore in high school). After the 2020-21 school year, when all five children were home all year long, this is going to be a big change, and I have a feeling it’s going to take us all some time to get used to our new normal!

Religion

For Ladybug (Comparative Religions)

  • One God, Many Gods
  • One Christ, Many Creeds
  • One Word, Many Writings

For Chickadee

  • 120 Bible Stories and Activity Book

Math

For Ladybug

  • Math-U-See Geometry

For Chickadee

  • Horizons Math 4

Language Arts

For Ladybug

  • Writing Strands Level Five
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Nine
  • Analytical Grammar

For Chickadee

  • First Language Lessons Level Three
  • Writing With Ease Level Three
  • Spelling Workout D
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Four
  • A Reason for Handwriting Cursive D

Literature (with accompanying Memoria Press guides)

For Ladybug

  • Little Women
  • The Little Women Cookbook
  • Beowulf the Warrior
  • Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
  • Henry V

For Chickadee

  • The Blue Fairy Book
  • D’Aulaire’s Greek Myths
  • Little Women Coloring Book

Social Studies

For Ladybug

  • The History of the Ancient World

For Chickadee (Overview of Geography)

  • World Atlas for Young Explorers
  • A Trip Around the World
  • Another Trip Around the World
  • The Travel Book
  • Countries of the World
  • Maps and Globes
  • Global Art
  • The United States Activity and Fact Book
  • Travel the Great States

Science

For Ladybug

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Biology
  • Apologia Exploring Creation with High School Astronomy

For Chickadee

  • Apologia Zoology 2: Swimming Creatures of the Fifth Day

This year, I’m especially looking forward to Ladybug’s literature study of Little Women, which is a new book for our homeschool (even though Ladybug read it on her own several years ago at Bunny’s prompting). Even though she’s a little young for the Memoria Press guide, Chickadee will be following along, and I got her a coloring book to work through while she listens. The three of us will also be cooking recipes from The Little Women Cookbook, and doing some accompanying crafts (if I can come up with them!). I’m hoping for some quiet, cozy moments this year since it will just be the three of us!

2020-21 Curriculum

I’m trying something new this year…I’m sharing my curriculum list before the school year begins! Of course, there’s a chance that I have forgotten to include some things and may come across them as the school year progresses…if that happens, I’ll try to remember to update it. This year, Turkey and Bunny will be in 12th grade (!!!), Ladybug in 8th, and Chickadee in 3rd. Moose will begin the school year at home with us in 9th grade, but he will be doing distance-learning through his high school, so I don’t have curriculum specific to him, although he is welcome to follow along with whatever we’re doing in addition to his work.

Religion

  • Lutheran Service Book: Companion to the Hymns
  • One and All Rejoice
  • The Illuminated Hymnal

Math

For Turkey and Bunny:

  • Math-U-See Calculus

For Ladybug:

  • Horizons Algebra

For Chickadee:

  • Horizons Math 3

Language Arts

For Turkey and Bunny:

  • The Elements of Style
  • On Writing Well
  • The Lively Art of Writing
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book 12
  • The British Tradition Book Three: Poetry from the Romantic to the Victorian Age

For Ladybug

  • Spelling Workout H
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Eight
  • Writing with Skill, Level Three

For Chickadee

  • First Language Lessons, Level Two
  • Writing with Ease, Level Two
  • Explode the Code, books seven and eight
  • Spelling Workout C
  • A Reason for Handwriting Cursive C
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Three

Literature

For Turkey and Bunny

  • A Tale of Two Cities
  • Macbeth
  • Jane Eyre
  • Fahrenheit 451
  • 1984
  • The Great Gatsby
  • Paradise Lost
  • The Screwtape Letters
  • Wuthering Heights
  • Murder on the Orient Express

For Ladybug

  • Treasure Island
  • The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
  • As You Like It
  • The Trojan War
  • Henry Reed’s Journey

For Chickadee

  • Farmer Boy
  • Charlotte’s Web
  • Mr. Popper’s Penguins
  • A Bear Called Paddington
  • The Boxcar Children
  • Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle

Social Studies

For Turkey and Bunny (A study of US geography and cultures)

  • 1491
  • A People’s History of the United States
  • American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America
  • The Warmth of Other Suns
  • March–Books 1-3
  • There are No Children Here
  • Between the World and Me
  • Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African-American Cooking

For Ladybug and Chickadee

  • The Story of the World: The Modern Age
  • US Elections Lapbook
  • The US Constitution (Ladybug only)

Science

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Advanced Biology
  • The Anatomy Coloring Book
  • Blood Typing Kit

For Ladybug

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Physical Science

For Chickadee

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Zoology One

Electives

  • Psychology (Turkey and Bunny only)
  • Duolingo
  • Tennis

2019-20 Curriculum

Is it too late to look at the curriculum I used for the 2019-20 school year? Since time has lost all meaning, I think not, but I can’t promise that I included everything I should have!

This was a very busy year, and probably the hardest one yet for the teacher. Turkey and Bunny were in 11th grade, and while they do a lot of work independently, they also had a lot of hard subjects that required me to stretch my brain to its limit. Ladybug was in seventh grade, and Chickadee was in second, and both grades required a lot of hands-on instruction from me. I think it was a pretty successful year, even if it didn’t end the way we wanted it to, and I think we all learned a lot!

Religion

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The Lutheran Confessions Series: The Augsburg Confession and Its Apology and The Formula of Concord

For Ladybug

  • A Bible History

For Chickadee

  • One Hundred Bible Stories and Luther’s Small Catechism

Math

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Math-U-See Pre-Calculus

For Ladybug

  • Horizons Pre-Algebra

For Chickadee

  • Horizons Math 2

Language Arts

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Writing Strands Level 7
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book 11
  • Analytical Grammar
  • The British Tradition II: Poetry & Prose from the Elizabethan to the Neoclassical Age

For Ladybug

  • Spelling Workout G
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Seven
  • Writing with Skill, Level Two

For Chickadee

  • First Language Lessons
  • Writing with Ease Level One
  • Sonlight Readers Grade 2
  • Explode the Code books 4-6
  • Spelling Workout Level B
  • A Reason for Handwriting Grade Two

Literature

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The Divine Comedy (all three parts!)
  • The Hound of the Baskervilles
  • The Merchant of Venice

For Ladybug

  • The Hobbit
  • Anne of Green Gables
  • The Door in the Wall
  • The Phantom Tollbooth

For Chickadee

  • Little House in the Big Woods
  • Tales from Beatrix Potter
  • Alice in Wonderland
  • Winnie-the-Pooh
  • My Father’s Dragon

History

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The History of the Renaissance World

For Ladybug and Chickadee

  • The Story of the World, vol. 3: Early Modern Times

Science

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Physics

For Ladybug

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with General Science

For Chickadee

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Astronomy

Electives

  • Duolingo
  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Health and Nutrition (Turkey and Bunny only)
  • SAT prep (Turkey and Bunny only)
  • Tennis
  • Kantorei or Schola Cantorum (choirs)

2018-19 Curriculum

I once again had good intentions of sharing this list closer to the start of our school year, but as always, time kind of got away from me…can I still blame the broken ankle I had last fall? Anyway, here is what we’ve been working on this school year, in grades ten (Turkey and Bunny), six (Ladybug), and one (Chickadee)…I hope I remembered it all!

Religion

  • Treasury of Daily Prayer

Math

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Math-U-See Algebra 2

For Ladybug

  • Horizons Math 6

For Chickadee

  • Horizons Math 1

Language Arts

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The Creative Writer, Level Four
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Ten
  • Analytical Grammar
  • Poetry, Prose, and Drama–Book One

For Ladybug

  • Spelling Workout F
  • Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Success Grade Five
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Six
  • Writing with Skill, Level One

For Chickadee

  • Sonlight Language Arts 1
  • I Can Read It book series
  • Explode the Code books 1-3
  • Spelling Workout Level A
  • A Reason for Handwriting Grade One

Literature

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The Emperor Constantine
  • Romeo and Juliet
  • The Scarlet Letter
  • To Kill a Mockingbird

For Ladybug (with Chickadee listening in)

  • The White Stallion of Lippizza
  • Misty of Chincoteague
  • Justin Morgan Had a Horse
  • King of the Wind
  • Brighty of the Grand Canyon
  • The Black Stallion

History

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The History of the Medieval World

For Ladybug (with Chickadee listening in)

  • Story of the World volume two and supplemental materials

Science

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Chemistry and MicroChem kit

For Ladybug (with Chickadee listening in)

  • WinterPromise Equine Science

Electives

  • Duolingo
  • Tennis
  • Kantorei or Schola Cantorum (choirs)

Read-Alouds

  • The Grandma’s Attic series

2017-18 Curriculum

We’re getting dangerously close to the end of the school year, so I guess I should share the curriculum we’ve been using. My usual disclaimer applies…the beginning of the school year was so long ago, I can’t promise that I’ve remembered everything we’ve used all year!

Religion

For Turkey and Bunny

  • God’s Old Testament People

For Ladybug

  • One Hundred Bible Stories and workbook

For Chickadee

  • A Child’s Garden of Bible Stories and workbook

Math

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Math-U-See Geometry

For Ladybug

  • Horizons Math 5

For Chickadee

  • Horizons Math K

Language Arts

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Writing Strands Level Five
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Nine
  • Analytical Grammar

For Ladybug

  • Spelling Workout E
  • Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Success Grade Four
  • Wordly Wise 3000, Book Five
  • Writing with Ease Level Four

For Chickadee

  • Sonlight Language Arts K
  • Fun Tales
  • Explode the Code Primers
  • A Reason for Handwriting K

Literature (all with accompanying Memoria Press guides)

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
  • Beowolf
  • The Canterbury Tales
  • Henry V

For Ladybug

  • The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
  • Heidi
  • The Canterbury Tales

History

For Turkey and Bunny

  • The History of the Ancient World

For Ladybug

  • Story of the World volume 1 and supplemental materials

Science

For Turkey and Bunny

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Biology

For Ladybug

  • Apologia Exploring Creation with Zoology: Land Animals of the Sixth Day

For Chickadee

  • The Berenstain Bears’ Big Book of Science and Nature

Electives

  • Duoligno (Italian, German, and Spanish)
  • The Art of Civilized Conversation
  • A Rulebook for Arguments
  • All About Korea (during the Winter Olympics)

Read-Alouds

  • The Ramona Series
  • The American Girl BeForever series from Kaya through Julie

 

2016-17 Curriculum

I had such good intentions to share this at the beginning of the school year this time, but you know how it goes. As always, I’m hoping this list is fairly complete, but it’s easy to forget resources we used way back in August and September! Anyway, this is at least a pretty decent overview of the materials we’ve used this school year.

Religion

Math

Language Arts

For Turkey and Bunny

For Ladybug

History

Science

For Turkey and Bunny

For Ladybug

Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library (for Chickadee)

Electives

Read-Alouds

Literature (with accompanying Memoria Press study guides where available)

For Fun

2015-16 Curriculum

I get worse and worse about sharing our curriculum every year! Now that we’re almost ready to start the 2016-17 school year (our ninth year of homeschooling!), I thought it was time to share what we used last year, when Turkey and Bunny were in seventh grade and Ladybug was in third. As always, this is a basic list…I’m sure there are things that have been left off, especially since I waited so long to write it down!

Religion

Math

Language Arts

For Turkey and Bunny:

For Ladybug:

History

Science

For Turkey and Bunny

For Ladybug

Electives

Read-Alouds/Literature (all with accompanying Memoria Press study guide)