curriculum

While I’m At It

As long as I’ve been pondering curriculum, I’ve been looking at another set of lessons, (this time unit studies), from another new company, one that I’ve heard of but never actually looked at before–Beautiful Feet (BF).

In the interest of full disclosure, because of their particular viewpoints in regards to history, (especially American history), I wouldn’t use them for our history core for a full year. They appear to teach history from a Providential viewpoint (which is something I had never even heard of before this month), and I definitely don’t want to teach that.

That being said, when researching classical music studies, their name kept coming up, and so I checked out their “History of Music” pack. It looks awesome! We’ll be getting almost all of the CDs it uses from MFW over the course of a few years, anyway, and I already have one of the books, so it won’t even be that big of an investment to pick up the study guide and additional books. My children have a natural love of classical music (which I definitely did *not* have at their age), and an ear for composers, and I really want to encourage that. This program looks like it will be great for us in a few years, to really delve into classical music, composers, and musical instruments.

While browsing the BF website, I also found a unit study on the “History of the Horse.” I know it sounds really random, and it definitely wasn’t something I was looking for, but I also think this would be another really cool elective. There are many classic books included in the pack that I’ve either read or heard of (most of them written by Marguerite Henry, of course!), and a few of them are books I was hoping to read with the children soon. There is also a great deal of science in this program (learning the biology of the horse, for example), as well as art, (learning to draw horses).  If we use it as an electives program on Fridays, it will last us a good three years, which is a great return on a rather small investment.

Both of these programs are heavy on notebooking, which I think will be great practice for Turkey and Bunny, and also makes for a nice portfolio at the end of the year, or years, as the case may be. I was hoping to find something more structured than even MFW for classical music, and BF definitely fits the bill, and has gotten great reviews on top of it. I never would have gone looking for a study on horses, but I do love finding unique things to study, and Bunny is always asking to learn about animals, anyway (too bad there’s no bunny unit!), so I think this will be a great addition to our school!

My Father’s World

So, I’ve been pondering the possibility of changing curriculum for third grade, from Sonlight to My Father’s World (MFW). I think my decision is pretty much made, and in making it, I’ve discovered specific reasons I’m leaning toward MFW.

  • MFW is Charlotte Mason meets unit studies meets classical education. Now, the Charlotte Mason philosophy itself is not that important to me, but the unit studies and classical style are. I’ve discovered through the special units I’ve put together on my own, that the unit studies are our favorite part of the school year. The children and I both enjoy that approach so much, and it didn’t occur to me until recently that I could look for something that would let us have that kind of experience all year-long. I’m also happy that it will be closer to traditional classical education (although still not all the way there), because that was one of the reasons we wanted to start homeschooling in the first place.
  • MFW has a lot of hands-on activities. This is kind of related to the post above, because one of the things that makes the unit studies I’ve put together so great is that I’ve found lots of hands-on activities and craft projects to go with whatever we’re studying. I will confess, however, that it’s a struggle for me to put that together on my own, so I don’t think I could add hands-on to a different curriculum successfully long-term. MFW has taken care of all that for me, and I’m really excited about being able to add that to our regular school routine.
  • I love that MFW implements a book basket. We certainly have no shortage of books to read around here, between the books I would have bought anyway, and our curriculum, but with MFW, there’s a list for each level of the curriculum of books that go along with what is being learned. Now, these aren’t mandatory reading, but suggestions for independent reading time. This will give us a lot more ideas of books we can get from the library, give the children some choices in which ones they choose to read, and free up my time a little more (and save my voice some!).
  • I’m also impressed with MFW language arts. Now, it’s not their own program–they’ve simply compiled resources that they recommend. But they’re resources I probably wouldn’t have looked at on my own, which is a shame, because having looked at them, I think they’re just what I’m looking for. This is the one area where I feel we’re struggling–not the spelling or vocabulary so much, but grammar itself, and I think the spine used by MFW will really be helpful to Turkey and Bunny in building their skills in that area.
  • MFW is also designed for ease of use with multiple grade levels. This has been on my mind lately, as Ladybug will be joining us in the schoolroom either this fall or next. I’ve been worrying over how I could teach two grade levels, and frankly, couldn’t really see how it would work. But MFW is designed to be used by a span of grade levels (eventually), which will really work for our family. The previously mentioned book basket will also help with that, as I will have time to focus on Ladybug while the other two work on some extra independent reading.
  • I also feel like MFW is more individualized. Again, this really goes back to the book basket. From what I understand, the teacher’s manual has a list of somewhere around 300 books for every year. Of course we won’t read them all, but I like that I’ll be in control of what to choose, and that from what I choose, Turkey and Bunny will have some choice of which of those books they each want to read. I know, I could do something similar with our current curriculum, but I’m something of a box-checker, so if I don’t do everything the way it’s laid I out, I start to feel guilty.
  • I also like the MFW Bible curriculum better. There are still things I’ll have to tweak to fit our Lutheran perspective, but not nearly as much–I was planning on just coming up with *all* our Bible lessons from here on out. It’s nice to have one less thing on my plate, though.
  • I’m also very impressed with the electives MFW offers. Next year, we’ll have a whole art curriculum. Not just art appreciation (which they also cover), but actual practice at drawing and painting. Like the rest of the curriculum, the electives just seem so much more hands-on (for example, in a lower grade, a color book of the different musical instruments to accompany learning what they each sound like), and I think that the children, as well as myself, will benefit from that approach.
  • The timing for a change is good for us right now, too. If we like MFW, we’ll be on the perfect schedule to go through their whole cycle by eighth grade (and we’ll go through the standard four-year history cycle completely). If it doesn’t work for us, we can go back to Sonlight with little problem–we’ll probably have to skip Core 5 in the future, but we’ll still finish the history cycle there, too. Either way, this is a great time for us to take a chance on something new, before we’re really immersed in the upper elementary level and the four-year history cycle.

That all being said, of course there are some things I’m going to have to change a bit to make MFW work for our family. I’ve come to realize, however that that’s going to be true of any curriculum I use. And now that I’ve been homeschooling a while (has it really been three years?!?), I’m much more confident in my ability to tweak as necessary, and to make the decision to change what we’re doing to fit our needs better!

Taking a Break?

I’m considering stepping away from Sonlight next year.

I know, I know…I’ve had nothing but good things to say about Sonlight. And that really hasn’t changed. But we’ve been doing this for three years, now, and I’m feeling like we need something different. Maybe for just one year, to try it out, see how we like it, and how we feel about being away from Sonlight. I’m not looking at long-term changes at this point. But I’m really afraid we’re going to burn out if we keep up with Sonlight, and I’d also like to look at some different options for L.A.

Right now, I’m thinking we might try out My Father’s World. It has some things in common with Sonlight, so it won’t feel totally strange, but it has a more classical bent, which is what I’m really looking for. I also like that it has more hands-on activities–I have a hard enough time coming up with those for our special units; trying to do it for our regular school year would be a nightmare for me!

There aren’t as many books scheduled, which isn’t great, but from what I understand there is a list of supplementary books included, so we can add as much literature as we want. Plus, I do have Sonlight’s book list, and the history we’ll be studying will cover roughly the same years, so those books would still apply. My Father’s World is also considerably cheaper than Sonlight, which is especially helpful because I don’t know if I want this to be a permanent change. I think I’d have a hard time “upgrading” to something more expensive, but going down in price is easier to handle, plus will leave me with some of the budget for buying those previously mentioned extra books.

I haven’t made any decisions for sure–I’m still at the research stage right now. But I’m kind of excited with the idea of trying something new. It’s just a reminder that every school year is a chance for a fresh start!

Homeschool Review: “A Reason For…”

We’re on our second year of A Reason for Handwriting ( we started with Book K last year, and have moved on to the now-alphabetically-sequenced Book A), and our first year of A Reason for Spelling (also Book A). Even though it’s early in the school year, I have a pretty good feeling for both programs.

I was very impressed with the way Handwriting introduced proper letter formation in Book K, using a tree-house as a guide. My children thought it was a fun way to learn, and even though Bunny still has some work to do on writing well (which is all about her rushing, and not about her understanding of what she’s *supposed* to be doing!), Turkey has excellent printing already, and they both know how letters are supposed to be written.

We’re still working on reviewing what we learned last year now that we’ve started Book A, but looking ahead, I love that we’ll be using Scripture to practice handwriting (even if the translation used isn’t my first, or even second, choice!), and I also love the fancy border sheets, which reinforce the idea that handwriting is a public way of communication, and should look nice.

So far in Spelling, we’ve worked on phonics review, and it’s been very much like the Explode the Code series. The activities have been fun, and the bonus activities suggested in the teacher’s guide are geared toward every kind of learner, even kinesthetic. What I like most, though, is the way the lessons line up with the lessons in the Handwriting book. Of course, this only works if you’re using the same level of handwriting and spelling at the same time (which we are), but I think it’s a great way to reinforce the Bible passages used, and to bring in needed repetition in spelling and writing well. And why wouldn’t you link the two? It seems like a very natural way to learn, which is one of the things I love about our main curriculum, Sonlight.

I’m definitely looking forward to learning cursive and spelling harder words in the years to come with the A Reason For… books!

Homeschool Review: Sonlight

I figured as long as I’m already reviewing books, I might as well review homeschool products, too.  I’m hoping to branch out a little more here–I’m sure I’ll review a lot of books, but I also plan on reviewing CDs, DVDs, materials, kits, and whole programs.

And what better place to start reviewing than with the product we have used the most–our Sonlight curriculum!

Having survived our first of homeschooling, I feel that I have a pretty good handle on what Sonlight is, what they provide, and what the company is like.  And I have to say, I couldn’t possibly give them enough stars!  Did I like every single item in our curriculum for the year? No. I can think of two things in particular that I didn’t like, one to the point that I abandoned it altogether.  But did I like almost everything?  Yes!  Both the children and I found many, many books that we just loved, and never would have read were it not for Sonlight.

To really explain how great Sonlight is, I need to delve a little further into the specific things that make me love them, and that make them stand apart from any other companies out there.  So, without further ado, the:

10 Reasons I Love Sonlight

  • Great Customer Service–The few times I’ve had a problem with an order, it has been taken care of immediately, and with no fuss.
  • Similar Values–Because Sonlight is a Christian company, I know that they share my values, and I don’t have to worry about the materials I’ll be using when teaching my children.
  • Honesty–Sonlight gives you a list up-front of reasons you may not want to use their curriculum.  I appreciate their honesty in admitting that Sonlight won’t work for every family.
  • Free Shipping and Discounts–If you purchase a Core from Sonlight, you receive free shipping for a year, which comes in handy when you realize you need more handwriting paper, or you decided to upgrade you Language Arts package before you start the next Core.
  • Book Selection–I love the books Sonlight uses.  It’s the perfect mix of books I loved as a child, books I’ve heard are good but never actually read, and books I’ve never heard of before.  Nice and diverse.
  • Easy to Use–The instructor’s guide plans (almost) everything out for me.  I don’t have to figure out what to do when, or worry that I’m covering all the right things.
  • Online Community–Sonlight has a good set of forums (membership is another perk of purchasing a Core) where you can connect with other parents having the same experiences in their schools.
  • Personal Phone Calls–I received probably two or three phone calls in the last year just to check on our schooling experience and find out if I had any questions or problems.  That helped remind me that I’m not alone in this adventure!
  • Time Saver–Not only does having the curriculum planned out save me time from having to do that on my own, it also frees up time for me to plan special units for use through the school year, which is a fun extra that I really enjoy (but I would never want to have to plan out our entire curriculum!).
  • Internet Presence–In addition to the forums, Sonlight also has a great website that makes ordering super-easy, and several blogs about homeschooling to read.  I’ve even received comments on my blog from Sonlight–talk about customer service!

And, a Bonus Eleventh Reason I Love Sonlight:

  • Tackling the Hard Issues–I love that Sonlight does not shy away from things some Christians would just avoid altogether (from evolution to mythology, and books that just contain secular situations).  I think that my children need to learn about these things, learn why they believe what they do, learn what is appropriate for them and what is not, and I think they should be doing these things at home with my guidance.  Sonlight allows that to happen by including the tough stuff, and a way in which to discuss it and learn from it.

    That’s a lot of Books!

    After a friend asked me yesterday how many books we use in a year of school, I got curious and counted.  I didn’t count this year’s books, because in my opinion, Kindergarten is “lighter” than later grades, so instead I counted the books (and workbooks) we’ll be using for 1st Grade..

    Going through my recent Sonlight order of Core K (it sounds like we’re doing Kindergarten again, but it doesn’t work that way, trust me!),  Readers 2 and Language Arts for Readers 2 (which we won’t be starting on at the beginning of 1st Grade, but I had to count either those or Readers 1; since Readers 2 and Language Arts 2 was in the same shipment, they’re in my tally), Horizons Math 1, Science K, Bible K, Electives K, A Reason for Handwriting Book A, and A Reason for Spelling Book A, I came up with approximately 75 books.

    This total includes eight individual workbooks(2 math, 3 language arts, 1 vocabulary, 1 handwriting, and 1 spelling) that we need two copies each of, but none of the teacher guides or worksheet packs.  It also includes a few resource books that will be used over the course of many years, including a student dictionary, a children’s encyclopedia and Sonlight’s Book of Time.

    Stopping to count our books reminds me what a daunting task homeschooling is, what a great book list Sonlight has put together, and how much I love books and reading.  Whenever I think about it, I’m terrified and elated at the same time. Interesting combination, but so far, it seems to be working for me!

    Thought I Had It Figured Out

    So, I’ve settled into a routine with school, and am very happy with the choices I finally made.  Anyone who has read my blog knows the deliberation that went into choosing the curriculum for our first year of homeschool. And it wasn’t even a matter of choosing a company, because it didn’t take much comparing to realize that Sonlight was right for our family.  So, I finally decided–Sonlight Core P 4/5, with Readers K, A Reason for Handwriting K, Pattern Blocks for math, and extra Read-Alouds in the form of the Little House and Rocky Ridge series (and I know that most of that probably only made sense to those of you that are involved with homeschooling, because when I first started looking at this stuff, it sounded like a foreign language to me!).

    So, we have our materials, and I’ve even planned long term what cores/readers we’ll use each year, God-willing, as long as this continues to work for our family.  And even though we’re only in week seven, I’ve especially started looking to what we’ll be doing for first grade next year, because I still think we may finish this core early, and even if we don’t, we’re looking at a more year-round approach to school, so I’ll need the new materials sooner than the average family would.

    But then today, it hit me–spelling.  We should probably start some kind of spelling program next year, and that hadn’t even occurred to me before now.  What to use?  Sonlight offers two options, but neither one of them is “theirs” as far as I understand, so I don’t really feel any particular loyalty to them, and frankly, I’m having a hard time getting excited about either offering.  

    I did, however, stumble upon A Reason for Spelling today.  I had forgotten that the company that makes A Reason for Handwriting does anything else–I haven’t even looked at their website since we first decided to homeschool, and I was trying to decide on a handwriting program.  But, on a message board I frequent, someone mentioned A Reason for Spelling in passing.  So, I looked into it, and I have to say, I’m impressed. I already love A Reason for Handwriting (as do Turkey and Bunny).  I love the Bible focus, I love the treehouse approach to letter formation, which seems to be really helpful in teaching children how to properly write letters, and I love the fun page that’s included with every lesson (as, again, do Turkey and Bunny).  

    So, I’m thinking that since I’m already impressed with the company, I should stick with it, especially as it appears that the spelling and handwriting books starting with Level A at least try to have complementary lessons, which would be beneficial.  After looking over the placement test, Turkey and Bunny would already be well suited to Level A, although I’m not planning on starting them on it now…apparently, they’re better at spelling than they are at reading (is that normal?  I have no idea–I’m still new to this!).

    So, does anybody have any experience with A Reason for Spelling?  Fell free to comment, as I’m still open to suggestions!

    Considering My Options

    I hope there will come a day when I am not obsessing over curriculum. In fact, I hope that day will come soon, because I really hope to place our order for the coming school year within the next two weeks. I, for one, am just grateful that I was able to choose a company from which to order so quickly. If I had to compare different curriculum packages within *and* between companies, I would be completely looney toons by now. I suppose, depending on who you ask (read, my husband!) I already am, as I cannot put the Sonlight catalog and/or website down in the evenings, but it is what it is. Decision time approaches, so hopefully I will get this figured out, and fast.

    The way I look at it, I have three options. I’ve basically eliminated one of those, but it was my gut instinct as to what I should order, so I have to keep it on the table, just in case. I was initially just going to order the Core K, with K readers (Option One). Switch out the handwriting for a different style, but keep everything else in the package basically the same. I was going to add the Get Ready, Set, Go for the Code set for some extra reading help, but the rest was going to be the K suggestions–math, science, Bible, electives, etc. However, after talking to some people who have used Sonlight, I started to worry about starting Bunny at the K level too young (she’s four). Now, anybody who has met her can attest to the fact that she is quite bright, and rather advanced for a four year old. I wasn’t at all worried about her being able to pay attention or keep up with the work. But, some moms who have been through it mentioned that as we got into Cores Two and Three, the subject material might be a little heavy for her if we started a year early. Actually, some of them even recommended starting at the P 3/4 Core, but I think that’s ridiculous, and not an option at all–we’ve been reading a lot for the last three years, we need something more structured.

    Anyway, those comments got me to thinking. Looking at the P 4/5 Core, I initially thought it would be too boring for Bunny and Turkey (who is five). We have read some of the books, and there isn’t really any structured math or electives, and no learning to read, so I couldn’t really see how that would work. But the thing about Sonlight is, you’re supposed to look more at the age ranges than the Core level, and doing that, Core P 4/5 makes the most sense, as it’s for four and five year olds, and I will be teaching, well, a four and a five year old!

    So, Option Two was born. After considering to myself how I could tweak not only this year’s program to make it more advanced, but not set us up to get into too heavy subject material a few years down the road, I came up with what I think is a good compromise. I would get the P 4/5 Core, but with readers K, as well as language arts K, as planned in option one, which is an available choice from Sonlight (up through Core Three, you have the option of either advancing a core level in the readers, or an advanced set of readers within your core). Even though neither Turkey nor Bunny can read independently yet, they seem to be ready to learn, so this would be a good place to start. I would also get the handwriting and Explode the Code that I had planned to do with Core K, as that stuff is easily switched around in future years, and would provide them with an extra challenge. I would then also plan on getting the Classical Kids Collection of CDs (volume two, as volume one makes an appearance in an electives package in Core One or Two, I think) to add a little music appreciation/background of classical composers. I can also add a pattern blocks kit, which introduces some math concepts such as counting and geometry, and will help Bunny with spatial thinking (Turkey sure doesn’t need help in that department!)

    This option is looking pretty good. We’ll be able to work ahead in reading, and from what I can tell, the readers are not so much the problem in regards to heavier content. That comes more from the book selections for the history core, and if we do the P 4/5 now, we’ll be more on track with the ages recommended for the cores later. Bunny will still be at the low end of the spectrum, but at least she’d be on it, unlike if we start with K now, and she’d always be a year “too young”–and like I said before, she’s advanced, so I think she can handle it. The other nice thing is the way the readers are laid out in coming years. We’ll be a year ahead, but once we get to Core Two, we’ll have the option of regular readers (which, in theory, we’ll do with Core One), as well as advanced and intermediate. So, even if we’re a grade level ahead for a little while, it’ll all catch up by Core Three.

    Then, there’s Option Three. I honestly think that in an ideal situation, this is the best option we’ve got, but finances make it basically impossible. I haven’t discounted it altogether, because I honestly believe it’s the best solution, but I also don’t think it’s really going to happen. My big concern with the P 4/5 core is that we’re going to go through it faster than scheduled. Knowing my children, and their desire to learn, I have a hard time believing it will take a full school year to get through, even with the tweaking I have planned. So, ideally, I would like to do option two above, and order Core K with Readers One. If I do this, we can spend at least half the school year (which is what I’m estimating it would take to do the P 4/5 Core if we do it at the pace I think we’re going to want to) on the P 4/5 Core, and then move right into the K core without a break. This will give Bunny especially a little more time to mature, as opposed to jumping right into Core K, but will also (hopefully) prevent them from getting too bored. I would then get handwriting for Core One to go along with it, because it doesn’t really matter if they get ahead in that, as well as Explode the Code 1, 2, 3, which is scheduled to go along with the readers and language arts for Core One, which we would be upgrading to.

    I see option three as the best of both worlds. We can ease our way into homeschooling (and school, in general) with Core P 4/5 and work at our own pace. If it goes fast, we can jump right into Core K. At worst, the P 4/5 really does take a full year, and we have the K curriculum ready to go next year when we need it. I don’t know–such tough decisions to make, when it’s in regards to your children’s education. I guess option two will work out OK as long as we don’t go through it too fast, and the bonus is, it’s the cheapest of the three options!

    Wow, that was really long and confusing! If you’ve never looked at a Sonlight catalog, I’m sure it sounds like a foreign language. Actually, it’s taken the better part of three weeks for me to understand what I’m talking about, and I’m not even sure about myself half the time!

    Book Review: “The Well Trained-Mind”

    It’s going to sound cliche, but this book changed my life. Seriously. It was the reading of The Well-Trained Mind (and I’ll be honest, I didn’t even finish it before I had to return it to the library!) that really pushed us over the edge into homeschooling. It was my husband even more than myself that this book really impressed, and it made us look at the public school system in a new, and frankly rather unflattering, way.

    This book was written by the mother-daughter duo of Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer. Between the two of them, they have experience teaching in public schools, colleges and homeschools, as well as advanced degrees and have even authored a history curriculum written in the classical method and geared toward early elementary school students.

    The Well-Trained Mind focuses on providing children with a classical education in the home. The basis of this method of instruction is the trivium–three sequential learning stages which are grammar, logic and rhetoric. What makes this book so fantastic are the extensive suggestions for resources for every part of the curriculum–from history and handwriting to Language Arts and Latin; from math and music to Social Studies and science, and everything in between. It is split up into stages of learning, and from there split into subjects. An enterprising parent could put together an entire curriculum based on the recommendations given! While I’m not that ambitious, I have noticed that Sonlight uses and/or offers many of the books listed in The Well-Trained Mind, and I also plan to supplement the curriculum we’ll be purchasing from that company with a few additional recommendations from this book.

    The end of the book is also extremely helpful. The authors cover things such as making schedules (daily, as well as how to structure the school year, with a focus on year-round schooling in three different models), keeping records, standardized tests, tutoring and preparing for college. Basically, there are over 700 pages of awesome contained in this book. It was recommended to me by other homeschoolers when I was just considering homeschooling, and I will concur that anyone who thinks they might want to try homeschool should read this book, because it is a valuable resource.

    This book deserves more than five stars as far as I’m concerned. I will be ordering a copy for my personal use from Amazon as soon as possible, and I can’t wait to sit down with it and a highlighter, and mark all the books we definitely will be reading, as well as others I would like to add to our studies. I think this will become one of my most useful homeschooling resources, and I plan on using the suggestions in it to help me educate my children for many years to come!

    I Have a Plan!

    So, after spending the last several weeks going through homeschooling catalogs and websites of all kinds, as well as talking to people online, I think I have a plan for this year!

    We’re going to start with Sonlight K, but not the newcomer package, because I decided to use A Reason for Handwriting instead of Handwriting Without Tears, which is what comes with the newcomer set. (And how much does all this agonizing I’ve done over handwriting curriculum even matter? Everybody is typing nowadays. But they still need to learn to write properly!) I realize that most people who have tried Handwriting Without Tears have loved it, but I really prefer the more traditional look that is taught in A Reason for Handwriting, and I also like that the practice is done with Bible verses (even it is selections from the Living Bible. *sigh* I’ll have to see how the lessons are presented, and how easy it would be to substitute with the ESV). So, my big challenge is going to be making sure I order everything else that would have come in the newcomer package, just switching out the handwriting materials, and also adding Ready, Set, Go for the Code for additional learning to read help.

    I know some people would probably recommend starting with the P 4/5 curriculum, since I’m going to be working with a four and five year old. But I’ve been over both the K and the P 4/5 materials many times, and I really think they would both be bored with the 4/5 stuff. I don’t want to sound like the typical bragging parent, but both of my older children are pretty advanced, which was partly the reason we decided to homeschool, so they could be more challenged, and I think they know most of the stuff from the 4/5 curriculum. I guess at worst we end up stretching out or repeating the K curriculum, but I really don’t think it’s going to be an issue.

    As long as homeschooling goes well this year, and I feel comfortable with what I’m doing, I may look into switching out other parts of the curriculum. Not the core, obviously, because that’s the best part of Sonlight–all of the reading, and the natural learning method as far as history, geography, etc., goes. In the future, though, especially if I actually get to a curriculum fair, I think I may want to try Apologia for science (maybe starting at grade two, so I can do the astronomy, botany, and three zoology texts before general science hits in seventh grade), because I always loved science in grade school (and high school and college for that matter, except for physics, but that’s a whole other story!) and the Apologia curriculum looks really cool!

    I’m also hoping to get a chance to compare Saxon math to the Horizons curriculum that Sonlight recommends, because I know it’s a tried and true method, and a lot of homeschoolers use it, so I figure I should at least check it out. Hopefully I can make that decision before we start grade one next year–that way I won’t end up doubling up on manipulatives sets (I know I could put together my own, but that idea is still intimidating to a new homeschooler like me!).

    Eventually I know I’m going to want to move away from the religion that Sonlight provides, as well. I’m already adding the Lutheran Children’s ESV to our materials for this year, to beef up the Bible curriculum that they provide, and maybe some Arch books, too. I’m OK with Sonlight’s offerings (supplemented by CPH material) up through about grade two or three, but then they A.) start using Bible translations I’m not fond of, and 2.) start teaching some stuff that could be contradictory to Lutheran theology, at least from what I can tell so far. I can always fall back on CPH’s dayschool religion curriculum or *gasp* prepare my own–I was a DCE before children, after all, so if there’s anything I should be able to create on my own, that would be it!

    The reading, read-alouds and Language Arts all look good to me, so no worries about replacing those. The electives look pretty good, too–certainly more about music and art appreciation than I ever learned in the early elementary years. And while I’m not using Sonlight’s number one recommendation for handwriting, and I may decide on different math and science, all of those materials are still available to order through Sonlight (and I think still eligible for the member discount), so except for the religion materials, it appears I can keep all of my business in one place. Very convenient!

    I’m most excited about Sonlight’s core, though–I can’t believe how much we’ll be reading! I think I’ve looked at the book lists for almost every grade, and there are so many familiar books from my childhood that I can’t wait to share with my children. And I love the way they use “real” books to teach history, instead of just dry textbooks. I know I remember much more from the stories I read as a child, whether they were true, or just entertaining fiction, than I do from any textbook I read. I know this isn’t the only way of learning, but it is the one that makes the most sense to me, so I’m especially happy Sonlight has put together such a nice curriculum for me–I wouldn’t even know where to start doing this on my own!

    I can’t believe we’ve actually made the decision to homeschool. I certainly never saw myself as a homeschooling parent. Then again, our family has always been a little unorthodox, so maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised that this seems to be such a good fit for us–we’re good at going against the grain! I’m especially grateful to my husband, because he was obviously listening to me, (at times when I didn’t even realize I was talking!), and was open minded enough not only to consider this, but to actually do a complete 180 on his opinions on homeschooling. I never even would have seriously considered homeschooling without his support, but I feel that with God calling me to do this, and Ryan’s encouragement, I’ve been set free to do something I always wanted to do, without even really knowing it at the time.