Our Homeschool Curriculum

I've gotten a few questions about which curriculum we plan to use, and where we got our resources for teaching the Auchlings this year. Well, I'm happy to share!

First off, for those who are new to the homeschooling world, there are a lot of philosophies considered when determining how to teach your kids. Some range from very free thinking like "unschooling," to more traditional and maybe even rigid "traditional schooling" methods. Many people have written books, made systems, and experimented over the years, but the philosophy that resonated most with me was something between Unit Studies and Traditional Schooling.

I like to plan things out (BINDERS!), so I knew that I would need a system that allows me to make a plan in writing (preferably with sheet protectors), but would still be flexible enough for my brain, which has commitment issues with the idea of organization. I fall in love with organization, but I often cheat on it with spontaneity, and "me days."

I settled on Unit Studies, which is the concept of using themed units throughout the year to cover all the "educational bases" through activities, worksheets, and exploratory learning. For example, we are currently doing a "Creation" unit, where we cover each day of God's Creation for one week. Last week was Sun, Moon, and Stars, and we studied space. As the year progresses, I will let the kids choose from a pre-determined list of units I have already put together. If they want to learn about the ocean, then we'll learn about that for however long we feel like doing that.

How do I determine which units to study? How do I fit all the core information needed into those units? How does that get divvied up?

Great questions.

This is partially where the "traditional school" part comes in. Most schools (High School mainly, but it applies) follow a 4 year rotation of subject focus. That's why you might take biology during Freshman year,

and Chemistry during Junior year. It's just an area to focus on. I planned our own four year rotation for subject study that will help me give them the best variation on subjects as we go through each year. And even though this year, for example, we will be focusing on Biology and Ancient History, those aren't the only subjects we will cover. This week (The Creation being Ancient History) we are actually learning about weather, which uses some chemistry demonstrations. Even though biology is our focus, and all our "science units" will be biology-based, we will still cover other subjects within those units.

It sounds complicated, but it's pretty simple once it all gets put on paper! Here is the general rotation we will follow:

Unit Cycle Plan

Based on that, I look around for the best biology and ancient history units that we might all be interested in, and I gather them together before the school year. I have pictures of each unit in sheet protectors so the kids can flip through them and choose which area interests them most. This way they feel like they get to choose, but really, they're just playing right into my fabulous school plan!

Once I know what our areas of focus will be, I start applying the grade-appropriate objectives to the units. Here is a list of objectives I have for the kids for this year. We will make sure to cover all of these comprehensively! But I get to choose where, which is cool.

2016-2017 Objectives

Imagine how fun it will be to learn about Roman numerals during the Roman unit when we are play acting as Roman scholars! Or learning how to tell time by studying farm animals and recreating a farmer's daily schedule. These are the kind of basics that I can throw into a unit to make it feel like they're playing, when in actuality, we're learning!

However, since I can't rely on themed units to teach them everything, I do have core subjects covered with "real" curriculum material. These are crucial especially if something happens and the creative units just aren't possible--we will always have the most important stuff on hand to grab really quickly to complete.

For Daisy Duck, I am using Saxon Math, Spectrum Math, K-12 Reader Spelling, and since she can already read very well, we are doing a unit-based reading schedule with journal entries to practice penmanship and summary skills. I also have a whole host of workbooks that cover every topic you can think of, just in case I'm having a really bad week and need to fall back on something!

For Brother Duck, we are working through Spectrum Math, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and the Brain Quest K Workbook to fill in any gaps.

Curly Duck isn't even technically in preschool yet, so we are doing fun things like number and shape games, and she joins in on the unit study fun.

Baby Duck takes delight in destroying the school room while we work.

And that's pretty much it! I won't go into exactly how I plan lessons, or schedule our days (that's a whole other duck pond, if you know what I'm saying!), but I hope you found it interesting to see how we plan on doing things.

So far, we are having a great time, and I'll post an update on our first couple of weeks soon!

Our Homeschool Classroom

Okay, my secret is out. I homeschooled just so I can make a cute classroom! Hah! You got me.

Seriously, though, I think my first thought after I finally decided homeschooling would be worth a try for us was, "Holy cheese, I get to make a homeschool room!!"

YAS.

The only hang up, as with most of my endeavors, was that I had to do it on a budget. Fortunately, with some babysitting money, a few generous donations, and birthday gifts (and of course, my amazing husband who works so hard to earn an income for our family!), I was able to make a homeschool room I'm proud of, but for very little money!

Ta da!

 This is what the room looks like when you first walk in. I actually have another table that I put into an "L" configuration, with my cushy teacher's chair, but Dan stole those for his nefarious hobby crafting purposes. Thief! Still, you get the idea. It's flippin cute.

 The amazing map was a gift for my birthday, and that whiteboard I found on a garage sale site for $15! Can you believe that?

 I found these at Target for $1 a set. Gotta love Target dollar spot!

 This is the reading corner--probably my favorite spot in the room! Rug and pillow were from IKEA, and those bookshelves are actually rain gutters that I cut and screwed into the wall. The posters were $1 each from Target.

 I don't remember when I got the "alphabet center," but I'm pretty sure it was from Zuiliy at some point. I also have a laser printer, industrial stapler, and heavy duty pencil sharpener.

 Yay cuteness!! How could I pass up appropriately themed window clings? I'm not a soulless monster.

So here's a dresser we already had that I turned into a sort of supply station. Daisy Duck, Brother Duck, and Curly Duck have their own drawers where their daily workbooks and worksheets are kept. They can grab the correct learning material on their own if I happen to be working with a kid one-on-one. I also keep my teacher supplies and extra crafting things in there.

 If you want a good school supply list, I found a great one at notconsumed.com. She tells you, roughly, what and how much you should buy at the beginning of the school year when the sales are best.

 Our little blackboard/art corner over here is great for keeping Curly Duck entertained with little projects while I teach the older two.

 A bookcase I have yet to fill. I have educational books scattered around, so I need to gather them. And then of course, hit up library sales as they happen!

 The Auchlings don't get to pick out fun backpacks like other kids (for obvious reasons), but I still wanted them to pick something that gave them character, and that they could use every day in school. So here are their pencil boxes! You get 20 house points if you can guess whose is whose. ;)

My mountain of crayons. Funny story about this. I bought 30 packs of crayons at Staples, and as I dumped all of them on the counter, the lady asked, "Are you donating these somewhere?"

I don't know what was wrong with me, but for some reason I just didn't feel like going into the whole, "Oh we're homeschooling!" thing. Sometimes people ask about it, and I was in a hurry, and also, I was worried she might give me the, "Oh you're one of THOSE people" looks, so in a grand effort to look totally normal and not at all weird, my face contorted for half a second while all these things zinged through my brain, and then in a deadpan voice I just said:

"No."

........

Awkward silence ensued.

And there was no back pedaling without making it worse, so we completed the crayon hoarder transaction and went our separate ways.

Glad I was able to handle that smoothly. Definitely avoided looking like a weirdo.

Anyway, so there you have it! I am so thrilled to begin our schooling adventures in this room, and I will savor its cleanliness while it lasts.

Adventure Awaits!

Wow, I can't believe I'm homeschooling four kids. Someone slap me to my senses!

Kidding, kidding. Mostly.

It took a lot of prayer and pondering to come to the decision that we wanted to school our children here in our lovely home in Pennsylvania. Dan neither pushed me nor dissuaded me, and I neither rushed nor belabored the idea. It was just something that kind of settled over us as our oldest entered elementary school age, and the future of their education stretched out before us.

We started Daisy Duck off at a charter school for Kindergarten. The same charter school both my husband and I had graduated from--a place that, to this very moment, we still trust implicitly. All the same, there were moments that a familiar, loving voice whispered to my heart, think about it. 

When Daisy Duck would come home from a field trip, my heart would soar for her! What fun! What experiences! Such friends! And yet again, that still small voice would say with a smile, don't forget.

And those times she would come home bored, and clearly not challenged, the voice seemed a littler firmer. You could teach her.

When I would teach Brother Duck at home, and wonder to myself how such a boisterous, adventure-loving wanderer would fair in a classroom setting, the voice was there. Think about it. 

Never chiding, never pushy, never angry. Just there. As my Father in Heaven usually is, He simply knew my heart and my needs, and was willing to offer a word when needed.

So as we approached the end of the school year for Daisy Duck, I began to explore the possibility in earnest. And without boring you with the long stretches of fear, and the short bursts of enthused determination that ensued over several weeks, we did finally decide.

Homeschool.

That term that causes the socially aware to cringe. The one that conjures up images of strange kids, with their odd families, and their opinions about politics and the school systems and the moral state of our country, et cetera, et cetera...

And yet to us, it is really just a new reality. The reality that I, as their mother, know them from the inside out and from birth to present. I know what they know, and more importantly, I know what they wish to know. And that knowledge will allow me to teach them what they want, when they want, and at the pace we all feel comfortable going at. In short, my friends, it's all about them! It's not about the government, or the bullies, or the teachers, or the system, or the world at large. It's about Daisy Duck, Brother Duck, Curly Duck, and Baby Duck, and what they might need. Its about what I can give them if I'm willing to dig deep and give it to them.

So with that in mind, here's a blog I may or may not use. I'd like to have it here as a waiting frame for whatever adventures I feel I'd like to chronicle. It might be nice to have a journal going of what we learn.

Either way, welcome to the window, and enjoy looking in! It's pretty entertaining to watch the Auchlings paddle through life.