Sonia and Zoe's middle school curriculum
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Hello Kristen,
I have two questions,
Do you mind sharing what you are doing for Sonia and Zoe for homeschooling? I have a 12 and 9 year old so I thought I would ask you :). It doesn't have to be in detail unless you have the time to do so.
I was wondering if you have a budget for homeschooling and other things that don't fall under grocery category (clothes/gifts/vacation etc). If yes, do you mind sharing that as well?
Farhana
Sure! I'm using most of the same kind of stuff we used last year (if ain't broke, don't fix it.) 😉
Math
We're still using Saxon math for S&Z. Sonia is in Math 87 and Zoe is in Math 7/6.
(Lisey's in geometry this year and we are giving Life of Fred a try. It is SUPER different from Saxon, but I hated Saxon's geometry book, and this change of pace seems to be pretty good for Lisey so far.)
History
We're still using Story of the World and we're in the middle ages at the moment.
I adore Story of the World and cannot recommend it highly enough. It's so engaging and interesting, and the book suggestions in the activity book really help me to put together a good hold list at the library.
I buy two sets of the student pages here so that I don't have to bother photocopying pages from the activity book for Sonia and Zoe.
Science
We're doing Zoology 2 this year, which happens to be about marine creatures. I'm sure I don't have to tell you that my fish-fan Zoe is really enjoying this!
(Although honestly, Sonia is too. Both of them prefer it to the human anatomy and physiology that we did last year.)
You can make your own notebooking journals, but I know myself well enough to be sure we'd fall behind if we tried that. So I just buy these companion journals and Sonia and Zoe color, draw, and write in them.
Handwriting
Sonia isn't doing a formal handwriting curriculum anymore, but Zoe's in the last book from Handwriting Without Tears, Can-Do Cursive.
Grammar
As usual, we're working through the Easy Grammar books. They're inexpensive, not overwhelming, and provide a handy daily review.
(Zoe is in book 6; Sonia is in book 7.)
Vocabulary
Wordly Wise is our standby. Like Easy Grammar, it's inexpensive, doesn't take ages each day, and provides consistent daily practice.
(Zoe is in 6, Sonia is in 7.)
Language
My mom does Spanish with Sonia and Zoe, and they use the Glencoe middle school Spanish books.
Composition
My mom also does composition with Sonia and Zoe. They're both using Wordsmith...Zoe is in Wordsmith Apprentice and Sonia is in Wordsmith.
Health
Our umbrella group requires us to do a health course, so we use the consumable Lifepacs from Alpha Omega to meet that requirement.
Extra-curriculars
Sonia and Zoe have a dance class once a week, a martial arts class once a week, and we're trying a homeschool yoga class session. They're also both learning to play the piano.
___________
For the second part of your question: yup, we do save for some budget items that crop up inconsistently. We have dedicated savings accounts at Capital One 360 for things like clothing, vacations, car repairs, car insurance, and so on. Money is automatically sent there each month, and when we need to spend from one of those categories, I just transfer the money to our checking account.
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I tried to do pretty thorough linking of the curriculum for you guys, but you have any questions, let me know!
This is pretty neat! I went to public school, so I've always been curious about homeschooling. Were you homeschooled yourself? We're considering a mixture of either Montessori or homeschooling for our future kids, but I need more information first.
I do like that public school is paid for by taxes at the very least, but some of the schools in our area really aren't up to par, so I'm not sure if that's a good option.
I was, actually. My mom started homeschooling back when homeschooling was really unusual! It's far more commonplace now, and there are a lot more resources available as well.
I'm just starting homeschooling, so I love when you do curriculum posts! Would you mind sharing more of what you used in the early years? I'm almost done with 100 Easy Lessons with my 4 year old, and I'm trying to figure out where to go from there with reading curriculum. I also want to start some basic math curriculum because she loves math but we haven't done anything formal yet. (I'm planning on sticking to just those two subjects and lots of reading/play for a couple more years.) Any curriculum suggestions? Thank you!
Here's a post about what I used in kindergarten for my kiddos: https://www.thefrugalgirl.com/2009/08/kindergarten-basics-on-the-cheap/ Maybe that'll be helpful.
Have you considered buying/librarying The Cartoon History of the World (several volumes) for your kids? Not as a school text but as a fun read and a supplement. For all of the silliness of the cartoons and the title itself, it's history presented is substantial and well-researched and the bibliography is excellent.
The author has written several other Cartoon Histories or Guides, such as US History (rather political; I recommend it as an English or composition text as an exercise is exposing and identifying bias) and Genetics.
I'll have to check that out-thank you!
Just found these on Amazon...some reviews are saying that there are some "naughty" cartoons mixed in. Has that been your experience? I'm not sure if these reviewers are being extra sensitive or not...
Really? I'm surprised. I'll dig up my copies and check.
I just added these to my running list of books to read. Now I'm off to check if my local libraries have them.
Does your state provide funds for homeschooling families? In Alaska the state provides money for homeschoolers to use for things used for homeschooling, even for a computer if it's used for that purpose. I believe there is a certain amount of confirmation paperwork involved which makes sense but it's so popular here for people to homeschool. I think it makes sense for a state to help homeschooling families since they aren't using state funded public schools.I have some good friends who homeschooled their 2 daughters all the way, ensuring the kids took part in things like state "bees" etc, and their kids also had very good volunteer opportunities in the small town they grew up in which led to very unusual paid jobs that were really helpful in their getting full rides to Stanford U & Bowdin college in Maine.
They don't have a program like that here, so when we homeschool, we don't receive any benefit from the taxes we pay for schools.
It doesn't really bother me much, though; homeschooling isn't insanely expensive, and I know the public schools really need the tax dollars!
That's so great to hear about your homeschooling friends. What an awesome thing; to get scholarships like that!
Even if you don't have kids in public school, you should be happy to pay taxes to educate children.
We also, all of us, benefit from a well-educated population. Kids with a decent education will earn more, pay more taxes (thus supporting those of us who are paying taxes now), get into less trouble with the law, and numerous other benefits that accrue to society and onesself. Even if one does not have kids in public school.
To put it differently: Who else is going to work, pay taxes, and provide services when you're retired and doing none of these things? If today's kids don't get educated, they won't be able to do any of these things.
Yep. Which is why I don't mind my tax dollars going toward schools instead of being funneled into funding for homeschooling.
My last child graduated from our homeschool last year. I found that Saxon math was good, then switched to Harold Jacob's Elementary Algebra followed by his Geometry book. They just made more sense than the Saxon at that point.
Just wondering, how many hours a day do they home school?
That depends on the day and how hard they're working/focusing! I'd say that Sonia and Zoe generally spend an average of 4 hours doing school work each day.
School doesn't take as many hours at home as it does in a classroom for a variety of reasons. So, we can fit a normal amount of learning into a shorter amount of time. Here's a post I wrote about that: https://www.thefrugalgirl.com/2009/10/homeschooling-and-efficiency/
My kids went to public school, but I also supplemented their schooling with good books, museums, libraries and exercises of my own or others' making. I feel like what they got was a hybrid education. I'm always interested in what good books can be used now to supplement a public-schooled grandchild. I enjoy these posts!
Involved parents really are the key, whether you homeschool or traditional school or somewhere in between!
And yes to keeping interesting books around for kids. I think that's really important.
Was you mother a language teacher before she started he family?
How is it that she knows Latin and Spanish?
Well, she actually taught herself (using books and such), then taught a bunch of my cousins, and is now teaching my kids!
Is Zoë 1 year ahead of her age? I believe she is 2 years younger than Sonia, but by the titles of the books you name, it seems her work is just 1 year below her sister's? I don't know the exact program of scholing in the States, since I'm for Europe. Here you start school age 4 and reading age 6.
Yep, she learned to read on her own before she was even kindergarten age, so she's a year ahead in school, based on age. I wasn't sure if she'd be able to keep that up long term, but so far she hasn't had any struggles doing work a year ahead, and I think she'd be pretty bored doing work that's meant for her age.
But of course, I'll keep an eye on her every year and reevaluate as necessary.
I am willing to bet she'll stay ahead of her age level throughout school. My daughter turned five about two weeks after kindergarten started, so many of the kids in her class were almost a year older than her. I was warned she'd fall behind by fifth grade to middle school and that I should have waited another year, but she never did fall behind. I knew my dad had been two years younger than his classmates and did fine, so I expected my daughter to manage, too, although of course we watched out for signs that she wasn't. She did very well and she has never regretted not waiting another year to start.
I'm thinking that's probably what's going to happen. I figure if she hasn't hit a wall yet, it's likely she won't. The knowledge she's getting each year builds on the previous year's knowledge, too, so I think she'll be fine. But of course, I will keep an eye on her to make sure she's in the right level for her each year. 🙂
Thank you for doing this! I would LOVE to see your high school curriculum as well!!! I enjoy these type of curriculum posts, as opposed to posts from people who have received curriculum to review. Because of a past curriculum post you did, my sixth grader is now in her second year using Bob Jones Reading curriculum. This was a very weak area for her, and the books have been helpful! We use a LOT of the same curriculum as you, Saxon, Apologia, Wordly Wise, Grammar & Story of the World.
Kristen,
We are considering Piano/Violin lessons for our 9-year old daughter. This would be her first time learning a music instrument besides the Recorder they learn in school.
My daughter is small for her age and very lively.
Considering her size and temperament, do you have any suggestions ?
Posting my question under this post because it deals with kids curriculum and wasn't sure where to post my query. 🙂
Thank you !
I think I'd maybe ask her what she's most interested in playing. Piano is always a great starter instrument because the skills you learn in piano make pretty much every other instrument easier to learn, but violin is also good if that's what she's most interested in.
One advantage to piano is that you don't have to keep buying various sizes like you do with violins, so that's something to think about.
I hope that helps a bit!
Thank you so much for the prompt reply !
She prefers Piano and we plan to buy a digital keyboard for at-home practice.