More random thoughts.

I updated "Morning Time" and "English Lessons through Literature" posts.  I'm dropping R&S English (though I love it) and putting all three girls in English Lessons through Literature.  I was hesitant because I wasn't sure the grammar would be as rigorous as R&S.  I asked the author about it and she said, between the lines, that is follows R&S's scope and sequence.  So that made me feel better.  That was my only hesitation.




Edited: I was wrong about Charlotte's comprehension level.  I just had her tested in reading and math.  She will do just fine in 4th grade material. 


For testing I used the DORA (reading) and ADAM (math) tests from www.letsgolearn.com.  Very worth it.  The test is online.  It is fun for the kids to complete.  The results are very detailed with suggestions on how to remediate if needed.  Across the board, Charlotte is only a few months behind Savannah in all skills. 

Morning Time

Every time I am thinking about curriculum choices and how I want the school year to go (like now), I have this nagging feeling that I'm missing the boat.  I'm missing the joy and beauty.  Where is it?  How can I capture it?


I occasionally get a glimpse of it during poetry teatime when we are having fun and reading beautiful words.  It is found on our nature walks.  It is found when I read aloud and the kids are captivated.  It is found during one-on-one discussions of a history chapter or a oral narration.  It is found during our current morning time when we sing a hymn, say a family prayer, and read scriptures.


I want more of this and less of "school work."  I want to plan a Morning Time.


So currently our Morning Time goes like this:


*Sing a hymn (same one until all verses memorized).
*Family Prayer
*Read scriptures (the ones made "For Latter-Day Saint Families" is divided up into short sections with definitions, quotes from General Authorities, and art work.  We read a section a day, everyone taking turns reading or repeating after me.)
*Gospel Principles (I just added this in a few weeks ago and it is going great.  We take turns reading a paragraph and discuss.  For school kids only)


I want to add in a poem a day, picture study, composer study, gospel for the preschool kids like maybe a picture from the gospel art box to read and discuss (I started doing this.  Zach and Caroline like it.  They listen.  It's short, then they go play.  I've caught Caroline coming back to look at the pictures again.  I'm going to hang them on the wall), memory work, Shakespeare/Plutarch, Homer, history, and literature.  My problem is the different ages.  Maybe I should save the older stuff for an Evening Time, that hour after the Littles are in bed, and save Morning Time for things the whole family can enjoy.  Gospel Principles, Shakespeare, Homer, Plutarch, history and literature would need to be moved to Evening Time.


That would leave for Morning Time:


Hymn
Prayer
Scriptures
Gospel Art
Poem
Art Study




***going to update my thoughts on this as I have time**


I've been reading For the Children's Sake again.  Here are some of my notes:


"We are limited to three educational instruments -- the atmosphere of environment, the discipline of habit, and the presentation of living ideas."


"A child's mind is a spiritual organism, with an appetite for all knowledge." --which includes physical exercise, nature, handicrafts, science, art, many living books.'


Have a daily routine.  Make time for the most important things: scriptures, family prayer, read-alouds, game night.


work on habits of character: attention, truthfulness, self-control, unselfishness, concentration.


"Life is sustained on ideas.  Ideas are spiritual.  Ideas are a soul's food."

English Lessons through Literature - update!

I don't know why I can't leave well enough alone.  I just need to stay off the Well-Trained Mind forums.  But if I did, I would have never found this:


English Lessons through Literature, as well as her other products (I think I'm using all of it).


This is a curriculum that combines literature, grammar, composition, copywork, memory work, poetry, narration (oral and written), dictation.  It is Charlotte Mason inspired, but with Classical components that include more grammar, and in level 3 and up (she has planned through level 6 at least) it includes copia exercises that are similar to Classical Writing and other writing curricula like it.  Here is a good review of it: http://www.barefootmeandering.com/eltl.html


I have already decided to start Madelynn in ELtL level 1.  I'm going to start her in ELtL 1 next year.  This year she will only be using Reading Lessons through Literature level 1 (which I only use as a spelling program since she is halfway through Phonics Pathways) as well as Handwriting Lessons through Literature using the Elson Readers as copywork.  I like RLtL because it uses the spelling method I love, and it comes in four different handwriting fonts.  No more HWT.


I'm going to use her free Pathways read-aloud schedule with Zach and Maddy (and Caroline if she wants to listen)
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UPDATE:  I've decided to move Savannah and Charlotte to English Lessons through Literature as well.  Their least favorite part of school is R&S English.  ELTL teaches the same grammar in R&S, only it is not drill-and-kill and it uses real sentences.  PLUS it has the poetry, short stories, copywork, dictation, picture study, and literature reading all scheduled out for me.  And it includes writing instruction, so I don't need Classical Composition or Classical Writing either.  I love it.
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 I just really like all of her products.  Check out her Lulu page to see everything she has for sale.  She has a lot of free products too.  Print versions are also on Amazon.  She has also offered to give free e-book versions of her curriculum to those who truly can't afford language arts, which I think is pretty cool.