In our homeschool, I do the same lessons with Ana Lia and Eliam, and we finished what we will call second grade. Here are my thoughts on the curricula we chose.
Quiet Times
We started out using books from Not Consumed, but after the first few books, it seemed like they did too much of the work for us. It helped us build good quiet time habits in the kids, but they weren’t the best long term solution for us. They were also quite expensive. After we finished the books I had already purchased, I ended up reading the kids whatever I had read earlier for my quiet time. That way we were reading the Bible and discussing it directly without the answers already in front of us.
The one lesson I really appreciated from Not Consumed was learning how much my kids love hearing stories from my childhood and from their earlier years. Their favorite car game now starts with “Mom, tell us a story!” This year, we are going to read through the Bible Project’s reading plan.
Math
We moved to Southern California halfway through the year, so any curriculum that we used through their Charter School, we had to return in December. I enjoyed Singapore Math, but it was too pricey to buy on our own. We had not done well with Simply Charlotte Mason Math, so I tried a completely different method: I purchased CTC Math. It’s an online curriculum that provides videos and review questions all according to the student’s proficiency level. It worked better for us than anything else had. I had dreaded teaching math, so I’m sure that came through while they were learning it. With CTC, I could be the supplementary help, and that was much better for us overall.
Reading
We stayed with All About Reading, which had been a game changer for us the year before. It worked so well that I ended up purchasing it even though we had to return the first two levels to the charter school from SF. Finiasi started with Level 1 because he hated being left out, but I never made it required for hiim. We will likely continue through Level 4 because it has been so helpful in guiding Ana Lia through her reading challenges.
We also added All About Spelling halfway through the year. I was conflicted about what level to buy because we had already finished through Level 2 of All About Reading. I’m grateful we started at Level 1 though. The first half of the book was very easy for the older two, so we could sometimes do 2 or 3 lessons a day, but I think this built their spelling confidence so that by the time we got to words they didn’t know how to spell, they had mastered the process of learning them.
Writing
We started with Child’s Copybook Readers from Simply Charlotte Mason and used those for five minutes a day while we listen to the composer of the term in the background. Ana Lia learned to write in cursive this year, and she finished the SCM cursive book quickly because she loved it so much. After finishing those books, I started using WorksheetsWorks.com and using either our memory Scriptures or our Shakespeare passages for cursive writing.
We consistently did Friday Freewrites, which the kids love so much. They also love going back and rereading all the stories. It’s been one of the highlights of homeschooling.
We also used Mail Mondays to work on writing, but I was not as consistent with this one. I want to commit to better consistency next year since it’s such a great way to keep connected to old friends and to practice writing.
Bible and History
We used Joshua-Malachi from Simply Charlotte Mason. The kids loved the books about Greek culture, especially the stories of the heroes. I appreciate these guides because they are straightforward and line Bible history up with secular history. The are also getting much stronger in narrations, both from the Bible and from the additional books. We will continue on with the next study on Romans.
Shakespeare
We did Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Twelfth Night. I use Simply Charlotte Mason’s Shakespeare in Three Steps as the basis of our reading, and then I add memorization from How To Teach Your Children Shakespeare and we make a culmination video at the end of our study of the kids’ favorite scene from the play. Since they were only 4, 6, and 7, many of the bigger concepts go over their heads right now, but they are gaining an appreciation for listening to the language and following along with the peg dolls.
We are incredibly fortunate to live in areas that provide free outdoor Shakespeare plays, and even more fortunate that all of our plays have included a diverse set of actors. I recommend taking children to the outdoor shows, especially the ones that encourage you to bring lawn chairs and picnics. The kids can snack during the less exciting scenes, and no one is going to mind if they are talking quietly or asking questions. We have actually had some great conversations with our neighbors at these outdoor shows.
Poetry
Ugh. This is the subject I wish I did well, but alas. We used Simply Charlotte Mason’s guide on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, but I don’t think much stuck. I’m going to try Brave Writer’s Poetry Tea Time method this year. I know that poetry is an integral part of a creative education, but it’s as foreign to me as Tongan.
Science
We started with Outdoor Secrets, but were able to get Nancy Larson Level 1 through our charter school. I was able to be much more consistent with Nancy Larson, so that’s what we will stick with for next year as we got into another charter school in Southern California. It has experiments, but also includes living book suggestions, so it’s a good blend of positives. We didn’t complete all the worksheets, and I didn’t read the entire script for lessons, but I appreciated the guides.
Picture Studies
We did Vincent van Gogh and Leonardo da Vinci for picture studies this year. I loved the da Vinci biography we read. It was written for middle grades, so it was accessible while still being challenging. It wasn’t the kids’ favorite book but they enjoyed learning about his life. I added some pencil drawings to our wall since those were not included in the Simply Charlotte Mason study pack we used.
Composer Studies
Composer studies became very informal. We listened to Beethoven and Vivaldi every day, and we read biographies for both of them. The kids have decided their favorites, and so I frequently get requests for Beethoven’s 3rd or Vivialdi Spring.
Typing
We are using Typesy for typing lessons. It’s very affordable for a family account, and it has provided both of the older kids with a solid foundation for typing properly. We will continue to use it.