Thursday, February 16, 2012

New Curriculum

I have always bragged about how I homeschool for free. Despite the abundance of resources out there in the internet, I made the decision to purchase a curriculum for next year. 

Next year, I will be teaching grades 1 and 3, and I will be doing it alone. My husband is in the military and will be deploying soon. I also have a baby boy due next month. When I sat down and thought about all the time and effort it takes for me to plan out a year of curriculum, I just couldn't wrap my mind around it. Right now, I want to spend time with my husband and get things ready for the baby.  

A friend of mine is always posting about the fun activities she does with her children using the Heart of Dakota  curriculum. She let me flip through her books and I love it. It is Charlotte Mason style and fully Christ centered. It is all inclusive and I can teach both boys at the same time and simply add supplemental work for my 8yo. 

We will be using Beyond Little Hearts for His Glory. It is for ages 6-8. That is perfect for my boys. The daily plans are simple and easy to follow. All the core subjects are covered. There is an art project every week as well as a poem, music, and devotional.

They recommend using Singapore Math, which I am considering using for my 6yo but I will be sticking with Making Math Meaningful for my 8yo. He is thriving with it so far. 

Another benefit of this curriculum, is that I can use whatever I want for their reading lessons. So I can continue teaching my 6yo how to read at his pace. There is a list of books for emerging readers in the back of the book, as well as advanced reading books that my 8yo can read independently. They are all available at my local library or for purchase through Heart of Dakota.

Along with the copywork that will be in the lesson plans, I am going to begin teaching my 8yo cursive. He has been begging me to teach him since Kindergarten and I keep putting it off. Queen Homeschool Supplies has a  beautiful cursive writing program. I am looking forward to using it. 

Next year will be quite an adventure. I am so thankful to the makers of the Heart of Dakota Curriculum for putting this program together. I realize that there are plenty of free Charlotte Mason programs out there but this is the one I believe fits our family and our circumstances best. I am also thankful to the friend who shared her fun projects with me and let me flip through her books. 

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