Our Homeschool

This year for the first time ever, I am homeschooling all 5 of my children. They have all always been homeschooled, but it was this year that I added my son who started kindergarten. I have to say that it has been just the last few years that I feel like I really know what works for my family and how to structure my days. It was a real struggle in the past to find curriculum that would mesh with my love for the ideas of Charlotte Mason and artistic nature and my need just get it done each day.  I wanted everything to be beautiful and hands on but sometimes you have to get more of a mix in order to have balance in your homeschool.

In future posts, I plan to share more about each of the programs I am currently using but for now, I'll just share what we are doing for the 2011-2012 school year followed by how long we have been using the program. It is important to know how long a person is using something in order to know if they have gotten over the "everything is beautiful and perfect" stage of the new materials.

Kindergarten - My son is using these materials. He turned 5 in April 2011 and had not had any formal schooling prior to starting this year. He has done very well with the material and is flying through the math.

• All About Reading - Pre-Level 1   (1 year)
• Essential Math Books A & B    (1 year)
• Five in a Row - Book 1   (1 year)

My next two daughters are ages 8 & 11. They are what I consider 3rd and 5th grades. I teach them both at the same time but on their own levels. 

Math 

Christian Light of course!   (2 years)

Language Arts 

Writing With Ease   (1 year)

First Language Lessons   (2 years)

English from the Roots Up   (2 years)

Pentime Handwriting   (5 years)

Rod and Staff Grammar   (4 years)

History - Geography - Literature - Writing - Fine Arts

Tapestry of Grace - Currently on Year 4 Unit 4 (3 years)

Science

R.E.A.L Science Odyssey   (2 years)

My 14 year old daughter works mostly independently so she has her own program that works wonderfully for her. I am especially excited about this years program as Carrie Austen has done a fantastic job pulling together some amazing resources. She is able to schedule each day so that so much gets accomplished yet you don't feel overwhelmed. I am looking forward to using this program with my younger girls when they are a little older. My 14 year old has used Heart of Dakota for the last 3 years.

Main Program
Heart of Dakota Hearts for Him Through Time: Revival to Revolution
This includes History, Literature, Poetry, Language Arts, Geography, Government, Science, Bible, Art and Music. It also includes Math but we use Christian Light for that. I also added in Vocabulary from Classical Roots.


My oldest daughter (age 17) uses:

• Tapestry of Grace (History, Literature, Geography, Music, Art) 
• Apologia Science    (4 years)
• Rod and Staff Grammar
• Vocabulary from Classical Roots    (1 year)
• Christian Light Math.