Homeschooling: Year 1 Recap

Kindergarten - Homeschool Year 1

We are done!  Our first year of homeschooling has come to a close, and I find myself super grateful that we made it through relatively unscathed.  We did hit some road bumps, but I suppose they were minor.  I did so enjoy getting to be at home.  I am so thankful for this year, this time spent learning alongside Owen Ray.  It is a joy to see him light up, to make connections, to get excited about learning something new. Here's what we used:

Sonlight Core: "Exploring God's World" - This was just the gentle approach to kindergarten I was hoping for.  It had a great collection of classics, a couple first chapter books, introductory science books, and meaningful missionary stories.   It was all read-aloud, and it was really nice to spend the time sitting on the couch next to Owen Ray (and sometimes Chandler) reading to them. I was able to get it used for $170 and then I was able to re-list it and sell it for $170.  Am I thrilled?  Oh, yes!
How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons: Brilliant.  I love this book.  I saw Owen Ray make such rapid gains and learn the basics of reading so easily.  I cannot speak highly enough to this book.  Unfortunately, by the time we got to lesson 57, Owen Ray had been complaining of headaches for weeks and grew to loathe this book.  He kept saying that the words were getting too small and that he couldn't read them anymore (the words do get gradually smaller as the lessons progress).  We took him the the pediatrician's office, and he failed his eye exam.  We took him to the optometrist, and he failed his eye exam...again.  The optometrist said that at 5 years old, his eyes are changing so rapidly that she would not recommend glasses.  He would need to get them rechecked in a month or two because she thought his prescription would likely change that quickly and glasses might do more harm than good since she truly felt his eyes would correct themselves. Unfortunately, I think the damage was already done when it came to his reading lessons.  He already associated them with headaches, squinting, and feelings of frustration.  Right now, we're taking a break from reading instruction... because we can.  Isn't homeschooling awesome?  If I was his kindergarten teacher I would have to push through regardless of the negativity this might cause him to associate with reading.  You can't let each child go at their own pace, no matter how much you'd like to.  The pace is already set for you by your district's scope and sequence.  As a homeschooling mom, I'm not bound to this.  I can just increase the time I read aloud to him to help foster a joy and wonder of books and reading.  Owen Ray is due for another eye exam next month, and we'll have to see how they've changed since his last visit.  I was able to get this book for free from Paperback Swap's website.
Handwriting Without Tears: Kindergarten "Letter and Numbers for Me" - I am a HWOT fan.  If beautiful script and aesthetically pleasing letter formation are important to you as a parent, this may not be the best bet for you.  But if you have a boy, a boy who loves to scribble and finishes coloring a picture in 5 seconds flat, a boy who didn't even favor his right or his left hand but just kept switching back and forth... this handwriting program is kind of amazing.  We waited a long time to determine if Ray was going to be right or left-handed.  Just when we thought we had it figured out, he switched it up.  Even now, after a year of writing with his right hand, I occasionally notice he's got the pencil in his left hand and is forming his letters without either of us noticing the difference.  There is very little practice in this book.  We don't write the letter "d" 25 times.  We write it 8 times... perfectly.  There are even songs to sing and rhymes to recite to help you remember how to form a letter. It's A-MA-ZING! I was able to get the Student Book and Instructor's guide for $20 total.  I made my own manipulatives out of foam sheets instead of purchasing the wooden pieces.
Math-U-See: Primer - I'll be honest, math just isn't Owen Ray's favorite. Fortunately, the blocks that come with Math-U-See are his favorite.  I picked a super gentle approach to math on purpose. We've been working most heavily on the decimal system ("every place has a value" and "every value has a place").  But, he's not really interested or excited by learning these things, and his retention isn't very high.  He's most interested in math that relates to patterns and sorting and classifying objects.  To be more specific, he's most interested in math that relates to science, which, in contrast to math, is his favorite subject.  If he spots a repeating pattern in real life, he points it out immediately.  He loves to classify which objects belong, which don't, and why.  While we'll have to continue with those foundational elements of math (adding, subtracting, etc.), I'm not surprised at all that the type of math he's drawn to is exactly the same as the type of math his father excels at.  We got the booklet, DVD, and blocks for about $35 used.

What will we be doing for 1st grade?  Much of the same actually. We'll be moving up to Sonlight Core A: "Introduction to World Cultures" to cover our Literature, Language Arts, Bible, Geography and History (purchased used for $70).  Trey and I debate back and forth about whether or not to switch over to "Classical Conversations" since we both really like the classical model of education, but we were really happy with Sonlight, so we're sticking to it for this next year. Lord willing and eyes willing, we'll finish the last 43 lessons of "How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" (free from PBSwap).  We'll move up to Handwriting Without Tears: "My Printing Book" (1st grade) - $16 total.  We'll proceed with Math-U-See and start the Alpha book next ($32 new).  We'll also add on Sonlight's Science B: "Animals, Astronomy, & Physics" (2nd grade level) since that is, by far, the subject that has most captured his attention ($20 used).  Additionally, he'll be completing 100 projects with his dad using "Snap Circuits, Jr." Physics Kit ($17 new).  I think they've already done 10, and I expect they'll get through them well before the end of the year.  If we're feeling super ambitious, we'll add on some art/drawing since that's an area he's increasingly interested in.  Oh, and we'll be starting 1st grade soon.  Like next week.  Since his baby brother or sister is arriving in late September, we'll take our summer break then, October-December (when the weather is cooler and when I'm on maternity leave) instead of May through July. 

Curriculum for 2014-2015