Books books books!
A bunch of people have asked us what we are doing for schoolwork and if we are following a partiular curriculum. The answer to the latter question is no. Because we are homeschooling only in the short term, we are taking an ad hoc approach. We did purchase an online math program, which allows Will to learn math concepts at his own pace. We like it because it lays out what skills and are expected for a kid his age, and it doesn't make him practice skills that he's already demonstrated he's mastered. And of course it provides a lot of practice problems and tutorials for concepts that he's learning. Math is kind of delicate for us because he entered fifth grade loving math and exited school midway through the year hating and fearing math. This was so out of character for him that it hasn't been too hard getting him back into it, but it has been a bit of a process. He's progressing rapidly and will complete the sixth-grade curriculum by the time he starts school in the fall. (Yes, he'll be in sixth grade in the fall, but there are various levels of math classes he can take and we figured it was better for him not to be bored.)
Although--or perhaps because--math and science are what I do professionally, I am taking a literary approach on the days I spend with Will. We have read some lovely books together this semester in homeschool, books I otherwise wouldn't have known about. Here is what we have read:
What is so fantastic about these books is that they have delightful stories and they are age appropriate. Finding challenging, interesting books that aren't too mature in their content can be tough for a kid like Will, who was full-out reading by the time he turned four. His teachers have encouraged us over the years to limit his reading to books about characters his own age to avoid inappropriately mature themes. This theory makes sense, but The Magic Treehouse books are simply not interesting to a kindergartener who reads natively and intuitively and enjoys language for its own sake. We earned disfavor at school by letting him read the first several Harry Potter books starting in first grade and, well, the rest is history (the earning disfavor part, that is).
These books we've been reading for school have not challenged his reading ability, but that's fine. We're not reading at this point to improve literacy. We're reading to learn about people, life, thinking, nature and art (and other things, I'm sure). These stories have drawn him right in (except The Graveyard Book, whose opening is sad and scary) and have taught him a number of different life lessons. He can read all of the middling fantasy series he wants as far as I'm concerned, but in these books I know he's experiencing and appreciating high quality work. We do writing assignments based on most of the books that we read, which is something he's not used to and we have to work more on. I think I expect too much of him in some cases and leave assignments too open ended. But I help him and we learn together. Experiencing these books with Will--reading them together, talking and writing about them--is one of my absolute favorite things to do.
Although--or perhaps because--math and science are what I do professionally, I am taking a literary approach on the days I spend with Will. We have read some lovely books together this semester in homeschool, books I otherwise wouldn't have known about. Here is what we have read:
- Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan
- The Island of Beyond by Elizabeth Atkinson
- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
What is so fantastic about these books is that they have delightful stories and they are age appropriate. Finding challenging, interesting books that aren't too mature in their content can be tough for a kid like Will, who was full-out reading by the time he turned four. His teachers have encouraged us over the years to limit his reading to books about characters his own age to avoid inappropriately mature themes. This theory makes sense, but The Magic Treehouse books are simply not interesting to a kindergartener who reads natively and intuitively and enjoys language for its own sake. We earned disfavor at school by letting him read the first several Harry Potter books starting in first grade and, well, the rest is history (the earning disfavor part, that is).
These books we've been reading for school have not challenged his reading ability, but that's fine. We're not reading at this point to improve literacy. We're reading to learn about people, life, thinking, nature and art (and other things, I'm sure). These stories have drawn him right in (except The Graveyard Book, whose opening is sad and scary) and have taught him a number of different life lessons. He can read all of the middling fantasy series he wants as far as I'm concerned, but in these books I know he's experiencing and appreciating high quality work. We do writing assignments based on most of the books that we read, which is something he's not used to and we have to work more on. I think I expect too much of him in some cases and leave assignments too open ended. But I help him and we learn together. Experiencing these books with Will--reading them together, talking and writing about them--is one of my absolute favorite things to do.
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