Not Back To School Blog Hop 2014-2015 - Curriculum Week

My curriculum and detailed plan for the 2014-2015 school year are set in stone, and ready to be implemented!  Our official start date is September 2nd, the day after Labor Day.

This year I'll be homeschooling 1st and 5th grade.  We're going to do book-work 3 days per week, and have 2 days free for outside classes, parties, and playdates.  Each book-work day will begin at 9 AM, and will hopefully end around lunch time.  The afternoon will be spent working on a "fun subject" such as geography, art, science, DIY (working on their DIY.org project), or pursuing special interests (this could be working on 4-H projects, writing letters to grandparents, playing board games, working on Collectors Corner projects, doing craft projects, playing Lego, etc)   Here's what we've got lined up!

I love the smell of new textbooks!

1st Grade:

Reading - All About Reading
Math - Saxon Math
Literature - I'll read classics to her, and then we'll do projects, copy work, dictation, and/or sequencing based on the story.

5th Grade:

Math - We're trying something new this year.  She'll be using Life of Fred exclusively.  She does really well in math, but dislikes it.  When we tried Life of Fred last year, she really liked it, so we're going forward with it this year.  I'll update on her progress later in the year ;)
English - She'll be using Bob Jones 5 for English this year.  She used it in 2nd grade, and I liked it, but she didn't.  We've been using less rigorous programs since, but now that she's older, we're going to try it again.  This time we'll take it a little slower.  I think the reason she didn't like it in 2nd grade, was because I was pushing her too fast.
Piano - She'll continue piano with her current teacher.  She was making a lot of progress last year, but I fear that she's fallen behind since she's only practiced, oh, 3 times this summer.  :/
Typing - She'll continue using www.TypingWeb.com
Spelling - I'm going to use a technique that I learned about at a homeschool convention last spring.  At the end of each day, I'm going to have both girls journal about something they did or learned that day.  I'll then check for misspelled words, and use those as her spelling list.  She'll do weekly projects with her spelling list.
Literature - She's going to read some great literature this year!  I'm making guidebooks for each book, and she'll complete them as she reads.  Among the books she's going to read are; Where the Red Fern Grows, Little Women, In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson, Eight Cousins, and several others.
Math Drills - She'll use www.XtraMath.com to continue working on her math drills.

Together they'll work on the fun subjects.  Here's what we're using:

Geography - I made up my own plan for this (with a lot of help from Wee Folk Art).  We're going to study maps, the USA, and focus on several countries from the different continents.  At Christmas time, we'll do a "Christmas Around the World" lesson.  Fun!
Art - I made this up, as well.  They'll be learning about different art concepts, such as color, texture, geometric/organic shapes, principle, lines, etc.  We'll have a lesson, and do a fun art project (most of which I found on Pinterest) to go along with it.
Science - Millie will be doing SciGirls this year.  At home, we'll do chemistry and various experiments I found on Pinterest.
Read Alouds - I'll read to them every evening before bed.  Among the books I'll read are; The BFG, Around the World in 80 Days, The Hundred Dresses, Island of the Blue Dolphins, James and the Giant Peach, and Frankenstein.

And I'd also like to thank my mommy for her support (especially when I feel like giving up on homeschooling), and for buying my Rainbow Resources wish list.  Thanks Mommy!  I know you're reading this ;)

Find out what other homeschoolers are using for curriculum this year, here!