Switch Gears or Stay the Course?

What do I know about choosing curriculum for my kids?  Apparently, not much!  As we are approaching Christmas, I have been evaluating what is working, what isn’t, what the kids like, and what they don’t.

One thing is unanimous, they love Apologia science, right now we’re using the Astronomy book with Junior notebooking journals.  I can’t say enough good things about it. Love it! Fun!

So far, mixed reviews on Learning Language Arts Through Literature.  I like the concept of this set.  I like that it’s all in one big book, but in reality, it’s not working that well for us.  The big book is hard to work in, directions are sometimes unclear.  There isn’t the right continuity for us.  Spelling words are given at the beginning of the week, and not reviewed.  Then, they suddenly pop up a week later, as in “ which of last week’s vocabulary words fill in this blank?”.  It’s frustratingly slow for Colleena’s age level, and I find myself skipping most of the activities. We already bumped her from the kindergarten set to the grade one set based on her ability. Yes, that is the beauty of home schooling, but if I am skipping all of it, what is the point?  I find myself admitting that I won’t use that level again unless I happened to have a child who was still really struggling with what sounds the letters make by grade one.  Time required is very inconsistent.  Some days they need an hour, some days 10 minutes! 

And, mixed reviews on the ABeka math.  Baden finds it distracting that the pages are colourful.  They tend to put questions where they can fit them on a page, and it’s not always linear or consistent. Baden keeps missing questions because he just didn’t see where they were.  He doesn’t feel there is enough teaching sections.  Colleena loves her math book and is flying through it, but doesn’t seem to retain enough of it.  She is able to kind of float along and answer the questions without really understanding enough of the concepts. That could just be her fear of being "put on the spot" though.  She tends to freeze when she is afraid you're testing her and she might be wring.  I  add extra activities to make sure she really is getting the concepts.

They love the Bible course from Alpha Omega, but I am frustrated at the use of the King James Version.  It’s just not functional for us, so we have to reference a more familiar version.  Not a huge problem, and they are really learning some neat stuff that they retain well.

So, I am now asking myself… switch gears or stay the course with what I’ve got?   Baden has requested a plain math text with more questions and less pictures. Seriously buddy?  So, he looked at Saxon Math and loved the samples.  I tested him with their placement test, and he flew through grade 3 and into grade 4.  Do I make him finish the grade 2 that we have now?  I also looked into “Christian Light” math.  It appeals to me, especially with the smaller books, but it may be distracting to him still.

I also like the look of the Bible, Reading and Language Arts programs from “Christian Light”.  I am torn about just what my kids should study for “English”.  Do they need grammar rules already?  Spelling lists and practice?  Comprehension activities?  Read alouds?  All of the above? 

French is still the most difficult issue.  The Easy French Junior level is good for Colleena, but far too easy for Baden who does already speak French well.  I did find today the set the school uses to teach in Kindergarten and grade one at the Carrefour Fransaskois and I am able to borrow it for the year.  I think I'll begin using that on top of what we have.  They also had awesome games, books and cd's to borrow.  love the local French library.  I also want to find some activities and work sheets that would be the equivalent of Language Arts in French.  Still looking into a few recommendations I got.  It's hard to know what should be taught in which order.  Anyone know what they should be learning in grade 2 for French?  Is it still just vocabulary building?

I know this is my first year, and I knew that I would have a lot to learn as we went this year, but I really thought I knew my kids and their learning styles better!  Have any of you had to switch gears mid year?  Was it a positive change, or did you regret it?  Have you used Saxon or Christian Light programs?

Book Review: Daddy Dates

Daddy Dates by Greg Wright is a must read book!  While reading, you feel as though he is sitting across the couch from you chatting about what it’s like to be a dad.  He approaches this important role in a man’s life with humour, charm and insight. 

Daddy Dates starts with his realization that he wanted to be a great dad to his four daughters, but just wasn’t sure exactly what that meant.  He sets off on a  journey committed to being intentional about getting to know his daughters as individuals, and being the strong male influence in their lives.  By teaching them how they should be treated with care, concern and genuine thoughtfulness, Wright is raising daughters who know their real value and worth.

The book is full of hilarious anecdotes, examples and ideas to help jump start each dad’s plan to treat his daughter well at every stage of their growing up years.   Wright shares insights into the female heart and mind that he has learned as the lone male in a house with five women.  He doesn’t leave anyone out, including plenty of ideas and encouragement for all dads, even those who may not live with their daughters due to divorce. 

Helpfully included are tools to let dads discern the different personality types individual daughters may have, and “date” ideas that may appeal to each style.  He even covers why it’s important to continue to invest time and energy in dating your spouse throughout your entire marriage.

Even though as a mother, I am not the intended audience for the book, I enjoyed it so much I cold barely put it down!!  A great read for moms and dads alike!  I received this book from Booksneeze in exchange for my honest review, and I know it’s going to be passed around to many of my friends!

Regret Free Parenting: a Book Review

Since I have heard many good things about this book from a friend of mine, I was really looking forward to reading it.  I agreed to review it for Booksneeze in return for a free copy of the book.  

Isn’t that what we all want?  To raise our children without regrets?  Catherine Hickem encourages mothers that regret free doesn’t mean mistake free, and that every mother, even those without a Godly example to emulate, can raise great kids.  The author discusses so many issues that it’s definitely a packed, thought provoking read!    She talks about how valuable the role of motherhood is to every child, and encourages moms to recognize how much they need God’s help in this journey.  She empowers moms to be intentional about how they are raising their kids, to be a confident mom to the specific, unique children God has given you.    

One of the topics that I enjoyed most was knowing and affirming your child.  She encourages moms to really study their children, to have a deep knowledge of how God made them, and how they feel encouraged, pouring ourselves and our love into them throughout all stages of their lives.  She discusses all the stages of childhood, and how we can enjoy our children and love them unconditionally, even during those years that many parents are intimidated by, the teens.  This is a great book, full of sound advice and many reflection questions at the end of each chapter, designed to really get you thinking.  I enjoyed the scripture quotes sprinkled through out the book.

While over all, I really enjoyed this book, I do wish the author had covered more practical steps for putting her principles into practice.