11th grade

Our plans for 11th grade are somewhat modified because my oldest will be in France for part of the year as an exchange student.  I'm thrilled he will have the opportunity to really establish his language skills while attending a high school in France and living with a French family for 3 months.  If you are interested in a similar experience for your high schooler, or if you are willing to host a student from another country, read more here and contact me!

History and Lit:  continuing our great books approach.  We will be in year 3 and using a modified version of the well-trained mind reading list for year 3.  He will also study for and take the AP US History exam.  

Thesis:  He will complete an extended junior thesis this year.  In 9th and 10th, he completed a standard research paper.  His project this year will be longer and more involved.  Details of how to do a junior and senior thesis can be found in the WTM.

Math:  Math U See

Science:  dual enrollment Biology
                He will also work through Astronomy a Self-teaching guide so as to not skip the astronomy year altogether, but I won't include this work on his transcript

Language:  Stewart English books 1 and 2
                    IEW's Succeed on the AP Lit Exam (testing at the end of the year)

Electives:  French 3 (credit from 3 months in France)
                  Latin 4-online with Henle
                  Russian--with Pimsleur and Russian in 10 minutes a day
                  Apologetics through NCFCA Speech and Debate
                  Art-continue with the Annotated Mona Lisa and the Story of Painting for art from year 3, as well as studying sculpting
                  Music-Classical Music 101 (1st half)
                  American Government-dual enrollment
                 

10th grade

My oldest will be in 10th grade this year.  Most of his time will be spent in his history and literature work, which will be explained in another post.  He will also be studying chemistry with Science at Home.  We order science supplies through Home Science Tools. 

Math:  Math U See

Language:  Analytical Grammar high school reinforcement book
                   AP Comp readings with Everything's an argument and IEW's Succeed on the AP Comp Exam

Electives:  AP Microeconomics (more about the AP program soon)--Mcconnell Microeconomics and IEW Economics-Based Writing, as well as AP study guides and lessons
                  French 2--online with BJU French 2
                  Latin 3-online with Henle
                  Russian--with Pimsleur and Russian in 10 minutes a day
                  Old Testament Survey with The Promise and the Blessing
                  Health--Total Health (1 semester)
                  Driver's Ed/Car Maintenance-Safe Young Drivers and Auto Upkeep (car maintenance curriculum which uses real hands-on "labs" teaching a wide range of owning and driving a car from changing windshield wiper fluid to changing brakes (1 semester)
                  Art-continue with the Annotated Mona Lisa and the Story of Painting for art from the Middle Ages, as well as studying painting with Introduction to Watercolors
                  Music-The Classical Experience
                

9th grade

So high school--Most my student's day at this point should be focused on his great books study for history and literature.  The details of that are coming in another post.  At this point, we are working on building skills like note taking, essay writing--timed and note, time management, test taking skills, reading skills, and oral presentation skills.  We study the ancients and biology using Science for High School. 

Math:  Math U See

Language:  Analytical Grammar High school reinforcement books
                   Writing Exposition
                   Vocabulary from Classical Roots

Other:  Rhetoric--A Rulebook for Arguments as described in the WTM
            Art--The Annotated Mona Lisa, The Story of Painting, and a drawing instruction book
            Music
            Bible
            Russian-Pimsleur and Russian in 10 minutes a day
            French-online with BJU French
            Latin-online with Henle
           
We also joined a speech and debate club this year.  More on that experience in another post. 

8th grade

In 8th grade, we continue with the WTM formal reading list, formal logic, Latin and French, and outlining in history.  My 8th graders plan their own schedule and are responsible for their own time management.  They still participate in history and science with younger siblings to some extent, but are doing most of their work own their own.  Most of their time should be spent on science, history, working through their reading list, and writing about their reading at this point. 

In 7th and 8th grade, to go along with our history studies, my students use the Critical Thinking in US History books to build their skills in textual analysis and their confidence in working with primary documents.  These books are involved, but a great way to teach point of view and how to question and apply logic to texts you are reading. 

Math:  Math U See

Language:  Analytical Grammar season 3
                  Vocabulary from Classical Roots C and D
                  Stobaugh's Literary Analysis--great foundation for high school literature

Logic:  Intermediate Logic by Canon Press with dvds

Other:  Music--we do a composer study using some Beautiful Feet resources and The Gift of Music
            Art-Photography and study modern artists and pieces
            Bible/devotion
            Violin
            French--I have used Tell Me More and power glide, as well as a verb book and a translating book
            Latin-My oldest started high school Latin with Memoria Press online academy using Henle

7th grade

7th grade is a big year.  We begin formal logic instruction in 7th, and I also expect my 7th graders to take charge of their own schedule and planning.  I plan out in my 7th grade folder where I expect them to be each week, but I no longer write a workplan for them.  They are required to get the folder out and write out their own plans in a planner.  They can move as fast or as slow as they want over the year, as long as they don't get behind my goals for them in the folder.  They are completely in charge of their schedule and turning in work on time at this point.

I start a formal reading list in middle school taken mostly from the WTM.  For each of the pieces of literature my student reads, he is required to discuss it with me--literary devices and historical context, and also to write a report evaluation.  There are lots of great resources to help you as a teacher through these discussions.  I will write a post on those soon.  I encourage you again to read the WTM and check out the reading list she gives there. 

Math:  Math U See

Language:  We have finished spelling by 7th, and we start on Vocabulary from Classical Roots A and B
                    Editor in Chief
                    Beyond the Book Report by Analytical Grammar people
                    Analytical Grammar season 2
                    Learning Language Arts through literature-green

Logic:  Introductory Logic by Canon Press (they have a dvd set if you prefer for instruction)
            The Thinking Toolbox
            And if you notice your child needs a little extra help for logic, I love the James Madison Critical Thinking course by Critical Thinking Company.  It teaches formal logic, but in a way that is fun and easy.  You basically follow a series of crimes told in story format, and use logic to sort through and solve each.  We used it as supplement to Introductory and Intermediate Logic in 7th and 8th. 

Other:  French from Memoria Press
             Latin--Second Form Latin
             Music-Understanding Music by Tatchell and Understanding Music by Yudkin (and we listen to music from the time period)
             Art--Scultpting this year with Hands on Sculpting and we study art from the time period
             Bible/devotion
            Geography
            Violin
             All about Money/All about Time/All about Talent/Money Matters for Teens

6th grade

In 6th grade, we continue our early logic studies, as well as Latin.

Math:  Math-U-See
           Another great math resource that I have used as a supplement at times is the Life of Fred series.  These are written more in novel form and are great for kids that are more verbal and less math. 

Language: Spelling Workout--we finish spelling this year and move onto something different the next year
                   Editor in Chief from the Critical Thinking Company
                  Analytical grammar--More on this curriculum coming later.  It is taught in 3 "seasons"-so it covers 3 years--6th, 7th, and 8th grades here. 
                  I am super excited about Analytical Grammar's new writing curriculum.  I haven't used it yet, but it sounds like what I'm looking for in these grades to replace Writing Strands.  It's called Beyond the Book Report and it works with Analytical Grammar.  We plan to use this with future 6th-8th graders
                  Learning Language Arts Through Literature-green

Logic:  The Fallacy Detective
             Critical Thinking book 1 and 2 from the Crititcal Thinking Company
             And we continue with Mind Benders and Red Herrings from the Critical Thinking Company

Other:  Latina Christiana 2
             The Easy French 2b--with some verb book work and translating
             Art-We continue to study the art that is relevant to our time period, but in 6th we also study painting techniques with Watercolor for the Artistically Undiscovered
             Music-we listen to music from our time period and use graphic organizers to start evaluating and not just passively listening
             Bible/devotion
             Geography
             Violin

5th grade

5th grade begins what the classical world calls the logic stage.  At this point, your student developmentally is probably asking questions about why things are the way they are.  They are looking for more than just facts.  They have the basics down, and now they want the why.  This is the point when you can start teaching logic skills to your child.  Before this point, developmentally they are ready for amassing large quantities of information.  In 1st-4th grade, I fill them up with facts and information.  In 5th-8th grade, we focus on how to process that information---how to look for fallacies and weaknesses in arguments, how to not just take information at face value.  I don't start with formal logic in the beginning.  In 5th an 6th grade, we work more on logic puzzles and critical thinking skills, so that by 7th and 8th, we can study logic more formally.  I also beginning our Latin studies in 5th grade, and we begin the WTM's approach to art technique--see below. 

Math:  Math U See

Language:  Spelling Workout
                    Editor-in-Chief (this is written as a series of articles that the student edits.  It's great for working on and refining punctuation/capitalization skills--by The Critical Thinking Company)
                    Writing Strands--again, thinking about changing this one
                    Learning Language Arts Through Literature-tan book
                    Jr. Analytical Grammar:  Mechanics
                   

Logic:  Mind Benders and Red Herrings books from The Critical Thinking Company  (they have tons of really awesome resources!)

Other:  The Easy French 2a
              Latina Christiana 1
             Maps, Charts and Graphs for geography
             Bible/devotion
             Violin
             Art--in 5th we study drawing with Drawing on the right side of the brain.  Over the logic stage, we study drawing one year, painting the next, sculpture the next, and finally photography
            Music-We use the Young Person's guide to the orchestra and The Story of the Incredible Orchestra as explained in the WTM
             

4th grade

I have a year off from 4th grade next year, with one just finishing, but this is what 4th grade looks like here.

Math:  You guessed it--Math-U-See
           But in 4th, I also add in a Simply Charlotte Mason math curriculum--because it's fun, and it's good reinforcment, and solid practical skills.  Your Business Math let's the student pick a type of store to run--we have the pet store, but there is also a book store or a sports store.  It walks your student through ordering inventory, filling orders, writing checks, paying bills and taxes, advertising, and calculating profit.  Kids love it.  I love to see them eager to practice their basic math skills.  Win-win

Language:  Learning Language Arts Through Lit
                   Jr Analytical Grammar--I love this curriculum.  It's easy to use and they get the grammar concepts.  I have a short lesson I go over with them once a week, and they have practice pages the rest of the week.  It teaches parsing and diagramming, but in a way that even my most reluctant diagrammer can get it.  And yes, I love diagramming.  I think it takes understanding to another level to have to think not just part of speech, but relationship to the whole sentence.  And it will help Latin learning later on, and vice versa.  I've been very pleased with this curriculum for grammar.  One thing that is very different about it is that it doesn't last the entire year.  The writers have an interesting, yet convincing philosophy on grammar learning, but it is working for us. 
                   Vocab--I give a list they look up in the dictionary
                   Journal--I give a prompt and they write a 1 page, cursive response
                   Writing Stories--creative writing
                   Proofreading Paragraphs
                   Again--I typically use Writing Strands, but we are looking to make changes here

Other:  Geography with Maps, Charts, and Graphs
            Art Smart
            In 4th, we go through the entire level 1 The Easy French
            violin
            Bible/devotion
           

3rd grade

3rd grade--This is what 3rd grade typically looks like around here.  I will have a 3rd grader next year again.  By this age, homeschooling usually gets more fun for me.  They are getting the basics down.  Reading is getting better.  They know the routine.  Now my oldest, he was not easier at this age.  But that's another post entirely. 

Math:  Math-U-See

Language:  1st Language Lessons 4 (some will still be on 3)
                   Learning Language Arts Through Literature--we always work a grade level up
                   Vocabulary--I give them a list of 5-10 words each week to look up in the dictionary
                   Journal-I give them a prompt, and they write a page response.  I require this to be in cursive and I use this opportunity to talk about handwriting and refining those skills
                   Writing Stories--I add in a creative writing book and we start working on the concept of plot, and other relevant literary terms
                   Info Please--this is a research book which teaches the basics of how to find information.  That looks different now than it did when I was a kid, but these are still relevant and important skills, although they might involve a computer more than actual books these days.
                   Writing Strands--I have used this in the past, but I am actually looking for a new writing curriculum. 
                   Proofreading Paragraphs--This is an editing curriculum similar to Editor-in-Chief where they edit a paragraph for punctuation.  We do 1 paragraph each week.
                    Spelling Workout

Other:  Geography with Maps, Charts, and Graphs
            Art Smart
            Violin
            French--The Easy French 1 (2nd 1/2)
            some kind of Bible/devotion
          
                  

2nd grade

Ok, continuing the theme.  2nd grade at my house is much more independent.  In 1st grade, I walk my kids into a routine of looking on their workplan daily, completing work, and returning it to their binders.  Each kid's books are stored on their own shelf, and they learn how to find their books and complete their tasks.  They have freedom to choose the order and the day the work is completed, as long as it is completed by the end of the week.  I will write a whole post on how that works and what that looks like soon.  By 2nd grade, they should have this routine down, and their reading skills are improving so they can complete most work without me. 

Math:  Math-U-See--see 1st grade for my why's--Beta or Gamma

Language:  Learning Language Arts Through Literature
                  1st Language Lessons 2 or 3
                  Spelling Workout
                  And we begin cursive with the I Can Write Cursive series and Pictures in Cursive
                  (See:  What Cursive Does for Your Brain)

Other:  Maps, Charts, and Graphs for Geography
            Art Smart
            Typing games
            Violin
            Listening activities
            Bible/devotion
            We also start formal studies of French in 2nd grade--I will write a post on why French and why young soon.  In 2nd, we use The Easy French and do the 1st half of that curriculum with 1 lesson every 2 weeks.  It includes listening and activities to go along with learning, and uses the immersion method.  More on foreign language in another post. 
           
           

1st grade

I have had requests to list what I use for each grade, and so that is what I intend to do over the next couple of weeks, as well as to talk more about organizing, curriculum, common issues, etc.  My oldest is going into 10th at the moment, so I haven't taught 11th and 12th to my own child yet, but I do teach that age for other people's kids, and we have made our plans for high school already, so I will give you those lists also as they stand now.

I am skipping kindergarten and preschool for the moment, because we mostly Montessori-it during those years, and I want to write about Montessori more thoroughly.

Also, these grade-specific lists won't contain history, literature, or science because we do those on a WTM cycle and not on a graded cycle.  Look for separate posts about each of those subjects to come.

Math:  We use Math-U-See every year.  I love that it is hands-on, concrete, and focused on the why, not just the how.  I love the emphasis on word problems, and the review.  And I love that it isn't visually distracting to my easily distracted kids.  The biggest bonus is that Math-U-See comes with a DVD that my kids can watch and learn math from someone who loves math (not me!).  They learn the skill of listening to someone other than me teach, and how to take notes and ask questions later.  Most of my 1st graders have done the 2nd half of Math-U-See Foundations in 1st grade, but we are switching to the newer Alpha/Beta sequence this year.  I have some kids that will be in Alpha in 1st and some that will do Beta in 1st. 

Language:  Learning Language Arts Through Literature-Red book--simple and easy, gentle
                  approach into grammar.  This book includes spelling words, but I don't think they are
                  challenging enough, as well as dictation, handwriting, reading comprehension, etc.

                  First Language Lessons 1 or 2 depending on the kid--this is by the author's of the WTM.  I
                  don't love books 1 and 2, but I love books 3 and 4 in this series, but I do 1 and 2 anyway. 
                  I don't love a scripted curriculum.  I use these mostly as reinforcement

                  Spelling Workout for my visual learners, and All about Spelling for those that struggle
                 with spelling

                  Copywork for Little Girls or Copywork for Little Boys--depending on the kid ;)

Other:  Geography with Maps, Charts, and Graphs B
    
            Art with Art Smart (more to come on this resources soon)

            Violin

            Listening Activities

            We also do some kind of Bible/devotion book, but I change that every year and typing games on the computer.

Add in our history/literature and science that we do all together and that's basically what 1st grade looks like around here. 
                 
Before you ask--no, I don't do a formal handwriting curriculum.  I go over handwriting with them specifically on their daily copywork, but also any time I notice a recurring issue, I will bring it to their attention.  And, honestly, if I had more time, I wouldn't use a formal spelling curriculum either.  With my oldest, we just picked out words in the books he was reading or the history he was studying, or any words that seemed to be giving him trouble and we made lists that way.  Spelling is developemental, and kids will pick up good spelling habits as they read and expose themselves to more, so we don't stress about spelling here.  As they get older, I am more likely to point out bad spelling to them, and we work on those problems then.