Thursday, May 27, 2010

Curriculum Junkies and Pattern Blocks







I wish I had taken a picture of the myriad of curricula spread out over the tables this morning in my home! We announced it on the Mary's House yahoo group as a book sale, but at times it was really more of a book swap:"I'll take your American Girl book and give you my Kindergarten Catechism book."




As entertaining as it is to see the collections displayed by my fellow curriculum junkies, I did take a few minutes to ponder our"text" anxiety when it comes to educating our children at home. And I don't mean the cell phone kind. We attend conferences and curriculum sales, peruse Cathy Duffy's favorite picks, compare textbooks to living books, buy,sell, and exchange programs as new ones are produced all the while wondering, "Is the THE ONE that will work with my dc in such and such a subject."



One seasoned mom said she wanders away from and always comes back to Laura Berquist's Mother opf Divine Grace program based on Design Your Own Classical Curriculum. I have only been doing this for three years now, but MODG will most likely always be the foundation of our BucketOGlee home learning. We adapt the basic plan to each child's needs and my own need for simplicity. In addition to the historical fiction books listed in MODG, I have collected a few writing,spelling, and math programs here and there trying to make a good fit for my learners. Right now I'm feeling pretty comfortable with my collection; ALEKS math online, A Beka Spanish supplemented by BYKI.com, Little Saints Preschool with some Before FIAR, Writing with Ease, and Wordly Wise.


So, my exciting purchases of the day include a plastic set of pattern blocks (put to use immediately by all ages and pictured here), Seton's Kindergarten Catechism, and Karen Andreola's book A Charlotte Mason Companion. The last one worries me a little. I am proud to have kept the curriculum purchases to a minimum this spring and I am hoping the Charlotte Mason Companion won't inspire me to hop too far off the path I have already created.....

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