Cupcakes.
I love them. Who doesn't?
They are the center of my latest theory of homeschooling curriculum.
I've found that many parents new to homeschooling can have a difficult time choosing the right curriculum--and sometimes they are so caught up in doing the "right" thing, they might choose too much or not enough.
This is where cupcakes come in.
A cupcake is cake-frosting-sprinkles (at least my favorites are!) I look at setting up curriculum like that:
cake-frosting-sprinkles or
core curriculum-workbooks/supplemental material-online/games/field trips-projects.
But, how does this work?
There
are a TON of choices when it comes to Language Arts, Math, Science and
Social Studies. I can't tell you what's right for your family, but I
can explain how I've set up Cub's subjects using my "method" : )
Using Language Arts as an example:
Cake-All About Reading!
I
LOVE All About Learning Press and their materials!!! This is totally
my own opinion and what I've seen both personally and professionally.
I'm using AAR Level 1 for Cub and within 5 short lessons he was
reading--no kidding. He started with a strong base knowledge of letters
and their sounds which is making the process that much faster. Phonics
patterns and word families make up most of what is learned and it is in a
fun, short and sweet way. Cub is SUPER active and will only sit for
short bursts...if he's interested. This has worked so well for us!
Frosting-Sight Words & Writing
It's
not all about reading though (see what I did there? : ) Kiddos MUST
have sight word instruction as well. These sight or high frequency
words make up most of the print we see daily. Most do not fall into
typical phonics patterns that littles will learn, so memorization is
key. I personally haven't found an organized "big box" kinda curriculum
I love so I am armed with my sight word lists and I choose 5 a week,
put them on post-its and stick them on the pantry door. When Cub pops
in for a snack, he must read them. When I introduce them, I read them
to him, then I have him echo me (I read-he reads) and then I point and
have him read himself. Cub was blessed with a wicked memory so this
comes easy to him. Is he always eager to read them? No. Do I let him
slide and get something without reading? Never. Consistency and
practice is instrumental in getting these words to stick.
Writing
is our biggest struggle. I've found using a highlighter on primary
lined paper--asking Cub what words he'd like to write--has worked. We
also use Star Wars workbooks (he LOVES any and ALL Star Wars so he is
interested!) We use shaving cream on his outside table, chalk on the
pathway outside our front door, the fog on the glass in the
shower...anything and everything that gets him to practice!!! Since
he's starting K in September (I still absolutely positively cannot
believe that almost 5 years have gone by--but that's a whole different
subject : ) I don't push as hard as I will once schooltime has
officially started for us. I'm trying to make it as fun and exciting as
possible. It has worked well so far...we shall see if it continues!
Sprinkles-Online Activities/Games
My
director introduced us to Reading Eggs which is an online program.
It's cute, it's fun and it's worthwhile. What it's not is a full blown
core curriculum. Cub has fun with it but I don't look at it as
something that is instructing. It's a nice added activity, but it is
not a substitute for something like All About Reading or sight word
instruction. Games we play are fantastic--stores like Lakeshore have
fun educational games & I get a TON of things from Teachers Pay
Teachers--but they are just "sprinkles" on your curriculum cupcake!
I hope this delish little post helps in de-mystifying the core choices a little and what might be cake, frosting or sprinkles!
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