Curriculum Choices for 2014-2015

Drum roll please...... haha! After a LOT of research, reading blogs, reading reviews, and talking to friends who homeschool I have finally decided on what curriculum we are going to use next year.  I know I am planning WAY earlier than most people but I am hoping to get the curriculum soon so I can start planning my year next year.  I also want to try to read all of the novels ahead of time so I will be better able to teach.  I am really excited about this curriculum!! I think we are going to have such a fun year!

So, for Math we are going to be using Horizon. I chose this curriculum because it had really great reviews and I liked that the worksheets are in pretty colors which I think my daughter will enjoy. I found that picking a Math curriculum was the hardest of all. So we are going to try this one this year and if it's not a good fit we will try something new next year.  I hope it will be a good fit though!

For Science, we are going to use Apologia's Exploring Creation with Botany.  I have heard wonderful things about this curriculum and I love how in depth the lessons are for the year.  There are about 8 subjects for Elementary school so I let Peanut pick which one sounded the most interesting to her. She said she wanted to learn about plants and trees so we are going with Botany :)  I have already planned some field trips to the Botanic Gardens in San Diego and the Huntington Library in Pasadena!  I think she is going to love Science next year!

For Handwriting we are going to use A Reason for Handwriting.  I love that it incorporates scripture into learning to write manuscript and cursive!

For the bulk of our lessons we will be using Sonlight.  This will be for History, Language Arts, Geography, and Bible.  I love that this curriculum uses living books to teach instead of textbooks!!!  I have heard WONDERFUL things about this curriculum and know that I have to try it to see if it is a good fit for our family!  And the great thing is that there is 100% money back guarantee if it is not a good fit for us!!

So that is our curriculum for next year!!  I think we are going to have a lot of fun!

Curriculum Ideas

I have been doing a lot of research this week on different curriculums, trying to figure out what my goals are and what would work best for us.  These are some that I am looking into:

Sonlight Curriculum

Heart of Dakota Curriculum

Abeka curriculum

First Language Lessons

Explode the Code Language

Hooked on Phonics

Wordly Wise

Apologia Science

Math U See

Saxon Math

Singapore Math

Handwriting without Tears

A reason for handwriting

History- Story of the World

Typing Instructor Platinum (amazon)

Obviously I still have some decisions to make.  I see lots of positive things in each of these so I just need to figure out what will fit us best.  I have never been great at making decisions so I think I am just going to go with my gut instinct here.

The Homeschool Decision

Today we made the decision that next year, for Peanut's 2nd grade year, I am going to homeschool her.  I have prayed about homeschooling for years but it never felt like the right time or things happened which made it not right.  But yet I couldn't stop thinking about it.  We have been blessed that she was able to go to Calvary Chapel Christian this year, tuition free, since I worked there last semester.  But next year we won't have that luxury and Andy and I had to sit down and talk about our goals. We both have dreams. One of the biggest is to buy a home. We need to save. We are renting right now and our lease will be up in April of 2015.  I am hopeful that if we make wise decisions between now and then, that we will be able save up for a home.  Homeschooling will help us accomplish this goal.

As I am researching Homeschooling more I am seeing even more reasons that this is a great way to educate your kids.  The freedom to study subjects that you are interested in and read and explore and grow in such unique ways really excited me!  I would have LOVED to have been taught this way as a kid!

I am nervous. I will be honest.  I feel the responsibility, the weight, of providing my daughter with an excellent education. As a credentialed teacher, you would think I would have more confidence.  Well, other people's kids are often easier to handle than your own. 'Nuff said.

We have an extra room downstairs that we are going to turn into our Home school room!  I am excited about that and I think will help us adjust to this new life change.  I am looking forward to being with her all day every day. We have a really awesome relationship and I love being with her.  She is excited about me teaching her.  She will be an 8 year old so I want to make it fun for her.  I want to let her pick things that she wants to study and dig deep into so it stays fresh and exciting.

I think that Sonlight is the curriculum I am most interested in.  It's all laid out for you already which I think will be good for me for my first year doing this with Haylie.  It's very literature based too which is important to me.

So, for the next 5 months I will be scouring blogs, reading books, cleaning and organizing, buying curriculum, and talking to friends who homeschool to get ready for this new adventure.  It should be fun!!!

I will wear my glasses so I feel smarter :)