Ready For Grade 6

Two down, one to go!  I've got Charlie's plan in place already, and now I think Will's is a go as well!  Here's what I have planned for Will's 6th grade year...

For math we are sticking with Teaching Textbooks.  Like I always say, if it is not broken, do not expend the energy trying to make it unbrokener.  Both Ben and Will have enjoyed using this program for a few years now.

Language arts subjects this year will also be in the familiar vein for us. 

Spelling Power is the family choice for easily implemented testing and study techniques.  

For writing, we are continuing with Susan Wise Bauer's series which began with the Writing With Ease books.  Will has completed that set of books, and will now move on to Writing with Skill.  We're both looking forward to starting Level 1.

This will be my second time through Junior Analytical Grammar, which I found to be no-nonsense and quite effective for teaching grammar and sentence diagramming at this age.  While I'm sure William will complain bitterly all the way through it, it has to be done! 

For continuing practice in cursive,  A Journey Through Learning's America's Presidents CD will come in handy.  As I did for Ben at this age, I will print out these pages and have a book bound for Will to use daily.  This is helpful for reading cursive as well as being good handwriting practice.

Poetry at Tea Time, once weekly, will continue as it has for years.  Will can revisit poems that are familiar to him as Charlie learns them for the first time; I plan to use one of our favorite series of books to highlight Robert Frost or Lewis Carroll, along with seasonal selections from Poetry Speaks to Children and Favorite Poems Old and New.   Also during the course of the year, we'll read some meatier selections from Anne Bradstreet, William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Poe, and Longfellow, and tie them in with our American history studies.

On Will's literature list this year are Gulliver in Lilliput, Robinson Crusoe, Tom Sawyer, 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, Legend of Sleepy Hollow, and Rip Van Winkle.

 I really want to fit in this linguistics study from Ellen McHenry's Basement Workshop as an elective for Will.  He has shown an interest in the origins of the English language recently and I think this might just fit the bill.  And I would love it as well, I'm sure!

You know what is so great?  I shopped all the above math and language arts items from my shelves! Can you hear the sign of contentedness?  Ahhhhhhhhhh.

Now for a something I don't yet own...

For science, I'm hoping that  Pandia Press will release their Biology Level 2 in time for the school year.  I wouldn't even mind starting it late.  I have my heart set on it, so not sure what we'll do if not this.   

ETA: Just found out that the release date for the Pandia Press Biology course will be February 14th, 2013.  Later than I hoped, but maybe I can still make it work???

As far as Nature Studies go, WISE Kids, a local nature and hiking group, has been a part of Will's summers for the past three years, and this summer was no exception.  I consider this to be an important component of our science studies.  So far this summer they have:

*Hiked various park trails. All types of terrain, rain or shine.

*Canoed the St. Croix River from St. Croix Falls to Osceola.

*Taken a fish hatchery tour (rainbow trout) and participated in a raceway cleaning service project.

*Heard historical stories of the St. Croix River from St. Croix: Midwest Border River by James Taylor Dunn.

*Listened to the book  If You Find a Rock. Shared rock collections and told stories of personal "memory rocks".  Charlie brought in Madeline Island rocks, and some Wishing Rocks, which were mentioned in the book.

*Created personal photo journals from various hikes.

*Took part in a Tree study with a local naturalist.

A couple more weeks and this will end for the summer, but there is always a fall and winter outing to look forward to as well.

History.  The perfect curriculum for me is ever elusive.   I love researching and planning, but wish there was something I agreed with that totally set it up for me.  Wishful, wishful thinking.  I'm sure we're doing early American history this year with Story of the world 3 worked in for world events, but I can't seem to organize myself as far as getting a schedule put together.  I need something to follow or I'll forget to cover stuff.  Yes. Stuff.  I'll get back to you when I figure it all out.  I'm considering History Odyssey level 2 Early Modern.  Maybe

Art appreciation?  Music appreciation?  I'll try to weave this into our history study as well.  So, mostly complete, yes?  Just waiting on that science and hoping a last-minute, new, exciting, secular history curriculum that uses History of US and American Odyssey as spines, that can be used with a variety of ages, comes out tomorrow!