Literature
One of the reasons we haven't used Abeka since Kara was little is because their literature is so boring. When she was in first, second, and maybe even third grade, the stories were fun and interesting. After that, not so much. Lots and lots and lots of history. Not our thing. But, this year I wanted to try them again - mostly because I am using Abeka's Grammar and it all flows together nicely. Also because I already bought it all for $1 at a homeschool book store's going out of business sale. There is nothing better than cheap curriculum!
The first unit was on families. Kara was cool with that. The next unit was animals. Kara loved it. She wanted to do extra. The third unit was pilgrims. 100% of it was boring to Kara. We stuck with it because sometimes things will be boring. Unit 4: Patriots. 100% boring. By the fifth unit, she was hating an excerpt from A Christmas Carol and I decided that's enough.
I didn't want to teach Kara to just abandon things she thinks are boring. I didn't want to take the easy way out. But I also think there is something to a curriculum that just isn't a good fit.
So, I bought a workbook from a company I had heard of, but never used - Progeny Press. They let you pick a book (they have about 100 books to chose from, all organized by grade level), and the workbook contains Vocabulary, History behind the book and author, Research paper opportunities, Grammar, Reading curriculum (main idea, theme, character study), and Essay questions. I looked at the list of books for 7th grade, and picked 5 books that looked pretty interesting for Kara to choose from. She picked The Witch of Blackbird Pond and Tuck Everlasting. Right now she is reading The Witch of Blackbird Pond and is liking it. (They recommend reading the whole book all the way through before you start the workbook.) Going through the study will be something else. We will see how it goes!
Oh, the study guide book says each one of these is worth 1/4 of a credit since it is so involved. Which suggests to me that we can do 4 of them a year. Wow. Like everything in homeschool, we can do as much or as little of each book as we want, assuming I find some way to teach Kara everything she needs to learn for 7th grade. (Which may mean we do more than 4 a year.)
Let me just add: it is super hard for me to switch curriculums! I want to complete everything. I want to never give up. I want the curriculum with the easiest lesson plans to be the one that works. But it's not about me. It's about Kara and what's best for her. I need to get over myself and do what needs.
So, here we go. 4 months in and changing it up.
The first unit was on families. Kara was cool with that. The next unit was animals. Kara loved it. She wanted to do extra. The third unit was pilgrims. 100% of it was boring to Kara. We stuck with it because sometimes things will be boring. Unit 4: Patriots. 100% boring. By the fifth unit, she was hating an excerpt from A Christmas Carol and I decided that's enough.
I didn't want to teach Kara to just abandon things she thinks are boring. I didn't want to take the easy way out. But I also think there is something to a curriculum that just isn't a good fit.
So, I bought a workbook from a company I had heard of, but never used - Progeny Press. They let you pick a book (they have about 100 books to chose from, all organized by grade level), and the workbook contains Vocabulary, History behind the book and author, Research paper opportunities, Grammar, Reading curriculum (main idea, theme, character study), and Essay questions. I looked at the list of books for 7th grade, and picked 5 books that looked pretty interesting for Kara to choose from. She picked The Witch of Blackbird Pond and Tuck Everlasting. Right now she is reading The Witch of Blackbird Pond and is liking it. (They recommend reading the whole book all the way through before you start the workbook.) Going through the study will be something else. We will see how it goes!
Oh, the study guide book says each one of these is worth 1/4 of a credit since it is so involved. Which suggests to me that we can do 4 of them a year. Wow. Like everything in homeschool, we can do as much or as little of each book as we want, assuming I find some way to teach Kara everything she needs to learn for 7th grade. (Which may mean we do more than 4 a year.)
Let me just add: it is super hard for me to switch curriculums! I want to complete everything. I want to never give up. I want the curriculum with the easiest lesson plans to be the one that works. But it's not about me. It's about Kara and what's best for her. I need to get over myself and do what needs.
So, here we go. 4 months in and changing it up.
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