I am kind of thinking ahead to next year...

[Kelli in TN]

My little guy is 8 and working at an early first grade level. He has completed Alphaphonics and is reading some simple sentences. He is working on the first half of Horizons grade 1 math program. He is still pretty much tracing or copying anything he writes, even his own name.

With my kids of more "on target" abilities my policy was not to start anything until they were solid readers, had a bit of a math foundation and could write all letters and spell their full name and some simple words without help. They could pretty much all do this by 6-7. Once I felt like they had a good start on the skill subjects, I started bringing in the content subjects. I felt that this was important, this waiting on content until a trend of success in skill areas was begun.

But my little guy is much older than they were and his learning patterns do not follow any rhyme or reason. So, even though those skill areas are not firmly established I think he needs some content area. I think we need some history and science. I know he wants some science, and I think he would enjoy some history as he does like talking about "old days".

I think I will just use Magic Schoolbus (which he already LOVES) and some Science in a Nutshells for science.

I know I want to keep him on the same history cycle as his siblings, to keep the momma sane. SOTW seems too hard for him. What do you recommend that will follow the cycle but be greatly simplified for him?

[Laurie]

My older ds and I used SOTW and I bought the Activity Guide. For my dd, I used The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History and got the pages that would go along with SOTW out of the AG. (She and I could read through that book together.) I also used the AG to get titles of books written for younger students to use with my dd.

[Stirsmommy]

My ds is a bit off target still too. For science since he loves it. I got a couple of messy experiment books at B&N and he also "helps" his sissy with her experiments. As far as SOTW he loves it. Also the 3yo down the street who appears in my house frequently loves it too. We have the audios and i pop it in and they either color (or scribble depending on the mood) or play with playdough. Most of the things are adaptable. We don't do the mapwork. We do look what we are doing up on the map but that would be more coloring and worse writing than my ds could do. Some of the crafts are right up his alley.
HTH
Melissa

[Kelli in TN]

My older ds and I used SOTW and I bought the Activity Guide. For my dd, I used The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History and got the pages that would go along with SOTW out of the AG. (She and I could read through that book together.) I also used the AG to get titles of books written for younger students to use with my dd.


I have the Usborne book, why didn't I think to just use that!!!

[Kelli in TN]

As far as SOTW he loves it. Also the 3yo down the street who appears in my house frequently loves it too. We have the audios and i pop it in and they either color (or scribble depending on the mood) or play with playdough. Most of the things are adaptable. We don't do the mapwork. We do look what we are doing up on the map but that would be more coloring and worse writing than my ds could do. Some of the crafts are right up his alley.
HTH
Melissa


I have the audios for 3 of the levels, so maybe I could try this. Even if he only absorbed a little of it on the first cycle, it would be something, right?

[Rebecca in VA]

It can be really hard for young kids to imagine what people and buildings looked like back in olden times. I always read lots and lots of history picture books to my young kids. They wouldn't have been able to deal with verbal descriptions at all.