Curriculum Reviews

History

A Beka My America and My World

We used this for Kindergarten even though it says first grade. This is a fun short reader. It didn't take us long to complete it. The kids liked it. It just didn't have much material. I think it would be great to use as a spine to check out books from the library. We are considering doing this in the future with A Beka history. I paid $5 for it used.

Sonlight Core B

I have a love/hate relationship with Sonlight. It is ALOT of reading (which is the point) and very time consuming. My kids LOVE it! They can't get enough of the books. They beg to read more and choose to read them at story time before bed. I even catch them carrying the books around to study the map of a pyramid or look at pictures. The read aloud books really tug at the child's heart. One even prompted Cole to start a Bible mission fund. He donated his money and got everyone else to donate too. A Child's History of the World was not a book we enjoyed at all. WARNING: Some of the Usborne books have evolution, details about lots of gods and other religions AND drawings of naked people and statues. While I understand this is true to the culture, my kids are just not mature enough to not laugh for hours on end about it. Even buying used I spent about $120. I plan to use my library as much as possible next year. (Update 8/15: While Sonlight has amazing book choices that we are still reading today, It was just too much reading aloud for a mom with 4 littles.)

Language Arts

Bob Books

My kids absolutely love Bob Books. They have cute stories and illustrations with simple sentences on each page. They get daily use at our house. They are paperback, so they get a lot of wear and tear. They are expensive, but I have bought some 50% off used.

Rod and Staff (1st Grade)

Rod and Staff is more workbook based than anything else we have used. There is a lot of writing! Cole found it a little frustrating. I really liked Unit 1. The stories were very nice. Unit 2 and 3 were a big leap in difficulty from Unit 1. The stories were boring to Cole with too many sentences on one page and only one picture. The upside is that R&S is cheap, but we ended up shelving it pretty quick.

Scott Foresman Reading (1st Grade)

This has been our favorite reading so far. It has spelling, sight words, phonics, grammar, journal and reading practice. The teachers manuals are a little overwhelming. I just kind of use it as a guide, and pick only a couple activities a day. We also don't do many of the worksheets. I want to focus more on journals than busy work. The readers are awesome and took Cole from hating reading to loving it. There are bright colorful pictures on every page. We borrowed this from a friend, but will definitely be purchasing it in the future.

Sonlight Core B

I was very excited to use Sonlight. Unfortunately, I was extremely disappointed. The language arts program was very lacking. I understand Sonlight is a more relaxed approach, but there were huge gaps in the material. Most of all I was disappointed in the readers that cost $40. The language was strange. I couldn't even understand what they were aiming for myself. The authors tried to use too many of the sounds we were studying that week and somehow the story was lost. We do love Sonlight's read aloud choices. In the end, Sonlight's language program was not easy to use and expensive, but they did give me a full return minus shipping. There is a chance we might use Sonlight again.

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons

I love that there are no materials needed, but the book. It has phonics practice, sight words, and reading all in one. This has been the best beginner reading curriculum we have tried so far. (We have tried a lot!) We used it last year for Kindergarten with Cole and are using it with Carter (5) for preschool this year. Kate (3) asks to do it daily and is on the same lesson as Carter!

We paid $22 for this book at Books-A-Million. I have seen it at curriculum sales for $5. (Update 8/15; All of our kiddos, even Kyle who is 3 have/are using this. It's still a favorite!)

Math

Saxon K and Saxon 1

Saxon is unmatched in my view. It's scripted, which is my favorite part. I don't have to figure out how to explain something difficult because it's already written for me. I love the fun ways it teaches. There are not just worksheets but hands on activities. We can make a bus out of chairs and practice "adding" stuffed animals and "subtracting" animals without ever using the actual words. Best of all, our preschoolers love to join in. Carter (5, pre-K) answered all of Cole's (7, 1st) subtraction questions the other day. The biggest adjustment that I had to make was realizing that I didn't have to do everything listed. This was hard for me. Cole can tell time to the minute with an analog clock. I don't have to practice telling time to the hour everyday just because it's written in the book. There are 40 review problems listed everyday so that I can choose what we need to practice, not so my child can do all 40. We love Saxon and plan to continue using it. It is pricey, but you can find used books and manipulatives relatively cheap. (Update 8/15: Saxon worked well until I added more children to our official homeschool. I just can not spend the amount of time needed individually with Saxon. We have now switched to BJU Press Math.)

BJU Press Math K, 1, 2, 3, 4

We have enjoyed BJU. I only purchase the workbooks except for purchasing the entire kit for grade 4. It has been helpful but not necessary. I can make flashcards faster than I can punch them out. The teachers guide has been very helpful with planning lessons. It actually suggests that you skip certain review pages unless they are needed. That helps my "OCD every page must be done" self relax a little. Cole hasn't needed the extra review sheets that come separate but they would be handy for the child that needs more practice. The tests are relevant to the lessons and help me check our progress. All in all I am pleased.