please see previous disclaimers etc!!
the Nitty Gritty
literacy:
to read herself a wide a varied amount of literature, encouraging her to try new genres and authors, and to stretch her imagination. to still read aloud to her a variety of stories, again across different genres and writing styles.
YES
to start to discuss the mechanics of style and writing in the books, stories, poetry etc we come across. not much to start with -don’t want to impede the reading explosion! but to start thinking about why she liked bits, what the story is about, what interests are sparked from it, and perhaps the use of language.
STARTED
to start her on the path to writing her own stories – encouraging the use of grammer and spelling!
PARTLY
writing: SB has stated an interest in writing more legibly, and we are gradually working through getty and dubay. We are half way through c. i hope we carry on with this. i hope to add some story writing or copywork activitities if she fancies it.
NOT RECENTLY, BUT GOT TO D – SOMETHING TO WORK ON
maths: singapore maths 2b at the moment, and hoping to move through a year of singapore with each calendar year, so perhaps starting 4a. it just depends really! . we also plan to use some CIMT maths for different perspectives. Also incorporating lots of time just fiddling with manipulatives, and bring maths into the every day.
HALF WAY THROUGH 3B, SO I GUESS NOT QUITE
History: we have commenced the second story of the world as a reader, and perhaps aim to complete this, just seeing how it goes. alongside this we have lots of great usborne books and good piccies in DK eyewitness [the text is too rich at the moment]
NOT FAR OFF FINISHING ACTUALLY
Also readers set in different time periods, and myths and legends seem to go down well. we can use this to spark interest and discuss as and when she fancies
we may start to introduce timelines, and see where this gets us .
YES TO READERS AND ASSOC BOOKS, NO TO TIMELINES
critical thinking: I would like to do some critical thinking. May buy a sonlight book! However, i think lots of games playing will be helpful here, learning to plan moves ahead etc. SHe has taken up chess recently, and we play lots of games together
MOSTLY DONE THIS THROUGH GAMES AND ALSO VERBAL AND NON VERBAL REASONING
science: I would STILL like to join the young scientists club, and use those and our usborne pocket series. crystal kits, dig it out kits, and general messing about kits – lovely! SB has a real interest in doing experiments and seeing how things work, and i plan to facilitate this regularly.
LOADS OF SCIENCE!
at present the magic school bus chapter books and programmes are a hit, and contain solid wodges of info in easily accessible formats. i think as she loves them, this is definitely something to encourage.
YES
i would like us to get round to joining the astronomy group, and hopefully hiring one of their telescopes, as she is keen to do this, and we would all enjoy it.
YES
Geography: will still be predominantly history and holiday based, but perhaps something such as geocaching may take SB’s interest? it also gets covered alot as part of other things.
SOME GEOCACHING, A LOT OF INTEREST WITH POSTCROSSING
languages: SB would very much like to give more attention to languages. we have good resources for french, german and spanish to start, and also i need to practice the latin in between sessions. it is something she needs our help and encouragement with.
YES TO FRENCH, TIME TO MOVE TO NEXT STAGE!
we will try and back this up with local groups to encourage the skills, and consider camping holidays in france to make them practical.
music :- piano is probably SB’s favourite, and we will encourage regular practice
we will do violin and at some point in the next 2 years, i might pass the tuition on to the county music service
PIANO GOING STRONG, AND RECORDER, VIOLIN DROPPED, BUT CLARINET STARTED
certainly we wish to utilise the county music service for their early ensemble string groups. I think SB would get a lot out of this.
we will also do lots of singing, and listen to a wide range of music methinks.
drama: at present she does this with the home-ed group, and does enjoy it. the timing of the session is poor for me, and i think it might go after this term. we should look potentially for something else.
TO DO
PE: is covered well at the moment, and we will continue to encourage a core sports practice and trying out all sorts of new ideas.
current activities are ballet, swimming and judo. She goes for gym taster sessions, so we hope to add that.
she would also like to at least try horse riding, and see if she enjoys it.
DIDN’T, NEED TO SORT GOLF
the local group has a monthly mixed sports group, which she loves and will continue to attend
more ad hoc are yoga and dance videos [which i should do too!!], and perhaps finding someone to get her started with in line skating. half term and holiday leisure centre taster events also popular
IT: well!! whatever really. we have the internet, a variety of cd’s and webland to be getting on with. i won’t renew education city unless she has a sudden mad rush at it!
BEEN A BIT IT SHORT ACTUALLY
Arts and crafts: obviously a huge component of our days! we are a bit low on feathers and glittery bits…
I would like to add in some art appreciation, look at different artists and styles, and ‘have a go’
Domestic Science!!: slight rofl at title, but a fair bit of baking and cooking, gardening, some tidying and laying the table. SHe is interested in sewing and knitting too, so it is just about making sure the basics are available and accessible for her to do when the mood strikes, or re-introducing if there has been a gap.
Socialising: regular attendance at not quite local groups, local clubs [ie rainbows], national camps and making sure we have a steady stream of houseguests.
YES
we probably should have a look at what we go to and when, as with the increase in after school activity groups, we probably should do a bit more staying at home to accomplish some of the above.
family is also important, and maintaining close family ties and bonds.
trips and outings: i think we should be a bit more proactive now BB more amenable to going out and about to places for experiential learning opportunities. this would add a bit of sparkle and pizazz to the whole thing, add external excitement for looking at some things, and generally be fun for all.
YES
practicalities: we have lots of resources and opportunities, i think in the next 2 years we parents have to hone our presentation skills, storage solutions etc, so that they are all readily accessible for SB to find . i think we need a ruthless look at groups that work or not for SB, and keep an eye on the opportunities to play and socialise.
obviously we do a lot of ed by conversation and seeing where that goes – sometimes quite tricky, so the other thing is to make sure that we are available , enthusiastic partners in the educational process.
YES