Our 2015-2016 Curriculum Choices

Wow!  I cannot believe that we are already starting our second official year of homeschooling and our first year filing with our state for our oldest son.  2014-2015 was so much fun for our family and we all learned so much not only academically but also about our faith and growing closer as a family.  Going into this school year our oldest son is 5 1/2 years old (6 in December), our middle son is 3 1/2 years old (4 in October) our youngest son is 2 years old (3 in June 2016) and we are expecting our newest little blessing in November! 

We have been schooling over the summer because homeschooling has truly become a way of life for us but also because we are planning on taking a nice break once the baby comes in November through the end of the year.  We are looking forward to that time to slow down celebrate Advent and Christmas and enjoy family!  The only thing that we have on our "school schedule" during that time is using Christmas Mosaic for the activities and book list!

First, we are enrolled with Seton Home Study School which provides us with an amazing accredited Catholic home education program.  We have used Seton for Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten so far and simply love it for our family.  Also, although it may look like we have a lot on our plates for this year we do not use each book every day or even every week.  Our formal school time usually takes 1-2 hours 4-5 days per week at this point in time.  With the rest of our time we add in a lot of read-aloud time, life learning and fun!  Our Religion book list with Catholic Mosaic, History with RC History and Phonics with Before Five in a Row for the little ones is all mostly great read aloud literature which takes up most of our time and is also super flexible!

Here is what we have planned for our school year:

Daily Circle Time with Everyone

• Calendar (Days of the Week, Months of the Year, Weather, Seasons)
• Daily Rosary -Decade or Entire Rosary (With Holy Heroes Rosary CDs)
• Saint of the Day
• Morning Offering Prayer
• Pledge of Allegiance

Ryan (5 - 6 years old) Kindergarten/1st Grade:

English/Phonics: 

• English 1 for Young Catholics (Seton)
• Phonics 1 for Young Catholics Part 1 (Seton)
• Phonics 1 for Young Catholics Part 2 (Seton)
• Here We Come/This is our Home/Here we Are Again Readers (Seton)
• Little Stories for Little Folks: Catholic Phonics Readers (Catholic Heritage Curricula) - Has already finished Levels 1-3; will complete Level 4
• What Do You Like to Do - Catholic Easy Reader (Catholic Heritage Curricula)
• What Can You Do - Catholic Easy Reader (Catholic Heritage Curricula)

Handwriting / Spelling:

• Catholic Heritage Handwriting: Level 1 (Catholic Heritage Curricula)
• My Very First Catholic Speller (Catholic Heritage Curricula)

Mathematics

• Finishing Mathematics K for Young Catholics (Seton) - He has about 4 weeks left
• Mathematics 1 for Young Catholics (Seton)

Religion

• Religion 1 for Young Catholics (Seton)
• Catholic Mosaic Activities and Book List
• Saint Mail (Monthly Learning about a Saint)

 

 

Science

• Behold and See 1: On the Farm with Josh and Hanna (Catholic Heritage Curricula) - Started this in Spring 2015 and will be completing early Fall 2015
• Science 1 For Young Catholics (Seton) - Completed over the Summer 2015
• Since he FLEW through both Seton and Catholic Heritage Curricula's 1st grade Science texts, when "technically" he is just entering Kindergarten we are looking for something to add to continue.  These are what we are currently considering:
• Exploring Creation with Zoology 1 / Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day (Apologia)
• Zoology 1 Junior Notebooking Journal (Apologia)
• Science Kits from our Library.  Our library has elementary science kits with books and experiments that you can check out for 6 weeks at a time.  We are definitely going to check these out!

History

• American History 1 for Young Catholics (Seton) - Completed over the Summer 2015
• Maps, Charts, Graphs Level A (Seton)
• Connecting with History American History Volume 4A / Beginner Level (RC History)
• Beginner Level American History Book List (RC History)

Art/Music

• Art 1 for Young Catholics (Seton) - These art activities amazingly go along with Catholic Mosaic which will also be using for Religion
• Art Masterpieces - A Liturgical Collection (Catholic Heritage Curricula)
• Making Music Praying Twice
• Piano / Violin Lessons

 Physical Education

• Soccer with Parish School (Fall & Spring)
• Tae-Kwon-Do (Weekly with Homeschool Learning Center)
• Yearly Pass to Go Kids' Gym

 

Connor (3-4 years old) Pre - Kindergarten

Early Literacy / Phonics:

• Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons (Started Summer 2015; on about lesson 20)
• Early Literacy for Young Catholics (Seton)
• Adventures with Books (Seton)
• Do It Carefully (Seton)
• Before Five in a Row Books and Activities (He did this 2 years ago with his older brother (we did not use it all in 2014-2015, and will now complete the activities again this year with he and his younger brother.  His older brother can join in if he wants as well!)

 

Mathematics:

• Counting with Numbers (Seton)

Religion:

• Religion for Young Catholics - Pre - Kindergarten (Seton)
• New Catholic Picture Bible (Seton)
• St Joseph Coloring Books: Coloring Book about Jesus, Coloring Book about the Saints, Christmas Coloring Book, Miracles of Jesus Coloring Book, Animals of the Bible, God's Rules for Me (Seton)
• Catholic Mosaic Activities and Book List
• Saint Mail (Monthly Learning about a Saint)

Science:

• Magic School Bus Books, Videos and Experiments
• Life Experiences and Fun!

History:

• Listening to Book List Books from:
• Connecting with History American History Volume 4A / Beginner Level (RC History)
• Beginner Level American History Book List (RC History)

Art/Music:

• Art Masterpieces - A Liturgical Collection (Catholic Heritage Curricula)
• Catholic Icing - Catholic ABC's Crafts
• Making Music Praying Twice
• Piano Lessons

 

Physical Education:

• Soccer with Parish School (Fall & Spring)
• Tae-Kwon-Do (Weekly with Homeschool Learning Center)
• Yearly Pass to Go Kids' Gym

 

Luke (2 years old) - Preschool / Learning Fun

Early Literacy / Phonics:

• Before Five in a Row Books and Activities (He will complete these with his 4 year old brother)

 Mathematics:

• Fun Puzzles and Games
• Leap Frog Videos
  

Religion (Following along with his big brothers):

• Catholic Mosaic Activities and Book List
• Saint Mail (Monthly Learning about a Saint)

Art/Music:

• Catholic Icing - Catholic ABC's Crafts
• Making Music Praying Twice

 

Physical Education:

• Yearly Pass to Go Kids' Gym

Rosaries Are Not (Just) For Teething -A Book Review

 

I am always looking for great books to read so I was so excited to hear that a huge group of some of my favorite Catholic Bloggers came together to write the book Rosaries Aren't Just For Teething.  It is a beautiful compilation of stories from real moms about how some of their very personal stories and reflections can be related back to each different mystery of the rosary.  Beyond this each story shows how to take our day to day experiences, joys and struggles to unite them with Mary and through her draw closer to her son Jesus in the gift of the Rosary and prayer. 

For me personally, finding the beauty in the Rosary and truly appreciating the graces from the Rosary has taken me a long time to learn.  Honestly, I am still learning and probably will continue to do so forever!  I don't know about you, but I always loved when Mondays or Saturdays came along because it felt so much easier to pray the Joyful mysteries of the Rosary.  It always seemed natural as a mother myself to reflect on what Mary was going through during The Visitation, The Birth of Jesus, The Presentation of Jesus, etc.  Yet, I always struggled with the Sorrowful Mysteries.  I did not want to meditate on the pain of Jesus's passion and death, because, well it was painful!  It was not until I physically miscarried our child Samuel on a Friday and then prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries that I truly felt united with Mary, at the foot of the cross.  It was in that moment that I felt the strength and purpose on mediating through each of the 20 mysteries of the Rosary and how they can unite us closer to Mary and to Jesus.

What my experience, and all of the stories of these wonderful women have taught me is that God is drawing us closer to Him in each moment of our lives.  He is drawing us closer to Him in the daily moments of wiping noses, changing diapers and disciplining the same thing over and over again with our children.  He is drawing us closer to Him as we rejoice in the growth of our marriages or personal relationships in our lives.  He is drawing us closer to Him through each and every moment messy and beautiful moment.  Thank you to all of the wonderful authors for helping bring me closer to the heart of Mary through each and every mystery of the Rosary.

Ponder:  What moments in your life have brought you closer to understanding the mysteries of the Rosary?  What can you do in your daily life to incorporate the gifts and graces gained in praying the Rosary?

Answer Me This: 4th of July Recap

 

I'm joining Kendra of Catholic All Year for her fun little link up of "Answer Me This".  She puts up a bunch of questions for everyone to answer about fun topics.  Here are the questions for this week.  Hopefully you can learn a little more about myself and our family and join in if you want!

 

1.  How did you celebrate the 4th of July?

We had a great weekend spending time on the lake with my in-laws on their new boat and then having a BBQ with my family and lighting off some little fireworks/sparklers.  We also spent time learning all about American History, because that is what our little guys are LOVING right now! 

2.  Do you sunburn easily?

Not really!  Yet, I am a really big advocate for sunscreen for everyone, so I never really have a chance to burn.  I love the spray on sunscreen and usually use at least 30 SPF for myself and 50 SPF for our kiddos.  Also, we have our boys wear rash guard shirts or t-shirts when out in the sun or swimming not only for sun protection but also modesty (yes even for boys!!). 

 

3.  Hot dogs.  Yay or nay?

Sure!  I do not really eat hot dogs much myself, as I am more of a bratwurst or hamburger fan, but our kids eat them and I am not opposed to eating them.  We grill a TON during the summer time and all summer food is YUMMY!

4.  Have you ever personally set off fireworks?

This year was a first for me (and it was only the tiny ones)!  I grew up going to fireworks shows with my family at our grandparents lake cabin but we never did our own fireworks.  My husbands family did fireworks growing up and so we are starting small with our little guys and having fun!  I am also thankful that my husband is an Emergency Room physician and the Assistant Medical Director for our cities Fire Department!  We definitely practice safety first!

Tiny Toes reaching up to look at all of the fireworks on Daddy's truck

5.  Have you ever jumped off the high dive?

Yes!  Gosh, it has been a long time, but I definitely have done it before.  Our oldest son jumped off the diving board for the first time during his swimming lessons this year without any life jacket on!  I grew up in the water and we spend lots of our summer days already at the pool or lake.

 

6.  Do you do anything weird in your sleep?

I do not really do anything weird in my sleep like sleep walk, etc but I do have my own strange habits.  I am a VERY light sleeper and after working night shifts as an RN for years I started the habit of needing to wear an eye mask and ear plugs to sleep.  Even wearing ear plugs I can still wake up at the slightest sound of our children.  I also use a TON of pillows when I sleep (even when not pregnant).  I've had my eye on this pregnancy pillow lately which looks heavenly!

Link up HERE!

Happy Birthday America

When our oldest son learns something new that he is interested in his entire world becomes immersed in that topic.  Currently that topic to him is early American History!  So, celebrating the 4th of July is just about the most exciting thing that could happen to the little guy.  I especially love that he isn't excited about the parades or fireworks, but he is excited about the history of the United States of America, the signing of the Declaration of Independence and all of our Founding Fathers!

 

He has loved learning about all of the different flags of the world, our country and the states.  When we were on our family vacation earlier this summer he entertained himself in the car simply looking at his flag books and coloring his own flags that he would make up!  His other favorite books lately have been The Boy Who Carried the Flag, and the Magic Tree House Research Book on the American Revolution.  We have also been watching the Liberty's Kids videos which are lots of fun and very educational!

 

He loves to put up our American Flag every morning and say the Pledge of Allegiance and also sing the Star Spangled Banner.  He sings the Star Spangled Banner so often that even our 2 year old has learned the song (although his version is "Oh Say....STRIPES!")

 

 

Sleeping with the American Flag

When discussing potential names for our newest little baby my husband and I brought up the name Benjamin and our oldest son's first response was "YEAH! It can be Benjamin Franklin!" Our middle son chimed in "Or George Washington"!  American history is definitely a big topic in our house right now and we cannot wait to add a lot of fun learning to our homeschool plans for next year! So we hope that your family has a wonderful time celebrating this country this 4th of July!

Happy Birthday America!

It's A ...

I cannot believe that we are half way through our pregnancy with our newest little blessing.  The past few months have been such a roller coaster of emotions and I am so excited that as each day passes that we are getting one step closer to hopefully holding our little one.

It is still surreal after experiencing a miscarriage to go to a doctor's appointment and hear our baby's heart beating.  Our baby is such a beautiful gift of life and our appreciation for that gift has definitely changed and grown even deeper.  We thank God that our little one is healthy and growing! 

We also found out that....

 

 

 We are welcoming another BOY into our family!!!  We are thrilled and cannot wait for this little guy to enter our crazy, fun filled home this November! Thank you all for your continued prayers and support throughout this journey.

 

 

20 weeks with our newest little guy!