Our 2019-2020 Homeschool Curriculum Choices (6th Grade, Kindergarten, and Toddler)

It's summertime, and we are actually taking a bit more of a break from formal homeschooling this year than usual. We have been on break since mid-May, and our first day back to school will be July 15, 2019.

We had quite a crazy ride last year with my husband suddenly losing his job and then finding a new one with a totally different schedule after months of searching.

Plus, we are switching up most of our curriculum.

So a slightly longer break seemed necessary to catch our breath and make preparation for the 2019-2020 school year.

What's new for us in 2019-2020?

1.) Little Brother will be an "official" Kindergartner this year! 

2.) Big Brother is exciting to be switching to a new curriculum for everything except Math!

3.) Baby Sister is 1 1/2 and will need to be kept busy while her bubbies are busy.

4.) I am going back to school myself!

Read on for details!

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Kindergarten

Just call Little Brother "Mr. Kindergarten!" He turned 5 back in April, so K5/Kindergarten here we come!

For K4, he had so much fun last year using the Gentle + Classical Preschool Level 1 and the first half of ACE's Kindergarten with Ace and Christi program.

So for Little Brother's Kindergarten year, we will be:

• Finishing up the second half of the ACE Kindergarten with Ace and Christi program.
• Supplementing a little extra math fun using Math Lessons for a Living Education Level K from Master Books.
• Learning to read with Foundations Phonics from Master Books.

When I tell him he will be able to read at the end of this school year, he gets so excited! 

For some extracurricular fun this year, Little Brother will be --

• Joining our local 4H Cloverbuds Club and 4H Homeschool Club.
• Joining the Kentucky Junior Historical Society.
• Starting piano lessons with me using the Madonna Woods Piano Course for Christians Preparatory Level.

6th Grade

Big Brother is starting middle school this year! Where has the time gone?!

As I said above, we are switching Big Brother's curriculum this year for every subject except Math.

• MATH - ACE's Math program is rock solid. He has been using it successfully for a few years now, and I honestly think math is a subject that should not be switched around any more than necessary. So he will be continuing to use ACE Math PACEs this year.
• LANGUAGE ARTS - We are making a switch to the Writing Strands series from Master Books. I am starting him out in the Beginner 1 Book. This class will cover grammar, creative writing, spelling, and literature/reading.
• SCIENCE - He picked out his own science class this year! We will be using the Applied Engineering course from Master Books. (This course is set up for grades 7-9, so I have scaled it down slightly and typed up our own set of quizzes.)
• HISTORY - Big Brother is most excited about starting a new history curriculum! He will be using The World's Story series from Master Books this year. We are beginning with Volume 1: The Ancients. This volume covers the time from Creation to the Roman Empire.

In addition to his basic course work, he will be --

• Participating in the local 4H program.
• Joining the Kentucky Junior Historical Society
• Possibly attending homeschool art classes again.
• Continuing guitar lessons with me.
• Volunteering at a local soup kitchen.

Toddler

Baby Sister is a running, climbing, giggling, pilfering bundle of energy wrapped in cuteness who wants to do everything her brothers do!

At almost 17 months old, she's as busy as a bee. While she's much too young for formal schooling, not having a plan for her days could be disasterous! Here are a few things I have planned for Baby Sister this school year--

• She loves the phonics songs that are part of the Kindergarten with Ace and Christi program, so I will definitely keep including her in that part of our school day. Sometimes she will also listen to the Bible stories and hymns we sing during our Morning Time.
• I have started letting her experiment with drawing and coloring with jumbo crayons. I might dig out some old dollar store coloring books for her to enjoy when I need her to be quietly occupied.
• I plan to read her at least 1 picture book each day.
• I am working on a plan to rotate her toys and to make some of them "school time" toys. My hope with this is that it will cut down on her ability to make such huge messes with so many toys out at a time and maybe she'll not get bored too quickly since the toys will rotate. I am still figuring this out!
• This seems like a good time to start teaching color recognition. In addition to pointing out colors in her everday life and play, I plan to make her a game similar to the one I made Little Brother for learning colors.
• By the end of this school year, I hope to have Baby Sister weaned from the breast and potty trained... y'all pray for me! These are my two absolute least favorite tasks of child-rearing, but both have to happen sometime!

Mommy is Going Back to School!

This 31 year old homeschooling mama of 3 is going back to school in August!

I started earning college credit during my last couple years as a homeschooled high schooler, and I took LOTS of college classes for a few years thereafter.

But then life happened, and I just never took the time to finish any specific degree.

So I am beyond excited that I have been given a fresh opportunity to finish what I started more than 15 years ago!

I have been accepted to Liberty University as a transfer student, and I only need 5 classes to graduate with my Associate of Arts in Education in Spring 2020!

(I am considering going on to finish up a Bachelor's degree in the next year or so as well...we shall see!)

Liberty University is the largest Christian university in the world, and their motto is "Training Champions for Christ." Liberty's residential campus is located in Lynchburg, VA. Liberty also has a top-ranked online program. Not only will I be able to complete all my classes online (hey, once a homeschooler, always a homeschooler), but I am also absolutely thrilled to know that everything will be taught from a strong Biblical worldview!

I feel so blessed to be embarking on this new adventure, but not only for the furthering of my own education.

What I am doing will also benefit my children as I intentionally work on developing my skills as their teacher.

I take God's commands in Deuteronomy 6:6-9 and Proverbs 22:6 ever so seriously. My children are my ministry, my occupation, my passion, my inspiration, and my heart. I absolutely love the quote that says "She wanted to change the world, so she decided to homeschool her children." I love having the opportunity to train my own little "champions for Christ!"


I desperately desire your prayers! Juggling my classes along with all my other responsibilities as a wife, mommy, and home educator is not exactly going to be easy. I am blessed to have the support of my family and friends, and I know with God's help I can do it!

So what's on the menu for your new school year? 

Is this your first year homeschooling, or perhaps your last? Do you have questions to ask or tips to share? I would love to hear from you! Feel free to comment below or visit with me on Facebook and Instagram!

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