5th Grade Curriculum Review 2012-2013

Rose is a 5th grader this year.  Since she is the oldest, I am starting from scratch with her curriculum every year.  Some things are working great, others not so well.  These and other things, as I often remind her, are the joys of being the oldest.

Here is what she is studying this year, what we have tried and given up and what has worked.

Rose is my most reluctant student, so we start with the biggest challenge, MATH.
This is not a difficult subject for her in theory, but she likes to complain about it, so thus begins the day.  (now that I am writing this, maybe it would be better for her to start with something EASY and FUN,  hmmm. something to think about.)

So we started with Calculadder as a way to brush up on our math facts.  That did not go well.  It is just not fun and since we have a lot of perfectionists, very frustrating.  I just found a great program that has been awesome.  REFLEX Math.  It is an online subscription, but so far it has been great for fact work.  Each of the girls do this 15 minutes a day BEFORE their conceptual math.  Check them out here.  www.reflexmath.com.   (More in depth review to be posted later.)

After math facts, Rose does a lesson in Teaching Textbooks Math 5.  This has been a very easy and non-threatening program for my girls. Basically, we love it.  The only thing we do not love is that it works off of cds and on a pc.  I wish it were more portable.  Like for an android tablet.  I have mentioned this to the company many times.  They say they are working on it.  PLEASE!  I hope so!!!

Finally, Rose is also working her way independently through the Life of Fred Elementary Series books.   I love Fred's philosophy on math, but am not quite ready to give up "regular" math.  so we are double dipping.  Since Life of Fred is so much fun and more reading and thinking than doing, I think it is ok.  So far she has made it through the first 5 books.  Apples - Edgewood.  We just ordered more.  See my review here.

We also are trying to use Primary Challenge Math, which I love, but am having trouble fitting into our schedule.  Mostly because it seems we never have a typical week.  it always works on paper, but not in real life.  We will keep trying it, though, because I think the problem solving skills are invaluable.

For religion we are covering a couple subjects.  Many are available on Kindle, so this has worked great for portability and less clutter!
Catechism:  Credo: I Believe from Faith and Life.  

Church History:  A Book of Angels: Stories of Angels in the Bible by Marigold Hunt 

The First Christians: The Acts of the Apostles for Children by Marigold Hunt 

Great Moments in Catholic History by Fr. Edward Curran 

Seasonally: Advent and Christmas: Stories of the Child Jesus from Many Lands by A. Fowler Lutz 

Lent: The Way of the Cross by Inos Biffi 

Scripture: Crusade: The Story of the Bible Retold for Catholic Children (a magazine published in 1955 by the Maryknoll Sisters, currently out of print, so we have acquired most issues used) 

Saints: Heroes of God's Church by Matimore 

So this seems like a lot, but basically she is reading one chapter a week in each subject.

For English study, we are still working our way through Michael Clay Thompson's Island series.  We are almost finished with the first level of Grammar , Poetry, and Vocabulary (Sentence Island, Practice Island, Building Language  and The Music of the Hemispheres ).  So far so good, as long as I make it a priority.    We will be moving on to the Town series (level 2) as soon as we finish these.  (Sometime in Term 2)  MCT recently came out with a literature study based on the Mud books.  Now I have to decide whether to read these this year, or just read the choices we have for the level 2 series, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and Wind in the Willows.  Now these are not just any old version of the classics.  These are highly edited, yet unabridged, so as to draw attention to specific parts, words, vocabulary etc.  I have just taken another look at the Mud series and as all of MCT's works, they seem irresistable.  Ah well, perhaps another purchase is in order.  MCT's website is available here!

Just for good measure, Rose is also working through one lesson a day in Intermediate Language Lessons, the Hillside Edition, by Emma Serl.

In theory, we tried a more formal approach to nature study this year, with Discovering Nature: Mary's Meadow.  This is published by Queen Homeschool.  So far she has made it through 8 lessons, not very thoroughly.  It is intended for use up through junior high, so maybe it is a little advanced.  We will keep trying and see how far we get this year.

For Latin,  I came across this quaint little book for kindle titled:  Getting Started with Latin: Beginning Latin for Homeschoolers and Self-Taught Students of Any Age, by William E. Linney  

Both of my big girls love it and are completing one lesson a day.  It is so great because it introduced latin in small bite sized pieces and was written by a loving uncle who was trying to help his homeschooled nieces and nephews learn latin.    Check it out, there is an extensive online preview that is very informative!

For Spelling, we are still slowly making our way through All About Spelling level 2. 

 Still fine.  Just not always our top priority.

For history, we are using Story of the World 3 and 4 to focus on American History.  We are supplementing with a lot of "living books" for each section, including the American Girl Books and the Little House on the Prairie series.  I found the Catholic textbooks and other avenues for studying history just too cumbersome and often too boring.  Story of the World works for us, especially the audiobooks with Jim Weiss, so we will be sticking with them and supplementing/ skipping chapters as needed.

For Science, we have gone back to Catholic Heritage Curriculum's Behold and See 5.   Rose is not very into science, so a light and easy overview of subjects have been great for her.  We also are using Vintage Remedies for Tweens as a fun extra practical science! 

We are also covering Map Skills Level E by Continental Press, Working with Analogies: Making Connections, Book 2, 

 Ohio State History, and Logic Mind Benders book 4.  

For reading, we are continuing to work through the Catholic National Reader, vol 5 which Rose enjoys and finds easy.  We are also doing reading comprehension with CHC's Stories of the Saints, Vol 1 and King of the Golden City.  

For art,  we are using CHC's Art Masterpieces and Learning to Appreciate Art. We are also still using Artistic Pursuits, Grades K-3, Book 2 Stories of Artists and Their Art for practical art.  This has worked out really well this year as I have gathered all the art supplies together and it is easy to get going on a project!

So this about covers it.  Hmmm.  maybe there is a reason we are not getting everything finished every week.   I know I need to pare down next year,  probably now.  When there is so much good stuff out there it is hard!

Remembering

Each story, each life precious in its own way.

A Memorial... We Remember

Everyone has a story.  Those of us in the blog world share our stories everyday.  Today we share the stories of two people ordinary in many ways and extraordinary too, both in deed and circumstance.

Brian Williams, age 29

Brian Williams, native of Edgewood, KY, has become a legend in in my hometown.  A graduate of St. Pius X grade school and Covington Catholic High School, Brian was well liked and respected by his classmates and many friends.  Some thoughts shared about him include:

“Brian was such a great guy, I don't think there was ever a time when there was not a smile on his face!”

“I remember going to the Williams house for Kenny's famous chili! Brian will always hold a very special place in my heart! The day my sister died Brian called me from Columbia University to let me know he was thinking about me and praying for me. It touched me so much! He was such a great friend!!”

“Brian really had a zest for life,” his father said. “He worked very, very hard, but he also was able to enjoy life. He really cared about other people.”  Williams recalled the first weekend of Brian’s freshman year.  “My wife and I got up and went downstairs about 7:30 on a Saturday morning and there’s Brian studying already and he’d only been in high school.”

Brian excelled in academics and athletics and was a "That's My Boy" award winner, given by northern Kentucky football coaches to the best scholar-player- leader (a prize now named after him). Brian was a 3 sport athlete in high school and the football team captain.  Back when Williams played for Cov-Cath, a little 9-year-old boy named Joe Danneman was in the stands, to witness Williams, make a huge play.

"1989 he was a star tight end at Covington Catholic High School," said Danneman, recounting the game as if it was yesterday. "It was a Friday night, traditional season opener, it was always Cov-Cath versus Boone County, Cov-Cath's down a point late in the game, they have one person to go to, it's Brian Williams, the star tight end, catches a pass, goes 30 or 40 yards to the following end zone, the south end zone at Boone County High School. It was a rainy night and Brian Williams was the hero."

The school honored his number 81 Friday night at their football game versus Boone County.

Columbia University recruited him for football. In New York, he acted as unofficial tourist bureau for visiting Kentuckians.

As a college senior, Brian Williams used his was given a credit card by his father for emergencies.  Brian used the card to pay a bar bill for three cash-strapped buddies. He sent a check to repay his father, with a note explaining the charge. "Three of us walked into a bar and none of us had any money.  I figured that was an emergency," the note said.

In September 2001, Brian Williams, 29, worked as a bond trader at Cantor Fitzgerald, with the ultimate plan of returning to the Cincinnati area near his family's home in Edgewood.

As the Williams family got Brian's affairs in order, they also discovered that he'd been very generous to a number of charitable organizations in the New York area.

"One was a Native American school for Native American children and then the other was an organization that sent inner-city kids down in Manhattan out to camps for a week of summer fun outside of Manhattan," Williams said. "He had been doing that for several years."

Some tributes from Legacy.com for Brian:

“I just wanted to let you know how much I looked up to you for your ability to handle yourself so well. Moreover, you always treated everyone you came across with kindness and respect. I am glad I chose someone like you as a role model...I am a better person for knowing you.  Please look after all of us down here, because we look up to you now more than ever!”

~ Jim Danneman

“I, like many others, met Willy during my brief time at Columbia University. As football teammates, we had many good times on the field (even if we weren't often victorious); but I was blessed to share many good times off the field with Brian as well.

After I transferred from Columbia, I returned to the campus and coincidentally ran into a group of guys that included Brian. Even after two years away, Brian's friendship shone through as we chatted about all that had happened in the interim. At one point, as others in the group sought to leave (as all of them were headed to catch a plane), Brian softly reminded them that "there'll be other flights." My girlfriend at the time remarked specifically about what a fantastic guy Brian was.
I met many terrific people at Columbia, but few (if any) were as genuinely friendly and caring as Brian. I mourn his death, but celebrate his life and all that it stands for. 

Brian will never be forgotten. “

-Mike Murray
San Antonio, TX

Kenneth Williams Sr., a man who has lost two sons — Kenneth Jr., who died in 1994 after three years in a coma caused by a fall, and Brian, now, with the 9/11 memorial completed Williams wishes he had one more chance to see and talk to his sons.

He said he'd give Kenny a bear hug and tell him he loved him. The same goes for Brian, but the father would like to ask the son what happened in the chaos that followed the plane hitting the North Tower.

"I would like to know how he felt and how he was," Williams said.

Now that 10 years have come and gone, some people fear America has become complacent about homeland security.  To counter that possibility, Williams said he wishes that video of the towers being attacked was shown every morning as a reminder that the people who perpetrated the act are still out there.

“They want to do that again,” he said. “I think sometimes we need to look at that film – that and the Pentagon and Pennsylvania -- and say, ‘Hey! Look at what they tried to do and they’re going to try it again and again and again.’”

“We ought to wake up to it every day,” Williams stated.

Out of respect for Brian’s father’s wishes, here is a video of footage from that day.  





Sandra Waugh Bradshaw

Last month, my family visited the flight 93 memorial.  We were moved by the heroism of the men and women of flight 93.  Sandy Bradshaw’s story particularly touched me as a mother.




Just a few years before 2001, Sandra Waugh Bradshaw was juggling dual careers -- flight attendant and mother. She was home in Greensboro, N.C. with her year-old daughter, Alexandria. In the coming year, her son Nathan would arrive.


By 2001, Bradshaw, 38, had cut back her workload and her husband, Phil, had urged her quit. She had 2 small children and a 16-year-old stepdaughter.  Sandy loved to fly and had been an attendant for 11 years.  Her personnel file was filled with glowing reviews for happy passengers.


"She just liked the one-on-one that you have with people up there," Phil Bradshaw said.  She ordinarily worked first class as it was a great fit for her friendly attitude, but on Flight 93 she was in economy as a late-addition to the flight.


As Sandy Bradshaw made an urgent call to her husband to tell him her flight had been hijacked, she began filling coffee pitchers with boiling hot water.  A plan was brewing.
"Everyone's running to first class," Sandy Bradshaw told her husband. "I've got to go. Bye."

Instead of reaching its intended target in Washington, D.C., United Flight 93 crashed in an empty Pennsylvania field after passengers and crew tried to wrest control of the commercial jet from hijackers.

Sandy’s mother remembers her as a bubbly daughter who loved gardening and animals. She sees bits of that in Sandy’s children. Alexandria, 12 and a sixth-grader, loves animals. And Nathan, 10 and a fourth-grader, shares Sandy’s bubbly personality.

“I hate it that she’s not here to be a mother to them,” Waugh said.

Sandy Bradshaw would have turned 48 this June.

Sandy Bradshaw was the second-oldest of Waugh’s five children.

“It’s not easy losing a child. That’s the hardest loss I’ve had,” she said. “You have to cope and go on. You have to do what you have to do.”

 “Maybe Sandy was chosen to do this job that day because she was a strong person and a fighter, and she could do what she had to do that day,” Waugh said.

Over the years she has visited the site in Pennsylvania for quiet contemplation.

2,996 people perished in the attacks on September 11, 2001.  Each one has their own story.  Some short, some long, some extraordinary, some ordinary.  Each priceless and precious in their own way.  Share their stories today, honor their lives.  If you have a tribute to make, post it at the2996 Project.  

God Bless the USA and God Bless the World.

Tribute to a Life: Brian Williams

Brian Williams, age 29

Brian Williams, native of Edgewood, KY, has become a legend in in my hometown.  A graduate of St. Pius X grade school and Covington Catholic High School, Brian was well liked and respected by his classmates and many friends.  Some thoughts shared about him include:

“Brian was such a great guy, I don't think there was ever a time when there was not a smile on his face!”

“I remember going to the Williams house for Kenny's famous chili! Brian will always hold a very special place in my heart! The day my sister died Brian called me from Columbia University to let me know he was thinking about me and praying for me. It touched me so much! He was such a great friend!!”

“Brian really had a zest for life,” his father said. “He worked very, very hard, but he also was able to enjoy life. He really cared about other people.”  Williams recalled the first weekend of Brian’s freshman year.  “My wife and I got up and went downstairs about 7:30 on a Saturday morning and there’s Brian studying already and he’d only been in high school.”

Brian excelled in academics and athletics and was a "That's My Boy" award winner, given by northern Kentucky football coaches to the best scholar-player- leader (a prize now named after him). Brian was a 3 sport athlete in high school and the football team captain.  Back when Williams played for Cov-Cath, a little 9-year-old boy named Joe Danneman was in the stands, to witness Williams, make a huge play.

"1989 he was a star tight end at Covington Catholic High School," said Danneman, recounting the game as if it was yesterday. "It was a Friday night, traditional season opener, it was always Cov-Cath versus Boone County, Cov-Cath's down a point late in the game, they have one person to go to, it's Brian Williams, the star tight end, catches a pass, goes 30 or 40 yards to the following end zone, the south end zone at Boone County High School. It was a rainy night and Brian Williams was the hero."

The school honored his number 81 Friday night at their football game versus Boone County.

Columbia University recruited him for football. In New York, he acted as unofficial tourist bureau for visiting Kentuckians.

As a college senior, Brian Williams used his was given a credit card by his father for emergencies.  Brian used the card to pay a bar bill for three cash-strapped buddies. He sent a check to repay his father, with a note explaining the charge. "Three of us walked into a bar and none of us had any money.  I figured that was an emergency," the note said.

In September 2001, Brian Williams, 29, worked as a bond trader at Cantor Fitzgerald, with the ultimate plan of returning to the Cincinnati area near his family's home in Edgewood.

As the Williams family got Brian's affairs in order, they also discovered that he'd been very generous to a number of charitable organizations in the New York area.

"One was a Native American school for Native American children and then the other was an organization that sent inner-city kids down in Manhattan out to camps for a week of summer fun outside of Manhattan," Williams said. "He had been doing that for several years."

Some tributes from Legacy.com for Brian:

“I just wanted to let you know how much I looked up to you for your ability to handle yourself so well. Moreover, you always treated everyone you came across with kindness and respect. I am glad I chose someone like you as a role model...I am a better person for knowing you.  Please look after all of us down here, because we look up to you now more than ever!”

~ Jim Danneman

“I, like many others, met Willy during my brief time at Columbia University. As football teammates, we had many good times on the field (even if we weren't often victorious); but I was blessed to share many good times off the field with Brian as well.

After I transferred from Columbia, I returned to the campus and coincidentally ran into a group of guys that included Brian. Even after two years away, Brian's friendship shone through as we chatted about all that had happened in the interim. At one point, as others in the group sought to leave (as all of them were headed to catch a plane), Brian softly reminded them that "there'll be other flights." My girlfriend at the time remarked specifically about what a fantastic guy Brian was.
I met many terrific people at Columbia, but few (if any) were as genuinely friendly and caring as Brian. I mourn his death, but celebrate his life and all that it stands for. 

Brian will never be forgotten. “

-Mike Murray
San Antonio, TX

Kenneth Williams Sr., a man who has lost two sons — Kenneth Jr., who died in 1994 after three years in a coma caused by a fall, and Brian, now, with the 9/11 memorial completed Williams wishes he had one more chance to see and talk to his sons.

He said he'd give Kenny a bear hug and tell him he loved him. The same goes for Brian, but the father would like to ask the son what happened in the chaos that followed the plane hitting the North Tower.

"I would like to know how he felt and how he was," Williams said.

Now that 10 years have come and gone, some people fear America has become complacent about homeland security.  To counter that possibility, Williams said he wishes that video of the towers being attacked was shown every morning as a reminder that the people who perpetrated the act are still out there.

“They want to do that again,” he said. “I think sometimes we need to look at that film – that and the Pentagon and Pennsylvania -- and say, ‘Hey! Look at what they tried to do and they’re going to try it again and again and again.’”

“We ought to wake up to it every day,” Williams stated.

Out of respect for Brian’s father’s wishes, here is a video of footage from that day.  

2,996 people perished in the attacks on September 11, 2001.  Each one has their own story.  Some short, some long, some extraordinary, some ordinary.  Each priceless and precious in their own way.  Share their stories today, honor their lives.  If you have a tribute to make, post it at the 2996 Project.  

God Bless the USA and God Bless the World.

Tribute to a Life: Sandy Bradshaw

Sandra Waugh Bradshaw

Last month, my family visited the flight 93 memorial.  We were moved by the heroism of the men and women of flight 93.  Sandy Bradshaw’s story particularly touched me as a mother.




Just a few years before 2001, Sandra Waugh Bradshaw was juggling dual careers -- flight attendant and mother. She was home in Greensboro, N.C. with her year-old daughter, Alexandria. In the coming year, her son Nathan would arrive.


By 2001, Bradshaw, 38, had cut back her workload and her husband, Phil, had urged her quit. She had 2 small children and a 16-year-old stepdaughter.  Sandy loved to fly and had been an attendant for 11 years.  Her personnel file was filled with glowing reviews for happy passengers.


"She just liked the one-on-one that you have with people up there," Phil Bradshaw said.  She ordinarily worked first class as it was a great fit for her friendly attitude, but on Flight 93 she was in economy as a late-addition to the flight.


As Sandy Bradshaw made an urgent call to her husband to tell him her flight had been hijacked, she began filling coffee pitchers with boiling hot water.  A plan was brewing.
"Everyone's running to first class," Sandy Bradshaw told her husband. "I've got to go. Bye."

Instead of reaching its intended target in Washington, D.C., United Flight 93 crashed in an empty Pennsylvania field after passengers and crew tried to wrest control of the commercial jet from hijackers.

Sandy’s mother remembers her as a bubbly daughter who loved gardening and animals. She sees bits of that in Sandy’s children. Alexandria, 12 and a sixth-grader, loves animals. And Nathan, 10 and a fourth-grader, shares Sandy’s bubbly personality.

“I hate it that she’s not here to be a mother to them,” Waugh said.

Sandy Bradshaw would have turned 48 this June.

Sandy Bradshaw was the second-oldest of Waugh’s five children.

“It’s not easy losing a child. That’s the hardest loss I’ve had,” she said. “You have to cope and go on. You have to do what you have to do.”

 “Maybe Sandy was chosen to do this job that day because she was a strong person and a fighter, and she could do what she had to do that day,” Waugh said.

Over the years she has visited the site in Pennsylvania for quiet contemplation.

2,996 people perished in the attacks on September 11, 2001.  Each one has their own story.  Some short, some long, some extraordinary, some ordinary.  Each priceless and precious in their own way.  Share their stories today, honor their lives.  If you have a tribute to make, post it at the 2996 Project. 

God Bless the USA and God Bless the World.

Project 2,996 needs your help

this post is reposted from Evann at Homeschool Goodies.  Thanks Evann for sharing the inspiration and the idea!

August 28th,2011

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Project 2,996 is a tribute to the victims of 9/11 and your help is needed. The idea behind Project 2,996 is to remember each and every victim. Not only is this a great project for bloggers,it’s also a great assignment for older students.

I will be preparing two tributes this week, both for my blogpage.  The first will be for Sandra Bradshaw, a flight attendant on Flight 93.  We chose her since we had just been to Shanksville, PA to the Flight 93 memorial.  The second will be for Brian Williams, a stockbroker in the World Trade Center.  We chose him because his previous tribute had expired and he is from my hometown.

Here are some details from Project 2,996 to get you started:

On September 11,2001 almost 3,000 of the world’s citizens were brutally,and publicly,murdered. We all cried,and we all swore that we’d never forget. But a few years later I realized that I knew nothing about those people who were doing nothing more than living their lives. In 2006 I asked other bloggers if they thought it would be a good idea to take the time to learn about the victims and try to keep their individual memories alive. The response I got was overwhelming. And Project 2,996 is the result.

Victims with No Tributes
Through the first four years of Project 2,996,every victim has been assigned,and each name has received at least one online tribute. However,with the malleable nature of the internet,many of those tributes have disappeared.

The primary way to participate,and the best way to help,is to pick one of the names below. Then do some online research,and post a tribute to your own blog or website. In this way you will learn a little bit about one of the victims of 9/11,and you will help keep their memories alive.

Here is what you need to do to participate:
1. Check here. Near the bottom of the page are the people with no online tributes –pick one.
2. Write a new tribute. Be sure to send the URL of a page or permalink,instead of the main URL of your blog/site. (use the comment box to send in this info)
3. Keep your old tributes online. Remember,the goal is to get at least 1 for every name on the list.
4. Make sure the Current List includes your past tributes. It’s certainly possible that I’ll mark a link as dead,by accident. If I’m wrong,tell me!
5. On,9/11,make sure your tributes are on the front page of your site. But don’t change links you’ve already given me. Many participants,simply repost the same information in a new post.

6. Spread the word.

 Project 2,996

Remembering and Paying tribute to the victims of 9-11
Our tributes:
Sandra W. Bradshaw, age 38

Brian Williams, age 30

Melding Story of the World and Old World and America

In choosing our curriculum last year, we really liked Story of the World, but as we got closer to the dawn of Christianity, I started looking for ways to incorporate more Catholic history into the program.  When I came across Old World and America, by Fr. Furlong, it seemed like an easy way to get another perspective on history, one that we would especially appreciate this year when we do cycle 2.

So I put together this chart to add Old World and America to Story of the World vol. 1.  I also added some chapters from Our Island Story  by H.E. Marshall since it was recommended by the Mater Amabilis curriculum.  This is not a Catholic text, but there is a nice explanation and teacher's notes on MA's site for how to use it and when to amend it here.  If I ever come across Old World's Gifts to the New,  by Sr. Mary Celeste, I will add it in, but so far i have not bought it.  I also added in a column for supplemental books with a Catholic flavor and which Saints to cover during the time period studied.  We are using individual saint books and Once Upon a Time Saints and More.   

Either way, this is my first attempt at adding this all together.  Let me know if there are any errors.  We are finishing Cycle 1 right now, so I will not actually be testing this plan for 3 more years :), but I am working on finishing Cycle 2 and will post it as soon as it is finished.

If you add this to your blog, please credit my blog as your source. :)


Sotw and Owaa Chart