Math, Music, Reading...

Math
For Math we continue our love-hate relationship with Saxon Math, and I simply adjust it for the needs of the child. Aimee is capable of doing things closest to the way they're "supposed" to be done, although I do allow her to do only half of the "mixed practice" (odd number problems one day, even the next). Otherwise math could take up a ridiculous amount of time. That's the case with the earlier Saxon courses, too. Math 1 makes me laugh sometimes, as if I'm actually going to have even one child call out the time on the hour, every hour, and then do a "meeting," then a fact sheet, then an entire lesson. So I do an extremely customized version of Saxon - which basically amounts to going though the workbooks. I hardly ever consult the teacher's manual anymore, except on occasion to make sure there isn't a skill we might have missed (there usually isn't). Ryan is finishing up Math 1, and Chase, by his own request, is beginning Math 1, and is doing it well. We don't make a big deal of it - he just asks to do a page when everyone else is doing math, and by jiminy, he does it! He likes to make a big to-do over it, though, sighing and exclaiming, "I'm just terrible at Math. Argh!", but ignoring me when I remind him that he doesn't actually have to do it. Very funny. But anyway, back to the higher grades - Aimee is finishing up Saxon 65, which she began last year, and Drew is about halfway through 54. 54, however, requires the student to copy the problems down on his own piece of paper before working through them, and that's just too much for the highly distractible person Drew is. He doesn't have any trouble with the math itself, but would never get it done if I handed him the book and told him to do a lesson. So I do most of it by reading it to him, and having him tell me the answers aloud (since I am far from a math person, it always impresses me that he can do it this way!), and when I do want him to work through problems, I give them to him on a separate piece of paper.

Music

Aimee, thanks to some 11th-hour negotiating, is continuing her piano study, still under my instructions, since we're still too poor to afford outside lessons. But given the chance and the resources, I'll take her somewhere in a heartbeat. She's reasonably talented, and I think she could flourish under someone else's tutelage. Drew is still doing violin, although his attention issues are sometimes a barrier to pleasant lessons and practice. And he needs a new violin, but, alas, this is also outside the budget at the moment. Ryan has asked to begin lessons, so when we can remember to do it, I give him a lesson. We also listen to music and talk about composers and instruments, all usually in an informal way.

Reading
Let's see...we do a lot of it! The kids go through their own "fun" reading choices, which are usually just fine in themselves, but sometimes I'll ask them to read a specific book I want to make sure they cover. If I want them to read something for history or science, all I usually have to do is put it in the library basket, and it gets read! Something I would like to work on this year is having them do more writing from our reading selections. We definitely don't always do the pages for the "reading notebook" they're supposed to be keeping, according to The Well-Trained Mind - in fact, we rarely do them,although I feel like they can write (or narrate) reasonably well when I do have a chance to ask them do it, so I think we're ok there. Also we seem to have one continuous book club going on in our house, where books are always being discussed, I have no doubts that they comprehend what they're reading and can articulate about it quiet well. Very well. Over and over. And over. And over. You get the point. For those who are just learning to read, we are working through The Phonics Museum from Veritas Press. It was a worthwhile investment, as Ryan is now the third person to have achieved reading skills through it, and Chase has just begun to work through it. I know Susan Wise-Bauer doesn't particularly like reading programs like this, and frankly, I don't think all the activities are necessary, but, rebel that I am, I still like it! I think it's quite clear by this point that I like following general guidelines, but follow almost nothing by the book!