Core Knowedge

Love Core Knowledge

If you are asking, What is Core Knowledge? Allow me to try and explain.
A concept that students need solid, specific and shared knowledge grade by grade. That what is taught in first grade in one school should also be taught in all other first grades around the country. From there, it builds year by year, you can easily track what they have already been taught in previous years and what they will learn on coming years in all subjects.
Here is a link to the Core Knowledge Website




You've probably seen these. They are pretty common and I see them everywhere. If you just want a good base of what your kid should know by what grade - this is where you should start. I have them from Preschool on up to our highest year, which is Fourth Grade this year. I started using them when my kids were in public school. They cover language, mathematics, history, science, art, music, etc. etc.

This book maps out K-8 at a glance. It is much more concise than the books above and below, but it is a fast way for me to see what is being covered when.

It took me a couple years to give-in and buy these books, so this is our first year with them. Well, I should say, my first year. They are expensive BUT well worth it. They come with Master Copies of handouts. Each section starts with "What they will learn" moves to "What they already know" (from previous grades) and then to "What they will learn next" (in future grades). They also cross reference subjects, so that if a poem (language arts) they need to learn applies to the American Revolution (US History) you know you should teach them together. Enough information that I feel prepared to teach, not too much that I am left sorting what to teach and what to leave out.

First Day 2008-09

Today was our first official day back at school. Of course we are starting off kind of slow, but it was still comforting, freeing and exciting to get back to a routine. How is that a routine is freeing, how is it that we had so much more free time today, how is it that we had so much more peace in our home??? Logic doesn't make sense here, but that's what happened. They just couldn't wait to do school work. To sit at their desks. To flip open their assignment books and check things off.

Liam is a much better reader right now than he was at the of the school year last year. What happened over the summer that I missed but he caught? He still isn't where I would like him to be and slightly below grade level - but if he keeps up the progress that I saw today he should catch up in no time.

Noble did not forget his multiplication tables over the summer despite my slacking in giving him drills to practice. When I asked in his Mommy Meeting today what he would like to work on right now his reply was classic star student: I want to practice my 6, 7, 8 times tables more because I am not as fast as I want to be. Be still my teaching heart.

We also had decided to join a LDS co-op this year and then at the last minute we dropped out. That caused some panic attacks to my commitment driven self, but after much prayer and thought, it just wasn't the right thing for our family. Another LDS homeschooler friend of mine and I are starting our own co-op. As co-op as two friends gets. But our goals are the same for schooling and our kids are good matches.

Noble and Liam started swim lessons today too. Neither of them had ever been in organized lessons before, I would say that neither can swim - but I am not afraid to let either of them loose in a pool either. Once a week for the next eight weeks they have a private lesson with just the two of them. I hope to see some positive "strokes" at the end.

There is also a homeschool PE class offered at the gym that I signed them up for. They enjoyed their rock climbing class so much that I thought we would give this a try. That about catches us up.