So Far, I Love What We're Using This Year

You do the research, read the reviews, purchase the products; however, no matter how much time you put into the preparation, the true test will always be in the application. As I stated in an earlier post, we started school about two weeks ago. So far, I have been greatly pleased with our materials. These are some of my new favorites.

I have only just begun reading Our Young Folks' Josephus to Riley, but already I am hooked! I know that there are questions about the character of Josephus, but his history is considered quite accurate. I love that this book has been simplified for younger students. I am looking forward to learning a great deal while reading this.

We used Christian Liberty Press' Nature Reader a little last year, but not consistently. This year, I have had Riley read two chapters each day. This material is multi-faceted. It is a great reader with challenging vocabulary. Also, it has provided a great deal of science to our days. As we encounter each new creature, we look up more information online or in other books we have. In addition to improving her reading and science knowledge, the reader is also teaching her dictionary skills. Many new words are included in the glossary at the back of the book. Anytime she sees a word in bold print, she turns quickly to the back to find it.

And then there is the Burgess Bird Book. This book introduces many common birds to students through sweet little narratives including Peter Rabbit. Ambleside Online recommends this book in their Year One Booklist and provides links to sites containing pictures of each bird and audio of their calls and songs for further study.

This week is our first week adding in History, Latin and Art. We're doing History each day, but I haven't started the others yet. When the week is through I'm sure I will have great things to say about Song School Latin and Atelier Art. It looks like we're in for a great year!