Wednesday, July 14, 2010

2010-2011 Curriculum~Fourth Grade

Our spine for our homeschool has always been Sonlight. We love, love, love, love books and Sonlight's picks have never let us down.

Besides the great books, I really like like the fact that they tackle the big issues. Whether in regards to our history, our faith, or whatever, Sonlight will touch on it at some point. My daughters are going to run across these tough issues one day and I want them to be prepared and knowledgable. The discussions that I have with my daughter about some of the tougher ideas are the reason I keep on homeschooling. Sonlight makes me think more deeply about why I believe the way I do. And that's a good thing.

In fact, I think Sonlight's 27 Reasons Not to Buy Sonlight, are the very reasons that I love it. LOL


Social Studies/Readers/Read Alouds


Sonlight Core 4, the Civil War to the present. Focusing on U.S. Social History. The bulk of our history, geography, readers, and read alouds are Sonlight picks. I have put an * by anything that I have added to those subjects. Afterall, the fun's in the tweaking, right?

Bible:

The Discover's Bible for Young Readers
Starting Strong


History Book Resources:

Simon Bolivar: The Liberator
Shoes for Everyone
Wee Sing America CD
American Adventures 1
William Wilberforce
The Landmark History of American Peopl, Vol. 1 & 2
The Story of the USA, Book 2, 3, & 4
Lincoln: A Photobiography
The Monitor and the Merrimac
The World Wars
Letter to Mrs. Roosevelt
*History Pockets: The American Civil War
*Spy Science Secret Message Kit
*Gold Rush Kit
*You Wouldn't Want to Be a Civil War Soldier: A War You'd Rather Not Fight
*Eyewitness: Civil War


Geography Resources:

South America Geography Unit
A Unit About Canada
*The Star-Spangled State Book
*The Shaping of a Nation: Blackline Maps of American History

Readers (go along with history):

By The Great Horn Spoon
Sing Down the Moon
Freedom Train
The Perilous Road
Turn Homeward, Hannalee
Shades of Gray
Old Yeller
The Story of Thomas Alva Edison
The Terrible Wave
Helen Keller
George Washington Carver
The Wright Brothers
All-of-a-Kind Family
Hero Over Here
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
Thimble Summer
Bruchko
The Seventeenth Swap
Plain Girl
Gone Away Lake
*World War II: An Interactive History Adventure


Read Alouds (go along with history):

Moccasin Trail
Oxford Illustrated Book of...Poems
All Sail Set
Across Five Aprils
Caddie Woodlawn
The Great Turkey Walk
The Great Wheel
Little Britches
Cheaper By the Dozen
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
The Winged Watchman
Miracles on Maple Hill
In Search of the Source
Rules of the Road
*Someone Named Eva
*Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes (PMC) (Puffin Modern Classics)



Language Arts:

First Language Lessons Level 4
The Complete Writer: Writing with Ease (Level 3)
Spelling Power, Fourth Edition
Handwriting Without Tears: Cursive Success


Mathematics:

Math-U-See Delta
Mind Benders
Times Tales

Science:

Exploring Creation with Zoology 1: Flying Creatures of the 5th Day (Apologia Science Young Explorers)
Zoology 1 Learn 'N Folders

Arts:

Piano Lessons at the Young Muscians of Virginia
I Can Do All Things art program~ As a non-artsy person, I cannot praise this program enough. The bundle comes with the book, all the supplies needed, and a dvd instructor. I'm learning right along with my daughter.
How to Teach Art to Children
Artist Study (Details are in the Works): Edgar Degas, Mary Cassat, Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet
Composer Study (Details are in the Works): Mozart, Beethovan, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky

Current Art/Music Book/CD List:

Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery
Mozart's Magic Fantasy
Beethoven Lives Upstairs
Mr. Bach Comes to Call
Song of the Unicorn
Bernstein Favorites: Children's Classics
Come Look With Me: Animals in Art
Come Look with Me: Enjoying Art with Children
Come Look With Me: Exploring Landscape Art With Children (Come Look With Me Series)
Come Look With Me: World of Play
A Child's Book of Art
How Artists See Feelings: Joy, Sadness, Fear, Love
How Artists See The Elements: Earth Air Fire Water
Edgar Degas Paintings
Linnea in Monet's Garden
Baby Loves by The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Mary Cassat
Boyhood's of Great Composers 1
Mozart Young Musical Genius
Story of the Orchestra : Listen While You Learn About the Instruments, the Music and the Composers Who Wrote the Music!
Who Was Claude Monet? (Who Was...?)


Spanish:

Rosetta Stone Spanish (Latin America) Level 1 & 2 Set with Audio Companion
La Clase Divertida Level 1

Physical Education:

Soccer, Field Hockey, Basketball, and Cheerleading via Beach Junior Athletics

Of course, I reserve the right to made additions and/or changes at anytime. I mean, there's always some thing new and interesting out there, isn't there? LOL

3 comments:

Luke Holzmann said...

Whoa! Thanks for putting in all the work to get this together. May this next year with Sonlight be your best yet [smile].

~Luke

JessB said...

We are going to be using Sonlight this next year. I think the structure provided will help to keep me focused and give Hubby some peace of mind about what is actually "happening" in school. I am excited about it! We will be starting Core 1+2, since it covers 7-9 years old, and that way I can start my oldest at the beginning.

The Farmer said...

Your year looks awesome!! We did Core 4 two years ago and we LOVED it!!

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