Homeschool Update - July

We have been homeschooling for many years and I sometimes forget that what we do isn't the same for others. So, I am adding a monthly homeschool recap to this blog to demonstrate one way (there are so many methods out there!) that homeschooling can work. 

We use an eclectic method of homeschooling that leans very heavily towards the Charlotte Mason method of teaching. Without going into too much detail about this method, it can be described as very literature-heavy. We read and discuss A LOT of books. We don't spend a lot of time on workbooks, worksheets, etc., We have gravitated toward this method over the years and found that it works very well for our learners and family lifestyle. 

 

During the month of July, we chose to decrease the workload but not take a traditional summer break. My older kids are reaching the age where they are contemplating their career goals and pursuits after high school graduation. Nowhere in the real world (other than the world of academia), do individuals get a "summer break". We are working to prepare our children for their future endeavors and decided that we would adjust the workload throughout various times in the year and take breaks when needed. We will change our focus to year-round schooling to mimic the realities of what they should expect upon graduation. Each child receives a break from schoolwork this summer, but they are staggered, and the lengths of breaks are different for each child. 

 

Here are some items that we have read, listened to or watched during the month of July:

*The Holy Bible

*You Can Farm by Joel Salatin 

The Story of Painting by HW Janson

More than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell 

Bright Valley of Love by Edna Hong 

Watch Veggietales - Larry Boy and the Rumor Weed

*The Ology by Marty Machowski

Ourselves by Charlotte Mason

*Watch Kidco (1984) movie 

*Richard Halliburton's Book of Marvels - The Occident

Watch various YouTube videos of locations mentioned in Halliburton's book

Home Geography for Primary Grades by CC Long 

Tree in the Trail by Holling C Holling 

The Brendan Voyage by Tim Severin 

*Maps by Aleksandra Mizielinska 

Watch Land Beyond Time, Australia on YouTube 

Don't Know Much About the 50 States by Kenneth Davis 

Watch David Attenborough's Great Barrier Reef episodes 

Marco Polo by George Makepiece Towle 

Watch Where on Earth is Carmen San Diego? DVD 

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made by Paul Brand 

The Little Duke by Charlotte Yong 

Columbus by Edgar Parin D'Aulaire

Watch The Unsinkable Molly Brown DVD 

Abraham Lincoln by Edgar Parin D'Aulaire 

Watch What People Ate to Survive WWII on YouTube 

A Picture Book of Frederick Douglass by David Adler

The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem Van Loon 

Michelangelo by Diane Stanley 

Watch The History of Wonderbread on YouTube 

*Answering the Cry for Freedom by Gretchen Woelfle 

Carry a Big Stick by George Grant 

A Child's History of the World by Virgil Hillyer 

The Birth of Britain by Winston Churchill 

In Freedom's Cause by GA Henty 

*This Country of Ours by HE Marshall

Our Island Story by HE Marshall

Trial and Triumph by Richard Hannula

English Literature for Boys and Girls by HE Marshall 

Poetry selections by Walter De La Mare 

Ecclesiastical History of the English People by Bede 

The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

Parables from Nature by Margarett Gatty 

*Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher 

*The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 

Elsie Dinsmore Book 1 by Martha Finley 

The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien 

Various poetry selections by Robert Frost

American Tall Tales by Adrien Stoutenburg 

The Heroes by Charles Kingsley 

The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald 

Various poetry selections by William Blake 

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens  

Age of Fable by T. Bullfinch   

Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott 

Robin Hood by Howard Pyle 

Kim by Rudyard Kipling 

Sir Cumference and All the King's Tens by Cindy Neuschwander

The Warlord's Puppeteers by Virginia Pilegard 

Watch/Listen Beethoven pieces on YouTube and CD  

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain 

Michael Faraday by Charles Ludwig

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor 

The Boxcar Children Book 1 by Gertrude Chandler 

Five Children and It by Edith Nesbit 

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Burton Raffel 

The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien 

The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew by Margaret Sidney 

The Tripods - The City of Gold and Lead by John Christopher  

*Tales from Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb

Seabird by Holling C Holling

The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess 

Watch Why Aren't Country Flags Purple? on YouTube 

All Things Wise and Wonderful by James Herriot 

The Magnificent Book of Animals by Tom Jackson 

Watch How to Prune Tomatoes with Casey Ostwich on Abundance Plus

*Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley 

Adventures with a Microscope by Richard Headstrom 

Watch various microscope videos on YouTube

The Life of a Spider by Jean Henri Fabre 

The Wonder Book of Chemistry by Jean Henri Fabre

The Story of Inventions by Michael McHugh

Eric Sloanes Weather Book

*The Burgess Animal Book for Children by Thornton Burgess

Wild Animals I Have Known by Ernest Thomas Seton

It Just Couldn't Happen by Lawrence Richards

Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity by Robert Cwiklik 

Pagoo by Holling C Holling 

A Drop of Water by Walter Wick 

The Mystery of the Periodic Table by Benjamin Wiker 

Herb Fairies Book One: Stellaria's Big Find by Kimberly Gallagher

 

Here's a list of more "formal" curriculum products that we have used during the month of July:

*Albrecht Durer Picture Study 

Beautiful Feet Books - Around the World with Picture Books I 

*A Blue Stocking Guide to Economics  

Story of the World IV 

Story of the World III 

Song School Latin 

Getting Started with Latin 

Mind Benders by The Critical Thinking Co.  

*The Fallacy Detective by Nathaniel Bluedorn 

Right Start Math 

*Life of Fred - Cats by Stanley Schmidt 

*Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons 

*Life of Fred - PreAlgebra 1 with Biology  

Abeka reading books - these were gifted to us and we use them for reading practice. 

 Apologia - Anatomy and Physiology

New American Cursive Book 3 

Signs and Seasons by Jay Ryan  

The Art of Problem Solving, PreAlgebra by Richard Rusczyk

 

Here are some online classes/resources that we have used:

We have been spending a lot of time outdoors. We haven't utilized any online classes for this month. 

 

Here are a few games/activities that we have enjoyed:

Rummy - This is a family favorite card game.  

Sorry  

Build a DIY truck building kit

Wildcraft! 

 

     *Items marked with an asterisk are my personal favorites and highly recommended.

 

Here are a few field trips/activities that we have participated in during the month of July:

- We officially started the new school year. 

  *Somehow, my oldest managed to skip out on the first day pictures this year. I must have been distracted. 

 

Our kids assisted with the booth at the Bluegrass Farmers Market. 

 

- Our son ran the booth at the Harrison County Farmers Market on his own. This was an intentional learning experience for him. He did a great job!

 

- Our son assisted with various sawmilling jobs. He is learning valuable skills on how to run this machinery and create lumber. 

 

- The kids continued to assist with farm chores. 

 

- Our son participated in the 4H Top 15 Livestock Judging trip. This event was an opportunity that he earned by placing well in the state 4H Livestock Judging contest. The group traveled to various farms in different states to learn and practice their livestock judging skills. He enjoyed his time with this team and learned a lot in the process. Unfortunately, he didn't take any pictures. 

 

 - Our son assisted his Papaw in separating cattle. Unfortunately, they later broke down the gate and reunited in the same field. We jokingly blamed this on our son, but Papaw assured us that it was simply his onery cattle. 

 

  - Our son assisted with the Harrison County Night Farmers Market. He was tired after working cattle during the day. 

He did wake up in time to discuss knife making with a local artisan. 

 

 - Our son assisted Papaw with power washing outdoor buildings. 

 

 - Our daughters attended Vacation Bible School (VBS) at Leesburg Christian Church. They had a great time! 

 

 - We attended family reunions, playdates and hosted sleepovers.  

 

 - We spent some time swimming at Oakbrook Swim Club. We enjoy this free time in the sun!

 

- Bluegrass United held their Soccer Kick-off event. This consisted of field activities similar to the Amazing Race TV show. They form teams and learn to work together to complete various tasks. 

 

 - Our sons participated in the BU Soccer camp held in Berea, KY. This was an all-day event (8am to 9pm) that focused on athletic training and abilities while integrating team building activities.  

 

 - Bluegrass United soccer season officially started with regular practices. 

 

- We welcomed the addition of baby goats to the farm! 

 

- We celebrated the birthday of our baby!

 

 

Our lives are not what is considered normal, but we are loving it this way! 

 

If you are interested, here are some links to the places/items mentioned above:

The Bluegrass Farmer's Market (bluegrassfarmersmarket.com) 

Home | Harrison Co Farmers (hcfmky.com)

Leesburg Christian Church - Home

Abundance Plus 

*For those that enjoy the booklists, I have attached links to my Amazon affiliate account. As an Amazon associate, I will earn money from any qualifying purchases made by using these links. 


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