Pete started first grade yesterday! If some of the titles sound familiar, it’s because we’re using a lot of the same publishers as we did last year. We seem to have hit on a good combination of curricula for our needs.

Social Studies

“Story of the World: Volume 3“

This year I decided to spare my voice a little and buy the book on audio. Turns out that was a great decision. I put the first chapter on Pete’s iPod, and he’s listened to it about 10 times since yesterday. I’m hoping that trend continues.

Math

“McRuffy Math 1

Pete got about halfway through McRuffy’s first-grade math book last year, so we’re picking up right where we left off.

“Teaching Textbooks: Math 3“

He wants to try Teaching Textbooks this year, too. I’m going to let him play around with it, but we’ll discontinue it if he starts to get frustrated.

Language Arts

“First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind: Level 2”

One of the things I love about homeschooling is the ability to cater the curriculum to the child’s learning preferences. Poppy used “First Language Lessons: Level 1” when she was younger, and she hated it. I still had the book when it was Pete’s turn to start grammar, so we tried it out. It was a really great fit for him, and we finished Level 1 last year.

Michael Clay Thompson’s Language Arts curriculum

I’ve been looking at Michael Clay Thompson’s books since we started homeschooling, but I’ve always ruled them out for being too expensive. This summer, though, I found a pretty good deal on them on eBay and decided we’d try them out. We just started the first book today; I’ll give you an update on how it’s going later this year.

Science

Nancy Larson Science 1

I think I bought this last year, and we still haven’t finished it. Resident science guy Rockford is supposed to lead our science lessons this year; hopefully we’ll make it all the way through this year.

Handwriting

McRuffy and “Star Wars Writing Skills“

Phys Ed

Tae kwon do

Pete is starting the school year as a yellow belt. He isn’t very passionate about TKD, but he’s plugging away at it. Mostly because I told him he can’t quit.

Soccer

This will be Pete’s first season of soccer with a mid-week practice! He’s hit the big time.

Art

Class with a local artist

Yes, it’s the same place as last time. I’ve talked to the instructor, and we’re going to take it on a week-by-week basis.