A New School Year: Sixth Grade

Sixth grade. Wow. It's hard to believe we're on year three of our homeschooling adventure. In the beginning of fourth grade I attempted to keep the Boy on the same schedule as his former class. I really thought he would finish out his elementary and middle school years at school, rather than at home. But, we have so enjoyed our homeschooling experience that we may decide to keep going through high school.

Well, I need to give that some more thought, a lot of thought, but that's not happening today. Today we are in sixth grade and I am focusing on the task at hand.

This year's plan is to follow, loosely, the prescribed Waldorf sixth grade program, with the addition of Egypt and Greece.

My block plan looks like this:

Egypt

Greek myths

Geometric drawing

Astronomy

Greek history

Christmas break

Rome 1

Business math

Rome 2

Physics

In addition, the Boy is taking a year long Latin class at Lancaster Center for Classical Studies, piano with Tina Davidson, a 6-week woodwork class with Mr. Kelly, 5-week handwork class with Barb Freiburg, and 6 weeks of horseback riding lessons at River Valley Ranch. We might try archery in the spring. This makes a full schedule, especially now that there is homework in Latin and piano!

Boardwalk at Asbury

The week I had planned to start found us on the Northern New Jersey shore for an impromptu last-of-the-summer romp while Husband attended a training course nearby. For three peaceful, sun-soaked days the Boy and I sipped coffee by the pool and read "Tales of Egypt," aloud. As the long afternoons waned, we dressed for dinner and headed for the boardwalks of Long Branch and Asbury Park.

The evenings were gorgeous, warm and breezy, as we dined under the waxing, and then full moon. It was a much needed rest before diving full throttle into our studies.

The full moon

If you're familiar with Waldorf education then you know that the study of Egypt belongs in the fifth grade. If you're familiar with homeschooling then you know we home schoolers tend to work at our own pace and mix things up according to the needs of our child. Thus, our study of Egypt and Greece will be in sixth grade.

Welcome to Sixth Grade!

We typically begin our new school year immediately following Labor Day. Husband takes a vacation day in order to start us off with a grand breakfast, we gather as a family to review last year's main lesson books, and then take a leisurely walk in the park. We enjoyed the traditional breakfast and review, but the sky was purging itself of every bit of moisture that day, as our still damp basement can attest.

Our year did not start perfectly, nor will it end perfectly. I'm sure there will be both bumps and fun surprises through the year, that will derail us on occasion. That's all part of homeschooling.

Preparing for Sixth Grade

Ah, Tuesday. The one day of the week that is usually errand free. Today is especially quiet, as the Boy is hanging out with a friend, building a tree fort in our side yard. Later they will head to a grandparent's home for an afternoon swim. 

So what to do with all my "free" time? A hot bath? Read a book? Hah! To begin with, I started a pot of tomatoes to simmer down into sauce, and also a pot of sauce to come up to temperature for canning. There's the never ending pile of laundry, a romp with the puppy, the garden to weed, and oh, yeah, I need to start preparing for school.

Yikes, we only have a handful of weeks left before our first day, traditionally the day after Labor Day. Usually I'm pretty well prepared come August. Not this year. I have not done one single thing to prepare. I haven't read any books, bought any supplies, hardly put any thought into it at all. Until this past weekend. It hit me....fall, and therefore school, is coming whether I'm ready or not. So I better get ready. Or at least get ready...to get ready.

For the past two years I have developed my own Waldorf style curriculum, based off a summer's worth of research and combining free/inexpensive resources. I have an aversion to pre-packaged curriculum and enjoy creating something that's entirely our own. But I am feeling burnt out. I just don't feel like it this year.

After discussing the subject with Husband, I decided to give myself permission to buy a few things that will ease some of the creative pressure. I tend to be really cheap when it comes to buying things that I can or could do myself. But doing so should allow time and energy to focus on other aspects like rhythm, field trips, social activities, handwork, and crafts. 

Giving myself permission was difficult, but not nearly as difficult as deciding what to buy. A naturally indecisive person like myself can get overwhelmed quickly by all the choices! There are lots of free resources that can give a person some ideas. There are a few packages that lay it all down for you: Live Ed, Oak Meadow, Christopherus (K-5 comes in a package, 6 and up is more piecemeal), Little Garden Flower/Waldorf Essentials, etc. I already know that I don't like a scheduled approach (Monday do x, y, and z). That helped to narrow things down. I want a guide, not detailed lesson plans for every subject, every day.

I started with my "go-to" resources: Marsha Johnson's yahoo group, Millenial Child, Bearth Institute, Path of  Discovery (Eric Fairman). From these sources I figured out Step I: What I want to cover this year:

• First of all we need to review Egypt
• Greece, which I didn't get to last spring
• Geometrical Drawing
• Astronomy
• Business Math
• Rome
• Mineralogy
• Physics
• Middle Ages
• And if I can get it in European Geography

In addition to the above subjects, the Boy is taking a formal Latin class at Lancaster Center for Classical  Studies. He will continue piano lessons with Tina Davidson, and will take a 5 week horseback riding course at River Valley Ranch. I still need to arrange handwork and woodwork classes with our co-op group.

Step II: I purchased the resources I needed:

• Tales of Ancient Egypt (Green)
• Roman History and Medieval History (Christopherus)
• Making Math Meaningful (York) I bought the guide, teacher's work book, and puzzle book
• String, Straightedge, and Shadow (Diggins)
• Geology/Astronomy (Kovacs)
• Ancient Greece (Kovacs)
• Rome (Kovacs)
• Earth, Water, Fire, and Air (Kraul) 
• Compass Drawing (Harst and Weiderhold)
• Painting and Drawing in Waldorf Schools (Wildgruber)
• Geometric Patterns from Roman Mosaics (Field)

I'm using Christopherus's Rough Guide to Sixth Grade, Marsha Johnson's notes, and info from Millenial Child to pull it all together into lesson plans. 

I purchased all my MLBs and a few other supplies from Meadowsweet Naturals. 

And now it's time for Step III: The actual lesson planning. Without my guides in hand, it's a bit tough to plan too far ahead (I can continue procrastinating a bit longer). I will start with the Egypt review, then move on as more guides arrive in the mail. 

Today's job though, other than can tomato sauce?  Clean up the school room and get everything orderly for that first day. I think I need another cup of coffee and a romp with the puppy!