School Plans for the Remainder of 2008

Even though our new school year doesn't start until August 1 (our school year runs from August 1-July 31), we're going to start our new books next week. At the beginning of May we dropped our regular work and spent the time preparing L for the standardized test he has to take (he starts today) and drilling math facts with L and Z. They did some Latin and Greek review, and some spelling, reading, handwriting, and logic, but most of this was independent and I'm ready to get back into a school groove. L is 4th grade, Z is 3rd grade, J is 1st grade, and M is K4/K5ish (he turns 5 in January, but is eager to do school). Here are our plans (which are always subject to change):

Math:
L: Saxon 6/5, Singapore Challenging Word Problems 3
Z: Saxon 5/4, Singapore Challenging Word Problems 2
J: Saxon 2, Singapore Challenging Word Problems 1
M: Kumon workbooks, start Saxon 1 when he's ready

Latin:
L & Z: finish Latin for Children A, start Latin for Children B
J & M: Song School Latin

Language Arts:
L: Classical Writing Aesop (possibly changing to Poetry for Beginners after Christmas), Rod & Staff English 3
Z: Classical Writing Aesop, Rod & Staff English 3
J: Explode the Code 4 and up (I don't know how far we'll need to go)
M: Phonics Pathways, finish Explode the Code Primer A (he'll either continue with Primers B & C or begin with Book 1 depending on when the blending switch flips)

Greek:
L, Z, J, & M: Greek Alphabet Code Cracker, Song School Greek

Spelling:
L: finish Spelling Workout C, start D
Z: finish Spelling Workout B, start C
J: Spelling Workout B (when I don't think he needs Explode the Code anymore)

Copywork & Dictation:
L, Z, & J will either use good sentences/passages from their reading or selections from The Harp and Laurel Wreath. M will continue to work on letter formation (Kumon workbooks). I'll use StartWrite to create copywork pages for all of them.

History:
We'll finish up Story of the World 3 (I'm aiming to be done by Christmas) and start Story of the World 4.

Geography:
We're going to study the US States until Christmas, and then I plan on studying World Geography. We'll also use Legends and Leagues for a general introduction to maps and globes.

Memory Work:
We'll memorize poetry from The Harp and Laurel Wreath (I'd like to have us memorize at least 6), the US States, and the Presidents this year.

Science:
L & Z: Science Detectives Beginnings

Assigned Reading:
This year I plan on having L, Z, and myself all read the same books and discuss them. I've got 4 books picked so far: Andersen's Fairy Tales (we'll start with this one), Tanglewood Tales, A Wonder Book, and Tales from Shakespeare.

J will continue with the various Easy Readers and Beginning Reader books we have. Once he's reading well I'll come up with a plan for his reading.

Logic:
I've got a few resources to choose from here: Mind Benders Beginning Books 1 & 2, Primary Analogies Book 1, and Critical Thinking Activities for K-3 & 4-6. L, Z, & J find the logic activities to be fun, so I'll include 1 or 2 worksheets with their independent work.

Music:
We'll continue listening to selections from How to Introduce your Child to Classical Music in 52 Easy Lessons. L, Z, & J will continue with piano lessons.

I think this covers it all. I'll update the sidebar with links soon. It looks like a lot, but we won't do everything everyday and I still plan to finish our lessons by noon, with an hour of independent work or reading in the afternoon.