Next Year's Curriculum

This is what I have been planning the last couple of weeks. It's a work in progress, but we are already reading Shakespeare. We've read Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet and just started The Tempest. The kids love it and beg me not to stop at the end of our 15-20 min reading sessions! I wish I had started out using CM from the start. I guess I didn't really think it was close enough to "school" though. The past few years, I've had to "de-school" myself. LOL!!

I'm using Ambleside Online (AO) to help me get started, but I'm making a few changes here and there. Here is what the big kids are doing for 2011-2012. I'll be adding more over the next couple of months and posting periodic updates. 

Together, we will be studying these subjects though not every subject will be studied every single day, and this list is just a sample of what we will be doing. 

Bible

Science: Human body, nutrition, weather
Geography: U.S. states, passport fun w/select countries

Copywork
Nature Study: amphibians/reptiles,  insects/invertebrates, mammals, parts of a plant
History: Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Buffalo Bill

Foreign Language: Spanish, German

Composers: Beethoven, Vivaldi, Chopin
Art: Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) Italian Renaissance, Caravaggio (1571-1610) Italian Baroque, Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863) Romantic

Literature: Shakespeare, Little House books, Robin Hood, The Aesop for Children
Poetry: Walter De La Mare
Handicrafts: Cross-stitch
Hymns and Folksongs: Tell me the story of Jesus, I am Resolved, At Calvary; Aiken Drum, Waltzing Mathilda, Cockles and Mussels


Each of the big kids has his/her own math, reading assignments, and extra books, just for fun.


B: Math-U-See (Beta/Gamma)

S: Math-U-See (Alpha)

My Resources:

Books- A Charlotte Mason Education

Websites- Ambleside Online, Simply Charlotte Mason

OUR NEW HOMESCHOOL APPROACH

So, I have decided to change the way we homeschool. For as long as we have homeschooled we have just gone with the flow. I've always made sure the kids were on track with kids their age/grade and that they were free to explore things that interested them. I would tell people that our type of homeschooling was somewhere between eclectic and unschooling.

Now, after doing some research, I have decided to start using Charlotte Mason's method of schooling. I'm uber excited! I've known others who have used CM, but I guess until now I just thought that it was a little outdated (or something like that). Since doing some soul searching I've found that this is a perfect fit for me, oh, and my kids, too. ;)

During the next few months I will be doing a lot of reading and preparing for our next year of homeschooling. I can't wait!!

Here's some resources I have used so far:
Ambleside Online
Charlotte Mason Education