The Homeschool How To
I don't claim to know anything about homeschooling, so I set out on a journey to ask the people who do! Join me as I chat with homeschoolers to discuss; "why are people homeschooling," "what are all the ways people are using to homeschool today," and ultimately, "should I homeschool my kids?"
The Homeschool How To
Curriculum Series: The Good and the Beautiful Math Level 4
Unlock the secrets of crafting a captivating homeschooling experience as we chat with Mary, a dedicated homeschooling parent whose insights on "The Good and the Beautiful" curriculum shed light on its transformative impact. Discover why this curriculum's spiral approach to math has made a world of difference for her sixth-grade son, turning a subject that was once a struggle into a highlight of his educational journey. Mary shares how the rich integration of language arts, geography, and art offers a cohesive, enriching learning experience that keeps her son engaged and curious.
We also highlight the curriculum's effectiveness for upper elementary students, ensuring quality and engagement as children transition into their teenage years. Listen as we contrast Mary's experiences with past curriculums, like the unit-focused Beast Academy, and explore my personal reflections on the Math U See curriculum for younger kids. Our conversation aims to empower and inspire the homeschooling community by sharing valuable insights and practical advice on selecting the best educational tools for each child's unique needs.
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Welcome to the Homeschool How-To Find my Curriculum, a series where we talk all about curriculum. I've been interviewing homeschooling families for over a year now on my main podcast, the Homeschool How-To, but I really wanted to zero in on curriculum. There's so much out there. How do I know what would work best for me and my child? How do I know what works for one child would work for the other? I might like the curriculum I'm using now, but how do I know there's not a better one out there, especially if I don't know all the curriculums? And what about supplemental curriculum? Should I be using that too? This series is to help you decide just that. I'm going to interview parents who are using all the curriculums so that you can decide the absolute best way to unfold your homeschooling journey. The absolute best way to unfold your homeschooling journey. Welcome with us today. I have Mary joining me. Hi Mary, hi Cheryl, all right, what are you going to be talking to us today? About what curriculum?
Speaker 2:Well, the only curriculum that I'm using currently, and mostly the only one I've really used, is the Good and the Beautiful, so we can talk about that. It seems to be a popular one.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I know, I wish I had something different and exciting to bring to you, but no, that's great Because, yeah, I've talked to a couple people, but at different subjects and different grades. So what grade are in what subject are you guys using it for right now?
Speaker 2:So the most consistent one that he uses. So my oldest son is 11, so sixth grade, and most consistently he's using the math book and level four he has the spelling and writing and the language arts and literature and science. But we've had those for a couple of years and they're really great too. However, a lot of that learning just happens naturally in our life. He's an he's an avid reader, and so writing just comes naturally to him and we can just kind of work that into life. The one place that I really felt we needed a solid curriculum was math, because that's not his strong suit, and so it's been a game changer this year to find to finally buy the good and beautiful math book.
Speaker 1:So had you used the good and the beautiful math for him before?
Speaker 2:No, this is the first year, so the last past two years, we were using Beast Academy and that's an online comic book based curriculum. Have you heard of this before? I have Okay, and I liked it as the parent, I thought I bought it. I'm like this will be really great. I knew people who had used it and it just like wasn't clicking with him. And now I'm looking back, kicking myself that I didn't notice the red flag sooner and he actually was the one that was like I want pen and paper or pencil and paper, I want to do a book. He even like went out and was buying, bought some books on his own from just like Hobby Lobby. But I think the main thing that I see working with the Good and the Beautiful is the spiral curriculum or the spiral layout of it.
Speaker 1:Whereas Beast Academy Explain that a little bit more for anyone who doesn't. Is it familiar?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so Beast Academy could work for some people I know some people that like it, but it's, you know, you're just in the multiplication unit and so you're just working on multiplication for however long it takes you to get through that unit or to grasp that concept, whereas now, you know, three months in, we're using this curriculum and every lesson he does a lesson a day for the most part and there's a video lesson. So on the phone and I didn't think I'd like it, but the video lessons are really cool and interesting. She, you know the first one she starts off talking about math and nature and Fibonacci sequence and he, like, will randomly just throw out facts that he learns from these I don't know, maybe three, four minute videos that he are at the beginning of every lesson. And the good and the beautiful is good at doing the inter curriculum stuff with all their books, right?
Speaker 2:So, like in in language arts, you're learning writing and reading, but you're also learning about geography and art. They just intertwine everything together. But yeah, so there's a video lesson and then you know it has written on the paper, the mini lesson also, and then there's just typically one page of the lesson practice that you the new lesson you learned and then it goes back in. There's about a page, or front and back, of review of things that you've learned previously, so it makes it not so daunting for the kid. I feel that they're learning something new, but they really only have to practice it one page, but then it's going to keep coming up and that's the spiral.
Speaker 1:Okay. So the spiral is that you are not forgetting the stuff that you learned previously. It's kind of bringing it back in for a little bit of review. Okay, I like that. Yeah, that makes sense. So then you know at the end of the year, like, what did we do in in September now? Okay, so I and I'm thinking cause I did the good and the beautiful last year for my son in kindergarten now, and I'm sure that's much different, it looks different at the kindergarten level versus the sixth grade level.
Speaker 1:But now this year, just to try something new, I went with Matthew C because I kind of liked the idea of like holding the blocks in your hands, Like. So it was not a foreign concept but something he can tangibly hold. However, the videos are like pop in the CD or the DVD. So you have to have a DVD player and they're from like, they look like the A's. So it's just like this guy that literally looks like a math teacher, like the epitome of a math teacher, standing there for five minutes telling you about the new lesson. So I think that could definitely be updated. It's extremely boring to him in it. But so I'm wondering oh man, should I not have changed? But it's so hard to know because you don't know. All the curriculums are out there. It'd be cool to like combine them all, but the poor kid would be doing math for like eight hours a day. So are there like tests with this, or how hard? How hard are the concepts that he's learning?
Speaker 2:well, that's an um. That's another thing that I've learned and I'm getting better, and I have two other kids that luckily benefit from these learnings. That I'm having is I talked to you before about de-schooling myself, right and for. So for so long, you know, we were still in the mindset of thinking like at this age they have to learn these concepts and, like I said, math is just not his strong suit, so, or it could be that we just haven't. I was trying to teach things that quote unquote, the. You know, the common core is teaching at that age or whatever, and it wasn't resonating with him. And so finally I realized I'm homeschooling for a reason. I don't need to teach this at fifth grade and this at sixth grade. And so this year I just pulled back and started a new curriculum and we're at it's called four. They don't say grade four, but I'm assuming it's you know around that.
Speaker 2:But I knew it was important to just really give him the, really get a solid foundation before we go any further, because that's what happens in school, you know, they just keep getting pushed and, pushed, and pushed and then you're years behind and I was just like I need to pull back and let him really learn the basics. So I don't know if I answered your question, but I don't think it's very. He's learning a ton. I feel like he's probably going to catch up within a year's time would be my prediction, because he's just learning so rapidly with this. It doesn't take that long, he can do it. He can do his lesson in like probably 30 minutes I've never really timed but and then there's, I think, around 30 lessons and then there's a unit test. That's the end of the unit and that was several pages, like that was I, and I let him take like a week to do the test Because, again, you know, we have that luxury with homeschool. We don't have to put them on a clock and say you have to do it by this point.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, it's going really well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love that idea of not sticking with what grade they're in, because you know that's what it says, like six would have to be sixth grade. And I did that with my son even for kindergarten. I gave him all of the pre reading curriculum, like from all about reading and a couple other things that I went below level because I'm, I figured, to get that solid understanding would you know, help long term versus try to just memorize things before he was ready. So he still hasn't hit that milestone of like fully knowing how to read yet. So we're still working on that.
Speaker 1:But I think it helps so much and, like you said, they do catch up when they're cognitively ready. Their synapses will just connect and things will make sense. And oh, I can apply that to this project I'm working on or this interest that I have, and then it sort of flows from there. So it's really important and I assume that you don't even have to do the test or you can just work it as like you do a regular lesson. Just okay, let's review this together. So they're not even feeling the pressure of a test.
Speaker 1:And do you feel? Do you feel like if he were to get frustrated with a lesson that he was learning? There's enough there for you to be able to coach him through it, as far as like a parent guide or anything like that.
Speaker 2:I don't. There is an answer. There's an answer key, but that just gives you the answer. We haven't. I mean, there are times he gets frustrated and I'm able to come in and help him and it's clear enough if you read the directions, which is another thing. Working with him is sometimes it's not even about the math, and I want to, I need to reword my language. I shouldn't say it's not math isn't his strong suit, right, like he's just where he is with math. But it's not always just about the math, and that's what I'll tell him. It's about the.
Speaker 2:Maybe the lesson I need him to learn today is like how to read the directions thoroughly enough to understand what he's doing, or or to push through. Just it's difficult. Or maybe you know, a study skill is to go back and find, find the lesson that you're. That you where you learned this. If you forgot it in the review, you know. So I think those are all lessons. He's old enough now that, honestly, he does this a lot on his own. I don't really he's able to come and do his math lesson and then we can talk about it after, or he can ask me questions, but I don't need to sit next to him anymore which is helpful, right, yeah, yeah, it's a fine line with math there.
Speaker 1:It's like, okay, when are they going to hit, like the trigonometry, and I'm going to be like, oh crap, should I have been sitting in on all these years? I don't know how to do this, but luckily we live in an era where you can find videos online to help us out with that, which is really like we're pretty lucky to be able to do that stuff. If that's like an avenue your kid ever wanted to go down, I don't think they have to take trigonometry. I don't think I ever did All right, so it sounds like you. You liked it enough. How many hours I shouldn't say hours how long a day does he work on it?
Speaker 2:Yeah, not long, definitely not hours. Yeah, probably 30 minutes a day. So it's, yeah, maybe a little longer than that, but it's not that long and I could right, I could have him do two lessons, but I feel like he's learning enough at this pace to just stay here for now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and you'll use this curriculum again, you think Definitely. Yeah, I think he and I both love it, oh good. Well, thank you so much for chatting with us today about the good and the beautiful math for our fourth to sixth grade era. That's nice because I talk to people about the younger years a lot, so it's cool to see that it's good as they move through, you know, getting older, getting to those teenage years yeah, thanks, mary Bye, cheryl. I hope you enjoyed this episode. Thank you so much for listening. Please consider sharing this podcast, or my main podcast, the Homeschool how To, with friends, family, on Instagram or in your favorite homeschool group Facebook page. The more this podcast is shared, the longer we can keep it going and the more hope we have for the future. Thank you for your love of the next generation.