Help. I don't know what to do.

[mysonshine]

We are working our way through MFWK. Slowly. Hating to admit that we aren't good at doing school every day - trying to get better at that.
I don't know if DS is anywhere near where he "should" be. I am feeling like a failure at HSing right now. I don't know what he should know in math and reading at this point. I feel like he's behind. But maybe he's not. I don't know.

I'm looking ahead to next year. Planning on going to the homeschool convention in April to check everything out. I don't know what I want to do for curric next year. I don't know if I want to stay with MFW, go to something else, or piece our own curric together.
I've been looking at sites and through the Rainbow catalog, reading about different subjects. But for each one, DS seems to know some, but not all, of the K descriptions. So I don't know what to look at for next year. The K levels would be a lot of review but there would be some new things. But I'm afraid that going to 1st levels would be too much since not everything in a company's K level is/was taught in our current curric. Does that make sense? This is why I feel he's "behind".

I know I want to continue to HS - no question there. I feel like I just need some guidance and I don't have anyone here to help me through that.

I've thought about getting some of the K stuff of the companies I like and working through it quickly and then moving to first, but I don't think our budget will allow that.

Any advice? Someone want to hold my hand through it?

I have to notify the school district this year too and getting nervous about that. I am hoping to find a local family who might sit down with me and go over it all and look over my papers.

Ugghh. I feel so overwhelmed right now.

[Savoir Faire]

First, you've gotta tell me what MFWK is. When my mind sees "MF" only two words come to mind and I'm pretty sure that's not what you're discussing

[meetoo]

Try not to worry. 1st grade is 9 months away! Tentatively pick out what you want to use next yr, and make a list of standards you would like him to meet. It also might be best to use things that aren't so grade level geared. He might be ahead in some areas and behind in others. At any rate try not to stress yourself out until at least june! A lot can change in 5 months.

[mysonshine]

Originally Posted by Savoir Faire

First, you've gotta tell me what MFWK is. When my mind sees "MF" only two words come to mind and I'm pretty sure that's not what you're discussing

Sorry. It's My Fathers World. Brain is in overdrive. lol

[mysonshine]

Originally Posted by meetoo

Try not to worry. 1st grade is 9 months away! Tentatively pick out what you want to use next yr, and make a list of standards you would like him to meet. It also might be best to use things that aren't so grade level geared. He might be ahead in some areas and behind in others. At any rate try not to stress yourself out until at least june! A lot can change in 5 months.

Thanks. I know a lot can change but I'm concerned about the fact that our current curric doesn't even hit on a lot of what other companies seem to cover at this level.
I just did some placement tests on how *I* think DS would do and each one (for math) he would have to start at the K level because ours doesn't cover much.
I'm thankful that HSing allows different levels, etc but I wasn't expecting to see such a difference in what was covered.

[meetoo]

another thing there are TONS of free resources out there! Kindy math is pretty basic, and you can fin tons of reading things on line. What is he doing now? What do you feel he is behind in?

[annethcz]

I've used MFW kindy several times and I really like it. I'm a pretty eclectic homeschooler (when I'm homeschooling ), and I'm not afraid to pick and choose different resources to meet the needs of my kids. I don't think that your child is going to be 'behind' because of the curriculum you chose.

If your child was in institutional school, the school year wouldn't even be half over yet! I understand wanting to plan for next year, but perhaps it would be better to limit yourself to researching options instead of making firm decisions right now. A LOT can change between now and next year

[mysonshine]

Thanks all.
It's just frustrating (to me) to realize that what MFW has for K a lot of other curric have for Pre-K. It just makes me feel like we're starting off a level behind.
I am still researching - looking at the curric/companies I like, then later will determine what level.

[mrsjtc]

I didn't use MFWK but I've used Adventures and ECC. We love it! It does seem to be paced a little different than public schools but that's okay. I've looked through the K books and done a curriculum fair display of MFW. I will say that the K teacher's manual is tricky. If you aren't doing the little bit of school every day that they recommend, I can understand the feelings of getting behind. Their phonics is laid out in a way that really needs to be used daily. No criticism intended, please don't take it that way. But to reinforce the learning they are laying out, it really needs to be reviewed regularly.

First, I have a friend (let's call her J) who took her son through the K. You definitely have to get used to the pace of it. The 30 minutes a day that it takes to review each letter, do the activities as well as the other subject for each day are key to keeping your child on track. J also said that her son was right where he needed to be by the end of the year. It takes time to build a phonics awareness in a young child. J did use math suppliments (just workbooks from the dollar store) but felt everything else was on track.

As for next year, breathe! You have plenty of time. The one benefit to staying with MFW is that the pace is the same. 1st grade picks up right where K left off. J is onto 1st grade with her son and is thoroughly enjoying it. The teacher's manual is laid out differently and that helped her. But her son is now reading on level and enjoying him math work.

Also, try to loosen up on the idea of grade levels and being ahead or behind. Just focus on teaching and ejoying sharing that with your child. Don't worry about what level he'll be at the end of the year, just focus on right now. I'm sure he'll do just fine!

[elizawill]

hugs mama. no worries. my little guy is in kindergarten too & we don't even have curriculum. he only does about 20-30 minutes of seatwork a day. everything else is kinda "fly by the seat of our pants". my only focus in grade k is basic math and simple reading....but many people don't even worry about those things. your little guy will get it all and then some. MFW gets great reviews, and i'm sure what they have scheduled is age appropriate and meets state standards. if you looked at a K scope & sequence, you would be shocked probably at how much you've already covered. no worries at all!!

[mrsjtc]

Also, where are you located, if you don't mind me asking? Have you checked for any homeschool support groups or yahoo groups in your area?

[skueppers]

There's been a trend in recent years to "push down" skills that used to be taught in first grade into kindergarten. 40 years ago, kindergarten was optional in many places, rarely more than a half day, and was intended to acclimate kids to school. Kids played, had stories read to them, sang songs, and learned the alphabet and numbers. It was a transition between being at home with mom and being in school.

Nowadays, many school districts have children starting to learn to read and do basic math in Kindergarten -- things they used to do in first grade.

There's no reason to believe that this approach is superior. There is no evidence that children who are taught to read at an earlier age, for example, turn out to be better readers a few years down the road. Or that they are more successful in later life. Furthermore, there are plenty of kids who are pushed to learn reading too early and really struggle, when waiting another year would have allowed them to learn easily and quickly.

If it's important to you and/or your son that he learn to read (or whatever) now, then of course you can work on that with him. It'll become clear pretty quickly whether or not he's ready. But if you're just worried that you're failing your son somehow by not using a more "academically rigorous" curriculum in Kindergarten -- you're not.

As for whether it's a problem that you're not "doing school" every day, you might consider what you're doing instead of "doing school." I suspect that the other activities you're engaging in have plenty of educational value, too.