Homeschool curriculum ideas for 2nd grader who previously was Montessori educated?

[AllyRae]

It looks like we will be pulling our DS out of his montessori school at the end of the year to homeschool him (due to several reasons, ranging from bullying to issues with his autism/IEP).  He was in this montessori school for preschool, kindergarten, and now 1st grade.  We love montessori and I am homeschooling my daughters using montessori work.  However, the work for lower elementary is a bit out of my range of experience, and we are not prepared to lay down another couple grand for another set of montessori work (we spent enough on the preschool/kindy stuff  for the girls...now we're out of tax return money and space for a whole other homeschool classroom. ;) )  We actually weren't expecting to homeschool my son for a few more years, so now I'm scrambling to figure out what's out there.  Can someone toss out a few ideas for me?  My "requirements" (so to speak) are:

-Heavy on the manipulatives/hands on stuff...my son does not do well with lecturing or long teacher-lead lessons.  He did well with the hands on Montessori based work.

-Not literature/Charlotte Mason based...we tried Oak Meadow and Charlotte Mason based stuff with him, but it doesn't work.  His auditory processing issues make anything like that a bit more difficult.

-We love multicultural stuff here.  *Love* it.

Here's what I found that I like...are these any good?  Are there better options that are similar to these?

Math: RightStart http://www.alabacus.com/index.cfm

 

Science: R.E.A.L. Science   http://www.pandiapress.com/real_science.htm

 

Writing: Handwriting without tears, grade 2

 

World history: Hands on History & History Odyssey: http://www.pandiapress.com/history_odyssey.htm + Hands on History http://www.handleonthearts.com/cart/handson-history-year-2-p-44.html

 

Reading:  Montessori-based, so no extra curriculum needed

 

Ohio history: Along the Ohio Trail book, Kids Love Ohio book

 

PE:  He currently takes 2 hours of martial arts a week.  Also, Horizons PE & Health  http://www.aophomeschooling.com/product/jpe002/  http://www.aophomeschooling.com/product/jhc200/

 

Foreign Language:  Some type of Spanish or Vietnamese curriculum.... He's currently learning spanish, but our daughter is learning vietnamese

 

Music: "Stories of the Great Composers" series http://www.lamppostpublishing.com/music-history.htm#Meet_the_Great_Composers_Series 

plus possibly some type of music lesson.  I can teach beginner piano, but anything else, we'd have to hire a teacher for.

 

Art: Artistic Pursuits http://www.artisticpursuits.com/1110books.html

 

Thank you!!!

 

[tankgirl73]

Just from the thread title, I was going to recommend RightStart math.  :)  Dr. Cotter is a former Montessori teacher.  While the program isn't STRICT Montessori it does bring into play many Montessori math concepts.

History Odyssey -- I love it, but it is fairly reading intensive, so it may or may not be the best choice for your son.  Does he like drawing?  You might find a better fit with Mosaic history (at least for Ancients), it incorporates more hands-on activities.  Although I think the level I History Odyssey does have more hands-on stuff than the level 2, so I may be off base there... Another possibility would be History Pockets -- which both HO and Mosaic make use of, but if history is a subject he resists, you could simplify and just go that way.  But HO is based on Charlotte Mason philosophies, so if that's not a good fit for you then... well, just something to consider.  ;)

Stories of the Great Composers -- I'm a piano teacher and I use this series (and the older kids' series Meet the Great Composers), I think it's a great little introduction.  If you're not taking music lessons at the time, you should definitely make sure you get the books and CD's, not just the books.  My son has also been really enjoying Ancient Art and the Orchestra from Harmony Fine Arts -- that's the middle school course, so you'd probably want something from their earlier grades.

Those are the ones I can directly speak to from experience.  Another option to consider is following the Montessori curriculum itself, the manuals are available for free online, and many materials can be acquired second hand, or made from scratch, or substituted with more common items, so it doesn't HAVE to be crazy expensive.