[Fillyjonk]

Hello all, I have a nearly 8 year old (birthday is end of August-sorry I don't know what grade that makes him in the US) who I am finding it very hard to homeschool, and who I am seriously considering school for.

He is very very hard to teach, because he hates not knowing things. He works much better with the computer, but he also hates me organising his time. He loves to have his own independence.

I'm wondering if there is a good, secular program that might allow him to work at his own pace out there.

The other problem is that he is ahead in some subjects and behind in others. In UK terms he seems to be working around where a 10 year old might be in maths, and he has an enormous knowledge of science, his reading is at grade level or a little ahead (its kind of hard to work out as he reads mainly fact books, which contain a lot of unfamiliar words-plus, I dunno, you can read or you can't, surely?), his spelling is totally appalling ;-) (sorry, but it is, mine is too, say first grader level)

Maths is a big issue. I've tried various books for maths but the problem seems to be that he gets a concept , with much gnashing of teeth, but then doesn't want to do any more work on it. (I DON'T WANT TO DO IT I WILL NOT DO IT I HATE MATHS I HATE FRACTIONS I HATE THIS TABLE I HATE...oh yes the answer is 3 5/8 - repeat 7 times every hour). Once he has a concept, which to be fair he normally does pretty fast, he has it, he can use it in other contexts (he does quite a bit of computer programming where he uses things lie geometry and algebra). If you ask him he will say he loves maths, and he seeks it out, but with the same gnashing of teeth. Drives me nuts. FGS I don't care if he is a year ahead or even a year behind, but this great drama every time he is asked to learn a new thing is taking it out of me.

Any thoughts on something that could work? I have never bought a curriculum or even really a structured course of study-we tend to go with worksheets off the internet. Tried Miquon and got to the end but didn't do it completely, probably he did around 1/4 of the exercises-but clearly understood the lot. Need to look at Singapore Maths too, but because I am in the UK I can't find a preview copy and there are different editions...

 

[PGTlatte]

Are you looking for something that covers all subjects, or just certain subjects ?

 

[hippiemombian]

I use time4learning.com for my daughter. I started about half way through the school year last year and it's pretty self guided. It's very user friendly, gives you all the lesson plans of what they are learning and the kids can go at their own pace. So far it's worked well for us.

 

[Fillyjonk]

thanks both. I should probably have said, what I need, I think, is something that isn't computer based. Just because he is a programming fiend, so I really want to limit the time he's on them.

I'm totally not sure if I want a whole curriculum or not. I think my big concern is that he is at different levels for different things, so I'm guessing there isn't a curriculum out there that would cover that? What might work for him is something that was very VERY maths/science focused, and kind of taught reading and spelling and so forth through maths/science.

 

[MommaCrystal]

I know you said you don't want computer stuff but I have to 2nd time4learning. Even my youngest schooler can follow it all on his own. It can be totally self directed ( you just have to check up on them to make sure they are DOING the work and not just pushing whatever button). You can also be on totally different levels in every subject. You can move at whatever pace you want. You can backward/forward/skip and completely customize it to your child. It sounds like just what you want... except for the computer part.

 

[HeatherB]

Another vote for time4learning.com. And maybe supplementing with books on his interested subjects from the library (though he may be getting plenty of that, already!). My boys beg for time4learning and I'm very surprised at the subjects they enjoy most. Both of them have gravitated to the language arts sections because the presentations are so much FUN! (Even I think they are as I listen or watch over their shoulders!) Adjusting levels is easy - you can go one grade level up or down immediately, at any point. The program makes it clear what's next to be done, so they just have to follow along.

I generally tell mine they need to do X number of math lessons first, then they can go on to science/language arts/etc. for the rest of their time. I can check their work for the most part and ensure they really completed everything. I was able to tell that I'd misassigned by 1st grader in math, because he was taking too long on each lesson and not doing so well on the quizzes.

Anyway, yes, it's more screen time. But it might be worth trying.

I can't think of a lot that could really be self-directed other than something like the workbook-based curriculum offered by ACE. This page describes their workbook system: http://www.aceministries.com/curriculum/?content=whatIsPace It's a decidedly Christian-based curriculum, though for those who prefer secular, there may be other, similar ones out there. The "bite-sized" booklets may be helpful for some kids, and since it's all integrated into the workbook, it can definitely be done independently.

 

[kittywitty]

I suggest Khan Academy and Teaching Textbooks.