I need a little help, please

[PVAZmom]

I am looking to homeschool my two children ages 10 & 12. Up to this point they have been in public school and most recently are attending the online K12 virtual school. I am not very happy with the way things are going and want to try and teach them a curriculum that is Christ based. I like what I have found here. I just have a few questions. Maybe someone on here can give me some help, please.

1. What exactly is the Charlotte Mason style of teaching?
2. I am looking at the Preparing curriculum. Is there a grading scale? Do you grade things or is it more like making sure
concepts are understood?
3. When a lesson calls for oral narration by retelling and you are teaching two children the same lesson, do you separate
them and let each retell individually, or retell in more of a discussion manner?
4. Has anyone taught 2 children in the same curriculum found that they need a 2nd set of books for the independent
readings, say during History or Science?
5. For the English and Math portions of the curriculum, is there guidance for teaching those in the Preparing Text?

I did email Carrie when I first came across her programs. She was very helpful in explaining which curriculum would probably be the best fit for my kids. I have also printed off the first week samples to explore. Maybe my questions were answered in the samples and I just missed them. Anyway, if any of you seasoned home school teachers could help me I would really appreciate it.

[mamas4bugs]

Welcome to HOD and homeschooling! We are entering our 10th year of homeschooling. It's great fun and wonderfully rewarding. I hope the Lord blesses your journey!

My kids are too far apart for me to have two in the same guide, but I'll answer what I can.

1. Here is a link giving information on CM and a CM education: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Mason

2. You could make a scale to grade things (I am doing so for high school), but it's not really necessary in the lower grades in my opinion. There is not an answer key included in the curriculum. It's more about making sure your children are understanding the concepts, which will be easy to see as you interact with them.

3. I'm sure someone who has had multiple children in a guide will chime in and answer this one.

4. I have not, but I can't imagine that you would need two sets of books. I'm certain you could schedule your day so that the children were staggered---one reading history while the other reads science, etc.

5. There are teacher's guides that can be purchased for Singapore math, Rod and Staff grammar, and Drawn Into the Heart of Reading. There are instructions in the guide for other Language Arts assignments. The guides are very well thought out and very explanatory. You will not be lost, I promise.

Hope that helps some. Again, welcome!

[PVAZmom]

Thanks Mama4bugs for welcoming me and helping me with my questions. I am really looking forward to being a more integral part of teaching them the basics, but mostly I really want the Bible to come alive for them. I really believe this curriculum will help me do this. I haven't ordered the Preparing curriculum yet, but am hoping to do so in the next few weeks. Thanks again for helping me.

[my3sons]

I am looking to homeschool my two children ages 10 & 12. Up to this point they have been in public school and most recently are attending the online K12 virtual school. I am not very happy with the way things are going and want to try and teach them a curriculum that is Christ based. I like what I have found here. I just have a few questions. Maybe someone on here can give me some help, please.
I'd be glad to help, but mamas4bugs already had such good help, so I'll just add a few things I thought of. First of all, I think you are going to love the Christ-centered focus of HOD. It is personally meaningful. It is getting to my dc's hearts, and I am so thankful for the guidance HOD provides in heart-to-heart talks. There is a Biblical part to almost every "box" of plans in HOD. I love it. I think you'll also really enjoy the balance of hands-on, seatwork, discussions, etc. HOD makes the day full of variety, and that keeps things fresh and interesting all year long. I'll try to help you out with your questions here too. I'll put my answers in blue, and provide any links to threads I think will be helpful.

1. What exactly is the Charlotte Mason style of teaching?
HOD and Charlotte Mason (by Carrie):
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2453


2. I am looking at the Preparing curriculum. Is there a grading scale? Do you grade things or is it more like making sure
concepts are understood?
Testing vs. CM Approach within HOD:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=4693&p=34480
Higher Level Thinking in HOD from Carrie:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=8178


3. When a lesson calls for oral narration by retelling and you are teaching two children the same lesson, do you separate
them and let each retell individually, or retell in more of a discussion manner?
One practical idea for the answering questions / narrating thing would be to have a blue bead and a red bead (one color for each child) in your pocket. Draw one out to choose who will answer each question or to narrate. After the question is answered the bead can be returned to your pocket, so some dc may answer a lot one day, and some not, but they are apt to listen well knowing they could be called upon anytime to answer, and just because they answered once, that doesn't mean they may not be called upon again (this is a CM type idea used for choosing different dc for narrations). HTH!

4. Has anyone taught 2 children in the same curriculum found that they need a 2nd set of books for the independent
readings, say during History or Science?
8arrows has 8 dc, and she had a great idea of leaving the guide open where the dc all have hands-on access to it. She lays the books needed for independent work next to the guide on the counter or table. If the books are gone, someone is using them, and that means that child needs to do a different independent assignment. I think this is a great visual way to see who's using what.

For true success in independent work, you'll want to be sure of 2 things. 1) Dc are appropriately placed and can truly handle all they are asked to do in a guide. Checking out the placement chart (and asking questions on this awesome board) are the best ways to go about figuring out proper placement. So, here's a link to the placement chart...
http://www.heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php
2) Dc use the guide as their own on their "independent" parts, as well as on the "semi-independent" parts. Here is an excellent thread that discusses this...
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=9650

5. For the English and Math portions of the curriculum, is there guidance for teaching those in the Preparing Text?
The R & S English TG and the Singapore Math TG give good solid directions for teaching those subject areas. The younger HOD guides have hands-on math instruction (up through Singapore 2B), but from 3A on up, the Singapore Textbook is the instruction. It is important, both in R & S English and in Singapore, to sit by your child and do the lesson with them. Then, for their independent part, if they get stuck on anything, working through the problem alongside them, utilizing the methods taught in the teaching portion of the lesson as you "think out loud" to solve the problem helps immensely. HOD suggests doing R & S English two-thirds orally or on markerboard, and reserving 1/3 for the students to write. We've found this to move us along at a nice pace while still helping the dc to retain what they've learned. HOD schedules math and English for us.

I hope that helps, but keep asking questions until you're set! We love the balance and joy of learning HOD brings to our home. I think you will too!

In Christ,
Julie