Digging Deeper into CC at Home

Living a half-an-hour away from a good library, I always want to dig deeper into our Classical Conversations (CC) topics from home with great living books, but it just never ends up being realistic (Or I end up with such big fees I could have purchased the books used online and kept them forever).  So I tend to search for more information from home. There is a ton of information right within the Foundations Guide.  If you have only flipped to the memory work sections, you are missing out – dig it out and read the whole thing!  I also love the timeline cards and the science cards, or even the History Highlights and the Science Snippets (found on CC Connected with subscription).  These provide a ton of information directly related to the CC topic at hand.  You can even find that information in the iPad or iPhone app that CC created, as well as a means to review the memory work (although I really wish this app was more quiz or game-like rather than basically a power point platform, I still find it useful on the go.)

I also love to pull up great online resources such as games, videos, documentaries, exercises, etc.  There's just one problem.  It seems to me (perhaps none of you guys have this problem), that if I get on the computer during the school day to search for something, everything falls apart.  The two year old invariably spills a glass of milk all over the eight-year-old's math papers, the six-year-old sneaks out of his chair from copywork to design a bigger and better fort out of legos than his four-year-old brother (tears erupting when he steals the four-year-old's legos to do so), and it takes me 20 minutes just to reign in the troops and get them refocused.  In the end, I may or may not have located something useful.

 

So it is nice when someone else pulls the plans together for you.  CC mom Colleen from Sola Gratia Mom has created a detailed resource that outlines online resources topic by topic, week by week.  It also includes presentation ideas and ideas for digging deeper into fine arts.  There is a distinct geography component using pin-maps which could be really useful considering Challenge kids will be expected to draw the world from memory.  She has also created "Wonderful Wednesdays" – a project-based day that utilizes the "My Memory Work Lapbooks" I created, and could be done as a family, or with a group of homeschool moms for a little more fun.  I think this is a great option for someone desiring a complete plan without having to aquire a lot of additional resources and spend time scheduling a plan on their own. (At the time of this post, Colleen's plan costs $16.95 per 12 weeks.  DISCLAIMER: I have received a copy of the first 12 weeks in order to write this review, but all opinions and statements are my own.)

 

You definitely want to check out Brandy's site over at Half-A-Hundred-Acre-Wood, who offers a ton of links related to each weeks topics.  It will require a little more scouring and pulling together, but it is a great, free option and her links are fabulous!  While you are there, check out her Cycle 2 Planner, and not-to-be-missed Weekly Link-Up where all kinds of CC moms link to their posts about what their family is planning or doing week-by-week!

 

Of course, I love the My Memory Work Lapbooks for the kids who like to get their hands on their memory work, and for the fact that they help us stay focused on our main goal – mastering the memory work.  Some moms assemble one as a family at the beginning of the year, and use it during review time each week.  Other families have each child make their own as they study the memory work, or even as review once they have already learned the material.  New this year, the Binder-Book option provides the same templates, but has you assemble them into a 3-ring binder separated by subject tabs.  It then becomes a great portfolio of all your CC work as you add your drawings, science experiment pages, etc to the binder. (Both the lapbook and Binder-Book options are included within the same document).

Whatever you choose to dig deeper into your memory work, let it be joy-filled.  Someone once said the days are long, but the years are short, and oh, isn't this true!  Let's journey together with our children discovering more about ourselves and our world through God's eyes.

Blessings,

Karen