Classically Catholic Memory as a Program

Our co-op program has set this up so that we meet every other Wednesday.  The curriculum has 18 weeks in it.  We are to spend one week before the co-op meeting working on this week's topics.  We then meet and review or enhance with the kids.   Then we spend the next week going deeper.  Wednesday on the off week we dive into the next topic.  We spend time at the library with documentaries or any other way we individually (as a family) choose to approach the topics.  Some families use this as their core and other just as an add on and just memorization topics to another program with Wednesday being just a reminder for their memory work.

The program offers:   

1. Religion - catechism or gospel passage
2. Latin - song or prayer used for our Catholic faith
3. History - 2 or 3 sentence blub. all history is broken into 4 years worth
4. Science - various topics broken to basic memory work
5. Math - multiples and basic facts committed to memory
6. Timeline - 144 topics/cards (8 each week) in total giving a general understanding of time
7. Geography - countries, rivers, capital and other major locations
8. Great words I - simple poems for memory or Great Words II - speeches to for memory
9. Presentations -  the kids practice giving small presentations in front of class

 

We were prepared and every excited about our first week at co-op.  Uniforms were laid out and notes of encouragement from Sugar were put out for our early morning.  (We homeschool - we are used to sleeping in.)

After their first day at co-op, they were all still smiling.  Pickle, Princess and Bagel are in the same group and they are enjoying it a lot.  Jumba is by himself but with his friend C so he is also pretty happy.

For us we are using this CCM Curriculum as a core.  I still want to get even better at it.  So far we have enjoyed the timeline.  This general over view of history committed to memory helps to create a strong understand of all history and where things go in relation to others.  I have always loved this idea and worked on individual timelines with the older I have been instructed by the older kids that I really should make the time line books for the younger ones.

 To add to the timeline we are listening to Susan Wise Bauer with The Story of the World.  I am loving the audio versions.  We are flying through history to keep up with the timeline but the plan is to continue using this program and having bits and pieces of getting closer with the history statements over the next four years. 

We are still using IXL (mostly with a little CTC) for math and so far science other than the memory work has been Wild Kratts and Magic School Bus.  These shows are fantastic at teaching but we still want to go deeper. 

We also need to continue our reading the poems program which we stopped in August.  We are half way through but need to pick it up again.  They grew so much in reading do this silly program and they have asked for it back.  (This was what we used in Summer Reading called Giggle Poetry.) 

Another plus about this generation of streaming TV kiddos is that they have so many documentaries at their fingertips.  I catch them learning about our topics all the time.  Curiosity is still the best teacher and motivator.