Box Day!

On Wednesday we got a very exciting package... our Sonlight box! Hooray!

I don't recall if I mentioned it earlier, but I decided to order Sonlight Core A for L (who is five... she would be starting kindergarten in the Fall if I was putting her in traditional school). I also bought both LA1 and LA2. She's reading at a second grade level so I plan on using LA1, but adding in some readers from LA2 (because let's face it, the readers for LA1 start off VERY basic).

After pulling out all of the books and double checking our packing slip (everything arrived and was in excellent condition), I pulled out my new binder and all my instructors guides and got everything organized. Of course, after I had put everything in by week (core, LA1, readers2), I started L on her LA course because she was excited. We got through a week's worth in one day so I quickly realized that I needed to pull the LA Instructors Guide back out and keep it separate from Core A. I also found a smaller binder to use as my working binder, holding a couple of weeks worth of material at a time.

Next up, I sorted through all the books and put them in order by what week we start using them. Anything we use in week 1 I put on a shelf downstairs, everything else I put on a shelf in my room. Super simple!

I admit that it doesn't really seem like "enough" stuff to warrant the price tag, but I'm a big fan of simplicity, and a big fan of books, and I realize that the bulk of the price tag is allllll the books!

Now we're almost a week in and so far I like it, and so does she. :) She's blazed through 2.5 weeks of LA1 (like I said, the actual readers and the word lists are way below her level... the writing, however, is spot on for her). We've doubled up some things on some days and not done them at all on others, and it doesn't really seem to matter. I like the structured flexibility. I just write a little "L" on each part of the IG when she's finished it for Core A so I know what's done (then, in 2 and 4 years when my other kids get there I'll have an H and a P for them when they finish).

We're also still working away at math. She's having a little trouble with counting to 100 (she forgets the name for each new group of ten (twenty, thirty, forty, etc)), but is doing well with addition. She loves story problems, and sometimes wants us to make the regular problems into stories for her as well. :)

For the most part, except when L gets really into drawing or is super distracted, we are done in an hour a day. At some point I'll add in more structured science but probably not until the Fall. I also want to organize some more art projects. This girl LOVES art, but it's hard to motivate myself to get out the art supplies when it usually means trying to keep a 1-year-old AWAY from the art supplies. For her sake, I'm going to try to figure that out. I just got an awesome Usborne book called the Complete Book of Art Ideas that is fun. We also have the Usborne Art Treasury and several other art books from them that are all really fantastic. I also ordered the Sonlight Artistic Pursuits Book for grades K-3, but I didn't order the $100+ dollar supplies kit. It's probably worth it, but I likely have several of the supplies already at home.

Here's L being goofy and coloring the calendar that came with the curriculum.