Altering Lesson Plans

During the second time I made apple bread this autumn season, I altered the recipe. I was confident in the recipe and my ability to follow it successfully. I was also equipped with the knowledge that I could alter the recipe by decreasing the amount of sugar. With the sweetness of the apples and the other ingredients, I knew a little sugar would never be missed. So, I altered the amount and made the bread. NO ONE noticed. It still tasted great.

Lesson plans are a lot like recipes. They tell you what you need (ingredients) and how to put them all together (method). But just like the apple bread recipe, you can alter lesson plans to suit your family.

I confess, initially, I would never alter a lesson plan, ever. Even if it was not working, we still trudged through it. However, once I gave myself permission to change the lesson plans, I felt a little more free to try changing some of the elements to suit our needs.

After tweaking a few lesson plans, I still felt shy about making large changes.
Until I was reminded by others that:

"Lesson plans are a fabulous tool, but not a wise master."

For you see, I was using the lesson plans incorrectly. They were dictating our lessons, not serving as guides. Today, after years of tweaking, changing, and adding to lesson plans, it has become second nature. I am no longer afraid to not do every single step outlined in the lesson plan.

Lesson plans sometimes call for too much of one thing and not enough of another for your child or your family. Don't be afraid, like I was, to alter them here and there to make them better for your situation.

HSBA Post 7th Annual Homeschool Blog Awards

We are excited that the voting for the HSBA Post 7th Annual Homeschool Blog Awards has begun!  And, we are extremely honored to have been nominated for "Best NEW Homeschool Blog."  Thank you so much!

Additionally, we are excited that three of our bloggers had their blogs nominated in various categories:

Sam's blog was nominated in 7 categories (Favorite Homeschool Mom Blog, Best Photos Blog, Best Encourager, Best Homeschool Variety Blog, Best SUPER Homeschooler, Best Homeschooling Nature/Field Trip Blog, and Best Nitty-Gritty Homeschool Blog)! 

Dorie's blog was nominated for Best Photos Blog.

Marla's blog was nominated for Best Crafts, Plans, & Projects Blog.

To see all of the nominees and vote,  go to the Homeschool Post. 
Voting is open until 11:59 Pacific time on November 18, 2011.

Creating Your Own Curriculum: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Currently, I create my own curriculum for teaching preschool to my 3-year-old daughter.  

There are fabulous preschool curriculums available, but the best choice for us right now is 

to create our own.  However, creating your own curriculum is not for everyone!  Today, 

I would like to share the top two good and bad consequences of deciding to make your own curriculum, as well as the ugliest problem.

The Good

1. The curriculum meets your child's educational needs:  When you create your own curriculum, you can spend as much time as you need to teaching any concept.  If Abigail quickly grasps a concept, we can move on to something new the next day.  However, if she had a hard time with the concept, we can spend several days working on it.  We can also work on skills from a variety of grade levels.  Currently, we are doing late kindergarten/early first grade math and preschool language arts.

2. The curriculum can be designed around your child's interests:  When you create your own curriculum, you can teach your child about his interests of using his interests.  We have recently done Science unit studies about the animals that interest Abigail and learned about the continents because she received a globe for her birthday.  We also count her favorite toys, spell words that interest her, and use flashcards in fun shapes.

The Bad

1. It is very time-consuming:  When you create your own curriculum, you spend a LOT of time working on lesson planning.  Because you have to locate (or make) all of the resources and activities, you will spend hours lesson planning.  Just to teach preschool, I spend a minimum of five hours a week doing lesson planning.  I can only imagine how long it would take to create a high school curriculum!

2. There is a greater chance that your child will have holes in his/her learning:  When you create your own curriculum, there is a chance that you will neglect to teach particular skills.  Your child may end up with spotty knowledge.  You must work hard to ensure that you teach all the skills that he/she needs to learn.

The Ugly

If life gets busy, you might not have lessons to teach:  When you create your own curriculum, you do not get a break from lesson planning.  Even when you are sick or have a busy schedule, you still have to find resources and activities.  You are completely responsible!  In order to address this issue, I have several one-day and two-day units that are ready to use whenever life happens and I don't have things planned.

Despite the  downsides, creating our own curriculum is the best choice for us.  I love creating Abigail's lesson and firmly believe that she is learning more from her individualized curriculum than she would be if I used a curriculum that I had purchased.

Do you create your own curriculum?  If so, what do you view as the biggest benefits and drawbacks?