Let's Get Started: August

We'll start each month with this summary of what supplies & books we'll use for the month, as well as basically what we will cover during the month.

One note I want to make before we get started. This blog is meant to be used by anyone at any time. If I were to include liturgical seasons, liturgy, saints days, and the like, then it will make the blog set in time and perhaps confusing to work with. However, I definitely do not want to leave it all out! So I have created an ongoing mini-blog for this purpose. Simply check in with it as you journey on at Walking Through the Year With Jesus.

"A Catholic curriculum is one in which every subject taught is permeated with the truths of the Catholic Faith. A Catholic curriculum is not a standard curriculum that simply includes a religion class. Every class is to incorporate Christ's teachings. How else can we follow the direction of St. Paul to 'restore all things to Christ'?"  ~ Mary Kay Clark, Catholic Home Schooling: A Handbook for Parents

We will be using plenty of online resources for this school year (make sure you have a printer and a new cartridge of ink!). I am a huge fan of dollar stores, so we'll shop the dollar store whenever possible. Other than that, there are some books and supplies we'll need. But by purchasing a few items each month rather than all at once, doing so will be much more feasible financially.

So this first month (which is actually just the last two weeks of August rather than the entire month), to start our school year, we'll start with:

A calendar - If you have the space in your home, a classroom calendar on the wall would be super! There is so much you can do with a classroom calendar. If you just don't have the space, however, a personal-sized calendar will do. I found a classroom calendar at my local dollar store. It was actually a 2-pack for $1! It did not come with month headers or day squares. But I found some online for this purpose, and I'll post the link each month. We'll start with the creation calendar (click here for creation calendar numbers) which will work nicely since we will start our Bible studies with the creation story. You can make your own header by simply writing out the month name in marker on a piece of printer paper and hanging it above the calendar. I found Saints days calendar squares, which I am so thrilled to have found! Print them out from here. I also found free personal calendars to print, so you can use these if you prefer, or both like we will do! 

A kids' rosary and a children's Bible - There are many children's Bibles available. Up until this year, Little Bill and I have both been very happy with The First Step Bible. This year, I wanted something a little meatier. So after looking through several options, I chose Catholic Bible Stories for Children. The stories are well-told, expounding on some things in order to better explain. The illustrations are cute and great for first graders, and a fun fish (Ichthus!) serves as a guide. We still use a colorful wooden kids' rosary. This year we also added a glow-in-the-dark little decade rosary to use in bed.

  

Christian songs for kids CD - We will use a new one each month or so. The one for this month is The Dogma Dogs. It has songs that we will be using with different topics during the month.

Storybooks -  Each month, a few storybooks that illustrate something we are learning, or that are just good for this age, will be used. These are nice extras and are not necessary for following this curriculum. It's completely up to you, or substitute your own favorites as you like.

This month we have two books that illustrate that mean kids are really hungry for love deep down, and we should offer kindness and prayers for them.

In Emma & Mommy Talk to God, Emma learns that she need not fear, for she can put her trust in God. She also learns to talk to God throughout the day, and to pray for those who are mean to her.

In the delightful, award-winning book, Have You Filled a Bucket Today?, children learn that how we treat others can deeply affect them, and that mean children simply have "empty buckets" and so try to "steal" good feelings from others' buckets. What a wonderful way to illustrate the ripple effect that the way we treat each other creates!   

Reading Books - Children will be at their own reading level at the start of first grade, and that is okay! There is no need to push. 

If your child is not yet reading well, you can use the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. I have used this for 2 kids now and it is super! It makes phonics easy to learn, it goes in such a letter order as to get kids putting sounds together to make words early on in the program, and it requires no extra materials or preparation - just pick it up and jump into a lesson! We will be doing a lesson each day, but if you need to go faster or slower, take your cues from your own child.

If your child is reading, Bob Books make great readers. They are simple, silly stories that make Little Bill laugh, and they are progressively more challenging (you get them in a boxed set and they are numbered), so they grow with your child's reading ability.

Math Practice -

On this blog you will find math lessons along with all the printables you will need and a few suggested resources (such as flashcards) as we go along. Rather than having your young child filling in worksheets, he will be making his own math practice book. So to start with, you will need:

- a sketchbook: This is a spiral-bound notebook with thick blank paper (no lines). You can find them at Target and Wal-mart either in school supplies or crafts, and Hobby Lobby or Michael's. They are several dollars each, but they make for an excellent math practice book.

- a tin of dominoes: These can be found at the dollar store or on the cheap at Wal-mart or Target.

- addition and subtraction flashcards: Again, these can be found at the dollar store year-round. 

Science & Social Studies -

We are doing these subjects together this year, using the Magic Tree House book series as a springboard. This month you'll need the first book in the series, Dinosaurs After Dark, and a sketch book (see under math for more on sketch books).

Here we go!

Tanya

P.S. Two notes about supplies: First, I put a lot of work into creating this Catholic First Grade year and putting it all onto a blog. I would like to continue and do a second grade blog next year, and so on. If you benefit from this blog, I ask that you please shop for your supplies from our online store. This supports this website project and next year's as well! Second, I may offer a kit for each month, with everything you need for that month's lessons, in order to make it even easier for you. I will let you know about this next month.