For everything, there is a season. With a new baby adding to the chaos, we tried to keep our choices as child-specific and as simple as possible for the coming school year.
My 7th Grade Curriculum Choices
My eldest is in 7th grade. She requires a lot of hands-on instruction, but she has grown extremely interested in saints and the Church in general. We decided Seton Home study would be the best choice for her for English. She has already done Abeka for several years, and she has an extremely firm grasp on grammar and syntax. She just needs to keep doing it to keep her mind fresh. We are going to get Vocabulary, Spelling, Reading, History, and Grammar through Seton as well. They have an excellent Catholic curriculum that is highly acclaimed so we’re excited to give it a try. We will also get her a Book of Centuries too.
For math, we decided to do Principles of Mathematics Book 1 Set by Master Books. We are hoping a new version of math will rejuvenate her old love of math that Saxon may or may not have killed. She is almost definitely not pursuing a career that involves heavy math, so we know this math will be just fine for her.
Since she is so into her faith, we decided to keep her going (grade wise) and let her take Understanding the Scriptures by Scott Hahn. We will also be doing the 8th grade Spirit of Truth Curriculum by Sophia Press. The former is to challenge her to learn and understand the Scriptures more, and the former is to help form her conscious and go over things she may struggle with soon (like issues involving puberty). I think catholic curriculum will be especially useful for that topic.
We also decided to get the Seton Art 7 and We Sing of Our Land as the art and music curriculum. I normally don’t get a specific art or music curriculum, but that is what she likes. She is also in the choir at our church, so practicing reading and signing throughout the week is important. We will be exploring liturgical art and recreating it.
Here are some of the supplies I grabbed:
My 5th Grade Math Curriculum Choices
I also decided to get Seton Homestudy English catholic curriculum for my eldest son. It is faith-based, and we needed something he could do on his own. Abeka was growing increasingly difficult for him. I will be buying him Vocabulary, Spelling, Phonics, Reading, and Handwriting through them. I think it is perfect for him.
One thing my son hated about Saxon is re-writing every problem. He is also going through a phase where everything “doesn’t seem worth it.” I will definitely be getting him Math Lessons for a Living Education grade 5. It is a great “grab it off the shelf and go” curriculum. Some years, simple is definitely better!
We also decided to do Spirit of Truth for my son as well. It has adorable art projects, trip ideas, and wonderful lessons for my son. He loves the Sketchpad video integration, and it has brought some wonderful conversation to the table. We love it so much, he wants to start it in August, not September.
My oldest son will be doing Art 7 catholic curriculum with my eldest daughter because it’ll be easier for both of them to do it together.
Hopefully, my curriculum picks can help you decide on what to get for your school year. May your school year be blessed and peaceful!
