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Choosing Classes and Curriculum
A few years ago Annie, Jenny, and I (Amelia) were discussing changes we planned to make in our individual homeschools. We each had decided to no longer participate in one of the local large homeschool co-ops but were lamenting a few of the aspects we would miss–namely art and science. So we started thinking about the possibility of meeting once a week to do an art and science class with each other. The support of doing it together made it seem like less work for each of us individually and that appealed to us. The question then became: What would we use for curriculum? Choosing a curriculum can be challenging.…
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Teaching “A Tree In The Trail”
One of the great joys of teaching is freshly discovering the subject with the students. Even if you know the material, watching new faces learn new material is thrilling. Our geography class also edifies me since it is mixed with familiar and new content, while we have explored the American landscape and the stories of Holling C. Holling. This spring semester, we studied the landscape and the history of the Southwest as we read, mapped, and explored our way through “Tree in the Trail.” Who doesn’t want to talk about Cowboys and Indians? Their life and times are richly fascinating and full of adventure! We followed a similar pattern to…
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Eight Parts of Speech
The basic building blocks of any subject is its grammar. We often think of English as the only subject having grammar we must learn, but even riding a bicycle has grammar. We must know the parts of the bicycle like the handlebars, pedals, and brakes before we can even try to ride it. When I hear countless people tell me how much they hate English (because many people love to tell English teachers that for some strange reason–haha), I often wonder how many of them truly tried to memorize the foundation of our language. Before you can identify a run-on or misplaced modifier in your own writing, you have to…
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Science At Home
Science at home can seem intimidating, especially if you don’t have a background in science. But with so many resources available, homeschool and #suddenlyhomeschooling parents have a wealth of information and activities a few clicks away. We have gathered several links of favorite resources we have used at cottage school and in our individual homes. Home Science Tools If your kids want hands on experiments, this company has tons of great options and their kits include virtually everything you need–including detailed instructions. Our cottage school has done several of their dissection kits. They have a new kit that has 6 hands on activities having to do with understanding virus transmission…
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Curriculum We Have Used
What curriculum do you use for Cottage School?
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Why Cottage School?
Why start a Cottage School?
