Spring Planning

First a quick update.

My daughter's blood tests turned up no problems! Deo gratias! A follow-up appointment with her eye doctor turned up that whatever she had in her eye, at least this last time, was possibly viral. She was prescribed a combination anti-inflammatory / antibiotic drop, and we saw a big improvement right away. Go figure. She had been prescribed an anti-inflammatory drop one other time, and then an antibiotic drop another time, but what she apparently needed all along was a combination of the two. The doctor still believes what she had the first time was episcleritis, but this last episode was different. As part of her 2nd follow-up visit (there were 3 total), she had her vision re-checked, and was taken through various eye testing stations. The verdict? Her eyes grew and her vision worsened. She needed new lenses for her glasses, and all in less than five months' time! She's over the moon with her new lenses though. Apparently, it's made quite a difference for her.

So, things are finally getting back to normal. School is coming along fine, but I've completely neglected to do all of my school planning for next year. I was so exhausted over worrying about everyone, and getting used to the increased exercise, that I just didn't get to it earlier. So today, I've been hitting the catalogs and message boards, seeking suggestions. The kids have expressed a desire to learn Korean, so my current task is finding adequate resources for that. I'm hoping for something they can use independently, as I cannot fathom my learning another language right now. Knowing myself however, I will no doubt partake, but possibly not regularly.

My son (10), has been really eager to learn Algebra lately. He's very driven and interested, so we're having lots of success with it. I started to use some of the Key to Algebra workbooks with him, but he's starting to get a bit impatient. He just wants to jump in whole hog. Thankfully, we already use Singapore Math, so what I've been doing is having him do his word problems twice--once using the Singapore method of drawing models, and once using Algebra. So far so good. Hindsight is 20/20. I should have done the same with my 14yo when she was using Singapore. I do often resort back to the pictorial method even now with her, particularly when faced with an especially difficult or confusing word problem. That usually does the trick in helping her understand. Now more than ever, I'm really and truly appreciating Singapore Math's methods. I'm seeing the big picture, and it makes sense. Better yet, it sticks.

I think the big challenges for me this coming year, will be how to handle the sciences, particularly for my high schooler, and find the right fit for Geometry. I did find that David Chandler, the man who put out the companion CD for Foerster's Algebra, also has a CD for Geometry. I haven't heard much about the main text he recommends, i.e., Geometry: A Guided Inquiry, by G.D. Chakerian, but I'm pretty much sold on this option based on the availability of Mr. Chandler's CD alone. The sciences are always challenging for me, especially at this level. I'm not convinced that we can get away with doing just paper labs. I noticed that some correspondence schools offer these "paper labs" in lieu of the more traditional labs most of us went through in high school, but I'm still not convinced they'd be adequate enough, even though my daughter doesn't plan on majoring in any of the sciences. We've done Chemistry this year, and bought a decent home lab kit for that. Next year however, I plan on Biology, and those labs, at least to my memory, were much more complex, particular in terms of supplies and specimen. My daughter is not exactly looking forward to having to do dissections, but I'm assuming these are still required, or at least encouraged, in most high schools. While our chosen order of science topics may seem odd to some, it made sense to me to start with Chemistry. I figured it would help in the understanding of Biochemistry later. I still believe this to be true, but I guess I'll know for sure when I get there.

Also on our list of supplies this year--a globe. Our old globe, at least a gazillion years old, was barely legible, and had already fallen off its base. It badly needs replacing. Also, the atlas and Google maps just aren't cutting it. I wanted a more tactile option, and it's my one back-to-basics purchase for this next year. It feels good to have a non-techy, basic, classic item on our list. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

I'm still coming up with our literature selections, and I'm still on the fence over one elective. My daughter most certainly has a choice, but she's as indecisive as I am. I'm also looking into the Didache series for religion for next year, but we didn't start the series this year, and I wonder if it's something best done in order. It makes me all anxious to think that we will not be able to complete all four volumes.