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August 17, 2008
More on Tapestry of Grace and Planning
I still shake my head as I type the words.
Rose asked how much planning I'm doing. Actually, I'm up to my eyeballs in planning, but I think that's just because I'm figuring out the system, and how to mesh their system with my system. They have everything very nicely laid out, but I must also have 1) my own overview of what I'm doing in a week, with not only TOG but everything else, and; 2) some assignment system for the two older kids so that they know what they are doing.
I'm experimenting with a couple of different spreadsheets for my own weekly overview. TOG has nothing to do with this - I always do some kind of weekly overview. However, now I have to fit TOG into it. I now begin to see why people make TOG workbooks for their kids. If I copy the pages for each child, I can just circle the appropriate reading and geography assignments and go. I can also add in the history questions, and any maps or activity pages (usually coloring pages for the younger set). Karenciavo seems to be the TOG notebook queen, and I assume I will succumb to the desire for those sexy Levenger Circa notebooks. (How sad it is that I can use the adjective "sexy" for a notebooking system.)
I have been using Pageflakes to give the older boys their assignments. They like this a great deal. I think it's a bit of a pain, but I can't think of any better options. Pageflakes lets me give them a reading list for the week, as well as daily assignments. I just have to remember to update them every week.
For years I journaled our homeschooling, using a paper planner for a basic idea, but only writing in it what we did, instead of what I planned. Now, I need an actual planner. A flexible, good planner for the Mac doesn't exist. I'm hoping Jeff will write one. It's on his list. In the meantime, I use Pages and Numbers to make up weekly sheets that tell me what each child is meant to work on in each subject on each day. I used a chart drawn up in Pages last year, and I'm experimenting with one in Numbers this year. (I'm doing this because Susie did the gruntwork of making the layout, and making it TOG compatible, so I don't have to. Ha. I mean, thanks, Susie :)
But what this means is that I'm simultaneously putting assignments into Pageflakes, making workbooks, and creating detailed plans in both Pages and Numbers. I am deep into planning Heaven or Hell, depending on your point of view. The upshot of this is that I do not yet know how much planning TOG will really require of me.
In the comments, KathyJo noted that it might be easier for a non-Christian to deal with the religious content, than a Christian of a different flavor. That may be true. I want to note that the worldview used in TOG is specifically one of providential history. If that is not your cup of tea, you are warned.
Here are some examples of Christian content we've seen this week. We had one question that asked the student to discuss John Smith's character, to think about whether or not he had the qualities of a good leader, and whether he should have been in charge of Jamestown ... and why we thought God allowed him to be the leader. That's an example of a question that's easy to modify. We simply do the first part, and ignore the second.
The student is given some Bible verses, and asked to use them to think about and discuss Galileo's positions, and why the Catholic Church was so threatened by his views. When we have the time, I don't mind at all doing an exercise like this. This can be a very interesting and informative exercise, and I want my kids to know how Christians think, and what the Bible says.
However, at the high school level, you encounter questions like: "What specific events in the story of Jamestown obviously show God's Providence at work?" And next week, at the Dialectic level: "In what ways did God provide for the Pilgrims?" Those will have to be tossed out wholesale, while I attempt to not gag.
But later on: "Using the Bible, define the qualities of a hero." Okay, we can define the qualities of a hero based on our own yardsticks. We can even compare our definition of a hero to a Biblical definition.
So it varies. There is still much we can use. Some of it we can use to learn about Christianity and Christians. And some of it will be kicked out the door.
We had our first end-of-week discussion today. It should have been on Friday, but, well, it was today, in the car on the way to and from the mall. (Captive audience!) It went really well, and was fun. Of course, encouraging Connor to discuss history is like encouraging a politician to talk about himself. Jeff enjoyed it a great deal. We particularly liked the fact that teacher's notes led us to discuss how the colonies were funded by joint stock ventures, and what that meant and how such companies work. All in all, a good discussion like this, with the whole family, is worth the price of the curriculum for me.
And oh, oh, I think the best moment for both of us was when we were discussing money and value, and Jeff asked the kids what "value" is, and Aidan responded: "Oh! Oh! Heinlein talked about this in Starship Troopers!"
Ah, the indoctrination is going well.
Posted by lynx at August 17, 2008 7:41 PM
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Comments
I agree about the sexy notebook thing, but then I'm odd that way. I've been looking for an excuse to get the Levenger Circa notebooks (though I hate the idea that it's a "system"), though I don't know if I'm ready for TOG to be that excuse...
Posted by: Becky at August 17, 2008 9:26 PM
"while I attempt to not gag" - That got a giggle here. I've run into the same issues with some otherwise excellent curriculum.
Posted by: Obi-Mom Kenobi at August 18, 2008 8:50 AM
I'm with you: those notebooks are sexy. :)
I got to thinking about my comment after I made it. I think it CAN be true, but it just depends upon exactly how pervasive the Christian content is. We've been able to easily use some Christian curricula, and some not at all. Same for other worldviews. We use a lot of secular stuff, but then I run across an occasional book that screams "atheist" instead of merely "secular," and I can't use those at all. It leads to very unChristian behavior on my part if I try. :)
I do think I'd have trouble using TOG in lot of ways. I always avoid the whole providential history thing. It's weird for me. I do believe God is in charge, and I do believe He provides for us. But I also believe in free will, and when people do rotten things, I think we should point them out as negatives, not attempt to indicate that these things were okay because they were "God's will," and I've seen just a little too much of that kind of thing.
I'm rambling, and I'm not even sure I'm making sense. :} I just finished an ass-kicking Latin lesson (Latin won), so my brain is fried.
Planning: Homeschool Tracker. Just bought it last week, and I'm loving it. Plan assignments in advance, easily add others to the daily list, move them just as easily when life happens. There's a free version, but I paid for it to get the extra features like making lesson plans that can be saved and used for multiple students over the years. http://homeschooltracker.com/ if you're interested.
Posted by: KathyJo at August 18, 2008 12:23 PM
If there were pagan curricula, I probably couldn't use half of it. I prefer straight-up secular, and I don't want an atheist bent, either.
Providential history seems dangerous to me. It gives me the willies. The teacher's notes guide you to help the student understand that if they were really Christian, then the Jamestown colonists would never have allowed themselves to be truly "disappointed." Throughout famine, disease, and fighting with the Indians, throughout all of the deaths and hardships, they would have known that God was providing. If they didn't understand and were discouraged, then it was because they were thinking of themselves, and not of God's plan.
Obviously, I'm not a good Christian. There is much to be said for keeping up your spirits, but that seems to be both an unrealistic goal. And it does seem to, as you said, Kathy Jo, to excuse some pretty awful behavior as "God's will."
Some pagan curricula actually exists. It's usually Wiccan, and it very often fails to separate matters of faith from politics. Your general pagan curricula will be pacifist, pro-environmentalism (to the extreme), and very, very liberal. (And right now, most Wiccans would argue that you cannot be Wiccan and not hold those political beliefs.) But then again, I'm one of ... six? ... pagans who also self-identifies as conservative. If *I* wrote one, no one would buy it ;-)
Posted by: Stephanie at August 18, 2008 4:37 PM
I have to say, I made a kick ass Numbers spreadsheet. It has a few problems, but it's working over here. I really need the paper to be about 2 inches wider, though. ;)
We're Messianic, which puts us in a pretty dire predicament wrt curriculum. I would probably not even agree with most Messianic curriculum, either, but that's just me. I prefer secular curriculum, but it's hard to find.
I avoided the providential TOG stuff for a very long time. In fact, the reformed viewpoint gets my goat now and again. However, there is so much to choose from, that I really like it. Your examples of discussion questions you won't be able to use are not dissimilar from my own. However, we'll probably use different viewpoints to explain our issues with the questions. I like the questions and I like that they give me a jumping off point. G1 still only answers the questions, but her answers are much better than before. I'm looking forward to the day when she starts to add her own opinions.
Oh, and the Levenger stuff? It's on it's way. I'm such a sucker. Being able to add to the notebooks will be so very nice. I did not give enough room for my girls to write their answers to the Lit questions or the discussion questions, so I need to add stuff. Plus, there were a few things I forgot. Imagine that.
Posted by: susie at August 18, 2008 6:47 PM
I had no idea you were trying out TOG!! I have been planning to, but haven't committed yet. I would be starting with Year 2 Unit 3, also! I've poured over the samples, and feel the same way you do about being able to work with it. I like discussing character qualities, and I also want my daughter to have a solid understanding of Christianity, since it is the major religion here. We're doing about a month of Native Americans before we hit the colonial times, so I'll be anxiously awaiting more posts from you! =]
Posted by: genie at August 20, 2008 8:53 PM
Thanks for the overview.
Posted by: Rose at August 22, 2008 8:16 AM