4th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Choices | 2022-2023 | Secular |

In this video I share and discuss my daughters curriculum choices for her 4th grade year.

[@apkuroviski]

❤

[@numbersandstars]

Awesome choices Michelle! Thank you for sharing! It is amazing to see how much your daughter reads and I am glad to hear Math has gone so well for you guys.

[@michellegf]

Thank you! My daughter is definitely a book worm 📚🐛. She constantly has a book in her hand! Math can still be a struggle at times, but her math anxiety and self confidence have improved so much over the last year 😁

[@numbersandstars]

@@michellegf Praise God!

[@katrinalamphere5700]

I am a big fan of word ladders! Spelling, vocabulary, handwriting all in one, short exercise a day!

[@user-vg8ez9cu6u]

Hey Michelle, Glad you picked up the Vocab Workshop. It's excellent preparation for PSATs. I plan to use Word Ladders as filler throughout the year. I'm curious as to why you are doing LL at all if you already have Torchlight etc. in the mix. And you're doing MCT for grammar and IEW for writing, which form the other two legs of LL.

[@michellegf]

LL provides reading comprehension and literary analysis. My daughter also reads all the books in LL independently so it covers independent reading for her. She reads a lot, but I find having assigned readers really helps her explore other genres and books she doesn’t typically gravitate towards. Most of the resources in Torchlight are read alouds not independent books. I like how the grammar lessons are short and related to the story, so she is able to see how the grammar is incorporated into a sentence. MCT is a great foundation but doesn’t really offer a lot of opportunities to practice different grammar rules. As far as writing, IEW provides great structure but lacks in creativity. I’m hoping my daughter can take the skills learned from IEW and apply them when doing the LL composition assignments. That is one of the reasons we do IEW in summer and LL during the school year.

[@user-vg8ez9cu6u]

@@michellegf i see. Thanks for explaining. Makes sense.

[@MindfullyLiv]

My soon to be 4th grader is going to be doing a lot of similar things! We're in the middle of IEW right now and we also will be doing MCT, Town level. Building Language was my sons favorite part of MCT this last year, he thought it was so fun. We also do Singapore Math though we do the original Primary option. I've also seen Word Ladders all over youtube this year and it actually looks like a fun way to strengthen spelling skills! I might pick it up!

[@michellegf]

It does sound like we have a lot of similar choices! I’m glad to hear Building Language was fun, I haven’t heard many people on YT talk about it.

[@megancunningham9471]

We are starting IEW 1A via an Outschool class this fall! I am really excited about it. They’ll be using the Fix It Grammar with that, too, but that’ll just be a supplement instead of our core. We are also adding in MCT with Lightning Literature. But I have decided to pick our own novels for 3rd grade instead of doing LL, and just use novel studies from TeachersPayTeachers. I am finding myself using less of the LL grammar work and preferring something more intensive for comprehension and mechanics, plus I feel a little “meh” about the 3rd grade lit choices in LL. I am so picky when it comes to books!!

[@michellegf]

It seems like we have a lot of similar curriculum choices! IEW has been great for my daughter. It seemed a bit overwhelming around week 7 or 8, but after that she has really got it down. Her writing skills and confidence have really improved! I like that LL grammar has shorter lessons and tied to the literature, however I have found my daughter needs a bit more repetitive practice to really understand a concept. MCT has been great for filling that gap. I do like that with the book suggestions it forces my daughter to read books she wouldn’t normally pick up. She found a few books thru LL that she was surprised she actually really enjoyed.

[@user-vg8ez9cu6u]

Which novel studies are you doing from TPT? I'm having an incredibly difficult time finding lessons/plans/homeschool curricula for literary analysis, Idioms, adages, etc. All the ones I am finding are feature reading comprehension, vocabulary and grammar (I don't need any of these in my lit analysis!!!).

[@EatPrayCrunch1]

Love your choices! Do you feel like the grammar portion of LL needs supplementation? I see you are doing MCT grammar in addition. Wondering if we should be adding something in addition to LL next year too.

[@michellegf]

I don’t think it needs supplementation. My daughter really benefits from repetitive practice. I like the short lessons with LL and I think they’re done well, however my daughter needs to practice a lot before she feels confident with it. I really like how MCT has a different more abstract approach to grammar. She responds to it really well and has really helped her nail down parts of speech.

[@EatPrayCrunch1]

@@michellegf Oh okay, that's great. I might just see how Alex does with LL next year and if I feel he needs a little extra practice, I'll add in something. Thanks for the feedback!

[@MrsPerdueArt]

Great lineup!! Sounds like a it’ll be a great year!!!! Are you guys continuing with Torchlight/Curiosity Chronicles? I just watched your video on level 2 and it looked so great!!

[@michellegf]

Thanks and yes we will! You will see it on my family subjects video that will premiere on Friday.

[@angelinacarraway3576]

Can u list the material u use in the description box plz

[@michellegf]

Yes, I will try to get better with that.

[@diannaannette6956]

Please do a video on what you choose for French when that time comes. I'm also curious on the organization of schoolwork, have you used or heard of the workbook system for independent learning? Any thoughts?

[@michellegf]

I will, French is a subject I will have to research more as I have no experience with it. I have not heard of the workbook system, but curious. I would love for you to elaborate.

[@diannaannette6956]

@@michellegf It's using a vertical bin system, I'm sure it's for a week at a time where all the subjects go in each bin with a visual to indicate when the work is done. The parent puts the bins in the order to get it done. You can put independent work or 1:1 subject in. When the child gets to the 1:1 they come get you to do the work. I haven't used this yet but I am thinking about it. Trial and error and see what sticks

[@michellegf]

@@diannaannette6956 sounds like a good way to organize things and promote student independence!

[@JHubz187]

Can you tell me the name of that multiplication/division books?

[@michellegf]

I got them all on bookoutlet bookoutlet.com/products/9781789503036B/super-smart-times-tables-puzzles-brain-boosters www.amazon.com/Multiplying-Dividing-Activity-Arcturus-Workbooks/dp/1839406054/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?crid=2Y63WM0T5N9ZT&keywords=multiplying+and+dividing+activity+book&qid=1657737806&sprefix=multiplying+and+dividing+act%2Caps%2C103&sr=8-5

[@christinashelton1391]

Do you school on Co-op days? Do you do any regular Bible study of any type?

[@michellegf]

Yes we do school on Co Op days. Co Op is later in the afternoon and we tend to get homeschool done in the morning/early afternoon. Co Op usually only lasts about 1 - 2hrs though. My kids attend church and Sunday school every Sunday so I’ve never felt the need to add a specific Bible curriculum. We also explore other religious traditions and beliefs throughout the year using resources like the Little Justice Leaders subscription box we get monthly. Also in the month of December we do a specific Advent study and celebrations around the world.

[@christinashelton1391]

How do you get it all done??? It seems like a lot.

[@michellegf]

It does seem like a lot when you put it all together. However not everything is done everyday and a lot of the independent subjects like health and vocabulary only take about 10 mins daily. I hope to put out a schedule video once we start everything.

[@christinashelton1391]

Oh ok thank you so much !!!! I am going to look into all about spelling. My 4 th grade can read anything but can’t spell

[@michellegf]

@@christinashelton1391 my daughter reads a lot and can spell well phonetically, but struggles with words that don’t follow the phonetic rules. AAS has been helping with that.

[@jop4112]

Regarding spelling, I've seen great progress with my daughter using the Sequential Spelling curriculum. It may be worth a look for you.

[@michellegf]

@@jop4112 Thanks for the suggestion! I’ll check it out 😃