Comparing the CMEC & the Alveary

[@a.violet5905]

I stumbled across your video doing an Alveary search, as there seem to be many more videos on the CMEC and was wondering if there was anything new. Well you're the newest video that I've found. I am a member of the Alveary and next year will be our second year. I'm very happy with the Alveary and know that I've found my forever curriculum. You hit all of the great points as to why one would want to use the Alveary for their homeschool. I love that they use both modern and classic books, as Ms. Mason herself did in her day. I also love that they are very good about using books written from the perspective of different people groups that make up our country and how the curriculum concentrates on North America. I also have a love for the CMEC (I have friends who are members), but for my family, we have found that the Alveary is the absolute best curriculum for us. Thanks for sharing.

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

Maybe the one drawback to the Mighty Network community is that so much of the sharing between Alveary families isn't available to the general public. I appreciate you sharing your experience, thanks for you comment!

[@AHeartForHomeEducation]

This is so helpful! I am a part of the CMEC this year and I’m just finding it is not quite living up to the hype, sadly. I don’t feel very supported and there is a pronounced lack of community. I thought I would get to be part of a group with other mothers teaching my same forms but that’s not the case. I’m not on Instagram so that’s not a good option for me. I have found that the outdated books, while valuable, are truly outdated. I honestly wish there was a bit more handholding, too. This curriculum is SO much work for me, and I’m finding myself burnt out already at only 6 weeks in. I know that we are true believers in the CM philosophy, but I don’t think I need to be doing exactly what paid CM teachers were doing 100 years ago. But I know that without a support system, I won’t stay accountable so I was looking into something like the CMEC but with slightly more handholding. The lesson plans sound really helpful. Do they encourage you to pre-read? Do they combine subjects for any of the forms? My son will be form 2 and my daughter form 1a lower next year and the CMEC doesn’t have a ton of support for combining forms. So judging how much works it’s been this year with two form 1 students, it will double next year and I don’t think I can do it. I’m going to stick it out this year, but I am excited to hear about Alveary and to hear the first person I’ve heard speak on leaving the CMEC.

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

Hi America! (I don't know if that's a username or your real name, but I love it!) All of the reasons you mentioned were why we chose another curriculum for the past few years, so I completely understand where you're coming from! I'm so sorry it hasn't been the experience you were hoping for, though. It's always disappointing to invest in something that isn't working. I'd definitely suggest you check out the lesson plan samples! Those are pretty much what you get, along with the book list and supplies list for each grade. They have a fast-track option for art and sol-fa, but they leave any other combining up to parents. There is usually an option to print the "full subject" LP's, like "science," or each individual "stream," for example "General Science", "Natural History", & "Nature Lore". Science, though, was recently revamped to be grade-specific, so the skills build on each other. We are still combining a group of 9 children, ages 5-12, in grade 4 science and it has been a blast, so that doesn't mean they can't be done with other ages! It just might take more student support, for example, if a student hasn't used graphs yet, or whatever skill it is. The lab books are meant to be student-led, though, so an older student could possibly do the labs by themselves. The Alveary has a private Mighty Networks platform where members can ask other members for help and support, or anyone can contact the Alveary team directly for support. They also do intermittent Office Hours where members can ask questions that are answered in a recorded zoom meeting. Anyone can join the different "groups" in the network and hear from others specifically about different topics or forms, and they encourage members to create community and we can host meet-ups and zoom meetings. The Alveary has created a self-paced "course" for members to watch excerpts from conferences or recordings about specific topics, right now there is one on the "philosophy" and one on the "methods" for each subject. There isn't a whole lot that the Alveary does directly with members beyond the Office Hours or answering direct emails, but there is still a lot of community in the members network, and they have spent a lot of time and effort in creating the LP's themselves. Hopefully that answers most of your questions, definitely let me know if you have more, though, and I'll do my best to get back to you!!

[@kazmynjohannes5163]

You sound so much like me! I am also in my first year with the CMEC with a form 1b and a form 2; I have struggled this year. I came to this so excited and hopeful. The biggest pull was the promise of community and being able to email the form leaders. But I was honestly disappointed with how those conversations go. The community is very limited and interactions are on the site are only within CMEC approved discussion topics. We’re finishing up our second term this week and I’ve been prayerfully considering if we should continue some of these books in term 3 or not. My form 1 is doing well, my main concerns are with my form 2, he is drowning under the load and I too would like to find more “hand-holding” to help him adjust from Public school to a CM/classical education.

[@RochelleWilliams-f3w]

@AmandaLynn I just wanted to personally thank you for this video, I signed up for the CMEC and although I know I will find true value I really wanted to check out the Alveary as well. It’s my first year homeschooling and I just loved the diversity and lesson plan format of the Alveary but wasn’t sure as we are UK based. I decided to take the plunge and used your code too, looking through the book selections I can honestly say I am SO excited for the coming school year all thanks to you. Thank you and God Bless you

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

Thank you SO much for your kind words! I'm so excited that you are jumping into your first year homeschooling, please feel free to keep me updated or ask questions!! The Hive is also a great resource and community. Did you catch Min J Hwang's Office Hours yesterday? There will be a recording available next week, it was as encouraging and helpful as everything she presents! Thank you, as well, for using my code. It really means a lot! Blessings to you

[@janeeawright1640]

Thanks for sharing. I had looked into both CMEC and Alveary last year. I didn’t choose either curriculum but was leaning toward Alveary because it does seem diverse and I loved the preview of the curriculums that they are releasing now. I’m really considering trying it out for the upcoming year.

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

Hi Janeea! Thanks for your comment! We have a beautiful range of cultures represented in the resources and the Alveary community, though I know no pre-made curriculum can be absolutely perfect for everyone. It would be fun to have you join, but whatever you decide I'm sure will be the best decision for your family! 😊

[@peggyblanchard17]

I used CMEC for the past couple of years and I felt at times it would be going smoothly but most of the school year I felt very overwhelmed and behind. I don't want to give up on the CM philosophy and I'm excited to try Alveary. Can you please send me the one time code I can use to get $25 off. Also I was wondering what your thoughts are on Syllabird planning tool they are offering along with the curriculum for $419 . looking forward to hearing back. Thank you for your video and insight.

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

@@peggyblanchard17 Hi Peggy! So sorry I didn't see this over the weekend, but my membership in the affiliate program ended today! Are you on Instagram? I'd suggest contacting Teresa at happy.little.schoolhouse for her affiliate code. If you're not on insta I can contact her for you, if you'd like!

[@peggyblanchard17]

Hi Amanda! Thanks so much for your response. I actually was able to find your code 2 days ago as a response to someone else that had asked you for it. And I was able to use it to get the $25 off! Will you be using Alveary for this coming school year, I would love to get an update on how your first year went. Thanks!

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

@@peggyblanchard17 Hi Peggy! I finally have a minute to give you a thoughtful response, thanks so much for being patient with me!! I hope you were able to get to the link to see that Syllabird is $120, on top of the Alveary membership fee. I signed up for Alveary first and saw that $419 fee and thought waaaaiit..... If you poke around a llitte, it's just a less-obvious link. It should be $120 if you're already a member. If you This is our fourth year with Alveary, and I'm very, very excited about Syllabird! There have been work-arounds but having it simply populate the whole lesson plan into a schedule that accounts for my real life is huge! That means if I miss two lessons somewhere, I don't have to go through my whole planner and update it.. My plan is to simply print weekly or bi-weekly, especially at the beginning of the year, so I am able to update my planner to be relevant to what we are *actually* doing! And I'm not going to print *every* lesson plan that we are using, which is what got me before... I had a HUGE binder that I was flipping through! Having plans specific to each child, plus my own plans for "family" work, will be a huge benefit to me. You absolutely don't have to purchase Syllabird, though! This is a new opportunity, so most of us haven't used it until this year! Previously, I simply printed the LP's I wanted, put them into a binder (there were too many for me to bind separately this past year, but in the past that has also worked), and flipped to them according to my weekly schedule/timetable. And of course you could also copy and paste or handwrite your LP's into a planner! There is a lot to the Alveary, and I think it usually takes a year of just jumping in to really settle in, even if you just start with a few subjects. It really is so rich and I love CM's methods, I hope it is a good fit for you. I will say most families don't do *everything*, or *every single book* in their grade. Pick what works and go from there! Let me know if you need any help!

[@kazmynjohannes5163]

Hey! Thanks for the video. May I ask, how the Alveary approaches Geography? That was one of our toughest subjects this year with the CMEC. I’ve read Miss Mason’s work and I understand the general scope and the components, but I would like to see how to practically carry that out in a more modern way.

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

Hi Kazmyn! The Alveary uses books about people or events that happened in the time period that is being studied that year, with excellent map questions right in the lesson plans. The only exception is 1st-3rd grade, which has a set geography curriculum that isn't based on the time frame but on basic geographic concepts. I'd definitely suggest you check out the Alveary's "Samples" page!

[@ErynHjelle]

Amanda, what is your code?

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

I don't have it memorized, but it should be in the description box!!

[@carissajansson]

Hi can I get the code?

[@AtmosphereDisciplineLife]

At this point, my membership in the Alveary affiliate program has ended. Please contact Teresa at happy.little.schoolhouse on Instagram or another wonderful affiliate for their code! Thanks for all the support!!

[@carissajansson]

@@AtmosphereDisciplineLife thank you