When the youngest of our three children was not quite four months old, we moved from Washington to Idaho. By the time our eldest turned four, we had settled in and found a church home. When I could grab the time, usually after the children were in bed, I read as much as I could about home education. Once I felt I had a solid foundation regarding the why of homeschooling, I became interested in the how. And that meant getting familiar with curricula.
One of my new friends had children a few years older than mine. She had been homeschooling her kids from the beginning; they had never been to traditional schools. I wanted to pick her brain about what curricula she used in the first year or two of her kids’ education. So, I invited my friend and her children over for a play date and a moms’ chat. Her boys were happy to keep my little boys busy while we moms visited.
I had already devoured books by Raymond and Dorothy Moore that my friend had recommended. It did not escape my notice how well socialized her boys were, talking easily with adults and helping entertain the younger ones. So, I definitely respected my friend as an experienced homeschooler. Today I describe her as my first mentor.
We sat down at my kitchen table with our cups of coffee. She had brought a tote bag with samples of early elementary curricula. I’m not sure what I expected, but when she pulled out Cuisinaire Rods, I was transported back in time to my first and second grade teacher’s classroom. Mrs. Norman was my teacher for both grades. I had completely forgotten, but seeing these unique math manipulatives brought back my early joy of learning in a rush of nostalgia.
My friend had used these colorful wooden rods based on a cubic centimeter with the Miquon Math curriculum. She showed me how the rods were used on the workbook pages— fun shapes to form and color, concepts of addition and subtraction presented, and more. I was so excited that I decided right then that I wanted to use this math curriculum for first, second and third grades. Of course, I discussed it with the principal of our homeschool—my husband—and he agreed. It proved to be a good choice for all of our children.
You might be thinking, “What a crazy way to choose curriculum.” And you might be right. But I would argue that the primary teacher, usually Mom, needs to be enthusiastic about teaching. This translates to getting excited about methods of teaching, and that includes curricula. After all, how are you going to instill a love for learning in your children, if you are bored with the curriculum or worse—you hate it?
I leave you with a view of Sabino Canyon nestled in the Santa Catalina Mountains in the Sonora Desert. This photo was taken a couple of springs ago when the mountains received enough winter snowfall to fill the creek bed in the spring.