5th Grade Curriculum Picks

This post is all about our 5th grade curriculum picks.

I can’t believe I will be homeschooling a 5th grader this upcoming school year. I’m a little nervous but excited to be on this journey with my daughter. I am a relatively new homeschool mom – this is only our third year – but I believe that every year, not only has my child grown and learned, but I have as well.

This year, I’m focusing more on teaching my child independence, which is a crucial skill for her future education. Keeping that in mind, our curriculum choices are as follows:

 Math

We’re sticking with whats been working for her. The Good and the Beautiful math course is both beautiful to look at and academically strong. I love their approach to simple daily lesson that include fun activities and games. The course covers advance multiplication, division, geometry, graphing, measurement, and so much more. I’m glad that math 4 now includes video lessons. This is where she becomes more independent. She will watch a video then do a mini lesson based on what she just learned.

  Click for link to this course book

Then comes the lesson practice where she will apply what she just learned. Once she is finished, her next step is the review.

One reason I really like The Good and the Beautiful Math is that they teach in a spiral format. This means they keep going back to previous concepts to make sure the child really understands and remembers what they’ve learned.

Next, the course book includes a mental math workbook that we work through together. Afterward, I review her work to see if she needs more help or if any answers need correcting and redoing.

I cannot say enough good things about this math course. My daughter loves it and is learning, and I love that she is growing up loving math. I cannot say that was my experience as a child, so it makes me very happy to have found this course.

Language Arts & Literature

Not a surprise but this year we are continuing with the Good and the beautiful. Their language arts course is Amazing, I have seen my daughter’s vocabulary, grammar, punctuation and writing skills grow so much since we began The Good and The Beautiful Language Arts & Literature courses.

  Click for link to this course book.

This year flipping through it I love all the illustrations that are in the course book so relaxing and beautiful to the eye. A lot of the illustration are used for observation and appreciation of art.

 

This course book comes with four assigned reading books that will be incorporated through out the course. One of the benefits of choosing this course is that as a parent you can have complete peace of mind that your child is not reading something that is inappropriate or goes against you morals or faith believe as a family. One of the standards of The Good and The Beautiful is that children read literature that is character growing, uplifting and positive. At this age their characters are forming and we want our children to read books that are building them on a solid foundation of empathy, loyalty, kindness, love, and unity for others and the world around them. Books play a significant part of our children’s education. So all that to say that I am glad this course comes with the assigned reading.

 

Now these four books are not the only books my daughter will be reading this year. What we do is assign an additional reading time and for her, usually it’s right before bed. She loves to have her little night light and reads until lights out. I will be sharing in an upcoming post what books she will be reading through out the year. If you are interested look out for that post.

Last but not least the course incorporates geography and watercolor painting. My daughter loves art so I am glad the break off some of the lessons to paint, Its so fun for her and she looks forward to these lessons. What can I say to get some geography throughout this course is amazing. You don’t have to add another geography curriculum to your list. It’s already added into the course.

 

If you are undecided for language Art this year. And don’t want to commit to purchasing the whole bundle one of the great things about The Good and The Beautiful is that for Language Arts (K-8) and Math (K-7) you can print them for free. So I would suggest if you are on a budget or just want to look over some lessons you can print them and see if it’s something you and your child can work with.

 Handwriting

We are continuing with The Good and the Beautiful handwriting curriculum.

This year she is in workbook 5. This workbook incorporates family, faith, high moral character, nature, and the beauty of human life.

You may be asking how a simple handwriting workbook includes all of that. That’s why I continue to choose this company because it’s more than just academics, they care about the character growth of children. Lastly, I do love that the lessons include drawing and coloring.

 

Heritage Studies

In our first year, we used The Good and the Beautiful History Year 1 and we really enjoyed the curriculum. We had planned to continue to year 2, but unfortunately, they discontinued the courses. Last year, I attended a homeschool convention and came across BJU Press Homeschool.

Click for link to this course book.

BJU is a curriculum that is written with a biblical worldview, covering K3-12 core subjects and offering the option of parent-led or video lessons. For our needs this year, we are continuing with the online video lessons.

As a parent, I appreciate the online parent portal where we have access to test grades and can keep organized as they map out the year for us. In the child’s account, all they have to do is log on and their assignments are organized. If any tests are needed, it prompts the child on their daily schedule, and we get the results of the assignments.

Even though the teaching is online, I also like that she has a physical activity manual and textbook she will use throughout the whole course. Heritage Studies 5 includes a study of civics and government and evaluates events in United States history from the pre-Columbus era to 2015, all from a Christian worldview.

Science

This year, for science, my goal is to complete one science unit per semester. The first two units my daughter has chosen are Mammals and Space Science. We’re still deciding on the last two, but once we finish these, I’m sure my daughter will be excited to pick the next two.