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Miss L is in 8th grade this year and we have struggled to figure out what materials would be best for her. Her interest lies strongly in dance and many new opportunities have come her way this year due to her hard work last year and through the summer. We know that she needs to have a good strong foundation in all areas of education and are trying to set her up for success in all areas.
The plan is slowly taking form. Here is what we have at this time.
Math – CTCMath – This has short but helpful lessons that Miss L can handle them well. She is learning and doesn’t mind the lessons. Between the videos, the online questions, and the worksheets, she is doing well. You can read our CTCMath review that we posted recently if you want to know more.
Language Arts/Literature – Grammar is going to be Easy Grammar Lessons. This is a 5 minute daily review of grammar, punctuation, and other grammar needs. For writing, she will continue with Jump In. We posted a review on it last spring. Literature will be a continuation of the poetry study she was using at the end of last spring from Memoria Press.
History – We reviewed a study from Memoria Press a few years ago titled Famous Men of Rome. Miss L will begin this study that consists of the people that are part of the history and legends of Rome.
Science – This is where we are really struggling. Her true desire is to have a study that resembles the style of learning that she did when she used Something’s Fishy at Lake Iwannafisha a while back. She wants to have mysteries to solve or figure out while having to learn bits of different types of science to gain the information she needs to find the solution. This is extremely hard to find and, honestly, her brain is far beyond mine in this realm so I can’t figure out how to write it. We were talking last night and perhaps she will actually write her own, making the writing of it her education. Until we settle that part of it, she is going to be using a book we found at the local educational retailer – Forensic Investigation: Using Science to Solve Crimes. It is published by Mark Twain Media/Carson-Dellosa Publishing. It will only take her a couple of months, at the most, to complete.
PE/Art – This is going to be dance. She has about 10 hours of dance a week scheduled between her classes and her work as a student assistant. Once in a while, I hope she will join me in creating a piece of visual art, as I am really enjoying my current subscription to Creating A Masterpiece’s drawing lessons. These are a new set of lessons available and will be sharing a review of them soon. (This link is to a previous review of their art lessons from a couple of years ago.)
Music – She will continue her study of violin and will be taking private lessons this year.
Those are the plans for 8th grade. It will be a lovely year for her! Do you have an 8th grader or middle school student? I would enjoy hearing what you are using. Feel free to share your plans in the comments.
Blessings,
Lori, At Home.
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Tagged: education, electives, Middle School, TOS
At Home 
This sounds like a great lineup. I love that she is going to write her own mystery. I think that will be a fun challenge for her.
It will. I hope it goes well!
I hope she’s able to figure out the detective thing… sounds like a fantastic way to learn bits of science… in a way that matters.
Yea, not yet, though we are strongly learning towards her writing her own and seeing how that goes. We’d start with an idea to research and have her write from there, I think. I am also looking into case studies. There are several books on case studies that might be interesting to use for her when she finished the forensics book she is working on.