Megan

A Mom’s Experience with Focus on Fives

February 4, 2020 by Megan

I have a confession—I never wanted to homeschool a kindergartner. I was afraid to. My training didn’t include early childhood education. I didn’t know how to teach someone to read. And I didn’t think that I was a good enough to teach my child all the foundational skills that she would need to succeed in her education. But the Lord made it abundantly clear that I was to be my daughter’s kindergarten teacher. I wrestled with the Lord about it, and He reminded me of the promise of I Thessalonians 5:24, “Faithful is He that calleth you, who also will do it.” The Lord did equip me for the task of homeschooling my daughter, and the main means that He used was the Focus on Fives curriculum from BJU Press.

An Introduction to the Focus on Fives Curriculum

The Focus on Fives curriculum replaces BJU Press’s former kindergarten curriculum, K5 Beginnings, and it is a major upgrade. The pedagogy—or teaching methods—and the scope and sequence are very similar to K5 Beginnings, but the format is streamlined and the content, including the artwork, has been updated.

When you order the Focus on Fives textbook kit, be ready for a lot of stuff. You receive 6 teacher editions—which initially looks very overwhelming, but it’s actually wonderful because everything you need as a teacher is in one place. Your child receives 2 workbooks—a general workbook and a phonics workbook—as well as 34 full-color reading books. You’ll also get the K5 Phonics and Review Cards, the Write Now! workbook, the Phonics charts, and the teaching visuals packet.

BJU Press is releasing the Focus on Fives video course for the 2020–21 school year. Mrs. Becky Rulapaugh teaches this course. She currently teaches the K5 Math video course that my daughter loves. She’s very good at keeping my daughter engaged.

Lesson Features of Focus on Fives

Heritage Studies and Science

Every Focus on Fives lesson starts off with a heritage studies or science connection. For example, the program starts off with a unit about community helpers. We learned about police officers, firefighters and fire safety, postal workers, doctors, and dentists. The program introduces the topics with a listening story or a composition activity to encourage critical thinking skills. Some lessons also include simple activities, like demonstrating how brushing helps your teeth, to enhance comprehension.

Phonics Foundations

At the heart of every lesson is language arts instruction. BJU Press teaches children to read using a combination of a phonics-based word-family approach along with sight words. The word-family approach ensures that every new sound your child learns can be easily “hooked onto” previous knowledge, and the use of high-frequency sight words helps your child read meaningful text even before you’ve introduced all the sounds.

Language Arts

In addition to phonics instruction, the language arts portion of the lesson covers basic English topics like sentence punctuation, capitalization, the use of plurals and other concepts necessary for reading comprehension. Some lessons will also use phonics characters to help your child identify syllabic patterns to aid them in reading unfamiliar words. Finally, all lessons include handwriting instruction and practice.

Enrichment Activities

Every lesson also includes a list of enrichment activities that go along with the lesson’s topic. The teacher edition includes suggested read-alouds, games, crafts, special snacks, and more. I don’t usually have time to do all the suggested activities, but I do like to pick and choose as time allows.

Reading Books

Although we practice reading every day with short phonics stories, the highlight of our week is our reading book lesson. On those days, we unveil our “big book” of the week. These 8-page, 4-color books reinforce everything that we have learned during the previous weeks and give us good opportunities to develop comprehension and critical thinking skills.

What I love about Focus on Fives

The Focus on Fives teacher editions, in my estimation, are invaluable because they have given me the confidence to teach my daughter. Everything is laid out for me in one place, so I know exactly what I need to do each day. And even though the lessons are not scripted, the teacher edition gives me all the help I need. It’s kind of like having a relative with medical training come with you to a doctor’s appointment—that relative might not be the one in charge, but his or her expert presence certainly makes you feel more confident.

I also love how the curriculum is very flexible. It’s easy to figure out what is necessary to cover in every lesson and what is optional. If I only cover the essentials, we can get through a lesson in about 45 minutes. However, I try to include 1 or 2 of the optional activities every lesson, so usually it takes about an hour a day. And it works fine with my 4-day-a-week schedule even though it’s set up for a more traditional 5-day-a-week schedule.

But Does it Work?

I have really enjoyed seeing my daughter thrive with this curriculum. She gets excited every time I introduce a new sound or a new word family—she loves dreaming up sentences for the new words she learns. She reads with confidence, and she reads with joy. And I have confidence that she’s going to do great as she continues in her journey.

To learn more about the Focus on Fives materials, check out the subject kit on the BJU Press Homeschool website!

Tips for Restarting Your Homeschool Routine

December 17, 2019 by Megan

Do you really enjoy starting back into the homeschool routine in January?

I must confess—I don’t. Compared with the excitement of the holiday season, our normal homeschool routine seems . . . well, boring. By January, the novelty of new curriculum has worn off, and since our next long break seems eons away, it’s hard to be motivated to do schoolwork.

But are there things we can do to help make that January start date much easier on ourselves and our children? Here are a few ideas.

Consider a slow start to your homeschool routine.

Jamie Erickson, in her book Homeschool Bravely, was the one who first introduced me to the idea of starting out a new school year slowly. She writes:

Baptism by fire is a sure way to make anyone burn pretty hot. Launching the year at full-throttle on Day 1 will leave your entire family overwhelmed, especially your strong-willed child. Soft-opening your year can be the grace he needs to homeschool well. (p. 68)

This wisdom doesn’t just apply to the opening of a new school year—it can also apply to the return to homeschooling after a break of any length. Go easy on yourself and your kids. You don’t have to do an entire homeschool day on your first day back. This is homeschooling, after all.

Plan review lessons.

Sometimes when we restart school after a break, my kids have trouble remembering what we were working on before the break. And frankly, so do I! So I’ve concluded that it’s a good idea to plan some review time for our first day—it helps get us well prepared for future lessons.

Try adding something new to your homeschool routine.

The end of a calendar year brings a natural opportunity for reflection and evaluation. So ask yourself, “How’s homeschooling going? Is there something that isn’t working or isn’t going as well as I had hoped? Is my child ready for a new challenge?” January is a great time to try something new, and even small changes in your homeschool routine can rekindle excitement for learning. Below are a few ideas of things to try, but the possibilities really are endless.

Work toward a family fitness goal
Learn a new skill (sewing, knitting, wood carving, cake decorating, coding, etc.)
Form (or join) a book club or writing group
Redecorate or rearrange your schoolroom
Choose a family service project
Put together a family reading list

Restock supplies.

Don’t underestimate the positive power of new school supplies. Before you restart your homeschool, take time to purge the broken crayons, pencils without erasers, and dried out glue sticks, and take your kids shopping for new supplies. Fresh supplies will help you have a fresh start for the year.

Homeschooling is not always easy—especially the first week or so after a holiday break. But it is most definitely worth persevering in. I hope that one or more of these tips will help your family transition well into your homeschool routine in January.

Finding Downtime in a Busy Homeschool Day

November 12, 2019 by Megan

I am a homeschooling mother of four young children, but sometimes I feel more like a juggler in the circus. My days are spent trying to juggle myriads of responsibilities—laundry, cleaning, cooking, teaching, grading, planning, shopping, driving, and so on. Who has time for rest and downtime? It’s my job to make sure no responsibilities get dropped.

But not even an expert juggler can juggle forever. The stress of constant activity will surely lead to disaster. And it’s the same for us. Homeschool life can leave us feeling physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually burned out. Sometimes we need to set aside our normal flurry of activities and just rest. We homeschool moms need some downtime. How do we get it? Here are some ideas.

Make Downtime a Part of Your Routine

Homeschool moms are not the only ones who will benefit from a break from the demands of a homeschool day. Our kids need some time away from the books as well. In my homeschool, we always take a midmorning break (around 9:30) to have a snack and get some energy out. If the weather is nice—and sometimes even when it isn’t—we go outside and take a short walk or play a few minutes on a nearby playground. The exercise and fresh air helps my kids’ concentration levels and helps me manage the stress of the day.

Teach Your Kids to Rest

Only one of my children still naps during the day, but all of them have some quiet or rest time. During that hours or so they are supposed to work independently on quiet activities (coloring, writing, sewing, reading, etc.). This gives me some space to pick up a book of my own or work on a creative project, and it gives my kids the opportunity to pursue some of their own interests.

Intentionally Put Aside Your Work

After my kids go to bed, I often move into high gear; after all, these after-bedtime hours are usually the most productive hours of the day. I do get a lot done in the evening. But there comes a point when I must say “enough” and put the work aside. I need some time to decompress. And I need sufficient sleep.

In the middle of this very busy season of life, it’s often hard to take a break and claim some downtime. You may feel guilty doing it. But consider what Ruth Chou Simons writes in her book Gracelaced:

If you feel worn out, friend, it’s a pretty good indication that our infinite God made you finite for a purpose. He is reminding you that resting isn’t just a good idea; it’s His example and standard for us. Our all-powerful God does not grow weary, and yet He chose to rest on the seventh day of creation. (p. 52)

So, homeschool mom, stop and take a deep breath. You were not created to do everything. You were created to rest in the only One Who can. So enjoy the freedom to rest.

How to Develop Critical Thinking Skills in Young Children

September 3, 2019 by Megan

Critical thinking skills are essential for success in today’s society. But they’re not something you can cram into your child’s head right before they graduate. The ability to thinking critically has to be developed. And developing it takes a lot of time.

What exactly is critical thinking? Critical thinking, sometimes called higher order thinking skills, or HOTS, includes the ability to make applications, analyze, evaluate, create, and synthesize information. Critical thinkers don’t just know information; they know how to use it. They can solve problems and think for themselves.

So if the development of critical thinking skills is such a crucial part of any homeschool, how can you as a homeschool mom start developing these skills in your young children?

Encourage Imaginative Play

First of all, you can give your young children plenty of unstructured play time. Play is an important part of childhood—it is truly the “work” of children. When kids play, they have opportunities to “try out” different roles and activities. I see this a lot in my home—my youngest daughter is just starting to enjoy pretend play. Last night she pretended to be a restaurant worker, and I was the customer. Her little two-year-old mind had to work through what she needed to fill my order. I ordered tea and salad, but for me to enjoy my “meal,” she needed to bring me a cup, a plate, a pile of pretend lettuce, and a fork.

When my older daughters play, their fantasies are a lot more complex. Sometimes they’re early American settlers trying to survive in the wilderness. Sometimes they’re managing orphanages or teaching in schools. But they’re always solving problems, applying the things that they know to different scenarios and exercising their brains. They aren’t wasting time.

Ask Questions to Encourage Critical Thinking Skills

• Ask a lot of questions.

Another important way you can develop critical thinking skills in your young children is by asking them lots of questions—and not just yes-no questions. Ask them open-ended questions that require thoughtful answers. The BJU Press reading curriculum is full of this type of questioning. You can read about how these questions help build interest and develop critical thinking skills in my article “Make Reading Lessons Interesting with Questions.”

You can use this type of question in everyday conversation too. For example, my oldest daughter is a voracious reader. One evening during dinner, my husband asked her about one of the books she had just finished reading. She immediately began to summarize the plot. But my husband was more interested in the moral tone of the book, so he began asking her questions such as “Why is that character considered good? Did that character do the right thing? How do you know?” Questions like these help her to analyze and evaluate the things that she reads.

• Get them to make predictions.

Second, ask your kids questions to help them make predictions. When my kindergartner learned about dentists and dental health, we decided to do an experiment that was suggested in the BJU Press Focus on Fives teacher edition (vol. 1). I hard-boiled three eggs and soaked them in a dark-colored cola to show what sugary drinks do to your teeth. Before I placed the eggs in the cola, I asked my daughter “What do you think is going to happen to these eggs? Do you think the cola is going to be good for them?” Questions like these will help her develop cause-and-effect reasoning abilities that are necessary for making applications.

• Ask them to compare and contrast.

Finally, ask your kids to compare and contrast things. This past week, I taught my kindergartner about the letter e. She was having difficulty writing the uppercase E and kept writing the numeral 3. So I started asking her questions: “How does an E look like a 3? What’s different about it?” This comparing and contrasting exercise helped her distinguish between the two because it helped her analyze the parts of each one.

Allow Your Kids to Fail (and Help Them Learn from It)

Our kids will never learn to think for themselves if we do all their thinking for them. So give them permission to try new things, and be prepared to let them fail. When I was about eleven, my mother was so sick one night that she let my brother and me make dinner without her supervision. We ruined thirteen potatoes that night learning how not to cook a potato. But we did eventually figure out a way to cook them to everyone’s satisfaction. Sometimes the best way to learn how to do something is to experience what doesn’t work.

Additional Resources

If you’re interested in learning more about the importance of critical thinking and how BJU Press homeschool materials develop critical thinking skills, check out the following articles.

Learning Styles and Multisensory Learning

August 6, 2019 by Megan

What kind of learner is your child?

I remember being asked that question as a first-time homeschool mom when I was attending a homeschool convention. It was a moment of panic as I realized that I didn’t have an answer. But surely after a few weeks of homeschooling, I will know, I thought. But I didn’t. Fast forward several years, and I still don’t have a neat answer. I know my children better than anyone else, but I’ve found that learning styles aren’t as big of a deal as some people think.

Defining Learning Styles

What exactly are learning styles? According to educational experts, the four basic learning styles are: auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and read/write. (They’re sometimes referred to by the acronym VARK).

Visual Learners: Visual learners need to see pictures. If your child is a visual learner, use plenty of pictures, graphic organizers, maps, and so on to help him or her grasp new information.

Auditory Learners: If your child is an auditory learner, he or she will learn best by listening to someone (through a lecture, audiobook, video with sound, etc.). In order to remember information, these learners often repeat it out loud, set it to music, or perhaps even make up a short poem about it.

Read/Write Learners: Some people learn best by reading information or copying it down. If your child is a read/write learner, provide lots of books and encourage taking notes.

Kinesthetic Learners: Kinesthetic learners are tactile learners. They need to touch, and they need to move. Hands-on activities and experiments are great for learners of this type.

The Limitations of Learning Styles

I’ve found that even though it’s helpful to know your child’s preferred learning style, it isn’t essential. What you should be aware of, however, is that most children don’t fit neatly into a single category. For example, one of my daughters seems to use three of the four learning styles at different times. She does great with hands-on activities and moves almost constantly, but she also learns well when she can see pictures, when someone asks her questions out loud, or when information is set to music.

To further complicate things, often a child’s learning style will change over time. Most young children need a lot of hands-on learning, but as they mature and their brains develop, they may do better with another learning style.

The Strengths of Multisensory Learning

So what does all this mean for the homeschool mom? Homeschooling is all about being able to give your child the individual instruction that he or she needs to excel. So pay attention. When your child struggles to grasp a concept, try a different approach. But instead of trying to tailor all your teaching to a specific learning style (and exhausting yourself in the process), consider using a multisensory approach instead.

A multisensory approach, as the name implies, incorporates multiple senses into the learning process. Experts believe that children taught with a multisensory approach retain information better because they have more opportunities to connect with what they are absorbing.

Examples of Multisensory Learning

This multisensory approach to learning is one of the strengths of the BJU Press curriculum. It isn’t designed for only one type of learner—it’s a curriculum for all types of learners. I’ve taught three (very different!) children with the BJU Press curriculum, and it has fit each of them

For example, this year my kindergartner is using the K5 Math digital learning program from BJU Press. The first lesson was about identifying a circle. The teacher showed examples of circles (visual), described what a circle looked like (auditory), and invited students to finger-trace circles (touch). This multisensory lesson was exactly what my daughter needed.

BJU Press also recognizes that multisensory teaching is particularly helpful when teaching reading to young children. At this age children still think on a very concrete level, so getting their senses involved will help them better understand what they are reading.

For example, last year, when I was teaching Reading 2 to one of my daughters, I noticed that she was struggling with a particular selection titled “Philip and His Pets” because she had no experience with some of the types of pets mentioned in the story. So we went to the pet store and observed all those animals. It was an extremely helpful experience that increased both her understanding of the story and her appreciation of it.

If you’re interested in more examples of multisensory learning in math, science, and history, be sure to check out some of our previous blog posts.