Setting Up the Sonlight Cores

We are on a three week break right now. And by we, I really mean the children. I have been spending most of my spare minutes planning for the start of our new year. And I am finding that, even though I am using a curriculum that bills itself as "open and go" there is still a ton to do to get things ready. I was hoping to have the bulk of it done this week, but it ain't going to happen. I do have Core P 4/5 and Core C mostly set up though!

Core P 4/5 Shelf

Core C Shelf

This is what I did to get set up for the Cores:

• I set up the binder for my Instructor Guide, which just involved putting the sheets behind the correct tabs and adding in the Language Arts sheets.

• I realized I should have bought a bigger binder since P 4/5 plus Language Arts K makes for a rather stuffed binder! Oh, well.

• I took a few minutes to look through the Instructor Guides to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything and penciled in any substitutions I am planning on.

• I printed out Sonlight's schedule  for the Getty-Dubay handwriting book, and added that to our P 4/5 binder. Incidentally, even if you don't use Sonlight, these schedules are super helpful! I never know how much to have the kids do in a day. I wish they had a schedule for Zaner-Bloser, for James.

• I gathered together the books we will need, using the lists in the IG, and cleared off some shelf space. This year, each child is going to get their own shelf to keep their stuff on because I am sick and tired of hunting around every five minutes for someone's lost book. Naturally they will keep their shelves perfectly organized and never lose anything again, right? Don't laugh, let me live in my dream awhile longer;).

• I debated my math decision for Rose and James again. I was planning to do math very informally for Rose, just with math storybooks from the library, but I have decided to order Singapore Essentials A & B instead. It's cheap and it will be easier than trying to dig out appropriate math books at the library every week. I decided that James and I will do Math Mammoth 3 along with Life of Fred.

Two children (mostly) organized, two to go:). Whew!