Our school week is usually completed in 4 days. We use a Loop Schedule where we work for a designated amount of time on each subject before moving on to the next. After their work is completed for the day the kids are allowed to have independent studies were they can study whatever their little hearts desired.
Our 5th day is an optional day that we use to complete unfinished work or for other activities as we choose.
Please click HERE for a list of resources that we have purchased from Amazon and other suppliers.
Click on the links below for the series you would like to view/use. I will update these links as we get them finished.
Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.
**Although I try to provide as many FREE resources as possible this post may contain affiliate links alt no extra cost to you. We may earn a small commission, if a purchase is made through these links, which helps to support our blog and our family. Thank you!
NOTE: My kiddos were 5, 6, 9, 11, and 15 at the time we created study unit. Some ideas may need to be changed/adjusted for older kids.
Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.
Introduction:
We have been using the Little House on the Prairie Books for our homeschool this year and my kids are loving it. I have scoured the internet for resources to make our learning experience as fun and exciting as possible. This series of posts is a compilation of different resources we have found and used in our home. Please note that some of these may have been FREE at the time I found them and prices and/or availability may have changed. Feel free to leave your own links in the comments section below.
I also want to take a moment to thank all of these wonderful people who put together so many wonderful resources for all of us to use with our children. I know that many hours, blood, sweat, and tears went into these projects but your work is greatly appreciated!
We will be reading the noted selection for the week as well as discussing what we have read. I may come up with other questions as well. Kids are curious and I know we will have many questions which may lead to some research in other areas.
We will also be working on reading through a few books, see Kirby’s Kids Grade by Grade Homeschool Reading List , for each different grade level. The older kids (ages 9 & 11) will have some independent reading while the younger ones (ages 5,6, and my special needs son who is 15 but at a Kindergarten level) will have a mixture of read alouds, read alongs, and independent reading.
You should keep a record of the books read. You can do this in a notebook or using this printable HERE.
You may also like to check out these links for book reports:
My kids are loving these new pencil grips we got recently!
Vocabulary/Spelling:
We will be doing various activities for this area. We will be looking up definitions, matching words, putting the words in alphabetical order, and a variety of other activities.
The vocabulary words could also be used as spelling words, if you choose to do so. We are also using these resources below:
There will be a variety of creative writing ideas as well. I have tried to vary them and offer choices to help encourage writing. We will also be doing various writing assignments in some of other areas as well.
These are just some of the other activities that I am incorporating into the lessons with my kiddos as we are all at different learning levels. I put these in here to keep me organized so I don’t ‘forget’ something. In our Group activities I include a lot of reading out loud books that may seem ‘young’ but my older kids missed out on some of these nursery rhymes and such when they were younger due and they really enjoy listening to them as they work. Many of the titles can be found at your local library too!
I will add links to worksheets I find or make as we go through the unit. For a general guideline of skills your child should know by grade level click HERE.
I have pulled a lot of the material from the book for the worksheets listed down below.
Many of the ideas have been pulled from the following resources:
We use Ray’s Arithmetic Books for Lessons (Newer versions available here.) but you can also find free lessons online or simply buy a workbook from your local dollar store.
Note about Ray’s Arithmetic Books: These can be a little confusing at first but the Parent/Teacher guide is so useful! I have found that the books are in order as follows:
1st/2nd grades: Ray’s New Primary Arithmetic
3rd/4th grades: Ray’s New Intellectual Math
5th/6th grades: Ray’s Practical Arithmetic
7th/8th grades: Ray’s Higher Arithmetic
I have used a lot of the examples from the book to create the worksheets you will find listed below. **ANSWER KEY password: momsrock (highlight blank area)
You can also find FREE Lessons with these links:
You can find FREE math lessons at Easy Peasy All-In-One Homeschool and we have used this for a few years and will probably go back to it at some point.
Many of the ideas have been pulled from the following resources:
Which Way Usa Magazines by Highlights (This link is for the whole subscription set but I have provided links on each week for puzzle books that go with the lesson.)
We will also be studying different lessons from Mystery Science which is a site that the kids LOVE! We have found a lot of FREE lessons on this site. (You do need a membership to access all of the site.)
YouTube can be a great resource for educational videos.
We often have some ‘Free Play’ outside whenever the weather allows as well.
Life Skills:
This area contains our lesson plans for a few different areas that I have included with our ‘Life Skills’. You will find lessons on cooking, cleaning, and organization as well as bible memory work and character training. All of these will go together to help raise our children into the responsible and caring citizens of tomorrow.
You can find a FREE printable log for keeping track of memory work here:
We will be discussing some of the character qualities that are displayed in the book but if you would like to do a separate character study lesson you can download one HERE.
Music, Arts & Crafts:
These lesson plans include Music, Arts, and Crafts. Choose one or two ideas/day as desired.
Many of the ideas have been pulled from the following resources:
Remember: These are the lessons and activities that we used while doing this study but you can do anything your heart desires to make this a great adventure for you and your kids!
These are divided into weekly work as we like to use Loop Scheduling in our home. We simply work on a little bit and then move on to the next subject area. We have four days of ‘school’ and then the fifth day is used to finish up projects that we have been working, for independent study, or fun activities and field trips. Have fun on your Little House on the Prairie Academic Adventures!
Here are our Lesson Plans For Language Arts
These lessons were made to go along with ‘On The Banks Of Plum Creek‘ written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. We are planning to go through the whole series and I am keeping track of the different topics we are learning about here on my blog. We hope you enjoy these as much as we have!
You may find it easier to buy a Workbook for your children to work through as you go along with the rest of the study.
Answer Key Password: momsrock
Mornings:
We start every morning off with our prayers and the Pledge of Allegiance. Below is a picture of the prayers that we say and a video of the Pledge of Allegiance.
Not the prettiest example but that’s what we’ve been using for the past few years.
Don’t have a flag? Grab one HERE and print it out to put up somewhere… you could even let the kids make a flag to proudly display. Amazon also has some little ones like this one HERE and HERE.
After this, we have our calendar time also where we go over such things as the Days of the Week, the months, and some basic math.
This one came from Lakeshore Learning.
The younger kids will also be watching some of these videos while I work with the older ones:
And we will be trying out some relaxing background music with Google.
Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.
Week 1: Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6
(The Door in the Ground, The House in the Ground, Rushes and Flags, Deep Water, Strange Animal, and Wreath of Roses)
We plan to use this FREE Lapbook to go along with our study.
Reading:
Read Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6
You can read it or let the kids help to read it aloud.
**BE SURE TO SAVE A FEW SAMPLES OF YOUR WORK FOR YOUR PORTFOLIO! TAKE PICTURES OF BIG PROJECTS!
**This post does contain affiliate links to products and/or services that we use. We may earn a teensy weensy small commission (at NO EXTRA cost to you) if a purchase is made through these links. These links help to support our family, our blog, and our homeschooling mission.
Our school week is usually completed in 4 days. We use a Loop Schedule where we work for a designated amount of time on each subject before moving on to the next. After their work is completed for the day the kids are allowed to have independent studies were they can study whatever their little hearts desired.
Our 5th day is an optional day that we use to complete unfinished work or for other activities as we choose.
Please click HERE for a list of resources that we have purchased from Amazon and other suppliers.
Click on the links below for the series you would like to view/use. I will update these links as we get them finished.
Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.
**Although I try to provide as many FREE resources as possible this post may contain affiliate links alt no extra cost to you. We may earn a small commission, if a purchase is made through these links, which helps to support our blog and our family. Thank you!
Mornings:
We Start every morning off with our prayers and the Pledge of Allegiance. Below is a picture of the prayers that we say and a video of the Pledge of Allegiance.
Not the prettiest example but that’s what we’ve been using for the past few years.
Don’t have a flag? Grab one HEREand print it out to put up somewhere… you could even let the kids make a flag to proudly display. Amazon also has some little ones like this one HERE and HERE.
After this we have our calendar time also where we go over such things as the Days of the Week, the months, and some basic math.
This one came from Lakeshore Learning.
We also like to use this song during our ‘Morning Time’ to help the kids learn the 50 States.
Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.
Do you have trouble getting things done on time? Why not make a routine to help with your problems?
Use the questions below to help you get started.
What do you need a routine for?
What do you need to get completed?
When do you need to do this?
How often do you need to do these tasks?
Is there anything else you can think of that would help you be prepared?
Show your sample routine to a parent.
Bonus points if you can start using your routine consistently.
Watch this video for some sample routines for kids:
Sometimes keeping our routines visible can help us to remember what we need to do and help us to be more responsible. Watch this video below for an example that you might want to try in your home:
2. Ways to help around the house like Laura
Vacuuming is something we don’t do a lot of and I’m sure that Laura and her family didn’t either. However in order to keep our homes nice and neat we do need to know how to vacuum properly.
When we do vacuum we only move the large furniture once or twice a year to get behind it. Other than that we just clean around and under everything as we go.
How to Vacuum:
Get the vacuum.
Check to see if the bag/canister needs replaced/cleaned
Straighten the room like we learned in Week 1
Plug in the vacuum
Turn on the vacuum
Begin to vacuum in one corner and work your way around the room.
Work the vacuum back and forth, slow and steady.
Move small items as needed
Check the room for any missed spots.
Turn off the vacuum.
Unplug the vacuum.
Wind up the cord
Check to see if the bag/canister needs replaced/cleaned
Put the vacuum back in its place.
Some vacuums have special attachments for furniture and such. You may need to ask your mom or dad to show you how to use these attachments so you can help clean the couches and other items in your home.
There are also smaller hand held vacuums that can be used to clean up smaller messes. These can also be very handy when cleaning out a vehicle. If you have one of these ask your mom or dad to show you how to work it. Just remember that a vacuum is not a toy!
3. Character
We will be focusing on OBEDIENCE this unit. If you don’t have the book we used you can go HERE and download a lesson plan guide to use in your home.
Memorize: Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. – Colossians 3:20
We will be studying obedience during this unit. What is obedience?
Review what you have learned.
When your parents ask you to do something and how to do it, is it OK to do it a different way as long as you get it done?
Watch the videos below:
Who disobeyed God? How?
Did his disobedience affect others? We never know who we may hurt with our disobedience.
We need to remember to pray to be obedient so that we don’t hurt others.
4. Manners
5. Memory Verse
We will be memorizing Psalm 8 during this unit study. Print it HERE.
Work on memorizing a verse during the week for a special prize.
Verse 9: O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!
Older kids can copy the memory verse down in their notebook.
Work on saying everything you have memorized.
6. Fun Activities
Make a Nine Patch pillow using blocks like Laura and Mary were working using the instructions on pages 16-21 of My Little House Sewing Book.
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