I love using the Robinson Curriculum (RC) as the base of our children's education. I do add on some extra targeted activities as I see fit. How I keep these extras organized is in a "bonus file."
During my weekly lesson planning time I open them up (I have one for each student) and see if something I've picked up would fit in that week. These may be skills I'd like to introduce to them or holes I'm attempting to fill or just topics I think they would enjoy. I aim for no to low prep for me and minimal guidance needed, especially for the older student.
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What could go in a bonus file? Some people want a very detailed checklist and then they try to find resources to match it. I, personally, like to take a glance to get an idea of skills that are possible to work on and then browse and pick things up as inspiration strikes. One such list I enjoyed taking a gander at is found at The Waldock Way. Just don't look if it will overwhelm you! Back to the bonus files.
Starting with Will. He's beginning second grade. I've shared my plans for the year in a previous post HERE. So the main education diet has been met and this is more like second helpings.
We started the Fact and Opinion Fairy Tales in first grade. Really sweet activity. I was doing one on Tuesday's and we hadn't quite finished it so I plan on finishing up this year. Every once in a while you've got to switch math up with a game day. The quotation and punctuation may be redundant as he has grammar and writing resources already but I'll keep them on hand in case he needs more. One day I'd like to add a craft to the bonus file but right now I do so many hands on things with my preschooler that the older two join in with I don't worry about it.
On to Everett's Bonus File.
He has long had a fascination with the Titanic tragedy so when I saw this I had to pick it up. I also came across this nonfiction text structure resource and thought it looked good. I printed everything out, got rid of anything I didn't want to use, and organized everything into structures. I'll probably bring out one of these every other week until they're done. There's an assessment activity as well to see if it stuck. I think there's value to exposing my kids to these terms and thinking patterns without the pressure of testing and grades, just for edification.
So, we'll see how these serve us this year. Do you do something similar? Are you a secret curriculum junkie like me? Or not so secret? Let your freak flag fly, don't be ashamed! Homeschool is cool!
Check out my RC inspired resources HERE.
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