3rd grade, this time around

I didn't start working out my hoped-for plans for elementary school until this year, so M and S are not on my ideal schedule.  M is zooming through my hoped-for items for kindergarten, first, and second grades, and we are wrapping up a few things.  For M to graduate to fourth grade, here's what I am hoping we will accomplish.

We have a history of starting a unit study and having it accidentally drag out for months, so that everyone is completely done with the subject and we still might not have hit all the important points.  I am working on that.  My hope is for us to spend 1-2 weeks on each unit and then move on.  This will require a lot more planning from me, but hopefully it will be worth it.  For their social studies, I want them to do two weeks on each unit in rotation - so two weeks of studying a Native American tribe, two weeks on a country somewhere in the world or an area in the U.S., two weeks of learning about one of the many ways our bodies and minds can be different, and two weeks off (for me to plan the next few weeks).  Because we live in North America, I want the kids to spend some extra time and attention learning about where we live, which is why they are studying the Americas as well as world history.

This is a work in progress.  As we complete unit studies, I will update the blog with what we used.  I have used elements from several different programs as well as my own research and selections.  If you use Torchlight, Build Your Library, and Blossom and Root, there are definitely options that were part of each of those programs.  Their reading lists are all available on their websites for free, and I have actually purchased each of the programs, so I don't feel that I am violating copyright or giving away any part of anyone's property.

All of our unit studies put an emphasis on books that are written by and for the people that we are studying.  Where this isn't possible, we talk about what biases the author and illustrator might bring to the project.  (It's usually possible, though.  At a minimum, there are usually white authors and illustrators who have lived in and spent time with the population that they are writing about, but it is best to use Own Voices.  Even with the best of intentions, white authors and illustrators will have a different perspective from someone who is writing about their own culture.)  All of the unit studies should include music and art made by and for the culture that is being studied, with an emphasis on women artists (as these are often not studied).

Originally, I wasn't too worried about making sure that the kids got a fair dose of US geography until we were actually studying the US, since we live here and are constantly exposed to information from here.  However, I was wrong.  The kids were often surprised to hear that something was a state or a territory, so we started US unit studies too.   ("Mom, what's Ohio?"  Not cool.)

Here's our plan, for now.

History - Americas:
  • Unit studies of Alaska and the midwest of the USA
  • Unit studies of twelve Native American tribes (child's choice on which tribes to consider, but local tribes should be on your list as much as possible)
    • 1 Haudenosaunee
    • 2 Cherokee
    • 3 Inuit (we did a more in depth exploration later, so I will update with a new link once I get that post put together)
    • 4 Southern Utes
    • 5 Uintah/Ouray Utes
    • 6 Ute Mountain Utes
    • 7 Navajo
    • 8 Paiute
    • 9 Goshute
    • 10 Shoshone
    • 11 Native Hawaiian
    • 12 (subbing Mongolia at the kiddo's request)
World History: Ancient History 2
World Religion: 
  • Unit studies on Judeo-Christian basics. For an overview of Islam and Orthodox Christianity, and books that would be age-appropriate for learning about these religions, there are lots of options in our Jordan unit study and playlist.  I also like the podcast Bible Stories for Heathen Children for faithfully told but not religious renditions of Bible stories.  My 8yo loves it.  It also often puts him right to sleep, so it is doubly awesome at bedtime.  Robbie is very careful to not hate on Christianity but is also not a practicing Christian.
  • Unit studies on Islam.
Citizenship:
Languages:
  • ASL
Science: Pick and choose as desired
Geography:
Math:
Coding:
  • Python or JavaScript
Art:
Artist Study - 6 unit studies per year (child's choice, but include at least two by BIPOC artists and at least two by women artists)
1 - Tomie de Paola
2 - George Lucas
3 - Diego Rivera
4 - BIPOC
5 - Frida Kahlo
6 - female

Artistic Practice
  • Daily drawing
Music:
  • Why Beethoven Threw the Stew (And Lots More Stories about the Lives of Great Composers) by Steven Isserlis
  • Lives of the Musicians: Good Times, Bad Times (and What the Neighbors Thought)
  • choice of Stories in Music: Carnival of the Animals, Stories in Music: Juanita, The Spanish Lobster, Stories in Music: Peter and the Wolf, Stories in Music: The Sorcerer's Apprentice, and Stories in Music: The Tortoise and the Hare
  • Story of the Orchestra : Listen While You Learn About the Instruments, the Music and the Composers Who Wrote the Music!
  • The Composer Is Dead
  • The Instruments of the Orchestra (free on Spotify and Amazon Prime)
  • Composer Study - 6 per year (child's choice, but include at least two BIPOC composers and at least two female composers, and at least one contemporary composer)
    • 1 BIPOC
    • 2 BIPOC
    • 3 John Williams
    • 4 contemporary
    • 5 Edvard Grieg
    • 6 female
Instrument:
  • Trumpet
Handwork and Life Skills:
  • Knitting
  • Whittling
  • Cooking favorite meals
  • Baking favorite treats
  • Crochet
  • Hiking safety - animals, plants, first aid, insects, 
  • Plant a vegetable garden
  • different kinds of composting 
  • Make candles
  • Fire safety
  • Physical Education
  • Attain Bear rank in Scouts
Typing:
  • Dance Mat Typing
  • Burning Cargo
Social Studies - 12 country studies per year (child's choice, but be sure that there are two countries from each of the continents (other than Antarctica))
  • 1 Alaska
  • 2 Midwest of USA
  • 3 Scotland
  • 4 Kenya
  • 5 African country TBD
  • 6 Brazil
  • 7 South American country TBD
  • 8 Oceania country TBD
  • 9 Oceania country TBD
  • 10 European country TBD
  • 11 Japan
  • 12 Jordan
  • Bonus: Mongolia
Literature: (When a series is suggested, read the first book, and if the child likes it, feel free to continue! I include all the books in a series to be thorough, not because all are necessary.)  I like to do a unit study on Little House and books about similarly aged children in the same time period because I feel that it allows kids to begin thinking about differing perspectives of the same event, and of how families are both similar and different.

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