Bloom & Be

Category: Homeschool

  • 5th Grade Homeschool: Round Two

    Okay, let’s talk about 5th grade. After our fourth grade flop, I was determined to build something better. I spent so much time on Google, digging through reviews, hunting for the right mix. Here’s where we landed:

    Language Arts

    We are using Lighting Literature. I wanted grammar, novel studies, and writing. Lighting Lit has everything but writing, so I picked up a separate workbook. So far, I really like it. It has grammar and novel studies built in in a workbook. With the novel studies, I add more; extra questions, vocab, little activities.

    My daughter hasn’t started the workbook yet, but that’s fine. We will get there.

    Math

    We’re using Math Mammoth. The website suggests taking a placement test. Did I do that? Nope. Just bought the 5th-grade workbook. Guess what? Too hard.

    So, I bought five worktexts from the blue series. Right now we’re working through the geometry one. I really like it. As a math teacher, I can say: it’s solid. Well explained, thorough, and flexible. She is also enjoying it.

    Science

    Blossom and Root. Love. Love. Love.

    It’s not a hard curriculum, and you can really tailor it. My daughter does most of her work independently. Blossom and Root uses books, videos, websites, art activities, outside work, labs. Right now she’s working on Oceanography. Later, we’ll do astronomy. I also bought the nature study, but that one requires prep, and…yeah. Maybe winter or spring. Definitely not this fall.

    History

    History was a nightmare to find. So much of what’s out there is bullshit. I never liked history as a kid. I always felt like school only gave us half the story. Turns out, I was right. We were taught half truths and total bullshit. I didn’t want that for my kid. I wanted something real and honest. I wanted a history curriculum that taught from multiple perspectives.

    Enter Build Your Library. Amazing. She’s reading so much… different perspectives, diverse voices. It’s exactly what I wanted. Honestly, I’d use BYL for language arts too if I hadn’t already bought Lighting Lit.

    Extras

    • Llamitas for Spanish
    • Outschool for Spanish & American Sign Language
    • Evan-Moor workbooks for financial literacy & spelling (easy, but decent)
    • Geography workbook (not a favorite, but we’re finishing it)
    • Spanish novel reading & listening
    • Art: KiwiCo art boxes (we’ve done 3 and loved the books they include), some BYL art, but mostly YouTube tutorials of things she wants to draw.

    We’re about a month into 5th grade. My daughter is busy and learning. I love it. This year already feels way better than 4th grade and she’s thriving.

    I’m sure more tweaks are coming, but that’s the beauty of home schooling. I can tailor her education to her.

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  • 4th Grade Homeschool: What I Tried and What Flopped

    Oh man, I went into this adventure with very little knowledge (which is so weird to say as a teacher.) What do you mean, I don’t know what I’m doing… I literally have taught hundreds of kids. Eh.

    I knew I wanted to homeschool my kid and I knew I wanted her doing more hands-on work than what she was doing in the classroom.

    I had the option of putting her in online classes through a charter, but I didn’t like that. I didn’t want her glued to her computer all day. So, I chose to buy her curriculum and facilitate it myself. More of a homeschool approach versus an independent studies approach.

    I decided to try Oak Meadow. It’s a Waldorf inspired all-in-one curriculum and seemed perfect for what I was looking for. I started going through it and I was so excited. Going out in nature, art projects, cool assignments. Well…I didn’t realize how much parent involvement it required. I needed to lead her through more of the work.

    You see, I work full-time. I’m home with her, but I can’t school my kid for 4–8 hours a day. There has to be independent work, a lot of it. So, I cherry-picked through Oak Meadow and used what worked for us:

    • Grammar ✅
    • Some language arts stuff ✅
    • A very small amount of history ✅
    • All of the math (too easy for her) ✅
    • The rest? Nah.

    I also bought some supplemental stuff:

    • Llamitas for Spanish
    • Workbooks for spelling and financial literacy
    • Outschool for American Sign Language and Spanish (her favorites by far)

    Fourth grade wasn’t the best. We made it through, but it was…meh. So I took some time over summer break and did a shit ton of research to prep for 5th grade. And wow, things are different now.

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  • Why We Homeschool

    Honestly? We homeschool because public school just wasn’t working for our family — full stop.

    The commute alone was brutal: 45 minutes, one way.
    The classroom? Loud. Overstimulating. Constantly disrupted.
    The drama? Ridiculous.
    It was just… too much.

    I wanted something gentler. Something more balanced.
    I wanted my daughter to have an individualized learning experience — not one-size-fits-all.
    I wanted to make school for her.

    So we chose to homeschool.

    Now we move at our own pace.
    We enjoy learning again.
    We embrace special interests.
    We skip the chaos; the early-morning rush, the classroom noise, and the playground drama.
    School is at home.

    I build my daughter’s curriculum using a blend of different resources. It’s a mixture of structure and freedom.
    Some days it’s math and writing.
    Other days, it’s planting seeds, baking bread, or learning about the moon.
    And sometimes?
    We take the day off because we’re both over it and that’s okay, too.

    I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to homeschool my daughter.
    It’s not always easy, but it’s ours.
    And I hope we get to keep growing through this adventure — together

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