My younger kids all take Five in a Row (FIAR!) classes at our home school co-op using classic picture books, and it is always their favorite class each year. Maybe that’s because it truly is designed to teach them the way they are created by God to learn, in a sequential fashion, reviewing material (in this case, treasured works of children’s literature) until the child has a solid grasp of it, and using this core piece as a jumping off point to explore a variety of academic subjects. Here’s what the dear people who designed this fantastic program say about it:
Five
in a Row is more than just a set of lesson plans. It's an approach to learning
that will forever change how both you, and your children view education, books
and teaching… [it] isn't a product to be advertised, sold and marketed, but
rather a secret to be shared with your best friend.
That’s pretty neat, no? We received Volume 3 of Beyond Five in a Row
by Becky Jane Lambert to use and review. It’s designed for ages 8-12,
using chapter books instead of picture books, but could easily be used for kids
even older. It covers the following works: Neil Armstrong -Young
Flyer, The Cricket in Times Square, Marie
Curie – and the Discovery of Radium, and The Saturdays. With The
Cricket in Times Square, for example, your child can study history and
geography, mythology, currency, the mass transit system; mice, bacteria and
viruses, sleep, and neon for science; fine arts (opera, music
appreciation, perspective in drawing), character traits to avoid and pursue;
and language arts principles including how a book is organized, features of
fantasy stories and writing accents such as the importance of a snappy
opener! One volume takes about a semester to complete, but at our house
it could well take an entire year. But that’s OK, too! An
additional Christian Character Bible Study supplement that compliments all 3
volumes of Beyond FIAR is also available. The authors say that all
you’d need to add is math and grammar/spelling/handwriting to have a complete
curriculum and I can see how that is true. It’s a great way to bring in
all of those subjects (beyond the “basics”) that some of us sometimes have a
hard time getting to at home (speaking solely for myself, of course!).
Each volume sells for $24.95, or you can order the entire set together here. FIAR
is very easy to scale and adapt to a variety of ages and grade levels, so it
can truly be a wonderful part of your home school experience.
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