For those interested, I'm posting a summary of our completed 1st grade year. We followed Year One of Ambleside Online's free curriculum and added in some other things we loved. Our focus is a literature-rich education 
with lots of hands-on nature study, and of course, pointing everything back to the One who created it all. I started to write about which books & activities were our favorites, but we loved them all! If you have questions about any of this, please feel free to email me!
So here is Kathryn’s First Grade Year ~ (by subject)
Language Arts:
Literature
· Tales from Shakespeare ~ by Charles Lamb
· The Blue Fairy Book ~ by Andrew Lang
· Just So Stories ~ by Rudyard Kipling
· Parables from Nature ~ by Margaret Gatty
· Aesop’s Fables
· Doors to Discovery (Reading to Learn series)
~ Additional free reading (see below)
Poetry
· A Child’s Garden of Verses ~ Robert Louis Stevenson
· When We Were Very Young ~ A.A. Milne
· Now We Are Six ~ A.A. Milne
· The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse ~ various poets
Phonics
· Explode the Code - Book 4
Penmanship
· Draw Write Now - Book 1
· Other copywork (from poems) daily
Science
· God’s Amazing Creatures devotional book
· James Herriot’s Treasury for Children
· Burgess Bird Book ~ by Thornton Burgess
· Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 1
· Weekly nature study
· Field Trips:
~ Slim Goodbody “Bodycology Tour”
~ Cagle’s Dairy tour
~ Yellow River Game Ranch
Math
· Saxon Math Grade 2
· Thinking Skills workbook Grade 1
Social Studies
Geography
· Paddle to the Sea ~ by Holling C Holling
· Map Skills workbook Grade One
· Create a notebook about the 50 states
· Study and create our own US map
World History
· Our Island Story ~ by H.E. Marshall
· Fifty Famous Stories Retold ~ by James Baldwin
· Viking Tales ~ by Jennie Hall
· Story of the World Vol. 1 ~ by Susan Wise Bauer
Biographies/American History
· Ben Franklin ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· George Washington ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Pocahontas ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Buffalo Bill ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Columbus ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Field Trips:
~ A.H. Stephens House
~ Civil War Museum
Current Events
· Weekly God’s World “Taking Off” Newsletter
Bible
· The Child’s Story Bible ~ by Catherine Vos
· Studying God’s Word Book B
· Weekly memory verse
Art:
· Joseph the Canada Goose ~ a drawing program by Barry Stebbing
· Study famous artists and their works in books:
~ Katie Meets the Impressionists
~ Camille and the Sunflowers - Van Gogh
~ The Boy Who Loved to Draw - Benjamin West
~ Drawing with Scissors - Henri Matisse
Music:
· Practice playing piano
· Listen to classical music from various composers
· Hymns for a Kid’s Heart: learn about composers
· Field Trips:
~ “Once Upon A Time at the Opera” – Atlanta Opera
~ “Cobb Symphony Orchestra” concerts
Handicrafts: Weekly sewing, embroidery, or similar project
Free (Independent) Reading~ Some of these books are historical fiction, a few are biographies, and some are just plain fun:
Yonder Mountain by Millie Howard
The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
Black Beauty (unabridged version) by Anna Sewell
Grandma’s Attic Series by Arleta Richardson
The Secret Garden by Frances Burnett
The Doll’s House by Rumer Godden
Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
The Borrowers by Mary Norton
The Quilt by T.Davis Bunn
Out of Darkness (biography of Louis Braille)~ by Russell Freedman
“American Girls” books: Felicity series; Josephina series; Addy series
Exodus by Brian Wildsmith
Sarah’s New World (a Mayflower Adventure) by Colleen Reece
Frontier Family by Maria Wilkes
Brookfield Days by Maria Wilkes
Little House in the Highlands by Melissa Wiley
Down to the Bonny Glen by Melissa Wiley
Beyond the Heather Hills by Melissa Wiley
Betsy’s River Adventure (1808) by Vera Jones
Kate and the Spies (American Revolution) by JoAnn Grote
Lydia the Patriot (Am.Revolution) by Susan Martins Miller
Nellie the Brave (Trail of Tears) by Veda Boyd Jones
The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Meg Follows a Dream by Norma Jean Lute
Emily Makes a Difference by JoAnn Grote
These Are My People (biography of missionary Gladys Aylward)
---------------------------------------------------------
Unofficially, we're continuing school year-round, but with a lot more free time during these hot summer months. We're still doing weekly nature studies, as well as more free reading, and a little reviewing of math skills and such. We've recently begun rehearsals for a community theater production of "Anne of Green Gables", so that's one book we'll read together (aloud). When I complete plans for our upcoming year (almost done!), I'll post that as well.
with lots of hands-on nature study, and of course, pointing everything back to the One who created it all. I started to write about which books & activities were our favorites, but we loved them all! If you have questions about any of this, please feel free to email me!So here is Kathryn’s First Grade Year ~ (by subject)
Language Arts:
Literature
· Tales from Shakespeare ~ by Charles Lamb
· The Blue Fairy Book ~ by Andrew Lang
· Just So Stories ~ by Rudyard Kipling
· Parables from Nature ~ by Margaret Gatty
· Aesop’s Fables
· Doors to Discovery (Reading to Learn series)
~ Additional free reading (see below)
Poetry
· A Child’s Garden of Verses ~ Robert Louis Stevenson
· When We Were Very Young ~ A.A. Milne
· Now We Are Six ~ A.A. Milne
· The Oxford Book of Children’s Verse ~ various poets
Phonics
· Explode the Code - Book 4
Penmanship
· Draw Write Now - Book 1
· Other copywork (from poems) daily
Science
· God’s Amazing Creatures devotional book
· James Herriot’s Treasury for Children
· Burgess Bird Book ~ by Thornton Burgess
· Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 1
· Weekly nature study
· Field Trips:
~ Slim Goodbody “Bodycology Tour”
~ Cagle’s Dairy tour
~ Yellow River Game Ranch
Math
· Saxon Math Grade 2
· Thinking Skills workbook Grade 1
Social Studies
Geography
· Paddle to the Sea ~ by Holling C Holling
· Map Skills workbook Grade One
· Create a notebook about the 50 states
· Study and create our own US map
World History
· Our Island Story ~ by H.E. Marshall
· Fifty Famous Stories Retold ~ by James Baldwin
· Viking Tales ~ by Jennie Hall
· Story of the World Vol. 1 ~ by Susan Wise Bauer
Biographies/American History
· Ben Franklin ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· George Washington ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Pocahontas ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Buffalo Bill ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Columbus ~ by Ingri D'Aulaire
· Field Trips:
~ A.H. Stephens House
~ Civil War Museum
Current Events
· Weekly God’s World “Taking Off” Newsletter
Bible
· The Child’s Story Bible ~ by Catherine Vos
· Studying God’s Word Book B
· Weekly memory verse
Art:
· Joseph the Canada Goose ~ a drawing program by Barry Stebbing
· Study famous artists and their works in books:
~ Katie Meets the Impressionists
~ Camille and the Sunflowers - Van Gogh
~ The Boy Who Loved to Draw - Benjamin West
~ Drawing with Scissors - Henri Matisse
Music:
· Practice playing piano
· Listen to classical music from various composers
· Hymns for a Kid’s Heart: learn about composers
· Field Trips:
~ “Once Upon A Time at the Opera” – Atlanta Opera
~ “Cobb Symphony Orchestra” concerts
Handicrafts: Weekly sewing, embroidery, or similar project
Free (Independent) Reading~ Some of these books are historical fiction, a few are biographies, and some are just plain fun:
Yonder Mountain by Millie Howard
The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
Black Beauty (unabridged version) by Anna Sewell
Grandma’s Attic Series by Arleta Richardson
The Secret Garden by Frances Burnett
The Doll’s House by Rumer Godden
Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
The Borrowers by Mary Norton
The Quilt by T.Davis Bunn
Out of Darkness (biography of Louis Braille)~ by Russell Freedman
“American Girls” books: Felicity series; Josephina series; Addy series
Exodus by Brian Wildsmith
Sarah’s New World (a Mayflower Adventure) by Colleen Reece
Frontier Family by Maria Wilkes
Brookfield Days by Maria Wilkes
Little House in the Highlands by Melissa Wiley
Down to the Bonny Glen by Melissa Wiley
Beyond the Heather Hills by Melissa Wiley
Betsy’s River Adventure (1808) by Vera Jones
Kate and the Spies (American Revolution) by JoAnn Grote
Lydia the Patriot (Am.Revolution) by Susan Martins Miller
Nellie the Brave (Trail of Tears) by Veda Boyd Jones
The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Meg Follows a Dream by Norma Jean Lute
Emily Makes a Difference by JoAnn Grote
These Are My People (biography of missionary Gladys Aylward)
---------------------------------------------------------
Unofficially, we're continuing school year-round, but with a lot more free time during these hot summer months. We're still doing weekly nature studies, as well as more free reading, and a little reviewing of math skills and such. We've recently begun rehearsals for a community theater production of "Anne of Green Gables", so that's one book we'll read together (aloud). When I complete plans for our upcoming year (almost done!), I'll post that as well.
