Elementary

My biggest decision regarding the schooling of my children came very quickly over a summer vacation.  I had been researching the possibility of homeschooling using the Montessori method, but was not finding anything helpful.  I wanted the environment and the actual presentations to be as close to AMI as they could be.  If you aren't familiar with AMI (Association Montessori Internationale), follow this link to learn more.  I then came across an elementary program called Keys of the Universe.  It was exactly what I had been looking for!  I cringed at the thought of how much it would cost to invest in the elementary albums, but surprisingly it is quite affordable.  Jessica, the administrator, has made it very user friendly and you can pay monthly if needed.  It was an answer to many prayers and has been very fruitful the last two years I have been homeschooling.

Over the years, I have come to truly love the Montessori approach in the older years of schooling.  I believe math has become one of my favorite subjects for this.  Geography has also proven to be quite interesting through the eyes of Montessori.

The checkerboard is probably one of the favorite materials.  The way that a child learns the process and order for multiplication through this material is pure genius.  As the child moves along, there is also a checkerboard for decimals which has proved to be quite helpful to my daughter who struggled with decimals.  

The language materials are quite extensive and meet the child on any level.  The grammar boxes have become a favorite of my sons and he loves all of the movement that can be involved even though he is doing language!  See the post about grammar boxes here.

One set of materials that can easily be overlooked in the elementary classroom are the 5 Great Lessons.  These are always a bit overwhelming and time consuming for the setup and preparation.  However, these leave the greatest impact on the children and are totally worth it in the long run.  Go here for my post on the topic.  Here are some pictures of some of the great lessons.