Box day, in Sonlight land, is a Big Deal. It’s emotional. It’s photo-worthy. It’s an event.
You can find myriad posts, complete with pics of smiling kids diving into boxes, that back up this fact.
As parents, we get it. The fun, really, is mostly ours. A whole box of books? Spines unbroken, pages fresh, adventures new? Yes, please!
Maybe you’ve got a child for whom a box brimming over with new stories is manna. Maybe you’ve got a sweet little boy or girl who follows you around the house with a book, waiting patiently for the dishes to be washed, the clothes to be folded, and the lunch to be made so that you will finally, finally, give in and read the day’s eighth chapter of Little House on the Prairie to him or her. Maybe you’ve got a kiddo whose idea of bliss is curling up on your lap and listening to your voice pour out the laments of Pooh, the true-life tales of missionary heroes, or the fantastic imaginings of Roald Dahl.
I’ve had a few of those myself. And Sonlight worked for them. Beautifully, even.
But then I had John Mark. And you know what? He’s not that kid.
He’s the kid that spends an hour trying to figure out how to plug each and every hole in a sieve so that it will serve as a bowl. He’s the kid that tries every configuration of batteries in a toy to try and see why the plus sign must go here, and the minus sign there. He’s the kid that is the airplane, the fire truck, the chicken emerging from the egg.
A box of “sit here and let me tell you something” amazing books?
Uh, not likely.
And yet …
Sonlight works for this boy. It really, honestly, truthfully does.
The minute his chores are done, he runs to the school shelves to pull out the Instructor’s Guide and flip it to the page I have marked. He pulls the books he thinks we’ll be using and stacks them on the coffee table, readying his favorite spot. And then he waits. Not so much patiently as expectantly, but he’s only five, after all.
I could not make this up.
So how does this happen? How does the same kid who can’t stop himself from stomping in every puddle and touching every bumpy rock manage to thrive with a curriculum centered on listening?
1. Sonlight books lend themselves to doing. Whether it’s the imitation of a favorite character’s discoveries or the rabbit trail of a topic of interest, Sonlight stories invite kids to get their hands dirty. Nature walks to see things for themselves, reenacting key story details, following up on an interesting point with a chance to try their hand at the skill … great books like these open the doors to much more learning once the cover is closed. John Mark has been inspired to bake bread, make string mazes, and drop coins into different containers this year. He’s always looking for a way to “do”– and Sonlight delivers.
2. Sonlight books are perfect for siblings. This is my second set of Sonlight learners, and while I am sure that families homeschooling one child enjoy their own kind of richness, I’ve watched Sonlight give my children a vast repertoire when it comes to group play. Assigning roles in stories, or working the details being studied into an imaginary game gives kids a mutual starting place. When everyone is enthralled with volcanoes, it’s easy to drum up a game of volcanologists.
3. Sonlight schedules readings in bite-sized chunks. Even my super-wiggly little man (who would probably be considered ADHD in a classroom setting) can handle a couple of pages at a time of a high-interest tale. If he’s held rapt by the story on a particular day, we can read more and work ahead … but that’s gravy. And I usually cut him off before he gets his fill to keep his excitement up.
4. Sonlight schedules so many options in one day, there’s sure to be a winner on the plate. when you first start using Sonlight, looking down a day’s column and counting the number of books you’ll be using in just one sitting can be daunting. If you can fight the urge to be overwhelmed– or its cousin, the urge to check every box– you’ll soon figure out how that schedule works for your family. With some of my kids, it was best to read an entire week’s worth of one book in a day, then tackle the other assigned readings the next day. For my wiggly guy, though, all that variety is perfect. Seven different toptics threading through his mind at once is thrilling, not dizzying.
5. Sonlight encourages rabbit trails. John Mark is the king of “Squirrel!” In other words, we’re pretty used to him being in the middle of a detailed description of something amazing that he has to tell us right then or he just might cease to breathe… and then, just as the tale comes to a climax, he notices that he’s wearing his favorite Chelsea Football Club jersey, but dad isn’t, so hey, Da-da (which is what he still calls him), where’s yours? Sonlight lends itself to this kind of randomness, even somehow inviting him to return to the original point seamlessly. We’ve sat with our Berenstein Bears science book, been drawn to a description of a frog life cycle, grabbed the iPad and watched a youtube video, ran upstairs and found a book on frogs, then come back to the Bears book, satisfied and ready to learn more.
Sonlight most definitely does not work for every family, or every child. No curriculum does, in my experience. But I’ve been delighted to find that good books really do cross the borders of learning styles– and sometimes, even keep wigglers engaged.
Shared at:
Raising Homemakers
{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252
{\fonttbl\f0\fnil\fcharset0 HelveticaNeue;}
{\colortbl;\red255\green255\blue255;\red153\green153\blue153;\red249\green249\blue249;}
\deftab720
\pard\pardeftab720\sl380\partightenfactor0
\f0\fs24 \cf2 \cb3 \expnd0\expndtw0\kerning0
\outl0\strokewidth0 \strokec2 
}
Would you mind an advice question here?
Background: I have three, the oldest a current kindergartener who is definitely the girl who waits All Day for “just” 2 or 4 or 7 more chapters of Little House. We love the ideas behind the classical method, but know the method is a means, not an end.
I’m fascinated with Sonlight and have been since the first time I clicked through a link you posted. I know it can work pretty well for the classical mindset. I appreciate the worldwide history focus and am smitten with literature-based everything. But I’ve been warned that it sometimes introduces sensitive subjects on the early side. My will-be first-grader, who won’t be 6 until the end of August, will be reading on at least a second grade level next year, and her imagination is. . .vivid, and tends to out-perform itself with any kind of dark or scary idea. She’s a worrier, and she takes things to their worst possible hypothetical conclusion. I’m hesitant to give her more fodder–though part of me thinks that introducing her to real live trauma might help curb the imaginary ones.
Our primary alternative option is Veritas. And, with any curriculum I’ve seen, I’ll be doing a good bit of supplementing, as we’ve already read half the books on the list.
I don’t have a specific question, I suppose, as you can’t very well just tell me what to do! 🙂 But if you have any comment or information to pass along, I’d be glad to listen. Thanks!
I think you and I have a lot in common, style-wise! 🙂
We started using Sonlight when my oldest was the age your oldest is currently. I had some of the same concerns about the books on the list, but honestly, there were very few titles that fell outside of what we felt was “o.k.” for our academically precocious and very sensitive girl. I used the forums a lot in those days (as I didn’t have time to pre-read) and found them to be a good place to shop for “red flags” in regards to specific books. Only very rarely did we opt out of a book altogether.
(Do keep in mind that this was several core overhauls ago. I am not up on the current titles in the younger cores!)
One thing that I liked then and simply love now is the fact that Sonlight really does allow for enough flexibility that nearly every method can be accomodated. For example, I’ve had no problem folding in the CC memory work for my kindergartener and 6th grader. In the past, with specific children whose needs meant a different approach, I was able to use a very CM approach. The key is not considering the curriculum itself to be a straitjacket, but rather a tool. Apply it where and how you need.
I have some experience with Veritas, as well. When my now 6th grader came back around to ancient history and had already exhausted the Sonlight core we had used with the older kids, we decided to try Veritas. I didn’t find it quite as flexible or as designed to foster discussion as I would have liked; ymmv. My high schooler used Omnibus 1 in her 8th grade year; this fall, my incoming freshman will use it again.
Now sure I answered any questions at all, but please feel to redirect me or ask more. 🙂
Yes, to the style similarities, from what a blog-reader can tell. . .even to the English degree! That’s why I asked you!
Thanks for taking the time to answer–and you did answer exactly what I wasn’t sure how to ask. I’m just gathering thoughts at the moment, trying to grapple with the options and fill in what I need to know to come to a decision, and things are nebulous enough to defy concrete queries. 🙂 Thanks so much for the effort you pour into all our lives!
We used Sonlight for several years, too. Helpful post, Heather 🙂 Blessings!
So many people have “wiggly” kids like yours (I have 3 of them!), and this kind of information is what many moms need when trying to choose curriculum! Thanks for sharing it with us on the Hip Homeschool Hop today. 🙂
I really enjoyed your description of using Sonlight with your children and what makes it work for you. It is nice to see it can be used for different learning styles.
Thank you for sharing your perspective.
Hey there! I have never used the Sonlight curriculum, though we have read many of their recommended books and I love flipping through their catalog. The reason being is because of some of the very same points you mentioned which you have so eloquently put the kabosh to! It does sound like it’s more flexible and creative than I thought! Thanks for linking this post up to Friendship Friday at Living and Learning With Our New Normal. I hope you’ll join us again this week! The post is up now!
Thank you for this post. I have used Sonlight for six years now, and love the program, but have had some reservations about using it with my SPD (and were she in school, ADD) child. I needed the reminder that Sonlight is as flexible as you need it to be, and the encouragement of knowing that at least one other ADD kid loves it.
If John Mark were in a classroom, I know I’d be meeting with his teacher regularly to strategize over his wiggly ways. At home, he learns well, though not in the same straight line that I was able to expect from my older three homeschoolers. But still … it works!