lessons for discipling 2012-2013

I aim to keep the following as my focus in all my planning and teaching: 

In all areas of life, God's Word has been given to us for our instruction and our direction and I must teach it faithfully to our children and to their children after them.  

All my curriculum choices hopefully will help me accomplish this God-given task. Here are some questions I am asking myself to help keep me focused on my responsibility.

How can I use this material to disciple our children further in the knowledge and obedience of God's commands and instructions?  

Will our studies and discussions help them to think God's thoughts after Him?  

Does the atmosphere in our home cultivate a love for God and His world?

Will this instruction be of lasting value to them and to their children's children?

Do they see their parents faithfully reading, studying and praying over God's Word?

Have I shown them clearly that they are loved by me(and their Daddy) and by God?

In light of those thoughts, here are our lesson plans for this upcoming year.  Many of these are the Year 4 Ambleside selections. 

Daily Lessons

Math:  Still using RightStart and liking it. (Shane teaches before he goes to work.)

Bible:  Training Hearts, Teaching Minds, Psalm memorization, Hymns, Bible Story and prayer

History:  Continuing with The Story of the World, Volume 3 and Trial and Triumph, starting Genevieve Foster's books with The World of William Penn and George Washington's World.  Also will be reading through the Mr. Pipes books by Douglas Bond which feature stories of hymnwriters and history.

Grammar: First Language Lessons, Level 3, All About Spelling, Level 4 and 5 , memorizing poems, copywork, literature selections, Folksongs

Latin: we completed Prima Latina and are now beginning Latina Christiana 1 and also using Visual Latin

French:  still figuring this out...

Weekly Lessons

Artist/Picture Study:  Rembrandt and Vermeer until Christmas break, A Child's History of Art: Painting, also reading from Pictures Every Child Should Know: A Selection of the World's Art Masterpieces for Young People  

Composer Study: Bach and Handle until Christmas break

Nature Journal:  Seth's Nature Journal

Geography/Mapwork:  Continuing our mapwork

Science: Finishing up Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding, continuing through the Nature Readers and starting The Story of Science

Shakespeare: Continue reading one story a week from Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare.

Plutarch: Publicola

I am jumping into the new world of Plutarch's Lives this year starting with a study on Publicola.  I have organized and condensed the very helpful(and free) study guide by Anne White(click on the Publicola link above) and I have begun reading and rereading the selected portions to help me understand this material.  It is hard and different, but after spending some time with recently, I think I am beginning to understand the era of the beginning of the Roman republic.  There are twelve lessons and the reading selections are broken into very manageable pieces and the suggested study rate is one lesson per week. 

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you.  Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know your labor in the Lord is not in vain. ~ 1 Corinthians 15:58