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Vol. I Issue 2 Epi Kardia Has a New
Website!
Please visit our new website! We have done a major
overhaul, have fixed broken links and added much more information about our curriculum as well as more
resources:
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The actual Table of Contents for both the
Lower and Upper Grades teaching manuals
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Bible Reading Plan for one year
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Recommended books for High School and Beyond (still under
construction)
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Ability to purchase books specified in our curriculum
directly from our site! We currently have World History-World Literature and American
Literature for High School books and will be adding more soon!
Ready to Move Beyond the
Textbook?
1. Now you can! With our new e-book, Designing a High School Course Using
Real Books, all of the direction you need is at your fingertips. Organized in easy to understand steps,
this guide opens up a multitude of literature-based courses for you and your high school student to develop. Just
decide which course you want to cover, grab your books and watch your high school student excel!
Check www.epikardia.com to view a
sample.
2. Check out Beth's article Beyond the Texbook just
published in the spring edition of Seasons of Home magazine! If you are not familiar with this magazine, here is an
excerpt from their website:
Seasons is a full-color, print publication created to encourage families and
better prepare themselves through the passing on of life skills needed in the home. Seasons is filled with articles and
projects that revolve around homeschooling, sewing, cooking and baking, gardening, Titus 2 encouragement, themed teas,
father/son projects, and daughters at home. Meant to be a keepsake, each issue is graced with delightful photography for
visual learners.
And
here is an excerpt from the Introduction of our new high school curriculum, Essay Styles for
High School:
An Essential for Every High School Student...
Essay writing, recommended for every high school student, requires a clear understanding of the essay
types, essay structure, the writing process and solid evaluation to be truly beneficial. At Epi Kardia, we don’t
view writing as a subject, but rather an essential life skill. Students who can express themselves well through
writing tend to achieve more in every subject area. Writing promotes more succinct communication, organization
skills and higher level thinking. It develops confidence, creates an outlet for healthy expression and strengthens
a student’s overall academic prowess.
With our new high school curriculum, Essay Styles for High
School, your student will learn to write the five most common types of essays: narrative,
descriptive, expository, persuasive and comparison/contrast. This course is designed with step by step detailed
instructions for both the student and the teacher providing a clear picture of each essay style along with solid
goals and objectives. Even parents who do not view themselves as strong writers can teach this course because the
evaluation section describes exactly what you need to look for in your student’s writing and explains how to
determine a fair grade, as well. Check our website for more information and to peruse a
sample.
ALSO
COMING IN TIME FOR FALL 2008
American Literature for High School is
new and will be ready for the fall of 2008. We will be posting a curriculum description and a sample on the
website soon. Get a head start and order the books used in the curriculum at www.epikardia.com
Preparing Your Middle Schooler for High School - Part
1
What are His Goals....Really?
Understanding Goals
Goals
influence behavior. That seems obvious. But sometimes we don’t realize what our goal actually is--a subtle point,
but one that can lead to dramatic differences in behavior. For example, I am on the last leg of my regular walk and have a
choice to make: Do I want to cut through some woods directly to my house, or walk the long way around the block?
It depends upon my goal. If my goal is to finish my walk, I am likely to cut through. But if my goal is to get
exercise, I am going to walk the long way around.
If you were to ask your middle-schooler to tell you his goal as
he worked on his math lesson, he would probably say “finish the math lesson [that you assigned].” So this is not so much
his goal, as it is your goal for him. And most kids, if they took the time to think about it, would agree
that the best way to finish that lesson is the quickest way possible. J
Middle-schoolers need to learn to own their own work and be increasingly proactive about
learning to be ready for high school level classes. Over the middle school years, they need to engage with and
master the material rather than just completing their lessons. Unfortunately, this is not the way most kids look at
schoolwork unless they are taught differently.
If your son looks at you quizzically as you attempt to explain
this foreign concept, relate that it is the same principle as completing a chore well, such as cleaning one’s bedroom. He can
whip through it in record time , stuffing clothes under the bed and tossing them onto the closet floor, OR, he can do a
thorough job putting his clean clothes, neatly folded, back in the drawer and
dirty ones in a hamper. At a quick glance, the results might look similar—but the next time he hurriedly looks for his
favorite shirt, he will find that they are not.
Our task is to teach two things: first, that he is doing
this work for himself, not just you; and, secondly, the subtle difference between “finishing the math lesson” (i.e., getting
this lesson over with as quickly as possible) and “understanding the math lesson” (i.e., working until mastery occurs).
It is easier for him to choose to do a good job if he can reframe the job according to his goal, not yours. For
example: if he can think of the benefits to him of keeping his room clean (he is able to dress more quickly, find
things, has more room to play, is allowed to have friends over, etc.), it takes less effort for him to own the goal and be
more responsible.
How do
I encourage more responsible thinking?
Teach and model positive choices and responsible life skills—because they yield
positive benefits and are right (as opposed to ‘because I said so’). For example, get up
and go to bed at a decent time , so you are alert enough to get your work done. Make healthy food choices and
exercise, so you have energy and your body can do what you want and need it to do. Treat others with respect,
because we are told to in God’s Word. Work to earn part of the money for your retreat, because you are the one
going.
Teach
him to manage his own schedule.
Buy an alarm clock so he can wake himself up in the morning. Encourage him to make a
chore list and check whether something needs to be done rather than you
reminding him to do it. Show him how to keep track of youth group, soccer practice and other activities on his own calendar
(or the family calendar). Set some deadlines and give consequences when they aren’t met.
As he becomes older, give him a vision
for the future.
Let him know that God has plans for him, and you share in his excitement in seeing them
unfold. Talk with him about school as his first ‘job’. Give him the purpose for middle school, which is to
prepare him for high school (the years that really count.) Assure him that you will work together with him so
that he will be ready by the time he gets there.
How
does this look when applied to school?
As your
middle schooler begins to own his work, encourage him to seek knowledge and understanding by being proactive. If his
goal is to learn, not just finish, work toward the following:
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In math,
willingness to do extra problems
until a concept is fully mastered
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In science, researching another source
outside one’s assigned lesson for a more understandable explanation of a difficult topic
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In foreign language, making vocabulary flashcards or
doing extra work that is not part of the
assigned lesson, just to build a
better understanding of the language
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Across all subjects, listing and
defining unfamiliar vocabulary words, just
to increase one’s vocabulary
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In history, taking reading notes instead of just reading
If these suggestions sound way beyond your middle school student,
take heart--this is a process, not an event. (And middle schoolers mature at different rates,
which has to be factored in as well.) This is a concept that will need to be taught and reminded through middle
school and into high school, but with consistency, patience and good modeling, you can teach your
student to set his own goals to learn proactively, rather than just to finish his work.
by Dana
Wilson
Dana Wilson is
a co-author of Epi Kardia literature-based unit study curriculum used by homeschoolers and private and cottage
schools. She has one homeschool graduate currently attending college and one homeschooled high schooler at home.
Contact Dana at epikardia@bellsouth.net.
To read
the next post in the series Preparing Your Middle Schooler for High School, discussing developmental changes and ways to encourage higher level thinking, please
subscribe to our blog at www.epikardia.com.
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