Tapestry of Grace

For our first 5 years of homeschooling we were eclectic. We tried a bit of this and a bit of that. The following year we would stick with components we liked for individual subjects, and then try something new for the rest. And then we found Tapestry of Grace (T.O.G.) when my oldest was entering 5th grade.

TOG follows a "classical education" approach. Elementary years are spent giving them information and exposing them to the learning concepts and the world around them. Middle school years (6-8) are spent "connecting the dots" of the facts and events that they learned in elementary. High school brings on more evaluation and contemplation about their own worldview and not only understanding their own thoughts and ideas, but also expressing them to others.

Year 1 Ancients - covers ancient civilizations such as Rome, Greece, Israel, and Egypt.
Year 2 Renaissance - goes over the Middle Ages, Renaissance, and the Reformation
Year 3 Early Modern - begins with the colonization of America and ends with the Civil War (covering world history, not just American)
Year 4 Modern- from WWI up to modern day.

The lesson plans come in 4 separate year plans. Each Year Plan contains all of the instructions that you will need to teach that time period for grades 1 through 12. This is nice because you only buy each Year Plan one time and it tells you what reading and reference books to purchase for each level. If you have multiple kids or just one working their way through, you do not have to purchase new lesson plans each year. Once you complete the cycle of years 1-4, you go back to Year 1 and the student has moved up a level. This allows them to build on the basic knowledge that they got the first time around.

Negatives (in my opinion)

1. Seems totally overwhelming at first glance (took me 3 years of looking at it to think I could do it)
2. No "shopping list" of books. Many of the books can be sorted by level and subject on Bookshelf Central, but it is not an all inclusive list. If you want a complete list of books you need to buy, you need to go through the Year Plan week by week and make your own.
3. Cannot "cut and paste" from the Reading Assignment page on to a separate page in order to make a weekly assignment sheet. 
4. No way to search through all 36 weeks at the same time when you are looking for something like what weeks is a particular book used?

Positives

1. Multiple age children all cover the same topics at the same time. (different levels may focus on different aspects, but all are studying the same time period at their own level).
2. More books, projects, and activities than you need to do - each parent chooses what they want to cover and what they can skip over. TOG refers to it as a "buffet" where you can make choices.
3. Teacher Notes - I do not have to read everything each of my children is reading. The Teacher Notes summarizes everything for me and guides me through a discussion with the middle school and high school students.
4. I like not having to buy a whole new curriculum every year. Once I have purchased all 4 of the Year Plans, I only need to buy the next level of student books. (I put my money into buying middle school and high school books because I wouldn't use the elementary ones again. But my youngest used the books purchased for the older kids our first time through). 
5. ALL of the planning is covered for me. History, literature, writing, worldviews, fine arts, and even high school government and philosophy all revolve around the core history reading. When you study ancient civilizations you also learn about where the Bible came from, literature like the Odyssey, and you write about topics relating with the reading assignments. It all connects and reinforces the historical concepts.
6. Extras like Map Aids and Evaluations also reduce the amount of work I have to do on my own. Having written a preschool curriculum, I really appreciate the time that went in to creating these materials as well as the time and effort that it saves me as a teacher when I would be reinventing the wheel. 
7. Forum - online place to meet with others also using the curriculum and share ideas, ask questions, and get answers.

 Overall, I LOVE Tapestry of Grace and will use it until my youngest graduates from high school. If you would like to see more, you can check them out at Tapestry of Grace

Big Game Review

Study just about anything! Nothing to study? Quote Scripture or sports trivia...anything! All ages can play together.

Suggestion: Have older students make up question cards from anything they need to study for an upcoming test (history, science, math equations...). They study while they make the questions as well as when they play the game. Cards can be kept and added to throughout the school year to be used as a weekly or quarterly review.

Each player answers their own question cards, so a high schooler might be answering biology questions while a 3-year-old sibling is naming colors when it's their turn.

Big Game Review (Study Game)

You can use any size/type game board, but if you want to cover it, the supplies needed may be slightly different depending on the size and shape of your board. The sample boards I’ve done are all square boards that fold into fourths and go in a square box.

Supplies needed:

Square box game board (like Trivial Pursuit)

(4) pages of 12x12 paper for the game board background

(4) pages of 12x12 pattern paper for the squares to make the track

        4 different designs or colors. Sample uses black solid and 3 patterns

        Paper #1 (solid) – approximately 60 1 ½” squares

        Paper #2 – approximately 15-20 1 ½” squares

        Paper #3 – approximately 15-20 1 ½” squares

        Paper #4 – approximately 15-20 1 ½” squares

Extra paper for decorating the box

Adhesive for paper (won’t wrinkle paper – sample used Modge Podge)

Clear Contact Paper (enough to cover the entire board)

Game tokens (like bingo markers from Oriental Trading Company)

Container for bingo markers (mini M&M container or Mentos with flip up lid work well)

Single dice

Bonus – if your game board comes with a box to hold question cards, cover that too:)

1. Cover just one section of the game board with Modge Podge or other adhesive (thin layer;p just enough to hold it down).
2. Cover all 4 corners of the board in the same manner (making sure all 4 corners match up in the center). 
3. Press evenly to smooth out any bubbles.
4. Once all 4 corners are down, snip off outside corners with scissors to avoid buckling.
5. Fold trimmed edges over to the back of the board and glue down.
6. Lay out your track using the 1 ½” squares. Solid color (Color #1) is just for making the trail and marking spaces. Color#2 is for answering a question card. #3 is for rolling again and #4 is for moving back 1 space (or whatever works for you).
7. Once you have everything laid out where you want it; glue it down. No beginning and no end.
8. After entire track is glued in place, use Clear Contact Paper to cover the entire board (going completely around each piece that divides in half when the game folds.)
9. Once the board is covered, you can cover the game box, token holder, and/or card holder to match if want to.

Print directions for playing the game. Best to laminate this or stick it inside of the lid. You'll need to change the directions a bit to suit your game, but here is a sample:

Big Game Review

 From 1-8 players or teams. If you can answer questions, you’re old enough to play!

Needed to play: Playing board, playing pieces, chips, one dice and

     questions (or agree what is to be used for the question spaces - could be as simple as naming a color)

Set up:

There is no beginning and no end. Players simply pick a blue square wherever they would like to start.

Determine the goal of the game (set a time limit or number of chips needed to win)

Object of the game:

To collect the most chips by correctly answering questions.

Rules for play:

1.      Each player rolls the dice; highest score goes first. Play continues around the board clockwise.

2.      In turn, player rolls the dice and moves ahead that many spaces and acts accordingly:

·         Blue spaces – no action

·         Red – answer a question

·         Orange  – roll the dice again and move accordingly

·         Green – move back one space

3.      Answering a question correctly earns the player a chip.

4.      Play until goal of the game is achieved (time limit or number of chips).

5.      WINNER is the person with the most chips at the end of the game.

Math Game Box

Floss box
120 wooden hearts (that fit inside sections)
2 wooden circles (that fit inside sections)
Digital timer (optional - check the Dollar store)
Printed instructions for games
Colored Sharpie pens

Label box sections 1-10 (or to whatever number you'd like)
Put 12 hearts in each section
Number the faces of each heart to skip count by the appropriate number in each section
    1s number: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
    2s number: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20
    ect.
On the (2) circle pieces, put + and - on either side of one token and < and = on the other (can use a 3rd
     circle and make multiplication and division pieces as well)
Color the edges of every heart in each section a different color (need 10 different colors of Sharpie)
   Coloring them each a different color is helpful when putting them away; the smallest number of each color
    tells student which section to put it back in. Then everything that color goes with it.

Print rules for a few different games on cards that will fit inside one of the sections. Examples:
1. Lay out each section from 1 to 10 in order with the 1's on the top row, 2s on the 2nd row... all the way to 10 (after this is done, show student how to use the grid to see what numbers are when multiplied together - find the 5 on the top and the 8 down the left side = where those 2 intersect is 40. 5x8 is 40)
2. Dump out the hearts from one section and turn them all over so you can't see the numbers. Set the timer for 30 seconds. When you push "start" turn over all the hearts and put them in order of smallest to largest. Then say all the numbers out loud from smallest to largest - you're skip counting!
3. Lay out 2 numbers and use the circle symbols with the < and = sign to show if one number is bigger than another or if they are equal.
4. Lay out equations and see which sign fits. Example: 2 (blank space) 3 = 5 (student puts in addition sign)