Going Off the Curriculum Script

Usually mummies aren't in kindergarten curriculum.  But since this mommy decided to start out our school experience with world history (Jr. High level is totally manageable to a kindergartner!), we've managed to get ourselves into Ancient Egypt already.  Tuesday's history lesson turned out to be the story of Khufu (aka Cheops) who constructed The Great Pyramid. This lesson gave us a detailed account of how a mummy was preserved and buried.  Thankfully, when we told Grandma we were studying Egypt, she had the foresight to send us home with a picture book that beautifully illustrated the mummification process.  And then, because the cable geniuses knew I was teaching Egyptian history--the History Channel aired a 2 hour documentary on The Lost Pyramid on Tuesday. This pyramid was supposedly built by the son of the Khufu--even though the pyramid no longer exists.  How timely was that?

I wish I could take credit for endless of hours of preparation that resulted in literature, lessons, and video documentaries of Ancient Egyptian burial practices that coordinated together well, but I cannot.  It just kind of happened.  And my son loved it! (He also loved learning the song, Pharaoh, Pharoah.)  I'm starting to get comfortable with the idea of going off-script with our schoolwork.  Sure, we still work through Phonics and Mathematics and the dreaded Copybook lessons, but we're also experiencing science and history and enrichment lessons in unique ways. The resources for this off-scripting really seem to be endless.

In addition to the recommended subjects per the State of Texas and Memoria Press, and in addition to junior high world history, I've also added missionary studies to our kindergarten curriculum. Each week we're reading through missionary biographies.  We've started our reading with the Christian Heroes: Then and Now series.  Since there are more than 40 books in this series, and since we're only reading a chapter or two a week, I'm confident that this will keep us engaged for awhile.  We've started this series out-of-order with the Nate Saint book, and my son is 100% engaged and excited about reading the stories of the pilot, World War II soldier, and missionary.  Plus, I love reading to my kids about how the missionaries trusted in God and could see his handiwork in their lives.

Originally, the idea of going off-script with schoolwork was a little intimidating.  I mean, how do I know if I'm going to miss something?  What happens if the subject matter ends up being too hard? Here's my theory: if my son is ready to study a subject, we should do it.  Then, when this subject shows up again in the recommended scope and sequence, we can re-learn or refresh ourselves on the subject matter.  Thus, we won't miss out on anything critical, but we will be able to accommodate the interests of our kids and will be able to capitalize on this interest while it's there. Plus, teaching what I like makes mommy happy.  And a happy mommy is always good!