This month I have been reviewing the SchoolhouseTeachers.com Yearly Membership.
If you are unfamiliar with SchoolhouseTeachers, it is an affordable, diverse way to quickly expand your homeschool’s resources at a very reasonable cost. There are classes offered across numerous disciplines for all ages-preschool to parents. With classes such as Science, Art, Music, Computer and Technology, Foreign Languages, Nutrition, and a whole host of topics to help parents with various aspects of education. This is an online product with printable elements, classes and videos.
Many classes offered there are appropriate for multiple ages. This month, my children have been taking the elementary art class.
How we used this curriculum:
I asked my 15-year-old daughter, Anne to work on this with my 5-year-old son, Daniel. They were having so much fun that before long, David (10) and Rebecca (3) joined in as well.
For this 12 week class, each week has a one page summary, telling facts about a particular artist, followed by some fun projects the child can do to help them remember what they learned.
In week one, they covered Michelangelo. After looking at pictures of the Sistine Chapel, they tried to simulate doing art on their backs by taping paper to the bottom of our kitchen table. This is where all the other kids suddenly got interested and started to try it as well. The next week’s lesson covered Picasso, where they made abstract art from cut up pieces of construction paper. They also enjoyed finger painting another week. Basically, it’s more than just coloring sheets or a book with facts, it’s a brief historical lesson, completed by doing some fun art.
This class has absolutely been a delight. Anne enjoyed reading the summaries to Daniel and they had a good time doing the art together. With an older sibling doing the reading (and she printed out each lesson and gathered the readily available art supplies), this was hands-off for me, and all hands-on for them. She followed some of the links for additional resources and showed him pictures on the internet of some additional art by each featured artist. This is a win-win. At the same time, all the children, young and old, learned interesting facts about art and enjoyed time learning together.
Some additional classes we are considering in the very near future include: Guitar, Sign Language, and Nutrition. David (10) has expressed interest in guitar. With piano and violin already in the house, this should be a fun addition. Two of my children have taken sign language classes in the past, but we really need to brush up on this skill for the younger ones. And for nutrition, when Daniel (5) asked me if a banana counted as a protein, I realized there are some pieces missing in our education! I love that there is no additional cost for me to do classes with all our family members, that we can do the lessons on our own schedule, and the cost is very affordable.
Ease of use:
For this class, we found it very simple to use. We went through the links, printed the one page summaries and completed the course. No printer was actually necessary, but it made it easier for us because we have several of us sharing one computer, so having it free for someone else was helpful. Some of the courses have videos and other elements you would need to stay on the computer to use.
If you are brand new to using the site- jump in on the page where it says: Start Here. It gives a very quick but comprehensive look at all that is offered on the site so you don’t waste time clicking around trying to find your way.
While you are exploring, don’t forget to download your FREE Planner- one of the things I love to share with new homeschool moms- this is a comprehensive homeschool and home management planner. It has forms, articles and other helpful materials to help you have an organized homeschool. You can download it and print only the forms you will use as you need them!
Please note that while I was not compensated for my honest review, I can and do use affiliate links in my posts which may give me a small commission for any resulting sales. This does not change your price, but it does help keep the “lights on.”- Thank you for supporting Homemaking 911 when you make a purchase through one of our links!
