A few weeks ago, my fourth and fifth graders completed Trail Guide to Learning: Paths of Exploration. This was our first year with this curriculum from GeoMatters and my initial impressions and assessment still ring true after nine months on the trail. We will be switching course next year, for a number of reasons, but I still think this is a worthwhile curriculum, particularly for families looking to focus on American history. If you’re interested in Trail Guide to Learning, here are a few tips from someone who spent a year on the trail.
PLAN TO SUPPLEMENT SCIENCE
At the Paths of Exploration level, science focuses primarily on American animals and habitats. The information covered is fairly superficial. (Honestly, your kids can learn just as much from Wild Kratts and the information will be presented in a much more engaging format.) You will likely want to supplement your science for the year, either with an additional offering, or perhaps just your own ideas as they relate to the animals covered. Think crafts, videos, or models. Or you could expand into other scientific disciplines. E.g. When studying creatures living in water, discuss and diagram the water cycle; when covering trees in a particular habitat, branch out (see what I did there?) and create a leaf collection or story board; plan a field trip to the zoo; etc.
MULTIPLE KIDS? CONSIDER READERS AS READ-ALOUDS
Ninety-percent of the time, my fourth and fifth graders worked on the exact same lessons, which included reading the same “readers.” As the year progressed, I found that having the two of them sit together and take turns reading their daily assigned passages aloud was a time saver and led to less arguing. (Except when my son insisted on reading this portions in a poorly executed accent, which drove his sister crazy. But, I digress…) This may also be a good option with less confident readers, or those who struggle a bit with comprehension.
BINGO!
If you’re anything like me, you may be tempted to skip some of the extra or supplemental activities that come towards the end of a unit. I’m totally with you, but DON’T skip the Bingo games! My kids absolutely loved playing Bingo at the end of each unit, and it served as a very effective review of the key people, places and vocabulary covered over the previous weeks. Play for candy, stickers, or even just bragging rights! Your kids will love it!
IF YOU’RE TIGHT ON TIME, SKIP UNIT 6
Unit 6, “Trails West” is primarily a review of the previous five units. Some new information is covered, but can be gleaned by simply reading the books that correspond to this unit. (These could even become summer reading, depending on your schedule.) Our family was running out of time to finish our schooling (as I was nearing the birth of baby #5 and did not plan to play “catch up” over the summer) and we opted to skip the “Lewis and Clark” unit because we had completed a unit study focused on these explorers last year. I didn’t realize at first how much review was included in the “Trails West” unit and, in retrospect, would have felt better about spending some more time on Lewis and Clark, as I think it would have been a more interesting way to round out the year.
