Our Second Grade resources

Late in the summer, following First Grade, I had stumbled upon The Peaceful Press and once I researched their curriculum offering of The Playful Pioneers, I knew it was something special we would all enjoy.  If you haven’t had a chance to research the curriculums offered by The Peaceful Press, please do so!  The curriculum we chose is based on the Little House Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder and uses The Julia Rothman Collection by Julia Rothman as reference almost daily…such beautiful rich reads. 

The Playful Pioneers curriculum covers most subjects yet allows you to add in your own Language Arts and Mathematics program.  You can keep things basic while following their lessons or delve much deeper in any given subject for more mature students.  We tend to do interest-led learning and this program is a perfect fit as it introduces a variety of themes each week and we can go with whatever interests the girls the most.  

“Little House Series” by Laura Ingalls Wilder

“The Julia Rothman Collection” by Julia Rothman

 

Miss 6 uses the Explode the Code series as she has used these workbooks from the start and they have proven to be a huge success for her.  She knows exactly what to do each day as the exercises go in the same pattern for each lesson. 

Explode the Code by Nancy Hall

As the school year reached its end, we finished up our workbooks early.  We were planning to switch over to “The Good and the Beautiful” Language Arts next year…so we started a little this year.  I can’t say ENOUGH about how good this program is!  It is beautiful, it is gentle and it is loaded with amazing lessons. 

We use Handwriting Without Tears as well, she enjoys the extra practice with their handwriting and the illustrations are adorable.  Next year we will formally introduce cursive handwriting but are beginning a slow introduction this year. 

“Cursive Magnatab” by Kid-O
“Printing Power” by Handwriting Without Tears

 For Mathematics we are using Singapore Math which we have also used since Kindergarten.  To be honest, we don’t have the same enthusiasm for this series as we once did.  If you have a recommendation for Grade 2 Math…please leave me a comment!  We also use many Mathematics based games…these have been a huge hit in our studies.

“Pop for Addition and Subtraction” by Learning Resources

“Math Dice” by Think Fun

The rest of our studies are far less formal and can vary depending on the week.  We try to stick with the themes that The Playful Pioneers curriculum has laid out for us but of course we go off track as interests are awakened or as the seasons change. 

Please see the blog post “Books (and things)” for our main reference books.  These books are the heart of our children’s education.  Our other blog posts will give you a taste of what “a-day-in-the-life” looks like for us…again this is what works for us, and in no way reflects what might work for you.  We love that you are sharing in our journey and hope you will share your feedback in the comments below.

Finally, here are a few of our suggested tools-of-the-trade:

“Geo Boards” by Learning Resources

“Write and Wipe Number Facts” by Learning Resources

“Illuminated World Globe” by Little Experimenter

Let me know what works for your family!

Sue