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  By bergfam

  Jan 15, 2010
  "Our First Four Weeks have been Fantastic!" We have just finished week 4 of Ancient Art and the Orchestra Middle School Lesson plans at Harmony Arts and I just had to tell you about this wonderful program. I sometimes have trouble fitting in art and music in our busy days, so I decided to try lesson plans this year. I usually do not use lesson plans, so I was not sure what to expect...would the boys find the lessons boring?, will I feel too confined by the schedule?, Will the lessons not fit in to what else we are doing? I have been pleasantly surprised all around. I chose Grade 5 Lesson plans for two reasons. The first is that I wanted to include all my boys, which range in from K-7th grade. I knew this was a wide age range, but Barb advised me that I could leave some elements out for my youngest, and do all of the activities for the oldest two and this would work for everyone. (Barb is so approachable and responsive in terms of questions about her programs, which is... More > another plus to using her programs.) I was unsure of how this would actually play out. I was worried that determining what was enough but not too much for the three levels of students would be so hard that it would be easier just to make lesson plans up myself. However I have used Barb's materials before with much success, and knowing that I could get her advise along the way, I was willing to give it a try. The second reason I chose this year is that the Ancient Art would correlate with our history studies, which all of my boys also do, for the most part, together. The lesson plans are laid out in four sections, and as she says in the introduction, you can choose to use any one section alone, or in any combination. I decided to give a try at doing all four sections, knowing that I could drop any one section without guilt if things get too busy. The first section is Picture Study, which is familiar for all Charlotte Mason fans, but how to do this is well described in the introductory section, if this is unfamiliar to you. The chosen pictures have links for you so you do not have to use a lot of your time looking for examples on the Internet to print out. I loved her choices. They were varied, interesting and a good representation of the theme. The second section is Art Appreciation. This correlates with the Picture Study choices, and gives added background. I used this section more heavily with my older boys, asking them the narration questions provided. This section really bridged the gap between history and art seamlessly. Barb also provides hands-on art suggestions that correlate. For example, for the first four weeks she suggests three simple cave art projects and one aboriginal art project, all using readily available materials, all matching with the readings and picture study. The third section is a teacher's guide to using the Artistic Pursuits program, breaking the lessons down into 32 weekly lessons. This is the one section in which I deviated somewhat. She suggests the Artistic Pursuits program Grades 4-6, Book 1 because of its level. I had already purchased the Grades K-3 level before I had decided to use Barb's program because it had a theme of art in history, so I substituted this program for the level she suggests. My older boys have not been challenged as much as if I had gone with Barb's suggestion, but it works for us as I can use the lessons for all the boys together and it does follow along with the history. The fourth section is Music Appreciation and primarily uses the Story of the Orchestra book. This part of the program has two... TO READ THE REST OF THIS REVIEW GO TO http://homeschooljournal-bergblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/ancient-art-and-orchestra-middle-school.html I have now been using this program for a half-year and I still absolutely love it and recommend it highly. Feel free to visit my blog to look at the wonderful things we have been doing. http://bergspot.blogspot.com/search/label/Art< Less
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