Teaching Intermediate Grades

Teaching the intermediate grades is easier for some mothers; teaching the little ones how to read is more demanding of time and energy. Children at the intermediate levels have the basic reading skills and are ready to progress in the subject areas beyond the fundamentals.

However, it is not as easy to discipline the children in the intermediate grades. Usually, little discipline has been learned in school. If the child begins home schooling at this level, some parents discover the basic academics have not been taught which often adds to the discipline problems as children become frustrated with review work. Parents need to work on the virtue of consistent quick obedience with this age group.

At these levels, children need to be establishing and maintaining the habit of frequent daily prayer, going to Mass, and saying the rosary. These are wonderful years for children to read the lives of the saints, and to try to apply some of the virtues to their own lives.

These are important formative years. These are the years that children treasure and won't forget. These are the years when children will readily accept the heroes and saints in good books and art.

Math

Our main math series for fourth grade is the Rod & Staff textbook series, which offers an abundance of basic drills and word problems. Also available is the Modern Curriculum Press series for those who prefer a workbook. For children who are advanced, parents may choose the Saxon 54 textbook. Fifth and sixth graders are sent the Saxon 54 and Saxon 65, though some students, especially if they have been home schooling for awhile, or are advanced, need to move up a grade level.

It is very important to let us know which Saxon level your child needs when you re-enroll since many parents change level during the year. We try to keep track of the level in our files, but a reminder would be helpful.

English

The Catholic schools always have been strong on English which is why we start our children early. In these intermediate levels, much more is learned and solidified. The Catholic Loyola series has been known for its high standards and quality.

Because the Loyola workbook we have been using is suddenly out of print, Seton is in the process of producing a Catholic English workbook series for our students. This year, we are using a Seton sixth grade English workbook, but some parents have told us it is very difficult. If the workbook is too difficult, you have the option of using a textbook exercise in place of a workbook exercise for the weekly grades. We are working to revise it now.

If students begin home schooling in sixth grade, English may be the subject that proves most difficult since many of the schools are not teaching it anymore. Some students will need to go back a level or two before being able to handle the sixth grade English. Teaching with the 4th or 5th grade workbook should be sufficient rather than the whole course.

Religion

Most calls we receive regarding religion in these grades relate to a sixth grader who has not learned very much about his catechism yet. The sixth grade textbook and Baltimore Catechism #2 are a little difficult for the new student. We recommend that some students take the fifth grade course instead, which includes the #1 Catechism which contains simpler answers.

We are often asked by parents who have just started home schooling about the necessity for memorizing the catechism answers. While we do not insist on exact memorization, we do need to see answers on the test which are substantially close to the catechism. It is actually easier to memorize the answers than to find an alternative answer which is accurate and complete. One word can make the difference between correct doctrine and heresy.

The Bible histories are very important for the children to read, even if they also read the original Bible text. These stories retell the Bible in simpler language. While the one for fourth grade is very simple, the Schuster text for the 5th and 6th are classics which were used in the Catholic schools for years. The discussion questions are important, not only for review, but to provide students with an opportunity to explain what they have read in their own words.

History

The intermediate history texts are reprints of good Catholic texts of the classical Catholic parochial schools. Catholic schools are no longer using Catholic textbooks, so these have been out of print for some time. Eventually, we will write our own history textbooks.

Though we would like everyone to take history, it is not required at these levels. Emphasis must be on the basic subjects: language arts, math, and religion. For those who are having time problems, you may omit history for a while, or you may omit some of the supplemental assignments.