Sonlight 3/4 American History, here we come!

I can't believe June is over and the school year is around the corner again!  I'm so excited that we'll be starting Sonlight Core 3/4 American History in August!  The 3/4 core is a one year condensed version of Intro to American History, but ours is only going to be condensed in time, not scope.  Yes, that's right, I just couldn't pass on all those marvelous books in core 3 and core 4 that we would have missed out on.  I inherited the core 3/4 books from my sister-in-law so I only bought the additional books that I knew we just couldn't live without.  My thinking is this:  My 9 and 11 yr olds are very good readers and even using core 6 this year (a year or two above their grade levels) I added 4 or 5 books to our curriculum.  My 7 yr old will not be reading all the books in core 3/4 with us.  I was hoping she'd be up to it, but we're just not there yet.  She'll do read aloud with us and also read independently the 4-5 books in the core that appear to be closer to her 2nd grade reading level.  I've found a few other picture books and chapter books on her level that will supplement her readings in American History. 

One of the reasons we're so excited to be starting American History is because we're planning a trip to Washington DC this year!  I was able to travel there a few years ago at cherry blossom time and I'm hoping we can time it right so the whole family can enjoy that beautiful sight.  We're shooting for April, but I guess we'll play it by ear.  It's a good thing we're all set for cross-country trips now with our RV!

I've been working on a series of posts on our 2010-2011 curriculum and schedule.  I love reading what others are doing, so if you haven't posted on this yet, please do so.  If you have posted your curriculum for next year, I'd love to have a link to it in the comments section.  I love learning from the wisdom and experience of others!