Hewitt Homeschooling: My First Report- A Review

Popper's group at Classical Conversations give presentations each week. I wanted a way to help make these educational. I knew that I wanted him to be allowed to choose his topic, but I wanted it to be topics that he had to learn about, not just stuff he already knew. I was very excited when I found out about My First Report by Hewitt Homeschooling. 
My First Report is a a set of 14 unit study topics that you can choose from, each of these have a variety subtopics. I knew this could be a bit overwhelming for Popper so, I allowed him to choose 4 main topics. His choices were Music, The Solar System and Space, Famous People, and Marine Life.  

When I received our 4 choices in the mail, I was in shock! These are so much more than I had originally thought. There are 10-12 sub-topics in each packet. Here is a list of the 4 we chose with their sub-topics:

Music: Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, Francis Scott Key, Violins, Trumpets, Pianos, Drums, Music Notation, Rhythm, Songs, and Groups

Famous People:Christopher Columbus, Martin Luther, Rembrant, Isaac Newton, Susanna Wesley, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Clara Barton, Booker T Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Alva Edison, and Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Solar System and Space: Earth's Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Earth's Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, and Asteroids Comets and Meteors

Marine Life: Sponges, Jellyfish and Coral, Sea Animals with Shells, Octopuses and Squids, Crustaceans, Sea Stars, Fishes, Sea Animals, Sharks and Rays, Dolphins, Sport Fishes, Aquarium Fishes, and Sea Horses

These can be studied individually or the packets include all the resources that you would need to teach as a complete unit study. These unit studies cover Bible, History/Geography/Social Studies, Reading, Language, Math, Science/Health, Physical Education, Music, Art, Field Trips, and Extra Resources. You could easily use one sub-topic per week and make one packet last a full quarter! 

My First Report is geared towards grades first through fourth, but I believe that they can easily be adapted to younger or older students with a few tweaks. There are reproducible masters to write the reports, each one has varying sized lines to accommodate all different ages and writers.  

We chose to use these as a way to teach Popper to research and write simple presentation style reports. Popper decided to start with The Solar System and Space. His sub-topic was 'Asteroids, Comets and Meteors.'  He collected several book from our home library to begin his research. 

I had Popper search for answers to the listed questions. This began a lesson in using indexes and glossaries to aid in searching larger books. We were also able to practice his dictionary skills as he came across words that he didn't know.  There were a few of the questions that our books couldn't answer. We worked together on searching online for the answers. This opened up topic of internet safety. I was amazed at all the learning that was taking place! Popper was loving every minute of it!

Popper still struggles with writing in large amounts. I was concerned about him getting discouraged about completing an entire report based on his findings. I decided instead to use the information collected and work on writing complete sentences. This worked out really well for him and he was still able to give a presentation to Daddy T. 

Popper's next choice was from Music. He wanted to learn more about Beethoven. Once again he gathered his materials and collected books from our home library. This time he didn't need my help as much as last time! I was able to watch and enjoy the learning that was happening.

These are a great way to spark interest on particular topics and get your child started learning. Popper has decided that he wants to learn more about Marine Life this week. We are heading to the library to check out books on octopuses later today. I think I may follow the unit study on this topic and pull the younger two in as well. There are some great Bible verses to learn and a trip to our local aquarium to tie in! 

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Other members of the Crew reviewed products from Hewitt Homeschooling as well. These products included Elementary, Junior High, and High School Literature Sets. You can read all about these great sets as well as how the Crew used them by clicking the link below: