Blessed Assurance Hymn Study

Hymn Study Introduction

“Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!

Heir of salvation, purchase of God,

born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.”

Our family has been doing a Blessed Assurance hymn study this week. This is a beautiful hymn that I have known for many years. It is a lovely classic song found in many hymnals and some contemporary music compilations.

I love the part of the chorus that says, “This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long.” It is such a reminder that we should be praising him throughout the day. Hymn studies are one way we try to keep our minds on praising the Lord.

Blessed Assurance Background

Franny Crosby wrote Blessed Assurance in 1873 to accompany the tune created by Phoebe Knapp. Sometimes the hymn itself has an exciting story, but in this case, the hymn writer has her own rich story. Crosby is credited with over 8,000 hymns.

She was born with sight but became blind at only six weeks old. She went to a particular school for the blind and later taught at the same school. She was well educated and well known for her hymns and songwriting. She wrote Blessed Assurance almost immediately upon hearing the tune from Knapp.

Activity Ideas for Blessed Assurance Hymn Study

We always like to start our hymn study by listening to various versions of the hymn. It never ceases to be a blessing. We listen intentionally and sing together as we begin our study, but I also will play it at other times during our day as background music. For example, I might play the hymn while cleaning up the kitchen after breakfast. Listening frequently helps to create familiarity with the music.

Music Performance in Hymn Study

If you have musically inclined students, learning to play the hymn on a favorite instrument is a great way to internalize the song. My daughter enjoys learning hymns on her violin, but you could get started with something as simple as a recorder.

Since many hymns are older and in the public domain, you can often find free or inexpensive sheet music online.

Take a few minutes and discuss the lyrics with your children. Talk about what they mean and how they might apply to their lives. You might talk about how the writer used rhyme to help the song flow if you have young children.

Printables for Blessed Assurance

Finally, you can download our free hymn study worksheet and copywork pages to accompany the hymn. These pages can help incorporate the hymn into your school day. To access your printables, sign-up for our free resource library at the end of this post.

Blessed Assurance Resources

Sheet Music

Contemporary Style Blessed Assurance: Jeremy Riddle

CeCe Winans and Choir (skip to 1:50 for the beginning of the song)

Alan Jackson Blessed Assurance (with guitar accompaniment)

Celtic Style Blessed Assurance

Carrie Underwood Blessed Assurance

Bluegrass Style Blessed Assurance

I hope this study and these resources are a blessing to your family! Be sure to check out all of our other hymn studies once you finish Blessed Assurance. We try to incorporate different ideas with each study, including nature study, art, and literature.

I would love for you to share your favorite version of Blessed Assurance in the comments. Also, let me know what hymns you would like to see next.

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Our Seventh Grade Curriculum Choices (2020)

Today, I am sharing with you what we are using for my daughter’s seventh grade curriculum. While there are a few things that are similar to what I shared a few years ago for my son in seventh grade it certainly is not exactly the same. That is because there is no one best program, it all really depends on the student and what works best for them. Hopefully, a few of these wonderful programs will be a great fit for your family.

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Glossary Sample

For language arts, we are continuing to use several different programs. First, we are sticking with All About Spelling. It is one of my favorite programs ever because it was such a game changer for our family. This program helped both of my older children to finally understand spelling and translate what they were learning in spelling to their everyday writing. This will be her last year with the program as she completes the final level. We also plan to continue with Fix It! Grammar from IEW. The short lessons are effective without being overwhelming and I have seen an increase in her understanding and use of proper grammar. Last year she started Sharon Watson’s writing program Jump In and will continue that program this year. The program is designed to be broken up between two and three years. Since we also include several research projects and essays through Junior Historians and 4-H we will probably take the full three years to complete the program. It is a gentle but effect approach to improving writing.

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Finally, for literature we are really switching things up. Last year, my daughter started a wonderful music appreciation course from Zeezok that she had planned to complete. However, we found that it was just too much on top of all of her other school work and extracurricular activities. The program is based around some wonderful biographies. So this year, we decided that for half of her literature we are going to focus on those biographies and activities. She loves music and hopes to be a violin instructor one day so this is a great way to incorporate her interests into her school work. In addition, we are going to read a novel together in between each biography. We are still working out the exact list but we are looking at some classics including Anne of Avonlea, Pride and Prejudice, and Little Women.

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She was very sad that she had to switch programs for math this year because she had completed the highest level of Math for a Living Education. We tried samples of various programs, and she decided that she wanted to try using Teaching Textbooks for pre-algebra this year. This will be her first time using an online program for math. We will see how that works for her, but she enjoyed the sample lessons at the beginning and is looking forward to getting started.

For science, she will be doing a study of anatomy and physiology. We are using Apologia’s Anatomy and Physiology course as our spine. This is the last book in that series that she needs to complete. We have really enjoyed using the series with both she and my ninth grader. My first grader will be joining her for science this year, though obviously with much different expectations.

For history this year our family is going to study ancient history. My daughter along with my first grader will be Story of the World Volume 1. My high school student will also study ancient history but using a high school level course through SchoolhouseTeachers.com. This will be my daughter’s second time going through volume one and I will be adding in some addition reading. In addition, she will be adding in some history pockets from Evan-Moor. Those can be purchased individually but they are also included in the Evan Moor Teacher FileBox which has a ton of great resources all in spot and they are offering a 30 day free trial right now.

For art, she will work on lessons from You Are An Artist Chalk Pastels. She does not see herself as much of an artist, but has found that she can follow along with Nana’s simple and clear instructions to create adorable pictures. She is also very excited to try the new sewing course that is being offered from You Are an Artist. Needlework is an art form that she really enjoys.

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For music, she takes violin and piano lessons from Practice Monkeys. We love this gentle and convenient approach to music lessons. She is progressing through the levels of the program quickly and enjoys practicing each day. I love that I never have to push her to practice or even remind her. She sets an alarm on her watch so she doesn’t forget and she is happy to virtually go to class each day.

We have also been using a subscription to SQUILT Music over the summer for music appreciation and the children have asked to continue to us that program through the year. This program supports her love of music and encourages her to learn more about other great musicians. Each month there are two new ‘live’ lessons that are done virtually and introduce students to a new composer or musician. In addition, you can access all of the previous lessons as recording at any time.

In addition to these programs, she will be doing Bible study each day and our morning time which will include read alouds, hymn study, nature study and more. We try to stay flexible and change things up if they are not working well. We will also be included a wide variety of review products.

What are your favorite middle grades resources?

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Our First Grade Curriculum

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This has been a year of extreme interest in homeschooling! Several times a week, over the course of the summer, I have been asked, “What is the best curriculum for….?” I will be the first to tell you that there is no one right answer to that question. Each child is different, each family situation is different, and there are hundreds of wonderful curricula. However, I did want to share what we are using in case it benefits someone who is looking for good options.

There are so many great options, but I think it is important to remember that sometimes less is more when it comes to younger children. They need plenty of time to play and explore. They need to use their imaginations and learn from active life experiences. Even with our list of curricula for my first grader, he will only be doing about one to two hours of school each day.

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All About Reading's new color edition review

My son was very reluctant to start learning to read and so we held off until he showed more readiness. Over the summer we started the pre-reading level of All About Reading. It has been a really great fit for us. He was finally ready and willing to learn how to read and doing it over the summer allowed me to really be focused on him while my older children had a break from regular school work. We will finish that level around October and move right into level 1. In addition to All About Reading, he is going to use Reading Eggs for a little fun reinforcement. He adores getting on the computer to do reading eggs, can navigate the program himself, and earning the eggs seems to be highly motivational for him.

Next, he will be using MasterBooks Math For A Living Education. My daughter used the program for several years and we really find it to be a quality program and a great fit for our family. In addition to the math skills sheets, there is a story woven throughout the book which is engaging and also helps students understand how they use math in day to day life. The Level 1 story involves children at a farm which I think my son will really enjoy.

For science, he will be joining my daughter in a study of anatomy and physiology. As a seventh grader, I will expect much more from my daughter but I think they will enjoy the study together. We are using Apologia’s Anatomy and Physiology course as our spine. I think he will enjoy learning about the various parts of the body and it will be a good course for them to work through together. However, if I just had a first grader, I would probably choose a different book in that same series. The zoology ones are a lot of fun with younger children. This is the last one in the series that my daughter needed to complete and he will go through the series over the course of his elementary years.

For history this year our family is going to study ancient history. My son and daughter will be using Story of the World Volume 1. My high school student will also study ancient history but using a high school level course through SchoolhouseTeachers.com. I have found that the short, story style lessons and the fun projects really make Story of the World a great option for young learners.

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For art, he will continue to work on lessons from You Are An Artist Chalk Pastels. He loves doing the lessons with nana and has progressed from her simple preschool lessons to being able to do some of her more advanced lessons. She has so much to choose from and we rotate between choosing lessons that align with what we are studying and just letting him pick lessons based on what looks like fun.

For music, he takes violin lessons from Practice Monkeys. We love this gentle and convenient approach to music lessons and looks forward to them each day. We have also been using a subscription to SQUILT Music over the summer for music appreciation and the children have asked to continue to us that program through the year. Each month there are two new ‘live’ lessons that are done virtually and introduce students to a new composer or musician. In addition, you can access all of the previous lessons as recording at any time.

He will be joining us for Bible study each day and our morning time which will include read alouds, hymn studies, and more. This will give him a good base while still allowing time for free play, field trips, and life learning.

What are your favorite first grade resources?

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Adding Music To Your Homeschool (When You Aren’t A Musical Mom)

Anyone who knows me well, knows that music is not my gifting. I love to listen to music, but I do not have a talent for making music. I took piano lessons as a young girl, audited voice lessons in college, and had to learn the recorder for my Elementary Music course in college. However, I was never proficient at any of those and my ear just doesn’t hear tone the way some people can.

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My children, however, decided that they really enjoy music and wanted to work at becoming proficient musicians. This put me in a situation where I needed help them learn content that I myself was not proficient with, but there are some wonderful resources available to help me encourage them in their musical passions.

It all started with a three-month review of Practice Monkey violin lessons. My daughter enjoyed the lessons so much that she has continued for about 18 months and just passed her assessment to move to level six. In addition, both my five-year-old and thirteen-year-old sons are taking lessons. My daughter also began piano in January. These online lessons have been a real blessing to our family because they offer the musical structure my children need, but the time flexibility that we needed for our busy schedules. Their teacher, Mrs. Sarah Van Kleeck is wonderful!

We had been taking the children to local symphonies for years to give them exposure to a variety of music. However, once the children started playing, they really developed a deeper interest in music. Since they had such an interest and passion, I have been working to include music into our home and school in a variety of ways.

For my two younger children, I wanted some additional music instruction. We found another online program, Musik at Home. These are membership based on line kindermusic videos. There are a variety of courses geared towards babies up to about age seven. These lessons help teach rhythm, tone, repetition and more all through fun songs and movements. Some days, I just let them watch and participate as they desire and other days, I work through the videos with them, waving our scarves and tapping our rhythm sticks.

Next, I wanted to focus on exposure to good music and music appreciation to support what the children were learning in their Practice Monkeys lessons. One program that I have loved for music appreciation is SQUILT music. We have used two different programs from them depending on what else we have going on in our school at the time. The first thing that we used was their monthly music calendar. This super simple and inexpensive resource is a calendar with a link to a different piece of thematic music each day of the month. We loved using it at Christmas to hear a variety of pieces from Handel’s Messiah as well as other Christmas music. It only takes about five minutes a day but it exposes them to so much good music. During months when we have had a little more time, we enjoy the SQUILT membership. This gives us access to several live classes that focus on different music each month, as well as recordings, worksheets, and other resources. In January, they did musicals and my children LOVED the lesson on Mary Poppins. If you want easy ways to incorporate more music appreciation into your school, I highly encourage you to check out SQUILT!

Last year, we had an opportunity to review the Zeezok Music Appreciation course for middle schoolers. We enjoyed it while we were working through it but found we were having a hard time making time for the whole course in our busy schedules. However, since it is very literature heavy with biographies on the composers, I am going to use it as the base for my daughters seventh grade literature course. This will combine her love of reading and her love of music for an interesting and personalized course.

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My son is going to be a 9th grader next year. This is an exciting (if a little scary) time for us. Since he is enjoying his violin lessons, we are going to turn that into a high school elective for him. He was very excited to know he could get credit for work he was already doing for fun. In addition to the lessons and practice, he and my other children are playing for residents at a local nursing home each month. This blesses the residents with music and gives me children a chance to practice playing for an audience. I will also be including some music appreciation into his high school course to round it all out.

No matter whether you are a talented musician or, like me, can only play the radio, there are many wonderful resources to encourage your children’s passion for music. I hope you find these resources beneficial and I would to hear about your favorite resources.

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Zeezok Music Appreciation (Review)

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One of the things I love about homeschooling is the ability to allow my children to explore a variety of interests and passions. My daughter has developed and interest in music through her violin lessons and our family trips to the symphony. I was excited to be able to review Music Appreciation Book 2: for the Middle Grades and help her learn more about some of the composers whose music she was hearing and playing. Zeezok Publishing did a great job creating a program that helped her delve further into the lives and music of various composers while also teaching some basic information about reading and understanding music.

We received the student book and nine biographies covering seven composers (two of the composers were split into two books). When we started this program over the summer, I had my daughter, a rising sixth grader, working through the program with a little help from me. The program started with Frederic Chopin, Early Years and she learned about how he grew up in Poland and his childhood. We all enjoyed her fixing a Polish Christmas feast for dinner one night after learning about this custom. She used a recipe for poppy seed cake that was included in the activity book and found other recipes online for sauerkraut, kielbasa, perogies, and more.

The program would have her read several chapters and then do a variety of activities in the student book. This included answering questions about the chapters, listening to music selections via QR codes, and activities to learn about musical concepts such as the various types of notes (whole note, quarter note, etc). The curriculum also has the student create a journal to help record what they are learning and their thoughts about the composers. If you are in a state or situation where you need to track national standards the curriculum covers all of the national standards for music appreciation in fifth through eighth grades.

She was enjoying working through the program even though we were technically on summer break from school. As we are starting back to our regular schedule, I have switched it up a bit and I am going to use the biographies as a read aloud to all three of my school aged children. My daughter will still be completing the student book and activities but I thought all of the children would enjoying learning about the composers. We are currently learning about Schumann and look forward to also learning about Wagner, Foster, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, and MacDowell.

The curriculum is designed for fifth through eighth graders but they do also have a coloring book that you can purchase to go along with the composers. This could be a great way to include younger siblings and I am considering purchasing one for my kindergartner. They also have a lap book that can be purchased for your hands-on learners.

I love it when I find a program that is fun and can teach my children (and me) about our interests. Music Appreciation Book 2: for the Middle Grades certainly fit that description. The interesting biographies really helped us to connect with the composers, while the activities kept things fun and engaging. I encourage you to check out the program and also to click on the graphic below to check out the other Crew reviews and see how other families integrated it into their day.

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Our Sixth Grade Curriculum Choices

I am excited to share with you today the very best and only correct sixth grade curriculum! Just kidding! I firmly believe that there are many great programs. There are many factors that go into choosing the best curriculum for your child. However, I always like to share what we are using in case it helps someone find a program that works well for their family.

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My daughter is eleven and getting ready to start her sixth-grade year. When we sat down and discussed her goals for the year, she wanted to work on improving her running, her music skills, start her own weaving business, and read through the entire Old Testament. As I sat down to plan her curriculum, I wanted to find ways to incorporate both the academic goals that I had for her as well as her own goals and interests.

Glossary Sample

For language arts, we are using a combination of four programs. This might sound a bit overwhelming but they each cover a different area and generally only require a few minutes each day per program. First, we are continuing to use All About Spelling. It is one of my favorite programs ever because it was such a game changer for our family. This program helped both of my older children to finally understand spelling and translate what they were learning in spelling to their everyday writing. Last spring, my daughter had the opportunity to try out Fix It! Grammar from IEW and we felt like it was a really good fit. The short lessons were effective without being overwhelming and so we are going to continue to use that program for Grammar. For literature we are going to use Analyzing, Understanding, and Exploring Literature from SchoolhouseTeachers.com. Finally, we are going to start working our way through Sharon Watson’s writing program Jump In. My son started this program last spring and we really liked it. She has various plans to cover this material in anywhere from one to three years. I plan on using the two-year track with my daughter.

For the last two years my daughter has used Math For A Living Education. She has really enjoyed the program and it worked well for her. I thought about switching her to something that she could use all through middle school (level six is the highest in this program), but since she liked it and wanted to continue, we decided to go ahead and finish out the program before switching to something new next year. I love that it is a very open and go program that includes lots of real-life application to help them understand why they need the math and when they will use it in real life.

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For science, we are finishing up a science program that we started but did not finish last year: Apologia Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics. We love the Apologia series but got behind due to the hurricane and switched our science focus to match what was happening in our lives. We are excited to dive back into this program and finish it out. We enjoy all of the hands-on projects and the creation-based approach to science.

We will be studying North Carolina History as a family. We love history and have spent a good deal of time volunteering at our local historic site, so the children are very excited about this year’s history line-up. I will be using a variety of books, our North Carolina Junior Historians program, the North Carolina Historic Sites, and a variety of other resources to take them through North Carolina’s history. We will also use State History from a Christian Perspective to get us started and get a good overview of North Carolina.

For art, she will work on lessons from You Are An Artist Chalk Pastels. She does not see herself as much of an artist, but has found that she can follow along with Nana’s simple and clear instructions to create adorable pictures. I think that the program helps her gain confidence in her art abilities and takes her outside of her ‘box’ and lets her try new things. For music, she takes violin lessons from Practice Monkeys. We love this gentle and convenient approach to music lessons. She is progressing through the levels of the program quickly and enjoys practicing each day. She is also hoping to add piano lessons through the same program in January. I love that she can manage this new passion and is being responsible in practicing and ‘going to’ her online lessons without a lot of reminding. We are also going to incorporate some music appreciation materials during our morning time and evening education.

In addition to these programs, she will be doing Bible study each day and our morning time which will include read alouds, music appreciation, missionary studies, and more. Of course, there will also be lots of free play, field trips, and hands on adventures to keep the real-life learning going. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be sharing more about what we are using for our morning time as well as the programs I am using for my eighth grader. If you have younger children you may want to check out Our Kindergarten Curriculum.

What are your favorite middle grades resources?

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Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!

Our Kindergarten Curriculum

One of the most popular homeschooling questions I receive is, “What is the best curriculum for….?” I will be the first to tell you that there is no one right answer to that question. There are many factors that go into choosing the best curriculum for your child. However, I always like to share what we are using in case it helps someone find a program that works well for their family.

My son turned five in April and is beginning his kindergarten year this fall. Earlier this summer, when I was working on goals with my older two children, he wanted to set his own goals. I suggested learning to read or to write his name. He, however, had other ideas. He let me know that he wanted to learn to cook pancakes and fish, climb trees, and more about Jesus. While I don’t think this is all we will learn in kindergarten, I did think they were worthy goals and a great insight into the mind of a five-year-old boy. I’ll leave the tree climbing lessons to his siblings but I do plan to teach him to cook pancakes and fish (though not together) and I am always happy to teach my children more about Jesus.

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In addition to his goals, I have planned out some fun curriculum for us to use to cover additional academic subjects. We do believe in a relaxed approach to kindergarten and what I have planned should take us about an hour a day not counting field trips, nature walks, and his fifteen-minute violin lesson. Since he is not yet showing any interest and has been resistant to learning letters and reading, we will be waiting to start formal phonics until at least January. I will re-evaluate his readiness in January and possibly start All About Reading or work some more in The Learning Dynamics Reading Program. I am also going to have him continue to use his Starfall subscription a couple times a week to continue his exposure to letters and phonics.

I will be using Five in A Row as our primary curriculum with him this year. This program is a great way to encourage an enjoyment of good children’s books and incorporate other areas of learning. Using this program, we will read the book of the week five times (once each school day) and complete various activities coordinating with the book. Five in a Row includes activities for social studies, math, language arts, art, and science. Each week I will choose from the variety of activities to engage and challenge him.

While Five in a Row includes some math, it is not a sequential math program. I believe that math in the early years should mostly be hands on and as real life as possible, but I like to have slightly more structured program. Therefore, I am using a Calendar Math set and the Building a Foundation with Kindergarten Math course from Schoolhouse Teachers to create a math program for him. He loves doing math and is looking forward to getting started. He has really enjoyed using the Pattern Block Pack from The Crafty Classroom so I will also use those a couple times a week for independent work.

For science, we will be doing a mostly nature focused science study in addition to some of the science activities in Five in a Row. I am going to use a primary journal so that he can draw pictures of what we find in nature and then dictate a sentence about it for me to write at the bottom. We will use our Peterson’s field guides and other resources to learn more about the things he finds. I am also planning to get him caterpillars in the spring so that he can learn about the life cycle of the butterfly.

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We will be studying North Carolina History as a family. At the kindergarten level this will mostly be listening to me read aloud, having family discussions, lots of field trips, and some fun coloring pages. We also already to historical interpreting as a family, so he has lots of exposure to history and has developed a love for the revolutionary era. I believe that this will be a great introduction to the study of history for him.

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For art, he will continue to work on lessons from You Are An Artist Chalk Pastels. He has been doing the preschool lessons, but as he gets more comfortable I will have him do some of the regular lessons that are a little more challenging. He enjoys these lessons with ‘Nana’ so much and just last week as we were coloring a picture he told me that my picture was “almost as good as Nana’s.” For music, he takes violin lessons from Practice Monkeys. We love this gentle and convenient approach to music lessons and looks forward to them each day.

In addition to these programs, he will be joining us for Bible study each day and our morning time which will include read alouds, music appreciation, missionary studies, and more. Of course, there will also be lots of free play, field trips, and hands on adventures to keep the real life learning going. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be sharing more about what we are using for our morning time as well as the programs I am using for my older children.

What are your favorite kindergarten resources?

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Deals and Freebies

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!

January Hymn Study: Shall We Gather at the River

shall we gather

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When I started thinking about a hymn study for January I was looking at various lists of hymns for the ‘New Year’ and thinking that it would be appropriate to chose one of those hymns. I even started writing a post about one of them but it never felt quite right. Then I finally slowed down enough to listen to that still small voice and I kept hearing the words to this song in my head. It is a hymn that I love but do not often hear anymore. I pray that you enjoy this study this month and that it resonates in your soul.

Shall We Gather at the River Story

Shall We Gather At the River was written by Robert Lowry in 1864. He wrote the song based off of Revelation 21:1-2 where there is a description of heaven with a river flowing by the throne of God. I love the imagery and it makes me think of all of those who have gone on before me that are gathering at that river, singing praises to God.

While the song and the verse are speaking of heaven I think it also reminds me to gather and slow down in the here and now. Life has a way of getting busy and chaotic and we need to ‘Be Still’ and spend time with the Lord. I have included several audio versions of the song as well as the lyrics and sheet music in the links below. There is also a free downloadable hymn study sheet and a free copy work to go along with the hymn. I pray that this song blesses you this month.

Resources

Audio (Gospel Choir)

Audio (Buddy Greene)

Lyrics and Sheet Music

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Hymn Study Fact Sheet

Shall We Gather at the River (January Copywork)

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December Hymn Study: O Holy Night

O Holy Night

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December is one of my favorite times of the ‘musical year’. I dearly love Christmas carols and the joy and hope that they bring to my heart. They are such a wonderful reminder of the love of Jesus. I love that I often hear them in places where you do not normally hear Christian music and I pray that they touch the hearts of those around me.

When I chose the song, ‘O Holy Night’ to study I had no idea what the story behind the hymn was or why it was written. It is an interesting story as it was written by a man who later walked away from the church and the music composed by a Jewish man who did not believe in Jesus. O Holy Night was embraced by the church in Ireland when introduced in 1847. Shortly thereafter, the church’s opinion changed and the song was denounced, before regaining popularity a decade later in the United States.

In addition to being able to read the story behind the hymn this month, I found a short YouTube video that shared the story. There are so many different versions of this song so I included links to a few below, including a fun Celtic version. As you take time to listen to the music this month I encourage you to take a few minutes and just sit and reflect on that night. The night that in many ways was just an ordinary night but that was also one of the most extraordinary nights in history.

I broke up the copy work into six days instead of five because the lyrics to this song are a little longer than many of our hymns. In addition to our normal listening and copy work, I think that this free Christmas Star art lesson is going to be a great addition to our study. When I hear the words to O Holy Night it reminds me of the star that shone so bright that night.

Resources

Sheet Music

YouTube (Celtic)

YouTube Performance w/ Orchestra

YouTube (with Lyrics)

Story Behind the Hymn (Video)

Story Behind the Hymn

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Hymn Study Fact Sheet

O Holy Night (December Copywork)

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Guitar 360 Method (Review) and DISCOUNT CODE!

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Over the past month or so my twelve year old has been learning to play the guitar using the online Semester 1 Bundle from Guitar 360 Method. When my son was about four he wanted to learn to play the guitar and our wonderfully talented youth and music minister agreed to teach him. He enjoyed the lessons but refused to practice and so I discontinued them and the guitar has sat mostly unused ever since. My son had recently began mentioning lessons again but I was hesitant to commit to taking him to more lessons given our busy schedules and his lack of follow we saw last time. I felt like the scheduling concerns were addressed by using this online program because we could work the lessons into our busy and changing lives as needed.

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Music lessons are one of those subjects that I chose not to require in our home school. I know that different families have different areas of focus and for us music lessons are not a priority. We do incorporate music appreciation, hymn study, and this year a fun genre study into our everyday curriculum. Since we do not require lessons, but my son had been talking about wanting to try guitar again, I let him decide if this review was something that interested him. He was so excited to try it and I’m glad that I gave him the opportunity!

While this was not his first time in classes, it had been seven years since he took them so we started him in the Absolute Beginner Course. He worked through that at his own pace. He enjoyed it and found that he learned new skills and brushed up on some other skills. At first we had a bit of problem with the videos not wanting to stream correctly (the sound would play but the video would freeze). We determined that the problem was that we were using an older computer and the videos were playing at a very high resolution. I’m glad we were able to easily solve that small problem by wsing a newer computer or adjusting the resolution fixed this issue and allowed for a much smoother practice session.

guitarmethod360

The first day that he had access to the lessons he worked through multiple lessons in the beginner course because he was so excited. Throughout the rest of the review period he practiced four or five days a week, which considering our busy schedules during this time was an excellent accomplishment. He really enjoyed the chance to practice and learn each day. He worked through all of the beginner course and began the Semester 1 course. During that time he learned basic chords, strumming patterns, and even his first song.

Each video ranged from about three to ten minutes in length making them very easy to fit into our days. However, I recommend making sure that your student also builds in some addition time to practice those skills in order to see the most progress. This program is not a subscription that you lose at the end of the thirteen week program so there is no pressure to rush through and finish ‘on-time’.

Some of the lessons he picked up on quickly the first time through and he could keep moving forward. There were a few things that he needed to go back and work on but that was very easy with this program. He could simply watch that video lesson again and even pause and practice some more before continuing. However, I think that I let him work through those lessons a little too fast in the beginning with not enough practice and he struggled to put it all together. Learning an instrument is not like binge watching your favorite streaming program, you have to develop the muscle memory. Once I made him go back and master each lesson before moving on he showed a good deal of progress.

Each week of the course includes a goal for the week and then various teaching and practicing videos. The teaching videos show a new skill or concept that they learn along with and then the practice videos are several minutes of work on the skills that have been covered. The course is a good mix of music practice and music theory. This helps with the goal of giving the musician freedom and confidence in playing and not just memorizing songs.

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We still have a long way to go to be finished with this course, which is a 13 week course not counting the Guitar Course for Beginners portion. However, at the end of the course my son should be able to play a variety of songs and chords and have the skills and confidence he needs to play well with a band or independently. He will understand the music theory enough to allow him to be flexible and adapt his skills to the situation and not just memorize chords. The instructor says that with mastery of the course a player would be well equipped to be a valuable player in a worship band or other similar setting. My son would really love to play well enough to be able to help out with our band at church.

I was not sure that our family had the time or resources to give to music lessons during this time in our lives, but this program proved me wrong. The flexibility of the online prerecorded format and the short easy to follow lessons allowed my son to fit his lessons in around our other obligations. The program was fun, easy to follow, and allowed him to move at his own pace. This has been a very positive experience for us and we are excited to see how well he is playing when he finished the Semester 1 Bundle. If you have a son/daughter who wants to learn the guitar, or even if you as an adult want to learn I highly recommend this program. I would recommend it for ages 10 and above. Check out all of the other Crew Reviews below to see how people used it in a variety of situations with a variety of ages. I can also offer you a 20% discount on this course using the code HOMESCHOOL20. The course was already significantly less expensive than paying for most private instructors and the 20% discount makes it an even more amazing value. This would be a great addition to your curriculum or a gift for that music lover in your life.