Cycle 2 Week 20 Tutor Ideas for Classical Homeschooling
It’s Cycle 2 Week 20, and by now the classroom feels like a well-oiled machine. The kids know the rhythm of our days, they jump into review with confidence, and you can really see how much their hard work is paying off. This week’s plans lean into that growing maturity with activities that are simple, engaging, and designed to help them make strong connections across the subjects. We’ll keep things light, hands-on, and joyful because learning at this stage should feel exciting, not overwhelming.
As always, I’m not affiliated with any Classical education organization—just sharing what has worked beautifully in my own classroom with young learners. I hope these Cycle 2 Week 20 tutor plans spark ideas, support your prep, and help your students finish the quarter with enthusiasm!
We love being part of our Classical homeschooling community. Read more about how God redirected our path from private education to homeschooling and Classical education here.
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Are you new to the Classical model and want to know more about it? Keep reading below about how it’s organized, the different cycles, our community time, and MORE!
If you already know about the Classical homeschooling model and you are ready to jump to the actual tutor ideas, click HERE.
A Classical model of homeschooling
We are part of a Christ-centered homeschool program that follows the Classical model. The younger children, ages 4-12, focus on a memorization-based curriculum which acts as the groundwork of learning that is built upon in later years.
Children and their parents learn key facts across the core subject areas including history, science, English, mathematics, geography, and Latin. Tutors use fun activities, games, songs, and lots of energy to introduce the new material. The parents can then expand on that material at home throughout the week.
Cycle rotation
The material is divided into three cycles, which each last one year. The cycles continue to rotate every three years, so most children who start when they are kindergarten age, complete each cycle at least twice. This allows them to develop a deeper comprehension and grasp of the material through repetition.
Cycle 2 material
This year in Cycle 2, we’re learning about pre-Reformation to modern history, ecology, astronomy, and physics; Latin verb endings; English pronouns, adverbs, and conjunctions; skip counting, conversions, and more!
The following ideas are what I’m planning to do with the group of kids I am tutoring this year (ages 4-6). You may use these ideas if you are also tutoring in a Classical homeschooling community, or if you’re a parent who is looking for memory work ideas to use at home.
Also, you don’t have to be part of any particular Classical homeschooling group to use these ideas! These are ideas to help children learn key concepts in the core subject areas. If you are a homeschooling parent, or just a parent who wants to supplement what your kids are currently learning in school, these ideas will be helpful for you.
Community group time
Our homeschooling community has been meeting on Tuesdays. Our leader starts off the morning with everyone together in a big group setting. She typically begins that time with a devotional reading and prayer, and then continues with some announcements, celebrating birthdays, the pledge of allegiance, and anything else she wants to cover with everyone.
After this time, we split off into our different groups based on age. The tutors lead their groups into different classrooms and begin the New Grammar part of the day. This is when the tutor introduces the memory work for each core subject. Check out my post and video about how to make your own tutor board!
Cycle 2 Week 20 Tutor and Memory Work Ideas
New Grammar
Geography – South Central Asia
This week in geography, we’re learning about South Central Asia: Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam.
Before class, I prepare our trivium table maps ahead of time. You could also print a map and laminate it if you prefer. (This is the printer and laminator I use all the time!) I outline the countries we’re learning about this week each in a different color of dry erase marker so they’re easy to distinguish.
To make this lesson fun and hands-on, I’ll be giving each child a tiny hand that fits on their finger. Using their “mini hands,” they’ll point to each country on their laminated trivium table maps. Before class, I outline the five countries in different colors with dry erase markers so they stand out clearly and the kids can easily distinguish each one.
We’ll begin by pointing to and naming each country together using our tiny hands. Then I will teach a simple song to the tune of Skip to my Lou (see video above). We’ll sing it several times while pointing to the countries, which helps reinforce the memory work in a playful and memorable way.
Once the children feel confident, we’ll turn it into a quick review game. I’ll ask questions like,
“Who remembers the name of the red country?”
“What about the orange country?”
Using their tiny hands to point, the kids get a fun challenge while reviewing the new map locations together.
This simple activity brings a ton of joy and keeps everyone engaged while learning the geography for the week!
English – An Appositive
This week in English we’re learning the definition of an appositive: An appositive is a noun or pronoun directly beside another noun that explains or identifies it.
We’ll sing a song to the tune of Polly Wolly Doodle, and every time we say the word “beside,” I’ll have the children quickly move beside another friend. Once they’re standing close next to someone, they’ll stay there until the song ends.
We’ll sing it a few times, and each round I’ll encourage them to stand beside a different classmate. This simple movement helps reinforce the idea that an appositive stands right beside the noun it describes.
Timeline
The timeline stays the same each cycle, and this week we continue with the next seven cards.
I often use these Timeline Cards in class: Set 1 (Ancient World), Set 2 (Medieval World), Set 3 (New World), and Set 4 (Modern World) I highly recommend investing in them (you should get all four sets) whether you are a tutor or a parent. I consistently use them as a tutor and also at home with my kids.
Since I have the 4-6 year old children, I like to tape the paper letter that the timeline event starts with at the top of the card. I have found these letters at my local Dollar Tree. Some of the children in my class can’t read yet, so this helps them identify the event I’m referring to.
Cycle 2 Week 20 Timeline
I sing this week’s part of the timeline song as the children are searching for the cards. See my tutor video for the tune of this week’s timeline song.
Then I have everyone sit in a circle on the floor with the cards they found. I tell the kids to lay the cards FACE UP on the floor in the center of the circle.
I say this week’s first timeline event, “Australia Becomes a Commonwealth,” and I ask, “what letter does “Australia” start with?”
A child answers, “It starts with the letter “A.”
I say, “Correct! Who sees a card with the letter “A” on it?”
We find the card and go over the hand motion for that event. I put it back down on the floor and then pick the next card, until we have gone over all the hand motions.
Math
This week in math, we’re learning about the circumference of a circle, and to make it extra fun, I bring a few hula hoops for the kids to use during our activity!
When it’s time for math, I begin by showing the children the circle I’ve drawn on my tutor board and introducing the circumference formula. We talk briefly about how circumference is the distance all the way around the circle. Then I teach them the last part of our geometry song to help them remember the formula. See my video below:
Next, I spread the hula hoops around the room and divide the children into small groups. Each group stands along the edge of a hula hoop, and as we sing the geometry song together, the kids take turns doing these fun movements:
- 🚶 Walk along the outside of the hula hoop
- 👣 Tiptoe carefully along the outside (without stepping on the hoop!)
- 🦶 Hop on one foot along the outside
- 🦶 Switch and hop on the other foot
- 🕺 Jump from the inside of the hula hoop to the outside
This movement-based activity helps the children visualize the circle’s circumference while giving them a physical way to connect with the geometry song. It keeps energy high, builds confidence, and makes learning the formula both memorable and fun!
History
This week our history sentence is: In 1965, President Johnson sent U.S. troops to stop communist North Vietnam from capturing all of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
This week’s history sentence introduces the Vietnam War, focusing on President Johnson sending U.S. troops in 1965 to stop communist North Vietnam from taking over South Vietnam. To help the children remember the geography and reinforce the contrast between the two sides, we’ll add a fun movement activity to our song. (see my tutor video for this week’s tune).
Each time we sing “North Vietnam,” the whole class will run to the north wall of the room.
Each time we sing “South Vietnam,” we’ll switch directions and run to the south wall.
We’ll repeat the song several times so the children get plenty of chances to move back and forth. This simple activity helps them connect the names to real directions, builds energy, and makes the history sentence both memorable and engaging!
Science: The Second Law of Thermodynamics
This week in science, we’re learning about the second law of thermodynamics — the law of entropy. Explains why heat flows from an area of higher temperature to an area of lower temperature.
We’ll keep singing our science song to the tune of I’ve Been Working on the Railroad, since it’s catchy, easy for little ones, and builds toward next week’s law as well.
Before we sing, I will review the motions from our first week and teach the children the two motions for this part of the song:
CREATED — open both hands wide like you are making something appear
DESTROYED — gently swipe your hands downward like something is disappearing
HIGHER TEMPERATURE — reach both hands up high
LOWER TEMPERATURE — crouch down low and lower your hands toward the ground
Once the kids understand the motions, we will sing the science song together. When we sing “created,” everyone opens their hands wide. When we sing “destroyed,” everyone swipes their hands downward. Each time we sing “higher temperature,” the children stretch tall with lifted hands; when we sing “lower temperature,” they crouch low toward the ground.
These simple movements help the children picture what each term means while keeping the song lively and engaging.
We will repeat this part of the song a few times—slowly at first, then a bit faster once the motions feel natural. This musical, movement based routine gives the kids a fun and memorable way to understand these important scientific ideas!
Latin
This week in Latin we’re continuing to learn the first conjugation verb endings in the perfect tense:
ī, istī, it, imus, istis, ērunt.
See my tutor video for the tune we use to sing these! Before we begin, I write the endings clearly on my tutor board and review them with the children.
This week in Latin we are playing a game called Sparkle to review the noun endings. The children sit in a circle, and I start by singing the first ending, “-ī.” The child to my right sings the next ending, and so on around the circle until we have sung through all of them.
When a child sings the very last ending, the person to their right—who would normally go next—says “Sparkle!” That child is “out” and moves to sit just outside the circle. We then start again from the beginning and continue until only one child (or maybe the tutor!) is left. The kids love seeing who will last the longest, and it gives us lots of repetition in a fun and engaging way.
To keep things extra lively, I sometimes hand out silly voice cards (linked here). We switch off singing the noun endings in the different silly voices. This always gets lots of laughs and helps keep their attention, especially as the day goes on.
You can download my UPDATED printable Silly Voice and Action Cards for free by entering your email in the form below and I’ll send them straight to your mailbox!
For review this week, we play a game called Rotten Egg. This is a fun Easter review game, similar to the Stinky Feet and Lovebug review games we played during previous weeks.
Before community group, I cut out and laminate this Rotten Egg sign and egg cards. You can download these for free! You can also just draw a rotten egg on a white board and use sticky notes as the Easter eggs if you don’t want to print anything out.
The egg cards have either a positive number on the back or a negative number with a bug. The numbers are from -2o to +20 in increments of 5.
I split my class into teams. I ask the first child a review question from any subject and after they answer they get to pick an egg card off of the board. If they don’t know the correct answer, I let the rest of their team help. They turn the card over and see it’s a “rotten egg” card or not. A “rotten egg” card is a negative number with a rotten brown color.
Whatever point value is on the back of the card gets added or subtracted from the team’s score.
The game ends when all the egg cards are gone! Whichever team ends up with the most points wins! Or you could switch it up and have the team with the least points win.
I prefer to ask review questions on the fly instead of preparing them ahead of time. Here are some more example questions I ask (remember I have the youngest children in my group):
- Can you name one of the countries in World War I?
- What do you remember about the Industrial Revolution?
- Who remembers one of the states of matter?
- What is one purpose of a sentence?
- What is one form of energy?
The game ends when all the heart cards are gone! Whichever team ends up with the most points wins! Or you could switch it up and have the team with the least points win.
Composers and Orchestra in Fine Arts
Now that we’re in the final stretch of Cycle 2, Fine Arts shifts to Composers and Orchestra, and it’s such a peaceful and beautiful way to end the year. Over six weeks, the children are introduced to great composers, learn to recognize the four instrument families, and begin to hear the unique styles that make each composer memorable.
In our community, this time is simple and engaging—one composer at a time, a featured piece to listen to, a few meaningful takeaways about their life and music, and hands-on ways to connect what they’re hearing to real instruments.
If you’d like to see exactly how we structure these weeks (both in community and at home), I’ve shared all the details in this post, along with resources that make planning easy. I also share:
✨ Three Great Composers Mini Books – Beethoven, Brahms, and Dvořák
Each 11-page mini book introduces one composer with short, kid-friendly text, listening prompts, and interactive pages that help children connect to the music in a personal way. They’re perfect for morning basket time, quiet table work, or reinforcing what your child learned on community day.
✨ Instruments of the Orchestra Activity Book
With 38 hands-on activities, this book walks children through the four instrument families—strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion—helping them recognize instruments, understand their sounds, and see how they fit together in the orchestra.
✨ Instruments of the Orchestra UNO Card Game
This fun, family-style card game turns instrument review into an exciting kitchen-table activity. Kids practice recognizing instruments and families while playing a game they already love.
✨ FREE Instrument Family Posters
A bright, kid-friendly set of four printable posters featuring the strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion families. They’re perfect for hanging in your homeschool space or keeping nearby during music study to reinforce what children are hearing and learning.
Together, these tools make composer study and orchestra appreciation engaging, memorable, and easy to weave into your week. 🎶
Cycle 2 Weeks 13-24 Review Activity Book
I’m excited to share with you about my new Weeks 13-24 Review Activity Book! I designed it to help kids review, connect, and celebrate everything they’ve learned in the second half of Cycle 2 — from geography and history to science, math, Latin, English, and even the timeline.
Inside, you’ll find 50 engaging activities that make review time interactive and joyful. Each page reinforces memory work while encouraging deeper connections and confidence. Whether you use it during a mid-cycle break, after you complete cycle 2, or as part of your regular review time, it’s an easy, low-prep way to keep learning fresh and fun.
You can find the Cycle 2 Weeks 13-24 Review Activity Book in my shop below! I also have a Cycle 2 Weeks 1-12 Review Activity book that review the material from the first have of Cycle 2.
Cycle 2 Historyopoly
One of our favorite ways to review history is with Cycle 2 Historyopoly, a brand new game I created this year.
It is modeled after Monopoly but uses all of the Cycle 2 history sentences. The kids love rolling dice, moving around the board, and reviewing history facts as we play. It turns review into something exciting and fresh, and we will definitely be pulling it out again many more times this year. You can grab this NEW game below!
Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book
If you’re looking for a fun way to review the memory work at home with your kids this year, check out our NEW Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book. I created this notebook to give kids a fun way to practice their memory work, without adding extra prep for mom, dad, or grandma.
Inside, there’s one short activity for each subject for all 24 weeks of Cycle 2. When we do geography on Monday, they do the geography activity for that week. When we get to Thursday, they do the science page. It’s so easy to match to whatever we’re focusing on that day.
I love that it keeps things simple and fun. It’s NOW available in digital and printed form, and there is a sample page you can take a peek at if you would like too! Check it out below!
Cycle 2 History and Science Placemats
These brand-new Cycle 2 History and Science Placemats are designed to make memory work fun and interactive for kids, whether you’re using them alongside Classical Conversations or on their own as a way to dive deeper into history and science.
Each placemat is filled with colorful visuals and simple explanations that bring the topics to life. Just print, laminate, and use them again and again during meals and review time. They’re an easy, no-prep way to dive deeper into the history and science topics with your kids. Get your set for Weeks 19-24 below. The other three quarters are also available HERE!
Cycle 2 Geography Passport
We also have a fun addition for geography review — the Cycle 2 Geography Passport! Whether you’re a tutor or a homeschool parent, this printable resource helps kids track their Classical Conversations Cycle 2 geography week by week with full-color maps and matching cut-and-glue stamps.
Each page highlights that week’s memory work with clearly labeled locations, making it easy for young learners to connect what they’re memorizing with what they see on the map. Kids love collecting stamps as they “travel” through the world. You can also print these stamps on these sticky circular labels which makes it even more fun!
You can use the Geography Passport at home with your own children, or print it out for use in class. A group license option is available if you’d like to use it with your tutoring class or community group.
It pairs perfectly with the Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book, giving your students or children a hands-on, engaging way to practice their memory work all year long. If you’d like both resources, be sure to check out the bundle option available in my shop!
Memory Work Meadowland
Another one of our favorite ways to review is with fun, themed board games. I created a set of Candyland-style games that make memory work review exciting and interactive for kids. These games can be used with any cycle and are a great way to practice all of the memory work subjects together.
We’ve been playing Memory Work Meadowland, a Spring/Easter-themed review game. It works just like Candyland, but with the addition of memory work review built in. Players move along the board by drawing cards with color blocks or picture spaces. Then they answer a review question that matches the space they land on. Correct answers let them stay put, but if they miss, they move back. The game also includes fun twists with slides and ladders to keep things lively. The first player to reach the church wins!
The best part is that I now have a fall version, a winter version, and a spring version, so you can rotate them throughout the school year. You can grab each one individually, or get the seasonal bundle with all three at a special price.
These games have been such a hit in our home. They are perfect for community review days, family game nights, or just a fun way to end your homeschool week. You can find them all in my shop below.
Printable and Editable Cycle 2 Week 20 Tutor Plans
Here is a printable EDITABLE template of these Cycle 2 Week 20 Tutor Plans. Here is a blank template too! If you want the plans as they are, here is a PDF version (filled out) and a PDF version (blank).
Cycle 2 Week 20 Memory Work Games
Also check out the FREE activities and games that you can use at home to help your kids practice the memory work this week.
I hope this helps give you some ideas and songs to use whether you are a tutor or a parent. Please comment below if you have any questions about anything.
Blessings to you on this homeschooling journey!
