Cycle 2 Week 8 At Home Activities for Classical Homeschooling
By Cycle 2 Week 8, our routine feels familiar and full of energy. The kids are building confidence as their memory grows, and I love seeing the joy on their faces when new learning clicks into place.
Cycle 2 Week 7 Recap
In Cycle 2 Week 7 we enjoyed a steady rhythm of learning at home. Geography was a highlight as we studied the European peninsulas, stamped our Passports, and worked on our felt map and Draw Europe book. In history we learned about the Reformation, using our Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Books, history placemat, and picture books like Martin Luther: A Man Who Changed the World.
Science was full of hands-on fun as we explored the six forms of pollution with our activity book, science placemat, a new review game, and a catchy song. We wrapped up the week with math, Latin, and English memory work, plus review games like our new Pronoun Memory Cards, Historyopoly, and Memory Work Kingdom. Read more about what we did at home during Cycle 2 Week 7 here.
Tutor Ideas for Classical Homeschooling
If you are part of a Classical homeschooling community, are you tutoring? If you are, be sure to check out my posts with tutor ideas for each week here.
Also, I have a youtube channel where I make videos with tutor and memory work ideas each week. Below is my tutor video for Cycle 2 Week 8. Visit my channel for tutor ideas for many other weeks and other videos with homeschooling tips and encouragement.
Morning Devotional Time
We always begin our mornings together around the breakfast table. This is one of my favorite parts of homeschooling life. There is no rush to get out the door. We can take our time to read and talk together.
I have learned some morning habits that help us all get down to breakfast at the same time. This helps me make the most of our morning time together. Read more about these habits here.
Bible Study: Lesson 8 (King Jeroboam I)
This week we started Lesson 8 about the King Jeroboam I from the Foundations of the Bible study by Driven by Grace. We read about all about King Jeroboam in the The Complete Illustrated Children’s Bible. The beautiful pictures and faithful retelling help my kids connect with what they are hearing.
My daughters also enjoyed coloring the corresponding activity page from the Foundations of the Bible Activity Book, also from Driven by Grace. We have also been enjoying listening to the Bible memory work song from Driven by Grace. Her songs are really catchy and have helped us remember this Bible memory work.
If you would like to know more about our full morning devotional routine, you can read my post about it here.
Also, here are the Bible stories we read from The Complete Illustrated Children’s Bible (TCICB) that went along with the Foundations of the Bible Study Lesson 8 about the King Jeroboam.
| Day of the Week | Bible Passage | Story Title | Page in TCICB |
| Monday | 1 Kings 10:1-5 | The Queen of Sheba | pgs. 196-197 |
| Wednesday | 1 Kings 11:1-4 | Turning From God | pgs. 198-199 |
| Thursday | 1 Kings 12:16-19 | Israel is Divided | pgs. 200-201 |
| Friday | 1 Kings 17:1-5 | Elijah and the Ravens | pgs. 202-203 |
The 24 Family Ways
We also learned our fourth Family Way from The 24 Family Ways by Sally and Clay Clarkson. We began memorizing the Bible verse that goes with it, Romans 12:21. I write both the Family Way and the Bible verse on chalk boards that hang near our kitchen table so we can see them often.
While I read, my girls colored the corresponding page from their 24 Family Ways coloring books.
After reading, I played two songs for them. One was our Bible memory work song (from @drivenbygrace), and the other was a song to help us remember the Bible verse. I have found songs that match with each Bible verse and Family Way, and we use them often. Most of the songs I use are from Steve Green’s CDs. Songs are such a powerful tool for helping children memorize Scripture. You can download my matchup of the 24 Family Ways with Bible verses and songs from my Resource Library.
We always end our devotional time with prayer and singing a few hymns from this gem of a book called My First Hymnal by Karyn Henley.
Math and Language Arts
After devotional time, we moved into our daily math work. I’m continuing to use The Good and The Beautiful for math, and it’s been such a good fit for us. My oldest is working through Level 1, and my 4-year-old is doing their Preschool curriculum, which I’ll explain more below.
Read here why I decided to switch from Saxon math to The Good and The Beautiful (TGATB). I like doing math right after devotional time because everyone is fresh, and it’s easier to be consistent this way.
This year we are starting to do more focused language arts with my oldest, and it has been such a joy. We are using The Good and The Beautiful Level 1 Language Arts and Literature curriculum, and we have been loving it so far.
The curriculum covers everything she needs at this stage—phonics, reading, spelling, grammar, writing, and handwriting—all in one open-and-go program. The lessons are beautifully illustrated and very engaging, which keeps her interested from start to finish. Each lesson takes us about 30 minutes a day, which is the perfect length for her attention span right now.
I also picked up some of the readers that go along with the program, and she has really enjoyed them. They give her extra practice with reading and help her gain confidence as she sees herself making progress. I am so encouraged to see her excitement grow as she realizes how much she is learning.
Preschool with my 4-year old
With my 4-year-old, I am keeping things very simple. She is working through The Good and The Beautiful Preschool Curriculum along with a Handwriting Without Tears book, and that combination has been perfect for her.
I don’t believe children at this age need to be doing formal bookwork yet. I think play, stories, and being part of family life are the most important. But I like having these gentle resources because she often wants to do what her older sister is doing. Having her own activities gives her a sense of ownership and keeps her engaged.
We even call this her “math,” and she beams with pride when she sits down with her workbook. It is such a sweet way for her to join in without adding pressure, and it gives us a fun rhythm we can enjoy together.
Weekly Memory work songs
I try to review as much of the weekly memory work with my kids as possible during the week with songs and games. Often when I’m cleaning up breakfast, I play this week’s playlist of memory work songs. We also listen to these songs in the car when driving. I either record myself singing or download the CC songs to the Voice Memos app on my phone. Then I make a weekly playlist of all the memory work songs. That way, I can just plug my phone into my car when we drive and we can listen to them! See my playlist of Cycle 2 Week 8 songs for English, Science, Math and Geography below.
Daily Subject Focus
I like to dive deeper into one subject each day. I’ve found that focusing on just one subject each day is very manageable and doesn’t feel overwhelming. Here is our usual weekly schedule (you can download this template here):
Geography
This week in geography we learned about the Mid Atlantic World: Treaty of Tordesillas, Strait of Magellan, Cape of Good Hope, and Canary Islands.
My 6-year-old especially loved the activity in her Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book. She matched the correct number to each location, traced the name of the location and then enjoyed coloring the different continents. We also reviewed the geography from the past seven weeks to help her prep for the geography subject master that she’s going to try for!
We learned a song to help us remember these locations to the tune Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone which we enjoyed singing several times.
Geography Passports
The girls were also thrilled to add new stamps to their Cycle 2 Geography Passports once they could name each Mid-Atlantic world location with confidence. These passports continue to be one of their favorite parts of geography time and make learning feel like an adventure. I recently figured out how to fit the stamps onto sticky circular labels, which makes stamping even easier and more fun!
We also added Croatia as our featured European country in their European Countries Workbooks. My oldest loved finding it on our large felt Europe map.
Then, for review, I took all of the felt countries we’ve learned so far off the map, and she worked on putting them back in the correct spots. Download paper maps of Europe with all the countries labeled here!
My girls love taking the European countries off and on of our large felt Europe map as we learn their names and locations. Download paper maps of Europe with all the countries labeled here!
I have the patterns for all the European countries, as well as a tutorial about how to make this kind of map in my shop. Also see my video for how to make this map with a few simple materials. You can find more information and links for these materials here.
We also made up a fun song to help us learn all of these European countries!
European Songs Tonie
Alongside our mapwork, my daughter has been listening to her European Children’s Songs Tonie on her Toniebox. It has become a sweet background to our school days and has helped her soak in even more about European culture and music. Geography truly continues to be a highlight of our week.
Drawing Europe
My daughter is absolutely loving Draw Europe by Kristin J. Draeger! My 6-year-old has had so much fun following the step-by-step lessons and filling in her own map of Europe. This week she proudly added a few more countries!
This book has been such a wonderful addition to our geography time. It gives her a sense of ownership and confidence as she learns to build Europe piece by piece. She is always so proud to show me her progress, and it’s been amazing to watch her excitement grow as she realizes she is learning to draw the continent herself.
History
This week in history we dove into the exciting world of European Explorers! My daughter loved singing the history song while working through her Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book. She matched each explorer to the region he discovered. It was such a fun way to see her connect the different parts of the history sentence to the faces of the explorers.
We also pulled out her history placemat, which gave us extra details about each explorer and sparked some great conversations.
She also enjoyed putting together the little explorer puzzle I made for our community group. As she built it piece by piece, we talked about the different parts of the world each explorer traveled.
Four in a Row European Explorers Game
We also had a lot of fun playing the Four in a Row European Explorers I made. It was a great way to review the history sentence and connect the names of the European Explorers to their faces. You can grab this game at the end of my post for FREE! I use these inexpensive spinners over and over again for any game I make that needs a spinner.
Another resource that has been especially helpful is the matchup from Driven by Grace. It clearly shows which chapters in The Story of the World, Volume 2 line up with this week’s memory work, making it simple to tie our Foundations lessons into our family read-aloud time.
NEW 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 7-12 below. Weeks 1-6 are also available HERE! Future weeks will be available soon!
Science
This week in science we learned about some aquatic biomes. My daughter enjoyed coloring the pictures of each type of aquatic biome and matching them to the correct names in her Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book. This hands-on activity really helped her connect the words with what each biome looks like.
Her science placemat also helped her understand more about the different aquatic biomes and we always love using Kimberly Vieley’s watercolor memory work cards.
We also read a few great picture books about different aquatic biomes. Two of our favorites were Marshes and Swamps and Coral Reefs both by Gail Gibbons. If you haven’t already, make sure to check it out my Cycle 2 booklist! I’ve gathered picture books that connect to every week of the memory work this cycle!
To help us remember the aquatic biomes even better, we sang a catchy song to the tune of BINGO. Singing always makes memory work stick, and my kids loved joining in on this one!
Math, Latin, and English Memory Work
On the last day of our week, we focused on the math, Latin, and English memory work. My girls worked on the activities in their Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Books, which gave them fun and simple ways to practice each subject.
We reviewed our math skip counting together and sang both the Latin noun endings and started learning our pronoun song. I love using songs for memory work. They’re fun, easy to prepare, and incredibly powerful for helping kids remember. Plus, once a song is learned, it’s simple to review again later, whether at home, in the car, or during playtime. Here is the pronoun song we are learning to the tune Here We Go Looby Loo. I have a video with the hand motions I’m teaching the kids in my tutor group too.
The memory work activities kept things engaging and gave my 6-year-old and 4-year-old extra practice with writing and tracing. Having dedicated time at the end of the week to pull these subjects together worked really well for us, and it gave a sense of closure before heading into the weekend.
Cycle 2 Pronoun Memory Cards
I also just made these fun Pronoun game cards to play during Cycle 2. These Pronoun Memory Cards cover all 75 pronouns from Cycle 2, Weeks 4–13 and can be used in three different games. Each card includes a sentence, a colorful image, and the pronoun type, making it easy for kids to connect meaning with usage.
You can sort them by pronoun type, play a classic memory match, or try the fill-in-the-blank version for an extra challenge. My kids love playing, and it gives them tons of practice without it feeling like drill. This set has quickly become one of our favorite go-to grammar review tools! By the way, this is the paper cutter I use all the time and it has worked great for me!
Fun Review Games for Cycle 2
One of our favorite ways to review is with fun, themed board games. I created a monopoly style history review game and a set of Candyland-style games that make memory work review exciting and interactive for kids. Check them out below!
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!
Memory Work Kingdom (Fall Edition)
We’ve also been playing Memory Work Kingdom, a fall-themed review game (since fall is in full swing!). 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 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 castle 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 work for all three cycles and 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.
Planning Our Homeschool Week
Instead of printing out detailed lesson plan templates this year, I have been using my homeschool planner to keep everything organized. It has been such a helpful tool for me as I think through our week.
I use the Cycle 2 memory work pages in the planner to map out how we will practice the memory work together. These pages make it easy to see each subject at a glance and jot down games, songs, or activities that I want to use with my kids. I also use the weekly and daily planning pages to schedule what we will do each day for math, language arts, and reading.
I’ve tried to simplify things this year so I don’t need to spend a lot of time prepping or printing. Having the Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book and my Cycle 2 Picture Book List ready to go means I can sit down and plan the week quickly without extra work.
Another part of the planner that I love is the monthly habit tracker. I use it to write down a few habits I want to focus on each month, like improving my health and being more present with my kids. It’s been a great reminder of the small but meaningful steps I want to take.
This planner has truly helped me stay organized so far this year, and it makes planning feel simple and purposeful instead of overwhelming. Get one for your homeschool year here!
Picture Books for Cycle 2 Week 8
Here are all the picture books we enjoy this week:
- Geography from A to Z by Jack Knowlton
- Draw Europe (Draw the World) by Kristin J. Draeger
- Maps and Globes by Harriet Barton
- Ocean! Waves for All by Stacy McAnulty
- Marshes and Swamps by Gail Gibbons
- Coral Reefs by Gail Gibbons
- Ocean Biome by Shirley Duke
You can see my ENTIRE Cycle 2 picture book list for each week of Cycle 2 here!
Cycle 2 Week 8 Memory Work Games
Here is the science game I mentioned in this post plus a Latin endings BINGO game that you can play with your kids this week to practice the memory work. You can sign up below to receive these FREE games below.
I hope you are having a great school year so far! Please comment below with any questions or share what’s been working well for your family so far!
