Pathways: Faith-Based Reading and Language Arts

Good books are the foundation of a good education. They’re also a great way to build character. Jesus taught with parables, which are relatable stories that not only entertain, but make us think and change our hearts. There is evidence to back up the idea that reading makes us more empathetic as well. For those reasons and more, reading good books is at the core of what we do in our homeschool.

Disclaimer: I received the product for free. I was compensated for my time. All opinions are honest and I was not required to post a positive review.

Faith-Based Reading and Language Arts

Pathways Reading and Language Arts from Kendall Hunt RPD also believes in using good books to develop good character, help children express their feelings, and learn about other cultures and history. The Pathways tagline is “Journey to Excellence through Literacy.” That is definitely a motto I can get behind. We’ve had an opportunity to use their first grade units on Personal Feelings and Growth and Yesterday. My youngest daughter (7) was the primary student for these lessons, but my middle daughter (9) also participated in some of the activities.

Pathways takes a cross-curricular approach to reading and language arts, which works nicely with the way we learn in our homeschool. I think making those connections across the core subjects helps children retain what they’re learning and it just makes more sense overall.

The Daily Lesson Guides are like workbooks with removable pages. There are black line master (meaning you can make copies) activity pages included. The lesson plans are very thorough and easy to follow as a homeschool teacher. Some activities were designed for classroom use, but these can be easily altered or omitted without losing the integrity of the lessons.

The curriculum is written from a Seventh-Day Adventist perspective, but I felt that the overall Christian themes were in line with our beliefs even though we don’t belong to that denomination.

We read the books and talked about them, following the Daily Lesson Guides. We have not worked our way through all of the activities yet, but we do plan to finish each guide this semester. We did enough of both to get a good feel for how Pathways works. The activities/lessons really are quite thorough and I think the pacing will depend on your child and your own homeschool schedule. You can include as many or as few of the activities as you choose. The emphasis is on language arts and reading skills; however, this would be a complete unit study on its own in my opinion. We take a relaxed, delight-directed approach to homeschooling so we don’t tend to rush through things just to “get them done.” When we enjoy a good book, it’s fun for us to center lessons around it in this way. I believe Pathways would be a good fit for many styles of homeschooling because of this — whether you’re very detail-oriented on tasks or more relaxed and relational. There are even recommended book lists included to extend the lessons.

Personal Feelings and Growth

Personal Feelings and Growth Grade 1 uses the book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst as the focus for the lessons. The Daily Lesson Guide breaks it down into 10 sessions, or lessons, to follow with related activities.

What We Covered:

In Language Arts and Reading ~

This particular book happens to be one of my daughter’s favorites, so it was fun to spend more time with it and have a book discussion.

Activities included:

Correcting sample sentences for punctuation and grammar
Spelling word lists
Rhyming and phonics
Handwriting
Journaling

Science Activities:

Learning about nutrition
Learning about our bodies

Math Activities:

Graphing
Counting money

Bible Activities:

Learning about God’s promises in the Bible

Social Studies/History Activities:

Map skills
Learning about Australia

Art & Music Activities:

Sing “feelings” songs like “If You’re Happy and You Know It”
Illustrate a “great day”

Yesterday

Yesterday refers to history, of course. The Pathways Grade 1 Daily Lesson Guide uses the book The Warrior Maiden: A Hopi Legend by Ellen Schecter as the spine for the lessons. It is divided into 11 sessions (lessons).

What We Covered:

In Language Arts and Reading ~

We read the book and talked about it, following the Daily Lesson Guide. We have not worked our way through all of the activities yet, but we do plan to finish the guide this semester. The activities/lessons really are quite thorough and I think the pacing will depend on your child and your own homeschool schedule. You can include as many or as few of the activities as you choose. The emphasis is on language arts and reading skills; however, this would be a complete unit study on its own in my opinion. We take a relaxed, delight-directed approach to homeschooling so we don’t tend to rush through things just to “get them done.” When we enjoy a good book, it’s fun for us to center lessons around it in this way.

Activities included:

Correcting sample sentences for punctuation and grammar
Spelling word lists
Rhyming and phonics
Creating a Native American journal

Science Activities:

Learning about deserts
Learning about plants

Math Activities:

Counting
Patterns and serializing
Use of manipulatives such as beads and abacus

Bible Activities:

This particular story provides a chance to talk about different religions and ways of worship, such as seen in the Hopi tribe. It allows for discussion about comparison and contrast between Biblical Christianity and other beliefs, while showing respect for our differences.

Social Studies/History Activities:

Learning about different Native American tribes and where they lived
Using maps

Art & Music Activities:

Using songs in worship
Making teepees and wigwams

What is Pathways Reading and Language Arts?

Pathways is a comprehensive elementary reading program with integrated language arts. This approach allows students to follow a variety of avenues to become readers, writers, and learners. Organized around broad themes and a scope and sequence of skills, Pathways uses award-winning trade books that children want to read to deliver the skills that they need.

The program is based upon the belief that students should not only learn how to read, but also acquire the desire to read, write, and learn. Pathways provides all students with the opportunity to become passionate learners, readers, and writers and the curriculum includes components and activities that address ten key principles:

Reading Instruction that fosters inquiry and a deeper student involvement in learning
Spiritual Growth that helps students make good choices in life as well as in reading content
Reading Motivation that helps students develop a lifelong passion for reading
Writing and Expression that grows from reading and learning and helps create meaning for students
Selective Topics that support and encourage writing practice for different purposes and audiences
Reading Comprehension that grows from systematic instruction and learning strategies that students apply to literature and content subjects
Phonics Skills that are developed through a sequential program of phonics that includes systematic, daily practice
Spelling Instruction that is systematic, coordinated with phonics instruction, and addresses the specific developmental level of each student
Assessment that not only provides teachers and parents with information and tools about student development, but helps students assess their own growth
Classroom Management that includes whole-class, small group, and individual student activities.

Connect with Kendall Hunt RPD to learn more:

Summary Highlights

If you appreciate good books and want a structured lesson plan to follow for reading and language arts, Pathways is an excellent choice. Everything is clearly laid out for the teacher and the student activities are included in the Daily Lesson Guide (workbook).
If you want to approach learning with cross-curricular studies (aka unit studies), Pathways is a good choice.
If you want to include faith-based learning and whole-child development in your studies, Pathways also fits the bill.
If you’re a very structured homeschooler and want thorough plans to follow, Pathways does that for you.
If you’re a relaxed homeschooler who doesn’t mind adapting and adjusting lessons when necessary, Pathways is also flexible without losing integrity.

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Sara

Author/Speaker/Consultant at Heart and Soul Homeschooling

Sara is a homeschool mom to 3 creative girls. She holds a degree in Social Work specializing in early childhood development, which led to her interest in individualized educational options like homeschooling. She believes that learning should be a lifelong adventure, not just a checklist to get through. She is a writer, avid reader, introvert (INFJ), and dreamer of dreams.