The Curriculum Standard

Diana Does Homeschool holds two traditions in one hand. From Waldorf we keep the rhythm, the story, the beauty, and the respect for childhood's slow ripening. From the classical tradition we keep memory work, precise language, narration, copywork, and the expectation of real mastery.

The result is gentle in manner and high in aim. The goal is not to hurry the child, but to waste nothing: every song carries knowledge, every story trains attention, every day leaves something learned by heart.

What follows is our scope and sequence: what a child can come to know and do at each stage, when the work is done faithfully, a little every day. Every child ripens on their own timetable; treat these as a map, not a race.

• Memory work: a verse each morning and evening; 20–40 nursery rhymes and folk songs by heart; days of the week, months, and seasons in order; the alphabet song; counting chants to 20 and later to 100; a short poem each month
• Phonics & reading: phonological play (rhyme, first sounds, clapping syllables); from about five, the pure letter sounds in reading order, blending simple words (see ABCs: Letters & Sounds); never pressed before the child is ready
• Handwriting: form drawing (straight and curved lines), crayon grip, big letters walked and traced, then written with a block crayon
• Math: counting real things, one-to-one correspondence, sorting and patterns, numbers as qualities (1: The Sun and onward), comparing more and less, simple sharing problems at the table
• Nature science: the four elements, the seasons, daily weather, garden and kitchen observation, naming 20 local plants, birds, and trees
• History & story: fairy tales, folk tales, and family stories told and retold; the child narrates them back
• Language: precise vocabulary used in daily life; Latin and Greek word stories told lightly (alphabet, planet names, weekday names)
• Music: daily singing, simple rhythm, pentatonic songs, listening to good music
• Art: weekly wet-on-wet watercolor, beeswax modeling, crayon drawing
• Handwork: finger knitting, sewing large stitches, peg dolls, real work: baking, table setting, washing
• Orientation: body geography, left and right (Left & Right), over and under, before and after
• Logic & character: waiting turns, tidying, truthful words, finishing what is begun (How To Behave)

• Memory work: a poem a fortnight recited with expression; the alphabet; skip-counting 2s, 3s, 5s, 10s; addition and subtraction facts; then times tables to 12×12; the planets, continents, oceans; a growing anthology of 30+ poems and passages by age nine
• Phonics & reading: all single sounds and the full phonogram set, blends, digraphs, and spelling rules within the first year of reading; then daily reading aloud from real books; reading silently for 20–30 minutes by around eight or nine
• Handwriting: neat print with entry and exit strokes, then cursive (often begun around seven or eight); daily copywork from fine sentences
• Writing & grammar: oral narration daily; written narration (a few sentences, growing to a paragraph); dictation weekly; parts of speech introduced through story and movement
• Math: place value with real objects; the four operations; addition facts within 20 to instant recall; mental math daily (doubling, making ten, number bonds); times tables; word problems told as stories; measurement, money, time
• Nature science: nature journal weekly with labeled drawings; seasonal studies; the planets and the sky; simple experiments; the water cycle and plant life cycles
• History & story: fables and legends, then stories of great lives, the history of one's own family, town, and country, in chronological story
• Latin roots & language: 10 to 20 Latin and Greek roots a year (aqua, terra, sol, luna, port, scrib, graph, tele, phon) through word stories; for the ready child, beginning Latin songs and vocabulary at eight or nine
• Music: singing in rounds, recorder or pentatonic flute, rhythm and beat, learning a few great composers by listening
• Art: watercolor, form drawing growing to geometric and symmetrical forms, drawing from life
• Handwork: knitting, crocheting, sewing a simple project, woodwork with real tools under supervision, cooking from a recipe
• Geography: maps of home and neighborhood, the compass rose, cardinal directions, globe and continents
• Logic & character: sorting and classifying, patterns, 'what comes next,' simple riddles and puzzles; daily chores; repair after harm; a service project each season

Short, focused, daily lessons beat long, scattered ones. Stop while attention is still bright.

• Littles (3–5): one morning circle of 15–20 minutes (verse, songs, movement, memory work); one story a day; one artistic activity a day; the rest is play, real work, and the outdoors. Formal letters and numbers: none to a few minutes, as play.
• Ready readers (5–6): morning circle 20 minutes; phonics 10–15 minutes daily; number 10 minutes daily; story and art daily. About 45–60 minutes of guided learning a day.
• Olders (7–9): morning circle with recitation 15 minutes; reading and phonics 30 minutes; math 30 minutes (5 of mental math); copywork or dictation 10 minutes; plus one main lesson subject (science, history, geography) 30–45 minutes. About 2–2.5 hours a day, four or five days a week, plus handwork, music, art, and outdoor time in the afternoons.

• By about six: recites at least 20 verses and rhymes; knows the days, months, and seasons in order; knows most letter sounds and can blend simple words when ready; counts objects to 20 and orally to 100; shows left and right on themselves; can sit for a 15-minute story and narrate it back.
• By about seven: reads simple decodable books; writes all letters correctly formed; spells simple words by sounds; knows number bonds to 10; adds and subtracts within 20; names the four directions.
• By about nine: reads chapter books independently; writes a narrated paragraph with capital letters and full stops; writes in cursive; knows the times tables; recites 30+ poems; reads a simple map; keeps a nature journal; knows a dozen Latin and Greek roots.

Use these to see, not to judge. If a child is far from a benchmark after steady, faithful work, slow down, repeat, and if needed seek a specialist's view.

Nothing here replaces the seven-day rhythm. It fills it. Memory work belongs in the morning circle every day. Letters and stories gather on Wednesday, Mercury's day of words. Number work is on Thursday, the abundant table. Nature and handwork live in Friday's beauty and Saturday's real work. Sunday stays for rest.

Every lesson on the lesson shelf can be raised to this standard by adding four things: a verse to learn by heart, precise words to use, a narration to tell back, and a benchmark to watch for.

To keep track, give each child a profile in My Learners, follow her pathway by age, and build quick recall in the Practice Room. Round out the week with life skills and character and nature and the arts.