A.C.E. is a great curriculum. I enjoy using it very much, however, the math was not suitable for our family. Because of this, I do not have the content of the math PACEs for first grade.

To teach phonics using A.C.E., you need the ABC’s of ACE CD and the flash cards. ACE marks the words in a way that helps the child see how to pronounce the sounds. The child also learns word families. It is a very easy way to teach reading, at least, it is for me. 🙂 A.C.E. does sell lesson plan binders to go along with their Kindergarten (which is more like pre-school material) and first grade levels, but they are expensive. The binders have many hands on activities to incorporate with the Pace work. This is something that I have opted not to use, but if you like “hands-on”, or have never taught phonics, I highly recommend the binders.

The scope and sequence that ACE provides does not give a listing of what material is covered in each pace, so I thought I would post it for those who might be interested in a more detailed look at the first grade (Paces 1001-1012)  materials. Please contact me if you have any questions. 🙂

Each Pace (workbook) is 27 pages and very colorful. They have copy work, scripture memory, circling. coloring, and dot to dot activities. These materials are biblically sound and fun for kids. If you would like to enhance this curriculum, I suggest adding in some extra reading, such as the Bob Books or A Beka Kindergarten readers. And, of course, read books aloud – always. 🙂

Word Building 
(All Paces include the writing of various word families)
1001: Three a sounds – long a, as in Ape, short a, as in Antelope, and a that says “o” as in Armadillo.
1002: Letters M m, S s, F f,  numbers 1 & 2
1003: Letters R r, E e, numbers 3 & 4
1004: Letters B b, N n, G g (as in Gerbil), number 5
1005: Letters G g ( as in Goldfish), T t, P p
1006: Letters I i (both sounds), D d, numbers 6 & 7
1007: Letters H h, O o (both sounds) numbers 8 & 9
1008: Letters L l, K, k, C c (as in Cat) Reading stories, big & little.
1009: Letters C c (as in Civet), J j, W w
1010: Letters U, u,(both sounds) V v
1011: Letters Q q, X x, Y y (as in butterfly)
1012: Letters Y y ( as in Yak), Z z, review of all sounds learned.

English
1001: Writing beginning sounds, ending sounds, learning the sound of “th”. Copying sentences.
Learning to listen. (Heb. 12:1)

1002: Writing beginning and ending sounds, learning the sound of “wh”. Writing sentences.
Learning to do all things with Jesus’ help. (Phi. 4:13)

1003: Reading and writing a sound (as in Antelope) words. Reading and writing with the “sh” sound. Reading and writing sentences.
Learning that God helps me to do what I should. (Deut. 31:6)

1004: Reading and writing a sound words (as in Armadillo). Reading and writing a sounds words (as in Ape). Reading and writing sentences.
Learning to do God’s will no matter what happens. (1 Cor. 2:2)

1005: Reading and writing e sound (as in Elephant) words. Reading and writing with the “ch” sound.
Learning to be fair with others. (Prov. 1:3)

1006: Reading and writing e sound ( as in Emu) words. Adding “s” and “ing” to words. Reading and writing sentences.
Learning to love others even when they do wrong. (Col. 3:13)

1007: Reading and writing i sound (as in Inchworm) words. Adding “s”, “ing”, and “ed” to words. Reading and writing sentences.
Learning that God works in my life. (1 Pet. 5:6)

1008: Reading and writing i sound (as in Ibex) words. Reading and writing y sound (as in Butterfly) words. Reading and writing sentences.
Learning to be kind as God is kind. (Lk. 6:36)

1009: Reading and writing o sounds (as in Ostrich) words. Reading and writing “oo” sound words. Reading and writing sentences.
Learning to be able to stay at what I am doing.(Gal. 6:9)

1010: Reading and writing o sound (as in Okapi) words. Reading and writing “ow” sound words. Reading and writing sentences.
To learn to love people who help me to do right. (1 Thess. 5:13)

1011: Reading and writing u (as in Umbrella Bird) and u (as in Unicorn) sound words. Reading and writing  “oo” sounds words. Reading and writing sentences.
Learning to be on time. (Ecc. 3:1)

1012: Reading and writing “oo” sound words. Reading and writing “ow”, “ou”, “ng” and “ck” sound words.  Reading and writing sentences.
Learning to accept others even when they do not agree with me. (Rom.14:13)

Science

1001: Reading stories about God’s World  and about what God made on on day one. Learning to do what I should do. (Rom. 12:2)

1002: Reading about God’s world, what God made on days two and three. Learning that God gives me all I need. (Phil. 4:11)

1003: Reading about what God made on day three. Learning to do the very best I can. (Ecc. 9:10)

1004: Reading about what God made on day four and about the four seasons. Learning to look for things to do. (1 Thess.4:11)

1005: Reading more about God’s world and about what God made on day four. Learning to be true to God and others. (1 Cor. 4:2)

1006: Reading more about God’s world and about the earth. Learning that everything I do, I must do for Jesus. (Job 11:18)

1007: Reading about what God made on day five; about birds and fish. Learning to see what may happen and then to do it right. (Prov. 14:15)

1008: Reading about what God made on day six; about animals and man; more about God. Learning that God is with me. (2 Tim. 1:7)

1009: Reading about Adam and Eve and what God did on day seven. Learning to give of myself to God. (James 3:13)

1010: Reading about our eyes and about things close and far away. Learning to pay attention. (Mark 14:38)

1011: Reading about our ears and sounds. Learning to have peace through Jesus. (Jn. 16:33)

1012: Reading about keeping rules, about keeping well, clean and neat. Learning to be what God wants me to be. (Phil. 4:8)

Social Studies
Each Pace includes approximately 20-35 new words for the child. Some of these overlap with Science.
Each Pace has the child read stories and answer questions about the stories. This is important for reading practice since A.C.E. does not offer separate readers for First Grade.

The first three Paces mostly contain stories about Ace and his family.
1001: Learning to be ready to do what I am asked to do. (Matt. 9:9)

1002: Learning to know what is right. (Ez. 44:23)

1003: Learning to always obey, help others and give to others. (1 Pet. 3:8)

1004: Reading stories about Ace and Baba, learning about Adam, Eve, Cain, Abel and Noah.
Learning to stay by someone when they need me. (Jn. 15:13)

1005: Reading about church and school, God and His Son, Jesus, and about doing right. (Josh.24:14)

1006: Reading about things with wheels, things on water, and things in the sky. Learning to do to others as I want them to do to me. (Matt. 7:12)

1007: Reading about saving and caring for things and how to study at school. Learning how to be kind to others. (Eph. 4:31)

1008: Reading about working hard, giving to God, sharing with others. Learning to hope for the best. (Rom.8:25)

1009: Reading about many kinds of people and their work; many kinds of homes and clothes. Learning to help others know what is right. (2 Tim.2:25)

1010: Reading about a globe and a map and about being a missionary. Learning to know and do what I should. (Rom. 14:12)

1011: Reading about obeying rules and laws and praying for our leaders. Learning to say and do the right things at the right time. (Col. 4:6)

1012: Reading about the United States and the Pilgrims. Learning to always tell the truth. (Eph. 4:25)

Bible Reading
Bible Reading for first grade (1001-1012) is set up so that the teacher reads the stories and shows the pictures to the child. The child then does coloring and dot to dot activities to reinforce the lesson. It is simple and fun for the child!

1001: The stories of Abram & Lot, Joshua and the walls of Jericho, and Noah and the Ark.
1002: Ax head floating, 10 lepers healed but only one returns to give thanks, Adam and Eve and the fall.
1003: David & Goliath, Good Samaritan, Jonah and the Whale.
1004: Paul & Silas in Jail, Jesus calms the storm, Moses leads the people out of Egypt (the highlights).
1005: Mephibosheth, Peter released from prison (Rhoda), Thomas doubts Jesus.
1006: Tower of Babel, Moses sees the burning bush, Elijah and the widow of Zarephath.
1007: Feeding the 5,000, Jesus eats with the Pharisee, Daniel in the Den of Lions.
1008: John the Baptist born and preaches Jesus, Naaman, Moses makes the brass serpent in the wilderness.
1009: Nehemiah re-builds the walls, Jairus’ daughter & woman with issue of blood, Zacchaeus.
1010: Eutychus, man lowered down through the roof to Jesus, Samuel hears the Lord speaking.
1011: Saul & David, People give gifts for the building of the tabernacle, Gideon.
1012: Moses gets 10 commandments, Joseph & the coat of many colors, Joseph sold into slavery.

Hope this helps someone! 🙂

In the past, I have a had a slight aversion to using the A.C.E. curriculum. I felt that overall, A.C.E. was a weak curriculum. I explain my story and feelings HERE. However, as a homeschooling Mom of five who is now almost in her fourth quarter of using A.C.E. for most subjects, I have found that I genuinely love this curriculum! I certainly see that it isn’t perfect, but my last curriculum wasn’t perfect either.

I wanted to post some things that I have loved about using this curriculum. For our family, and for our current situation, it is a perfect fit.

1. I love that it allows the student to learn himself/herself. They read the directions, they do the work. Mom kicks back and sips lemonade….wait a minute. I wish! Mom does laundry, makes menus/grocery lists, folds laundry, sweeps, changes baby, feeds baby, teaches kindergartener to read and count, makes snacks, makes lunch, cleans house…you get the idea. For the older ones to have the ability to work independently most of the time is HUGE for me. 🙂

2. It moves at a slower pace. In my early years of homeschooling, I frowned upon this feature of A.C.E. I felt that “The earlier the better!” However, when it comes to a child’s academic pace, I’m starting to believe the phrase, “Better late than early.” Many concepts cannot be fully grasped until the child’s brain is mature enough. We understand this easily when it comes to walking, or potty training. I’m not worried that my seven month old isn’t walking – he’s not ready yet! The same goes for higher math and English skills. The brain will be ready, well, when it’s ready! As long as these concepts are mastered before graduation, my child will do fine. After all, have you ever filled out a job application that asked, “Did you learn cursive in first grade?” or “Did you have your multiplication facts memorized by second grade?” Nope. They will get it. After all, I used A.C.E. most of my years and I turned out okay! Right? RIGHT? Never mind.

3. A specific character trait is stressed in each Pace (workbook). I like that not only do they learn a verse in every subject, but they also read about a specific character trait to practice in their lives. They learn about being thrifty, discreet, obedient, honest, etc.

4. Progress is clearly visible. We use the start charts, or progress charts, to keep track of our work. The kids love seeing the chart fill up with stars!

5. I really like the ABC’s of A.C.E., especially the songs because they remind me of my youth.(Heehee!) I used A Beka phonics with my older two kids, but decided to do A.C.E. phonics with my third. Let me say, it is SO much easier to teach them to read with the A.C.E. method. So. much. easier!

6. I REALLY love the Creative Writing/Literature Paces. They didn’t offer these, or we didn’t get them at my school, when I was growing up. They were an excellent addition to their material! They are thorough, fun and well-written paces. I love the book selections that go along with them. I plan on adding some additional writing for my seventh grader next year, because the Creative Writing/Literature only goes through 6th grade.

The best part is that my children can set their own goals, get started on the day and sometimes finish without needing much assistance from me. I grade all of my 3rd grader’s work, as well as my 6th grader’s checkups and self-tests (practice tests), to make sure they are getting it. We use Math-U-See for math, because I was having a hard time keeping up with their math work using A.C.E. (My kids struggle with math and I didn’t want the concepts to be rushed over or ignored.) If I weren’t so busy with younger ones, I could easily go over each new concept with my older ones using A.C.E. But, I’m busy. K? 😉

As I said, this is what has worked best for our family right now. That’s one thing that I love about  homeschooling in general – the ability to make it work, to tweak it, to get it right.