Dh wants an overarching plan/watch me figure out K-8

[Hunter]

Mostly he doesn't like the searching out part of research. Putting him in front of fifty different curriculum and asking him to pick would lead to massive frustration. Me picking out the most likelies and then showing him we have the resources to do this seems like a better idea.

 

We have been talking about the goals we want to accomplish, but I think you are right about the Things Your Should Know. I'll put them on the library list.

 

There are 3 editions of What Your Grader Needs to Know. Just so you know. And the publishers have sometimes sold a combination of 2nd and 3rd with the same covers to camouflage that they had not yet updated the upper levels.

 

2nd edition is my least favorite.

[nixpix5]

There are a few issues here. I'm trying to decide where to start.

 

Your oldest child is gifted, significantly so. Your husband was a gifted child, significantly so. There are so many post, maybe I missed any comments about your education and abilities, and I'm not asking, as you don't need to make yourself anymore vulnerable than you already have, unless that is something you fully and completely want to do.

 

You daughter is showing signs of being gifted in at least some areas, but really she is much too young yet to know what you are dealing with.

 

Normal parents of normal children can pick a scope and sequence of standards that they believe are appropriate for normal children and create a master plan.

 

It sounds like your husband is looking for a scope and sequence far above what a normal child can accomplish, and far above what a brick and mortar school will offer, and demanding you demonstrate ability to accomplish this amazing feat to earn permission to keep her home. And that he has the final say.

 

Please forgive me if I have misunderstood or use language that makes you uncomfortable.

 

YOUR reaction to this situation will depend on YOUR worldview. HOMEschooling starts in the HOME and is ALL about your worldview. And right now, some of this sounds like it might not even have all that much to do with your actual children, but more about what your worldview is about how families work, how you and your husband interact with each other, and how you all interact with people of other religions and beliefs and ability levels.

 

You don't need to answer here! It is none of our business and it doesn't matter what any of us think!

 

But especially if it is not based on religion belief, does your husband get the final say? Why? Is what he is asking/demanding fair or appropriate or what you want and will tolerate?

 

I have lived an eclectic and eventful life. Not only have I lived among different worldviews, I have adopted many different conflicting worldviews for a period time and remember thinking them. So I ask you to contemplate these questions with zero idea what you "should" think. I don't even believe in the concept of right and wrong any more.

 

Just...you might want to think about the bigger POWER play going here, and if this is what you want, and if not, do you have any power to change it.

 

I feel confident we can help you come up with something that will at least temporarily get him off your back and gain you his permission to keep her home, but...you might want to START from a different place. Your daughter is 3 and truthfully you don't have a clue what you are dealing with.

 

My tutoring students arrive all over the place with abilities and background knowledge and skills. I do like to make charts based on NORMAL development, with wiggle room to accommodate learning disabilities. Having my charts of NORMAL milestones is comforting and maybe useful. It lets my mind quiet down instead of constantly shifting information around in my head. Putting it on paper puts it to bed. A master plan can be created that doesn't match the student in front of you. But...it is of less and less usefulness the more it does not match the student.

 

And another very important thing. What is your worldview about people that CAN do things but do not WANT to do them, both children and adults?

 

One of my sons was either highly or profoundly gifted, but with also some spectrum stuff doing on. He didn't WANT to attend opportunities that he qualified to attend and exH and I didn't make him. ExH and several other very gifted males in his family had also made the choice not to pursue what they COULD do, so this wasn't a new choice in that family. His family was a cross of The Godfather and Good Will Hunting; I kid you not. Lots of laughter and tears over some of what went down.

 

What if DD wants to be a "normal" kid despite being able to do something else? What is she wants to pursue something not academic or just very very different and narrow? Does your worldview give her permission to do that?

 

I hope I'm not being offensive in anyway. I've crossed a line that I don't cross often. I prefer serving up stories of my past as a buffet, where people can snatch up morsels that seem tasty, or none at all, instead of me giving advice and asking personal questions.

 

Good luck and trust YOURSELF. I sense an intelligence and strength in you that I'm not sure you recognize. We are loud. DH is loud. The websites and books are loud. You are being bombarded with things that will make you doubt yourself more than they will help. Close in and listen to your small voice and TRUST it. I have faith in you.

Wow. Nothing else needs to be said. Hunter you are so insightful. This right here is perfect.

[SarahW]

 

I'd prefer to start German in kindly or first and give her the best chance at fluency and the add in Latin in fourth and be able to translate at least a book of the Aeneid by senior year of high school.

 

The math plan is Algebra in seventh unless she's ready earlier.

 

Science is the area DH most wants to see rigor. I'd like to hit AP Bio in 9, AP Chem in 10, and AP Physics in 11, though that is slower than DH did it, so we will probably go back and forth on it.

 

 

 

Okay, those goals are a bit ambitious. But you clearly have a HG child already, so statistically this 3yo is probably at least pretty smart.

 

So you have end goals. Work backwards from there. Algebra 1 in 7th means Pre-A in 6th, which means being done with elementary math in 5th. How do you plan to do that? You mentioned BA, and that's how they're set up, so that's one option. Singapore is another I think (many people skip 6 in favor of going straight to Pre-A). BA/AoPS will take you from 2nd-12th. If halfway through it's not clicking there's other programs which are also good, but okay, you can mark down BA/AoPS for now.

 

For Latin, what Latin program gets you to Latin IV/AP Latin by the end of high school? What's the sequence? How early do they start?

 

For science, you'll have to think about doing the Pre-AP classes in middle school. Lots of people do that, some don't and the AP classes are fine anyways. But there's people around here who can give good ideas for middle school science that prepares for a stack of AP science in high school. There might be better suggestions in 10 years, lol, but sure, mark them down. What's popular today might even be better than what's popular 10 years from now.

 

 

So, yes, I have a crazy multi-year plan sitting in a Word file on my computer. When I find curriculum lines and resources I like and think will work well, I mark them down and look at "if we finish the whole sequence, where are we at?" "is there something better I was hoping to be using during that time?" "what will using this achieve in the end?" (I also prominently mark down future resources I already own, very important!). Of course, this file has been edited numerous times and has never actually panned out in real life. But I still like it. It keeps a general roadmap in my head, even when I'm wondering if we're wandering in circles to Timbuktu. Some people are cool with pie-in-the-sky vague goals about knowing truth and beauty. That's cool. But I need rubber-meets-the-road THIS is (one) way of achieving THAT. Maybe your husband is the same way. I'll admit that I may be overly neurotic about this because I myself got homeschooled under the "the most important subject is Character" model for a few years, which meant that the only thing we did was "character" books. It wasn't until I read TWTM that I really realized that homeschooling could be different.

 

So in my Word file things are really basic. I put a year, grade level, and age. Then next line is "Math:" followed by the name of resources. So here "Beast Academy Level 3 A-D" or whatever. Next line is another subject. "Science:" with whatever my Grand Plans are listed after. "English" is a bit wonky. Do I separate out spelling and literature and diagramming and so on? All depends on what my Grand Plans are for using that year! On one level it's absurd, on another level it's fun. But it also throws up some flags. "Did I just mark down a 12yo for honors Geometry? Hmmm..."

 

So just write it all out. You have my permission. :) You may, of course, explain to your DH that this is just a skeleton plan of high-quality and highly-recommended resources you know you can easily acquire and you reserve right to substitute other resources of comparable quality as you go.  But he may just need the assurance that these things exist, and you know a method to get from A to Z.

 

But my DH, sigh. I printed out my Grand Plan once for him to peruse. I did this because he was complaining that it was taking too long for our kid to get to the cool stuff, like Plato and Quantum Physics.  :rolleyes:  Do you see? Do you see how in the Grand Plan he'll get to these things later? Now can you please stop bugging me with your History of Philosophy so we can finish The Little Prince? But he didn't understand my Grand Plan at all. He didn't know what all the names for the things were, boo, and he didn't understand why these things took so long, boo.  :rolleyes:  :rolleyes:  :rolleyes:  But he was willing to concede that I had a plan, and maybe things would work out okay in the end.  :lol:

[Farrar]

The idea of deciding that a 3 yo *will* do algebra in 7th grade or earlier is just really, really putting the cart before the horse.

 

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

Yes, a year by year plan is far more realistic at this point.  Of course you can set some long term goals or have a general idea of direction, but you can't know at this point how quickly things will go. 

[vorbarra]

What about, if instead of presenting a bulleted list or curricula, you let some of the curricula's authors speak for themselves about their views on education.

 

If you don't want to give DH TWTM, perhaps he could listen to Susan Wise Bauer talk about the strengths of a Classical Education.

 

Have him read Richard Rusczyk's article The Calculus Trap...tell him it applies to rushing a 12 year old through the AP science sequence just as much as it does to math and calculus.

 

Have him watch Bernard Nebel

.

 

And Michael Clay Thompson is an engaging speaker when he talks about students learning the English language.

 

Wendy

Oh, thank you! This is actually perfect and really helpful.

[Hunter]

Oh, thank you! This is actually perfect and really helpful.

 

When you choose to go wide instead of faster, there is time for things like doing Euclid in Greek. My son used this site.

https://mysite.du.edu/~etuttle/classics/nugreek/contents.htm#conts

 

and used the Loeb Greek math books

https://www.amazon.com/Greek-Mathematical-Works-Euclid-Classical/dp/0674993691

[vorbarra]

There are a few issues here. I'm trying to decide where to start.

 

Your oldest child is gifted, significantly so. Your husband was a gifted child, significantly so. There are so many post, maybe I missed any comments about your education and abilities, and I'm not asking, as you don't need to make yourself anymore vulnerable than you already have, unless that is something you fully and completely want to do.

I'm gifted, too. We actually met at the early college program and have been together since. My educational experience was very different from DH's though. My parents both have Ph. D.s and are very education focused, so I was in g/t programs and getting outside enrichment full time from prek on. My education is all on the humanities side of things, whereas dh is a science guy.

 

It sounds like your husband is looking for a scope and sequence far above what a normal child can accomplish, and far above what a brick and mortar school will offer, and demanding you demonstrate ability to accomplish this amazing feat to earn permission to keep her home. And that he has the final say.

We usually operate on a two yeses, one no system for big decisions like this. And honestly he might care more about this than I do. I'm more than willing to do the research because it's something that frustrates him. Plus, it's likely he would be doing most of the math and science teaching at a higher level. He took sabbatical for the fall to help transition the 12 yo home, they do science and math together.

 

I didn't think the scope and sequence was too far out of norm, or at least it was basically what I'm remember doing in school, not the pace 12yo went at. Okay, maybe not the Latin, but that seemed reasonable from what I read.

 

And another very important thing. What is your worldview about people that CAN do things but do not WANT to do them, both children and adults?

Honestly, it would drive dh nuts, but he'd get over it because most of all we want them to be happy.

Edited June 11, 2017 by vorbarra

[vorbarra]

So, yes, I have a crazy multi-year plan sitting in a Word file on my computer. When I find curriculum lines and resources I like and think will work well, I mark them down and look at "if we finish the whole sequence, where are we at?" "is there something better I was hoping to be using during that time?" "what will using this achieve in the end?" (I also prominently mark down future resources I already own, very important!). Of course, this file has been edited numerous times and has never actually panned out in real life. But I still like it. It keeps a general roadmap in my head, even when I'm wondering if we're wandering in circles to Timbuktu. Some people are cool with pie-in-the-sky vague goals about knowing truth and beauty. That's cool. But I need rubber-meets-the-road THIS is (one) way of achieving THAT. Maybe your husband is the same way.

:

Yes, exactly! That sounds like what I would do. I think maybe I gave the impression that I'm opposed to having a long term plan or that I'm looking for a rigid long term plan, and I'm not. I understand that we will change our minds and adapt to our child's needs. I think Dh won't have such trouble with waiting for the good stuff since he can do that with the 12yo.

 

I don't see him having any problem with changing things out, I just think he didn't think those resources were available, and once I can say, hey, look, this stuff exists and here's what looks good to me, he'll be more excited about it.

 

I liked what I saw if BA/AOPS a lot, and I guess I though pre-algebra in 6th was normal? I took it in 6th.

 

Latin I'm going by posts here that suggested GSWL in 4th and following with Lingua Latina supplemented with Wheelock should get you to reading fluency by hs. Plus I have both Wheelock and Henle already sitting around here.

 

My natural tendency is to pick something and stick with it, so I was looking for a K-8 science program and BFSU looked good with some supplementation. This is really what dh cares most about, and was most concerned didn't exist.

[wendyroo]

Oh, thank you! This is actually perfect and really helpful.

 

Also, if there is any way to swing it, I would try to attend a large homeschool convention (probably next spring).  I've been to two of the Great Homeschool Conventions, and the most valuable part for me was meeting various curriculum authors.  On one level, this helped expose me to different theories of education.  It helped me clarify my own goals for my children and think about what I could be doing in the early years to build a firm foundation.

 

On a deeper level, however, it gave me peace of mind as I realized that many of the authors were "my people".  They valued playing with ideas and thinking deeply and being challenged academically.  

 

I think that is one of the big differences between homeschooling and public schooling.  Most public school materials are written by committee; you can't meet the driving force behind your child's math text and say, "Yes!!  This is a person who speaks my language.  This is a person with a passion for math education.  This is a person who will be a good indirect mentor for my child."  

 

Homeschool materials, though, are often written by an educational dynamo who lives and breathes their subject and education, and loves to talk about their philosophies: Michael Clay Thompson, Adam Andrews, Christopher Perrin, Richard Rusczyk,  Andrew Pudewa, Ed Zaccaro, Shelagh Gallagher, Andrew Kern, Susan Wise Bauer, etc.

 

Meeting those people, and listening to them talk about education, was probably the best thing I did for myself as I started my homeschooling journey.

 

Wendy

[Finlandia]

I think the resources and curricula you have already identified are all goods ones. They certainly won't be a good fit for every student, but nothing is and I don't get the sense that you assume that. I disagree with the "this isn't a plan it's a list of curricula " idea. There are hundreds of planning threads on this board where people list out their plans for the upcoming year, and what do most people list? Curriculum choices. For many people deciding what curriculum they will use for a particular subject is a huge part of the planning process. It sounds like your DH needs to know what is available for homeschoolers to use. He needs to know that there are resources available to provide a high quality education at home for your children. I don't see anything wrong with that. Giving him a list of such curricula might be just what he needs, especially since he's gotten a bad impression of homeschooling from his cousin.

 

Another approach would be to appeal to his logic and reason. You are pulling your 12yo out of ps because it was not providing an adequate education for him. Why does he believe homeschool is adequate for your older child but not your younger? Does he anticipate a different outcome with your daughter?

 

As a PP suggested, having him listen to some of the curriculum developers might be really helpful. After my DH heard Michael Clay Thompson and Andrew Pudewa speak at a conference he was much more confident about our ability to provide an excellent education for our children.

[Arcadia]

You are pulling your 12yo out of ps because it was not providing an adequate education for him. Why does he believe homeschool is adequate for your older child but not your younger? Does he anticipate a different outcome with your daughter?

For my husband, it was because preschool to 2nd grade was more play based than academics. My oldest enjoyed public school kindergarten and 1st grade. If we were to have a do over, we would have let older stayed in public school until end of 2nd grade. Younger boy had gastrointestinal issues so we went with an online public charter so he could have numerous toilet breaks.

 

For supposed introverts, both my kids needed plenty of social time which the no homework, very relaxed public school provided for free for older. We paid for more outside classes for younger to fulfil his social needs. Even when homeschooling, we are rarely home. My kids are happiest at the library from 10am to 9pm surrounded by people. Then they spend almost the entire weekend at Barnes and Noble if they have no activity or class to go to.

Edited June 11, 2017 by Arcadia

[Pen]

AOPS for math for 12 year old.  Maybe start working through whole BFSU science program at accelerated rate with 12 year old and let 3 year old watch or do what she can with that too, if she is able at this stage. 12 year old can read real books and write for LA, and read and write for history. May need a music teacher, and to join some sport beyond home. Go to museums or that sort of thing for art and maybe 3 year old s ready for that too.  Maybe Duolingo for 12 yo, and a native speaker tutor for foreign language for both kids, au pair from Germany?  Not sure what you can afford or would have room for.

 

I guess I don't think that even HG 3 yo would usually need academics, unless they are themselves pushing for it. Time for developing physical skills, spending time in nature. etc., more important imo than early academics.  Maybe 3yo could go to a part time preschool for social etc. time while you can work with 12 yo on humanities subjects. And maybe if your DH works with 12yo on AOPS etc. he will see that good materials exist and be more open to 3 yo homeschooling once she is ready for that.

[Clemsondana]

I second the idea of using the Core Knowledge sequence. The thing that I've loved about this is that it is adaptable - because it lists topics, you can add more depth very easily, but you don't have to add it for every subject.

 

I'm a little concerned about the idea that gifted kids will easily keep to a pre-determined timetable of advanced courses. Some kids thrive on that, and others become frustrated with so many hours dedicated to 'learning things they don't care about'. Being too dedicated to a plan can also affect your ability to get involved in other academic (or non-academic, if you have kids involved in the arts) pursuits. Last year my 5th grader was asked to compete on the middle school homeschool science olympiad team. He spent hours every week studying (and placed 2nd and 5th at state - sorry for the mom brag!)...and now knows those 2 areas well enough that I won't need to teach them again all the way through high school! This year I planned some science and left a gap for science olympiad time - he'll continue to pursue the 2 from last year, but will need to dedicate a lot of time to the new 1-2 areas that he is assigned. We will still cover the topics in core knowledge, but we won't stretch them out.

 

Despite singing the praises of core knowledge, which my kids will continue to read through 8th, next year my middle schooler will start a 3 year history cycle with the K-12 book as a spine. I put together a plan that will involve taking notes, using several other resources that I've gathered as reference books, and writing weekly reports. I never would have planned this years ago, because I never would have imagined that the biggest struggle for my very advanced kid would be writing. But, seeing a problem, I've found new resources and formulated a new plan. I never would have thought to have the goal 'write a good report' because I wouldn't have imagined it being an issue - I was always good at it! But, it is, so I've had to change plans accordingly. It's a strange thing - happily watching 'Great Courses' videos in one subject, and not being comfortable writing a book report in another - it can be fixed, but not necessarily anticipated.

 

I don't know if this is making any sense, but mostly it's a suggestion to have a tentative plan, pick some resources, and be prepared to be flexible. A kid may get stalled on something that didn't sound hard, or may move through something twice as fast as you expected, or may hate a particular type of learning (one of my kids DESPISES including historical fiction to give a sense of 'what life would be like' - he hates not knowing what is history and what is fiction!)...even with goals to move towards, sometimes plans need to change a little.

[fourisenough]

I've skimmed this thread, but not read it carefully, so forgive me if someone else has addressed this. For art and music appreciation, I think a Great Courses Plus subscription might be very effective (and if 12-year-old likes GC, you can use as many courses as are of interest). I'm planning to use How to Listen to and Understand Great Music and How to Look at and Understand Great Art with my 12-year-old next year. These courses seem like they will be a good base and then we can further explore any specific areas of interest that she discovers along the way.

 

BTW, pre-algebra in 6th/Algebra 1 in 7th is just slightly accelerated, but within normal limits. In our (very well-respected, mostly affluent) public school district, the great majority of college prep students take Algebra by 8th.

[happybeachbum]

I second the idea of using the Core Knowledge sequence. The thing that I've loved about this is that it is adaptable - because it lists topics, you can add more depth very easily, but you don't have to add it for every subject.

 

I'm a little concerned about the idea that gifted kids will easily keep to a pre-determined timetable of advanced courses. Some kids thrive on that, and others become frustrated with so many hours dedicated to 'learning things they don't care about'. Being too dedicated to a plan can also affect your ability to get involved in other academic (or non-academic, if you have kids involved in the arts) pursuits. Last year my 5th grader was asked to compete on the middle school homeschool science olympiad team. He spent hours every week studying (and placed 2nd and 5th at state - sorry for the mom brag!)...and now knows those 2 areas well enough that I won't need to teach them again all the way through high school! This year I planned some science and left a gap for science olympiad time - he'll continue to pursue the 2 from last year, but will need to dedicate a lot of time to the new 1-2 areas that he is assigned. We will still cover the topics in core knowledge, but we won't stretch them out.

 

Despite singing the praises of core knowledge, which my kids will continue to read through 8th, next year my middle schooler will start a 3 year history cycle with the K-12 book as a spine. I put together a plan that will involve taking notes, using several other resources that I've gathered as reference books, and writing weekly reports. I never would have planned this years ago, because I never would have imagined that the biggest struggle for my very advanced kid would be writing. But, seeing a problem, I've found new resources and formulated a new plan. I never would have thought to have the goal 'write a good report' because I wouldn't have imagined it being an issue - I was always good at it! But, it is, so I've had to change plans accordingly. It's a strange thing - happily watching 'Great Courses' videos in one subject, and not being comfortable writing a book report in another - it can be fixed, but not necessarily anticipated.

 

I don't know if this is making any sense, but mostly it's a suggestion to have a tentative plan, pick some resources, and be prepared to be flexible. A kid may get stalled on something that didn't sound hard, or may move through something twice as fast as you expected, or may hate a particular type of learning (one of my kids DESPISES including historical fiction to give a sense of 'what life would be like' - he hates not knowing what is history and what is fiction!)...even with goals to move towards, sometimes plans need to change a little.

 

 

It's just too bad they are unable to do a book for 7th and 8th.  There seems to have been a (though hard to ind) "What Your 7th Grader Needs to Know" years ago.   

 

As for High School I have the book series High School Subjects Self Taught that was edited by Lewis Copeland,  I have the latest edition which was the 90's.  Too bad these books haven't been updated.  They are great.  Of course you can get them and use them as a spine.  Another book that is great is The Teenage Liberation Handbook.  It's more about unschooling, but is still a great resource.  http://www.homeschoolcollegeusa.com and https://allinonehighschool.com are both great resources as well.  I don't see the Classical one for HCUSA so here is an archived version https://web.archive.org/web/20130225001908/http://www.homeschoolcollegeusa.com:80/classical-education.html

Edited June 11, 2017 by happybeachbum

[Joyofsixreboot]

As someone else said, have him read TWTM and go from there.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

[dragonflyer]

I would highly recommend a homeschool convention. My husband knew that I grew up successfully homeschooled, he has met many people he respects who have done a great job educating their own children, he knew there were great resources for homeschooling, he knew I would carefully choose resources that would meet my children where they were.

He said the last piece clicked into place as he walked into a vendor hall that had hundreds of vendors catering to thousands of homeschoolers that this was really a valid option. The talks were a bit of icing for him, but just seeing the sheer numbers of people changed him from a head knowledge of being mostly ok with this, to a gut comfort that we were capable of doing a great job with our own kids.

[fourisenough]

My only concern about encouraging OP to attend a homeschooling convention with her DH is that they are pursuing a secular education for their DC. I have found the conventions I've attended to be overwhelmingly religious. That would probably be a non-starter for a secular family. Of course, as with all advice on this board, YMMV.

[Clemsondana]

I keep pondering this thread, mainly because after 6 years of homeschooling I'd still be daunted if my husband asked me to plot out the next few years in a specific way. I could say 'We'll probably do X in 7th and Y in 8th' but there are a lot of factors that affect out schedule. So, I've wondered if your husband would be happy if he had more of a table of 'options'. For me, this is easier to put together than a more concrete 'plan' would be - my Amazon wish list is full of potential options! So, for instance, could you say that middle school history would be to 'complete a 4-year cycle from SOTW, OR do a 3 year K-12 cycle, OR do one year of geography, 1 year of US history, and 1 year of ancient history'. If you have a place for geography in elementary school, could you say 'Simply Charlotte Mason visits series OR pin-it maps OR Evan Moore workbookw OR map use incorporated with history'? This is even easier for more advanced classes - for Algebra, 'Saxon or AoPS or Jousting Armadillos or Dolciani' and then you can make your choices once you are closer to the time to use it?

 

This would give you a framework and something of a checklist, but save you the stress of making choices now. I've found that it's super easy to come up with lists of things that look good and might work, but it is much harder to pick the one that I'm going to use for that year.

[wendyroo]

My only concern about encouraging OP to attend a homeschooling convention with her DH is that they are pursuing a secular education for their DC. I have found the conventions I've attended to be overwhelmingly religious. That would probably be a non-starter for a secular family. Of course, as with all advice on this board, YMMV.

 

I am a 100% secular homeschooler, and I thoroughly enjoyed the conventions.  Of course there are religious topics, but there are also a whole bunch of speakers whose talks are largely secular.

 

Wendy

[winterbaby]

I am a 100% secular homeschooler, and I thoroughly enjoyed the conventions.  Of course there are religious topics, but there are also a whole bunch of speakers whose talks are largely secular.

 

Wendy

 

OP said she couldn't give her husband TWTM because of the references to Christianity - which IIRC are quite light. It's one thing not to give your kid actual religious materials, but another as an adult not to be willing to hear anything anyone has to say about educational methods because they're tainted by being on the other side of the Christian/secular divide.

[daijobu]

My natural tendency is to pick something and stick with it, so I was looking for a K-8 science program and BFSU looked good with some supplementation. This is really what dh cares most about, and was most concerned didn't exist.

 

Can I just say how excited I am that you selected BFSU for science?  You and your dh will not be disappointed.  It is relentlessly forest (versus tree) oriented.  When you study botany, you will always be cognizant of how plants fit into the unity of life on our planet.  When you study ionic versus covalent bonds, you will be reminded how covalent bonds are more prevalent in processes of life and why that is.  BFSU also introduces students to different forms of energy (potential, kinetic, chemical, etc.) relatively early.  There are actually some lovely children's picture books that explain this very well.  But the cool thing is, once the student has this concept mastered, so many other concepts in science become easier to explain, and there is less hand-waving.  

 

The hard part about BFSU and what turns many homeschooling parents off, is that it requires a lot of planning.  It's just a spine, and you need to be on the ball about ordering materials for demonstrations and ordering books from the library.  You absolutely need access to a public library system with an extensive collection of non fiction science books for children.  You need to have the budget to purchase the materials.  

 

We did not supplement BFSU, and my daughter went straight from BFSU in 8th grade to AP chemistry in 9th with no problem.  She took AP bio in 10th grade, and will take AP physics next year.  So yeah, I'm a fan.  There are lots of threads on BFSU and a facebook support group.  You can also contact Bernie Nebel directly (as I have many times) for further instruction.  Good luck!  

Edited June 12, 2017 by daijobu

[vorbarra]

OP said she couldn't give her husband TWTM because of the references to Christianity - which IIRC are quite light. It's one thing not to give your kid actual religious materials, but another as an adult not to be willing to hear anything anyone has to say about educational methods because they're tainted by being on the other side of the Christian/secular divide.

 

This ended up being a reply to lots of posts, not just the quoted one:

 

It's basically in this one particular area of homeschooling, and he's more then aware that I favor a great books approach and that means our kids will be pretty fluent in at least classical Christianity, if not the more modern evangelical forms his family practices. I'm not sure how you could get through any thorough history education without it. Not to mention 12 yo is currently fascinated by the idea of heresy at the moment and dominated last night's dinner conversation with Michael Servetus being burned at the stake. (You've got to have a cast iron stomach to eat around here).

 

My worry is more along the lines he'll dismiss it before realizing TWTM is basically what he's wanted as an educational plan because he's having a hard time in this area at the moment. A year ago, I might of just handed him the book, maybe in a couple months it would work again. Right now it's not worth it, especially as every time I tell him about some part, he more or less agrees that it sounds like what he wants.

 

I also went ahead and ordered the first BFSU book to just hand him, as I think that will be pretty convincing. For the PP who used and loved BFSU, you didn't think it was too light on experimentation? It's hard to judge from reviews.

 

He is familiar with ps scope and sequence, because he's been having arguments about it with teachers for years now. We've sort of moved the discussion on to what scope and sequence *should* look like, at least in our home. He's agreed that there doesn't need to be adherence to this scope and sequence we set out, but he still thinks that there should be one to work from so we don't jump from place to place without a plan.

 

Honestly, I think I agree with him, though as you all can see I was approaching it through curriculum. Now that we've divorced it from curriculum, I think we're having a much more productive conversation. Though it's a bit overwhelming. Especially since I mentioned I'd been reading about logic curricula and he got all excited about it.

 

Thankfully, he and 12yo have settled on core science during the year, fun science over the summer, and so they are going to do MIT's Kitchen Chemistry and learn to cook together. My kitchen may never be the same. I also introduced him to Home Science Tools, so they may be making bread with a Bunsen burner if his geek glee overrules his practical side.

 

We actually came to hs from AOPS, which a math tutor recommended and with which the 12yp has thrived.

 

To the PP who asked, we both have faculty borrowing privileges at university libraries, so I foresee no problem with acquiring any books necessary.

 

On hs convention, I suspect not, as dh does not like crowds, if there was some sort of smaller, mostly secular type thing, I might talk him into that, but we did GenCon once, because he loves board games, and it was too much. I mean, he goes to professional conferences, but his sub field is small and he knows all those people. He is a super introverted INTJ, not that I'm much less introverted.

 

Amusingly enough, the 12yo thinks this scope and sequence design is amazing and has been making flow charts of everything the 3yo should learn. When I told her about teaching history chronologically, she decided science should be taught the same way and has taken upon herself to teach the 3yo about the first five seconds of the universe, because "they are the most important mom, and they come first!"

 

I think we are basically at the point of agreeing that 3yo will stay home, and are now on to the mechanics of how that will work, even if dh hasn't realized it yet.

[daijobu]

I also went ahead and ordered the first BFSU book to just hand him, as I think that will be pretty convincing. For the PP who used and loved BFSU, you didn't think it was too light on experimentation? It's hard to judge from reviews.

 

 

 

Thankfully, he and 12yo have settled on core science during the year, fun science over the summer, and so they are going to do MIT's Kitchen Chemistry and learn to cook together. My kitchen may never be the same. I also introduced him to Home Science Tools, so they may be making bread with a Bunsen burner if his geek glee overrules his practical side.

 

We actually came to hs from AOPS, which a math tutor recommended and with which the 12yp has thrived.

 

 

 

You'll love Home Science Tools.  I purchased many of my materials for BFSU from that vendor.  Your questions about experimentation in BFSU is worthy of a separate thread, and I encourage you to post it on these boards, as you will receive many more insightful comments than mine alone.  I'm a few years away from using BFSU, but most of the experiments were more like demonstrations and observations.  Here is what I remember:  

 

Doing calculations on force x distance using a ruler suspended by a piece of string.  

Suspending a plant upside down to determine which way the roots would grow.  

Placing a plant in a dark box and a control plant in regular light to compare their growth patterns.  

Using a protractor and string to measure the angle of the sun

 

Sometimes I adapted his suggested experiments by doing some internet searching.  For example, there is one demo that allows the student to observe Brownian motion under a microscope.  He suggested suspending particles of mud in water, but for some reason I couldn't make it work.  Searching on key words:  "Brownian motion demonstration microscope" led me to this page.  

Edited June 12, 2017 by daijobu

[daijobu]

I posted the above prematurely, lol.  Continuing here.  

 

Sometimes I adapted his suggested experiments by doing some internet searching.  For example, there is one demo that allows the student to observe Brownian motion under a microscope.  He suggested suspending particles of mud in water, but for some reason I couldn't make it work.  Searching on key words:  "Brownian motion demonstration microscope" led me to this page.  He has some demo involving timing the descent of a marble ball down a marble run.  We had recently purchased a camera that takes high speed photos, so I incorporated that into our lesson, photographing the ball and is rolled down.  I also used a high speed camera to film the descent of 2 balls of different mass to demonstrate the constancy of gravitational acceleration.  

 

But if you mean the sort of independent experiments one might perform for say a science fair, that is not part of the curriculum.  

[daijobu]

Regarding AoPS, it is a rare elementary school that offers solid training in math problem solving.  You can begin this training at an early age with Math Kangaroo that begins in kindergarten (!), and MOEMS which you can start in early elementary.  Does your local school offer these opportunities?  

[winterbaby]

This ended up being a reply to lots of posts, not just the quoted one:

 

It's basically in this one particular area of homeschooling, and he's more then aware that I favor a great books approach and that means our kids will be pretty fluent in at least classical Christianity, if not the more modern evangelical forms his family practices. I'm not sure how you could get through any thorough history education without it. Not to mention 12 yo is currently fascinated by the idea of heresy at the moment and dominated last night's dinner conversation with Michael Servetus being burned at the stake. (You've got to have a cast iron stomach to eat around here).

 

Here's the thing though... and I think you've probably already worked this out for yourself from exposure to TWTM and similar resources... actually-existing Christians tend to know a lot about the history of Christianity. It is our own tradition after all. Including many "evangelical" Christians knowing a lot about "classical" Christianity - whatever definition one would give to those terms. So trying to learn about Christianity while rigorously avoiding intellectual contact with actual Christians might be setting yourself a challenge that's not really necessary, nor helpful.

[fralala]

This ended up being a reply to lots of posts, not just the quoted one:

 

Amusingly enough, the 12yo thinks this scope and sequence design is amazing and has been making flow charts of everything the 3yo should learn. When I told her about teaching history chronologically, she decided science should be taught the same way and has taken upon herself to teach the 3yo about the first five seconds of the universe, because "they are the most important mom, and they come first!"

 

 

OK, that is awesome, and seriously, how did not one of us realize that your gifted 12 year old might not be the most qualified person to oversee this task? Sounds like you have wonderful kids and they are going to be a blast to homeschool. Thank you for being willing to open yourself to scrutiny here, as this has been a fascinating discussion to read.

[Lori D.]

On 6/12/2017 at 8:55 AM, vorbarra said:

...My worry is more along the lines he'll dismiss it before realizing TWTM is basically what he's wanted as an educational plan because he's having a hard time in this area at the moment. A year ago, I might of just handed him the book, maybe in a couple months it would work again. Right now it's not worth it, especially as every time I tell him about some part, he more or less agrees that it sounds like what he wants...

You and DH could look over the short 1-2 page "WTM conference workshop handouts", or listen to the 50-min. conference workshop audio lectures by WTM author Susan Wise-Bauer, which summarize the Well-Trained Mind educational philosophy and which provide a great overview of all 12 years, and which are secular. Especially of interest to you at this point might be:

Audio
The Joy of Classical Education at Home
Science in the Classical Curriculum
What is History and How/Why Should I Teach It
Great Books: History as Literature

Handouts
Academic Excellence: grades 1-4, grades 5-8
A Plan For Teaching Writing from K-12
What is Literary Analysis and When To Teach It
Logic for the Intuitive
 

On 6/12/2017 at 8:55 AM, vorbarra said:

...He is familiar with ps scope and sequence, because he's been having arguments about it with teachers for years now. We've sort of moved the discussion on to what scope and sequence *should* look like, at least in our home. He's agreed that there doesn't need to be adherence to this scope and sequence we set out, but he still thinks that there should be one to work from so we don't jump from place to place without a plan...

You might start with the WTM Academic Excellence Handouts (above), and for more in-depth, use the lists and schedules in the book. Drop off topics and subjects not of interest to your family, and use other scope and sequence lists (see below) to add skills and topics that are important or of interest to your family. Start off by making a "skeleton" list this summer, and as you progress into homeschooling, you and DH can add more details (such as possible curricula), or tweak your scope and sequence as needed.

For now, it sounds like you are at a good place:
- you know you want to go with a classical/Great Books type of educational model
- you've brought your 12yo home and have started the needed transition period
- you are starting to select curricula that are a good match for your 12yo
- you know what core subjects are required (by your area's homeschooling regulations) and what subjects are "parent required"
   * Language Arts (Literature, Writing, Grammar, possibly Spelling and/or Vocabulary)
   * Math
   * Natural Sciences (Life Science, Chemistry, Physical, and the sciences under these 3 main ones)
   * Social Sciences (History, Geography, Logic, Philosophy, Anthropology, Sociology, etc.)
   * Logic/Critical Thinking
   * Latin/Foreign Language
   * Fine Arts: Music, Art, Theater (and other studio arts and performance arts)
   * Health, PE
   * Life Skills

It's not too hard to find scope/sequences for all of these different subjects, at grade levels, and make your own scope and sequence. (See below for links.)

Now you are at the stage of looking ahead to what skills you will want to see developed in your 12yo to make sure your student is prepared with the foundational skills needed for success in the future high school years. For example:

- strong math foundation (up through Pre-Algebra or Algebra by the end of 8th grade)
- strong writing foundation (solid paragraphs and short essays)
- beginning logic/critical thinking development

And, you'll want to start thinking about developing basic life skills and pre-academic skills in your 3yo that will do 2 things:
- foster a love discovery and of learning (lots of play-based learning and outdoor time)
- give your 3yo the foundational skills that will ensure success as you move into the more formal academic years in about 3 years

JMO, but those are the lists and overall educational plans that I would suggest working on over the summer and over the next year, once you really SEE where your students' abilities and needs ARE. Content (the list of topics to learn about) is the easy part. Skill development and the ability to read and THINK is really the heart of education. At least, those were our main goals in homeschooling. ? Sounds like you already have some excitement from everyone about the Math and Science, and the rest will follow. BEST of luck as your family embarks on the great adventure of homeschooling! Warmest regards, Lori D.

secular scope and sequence sources:
- Core Knowledge: Teacher Created Lesson Plans -- by grade (pre-K to gr. 8); specifics for how to cover the content each year
- World Book Encyclopedia typical course of study -- by grade (gr. K-12), topics and skills typically covered in public schools
- Common Core standards -- by grade (gr. K-12), baseline skills to be covered in Math and Language Arts

For your 3yo right now: Montessori toddler scope and sequence and as your 3yo grows into it: Montessori pre-school scope and sequence. Montessori is a great way to help your child develop needed pre-academic skills, plus some great life skills. ?

For in 1-2 years for your 3yo, here is the Core Knowledge pre-school scope and sequence.

For reading about curricula to get a feel for whether it would be a good fit for your goals and your students' needs, I highly recommend getting a free Rainbow Resource catalog. I spent my first year of homeschooling pouring over the catalog, which was much smaller back then. Very daunting now, and fatter than an urban phone book -- in fact, so big that they only print and distribute half per year, so it will take you two years to get through it all. BUT, they have loads of very useful reviews on so many of their products -- written by homeschoolers who know how to actually USE curricula. The Cathy Duffy reviews are also helpful. While she is a Christian, she does write for both Christian and secular homeschoolers so that you know how much (if any) religious content is in the resources she reviews.

Edited September 13, 2018 by Lori D.

[Cake and Pi]

I like the list you have started for curricula.  I like to plan way ahead too.  It never seems to work out quite like I plan though, lol!

 

For a gifted learner, who is likely to have some differences between subject areas due to asynchronicity, I think a k-8 plan should be very general.  I wouldn't try to peg any specific skills to any grade except for that of the following year -- one year at a time for schedule detail work.  These kids can learn in leaps and then loose interest and move onto another area.  They can have strong strengths but then need extra help (and extra time) on areas of weakness.  

 

My overall plan is a flow chart, starting with the most basic of basics (phonetic awareness, fine motor skills, number sense) and then growing and branching out for each subject with lists of possible resources for each step along the way.  New strands of learning, like history, science, computers, etc appear as you move across, but I don't have specific grades assigned for when to start each.  I've found that every one of my kids learns and develops in his own unique way.  I like to pull from book lists for specific ages and stages and I have been working on a flow schedule specifically for science, hopefully cycling through the major branches of study every 1-2 years.  We'll see if it's useful past the first semester of next year!

 

I've also found that I need to change my approach for teaching the same subjects for different kids, even switching out entire curricula that worked great for one kid but then failed to engage another or started strong with a kid but then fizzled out.  Sometimes the curricula I planned just doesn't fit the kid.  There were curricula that I LOVED in theory, but found couldn't work in real life, like BFSU (which I also made a killer flow chart for, BTW, lol).

 

At 3yo, my DS#3 also enjoyed Robot Turtles.  He liked the Light Bot Jr and Light Bot apps too.  Now at 5 he's enthralled with Snap Circuits, independently working through the projects in the activity booklets one by one.  He's also obsessed with Minecraft.  Eventually I'd like to channel the Minecraft obsession into something useful, but for now he's just reading things he wants about Minecraft (even a coding with Minecraft book, though it hasn't become anything yet) and playing.

[daijobu]

OK, that is awesome, and seriously, how did not one of us realize that your gifted 12 year old might not be the most qualified person to oversee this task? Sounds like you have wonderful kids and they are going to be a blast to homeschool. Thank you for being willing to open yourself to scrutiny here, as this has been a fascinating discussion to read.

 

I agree.  Let your 12 yo run the show!  She might also enjoy teaching science history using materials from the Big History Project, as they also begin history with the Big Bang, continues to the formation of the solar system, life on earth, agriculture, to the modern world.  It's a unique take on history, to be sure.  

[vorbarra]

Here's the thing though... and I think you've probably already worked this out for yourself from exposure to TWTM and similar resources... actually-existing Christians tend to know a lot about the history of Christianity. It is our own tradition after all. Including many "evangelical" Christians knowing a lot about "classical" Christianity - whatever definition one would give to those terms. So trying to learn about Christianity while rigorously avoiding intellectual contact with actual Christians might be setting yourself a challenge that's not really necessary, nor helpful.

I'm not saying they won't read things by Christians, more like that to read something like Paradise Lost or to understand the Reformation, you need some pretty detailed knowledge of Catholic and early Protestant theology. I probably want my kids to know the difference between transubstantiation, consubstantiation, and symbolism or what indulgence were and why someone would sell them. They don't really need a deep background of the specific theology of my inlaw's mega church to read modern lit, they need a basic understanding of what evangelicalism is, but probably only on a conversational level to stretch the metaphor.

[vorbarra]

OK, that is awesome, and seriously, how did not one of us realize that your gifted 12 year old might not be the most qualified person to oversee this task? Sounds like you have wonderful kids and they are going to be a blast to homeschool. Thank you for being willing to open yourself to scrutiny here, as this has been a fascinating discussion to read.

She's making color coded lists on easel paper. I may just hand TWTM to her.

[winterbaby]

I'm not saying they won't read things by Christians, more like that to read something like Paradise Lost or to understand the Reformation, you need some pretty detailed knowledge of Catholic and early Protestant theology. I probably want my kids to know the difference between transubstantiation, consubstantiation, and symbolism or what indulgence were and why someone would sell them. They don't really need a deep background of the specific theology of my inlaw's mega church to read modern lit, they need a basic understanding of what evangelicalism is, but probably only on a conversational level to stretch the metaphor.

 

I meant more contemporary Christians, such as the author of TWTM or folks one might bump into at conventions. Though actually that's a lot of detail you've got listed - more than I expect for my own child at the high school level, actually belonging to a church that follows one of those historic confessions. I guess I'm failing to imagine just how that squares with Christianity being so objectionable that the light references to it in TWTM make the book problematic.

 

[vorbarra]

Now you are at the stage of looking ahead to what skills you will want to see developed in your 12yo to make sure your student is prepared with the foundational skills needed for success in the future high school years. For example:

- strong math foundation (up through Pre-Algebra or Algebra by the end of 8th grade)

- strong writing foundation (solid paragraphs and short essays)

- beginning logic/critical thinking development

I am looking for a good Logic program for her. She very accelerate in math, and an above grade level writer, so we are working on stretching math out at the moment, though required writing is limited to her lab book for the summer.

 

For your 3yo right now: Montessori toddler scope and sequence and as your 3yo grows into it: Montessori pre-school scope and sequence. Montessori is a great way to help your child develop needed pre-academic skills, plus some great life skills. :)

 

For in 1-2 years for your 3yo, here is the Core Knowledge pre-school scope and sequence

Thank you, that's so helpful. I loved the Montessori school older kiddo attended, and we do a bit of Montessori stuff at home already.

[vorbarra]

I meant more contemporary Christians, such as the author of TWTM or folks one might bump into at conventions. Though actually that's a lot of detail you've got listed - more than I expect for my own child at the high school level, actually belonging to a church that follows one of those historic confessions. I guess I'm failing to imagine just how that squares with Christianity being so objectionable that the light references to it in TWTM make the book problematic.

 

It's not objectionable to me. It might be to my husband at this particular moment because my Inlaws beating on a very related sore spot at the moment. He wouldn't have a problem with conversing with a Christian at all.

 

I'm pretty sure I learned most of that in or at least public school adjacent. It probably wasn't something the teacher emphasized, but I'm pretty sure we talked about indulgences when we talked about the Reformation, and that I at least knew about different interpretations of communion at that point, too. I know we talked about things that Protestants disagreed on between themselves.

[vorbarra]

I agree. Let your 12 yo run the show! She might also enjoy teaching science history using materials from the Big History Project, as they also begin history with the Big Bang, continues to the formation of the solar system, life on earth, agriculture, to the modern world. It's a unique take on history, to be sure.

I'm going to be exploring this all for myself 😀 Thank you!

[knitgrl]

I also went ahead and ordered the first BFSU book to just hand him, as I think that will be pretty convincing. For the PP who used and loved BFSU, you didn't think it was too light on experimentation? It's hard to judge from reviews.

 

 

We will be finishing up Vol. 1 this summer. It is a fantastic curriculum - but with a very steep learning curve in terms of figuring out how to teach it. A lot of people do not have the time, resources, patience, etc. to get over that initial hump. But because it is so thorough, I would figure out a way to make it work even if my kid hated it. Science "experiments" are a bit of a pet peeve of mine. There are lots of homeschool resources that offer "experiments." Most of the time they are not experiments, but demonstrations. BFSU contains at least one, and more often several demonstrations per lesson. Occasionally, you can find a better demonstration online. I don't think you need to supplement BFSU with additional demonstrations, unless your kid is really interested in a particular topic. On the other hand, if you are using at the pace recommended (which we didn't - I am trying to squeeze 3 years into 2), you have lots of time in a year to look at extra books and do additional activities per lesson.

Edited June 12, 2017 by knitgrl

[vorbarra]

Regarding AoPS, it is a rare elementary school that offers solid training in math problem solving. You can begin this training at an early age with Math Kangaroo that begins in kindergarten (!), and MOEMS which you can start in early elementary. Does your local school offer these opportunities?

No, our school district is pretty much too strapped for anything beyond the very basics. They also would probably prefer to never see us again.

[Lawyer&Mom]

No, our school district is pretty much too strapped for anything beyond the very basics. They also would probably prefer to never see us again.

Ha!

 

I've got a gifted three year old and a list of curriculum I'd like to cover between now and eighth grade. It's a spreadsheet. It was fun to make. I even bought some of the books.

 

We've already covered all the kindergarten literature. She's asking me to read some of the history books for fourth grade...

 

I'm still glad I've got the list, although clearly we won't be approaching it linearly.

[Lori D.]

I am looking for a good Logic program for her.

 

While we are Christian, and enjoyed well-written Christian materials, we also liked to use well-written secular materials. We used a lot of Critical Thinking and Logic puzzles and games throughout elementary and middle school, and when DH led DSs in the formal Logic credit for high school, he used his own old college Logic textbook. So we waited until DSs were about 14-15yo to do formal Logic, so that we could use the college material we already had on the shelf.

 

I DO highly recommend doing a wide variety of types of critical thinking activities, puzzles, and games at this stage to help develop the abstract/reasoning portions of the brain and will help immensely with "out of the box" thinking and analysis for high school. So, games and puzzles that are based on visual/images, patterns, analogies, word/language, number/math, etc. -- as well as straight up logic puzzles and games.

 

A good first Logic introduction is the Blasting Off with Logic series: Logic Countdown (gr. 3-4), Logic Liftoff (gr. 4-6), Orbiting with Logic (gr. 6-8). You could start with book 2, but if you've not done any Logic previously, then the 1st book is not at all "baby-ish", and would be a good, quick intro into Logic topics that are developed a bit more deeply in books 2 and 3.

 

Other (secular) resources that would NOT be a formal Logic program, but would be a good fit (and good prep) during middle school:

- Basics of Critical Thinking - Critical Thinking Press

- Basic Analogies - Prufrock Press

- Analogy Challenges; Perplexors; Word Winks - Mindware

 

 

Links to other possible secular logic resources (suggestions from past threads):

- "Harry Stottlemeier's Discovery" -- mix of logic and philosophy at a middle school level; read more about it in this past thread: "We're only on chapter 2, but..." -- and download for free both the book AND the teacher guide at Eric.ed.gov

- The Pig That Wants to Be Eaten and The Philosopher's Toolkit, both by Baggini (high school level discussion starters)

- Philosophy For Kids and Advanced Philosophy for Kids: The Examined Life (White) -- middle school level

- The Snake and the Fox (Haight) -- high school level

- Nonsense: Red Herrings, Straw Men and Sacred Cows: How We Abuse Logic in Our Everyday Language (Gula) -- high school level

- Amazon list of secular Logic resources -- most at high school/college level, with 1-2 at middle school level

Edited June 12, 2017 by Lori D.

[Fardo]

If your husband is set on having a long term plan, then I would suggest embracing spreadsheets.

 

Across the columns list the age or grade. Down the rows list subjects - split each component as small as you want, so Language Arts can be split into spelling, phonics, writing, grammar, lit, poetry, etcs. Then colour code them if you want, so LA is all pinks, and Maths is all blues - not at all needed, but pretty.

 

Then in each cell put what you plan for that subject for that year. Add extra rows as needed. And then you can stick to that plan, edit that plan, or ignore that plan - whatever ends up working.

[daijobu]

If you are concerned about being able to meet yearly benchmarks for academic accomplishment, you can consider schooling year round as we do.  If the kids aren't in camps or on vacation or entertaining visiting relatives, then we do school just like a regular day.  It helps alleviate brain drain, and it buys you time during the school year for field trips and spontaneous outings.  (I for one was always nervous about taking the day off from school, but schooling during the summer allowed me to relax a little.)  You'll also move more quickly through the material without feeling like you are rushing.  

[vorbarra]

BFSU came and dh is positively gleeful. He basically said if everything we use is like BFSU or AOPS that we should definitely be homeschooling both kiddos. ::look at my happy dance::

 

And because I'm blaming all of you for this (and I think you'll get a kick out of it): 12yo has decided on an end goal for her education. To be Batman. She made a stirring case, complete with a powerpoint that she was already on track for science, and we've been discussing logic curricula and she'll need that to be the world's greatest detective. But now she'd like to drop English (her least favorite) for parkour lessons and add another martial arts class, maybe Krav Maga. She also said she was going to keep doing Kitchen Chemistry, because what if she can't find an Alfred, she'll need to cook for herself.

 

I vetoed dropping English, but I'm now trying to figure out if parkour lessons are even a thing. 😂

[Renai]

BFSU came and dh is positively gleeful. He basically said if everything we use is like BFSU or AOPS that we should definitely be homeschooling both kiddos. ::look at my happy dance::

 

And because I'm blaming all of you for this (and I think you'll get a kick out of it): 12yo has decided on an end goal for her education. To be Batman. She made a stirring case, complete with a powerpoint that she was already on track for science, and we've been discussing logic curricula and she'll need that to be the world's greatest detective. But now she'd like to drop English (her least favorite) for parkour lessons and add another martial arts class, maybe Krav Maga. She also said she was going to keep doing Kitchen Chemistry, because what if she can't find an Alfred, she'll need to cook for herself.

 

I vetoed dropping English, but I'm now trying to figure out if parkour lessons are even a thing. 😂

 

Awesome!

 

One of our local tumbling (gymnastics) gyms offers parkour. :D Both my girls at one time or other took the classes. 

[nixpix5]

BFSU came and dh is positively gleeful. He basically said if everything we use is like BFSU or AOPS that we should definitely be homeschooling both kiddos. ::look at my happy dance::

 

And because I'm blaming all of you for this (and I think you'll get a kick out of it): 12yo has decided on an end goal for her education. To be Batman. She made a stirring case, complete with a powerpoint that she was already on track for science, and we've been discussing logic curricula and she'll need that to be the world's greatest detective. But now she'd like to drop English (her least favorite) for parkour lessons and add another martial arts class, maybe Krav Maga. She also said she was going to keep doing Kitchen Chemistry, because what if she can't find an Alfred, she'll need to cook for herself.

 

I vetoed dropping English, but I'm now trying to figure out if parkour lessons are even a thing. 😂

Congrats! Soooo awesome!

 

Here in Seattle we have a circus school. My boys have been hounding me for ages to join. So maybe some batman trapeze work could be part of it hee hee ;)

[daijobu]

Your dd sounds adorable.  Welcome to the homeschooling lifestyle!  

[aprilleigh]

If you work your way through all three of the BFSU books your kid will have a better science background than many high school graduates. My plan, as a college science professor, is to finish book 3, then use college textbooks to teach year-long courses in biology, chemistry, physics, and another science of his choice (I have, from teaching classes and taking classes for my own enjoyment, recent textbooks on astronomy, geology, marine biology, microbiology, and programming.

 

There are numerous similar textbooks available for HS science, some of which I've seen and am reasonably impressed with, but I see no reason for me, personally, to spend extra money to purchase those when I already own a nice collection of introductory college textbooks. If you live near a college, you might want to see what their bookstore has in the way of used textbooks. Amazon has a nice selection of those, as well. Because new editions come out regularly (even for subjects that don't change much), often students can't sell back textbooks, even at the low prices they're usually offered, so you might be able to pick up a perfectly good textbook for cheap from a student who would be grateful to get a little cash for a book they have no other way to sell. Students who take introductory courses to meet science requirements rarely hang onto those books afterwards.

[aprilleigh]

I'd recommend Mensa's Excellence in Reading program. It's four lists of books for grades K-3, 4-6, 7-8, and 9-12. They recommend that you start with the list that is grade-level appropriate and then move up or down as needed/desired for the remaining lists.

 

The K-3 list is mostly picture books and short chapter books, but there are a few longer titles (Little House on the Prairie and Charlotte's Web, for example). I didn't know about the program myself until DS was near the end of 3rd grade, so we used the first list as summer reading (finished a month into 4th grade).

 

The books can be completed as read-alouds (parent, or even teacher although the parent is still responsible for maintaining the list), audiobooks, or independent-reads. When you complete the first list, your child gets a certificate and a teeshirt (free). Every subsequent list gets a new certificate.

 

The books are amazing, the program is free, and the rules allow the program to work even with children who struggle with reading. As long as they are capable of understanding and enjoying the stories, that's enough.

 

You can find the lists by googling "Mensa Excellence in Reading"