no i didn't. thanks for this info. i was thinking we'd "fly through" FLL2 this summer, (since we've taken a break from our shurley 2+FLL alternation) then return to the shurley 2 as our singular approach to grammar (while maintaining WWE2) .... and then ?? would FLL3 work well after shurley 2? or would i stick with shurley and go to 4 at that point, while sticking to WWE through level 4?? i wasn't going to do FLL*3* with shurley .... :) rather, FLL2. in answer to the "free form" question of PP ... i would clarify that by saying that it's too loose and non-systematic. i feel like it's challenging to him one day and the next he's bored and wondering why there's basically only "review". i like the poetry being included as well as the dictation, though i do our spelling work through dictation practice and there's the WWE dictation. what i like about the shurley is that it has the jingles and is predictable and systematic {though i don't understand why it's possible and frequently done to skip a level, as an aside}. what i like about FLL is that it seems more gentle and do-able in just 20 min. i dont' care whether the LA program is scripted or not. i'm fine with teaching LA without a script b/c english is a strong suit for me. i'm fine scheduling my own reading assignments and plan to use an occasional study guide from progeny press or from memoria press. i assign his reading to correlate to our history studies, science studies, or from my own literature choices. he has a free-reading shelf of books to choose from that he gets to choose the titles for. what does MCT include or not include? (poetry, etc ....) what does LLATL include or not include? what would i gain by finishing WWE through level 4 and then switching to CW? would i need a grammar program along with CW at that point? i think it's hilarious that the easiest subject for me personally is one of the most difficult for me to implement here at home .... it's hard for me to choose. :) could i: option 1: FLL2-->Shurley 2-->MCT _what level_? if i did that, would i need to keep WWE when i got to MCT? option 2: FLL2-->Shurley 2 -->FLL3? (obviously keep WWE) option 3: FLL2 --> Shurley 2 -->CW Aesop how much "vocabulary" or workbook-type supplementing does one have to do with FLL, MCT, CW, or LLATL .... like vocabulary building with greek and latin roots, etc. DS LOVES this kind of thing and i want to bring that in as much as he's capable and interested at each stage of the game. i've got my eye on Bridge to Latin Road, etc. sorry for the long post. if ya'll get tired of talking about this, it's ok :)

anyone recommend or *not* recommend: -the Jamestown ferry? -Carrot Tree Kitchens restaurant in Yorktown? -Sandy Bottom Nature Park? and, in order to get as much out of it, should we buy tix for CW or just browse? i'm getting a lot of mixed feedback about this. we want them to be able to see the demos .... but also don't want to spend money on something that isn't really necessary, esp if we're going to only be able to stay for the morning with a still-napping-toddler. what would be your top pick(s) of these museum options for a 7 and 5 yr old: mariner's museum, air and space, living museum, yorktown museum is the downtown hampton waterfront nice area of walk around?

so if you have to supplement grammar, what's the real "benefit" of LLATL? and what would be my options for supplementing grammar? suddenly, the LLATL doesn't seem like the right fit. :(

thanks. i had looked over their website but was getting bleary-eyed from all the sample sheet options. i think yellow is definitely where he'd be. so, if i were to go with LLATL, is that ALL the language arts instruction i'd need? no WWE? no CW? no spelling? he's doing 1/2 page of classically cursive each day, queen copywork for little boys (manuscript), ETC 7 as reinforcement (b/c he FLEW through phonics instruction and reads at a late 3rd grade level). does LLATL feel rigorous? how long do the lessons take? is there poetry memorization throughout? are there recommended reading assignments or are they *in* the text itself? is it a classical approach or more CM? thanks, PP, for your help. looking forward to everyone's answers.

we're currently using our own combo of FLL2 and Shurley 2 (alternating as we see fit) while using WWE2. somedays i dislike the free-formness of FLL2. other days i like it. some days i disdain how overly involved and pedantic certain parts of shurley 2 are .... other days i really like how systematic it is. some days FLL seems to move too slowly for DS and we end up combining several lessons on a regular basis. soooo ..... i'm wondering if there is some sort of balance between the two. it seems to me we could find a better fit .... but i'm overwhelmed. the ones i've mainly considered are LLATL (i think we'd be yellow?), MCT, CW (primer? or aesop?), & Queen (not sure what level). anyone have an idea how to compare and contrast. on the horizon i plan to complete WWE 2 through 4 alongside our grammar instruction then move to CW or WWE. (if we stick with our FLL/Shurley alternating combo approach). my understanding, though, of MCT is that it includes writing. is this the case? is this the case for LLATL as well? i know CW would nix the WWE part of our picture. one thing i really like about CW, LLATL, and Queen is the inclusion of picture study. please help me get some clarity on these programs by comparing and contrasting if you can. TIA! :bigear:

haven't done this yet, b/c i only have a rising 2nd grader as my oldest, but i just thought i'd throw in my $.02 b/c i've thought about it a *lot.* we will continue working through the WWE series (we're in level 2) until i feel confident about DS's narration & dictation which will be approximately mid 4th grade. then we will begin IEW *or* CW in mid 4th grade. he's "ahead" in language arts, so this may end up going faster for us than i anticipate .... i'm really interested in hearing others' plans and experiences.:bigear:

thank you thank you thank you . keep it comin!

we'll be traveling from middle TN to Yorktown, Williamsburg, & Jamestown with our three kids (ages 7, 5.5, and 2) next week and are wanting tips on what to do, what *not* to do, what to spend money on, what *not* to waste money on, cool places to eat, activities to reinforce their learning that are consistent with WTM/CM style learning, as well as just general "educational/cool places to see that aren't necessarily historical." parks? museums? discovery centers? zoos? we are not interested in going to busch gardens. we'll be staying with family friends in yorktown. we still have naptime to contend with for the littlest one. we prefer to eat organic or locally-grown but love good cuisine of any sort .... will there be a place to buy good quality groceries (youngest DS can't have gluten or dairy) .... ? what else? we'd like to hit the beach (yorktown river?) while there .... i'm all ears! :) we leave friday and i'm tired of reading the tour guides :) TIA

we'll be traveling from middle TN to Yorktown, Williamsburg, & Jamestown with our three kids (ages 7, 5.5, and 2) next week and are wanting tips on what to do, what *not* to do, what to spend money on, what *not* to waste money on, cool places to eat, activities to reinforce their learning that are consistent with WTM/CM style learning, as well as just general "educational/cool places to see that aren't necessarily historical." parks? museums? discovery centers? zoos? we are not interested in going to busch gardens. we'll be staying with family friends in yorktown. we still have naptime to contend with for the littlest one. we prefer to eat organic or locally-grown but love good cuisine of any sort .... will there be a place to buy good quality groceries (youngest DS can't have gluten or dairy) .... ? what else? we'd like to hit the beach (yorktown river?) while there .... i'm all ears! :) we leave friday and i'm tired of reading the tour guides :) TIA

we'll be traveling from middle TN to Yorktown, Williamsburg, & Jamestown with our three kids (ages 7, 5.5, and 2) next week and are wanting tips on what to do, what *not* to do, what to spend money on, what *not* to waste money on, cool places to eat, activities to reinforce their learning that are consistent with WTM/CM style learning, as well as just general "educational/cool places to see that aren't necessarily historical." parks? museums? discovery centers? zoos? we are not interested in going to busch gardens. we'll be staying with family friends in yorktown. we still have naptime to contend with for the littlest one. we prefer to eat organic or locally-grown but love good cuisine of any sort .... will there be a place to buy good quality groceries (youngest DS can't have gluten or dairy) .... ? what else? we'd like to hit the beach (yorktown river?) while there .... i'm all ears! :) we leave friday and i'm tired of reading the tour guides :) TIA

what part of middle TN? :) we have the exact smae aged children, it seems, only i have an additional tag-along 2 yr old ;) btw, i have been using Math Mammoth free printouts for about 2 weeks now .... just having him do those supplementally with a scaled-back pace on the RS level C. i can tell he's being challenged to think more "conventionally" with regard to worksheets but is not TAXED to the extent that he doesn't understand how to conquer them. i have been pleased with this level of reinforcement ..... FWIW. i thought of ordering the CLE like you did .... not sure i will at this point, though. we'll see. it would be my top pick for anything supplemental. :) thanks for recommending it!

i have learned a lot myself and have enjoyed watching my children be fascinated by the lives of other children through books such as Material World and Children Just Like Me. you can find a lot of those used on amazon, which is how i secured my copies. there's another one that i get from the library called "if the world were village" or something like that ..... i would recommend something like that to supplement your study of cultures, mapping, geography, etc via great literature.... it really brings those countries to life for children when they see the dAILY life of someone in that country. i would also caution you about how EXHAUSTED your child is likely to be after preschool. it is amazing how just 3 or 4 hours away can really zap their energy .... and make them much more taxed than we often think. be sensitive to how tapped your DC may be after a "day" at preschool and know that it would be completely normal to *not* be able to do much in the afternoons like you're used to being able to do. that was just a side note .... i wish someone had cautioned me :) HTH.

oh wow. i had never put two and two together on this. thanks, OP, for yet another thought provoking thread!

we started with primary math .... DS was bored to tears with earlybird when he was in K. so far, honestly, i feel completely lost as to what i could do without basically investing in an ENTIRE new math program. i just want something to reinforce right now. based on just keeping things as SIMPLE as possible, could i just do the CLE? i don't want to have to do any more teaching texts, etc .... or should i just do a math website of some sort??? what are some good math websites?

wow this is all so very helpful :) a few questions: -MEP? is this the abbreviation for miquon? -where does one buy miquon? -how would you compare the horizon levels to the RS levels? (like what level would i choose??) -if i did the singapore for review, what level? or were you saying you'd switch away from the RS and go to the SM? DS seems very strong in math some days and others he seems kinda clueless on basic things when it comes to WRITING down what he knows .... which makes me think i need to just shake it up a little and let him have some other mathematical adventures from a different angle/publisher, ou know? also ..... we've been reading a HOST of books from the living math yahoo group's booklist. LOVING that!!!

anyone?

RightStart users: my visual-learner DS 7 who just finished up his first grade work is in the middle of RightStart level C. We school year round with much-needed and much-enjoyed breaks every 5 or 6 weeks plus larger breaks for vacations, holidays, busy family times, etc. During the summer times, i like to switch it up just a little bit while still maintaining a good rhythm and a steady flow to our subjects. I was thinking that it might be good for him to take a bit of a leave of absence from our RS C and do something like math mammoth worksheets just for drill and review and a change of pace. I don't want to blow through Level C without really getting everything mastered, and honestly I'd like for him to have quicker recall on math facts/math drill. I think the downside of RS is that he is such a visual learner and without me MAKING it a visual experience for him on the white board or having him read certain parts of the lessons, he has to work really hard to stay with me aurally and auditorily, which he does well most days. I love the approach RS takes (we started using Singapore in the first part of K and it was disastrous) and want to stick with it for him .... just want something that is a slight bit more traditional (NOT workbooky for workbook sake) for drill and reinforcement before we continue on in level C. We play games and all that .... I need something that he can do basically independently while I work and play with the youngers. would Math mammoth be a good fit for my need? if so, should i do level 2 or level 3? what other programs could i do that are relatively inexpensive and would fit the bill? {oh, i did pick up a copy of Building Thinking Skills gr level 2-3 for him and was thinking that wouldn't at all hurt to use .... } thanks!

if you haven't already, consider joining the yahoo group for rightstart users and posting this question there. i've found it to be a really helpful sounding board of RS families. :) i have no advice to offer to you since my DS7 is only in Level C, but i will enjoy reading the responses you get here from experienced ones .... :) good luck!

This is partially just a bookmark post and partially a "my $.02" post. without going into details, i can relate to your situation. here's what i'm choosing to do -- -have DS 7 (reading at grade 3 level) continue through book 8 of ETC (he is currently in first part of book 7) for the purposes of reinforcing the phonics pathways & phonics museum he *flew* through in Kindergarten. -use How to Teach Spelling and/or Natural Speller in our own modified self-suited way to really tackle the rules of spelling without doing it as a *formal* spelling curriculum. (we alternated for 1st grade between the two and will continue to do so for 2nd) *edited to add: i decided i want only a phonics-based spelling curriculum .... more specifically OG-based .... * -continue to use copywork for exposure to real-world spelling and a platform for discussion of words -allow him to explore roots (latin and greek) via Prima Latina, encyclopedias and dictionary etc, and maybe even English from the Roots Up -keep him reading GREAT literature, not twaddle, with an occasional Progeny Press or Memoria Press literature guide that will require him to really examine the words, the spellings, the meanings, etc .... to DIG in and really think for himself :) [he's a *very* visual learner so workbooks can often become mindless time users of correct answers with little retention] i agree with OP that Spelling Workout is not very impressive. i haven't been very impressed with what i've learned of spelling power either, as it doesn't seem to help the child understand how our spelling rules function or were derived. i'm looking forward to the other opinions you'll receive -- just do what feels right for *you* regardless of what others share if it doesn't feel like a good fit. HTH

oh, their pencils are in the correct position, and their thumbs are in th same place they'd be if they were using the "tall man on top" approach. now that you mention it, i remember our HWT showing both as acceptable, as long as the thumb is curled AROUND the pencil. i wouldn't let that go either. i think i'll see what i can do with the K'er. i'm NOT going to add anxiety to DS's life at this point -- he's really hard on himself and it wouldn't be worth it, IMHO, to add this on top of that. he's a GREAT student and has fantastic penmanship, with a good hard work ethic when it comes to copywork, for his age. i will look into the pencil grip thing for my DD. she'd probably think it was jewelry for her pencil LOL LOL LOL

please tell me how much emphasis is necessary on pencil grip being between the pointer and tall man. my DC get it genetically from me to hold between tall man and ring finger. hmmmmm ..... i can't really correct the 1st grader's writing at this point, but i think i could still win over the Pre-K/K'er level girl in our home ;) is it going to matter down the road??

so now i remember reading somewhere along the way about Language Lessons through Literature. anyone have any experience or opinion on this?? what age is it really for? it seems like a flavor or Queen's LL.

so are literature suggestions and guides are included in PR {i'm thinking in terms of Read Alouds}? what about reading suggestions for the child to be doing ? and are there study guides for that included?? i'm confused now that i'm hearing a few references to "literature" when all along i thought PR was just limited to phonics, spelling, grammar, writing, copywork. :confused: did i miss something?

HFA = harmony fine arts. american history is going to be a combo of Guest hollow dot com with some guerber stories & BFB early american history .... i do need something light and simple but that still "belongs" to just the two of us .... she's the middle child, after all. :) we have that working against us! i have my own personal *and very lengthy* list of literature that i will work from, but do love the AO yr 0 list, and many of their selections appear on my personal list as well :) so i'm in complete agreement. i really like most of the books for K that BFB "character through lit" does & that the memoria press kindergarten curriculum {read aloud supplement} does. my struggle is, i just want a SCHEDULE done for me for these so that i don't cram too many in and overwhelm her .... OR go to slow and risk her not being exposed to all the great books ... like how many picture books/ week is a good number for her age? {that's one feature that HELPED me when i was using SL guide with my son during his kindy yr .... but i don't love all their book selections, honestly, .... and to be completely honest, i HATE mother goose. :tongue_smilie: i looked over the brightbeginnings. a lot of that looks nice, but a lot of it also seems very preschool-y to me .... which makes me wonder whether i could even let my soon-to-be [nonverbal] two year old participate with. sometimes i feel like she needs a *little* bit longer being allowed to just be at preschool age and other days it seems like she's really ready to move on .... hmmmm... i think at this point in my life, i'm more likely to take the stance of "let them be young longer" {a la CM} what i'm particularly attracted to in the BBings is the little "craft" that can go along with the bible story. maybe there's just a special bible curriculum i should buy. in the BBings and in the LHFG, i like the little sing songy songs .... she loves sing-songy things but is really passed a "singing 1-2-3" type of songs .... which is what i mainly saw in the BBings. maybe there's just like an online treasure trove of sing-songy things i need to discover LOL. my thoughts in this post are all over the board. i appreciate hearing how non-significant the science and history portions of the HOD LHFHG are. that helps me know that i wouldn't need to purchase that part of their package .... hmmmmm......

i'm considering doing an "official" K curriculum with my DD instead of just bringing my own together based on what her older DS did, which was basically just SL LA, RS A, PHonics Mus (which apparently no one uses here besides me! LOL), and phonics pathways, HWOT. I have my heart set on using RightStart and HWOT with her, as well as my own phonics approach .... and she'll mainly be following only big brother with science (considering God's creation earth science with apologia astronomy) and history, though we're taking a sidestep from our 4 yr history cycle (i think!?) to do a year of early american history .... so it won't be too much "above" her head. {oh, she followed along *sort of* with our ancients this year but has not been officially required to do any of it ... same with our biology studies. i want to make sure she gets a really strong exposure to great literature {which i kind of feel like is lacking in HOD LLHG so i'd probably end up referring back to my SL LA guides from DS K/1}, a really solid foundation in bible, that it's kinesthetic & auditory, that it's basically no prep time, that it includes art activities that won't pre-empt her participation in HFA with bigger brother but that she feels is totally age- and level- appropriate & comfortable, that it's "fun" for her with lots of cross-curriculum connections. with all of this in consideration, is it silly for me to purchase the LLHG Economy pckge plus their children's hour devotional {even though i'm planning on using the Catherine Vos bible for older DS} .... -would i need to have their WORLD GOD MADE {which is clp, right?}? ***OR*** is there something that fits my bill better than LLHG that would be less tweaking on my part?? i think i'm going to drive myself nuts. winterpromise instead? would memoria press' new K curriculum fit my bill??? i'm about "done" with trying to figure all this out and my head is spinning. what would my options be?? hELp! :) :confused: :tongue_smilie: :bigear: :001_huh: :lol: