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Wee Pip

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Everything posted by Wee Pip

  1. I use the Foundations guide 4th edition, $60 on their website. I also got the audio cd for cycle 1 and all 4 sets of history timeline cards, but you dont have to have these to make the program work at home. I have a nearby friend that gets together weekly; we help the kids get a jumpstart on memorizing their weeks worth of stuff. Really, you'd just need the foundations guide to do it on your own at home - all 3 cycles are in there, and you just go thru 1 cycle per year. you repeat the memory work again once you've gone thru it, and keep on it until they are ready for jr high (age 12 or 13). It gives them a great start on the info they need to be successful in later studies.
  2. I think she means Classical Conversations:) We are not doing the community this year; just Foundations memory work on our own at home. We're hoping to start a community next fall. I do love the memory work! I have to say, though, when my oldest 2 were K and 2nd, I would've rejected cc as mindless, random memory work. Now that they are older, I can see the value in the memory work and wish we'd done it sooner! I think this is a common dichotomy of thinking from moms of youngers vs moms of olders. I think a good, well done Cc community will be valuable as a support system to homeschooling. I look forward to it next year.
  3. I will add...my 10yo is a great interest-led learner: she takes Usborne type books to bed with her. My 12yo has never been an interest-led type student, however, I am putting certain demands in place, "you *will* pick something interesting to study from this bookshelf, or I'm assigning a textbook" LOL. Then, I take the books she picked, and I assign how many pages she is required to read each day. She doesn't "love" it, but she prefers this over textbooks:) So, perhaps you call it "forced interest led learning" or some other oxymoron.
  4. We haven't started our Pre-Alg just yet. I have Horizons Pre-Alg sitting on the shelf and I worked through the first 20 lessons myself (I think I'm going to be very glad I did!) She just finished Horizons 6, but we're taking a month to get speedier with multiplication. She is super sllllooooowwww with math, even the easy stuff like multiplication. I was really hoping that by speeding up her multiplication skills, pre-alg would seem a lot easier. We'll see. I think turtles are just turtles; they never become hares:)
  5. we just get eyewitness, dk, usborne type science and history books out of the library. when they've finished reading it or the interest has waned, we hit the library again. I dont do anything to organize or tie in our learning (that always ends up being the death of our interest led anything because I just cant seem to do it, no matter how hard I try).
  6. Yeah I think the two main problems are: #1 it's timed, #2 the format of the questions. I've never found a program that satisfies the format issue. I discovered today that even Horizons math doesn't translate into other applications. We just started Math Minutes today, hoping that will help and she was confused by the questions. Last year I used Evan-moor paragraph editing, but I didn't see that translate into the punctuation/capitalization portion of the ITBS like I thought it would. eta: I think she is rather concrete, so inferences, "reading between the lines", find the hidden meaning tends to confuse her. So there you have it; a slow, concrete thinker, lol! Is there a fix for that?
  7. I have one dd that doesn't do great on the ITBS (IOWA) test. We're not required to take it in our state, but dh and I want our dc to take it yearly. Why? It gives them practice with tests, it (should) let us know of any areas the kids are falling behind in, and it makes a good rebuttal for the anti-homeschoolers in our lives. However, I'm wondering if I can make the test taking experience a little better for the one dd that doesn't do so well? Since we administer the test ourselves and do not report the test scores to anybody, we are able to look at the test questions ourselves to find any problem areas. After dd takes the test, I approach her with any questions she got wrong (her original answers stand and we do not change them - that would be cheating). I've noticed that she can give me the correct answer when I ask her informally (so she obviously knows the material), but answers poorly when it is test taking time. Math is her biggest problem area. Speedy thinking kills her. Any suggestions on how we can improve her scores and test taking ability? (BTW, we've done the Spectrum test prep books before, and I don't think it is very helpful, as there is very little carryover between content of the Spectrum and content/wording of the ITBS).
  8. no answers here, but am interested in replies. my 12yo is like this (ohhh and she's been like this since K...I am sooo tired of the battles). I've been really thinking about outsourcing for her, just to change this one aspect of our relationship.
  9. We're using Horizons Math, which is spiral like Saxon but seems to teach in larger, more organized chunks (as far as I can tell, as my brain interprets what I see...Saxon throws my brain into a tizzy, as I can't grasp the pattern in its layout. Maybe that's just me?) PreAlgebra and Algebra I are very new still, Horizons just released these over the past year or two. I'm hoping they continue the new trend with Geometry and Algebra II.
  10. The *correct* way is supposed to be: start at the top, draw a line down. Start back at the top, draw a line down the other way... It annoys me, though - manuscript letters are typically taught "start at the top", even though it seems very natural to start at the bottom. Then, when you reach cursive, most of the letters start at the bottom. I'm not sure why that is. I think it would lend itself naturally to cursive if manuscript letters start at the bottom:) All those years (and tears) over making my handwriting-resistant dd start at the top for printing, and then switching her to starting at the bottom for cursive - it was more hassle than it was worth! FWIW, I think I was taught to start at the top, but I voted start at the bottom for my letter A. It's faster and easier to do, and less pencil pick-ups to achieve a fine looking A:)
  11. Lurking on this board:) I can see Reya's point *specifically* with computer science degrees. In my working days, the kids driven to tinker at home and starting at entry level computer jobs seemed to come in with the most working knowledge, and went further, faster in their careers. It began with self driven learning, hands on, at home. Once hired at entry level, they pursued various certifications (aplus, microsoft, networking, etc). Later, they pursued computer degrees. However, the kids that went to college first for computer degrees (very little knowledge of computers going into it) and then hired in were some of the worst employees I've ever had to work with. I will never forget the summer intern that I repeatedly had to teach basic computers (how to double click, how to find, save, or delete files on a windows computer, ugh!). I really wondered how he could have a bachelors in computer science and I did not. Did his resume look more impressive than mine? Sure. Could he keep his job longer than I could? Not a chance! Just my own personal experience 12+ years ago:) Hopefully computer science degrees have improved since then!
  12. We have a 4yo guinea pig and we use either pine or aspen bedding. I was nervous about pine bedding but was reassured by the pet store (very nice place who personally knew the breeders and who spent much time and attention, loving and training the pets for human companionship). After picking out the youngest pig, I wish I had gone with an older piggy. The younger ones are much more hyper and we weren't as comfortable handling her until she grew older and settled down. Now we can easily pick her up, trim her nails, etc. We had a terrible time trying to trim her nails when she was little.
  13. I'm considering CC next year, too. My reasons are that we've grown too complacent at home and I'd like something that encourages us all to work harder. I am also interested in the support this offers. I'll have 1 in challenge A, 1 in essentials, and a 4yo beginning foundations. I'm hoping to keep up with the workload and learn alongside (if not 1 step ahead) of ea kid. I'm also hoping to keep our current math (horizons). I'm interested in the responses here.
  14. I soooo get that with the prek'er. I'm trying to keep the 3yo busy so that older 2 can work, but then the olders join in, like I was doing it all to amuse them. My 5th grader can be independent but we have other issues. She takes the minor correction personally and hides in her room for hours, thinking to herself "I'm the worst person ever". Every day I'm scratching my head and wondering, "how do I talk her out of her funk and back into schoolwork?" argh.
  15. INFP, ENFP, and other spontaneous, disorganized moms - How do you pick curric? Do you design your own or fly by the seat of your pants each day? Or do you go for boxed curric, knowing you need some order? How do you balance high standards (classical ed) with the need for fun, and following your own spontaneous ideas? And, how do you balance housework and daily drudgery with school and your own desire to throw it all out the window and do something different? Thanks!
  16. I think my oldest dd is ISTJ. I believe I am INFP, but have picked up a strong desire to accomplish things and be efficient since becoming a mother. That side of me is always frustrated. But see, I'm battling my own internal conflict: need to dream vs. need for order:) Once I decide I want a little order, then I have the next uphill battle: getting the support (i.e., not whining, crying resistance) of my kids. Being INFP, I hate conflict and tend to place blame on myself. So by bedtime, I'm exhausted and feel like a failure. I've struggled the most to teach my ISTJ dd. She *should* be the perfect textbook learner. But she's very practical, so if she doesn't see the purpose...Also, motivation: she is self-driven. If she doesn't feel motivated, then she isn't going to bother putting forth the effort. I struggle to provide order and a strong environment - which she needs. I am seeing her develop into a strong leader and it has been difficult giving her those opportunities to take charge. As she gets older, those opportunities are becoming available and I am capitalizing on them as part of her education. I also have to balance her straight forward, tell it like it is citicism with teaching her to show respect. Both dh and dd are like this, so I've had to learn to accept critism gracefully, all the while teaching them to have tact! lol.
  17. would love to hear responses. We're looking at joining a group next year and putting oldest in challenge A. I think Latin replaces Grammar at that point. Graduates of Essentials will have had a very solid background in Grammar. The Latin should be challenging and include a lot of Grammar.Not sure about history, tho.
  18. 11 (now 12) yo had/has this problem. So I made a short list of things to include in her writing. I award points for each thing in her writing. When she gets so many points, I take her to McDs for something off the dollar menu:) Worked like a charm! I was beginning to suspect dysgraphia, but having that reward worked miracles, lol. We started with 1 sentence each day and worked up to a paragraph, and now some days I ask for 2 paragraphs. My points look like this: Starting sentences with a capital (1point for each) Ending each sentence with punctuation (1 point for each) 1 bonus point for writing b correctly 1 bonus point for writing d correctly Capitalizing proper names correctly (1 point for each) 1 point for each full sentence 1 bonus point if you used the thesaurus also I award points for descriptive words or complicated sentences (she was notorious for short lack luster sentences). Each sentence should get 2 points for starting with a capital and ending with punctuation. Our first goal for a dollar menu item was 70 points, and now it's 150. As writing assignment length increases, so do the points, because she can earn far more points writing a paragraph than a sentence. It was amazing how quickly her writing improved; obviously she was just being lazy before, but I didn't know that as it genuinely seemed hard for her. Not every kid has the laziness issue; sometimes it is a learning disorder - but my dd proved she was perfectly capable, just not willing to put forth the effort before.
  19. My 12 yo has never liked any academic subjects. Even when she was 6, she'd say her fav subject was lunch:( This year I am trying a rather light, interest led year, except for a few subjects. I'm really hoping that something sparks an interest for her. She may just not be an academic-y kid, though. She'd rather cook, scrapbook, play a game, or hang around being bored.
  20. Noooooooo! That's next week's assignment for us. Dd is very black-and-white, tell-it-like-it-is, and I think this might be the death of us, lol!
  21. I require Math, handwriting, writing, Bible,and piano. If the kids want to write a novel or other creative writing, then I count that as their writing. Otherwise, I give the assignments. I let them pick what/how they want to study science and history. I gather those resources and schedule it. So if they want to do sci experiments, I put it on the schedule. If they want to research and then create a project, it goes on the schedule. If they are clueless, I might pick something, assign reading and have them journal it. We school 6 wks on 1 wk off, with 4-6 wks off in summer. I'd prefer 4 wks but our big gardening project and 2 wk traveling vacation pushed it to 6 wks. Learning still happened though - our trip to yellowstone taught more geology then I ever could pull from a book (although I did pull in books too). Our schooling is rather light and allows for a lot of spontaneous outdoor and field trip learning.
  22. Well...I'm attempting an interest led year with my bunch, you can peruse my blog for ideas.
  23. Media mail wasn't an option, online. Thanks for the suggestions - there is a group that meets not too far from me, so I'll see if I can get cheaper shipping that way.
  24. Thanks, all! I'll be ordering these suggestions one by one from the library and see what she thinks!
  25. Are the shipping costs supposed to be high when you order from classical conversations? I want to order the foundations book and a CD, and the system adds $15.00 to ship it, in addition to the $6 sales tax. My $95 order would cost $116 when all is said and done. Is this normal? Is there a way to get shipping cheaper, other than to order more stuff? BTW, I'm in the USA, so it's not like overseas shipping, is it?
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