Thank you for the additional information. It is very helpful. No worries about the consumer math in our case as homeschoolers aren't required to meet any particular requirements in my state other than to teach math, language, science and social studies.

I forgot to ask, do you have a suggestion for a consumer math course? I was planning on doing one, but it never occurred to me to use it as part of economics.

Sounds good. I guess I better email and ask for a password so I can check it out.

Are the teacher's guides in pdf format as well? Also, does the password expire after a certain amount of time?

No, I had completely forgotten about those. Thanks for the reminder!

Looks like the Complete Idiot's Guide and For Dummies books are popular options. I was at the library today and forgot to pick them up. Oh well, I have some movies that have to go back at the end of the week so I can pick them up then.

Have you been using it for 2 hours a week for the whole year or just a semester? Thanks for letting me know it's on the dry side. I'll have to see if I can get it through the library to check it out. Can you elaborate more on the extreme viewpoint? You can PM me if you'd like. Sounds fun, but my son does better with books, he does not enjoy hands on learning.

Looks interesting, but I am going to go with one of the secular options. Thanks for sharing, I'm sure someone reading this thread will be able to use the information. :)

:lol: I can just imagine you doing that.

Brenda, thanks for the additional information. I think it sounds perfect for my son.

My guess is that she wants attention. We have an outdoor kitty that has never been in because he is really a stray that has taken up residence in our shed. We had him neutered and have been feeding him and getting him shots for a few years, but can't bring him in because our other cats try to fight with him through the screen door. Like I said, this cat has never been in our house, but he sits on the porch crying at the door. He won't come in if we offer, but wants us to come outside and spend time with him. He likes human companionship, but only outside and he generally doesn't allow anyone to pet him either. We sit outside and read and he will rub against our legs, but he runs off if we try to pet him. Occasionally, he will allow you to pet him, but not very often.

I don't know if I can help any, but I thought it might help to know that we are in the same boat. We didn't understand conceptual physics either, so we did biology this year instead. I doubt we will ever do physics. I think we may do something like geology, botany, anatomy, physical geography (science courses I took in college). After using several different math programs, we have found that teaching textbooks works well for my son. We don't use the videos because he hates video instruction, in fact he can't stand any type of instruction. I have to find materials that he can use by himself. He used to be very defiant about doing school work until I took myself out of the picture. I make a schedule for him to follow and let him do it when he pleases. That means he starts his schoolwork around 11pm and works until the wee hours of the morning and then goes to bed. He then sleeps until about noon unless he needs to get up earlier for something. Writing is the only subject I do with him since he struggles with it so much. I don't take a traditional approach to literature. I work with the books he chooses to read, currently vampires and murder mysteries. When I was in high school, I took a lit course that focused on monsters and science fiction, so I don't have a problem with that. I considered using Movies as Literature, but my son didn't like the idea of watching movies as part of schoolwork. Every year, I ask lots of questions and change curricula publishers for the courses that aren't working for us. Teaching Textbooks is the only publisher I know we will continue to use until graduation. :001_smile:

I'd just do general science stuff. Maybe look at some of the Janice Van Cleave books or see what else the library has. Take some classes at the science center if it's in your budget. Study a bit of geology and go on field trips to find rocks, AZ is a great state for that.

Wow! You are all so helpful. I don't know why I never think of the For Dummies and Idiot's Guide series. I use them to learn new computer programs. My son has helped get an initiative on the ballot in our state, so he has some hands on experience. Writing is really an issue. He has fine motor problems as well as being dyslexic and dysgraphic. I'm planning on starting a thread about writing curricula later as it is my biggest concern. But he might be able to handle shorter writing assignments such as summaries. I don't know why that never occurred to me. Also, thanks for the heads up on SOT. Believe it or not, most of the curricula we use seems to come from Christian publishers but it doesn't always include religious beliefs.

My son's school never did calendar and he managed to get through 6th grade without learning the order of the months. Anyways, if you are trying to make it more fun, add some songs. Here are a couple: Tune: Adams Family theme song Days of the Week (snap, snap) or they can clap if they can't snap yet Days of the Week (snap, snap) Days of the Week, Days of the Week, Days of the Week (snap, snap) There's Sunday and there's Monday There's Tuesday and there's Wednesday There's Thursday and there's Friday and then there's Saturday Days of the Week (snap, snap) Days of the Week (snap, snap) Days of the Week, Days of the Week, Days of the Week (snap, snap) Or to the tune of Clementine: Sunday, Monday Tuesday, Wednesday Thursday, Fri-day Sat-ur-day Sunday, Monday Tuesday, Wednesday Thursday, Fri-day Sat-ur-day Tune: Bumpin up and down in my little red wagon (I'm sure that's not the correct title) January, February Mar-ch, April May, June Ju-ly, August September, October November, December Twelve months in a year. Also, if you use a calendar chart or poster board with self-adhesive hooks to hold the numbers, you could use calendar number numbers and the name of the month in a different theme each month. If that didn't make sense, email me and I can send you a sample. You could use more than one set to make a pattern with the numbers and each day ask the kids what they think that day's picture will be. You could also make a calendar page for each month with the numbers and name of the month in a dotted font for the kids to trace. As they get better at their numbers, you could leave some out and they have to figure out what numbers are missing. Tip: it is really hard for them to figure out the missing numbers if they are on the first square in a row; that is an advanced skill. They need to see numbers (in the same row) before and after the missing number(s). If you have the large size construction paper, they could fold a piece in half, glue the calendar to the bottom and make a seasonal paper craft to glue to the top to make a mini calendar for the month. You could make a thermometer with a hole at the top and bottom with a ribbon thread through for them to chart the temperature each day. Sew a red and a white piece of ribbon together to make a band so the can move it to mark the temperature. You could also put up a 100s chart for them to count to 100. Then as they learn those, they could count by 5s,10s, evens or odds.