I think it would be a waste of $. I used it last year, and this year made my own, but it really is all about the weekly planning pages with a few extras thrown in.

I haven't read all the threads, but a good tool to help you plan from a big picture down to a day is "How to Plan Your Charlotte Mason Education" available from Simply Charlotte Mason. You don't need to be a CM type to find this helpful. She walks you through the process step by step. I'd recommend the book & DVD. Not very expensive overall ($30 or so) but really helpful in HOW to plan.

You could get Startwrite and make your own worksheets with 2 lines (which is what it defaults to if you choose the HWT font; you can change it to 3 lines which is what I prefer). You could also just order grey block paper from HWT, since that would be kind of tricky and ink-intensive.

Angel - I am curious if you went to Saxon 2 or Saxon 3?

You already got your answer from PHP, but from an actual user of FLL2: No, the new FLL 1 and FLL 2 do not have student pages. I just got the new FLL2 a couple of weeks ago. The larger, more spacious formatting is the only real change, (and it is now only paperback) and they also replaced the drawings (for picture study) with real artwork. So far, and from what I can see ahead, everything else is the same. I thought I'd read they were taking out some things to compensate for copywork in WWE, but I don't see that to be the case. Had I to do it over again, I would stay with my combined 1/2 first edition and save my $.

I have a 2nd grader that generally gets math concepts very easily (she doesn't need manipulatives much) but still does not have her +/- math facts down. AT ALL. I want a math curriculum that has drill and facts BUILT IN to the lessons every.single.day. What we are using now (BJU) is not like that; I like the conceptual approach, and that it is colorful and has stories. I have sung the praises of BJU on more than one occasion, and I do like lots of things about it, but it isn't the math for this kid. She gets it easily but she hates math. All she likes are the character stories and playing with the manipulatives. Also, it has hit me like a ton of bricks that I do not do well having to "add" anything on a regular basis to any curriculum, not just math (such as math games, extra drill practice, etc., etc.). I need extra stuff included. BJU totally depends on the teacher to add in the drill (there is a little bit, in the form of suggesting flashcards to review every day, and you can print math facts sheets from the CD, but it really isn't an incorporated piece of the daily math work). I need the curriculum to be much more explicit than this, and I want something traditional. I don't know that I care that it is spiral/incremental or mastery at this point. So far dd has yet to be challenged in math conceptually, and she doesn't know her facts. So what fits the bill of traditional with lots of drill that will get the math facts down cold? I'm willing to consider Saxon, Abeka, CLE, Rod & Staff...any others (I've looked at all of the above online as much as possible)? What is definitely OUT is Singapore, MUS, Right Start, Math Mammoth, MEP, Miquon-- they are too not like me as a teacher for me to deal with or there is something I really don't like about them specifically. Please, no sales pitches for these :) I know they work great for others, but they are not for me/us. Also, if I do go with Saxon, would I put her in Saxon 2 or 3, considering she doesn't know her +/- facts very well, but on the placement test she places at Saxon 3? My additional concern about Saxon 3, however, is that moving up to 5/4 in a year would require writing problems and she is also pencil-averse :( Any suggestions and experience would be appreciated.

Thank you! I really needed to read that this morning, since yesterday was a BAAAAD day.

My dd7.5, is doing the same things. Just today I was wondering if this is the right approach or not. It is very frustrating.

Actually, it is the same stuff in feminine pads/pantiliners and diapers. My pre-kid job 7 years ago was working for a major consumer products manufacturer that made both diapers and feminine products. I worked on diaper projects for a couple of years; it was so long ago I can't recall the chemical or non-technical name, but it is extremely hygroscopic and slurps up any liquid. It comes in the form of a dry, white powder. There is just a lot less of it in feminine products. Try leaving one of those pads in your undies when they go through the washer, and you'll see it at work (I never have done this on purpose, but it happens to me occasionally with pantiliners for some reason). You can buy insta-snow in a can that is the same material (it is kind of expensive though); we got some at our local teacher store. I just found this when I quickly googled hygroscopic material diaper: http://www.worsleyschool.net/science/files/diaper/fun.html

I think that it has been lurking (I felt this way last year too) and just has gotten worse with the reality sinking in now that we're back to full time school. I felt very much the same way when I first became a SAHM after working for over 10 years. I think what is worse now is living in a different place than we did then where I have hardly any friends and no church home. The coops around me are mostly teaching intensive, from what I understand. And there are a few Classical Conversation campuses too. I probably need to do some more investigating. I appreciate the good ideas & suggestions everyone!

Thanks for the ideas! I think I have been limiting my scope to fellow homeschoolers, so I need to think outside that box. I am in a support group that is a nice bunch of moms, but have found it a little hard to break in as many of them have been together a while. But the things we have done have been good. They just don't occur very often. Thanks again!

I posted this on the general board, but I never go there normally so I think it will get lost among the non-hs related threads... Do you feel isolated & lonely as a hs mom? I am really struggling with this. My only-child dd is 7 and just started 2nd grade. This is our 2nd year of hs. I don't think it bothers her much being an only, but I find myself getting more & more depressed being home and alone most of the time. We did Classical Conversations last year, for a variety of reasons decided to not do it this year (she loved it; I didn't, although I did like the comradery of the other moms). Now I'm wondering if that was unwise. I have her enrolled in a 2x/month hs umbrella/enrichment school that is a drop-off program, so that won't help me at all with adult interaction. Or maybe I need a co-op? I have avoided the co-op idea not wanting to take on more work. I do not have great connections here where we've lived for 2 years. We aren't plugged into a church (not that we don't want to be and haven't been trying), our neighborhood is older working couples mostly. Any other ideas that just "make some friends"? I am generally somewhat introverted, but the isolation and intensity of being home all week alone w/ dd is about to smother me. Should I try to find a co-op? I find myself spending an inordinate amount of time online reading HS boards, and I know it is because I am dying for other adults to talk to.

Being at home all week with just my dd, I am so lonely for other adults. I have an only child who is 7. HS'ing an only child is intense at times. This is our second year of HS'ing. We've just started, and already I am experiencing some serious depression, which isn't like me. We have no family here, and haven't gotten plugged into a church like we've been in the past. Our neighborhood is mostly older, working couples. I have dismissed joining a co-op because I didn't think I wanted the extra stress of having to teach. But I'm wondering if maybe I need it, even if dd doesn't. We did Classical Conversations last year, which DD liked; I liked the adult interaction a lot but didn't like a number of other aspects. I believe in all the positive benefits of hs'ing, and don't really want to send dd back to private school (PS is out of the question; she went to private K). But one side of me wonders if that's what we need to do. My dh would do it in a heartbeat; he feels like hs'ing is stressful for our family (and our marriage). Other than "make some friends" (which I am very slowly working on) what are ideas that have helped you with feeling isolated & lonely? Has joining a coop been a plus for anyone who's struggled with this?

Last year for SOTW 1, I read the chapter, and let dd listen to it later. This year, we are listening to the audio while I follow along in the book and dd does a coloring page. I read aloud for so much other stuff during the day, I am relieved to let Jim Weiss do the reading of SOTW! We also listen to the CDs on car trips and just in the house whenever after we've covered the chapter.

My dd 7 does the exact same thing. I think for her, at least, it is because she started reading very early and is now very far ahead of her grade level. She is always in a hurry to find out what happens, and she reads too fast. She CONSTANTLY adds words, leaves words out, and guesses at long words, but I do know she has most of the phonics skills because we went through OPGTR, and we're using AAS also now. It is extremely frustrating, but I think forcing her to read out loud regularly and to read each word as it is printed is the best way to address it.

Did you download the free trial for Startwrite? I have it and just checked, and yes you can put blank lines between what you type. I'm contemplating order it myself for the same reasons you are. If you download the trial, you can test out the HWT font yourself and print it to see if you like it.

I did CC last year. I'd say yes for the audio CD. I did the online community and didn't find I used it much (but it was only about $6/month with the discount you get) but I know others who used it a lot. I sort of wished I'd had the resource CD, but probably not for a kindergartner. I would say for a K'er, just take it easy and listen the CD in the car and maybe a time or two at home during the week. For a 1st grader last year, we did pretty much all of it, but really if you're just learning the songs for each week it won't take much time (and you'll be amazed at how much sticks). I wouldn't devote a ton of time to it at that age, however, like with drilling flashcards etc. And then spend a little time doing the timeline with the motions. Some people build their whole curriculum around CC, which is great if that is what you want.

I suggest going cold turkey completely, at least during the school week. Yes there will be a lot of griping at first, I am sure, but you will at some point be absolutely amazed at the improvement in your home I think. We have pretty much eliminated all TV in our house, except a little sports on weekends. We have realized what a time sucker the TV was, even though it was only turned on after dd7 went to bed. We still have standard cable, but are thinking about canceling (although our phone & internet are also cable, and canceling the TV part doesn't save us much $). The content on TV is in general very bad, but I think what is worse is that it is such a massive waste of time, for kids and adults alike. Two books that made me very aware of this were "The Plug in Drug" and "Amusing Ourselves to Death" (both by different authors).

My dd7 is the same way about writing. The dictation that SWB recommends for 2nd grade is covered in Writing With Ease Level 2. However, I wouldn't do that without making sure your ds was capable of doing what is recommended in WWE 1 (and from your description, it sounds like he may not be ready for WWE 2 level work). This is my first time for 2nd grade, so I can't really give you btdt advice I am in the same boat. My approach is to do all the dictation, copywork etc. in FLL2, plus we are doing WWE 2 (just finished WWE 1 over the summer). I have to admit, however, that dd hates both WWE and FLL to some extent. We do some dictation in spelling, plus she does MCP Phonics 1 page per day. She will eventually this year also do some of her SOTW 2 narrations (writing them down). My gut feeling is that my dd is very "behind" in her handwriting capabilities; if she had to go to school for any reason, she would not be able to keep up so I want to catch her up this year. However, I don't think I'll be adding dictations and letter writing on top of FLL and WWE.

Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading. It isn't babyish, it is all black & white. And it definitely is cheap (less than $20 on Amazon I think). You could jump in partway into the book, wherever they need to start.

I haven't used it, but bought the Middle Ages schedule and ended up returning it after a few days of previewing it. I am now using Biblioplan Middle Ages. Search on my name, and you can find a reply I wrote to someone this summer right after I looked through it. EC history looks very good and thorough, but you should be aware that it follows the Veritas Press history outline, and uses SOTW as a supplement, not vice versa. I wanted to use more of SOTW, which is why I'm using Biblioplan (though they also leave out a few chapters I think). Also, because the VP Middle Ages guide was written for 4th grade (at least) I felt like it was way too much for my 2nd grader. EC definitely includes biblical history, because you will be using the Veritas Press guides. I think EC would be a wonderful program to use, having it all scheduled and planned out for you, if you want to use VP.

Thank you!!!! This is a timely thread. Just yesterday I practically ruined several Prismacolor pencils with my electric sharpener...DUH! Actually, my electric sharpener (which was quite expensive) can destroy even my regular pencils for some reason. Now I know better!

:iagree: My dd was diagnosed with astigmatism at age 4 and started wearing glasses immediately. The dr. told me that if it was left untreated it could progress to the problem where the optic nerve does not communicate with the eye (I think it is called amblyopia??). It surprises me to hear they would recommend not putting a child in glasses right away. I would get a second opinion if it was me.

FWIW, I also have a second grader. I just got the newest FLL 2, and they left in all the copywork from what I can see (I thought it was coming out, to align more with WWE). I am at the moment planning to have her do all the FLL2 copywork, in addition to the WWE 2 copywork, spelling (AAS 2), and HWT cursive. Plus she will eventually start writing a little of her SOTW 2 narrations (or copying a sentence is probably more like it).

Here's a link to a recent thread (and link through that one to Pata's -- she has some worksheets she uses that are quite good) http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=198925&highlight=spelling+workout