We had the very same issues! MM was great through 5A and then after that we struggled so much. I switched my girls to CLE and we have never looked back! When I gave them placement tests, they placed a level below. With my oldest who was in 6th and 12 at the time, instead of placing her in 500, I placed her in the 600 series but also bought the supplemental materials. There are 3 books - Algebra, Geometry, and Fractions/proportions - that CLE offers as refresher workbooks. They include the lessons where any of the concepts were taught from series 300-800. It was an amazing way for my daughter to get caught up! We didn't do everything, just what she needed to be able to jump right in to 600. The math seems so simple how they teach it, but there is a method to the madness! Both my girls love math now, and have learned so much and their confidence is soaring!

Wow!!!! Thank you so much! I need help at times thinking outside of the box and these are wonderful suggestions! I truly appreciate your input!

Thank you so much for this suggestion! I have been mulling this over and I think it's time to try it!

Hello my fellow homeschool moms:) I could really use your help. And please excuse the long post and the fact I have a tendency to go off on a tangent. This is our second year homeschooling. My girls are in 4th and 6th. The first year I would say we were eclectic but the lack of lessons plans was a pain in the butt and I desperately wanted help with that. I became slightly obsessed to say the least with the TWTM, and convinced myself classical was the way to go for us and I jumped into almost full grade cores with Memoria Press. I want to love it, I really do. All the ladies on the MP Forum talk about how it is gentle, yet rigorous, and intertwines so beautifully. I kinda see that at times, but ugh, my girls liked it at first, but it is sucking the life/fun out of learning! It is just too much! And the other thing? I feel I am an educated person, but on those MP Forum's the members are really helpful, but there is almost a sense of arrogance to a lot of the posts. I feel like I am being talked down to and just don't fit in. I was skeptical when it came to latin, but now I see the benefits of it and the girls are learning so much! But it is really hard! Trying to keep up with that, the reading, writing, sciences, lit guides, geography, christian studies, classical studies, math, it is wearing them down! Believe me, they aren't finding the good and beautiful in it anymore lol! And please I don't want to offend anyone! It is a great curriculum! I just don't think it is working for us anymore. And now I am having an identity crisis lol! What am I? I thought it was classical for so long, but I just don't know! I need help hahaha! What method do we identify with most, so I can proceed and make it enjoyable again. I guess I am just struggling with the balance of making school fun, interesting, exciting so the fire is always burning for the joy of learning, and realizing that it can't always be fun and the work just needs to get done sometimes. We love to go to museums, hike outside, listen to music, do art, read books aloud, read good books for fun, do math, watch great documentaries, follow rabbit holes through all sorts of topics on great youtube channels, history, go to co-op and classes without worrying that the curriculum guide won't get finished! My daughters express interest in all sorts of things but I don't feel like we have time to dive into them because our other work won't get done. I don't want to be a slave to the curriculum anymore. I love what classical stands for, but I feel it leaves out so much in the present. Should I be looking at the more Neo-classical approach? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I love so many aspects of each of the homeschooling approaches, that I don't know where to look and what we need! Am I CM, eclectic, an unschooler? I realize this last part differs from most on the forum, but everyone here is so open and helpful! I appreciate it so much! Help please:)

Hello everyone! I am just finishing up my first year homeschooling my 2 daughters! I have most everything in place for next year, they will be in 4th and 6th grade. The subject I keep swaying back and forth with is our writing curriculum. We used IEW Student Writing Intensive A this year. The girls really improved! We wrote our first book reports and 5 paragraph essays on topic the girls chose! They are doing well with it, they just drag their feet with it, they don't seem to be really enjoying the program. I purchased All Things Fun and Fascinating to lighten things up next year, and also found Writing Strands 3 & 4 at our thrift store! I am really interested though in Writing & Rhetoric! I just heard about it and like what I see on their website. What would you all recommend? Since the girls are progressing in their writing skills I was thinking about starting my oldest in book 5 of W&R and my youngest in book 4 (her writing skill is close to that of her big sister's). What are your likes and dislikes of the program? Or is there another program out there that is even better? Thank you so much for your help!

I know what you mean, I am the same way. I have this time frame in my head that I just can't seem to get over, and it revolves around lunch. It is doable right now with a 5th and 3rd grader, but I can see how as they get older this won't be a reality any longer. This was my first year homeschooling and we love it! The girls informed me that they are never going back to public school lol! This is fine with me! But I have been trying to make conscious effort to change my mindset. It is no longer school day and then the kids come home and its home time. Home and school collaborate now and have evolved into this wonderful thing. We don't turn education off at noon, 3pm. etc. It's something that happens all day, all the time. And that is something I am slowly embracing, it's hard being new at this!

I think it looks wonderful! We are using SOTW with the Kingfisher Illustrated Encyclopedia as a spine. My girls are in 5th and 3rd. As we move through the different time periods, we just head to the library and pick out great non-fiction and living books to supplement. I love the encyclopedia so much! It goes from 40,000 BC to present day, which in that book because it is out of print is roughly 1990. I will pick up where that leaves off. It got great reviews so I picked it up for a penny on amazon plus shipping. It is like a massive timeline with gorgeous illustrations! I feel children learn so much more from reading. And in 5th grade they aren't going to remember every detail you through at them. No one does. If you make it a natural extension of their curiosity they are so much more liable to absorb it and take it with them. It makes for a gradual and calm transition from grammar to logic. Our curriculum is very similar to yours for next year!

I think it looks wonderful! We are using SOTW with the Kingfisher Illustrated Encyclopedia as a spine. My girls are in 5th and 3rd. As we move through the different time periods, we just head to the library and pick out great non-fiction and living books to supplement. I love the encyclopedia so much! It goes from 40,000 BC to present day, which in that book because it is out of print is roughly 1990. I will pick up where that leaves off. It got great reviews so I picked it up for a penny on amazon plus shipping. It is like a massive timeline with gorgeous illustrations! I feel children learn so much more from reading. And in 5th grade they aren't going to remember every detail you through at them. No one does. If you make it a natural extension of their curiosity they are so much more liable to absorb it and take it with them. It makes for a gradual and calm transition from grammar to logic. Our curriculum is very similar to yours for next year!

6th grade is coming way to soon :( Writing - IEW, Writing Strands 4 and Poetry for the Grammar Stage from Memoria Press Grammar - Rod & Staff English 6 Vocabulary/Spelling - Vocabulary Workshop and McGuffey's Progressive Speller Reading - Reading Strands with classic literature of her choosing Math - Math Mammoth 6 and Life of Fred Science - Building Foundations in Scientific Understanding Geography - States and Capitals History - SOTW 2 with supplemental reading Cursive - Pentime 6 Not a clue what to do for social studies and health, probably just supplementing with resources

Thank you so much for all your wonderful advice ladies! I truly appreciate it. Since coming out of public school my girls have transitioned pretty well trying to get out of the brick and mortar mindset. They still ask about report cards and I haven't done them. I figured there interest in it would pass with time :) I don't plan on ever doing them through elementary or middle school grades, and in high school only if necessary. I just wanted to see what the consensus was with you veteran homeschoolers. You are a wealth of information! I appreciate it!

Thank you so much for all your wonderful advice ladies! I truly appreciate it. Since coming out of public school my girls have transitioned pretty well trying to get out of the brick and mortar mindset. They still ask about report cards and I haven't done them. I figured there interest in it would pass with time :) I don't plan on ever doing them through elementary or middle school grades, and in high school only if necessary. I just wanted to see what the consensus was with you veteran homeschoolers. You are a wealth of information! I appreciate it!

Hi there! I pulled my daughters from public school, and just started homeschooling my daughters 9 & 11 this year. I grade their writing assignments, math, spelling, english tests etc, but that's where it ends. They see the grade, we review what needs worked on and move on. How many of you keep a grade book and do report cards? Should I only worry about this in high school? Thank you in advance for your advice!