yeah, just two--but we seem to be spending all day on just our morning subjects and I'm wondering how I might be more efficient with them. Here's what we do, now. Bible Study, including recitation of Bible verses. We just started this back up again: it doesn't take long. Then we have either Latin or spelling (SWR) together. For Latin, I send one child to the computer to practice their vocabulary while the other does the drill sheets. Then we do our lesson together. Spelling, I've posted about before. When I give adictation "lesson" it takes an hour. I've tried and tried to make it less, but it just doesn't happen. I don't know why. When I test, it takes 1/2 hour, at least. We usually only do one list a week because of this foolishness--so "formal" spelling is only 2x a week. The rest of the morning subjects are independent--and here is where I get into trouble. I switch off math, grammar and Composition (Classical Writing which has the workbook component and the writing bit. Right now, We're doing both on the same day.) We do grammar orally (Rod and Staff) and I usually assign something written which takes all of ten minutes. Then I teach someone Math if it's a teaching day. Then I'm doing two separate Classical Writing Core's with each: My son is in Homer--we're on week three--for the second week in a row. I like to do their initial narrations with them, but they've been wanting to do them by themselves. The first draft can take quite a long time when I allow it. My daughter is just about finished Aesop A. This has been taking ALL DAY. (Well starting at 10 and ending at 4--I call that a day.) There is music practice, too, and lunch and chores....but, it's getting demoralising. Our afternoon subjects are the fun stuff--the history and scienc and read alouds--and it isn't gtting done 'cos by 4 I have to make dinner--and then, franky, I'm just too tired. My daughter is very verbal and extremely sociable. It's wearing. Anyway, suggestions much appreciated. Thanks!

Excellent! That's exactly what I needed to know! My daughter will be pleased when I tell her that "hangman" is part of her Latin lesson. We did the history, too. My son loves it. The only thing we skipped was Horatius at the Bridge. That said, we took about a year. Maybe longer. Hey, I just checked a schedule from the week of April 21, 2008 and we were on chapter 5 back then. :tongue_smilie: Latin--indeed any foreign language should be studied at the student's pace. No preassure.

Well, here we are! Wow. Wer probably one day away from finishing Lively Latin, Book 1. I plan to continue on with Book 2--but I was wondering if we should take some time and just do some review before we plough ahead--or is review of vocabulary and grammar built in? We could stand not to spend any money for a bit right now, kwim--but it's no biggie.

username and password. Write it down somewhere!

:party: deMille, in A Thomas Jefferson Education actually recommends something like this to inspire kids to read!

Corect me if I'm wrong, but I think you could add up the KB for each lesson. It appears when you open the file in the bottom left corner (I think).

I bought just the rights to the site. I haven't even downloaded most of the lesson to my hard drive! I just printed them out directly from the site. They are all in PDF files: you could burn a disk yourself, if you wanted--or put them on a flash drive. We also visit the site daily to practice our vocabulary. I've had trouble trying to burn an audio disk. (I think the problem is with my computer, though, not LL.)

What a fabulous Christmas present idea! Now, if only I remember at Christmas! (Hs budget is gone, you see.)

I just recently purchased Heather Penner's "Modern History Through Canadian Eyes" and she specifically correlates sources for reading Cdn. History with SoTW 3 & 4. So, it wouldn't be all the difficult to "jump back and forth" as it were. It's just a major change in the way I think! I have lists of supplemental reading (as well as the Activity Guide) correlated with the different chapters--I give them to the kids to read as "assigned Reading." We do our narrations and outling based on our History resources. It just feels like a major thing to shift all that over to Cdn events and people (and books of myriad sorts. There is no decent spine like SoTW). Thanks for the encouragement. I need it!

Welcome! Your curriculum sounds fine. Have you thought about what you will be requiring from the kids? I don't see a writing program--will you be doing narrations for now? I think they are a great way to get started gently and I'd strongly encourgae them for your kids. It takes a lot of courage to step into the unknown and forge a new relationship with your kids and do this strange thing called "homeschooling." Good for you.

I am dependent on the darn thing. Silly, isn't it? We are on Volume 3. Since Volume 1, using the series has felt like it has defined our homeschool: it has made us what we are. Volume 1 was all about beginning the journey, getting comfortable with each other, doing narrations for the very first time. Since I "fell behind" taking things easy and not being consistent about school, Volume two was all about "staying on track." We faithfully did one chapter a week--and doubled up when we fell behind. We did our narrations, our mapwork ur extra reading. Largely because of the way it went with SoTW2, we had a great year. But now we're on Chapter 15 of Volume 3. I wanted to fold in Canadian History this year, but it's not been going as well as it should. We're at the point where Samuel de Champlain founds Quebec. Chapter 15 occurs about 30-40 years later: but what a busy 30-40 years! Montreal is founded, the fur trade really gets going, there's the coming of the missionaries, and all the fishing disputes and piracy on the East coast to cover as well. So, I'd rather get caught up with our Canadian History and let SoTW be the background, I guess. However, it means SoTW3 will lanquish in the background. It means I'll never know what week of school we're on because it won't be the same as our SoTW chapter. I'll be adrift. But will it be OK? Is this the right thing to do? We have to cover all this at least one more time anyway. Should I instead rush through Cdn history in order to stay "on track?" They probably won't remember much anyway and there is something to giving them the big picture quickly and having the peace of mind that we've done it. Sorry this is so long. I don't know why I'm so uncomfortable with this...I guess I was hoping that I could type my way to a solution! Thanks for bearing with me if you've read this far.

I don't know of any, but you'd think it wouldn't be hard to do. Google timelines for each--music and art. Correlate them so you've got study occuring roughly sat the same time period. Then use the Artist and Composer recomendations at Ambelside on-line as a listening guide and picture study--throw in a few books and biographies, and you're done. Then sll it to the rest of us!

Funnily enough, I just finished reading Granatstein's "Who killed Canadian History" and I'm a tad leery of movies at the moment, lol!

Most school districts in North America (yes, Canada included) require a child to turn six sometime between July to December of their first year of school. Depending on the cut-off date, your son could be in Grade six, but it'd be doubtful. Here, believe it or not, the cut off date is in April. Can you believe that? It's the latest cut off date in the country! (Though if you choose to start you April b'day child the following year, no one bats an eye.) It's different, though in The United Kingdom, Australia and elewhere, though isn't it?

Excellent idea, really.

I looked up some reviews of Wind of L'Acadie here: http://clcd.odyssi.com/cgi-bin/sirsi/search/r?dbs+child:@term+@isbn+9781553800477 in case anyone else is interested. Thanks for the other titles,. I'll give them a look. I'm pleased to hear Janette OKe has written some. I like her work, for times when I need light reading!

Interesting! Thanks everyone. How does one record on CD? We used to have a tape recorder we could record on, but I don't know what has happened to it.

Thank everyone. So far, my experience is Peela's. I'm half way through the first video. (gulp.) Hopefully I'll know how to proceed after I've watched them all. (Though like Peela, I'd much rather read.)

I know the chances of getting this answered may be slim, but there do seem to be a lot of Mariimers on this board (and the occasional Louisianian!) I'm looking for fictional books about this topic. It would be a read aloud. Calico Captive has been suggested--it takes place in the same period--but it deals with the French and Indian War--not the Expulsion. Anything out there? TIA.

Oh, that's good. Perhaps I should be memorizing along with them, too?

Yes, well, about Grandmas...mine always looked at me, shook her head and said , "Once there was a little girl, with a little curl..." :D Wow. That would be some incentive, now wouldn't it? You know, I think I'll keep plugging with these Bible verses and perhaps we could begin anew by reviewing and re-learning the poems we've already, supposedly, learned. Or would that kill it entirely? Perhaps we ought to just do some silly stuff. After all, when I was a journalist, we always called summer the "silly season."

Thanks. Would the songs from Lingua Angelica count? ;) (I just bought it!) We just got home from a homeschooling conference where the kids memorized a whole bunch f songs and scriptures in just two days. Then, we're trying to memorize two verses this week--and nada. Nothing. Blech. They sort of perked up a bit when I put in a couple of hand motions--but I'm bad at that sort of thing, too and they lost interest the second they saw me waver. Fun. Yes, we need fun. (And in more than just memory work, right now, too!)

In the conversation about Living Memory below, I posted we are bad at actually doing Memory work. I have read all sorts of "methods" (repetition, repetition, repetition) and I've looked at Simply Carlotte Mason (and Rose's adaptation) in order to review what was memorized--but, frankly, it just is not getting done! So, I don't need information...and I have a vague sense of why it is important--but perhaps that's my problem? I'm just not convinced, or rather not convinced enough to overcome, not inertia, but resistence? The more I think about it, the more I think it's that I'm avoiding something I find difficult and unpleasant (the kids do resist). Is there anything I could do about that, I wonder? Any suggestions? TIA.

I'm so jealous of media mail! For me, it'll be $17.00 for shipping. (Plus exchange). We are really, really bad at doing memory work. In the end, it'll probably cost us $50.00 (cdn). Would it still be worth it?

We have Grades three and five, here (sort of). English--grammar 4x/wk composition--4x week Spelling --2-3x week Literature-classic and history readings--1x week + assigned reading done on own time (1/2h per day for Grade three, 3/4h per day for Grade 5er) Bible-- daily History--currently switching to 1x/week Science-- 1x/wk Art and Art Appreciation -1x/week Music and Music Appreciation 1x/week Foreign Language 4x/wk Nature Study - never Narration/Dictation/Copywork Narration--2x/wk (Composition and History, usually)should be 2x to 3x for 5th Grader Dictation--1x/wk (should be 2x/week for 5th grader) Copywork--2x/wk currently upping it to 4x (used excluively for memory work). hth--I post a weekly review fairly consistently on my blog. Scheduling has really been the thing I've struggled with the most since starting to homeschool.