:bigear: ...not there, yet, but I will be with my little guy...

Thanks for your replies! Ds is taking VP's Grammar Transition Class this year, which helped him in FINALLY getting a good grasp...:tongue_smilie: We will start cementing those conjugations/declensions and dig into Wheelock's vocabulary over the summer. Sounds fun!:D

Thank you for your advice! Ds is taking VP's Grammar Transition class this year, which made grammar fall into place for him (after years of FLL/R&S I was about to loose hope...). We will also start looking at some vocabulary in Wheelocks...and cement those conjugations/declensions.:tongue_smilie: Yvonne, it looks like our sons are going to spend a lot of time together next year!;)

(This is a x-post from the Logic-board - even though ds is not hs, yet, I think people here might have more experience with Wheelock ...) I am thinking of signing ds12 up for the Veritas Press Latin I online class (using Wheelock) - he will be in 7th grade. We have been doing some Latin in the past (Latina Christiana / First Form Latin...), without much dedication... I want to use the next six months to prepare ds more thoroughly! VP does not ask for any prerequisites, but the class will certainly advance at a rhythm ds is not going to be used to (chapter 1-23 in the first year)... Do you suggest I pick up First Form Latin, possibly finishing Second Form by September? Or should we have a run through Latin Alive I, which is used by VP to prepare for the Latin I class? Any other suggestions? Both, ds and I, are very enthusiastic about this project, but need some help preparing for "the real stuff". Thanks!

I am thinking of signing ds12 up for the Veritas Press Latin I online class - he will be in 7th grade. We have been doing some Latin in the past (Latina Christiana / First Form Latin...), without much dedication...:001_huh: I want to use the next six months to prepare ds more thoroughly! VP does not ask for any prerequisites, but the class will certainly advance at a rhythm ds is not going to be used to... Do you suggest I pick up First Form Latin, possibly finishing Second Form by September? Or should we have a run through Latin Alive, which is used by VP to prepare for the Latin I class? Any other suggestions? Both, ds and I, are very enthusiastic about this project, but need some help preparing for "the real stuff". Thanks!

...I almost don't dare writing down how we do history... We used SL for the first years. I still buy the Cores, but at this point we use them to have books readily available. I try to integrate them (Readers and RAs when appropriate), but am not super strict... For TOG and VP I am attempting to align them somewhat... This year only ds is doing the VP-classes (MARR, Explorers, 1815 to Present). He is doing the first two during our school-year (while I integrate as much of TOG 2 as possible) and will be doing the third over the summer. In the beginning of the year I was driving myself crazy, creating charts, etc. to have TOG and VP perfectly matched.:tongue_smilie: I gave up quickly and find that by doing two VP-cards per TOG-week we are okay...not perfect, but good enough.;) During the summer I will try to dig into modern history a bit, even with the girls, probably just focussing on some points of interest. I might even get TOG Year 3 and 4, to add an international perspective. (We will always use TOG in one way or another, so the money will be invested rather than lost;)). In the Fall we'll start with Ancients again. I'll sign ds up for Omnibus (Secondary over the summer, Primary during the school-year). While I am not 100% on board with some aspects of Omnibus I believe they provide a rigorous course of study (particularly in conjunction with the online-classes), which I would be hard-pressed to replicate at home. TOG would certainly provide the depth I am seeking, but at this point (with little ds under foot...) I am not confident I would be a reliable guide... I much prefer not being pressured to provide, and just scroll through my beloved TOG to add bits and pieces to enjoy as a family... The girls are going to start VP-Online classes in the Fall - again, both Old and New Testament in one year... 2013 will be Omnibus II (ds), VP-card MARR and Explorers (girls), and TOG Year 2 (family). 2014 , Omnibus IV (ds), last VP-stack (girls), TOG Year 3 & 4 (family...begging for mercy)...:tongue_smilie: This is the ideal, perfect scenario...reality will be very different...and I don't mind.:lol: We will not use half of what TOG has to offer...won't be sucking out all of the VP-cards/online-courses we could... Ds, with his Omnibus classes, will be on a more rigid track, but that is fine. After all the time I have spent searching for THE history curriculum, I am now very content with a mix of what I like best, using what is enriching for each child at each stage.

I am considering using the VP Diploma Program for high-school and was wondering whether there were advantages to using it in 7th grade (or earlier) already... From what I understand, we could as well just use their classes for the time being and then change to the diploma-program for high-school... Am I missing anything? Thanks!

Yes, I agree with Elizabeth! For your daughter it sounds like speeding through the first class over summer and then start Middle Ages in the fall could be a great idea. Ds12, who is a history buff, is going through three courses this year...:) (after getting hooked during their free trial last August). The courses are better than great!:D

Are you familar with the courses? They are intended for 2nd to 6th grade. I doubt they would be appropriate for a 13 year old (being 14 during the school year...?).

No, from what I understood at the open-house on Thursday, they won't be ready for Fall...:crying:

Yes, I heard this yesterday at their open-house. I would love to have this!!!!!

"VP Grammar & Writing Transition" has at least 2/3 Grammar. It was a life saver for ds! Great class, great teacher! I'll put all the younger ones into this class when the time comes - and actually not invest much time into grammar instruction before that... (and that comes from the woman who has R&S 1-8 on her shelves!):tongue_smilie:

Thank you for your reply! What you write has been my impression, too: VP = tough, TPS = tougher:D I want to keep all our options open for high-school (VP-diploma and TPS classical track), so I think we will do TPS English sequence for middle-school/9th.

I spent quite some time on their sites, and from what I understand they do not offer classes with teacher/student interaction... Right? Thanks for any insights!

I posted a question earlier, asking about specific English classes offered by The Potter's School and Veritas Press. Actually, I would be interested in your opinions/comparisons of those two programs in general! We still have a bit of time, but I want to do what I can, to have the kids well prepared for whatever track we ultimately choose... Thank you so much!

The title says it all!:tongue_smilie: Ds12 (6th grade) is taking VP's Grammar and Writing Transition this year. The class is great and ds is learning a lot. I am looking forward to 7th grade now, and am wondering into which direction to head. Both, VP's Diploma Program, as well as TPS's Classical Track might be options for high-school. Which class do you think would be more demanding? I almost have the impression that Engish 1 with TPS might be more rigorous, and thus help with an easier transition to VP, should we decide to go that route, rather than the other way around (VP's Composition 1 & 2 to TPS for high-school)... Thank you for sharing your thoughts! (I will cross post this to the logic stage board)

The title says it all!:tongue_smilie: Ds12 (6th grade) is taking VP's Grammar and Writing Transition this year. The class is great and ds is learning a lot. I am looking forward to 7th grade now, and am wondering into which direction to head. Both, VP's Diploma Program, as well as TPS's Classical Track might be options for high-school. Which class do you think would be more demanding? I almost have the impression that Engish 1 with TPS might be more rigorous, and thus help with an easier transition to VP, should we decide to go that route, rather than the other way around (VP's Composition 1 & 2 to TPS for high-school)... Thank you for sharing your thoughts! (I will cross post this to the high-school board)

The one thing I would be looking at is how long this school has been an IB school (and how much experience the teachers have with the program). There is a steep curve in IB results directly linked to years of experience for the teachers... Hth!

It has been itching me to answer...and I'll jump....:tongue_smilie: I am reading this post (and the answers) and am wondering whether I am nuts (as most people around me)...or whether we live on different planets, not continents... Beware, this is coming from a (very protective) European! Our kids (son and daughters) have been going to the supermarket (and activities) alone since 6/7, about 1-2 miles away from home. We live in a town of 150.000. I don't let them pass through lonely areas and I want them back home before shops close. Apart of that, I obviously shower(ed) them with common sense advice (and then some:D)... Yes, my kids have come across the drunk making stupid jokes, they have passed by the teens trying to bother them, they have seen the passed out drug addicts. And, still, I am convinced that they are safter this way than being expected to fly alone at 18 without ever having being able to train being alone in the real world. Maybe I am comparing apples to pears, in writing about Europe while you talk about the US. But, really, I have such a hard time imagening that there are so many more creeps over there than here! Horrible things do happen. All the time. But they can happen in my house, in my car, in my family. There are no guarantees and I think we are kidding ourselves if we try to "proof" our kids' lifes... So, yes, I would let my daughter go into that shop alone. And I would congratulate her when she comes back with the order. And then I would be amazed by the fact that in just 180 seconds my little girl seems to have grown two years!

We plan on spending the 26th with extended family and all watch a movie together after the meal. Ideally we would like to have a funny movie, appropriate/comprehensible even for youngest dd (almost 8)...and around a Christmas theme... Thank you so much for ideas!

Yes!!! Little ds was premature (35 weeks) and the midwife actually suggested I consume caffeine, to wake him up a bit - he was so tiny, and naturally drowsy... It worked really well! (both, for him AND for me:D)

...can't help giving the "European perspective"... :tongue_smilie: I think it all depends on the confidence you have in the adults travelling with the kids...and the other kids in the group!! Without being dead sure about those two, my 15 year old would not even be leaving town! OTOH, if I was confident about the supervising adults, as much as the healthy interaction inside the group - I would be happy about the opportunity to cross the earth by foot, if that came up!:D As far as "Taken" is concerned (good movie, btw.)...I'll restrain from spending the rest of the week compiling a list of movies in which terrible things happen...in the US!:lol: I sure hope all your kids manage to grow up with a slightly broader view on life than a Hollywood movie!!!

Switzerland:):):)

Thank you all so much for your help! ...I prepared a list to go through with my family doctor / gastroenterologist. After some reading, I am wondering why Celiac disease was never checked for in the past?!?:001_huh:

Thank you for your help!!! ...could Type 1 Diabetes go undiscovered for so long?:confused: And if my thyroid seemed fine during my pregnancy, in spite of me loosing weight, could it still be the culprit? I was a huge eater since I was a child...so any malfunction must have been there pretty much since the beginning...