I looked at MUS seriously, but went with RS. Having a young child was a factor for me. I didn't like the idea of the DVD and watching Mr. Demme on the clips on the sight did not impress me. Perhaps if my hild were older, the DVD idea would be more appealing. Also, I felt that a more spiral (or soft spiral) approach would be most useful for us. RS explains it uses both spiral and mastery on its site. I liked the flow of the topics and that I could work at our pace. The manipulative with MUS didn't impress me either. The songs, finger play, AL Abacus, and other manipulatives with RS have been a hit here. I don;t think rods would have cut it. And honestly, a superficial reason was the name MUS--lol! I just think certain programs work better for certain kids and/or parents and their learning/teaching styles. I know many people love MUS and it seems like a good quality program. There were just some things more attractive for us in another program, so we went that direction. But that all could change down the road.

I am just curious, because I have seen several posts lately claiming RS is "teacher intensive," what about this program elicits that statement? Perhaps I am just inexperienced, but it seems that math is something which involves instruction from the parent. We use RS and because it deals basically with Primary aged children, I would suspect that parent/teacher would need to instruct on the concepts and be present for the activities. My experience with RS thus far has required little to o preparation and the lessons are fairly brief, in my opinion. I just haven;t seen anything very intensive about the program at all. But I am new with a young child, so there may be more to these perceptions. So why are there so many comments about RS being teacher intensive? What does that mean and how does it compare? I am just trying to better understand.

We are doing RS B and supplementing with MEP. I have already started with RS, but will begin supplementing with MEP as my DD desires more.

:bigear:

I agree on the tutor encouraging getting out of the seats. Our initial experience was mostly seated and it was torture for a 4 year old. Then we switched to a new tutor who was added who included movement and variety and it made a world of difference. I think some younger students can do well but it depends on the child and the approach of the tutor.

It sounds a lot like activities an OT uses in sensory exercises. I did see this section,Response to Criticism, of their website and found it curious... ______________________________________________ In an attempt to address the concerns of the scientific community regarding the Brain Gym program, we have refined the language on our website. Additionally, we have posted the Dennisons’ responses to the criticisms about the 1994 Brain Gym Teacher’s Edition. The Brain Gym program is an educational movement-based model. The emphasis is on posture, behavior, and the physical skills of learning. The following are some resources that support the theory behind our whole body movement-based approach: John Ratey, John Medina, Michael Posner, Bruce Perry, Jane Healy and Raye Pica. The majority of the Brain Gym® studies are anecdotal. There is some peer-reviewed research of our program. As a non-profit international organization with limited personnel and financial resources, facilitating research at this time is not an option for us. We extend an invitation to any experts who are willing to help better assess the Brain Gym work. In the meantime, we remain focused on our educational model. http://www.braingym.org/response

We started attending CC last year when my DD was 4 and she had turned 5 when we finished. I started the year off just doing CC and reading aloud a lot. As you get into the groove so to speak, I would add in the other things as needed or desired. You can add on math and phonics. CC is our supplement. I don't push it hard at home because my DD is small. Basically we listen to the songs and go further if she is interested. I went through the cards from time to time, but if you stick with it, they go through the cards each year. There is always time to get it down. In fact starting at this age, they would potentially go through all the cycles 3 times if you stayed with CC! That is why I say, just use CC at first and get your feet wet. As you get going with it, you will see what you feel comfortable adding and know when. This is all just my opinion from our experience this last year. They are so young right now and CC is plenty. By the end of the year, you may be at a place where they are interested in more and you feel comfortable stepping it up a little.

:bigear:

It is a video of two, I believe, contractors who deal with erosion. Just ordinary guys who demonstrate how a couple types of straw/hay can attract oil and then be scooped out leaving the water essentially free of oil. They have been brainstorming ways to correct the damage caused by the oil in the gulf and believe this may be part of a solution. They submit this is simple, environmentally safe, and readily available. Some other hay will come in season in a couple of weeks, making the resource abundant. It can be sprayed onto the water and then scooped with shrimping nets on boats or the equipment which collects seaweed from beach areas. Since watching the video, I have looked online for potential problems with this. Some believe it is logistically difficult to disburse and collect enough of the hay to have an impact. Other concerns are for sea turtles, as they eat vegetation like the straw and for oil which may sink below the surface. My thought is that this may work on a smaller scale near the shore and is better than the toxic dispersant BP as been using or the oil in the water. One article said that Walton County in florida is hoping to use this method near its shoreline. It is such an interesting approach, although not perfect. You may look on youtube for the hay oil solution.

CC uses a lot of songs for English, including a preposition song. Some are uploaded by users on their website (which charges for use) and they have CDs available on their site. My DD5 learned A LOT last year simply through song memorization. She can define and sing the helping verbs and prepositions because of this.

http://www.wimp.com/solutionoil/

I just found an article on AO called Why the KJV? It is most helpful. It really highlights good points for sticking with the KJV. http://www.amblesideonline.org/WhyKJV.shtml Trivium Pursuit by the Bluedorns also addresses the issue... http://www.proveallthings.org/?p=32

I really enjoyed it as well. I actually got a little choked up the first time I read it to her (and I am not very emotional). Even as adults, it has a good message and transcends age. :001_smile:

This looks nice. Which version do you use? I see a couple on Amazon.

This was a concern for me as well. It is a good point and probably takes it out of contention for me as a translation, even though the idea behind it is attractive.

blessedmom3, thank you for the list. It will be a good reference point!

We don't have it on CD. However, I do use BibleGateway.com and they have recorded audio in various translations for each chapter. It is free and the reader for the KJV does an excellent job. I use this for my daily Bible reading plan, in addition to my own readings. My DD listens as well. I am just wondering if it would be more useful for her if we did another version. I understand "faith comes by hearing" and I believe that the KJV will speak to her Spirit. But perhaps variety in translations would epand upon her understanding and wisdom.

Thank you for all of your suggestions! I will be adding some more stories to our summer reading! Amy (mom31257), we picked up The Waving Girl during our trip this weekend. My DD adored it! We took her to the statue where we took pictures and pointed out the lighthouse where she waved on the way back from Tybee. We even realized when we got back that the tin of candy we got on River Street had a picture of the statue. I have since read the story several times to DD because she enjoyed it so much. Thank you very much for the suggestion! The message of the story is a terrific inspiration as well and has been a wonderful concept for my DD to learn. We must be a light. :)

I am curious about what others have chosen for Bible read aloud time. I am thinking about longer reading (like a chapter or more) rather than reading a verse. When spending time reading aloud the Bible, which version do you read? Thus far, we have generally used the King James version and read from her children's Bible stories at night. But I have considered using the NIV and even The Message (as it would be an ultimate Living book). However, I do realize with various translations there are difference that may be significant. So I am curious what versions you have used and why. Does the age of the child have any bearing?

Unless I request a call or specifically indicate I would be interested in phone marketing, I would not appreciate a phone call. ANY company that does this will lose my business or never get it. The stipulations they have about sharing information and calling make me certain iw ill never even visit their site.

I read the reviews of the Lauren Child version and it seems they "sanitized" this version and changed things in major ways. So that translation of Pippi is out! I would love to find a good translation of Heidi. I thought I had an unabridged version. but it was abridged and truly awful. I stopped reading it to my DD shortly after we started. I used to live in Germany as a child and the locals called me Heidi because they had difficulty pronouncing my name. It is a special story to me, so i want the proper version. I think Pippi will be a great read for summer though.

I am considering this story as a read aloud for my DD5. I would like to know if anyone has a favorite translation. I usually prefer the original, unabridged of stories, but this can be tricky with translations. I am considering the translation by Nina Nunnally and illustrations by Lauren Child. My DD was a big Charlie & Lola fan, so I imagine she would enjoy these illustrations. Does anyone have experience with this version? Do you have a favorite?

I have not heard of this one, but the Amazon description sounds perfect!

I am up in Metro Atlanta. I'll have to check around. I got a good giggle when you mentioned Savannah and that is where we are going. Isn't that an interesting coincidence? If I don't find the book around here for the way down, I'll check at Ft. Pulaski when we go to Tybee. Thanks so much for the suggestion.

We are in Georgia and actually staying in Savannah this weekend and visiting Tybee and Jekyll :D