I agree with this. My dd was tested for many, many things before the bone x-ray.

Our daughter received a diagnosis of constitutional growth delay at age 7. He bone age was 5 at that time. Now at age 9 she is lower in weight than her 6 year old sister, though a little taller. She also has Hashimoto's hypothyroidism. Her weight has been monitored by the endocrinologists and they are pleased with it, although I am not. She almost reached 49 pounds 4 or 5 months ago; now she is a solid 46. :thumbdown: The thread on high calorie food/snacks is very interesting to me right now. We may re-visit our pediatrician if she doesn't turn around soon. Neither of her endos have suggested treatment. They have a wait and see approach and as long as she gains weight and height on their scale, they aren't worried about her. They did suggest that puberty may start late, around 14, but didn't mention her final adult height. Honestly, her paternal grandma is only 5'2 and my grandma is 5'1, so we suspect she may have the short gene anyway. Recently she has told me that she sees several advantages to her smallness - she can carry around stuffed toys without people judging her, and she can fit into small hide-and-seek spaces. :lol: I hope she continues that outlook! I am happy that we have continued to homeschool her - I'm not sure what her reception would be at ps. We visited a church once that had age-based sunday school classes and ALL the girls in her age group looked huge (comparatively). They also were not very friendly to her. Our current church has a wider age grouping (like 3rd-6th for Sunday school) and she seems to be fine there. Best wishes, OP, for your ds. These decisions are hard.

Huh. Has anyone used Logic of English Essentials grammar at all?

Would the Memoria Press grammar program go with any Latin program or is it geared specifically towards theirs? I am planning on working through Latin for Children A next year, and have R&S, but now I'm thinking it may be too much. Sorry, OP, for taking your thread off topic.

I just received my LoE Essentials, and I didn't realize the amount of grammar in it. Does anyone have experience with the grammar component? I've read several posts where people have said they skip it. I bought LoE mainly for spelling for my 9 yr old, but now I'm wondering if it could replace our grammar too. Would the grammar be sufficient for a new 9 year old ending 3rd grade? I'm planning that LoE will last us through 4th grade and maybe 5th, with the advanced lists she has and such.

I haven't used SWR, but did read through Spell to Write and Read as I evaluated my options. Someone here will know for sure, but I seemed to remember an advanced phonogram list in SWR that went into foreign language roots.

"Yep" to what? Narration/summaries, or a program like BJU? What do you use for more guidance in reference to themes, plot, etc? What age do you consider "older"?

So, I have four levels of BJU Reading on my shelves. Grades 1, 2, 3, and 4 (for next year). I haven't any complaints about it, but it takes time that I would rather my student spend reading complete books. The program does cover many skills, not just comprehension, which has made me feel like I'm covering all the bases. So...if I threw that out the window... How do you cover "reading comprehension" as a subject? I'm just now re-reading TWTM...first edition. It says to have the child, by fourth grade, write book reports and written summaries of about a page in length. Would that suffice?

My kids have weighed in and they really like the format of SWR or LOE better. I thought Little Sis would like the tiles, but she really likes to write. Oldest Sis really depises the tiles. And Little Bro would probably lose all of them anyway. :lol: And both girls like watching the author of LOE, Denise Eide, giving the spelling lists on YouTube. I really like the format of LOE for the teacher, so I think we will end up with that. I could put the time into SWR, of course, but my dh gently reminded me that my time with 3 kids isn't extensive. He recommends a teacher-friendly program. Thanks for all the advice! I do appreciate it!

Thanks! Anyone else want to chime in? :bigear: Btw, I was mainly looking at buying SWR from CBD with the free shipping code.

So CBD has free shipping until tomorrow. And I'd like to use it. Can anyone convince me one way or another on a spelling program?? I'm so over-thinking it. I need different views. My top contenders are SWR and AAS. I really like LOE, too. Basically same methodology in different packages, right? My oldest student taught herself to read, but needs some spelling rules to help her in that area. The program I buy will be used with her first and mainly. But I want to consider that Little Sis and Little Bro will be needing spelling eventually, too, so that's part of my thought process too. Pros I can see of SWR: all-in-one package. Well, two books, but pretty simple. I borrowed someone's copy and read it from cover to cover, so I don't think I'll have a problem implementing it. Low cost that can be used until high school. Pros of AAS: grouping of words to match the rule just learned. Scripted lessons, so even tired my brain could still use it. Little Sis would really like the tiles. Pros of LOE: I really like the format, all the video helps/training. What is the number of words taught in each program? From what I can tell, SWR teaches 2000, LoE teaches 500(?), and I don't know about AAS. So, anyone want to help me out? :o P.S. We are using Sequential Spelling, but not seeing it stick. I'd really like a "here's the rule and here's how you follow it" method.

Thank you for your input on the Latin course. I haven't had a chance to examine what is required of the student closely. I'll take a look at that.

Ah, see that's it. In R&S 3, we do most of our lessons orally. She does write some sentences, diagrams, etc. But the great majority is out loud. She has scored well on all the tests, and having her write every lesson seemed unnecessary. She also has writing required in BJU Reading, and she does complete most of that worktext. I will look through our R&S 4 and decide if it would be better to continue as we have been doing or change. Thanks for the feedback!

Well, by not a "math person" I mean I majored in the language arts; I do not have an affinity for numbers. That isn't to say I can't do basic elementary mathematics; that isn't my point. My sister, in contrast, is a "math person". Numbers run through her head like words through mine. Numbers and figures are just part of how she thinks, how she frames the world. I frame the world in words and emotions. Since I grew up with such a sister, I guess I naturally divide between "math people" and "non-math people". I didn't mean to offend or cause anyone to have angst. Sorry! I also do not mean that I am never on hand to teach her lessons. But most of them are so gentle and incremental that she learns them without my help. She is a smart kid. The chore for her is in staying put and actually focusing on the black and white page of numbers. Perhaps "muddle through" was a poor choice of words. :001_rolleyes: My husband has a PhD in a science field. He is well-versed in mathematics, physics, etc. There is no question that her math journey will be supported and she will gain the necessary math fluency. She just doesn't love it. Her attitude has greatly improved through Math 3, but she still doesn't love it. Perhaps one day she will, I don't know. There's always hope. ;) We have a copy of Math 5/4. I have flipped through it, but not extensively yet.

Thanks for the warning. She is working through Saxon Math Intermediate 3 now. It is often a chore for her, but she understands math much better with this program. The lessons do go better when I am able to sit with her. I will try to sit with her during 5/4, too, and guide the lessons. I am not a "math person", however, and often I am tempted to let her muddle through on her own. She doesn't hate writing, she just likes it to be her idea. ;-) I have already invested in IEW, so I'm hoping to make it work for us. And yes, Life of Fred is her "treat" at the end of math. She does those chapters eagerly. I am willing to shelve IEW for another year and just use R&S. I counted 33 lessons on writing in R&S - is that really enough for 4th grade? Some of the Bible she will probably do on her own. I doubt we would all of them every day, anyway. As far as Latin, she has really enjoyed Song School Latin this year, and Latin for Children has a DVD, so I was thinking it wouldn't be as "mom intensive". I'm still wondering about that. Little sister will be "first grade" (i.e. 6 years old) next year. Little brother will be two. Both of them have a lot of energy and need there own share of attention. Little sis has just started "Sing Spell Read and Write" level 1 and Saxon Math 1. Thanks for all the replies!

Fourth grade plans: Apologia Who Is...? series AWANA verses Kay Arthur kids studies Rod and Staff English 4 I.E.W Student Intensive Level A BJU Reading 4 Spelling?? (SWR or AAS or R+S or ?) :confused1: Saxon 5/4 Life of Fred (for fun) Latin for Children: Primer A Science in the Beginning (she reads the Apologia Elementary series in her free time) Mystery of History Volume 1 (with lots of library books) Plus...Piano lessons, keyboarding, fitness, health, and A.H.G. Is there too much in the language arts department? I feel like there might be, but I can't figure out what. (We may change some of our plans and join a CC community - that hasn't been determined yet.) A little about my student - she doesn't spell well, doesn't like to complete writing "assignments", but likes to write on her own, loves crafts, has a good grasp of language, art, music, and really dislikes math. She tends to dawdle and not complete tasks in a timely manner because she daydreams and gets distracted. Thanks for any and all input! :bigear:

Thank you everyone! Lori D., you helped me tremendously with the breakdown of each word! Thanks!! :hurray: I'll look into all the different resources y'all have mentioned. I really don't have time to sit down and pre-read every library book she checks out, but I will make more of an effort to skim some of them!

My just turned nine year-old was reading out loud to me today from a "Hank the Cowdog" book. She didn't want to. It took 15 minutes of struggle for her to begin. Then I knew why - she was mispronouncing some words. She was embarrassed. Examples: fiend, coordinates, barrage, liable These aren't words I would expect a third grader to know, so how do I give her help in decoding them? Spelling isn't her strength. We are using Sequential Spelling and BJU Reading 3 as part of her language arts. The plan is to continue those next year. Will she gain the necessary skills from those two programs to break down words like the examples, or should I try Logic of English Essentials or All About Spelling? We have been tossing around the thought of switching spelling programs for awhile now. She really enjoys Sequential Spelling, and that is one reason I've stuck with it for this year.

I think my 9 year old would benefit from something like Times Tales. On Amazon I saw another book called Times Tables the Fun Way, which looks like the same idea, but a bit older. Has anyone used one or the other and can you tell me about them?

I ended up buying the ebook. Not ideal, but I printed it from home and comb-bound it. It works.

Well, Amazon has a few listed used from $42 and up. :glare: I'm interested in the ebook, too. Do you get the download right away? Has anyone bought it and had it printed and bound? How much does that cost?

I had this resource in my Rainbow Resource cart....and now it's gone! The company says there are no plans to re-stock it this year. :crying: I was counting on having it for our 2015-16 school year....now what do I do? :confused1:

My 3rd grader would love to have a colorful math book. We tried Singapore in 1st grade, but she wasn't ready for the abstract "why" behind math at that age. We switched to Saxon, which she has learned very well from. I am pretty sure we will move her to Saxon 5/4 next year. But I thought I would get the view of the "hive". Are there any programs similar to Saxon that uses colorful workbooks/textbook? Or maybe you could recommend a fun, colorful supplement? Btw, we have the Life of Fred elementary series. She adores Fred.

Donna, Thank you for the detailed reply. I appreciate that you are giving your time to help me. And I ADORE blueberry scones and hot tea. :laugh: Generally we are up and working by 10. My 3rd grader will do independent subjects until lunch, so I can focus the morning on my K'er. After lunch we switch - I work more closely with my 3rd grader. Her independent subjects include (not done every day): Bible (sometimes led by me if it's Hero Tales or Window on the World), Math, Cursive, Vocabulary words, reading, IEW Writing, Latin, Keyboarding, and I'm sure I'm forgetting something. After lunch she does whatever else she hasn't already finished which is usually a lot, plus, Spelling, English, Geography, Science. Art gets stuck in sporadically. Read-Alouds are either read during lunch or a night. Again, we do not get to every subject every day. Usually it takes two days to check off everything in one column of the grid. We just began IEW, and haven't done it much - once or twice a week maybe. She enjoys it and sometimes asks for more time to work on it. We play the geography game sporadically. My 3rd grader is actually retaining info from ECC; it's the K'er that isn't as interested. We don't always copy the memory verse or do the dictation of it. Narration happens, but I'm lucky to finish a reading w/o interruption. I have borrowed a TM for CtG, and I've read it cover to cover. It's not the overall trajectory of MFW that I'm questioning or having a hard time with. Implementation, yes, long-term goals, no. I have all the conference talks. My concerns with CtG lie more in the "can I make it fun for my 1st grader" and "can I get through it all" categories. Streams in particular seems to contain a lot of information that would soar past the 1st grader. I know you said to summarize, but some days that is three pages of summary. Besides my voice, is there another way to show the information? And I desire to simplify our time next year. That's probably impossible, but I thought I would ask the question. You know, sometimes I wonder if I like to plan school more than actually do school. The plan is clean and easy. :lol:

Thanks, ladies. I have been reading all the responses all day. They are helpful. :thumbup: Donna, I have checked out MFW CtG extensively. I'm on the fence with it - there's is a lot of good Biblical knowledge, but I feel like my middle kid will be lost. We are doing ECC this year, and she tunes out to almost all of it. She really likes to do her thing and move on. Plus I have this terrible compulsion to check.every.box in the grid! I've tried to not do it, but I do. The result is we are finishing up Week 15 of ECC, and I had planned that we would be done by May. I don't want to squeeze the remaining 20 weeks into the 8, since we will lose a lot of the program that way. I'm assuming CtG would be the same level of work. I think our day would be shorter if we used all of MFW's suggested resources (PLL, Singapore, etc). They just weren't a good fit for my oldest. Instead we use Saxon and Rod&Staff and IEW. So that adds time to our day. I'm also struggling with the amount of things they should know by the end of the year, since MFW philosophy doesn't include quizzes/tests. I found that after Adventures she didn't remember much. If we did CtG, I know I would want to add in memory card and make up quizzes, and that's a lot of work, it seems, to add to an already full curriculum. :001_unsure: I have looked at TOG, but I'm very afraid the compulsive box checking would put me in deep, deep waters with that program. It looks brilliant. But I don't know if I could wade through the "fog". I have MoH Vol.1 and SoTW Vol. 1 on my shelves. We have all the elementary Apologia Science books. So my thought was MoH three days a week and science two days a week would be so clean-cut, so easy to schedule. But then will my 1st grader really engage into it? Holly's comments make me nervous about that. Will I end up borrowing or buying extra books to "flesh" out or "dig deeper"? I'm okay with some of that, but our library isn't great. I don't envision home life getting simpler, and I know my middle child's academic needs will increase next year, so I'm trying to plan for a good balance all around. My oldest is a daydreamer, and doesn't work intently. My youngest is going to be a 2 year-old adventurer, throwing us off-track all the time. So, thanks in advance if you made it through all that. :001_rolleyes: I'm all :bigear: for any more advice!