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Jentrovert

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Posts posted by Jentrovert

  1. 17 minutes ago, Pen said:

    I think asking a grandparent to teach a specific skill to a grandchild is not my understanding of “generational wisdom”. 

     

    This. Maybe I have had the wrong view of it. I would have said it is acquired by just living life together and the normal talking through the normal things that come up.

    Like, granny and I never had a specific day and time to discuss making dumplings. She made them, I helped, we talked.

    Same with more "life" type wisdom. We talked about things that happened, she shared experiences, etc. As people get older, they usually enjoy reminiscing. Many younger people, though, don't take the time to listen and participate in a discussion. I know there have been many times I squandered the opportunity to listen and learn.

    I'm sorry it's not worked out that your older ones are good at teaching. I do know people like that. Maybe they would be more comfortable starting with helping the grandkids with a family history project? Bringing out pictures is usually a great way to get them to telling stories that can be jumping off points to other things.

    • Like 1
  2. For science, maybe consider Mystery Science. You'd have access to all levels and topics, it's quick and easy but interesting, and plenty for elementary.

    They have lessons up to a recommended age of 12 or 14, I think. I don't know if it's sufficient for middle school, I have little ones, but perhaps that along with books would cover most of your students easily.

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  3. On 7/29/2020 at 2:32 PM, Patty Joanna said:

    ...and I guess for me, I knew that I was not well educated enough to deliver either classical or Neo-classical education -- you can't give what you don't have (haven't had).  I had a decent public school education, but my husband's was much better, and we found so much guidance toward HIS kind of education from many of the people / organizations named in this thread, that we knew we could do BETTER that the schools could at delivering an excellent education if we directed it ourselves.  I guess I didn't really care whether it was classical or Neo-classical, because I'm really not educated enough to be able to defend either one.  I just knew that what SWB set forth in TWTM was a LOT better than anything I could do by "rolling my own" or by putting my kid in school, so it could have been called a Mustard Education and I'd have gone with it.  

    Same, but without the decent public school education.

  4. On 7/29/2020 at 12:05 PM, SereneHome said:

    I love love LOVE the idea of subscription boxes. I've tried a "few" and there were only one, really, that I thought was worth it - Ivy Kids. She does an amazing job! So, if I had little kids, that's the only box I would get.

    Magic School Bus- I got it cheap, so it was OK, but after awhile, they are just boring

    Kiwi stuff (for various ages) I got it cheap, so it was OK, but yep, just more trash to throw out after  2 seconds of entertainment.

    Little Passports - Oh I was furious with what they sent for the price. I got a refund.

    Raddish - I like it, but i I think it could be cheaper. My kid loves it and uses it, so it has been a holiday present for the past few years.

    I *think* I am doing for now. I would have loved to get a real science box, but everything I looked at just seems very fluffy to me. And really expensive. So, I am not doing it. I do reserve the right to change my mind 🙂

    Yes, yes, yes on Ivy Kids! So many activities, and every single thing included (as opposed to everything but the easily found household objects that are never easily found.) The sibling add-ons have the perfect amount of everything. 

    I'm sad my kids have outgrown Ivy Kids.

    • Like 1
  5. I am completely unaware of much of what is in the news, unless I happen to catch a thread here. I'm not exactly advocating for this, as I realize that it greatly limits one's knowledge of current events, but it sure makes a difference. Right now, I'm ok with the trade-off.

    I ditched facebook a couple years ago and don't miss it at all. I was worried that I would miss my groups, but I don't. I've never been on Twitter.

    Maybe do a complete break from social media for a set time period, and reduce the news?

    Lately I've found myself a bit too sucked into reading this board. A few minutes here and there really add up. I try to avoid participating in anything remotely contentious, but man do I compose posts in my head! So I don't really avoid it, and I'd like to. I've considered several times not even reading Chat, but FOMO. If there was a separate board for product recommendations, I'd stick to that. Lol Probably soon I'll enforce a restriction on myself of reading once per week, on my computer. 

    Wish I had better advice, but the only thing that's worked for me is cutting it out or greatly restricting. 

    I hope you enjoy your trip!

    • Like 1
  6. 9 minutes ago, kbutton said:

    Perhaps the Fan Math series from Singapore? They teach bar models. I think the full name is Process Skills in Problem Solving, and they should have samples online.

    We're currently using (not daily, but regularly) Books 1 and 2 here.

    They're a good fit at for ds7, who doesn't have any language issues. For dd8, who does, they are a good fit as well, in that she can easily understand the language and solve. (We are using them a year behind. We also do some problems from CWP, but those are more comfortably done 1.5 - 2 years behind, for both kids.) 

    They do teach how to solve the problem, as in setting up the model, thinking mathematically, etc. but not (at least so far) explicit instruction in the actual language of word problems. We talk through that as we go. I also try to incorporate the language in everyday math.

    But do take a look at the samples for yourself. 

    I agree, something like that would be really helpful, with explicit instruction and built in spiral.

    • Like 2
  7. Each page is fairly sparse in the LOE workbooks, so there's really not a lot to keep her busy. Also, Foundations introduces a *lot* more information a *lot* more quickly than Barton. ETA: Here I mean, it was too much, too fast for dd8, who I'll describe below. The last part of B and C really ramp up. I'm not sure that the workbooks would be a good fit. I don't have any anymore, or I'd refresh my memory.

    My 8 year old sounds like your 9 year old that struggles with working memory, needing repetition, etc. She's in Level 3 as well, and we needed to slow way down as the spelling rules were added - after the second rule it was clear she needed much more repetition.

    A few weeks ago, I ordered a few card games from Spelling Success. You've probably seen their flyers in the Barton box. I got the sight word slap it game, the short vowel memory game, and the spelling rules game. 

    These games have helped a LOT. They're simple, but the cards are nice-quality, and it's all put together to match Barton. Both the kids enjoy them (ds isn't quite to the spelling rules yet, though). I've been really pleasantly surprised at how much the spelling rules game has helped dd. 

    Another thing that has helped is the Quizlet decks, just for fluency. The info about them is on the Barton tutor page.

    I wonder if the older 2 could play some games with the youngers to reinforce both? It does take some time, and isn't independent, although we've gotten much quicker with some experience. But maybe it would benefit both players, if they work well together?

  8. 2 hours ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

    As I said on one of the other threads about the rat in the toilet.  I  heard splashing in the bowl before I even saw him so there was some warning.  Just sayin'.  😉 

    I say that slowly to myself each time. It is really the idea that one could come up while I'm sitting down that is most distressing to me. 

    Really, though, what are the chances one would come up at the exact same time I'm sitting on the toilet? Surely not great. ETA: Nobody answer that, unless it's 1 in a number that is so large I've never heard of it.

    Plus, maybe it can't happen in a septic system. 

     

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  9. 12 minutes ago, OKBud said:

    For the book, this one is better

    $1 Spanish flashcards from the dollar tree taped to items (fridge, bathroom, whatever) . A show in Spanish (we did Sesame Street en espanol on Amazon). And songs sung.poems recited until they are memorized. And just remembering to do it every day, of course. 

    The Charlotte Mason-based Spanish books are similar in intent as well Though I preferred See It and Say it over those as well, and gave them away. 

    I agree with you PDF would be good, but I know that has its own pitfalls for the creators. 

    I'd pay, at most, $20 for their box as it is. 

    Yeah, it would've been easy if I had just needed the names of things, practice conjugating, or travel-based phrases. Those things abound. I wanted whole phrases I say normally at home, without having to look up verbs, etc. Talkbox did that very straight-forwardly. 

    I don't remember looking at the Charlotte Mason-based books, I'll take a look - thanks.

    The bolded - that's the kicker. <sigh>

  10. 34 minutes ago, OKBud said:

    The disparity between what it costs and what it's worth, coupled with what it is touted as being, is absolutely absurd imo, not merely over-priced. 

     

    I can understand that view, and I come pretty close to sharing it.

    The thing is, though, what other resource is similar? At the time I was interested in it, I couldn't find a single other resource (besides one out of print book that I couldn't get a copy of, I don't now remember what it was) that easily provided so much practical, everyday language that we would actually *use*? I wasn't looking for conjugating verbs or colors and numbers type stuff, although I found tons of that. I wanted actual conversation, natural language phrases I'd say in normal conversation with the kids. 

    Maybe there's something like that now, or something I overlooked at the time. But if you're offering something that's not too common, in this case something closer to native conversation than textbook, then I'm inclined to think it's ok to charge more. I don't like that it's so expensive, that's what keeps me from doing it regularly, but I can understand the reasoning. 

    All that said, I do agree that the price isn't reasonable. It would be better received and more popular if they'd lower the price.  [ETA: They should drastically lower price and make it all a pdf.]  And it's not like they're including expensive materials or anything. It's just handily gathered together and happened to be exactly what I wanted at the time.

    I'll also add that I would think it would be horrible for a mom who is unable to read the language. Hmmm . . . the more I talk, the more I agree with you. 😄 I can read the language, and the book is fairly sufficient for what I wanted. And if I couldn't read it, I wouldn't have been able to use the box well. (They do have an app now, I wonder if that helps?) 

  11. 1 hour ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

    We have the regular one. I hadn’t even realized there was a junior! One of their favorite parts is it at first is the VR viewer and the app. I seriously think most of it (on the VR) is over their heads but they sure think it’s cool. 
     

    And yes, the YouTube imitation can be super annoying, but it’s essentially narration I guess and my compromise with them, because I will not let them have their own channel! It also works for getting them to cook etc. “Why don’t you make a video of it?!” 😂 I should try it with asking them to clean the bathroom. Maybe that will work too! 

    Lol I wondered if the VR would be a distraction or useful. 

    That's a really good point that the video is essentially narration. I can use that to adjust my view of it, because they would truly love it. Haha Train them to do one of those "Clean with me" videos the mommy youtubers do. 😂

    • Like 1
  12. 1 hour ago, OKBud said:

    Saaaame. The appeal here is that it takes all decision-making from my plate. But when we sit down as a family to draw or paint from YT tutorials, it's been most awesome. So we'd almost definitely like it. I don't like subscriptions re: how the money comes out of the account, either, though. It's a genius business strategy, putting spending on auto-pilot. 

    --------

    I wanted to add that  Talkbox.mom sucks! It sucks so much that I don't trust the reviews of any blogger/podcaster who favorably reviewed them. 

    What didn't you like about Talkbox.mom? I have a couple boxes and found it very useful and practical. My complaint would be it is too expensive for what it is but that's my complaint for many boxes.  

  13. 13 hours ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

    We have enjoyed MEL science and Tinker Crates. The trick for us is, I pause my subs a lot to keep it special.

    MEL became a drag when I saw them pile up- and some of that was my kids wanted to do the same experiments over and over, so I paused it. MEL gives you ample material to be able to repeat several times and boy, do they like to do that (and they like me to record them doing the experiments like they have a YouTube channel.) 

    Same with Tinker- I just have to control the influx, and I pick the crates. And then I don’t feel bad to toss it when they’re done playing with it. They both have been very helpful for giving my son autonomy and practice following directions. I still oversee the MEL for sure, but they can still do it themselves for the most part. And Tinker has had some fun stuff. I just can’t see it being fun every month and not turning into a “have to”. They’re fun on rainy days though. 

    Oh my goodness, my guys would love this, I don't know why I haven't done it. (Well, yeah I do. It's 'cause it kinda grates on my nerves after a few minutes. Still.) Good to know MEL gives a lot of material.

    Are you doing the MEL junior (or whatever they call the one for younger kids) or regular? 

  14. I can't quite understand why anyone would dispute that a person (any person) moving (anywhere) would most likely be more comfortable with familiar things. This is true of many people of any age, and it would naturally be especially true of someone who has presumably lived in those surroundings for many years and is now, for reasons not of their own choosing, forced to relocate. It boggles the mind that anyone would argue *against* bringing familiar items when moving an elderly person, with or without dementia.

    My 4 grandparents lived until I was in my 20's and early 30's. Three of them had some form of dementia. I have assisted with multiple moves (other family members as well), and had a great-grandparent live with my family when I was a late teen. We always, always set up their rooms with familiar furniture and most loved objects. 

    Sorry, that first paragraph turned into a bit of a rant. The thought of moving any of my loved ones without familiar objects was kind of . . . I don't know. It just strikes me as extremely inconsiderate and disrespectful. We've had to limit items due to space, but with the space available . . . why wouldn't you?

    Eta: wanted to make it clear, this wasn't directed at you. I understand you want to keep familiar things.

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  15. I'm pretty sure that the last couple of mysteries we've done had a supplemental list of books, activities, and videos. There may not be many books on the list, though. 

    Mystery Science is lots easier to use, and, no, it's not as in depth as BFSU. I think Mystery Science is plenty for a first grader, if you choose to do formal science at all. My kids really enjoy it, and there are a ton of little short mysteries in addition to the longer main ones. They like to listen to those too. 

    We're mostly interest-led and read-alouds for science, but if we need a direction I like to use the flowchart in BFSU to decide what to do next. I also use BFSU kind of as a study guide for me, and then incorporate it into discussions. I wouldn't purchase it just for that, though (I already had it). And I'm pretty sure the flowchart is available free online, if you like the idea of moving between different strands of science in a sequence.

    I decide on a main topic, get all the books the library has on it, and if Mystery Science has lessons that match, we do them too. So it's books, discussions, Mystery Science, any small experiments I happen to plan (and I don't always). Very informal. 

     

    • Like 2
  16. I love the idea of this. However, in general (and especially for anything more formal) it only works well for us for content subjects and in areas they are *very* close in skill. We cover a lot of ground in these areas with read-alouds, discussions, informal conversations, etc.

    Language arts and math, though, it doesn't work well. In addition, any program they are both doing, I make sure neither has more than a vague idea where the other is (Dreambox, for example). DD8 is extremely sensitive to any perception of DS7 being more advanced than her. She has language issues and other LDs. He has LDs too, but not the language or other issues. So he can usually narrate, calculate, make conclusions . . . simply respond much more quickly than she can. One of the things I love about homeschooling is that she (and he) doesn't have to constantly compare herself to others, and I don't want to set up that situation here at home. 

    I could see it working well if they were much further apart in age or skill, though. 

     

    • Like 2
  17. 55 minutes ago, Moonhawk said:

    But...

    IT HAS POCKETS!

    Doesn't that excuse anything else??

    You're right, of course. Chocolate storage trumps all.

    In addition, upon further examination, I now realize that if I forego support I'm likely not perky enough for anything to be poking through the cutout. Another bonus! 🤣 A quick lateral shift, and carry on! 

    • Like 1
    • Haha 5
  18. 8 hours ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said:

    Something I’m interested to see shake out re: online learning for the masses, is this is a pretty big paradigm shift for teachers. Most teachers ( I know not all, but most) aren’t specialists in their topic. They are specialists in managing children. We talk all the time here about how so many aren’t even comfortable or familiar with the subject they teach, much less have specialized degrees in the subjects they’re teaching. Math for instance. Managing some kids on Zoom isn’t really classroom management. I am curious if this new platform is going to illustrate the issue with having managers, rather than content specialists, teaching things. 
     

    The online teachers I have used were experts in their topics. They were experts of their field first, and then online teachers second- it was simply the medium. They didn’t have education degrees. I think that’s a big difference. 
     

    Anyway, I am curious how well having managers trying to teach content online long term is going to shake out. I think online teaching actually has a much higher bar to be good at it- particularly as subject matter becomes more complex. 

    Along a similar line, I've been curious about how it will work out for the teachers (those who are, as you say, more like managers) who are hired by parents to "professionally homeschool".  Will they easily transition to individual tutoring? What happens when parents realize they are not hiring people with subject matter expertise, but are paying a premium for supervisors? And on and on. So many things to shake out.

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