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Targhee

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Everything posted by Targhee

  1. We don’t use almost-all-in-one things like AO or SL, but we do different maths, different English, even different history and science for my kids if needed. I stopped being able to group the older three into one history because oldest hated history and DS loves. In sciences we studied topics of interest, which diverged when the oldest two were about 12 and 10. I have always tried to match skills (math, writing, spelling) to their learning styles. So yes, it can be done. And I might add that about the same age when interests diverged I started outsourcing some. At first one thing, then by the time 8th grade hit oldest only had 1 class taught directly by me and DS only has one class taught directly by me (both writing). He has two classes at the middle school, three online classes, and writing with me. Plus electives but they are self-driven.
  2. We only tried the samples. It did not line up with where my kids were - reading was below, volume of writing was above, and it just felt like wearing an outfit that was cut wrong and the wrong size. That’s the hardest thing for me with a total language arts package - it rarely hits right where it needs to in any subskill. Hope you find what you’re looking for! ETA just read the bit in the middle 🙄 I’m a member of the Church of Jesus Christ (of Latter-Day Saints, aka Mormon), and while I didn’t like the curriculum for the reasons mentioned, I did not find anything but milk-toast Christian sentiment in it. I am blown away that anyone would dismiss it our of hand for red rock art work.
  3. We used ITBS, Terra Nova (CAT), and Standflrd 10 at home. (And MAP but that was through our cover school years ago and I don’t think NWEA has an option for individuals). Of those Stanford 10 was the easiest to administer and gave good info. We used Seton Testing services.
  4. Yes, dive in! Just don’t claim you have “the” version of classical homeschooling, or that it’s even classical homeschooling when it isn’t. Just say you’re homeschooling with a classical bent/flavor/angle/etc or you’re exploring. The OP was all about people claiming “classical Christian education” and disparaging others who do it differently. Then there were comments about recipe version of classical, which I’m not saying isn’t ok but probably isn’t classical?
  5. True, you can’t wait and need to get going. That’s why I tell parents when just starting to do the three Rs: read to their kids, read themselves, and set up routine. Later, when you have a routine set and know what you want to do you can do it in earnest. I would rather start off with making toast and call it toast than call it baking bread. I guess I’m an idealist, and words and meanings matter to me. I have to laugh - the quoted emojis come across on my tablet about 3” in diameter - that was a major frowny face!
  6. Perhaps to begin with, but even then a formula puts the practices above the aims. How can you follow a recipe to make bread if you have never seen or tasted bread yourself? You would certainly want to study to find out what bread is like, no? The bigger issue for me with neoclassical and formulaic approaches to classical education is that for a truly classical education you need a community/environment which supports/points towards classical education. I lament all the “almost” classical education things and people I see because I so wish they were actually classical and part of my community so I could better provide for my children that ineffable goal of a real, classical education. 😞
  7. My dd went to public 1st where they were supposed to be composing paragraphs with good structure. I asked the teacher why the high standard of writing, when many kids seem to be struggling still to grip a pencil, sit still, or remember how to spell high frequency words like “have”? She told me they looked at those who scored best on the 4th grade state wide writing assessments, then went back and looked at the individuals’ writing performance in 1st grade and set standards based on that. 😦 Talk about trying to shove the bell curve... the most stupid basis for achievement standards! So I completely agree there are problems here. And as far as “the knack” well, I think you are probably right there was some talent and it reinforced itself. I don’t think it’s something innate that comes without environment or reinforcement. I suppose what I was trying to say was that most everyone can become a good writer - teachers and programs and other facilitators help. But can you really teach a student into amazingness? Can you “create” a Dickins or a Mozart or a Michelangelo? I don’t think so.
  8. The entire subject of “what is classical education” aside, and looking at the bolded... ...it sounds like so many other areas of contemporary culture. Where else do we see people banding in packs to lob “rocks,” and especially at something established? I have fortunately not seen what you describe in your OP, but then again I have only a handful of IRL homeschoolers with whom I associate, none of whom are attempting classical pedagogy. And for that matter I find myself (and my community) deficient in so many ways I believe necessary to providing a truly classical education I doubt I’d be anyone’s rock-throwing target.
  9. I agree for the most part. I would say both a program and a teacher are guides, but “amazing” writers have the knack. Is it innate? Is it organically derived from experience and environment? A blend of the two? I’m uncertain, but I’m pretty sure it’s neither a program nor a teacher, though they can help in some ways.
  10. Not to throw out too much of an argument, but my take is this: If you have an amazing writer, you have an amazing writer. Either you have stumbled upon a program that clicked sonperfectly with your child’s way of thinking, or your child had naturally writing and communication gifts that they would become an amazing writer even if you chose a horrible program, but either way you lucked out. 😒 You can also have a good program that helps develop an average kid into a good writer. Programs can help, but programs don’t create amazing writers. Theres much to be said, however, for the art and gift of writing some people just seem to have.
  11. We actually went to LTOW because we need to work on essays. There’s more big picture in this because you complete an essay before mastering the individual components. Each essay has new invention (generating ideas and support - *thinking* about things), arrangement (organization and components of an essay), and elocution (style, composition writing from your outline) lessons working on specific skills and ending in an essay. Each time through the cycle you deepen skills/structural elements already learned and add new things.
  12. She should be able to summarize succinctly, follow directions well, do basic outlining, and be willing to move through the building of skills without really understanding the end point. There’s lots of trees - good things - no forest. We couldn’t use it very long for that reason.
  13. It would be handy for correcting problems. I think 6 is a review and reinforcement of 5, sonot really new teaching just more and likely harder problems. If your child is Kathy you might just go into PreA- a lot of kids do after Singapore 5.
  14. We did one lesson a day, 4 days a week, and it lasted roughly a school year.
  15. Oldest did through 5B then started AOPS PreA, next did BA through 5B then covered missing topics from Singapore PM 5 (BA wasn't finished at that point) and started AOPS PreA. Next child transitioned to public school. Youngest is just now in 2A.
  16. I see the bolded as being the biggest thing. We could ALL grow better brains and bodies if we ate better building blocks, sure. But, even if I ate the BEST building blocks I am not going to grow any taller than my genetic maximum, though some other person may grow to be a foot taller than myself. Current research suggests that ADHD has an extremely high genetic component - those brain based differences are coded for. Perhaps in there are some nutrition based things - like say poor absorption of Fe or the like (just a hypothetical) - but the bulk of the neurodivergence we see in ADHD seems to come from encoded differences, and not environmental.
  17. We did not do keto-genic specific dieting, but we did do a year of Whole30 in an attempt to remove possible irritants/exacerbators from kids' diets. We gradually went back to regular eating. Changes were slight. We will take whatever we get though. My assumption is that these cannot change the underlying brain based differences in individuals with ADHD, but can reduce ADHD-like symptoms that arise from food intolerance or other food related issues. Basically, if you think changing your diet cures your ADHD you didn't have ADHD to begin with. With that said... The things which seemed to be most beneficial: high protein, removal of simple carbs, regular meal times, no refined sugars. We retinroduced beans, orgnaic grain corn, honey, maple syrup, oats, rice, spelt, and whole wheat and did not see any negative effect when reintroducing. However, when cheese and refined breads came back into the picture, and refined sugars, we were back at square one. At times we have gone back to eliminating refined sugars and non-whole-meal grains, and limiting dairy. We gain back those slight improvements. However, the problem is the kids LIKE sugar, white flour baked goods, etc. and they are old enough I cannot control their eating behaviors outside of our home. And with ADHD being able to keep the long term benefits in sight when faced with a tempting food is very difficult. That's the impulsivity side. So its pick your poison - be the overbearing and controlling parent who is hyper vigilant about their diet, or present them with the facts and remind them of past success and let them choose and (hopefully) discover the balance for themselves at some future point in time.
  18. Which topics is hardest? Or is it related to the dyslexia and left-right/up-down nature of doing math?
  19. I’m not sure but you might just go to the school district and check one out? I’d hate to print a textbook - more expensive than buying one!
  20. Latin Prep! It may be out of print but look for it used. It isn’t so much fun as funny, and it does do a good job of explaining. Caveat emptor - the order of cases is different in British recitation than American. That shouldn’t be an issue if she has her declensions down pat like you mention.
  21. Forcing myself to write this early stages plan so I think about it more, and see everyone else€™s updates. We started last week ELA: LToW very slowly, and maybe onlineG3 lit again, Patchwork of things including LToW essays 1-7, parts of Writers INC and MCT Essay Voyage as well, Magic Lens 1, Jacob's Ladder 4, Killgallon, Poetry and Humanity, mom-directed lit Latin: Lukeion Latin 1 (the one thing that seems certain) Math: do the next thing with AOPS (preA is taking a while, but that€™s OK, I have Intro to Alg and C&P ready when he is) He's doing the AOPS online Algebra A starting OCT History: ?? He likes OnlineG3 histories her€™s done, but he will be combining with oldest so I’m not positive which class yet. Big History with OnlineG3  Science: either at the middle school or Marine Ecology by Mom (using a few texts, Great Courses, and a couple of trade books)  Electives: band (middle school), private sax lessons, soccer, parkour, scouting merit badges, NaNoWriMo, Superstar Student, Music Theory for Electronic Musicians Above corrections in blue were were made in August. We didn’t use Jacobs Ladder much, and we didn’t use Poetry and Humanity at all. LTOW is moving slowly (just finished essay 3), but that’s ok. Otherwise we are on track. This year has been one I have better stuck to my plan.
  22. The only difference here is that we stopped LOE Foundations after B and began PLL. We also stopped JGB after a while because Dad couldn’t help with the “at home” parts like I had hoped. We have finished Singapore PM 1A and B and begun 2a.
  23. High protein/low sugar whole foods Good sleep and sleep hygiene!!! Exercise Pomodoros Fidget/Activity to do while needing to focus Patience
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