Me too. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for sharing this link.

Our library has the Joy Hakim books as audio for download. I haven't tried them yet but as we are doing SL Core 100 this year I have them on my "to investigate" list.

We are in a fairly transient phase of our lives between houses and between countries. We sold a house that we had lived in for 8 years and then rented for a while and are currently in a hotel. We had a school room in the house that we sold and we used it fairly consistently. It was a deceptively large house. The street level had all the living spaces and was not overly large but it had a downstairs area which had been separated into several rooms and the laundry. We didn't need the downstairs rooms as bedrooms and experimented over the 8 years with different combinations of playroom, homeschool room and parent office space... moving them between rooms. In the end we did find a combination that worked well. The downstairs rooms opened out onto the garden and although not as light as upstairs had a nice aspect but still there was this psychological effect of going downstairs to do homeschooling.... which wasn't altogether positive....but there again there was this rush up the stairs for lunch when our work was done:001_smile: We haven't had a homeschool room since we sold that house. In our first rental there was a large living area which provided ample space for kitchen, dining, lounge and homeschooling to be together but separated. That was nice since it meant things didn't fall apart if I had to check on lunch or the washing etc. It also allowed for more of a natural flow. Right now we are in a one bedroom hotel "suite". We have a desktop and a couch. I am hankering after a homeschool room LOL.... and a house to go with it. Still, such are the seasons of life. We have always read a lot and that has happened all over the spaces we have lived in. I can definitely see pros and cons to a homeschooling room (it's nice to be able to leave the books behind) but the more together/blended feeling of couch and dining room table is also nice. Still when we are looking to buy a house I will look for one that has at least the potential to have a homeschool room. Also, as my children get older I sense at least in the oldest that he would like to have a workspace of his own in his room so that may be part of the next move as well.

:bigear:

I am not sure about the spelling but we are from NZ and say tomato sauce:001_smile: We are currently visiting the States and have learnt to ask for ketchup after many a puzzled look. Just one of the curious differences between British and American english that make me think that they are not the same language at all. Even the word tomato causes problems. Yesterday my DD3 was asked during a warm up exercise for her gym class what she would like to sprinkle on the pretend pizza they were making. She said tomato. In the end I had to "translate" as the instructor got stuck on her pronunciation...much to my daughter's embarassment.

Thank you. I will add that to my list of must look at. :001_smile:

We tried K12 American History and found it quite dry. Especially coming from a SL background. But as with everything, I am sure it is just a matter of learning style as K12 has many very happy committed users. In someways I wish it had worked for us as it sure is easy to teach :001_unsure:We have headed back to SL. (As an aside, I have Grade 5 History Teacher and Student Guides which I am looking to sell in as new condition. If you are interested feel free to PM me. I have other K12 material as well which I will eventually get around to posting).

I would like to hear from Kolbe users, present or past, please. What did you like/dislike about the curriculum? Was it interesting/stimulating or dry?:001_smile: I have heard that they are very good to work with. Was that your experience? Did you enroll or just use their materials? What was the workload like? I am especially interested to hear about their science and HS courses. Thanks

Hello At sometime or other I have spent a serious amount of time looking at each of the Catholic curriculum listed. I have purchased lesson plans from CHC but found them too loose and not academically challenging enough. Although, their gentle approach is part of their pitch and appreciated by many. I like that their science courses are not limited to YE and creation science material. I looked long and hard at Angelicum Academy but was put off by a very strange email I received out of the blue debating the value of truth. It started out Dear Madam and was somewhat abrupt in tone. I am sure it was sent to me by mistake but when I emailed asking why I had received the email I didn't get a reply. I am not surprised that the non-Catholic poster had a positive experience with Angelicum. At least when I last looked, the curriculum was the same as the Great Book Academy with religion courses tagged on. The administrative staff seemed the same and some of the teaching staff was shared. The Socratic discussions also seemed to be shared so I wasn't sure how much religious content would be included in the discussion. That was sometime ago so Angelicum may be completely independent now. I know it is now closely associated with Ignatius Press. Earning credit for a Liberal Arts degree during high school is also appealing. There was a question about literature guides. I know that they have Elementary Literature Guides (4-6) and Junior High Literature Guides (7-8). I have purchased the Elementary Guides. The price is steep but you it is a lot of information. I have heard very positive reviews of the Junior High Literature Guides. I am curious about Kolbe's science. It doesn't use YE/Creationist texts either as do MODG and Seton and I think even St Thomas Aquinas Academy does but I have heard kolbe science is very dry. That is my major reservation about Kolbe. I wonder how dry it is. Maybe by high school there is just so much material to get through that that is the way to go for rigour. Just my penny's worth.

Which textbook approach did you switch to?

So.... my finger is still hovering :bigear:

Thank you for sharing your method of scheduling.

How disappointing! It really looks promising.

Thank you to everyone for their opinions. It would seem that Rosetta Stone would be the better choice. Julia

We are starting back tomorrow too after a long break. Shall we mutually wish each other good luck:001_smile:

We are starting back tomorrow too after a long break. Shall we mutually wish each other good luck:001_smile:

Another vote for Winston Grammar.

:bigear: I also would like to hear of anyone's experience with Trisms. I like the idea that the student can form his/her own world view (rather being taught the way to see things) through the resources he/she chooses. I hope you come back to post how you go with HM.

Like all curriculum the success or not or a boxed curriculum depends as much on the nature of the student as the "learning coach". I have tried Calvert and K12 and as much as I would have loved them both to work they didn't. They are both rigorous and, as my children have said, if you were a school child I am sure that they would be a great improvement on what is offered in most B&M. And even though both programs allow for some adjustment according to ability across subjects it is limited. You have to have an out of the box child. Also, if you like tweaking you can soon lose the benefit of the boxed curriculum. I wouldn't call Sonlight an out of the box curriculum. It provides a good core but there are still a lot of decisions to make. I don't find it as open and go as Calvert for example....which truly is open and go as long as you stay on the same page across all the manuals. Oh for the perfect out of the box curriculum, individualised to your child with an open and go manual :-). Good luck with your search and the decision you make.

Jonibee, I am feeling blessed by this post as well. Thank you, Momee for re-posting it.

Another could you please tell me question. Have you used either of these program? With what age group and how successful were you? Thanks Julia

Absolutely!

Hello I would like to hear from those who use Memoria Press's Latin curricula. I am considering using First Form with my DS12 and Prima Latina with DS8. How do you schedule them across the week? How long is each lesson? Has anyone used these with a pencil-phobic boy? Do you use the DVDs? Thanks Julia

I am interested in hearing from people who have used the curriculum Science for Highschool. What has your experience been like? Thanks Julia