You have gotten great advice that I agree with, but couldn't have explained as well. I will add that for my 3 that have graduated so far, I had to work with one of them more on what was happening during his time on task. I had to make more specific plans for him. I did (right or wrong I don't know) give him firm times to do each subject because he couldn't concentrate beyond that (or sometimes during!) and continuing was a waste of time. If he and I determined that he did not use his time well, he had "homework" for the evening. Actually schedule wise all of my high schoolers have a set schedule that they help to create. They also know they can alter it as needed. Some of them look forward to having that schedule once they get to high school. My younger ones have a rough schedule but they have to be more flexible as sometimes I call them to work with them when I have an opening. For all of them I only put grades on transcripts. They were not a part of school life. This possibly contributed to their thought of school as a learning endeavor, and they learned in college how to do what was needed to get the grade. They were a bit disappointed in the lack of focus(in some courses) on learning for the sake of learning and increased focus on what had to be done to get the A. One teacher for an honors course my 3rd son took had a similar attitude and low emphasis on grades and high on learning and it drove most of the kids crazy. They wanted to know exactly what the minimum work was they needed to do to get the A instead of throwing their heart into the assignments and learning. My son and his similarly homeschooled friend loved that course and got their A's with much less stress than the others.

so far on the transcripts (2 kids) I have used ASL 1 as a semester credit,ASL 2 as the second semester, etc. I could have done the transcript as ASL 1 for the whole year and just used the lifeprint 1 and 2. All of that is arbitrary. But you could certainly go by time instead and just give credit for ASL 1 at the end of the number of hours you plan to use. Lifeprint ASL 1 would not have lasted 120 hours for my kids. I would tend to advise (depending on personality of child) to have a set amount of time a day that they work well on it and call it a year when you have the hours finished regardless of where you are. I did not like the quizzes because they took so long and there was so much dead time in them that added up. We did not use them. My kids did the fingerspelling practice in addition to the lessons. If you click on each word/phrase/sentence link in the lesson after watching the video, it could take quite a bit of time and then it could last a year. I didn't keep track that well of what my kids did with the lessons. We did practice asking the questions back and forth and also practiced just by using ASL whenever we could in the house (Still do). Doing it together will be fun! My daughter just said that she would watch the video and then practice signing the phrases. She only clicked on the link if she wasn't sure about it, but that usually the video was enough. It has been several years since I have had kids using it, but 2 of them are using it this year so I might have better answers for you in late August when we have been at it awhile.

http://codeforteens.com/ You could look at this. I have only worked through chapter 4 and I don't know java or programming, so I can't compare it. I like is so far. The author is great at responding to emails, so you could ask him questions.

I used Jurgensen with one of mine who struggles greatly with math(and with the next child who doesn't struggle). I think it went quite well. I didn't require as much of her with regard to proofs as the next one who did it and I didn't choose the most challenging problems. I thought the layout was much nicer and cleaner than the Jacobs Geometry that I had used with the child before that(though I am using the Jurgensen from 1987-I don't know what the new ones are like. There is algebra review at the end of the sections, though I will do algebra review differently next time around using my own system of review cards.

I've had the same question many times. I didn't love Spielvogel, though for a textbook the written is decent. Last time I used the Mills texts. I think they were reprinted by Memoria Press. The writing level is a bit below high school, though I think Human Odyssey is, too. I emphasized literature and primary sources with the Mills texts as a spine. I do a 1.5-1.75 hour time slot for literature and history. The ancient year we were heavier on lit, the others we were heavier on history. I keep hoping something else wonderful will materialize for world history.

Philly - We really liked the Franklin Institute and wished we had more time there. We did the zoo, but that is the one thing of our trip we wish we had left out. Independence Hall – We really liked both tours there (both had air conditioning!) , you have to have a ticket (free) to get in. You reserve them in advance(might be a charge for this) for a specific time and then you need to be there a bit early to go through security. They do save some back that you can get that morning if you are there when they first start giving them out. The Liberty Bell is right across from it. Try to find out when the best time of day is. It was a long hot line. No tickets needed. There was a chemistry museum less than a block from there that I think was free, but it was closed the day we were there. We went to the Museum of the American Revolution: Readers of this review should take in to account the fact that this was the last thing of a 7 day wonderful, exhausting trip. We did not pay anything for this trip, but I don't think I would have felt that the museum was worth the cost (had I paid for it). It was new with up to date displays and some hands on. It felt like it had fewer artifacts than the museum listed below, but in a modern rich looking display. In a lot of ways we liked better the 1970's ugly display "museum" at the visitors center on the Jersey side of the Delaware River Crossing. 2 small rooms with displays crammed full of things with type-written signs. But if you take the time to read them, there were really neat things in there. ($5 admission to the state park per vehicle). I can't remember how far to Philly from there. Parking is awful. If you have a big van that is oversized there is no parking that I could find with research and phone calls, so we left our van at the lot near the hotel and walked and took taxis. We did Reading Terminal Market for one meal which was fun but a bit stressful trying to find seating and feed 8 people with different wants?. That's all we did in Philly. I say all, but it felt like a lot crammed into parts of 3 days! FWIW, Kendall

These have been hits with my 3 sons and my 2 nephews when they were that age. I'm pretty conservative about what my kids read as well. The Thirty Nine Steps by Buchan (adventure novel or thriller depending on the website you check) The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax (tell him to trust me on this one even though a woman is the main character LOL! and others in the series, though I can only vouch for the ones written in 1960's and 1970's as we didn't have the later ones in the house) These are adventure/mystery. Lighter reads, but enjoyed by my 10-18 year olds this spring - Framed and Vanished by Ponti.

I like Jurgensen if you just want to add to your collection:).

Thanks, everyone!

On another thread someone mentioned using Singapore Challenging Word Problems and having the students solve them with algebra. Old ACT tests are mixed and have some word problems. I know it would be good for my daughter to do more of them. She has trouble with the words sometimes and overthinks them.

Is there anything in the AoPS Geometry book that my daughter will need if she uses another Geometry text (Jurgensen) and then goes on to AoPS Intermediate? She will have done AoPS Introductory Algebra prior to and alongside Geometry.

What are the characteristics that might put a child in one camp vs. the other?

Maybe take a look at Socratic Logic by Kreeft.

My SIL might want to put her son in an online class that uses The Art of Problem Solving for Algebra 1. Besides the AoPS site, are there other providers that use those books? I tried searching the boards, but didn't find it. Thanks, Kendall

Chiming in to agree with doing algebra with her. Kudo's to you for being willing to do that. I'd look at Foerster or Lial's. I also agree with something like Keys, or just make index cards with problems about fractions/decimals/percents etc(that's what I did with mine who seemed to have forgotten everything). Foerster has word problem sections in each chapter. You will be less bored with Foerster than Saxon IMO. I posted on this thread about how I do algebra review https://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/672167-looking-for-daily-spiral-review-for-algebra-i/ . I got the idea from lewelma. That would be a great way to increase retention as you work through another algebra book.

I live this idea, but there doesn't seem to be a link anymore. I found it. Thanks!

Thanks for the ideas and the clarifying questions. I am asking for someone else, or rather so that I can give her some options to look at without being overwhelmed by ALL of the options. Personally, I have used Spelling Power, Rod and Staff Grammar (though I don't start until 4th and I don't use the writing and we do most of it aloud), I also have used Mother Tongue 2 but I think old vintage texts without answer keys will not be good for this mom. I've used Classical Writing some, mostly Aesop and Poetry and some Homer. I try to use dictation/copywork/narration and am actually renewing my determination to use narration after reading Know and Tell by Glass. I've used Writing with Ease with my last 2 kids, but after reading Know and Tell I have lots of questions/thoughts roaming about my head about the difference between WWE type work and narration. I've used McCall Crabbs. I don't use vocabulary programs much, but have used Vocabulary Vine(very roots based) some. And my kids start Latin somewhere between 2nd and 4th so lots of roots/grammar there. This mom isn't ready to do (nor am I suggesting) Latin at this point. I do use analogies books. This mom has used Alphaphonics (at my recommendation) and Explode the Code (I think 1,2 and 3 this year). I know I abandoned Explode the Code by 3 I think. She used WWE 1 but her daughter got tired of it and so they didn't finish it. She hasn't done spelling yet. I don't want to recommend a tedious, busywork spelling program. But I think she may want a workbook of some kind rather than Spelling Power that I use. They did orally some old booklets that I loaned her that had analogies, distinctions, and categories. At least I think they did them all. I tend to like Charlotte Mason style in the younger grades with a side of classical. I will not want to recommend traditional school-at-home mainstream publishers(Abeka, etc). We are working on this, but she has trouble thinking she can skip things and worries about missing something. Probably more than you wanted. Thanks for your thoughts! Kendall

There are so very many language arts options. I am trying to help someone figure out 3rd grade materials, but I'm not sure what I have always done is going to be a great fit for them and I want to have some other options to share. The choices are overwhelming. Is there a website or post that lists and categorizes programs and options for the different areas of language arts? This child is reading well.

Framed and Vanished by Ponti (Read Framed first!). These are big hits right now with all of mine (4th -10th). At least judging by how reluctant they are to put them down.

I agree that if this is her first Jane Austen, I wouldn't start with Emma. Though maybe there is something to be said for saving the best for last... but not at the risk of her not wanting to read any others. A few other ideas The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (contemporary of Dickens I think) To Say Nothing of the Dog (read the Moonstone first or this one could give the who done it away) author Connie Willis Hero of the Empire (non-fiction, reads like fiction at times) The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax The 39 steps (and others by Buchan if she likes this one) I wouldn't consider the Great Gatsby fun. I haven't read Ray Bradbury's Dandelion Wine, but I've heard it should be read during the summer. I also agree with reading children's fiction for fun and though I haven't found much YA that I like, summer would be the time for that, too. The Wednesday Wars by Schmidt is great. Reading the following and comparing them would be fun. I did these aloud to my 9-18 year old girls and they loved them all. On the Wings of Heroes, Clementine, and The Wednesday Wars. Different authors, different eras, different reading levels but all have a teacher element. You could leave Clementine out as it is less similar, but we surprisingly really enjoyed this intermediate fiction. My kids (5 so far) have liked A Tale of Two Cities a lot, but fun is not probably the best word to describe it. Editing to add my 2nd son's favorite books - short jeeves stories by Wodehouse(such as Leave it to Jeeves). Three Men and a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome

If she is going to be in 8th grade next year and if she was mine I'd be thinking strongly about using The Art of Problem Solving Introductory Algebra. I would be thinking this because if she is a strong enough math student to be doing Algebra 1 in 7th grade, I would want her to get deeper rather than farther. Algebra 1 in 8th still gets you to Calculus in 12th grade. The first 8 or 9 chapters are roughly the equivalent of Algebra 1 but much more deep and challenging. Just a thought...

I like the response you had above. If she will be taking the ACT or PSAT before getting to the end of the chapter than I would do the trigonometric functions section. Actually, that is the one section I would say go ahead and do. It stands alone, and though some Geometry programs cover it also, I don't know that TT does.

I think I typed most of my 2nd graders writing (retellings of fables though maybe I didn't start that until 3rd), but I have had two girls who write and write and write stories at that age. I will share with this person your thoughts on no assigned writing for 2nd, which I agree is perfectly fine and for most kids best.

What are your thoughts about correcting a child's spelling in their writing assignments? I would like to be able to share opinions other than my own with someone. This is a second grader who has not yet done a spelling program. My approach is casual. I might (or might not depending on the level of the word) show them the correct spelling. I wouldn't have them rewrite and correct it. If it is a spelling word that we have done or is at their "level" then I would add it to their spelling list to do during spelling time. I want my kids to write what their brain has in it and not just what their mind can spell correctly and I explain this to them. But this is just my opinion and maybe not many would agree with it. Some of my children have wanted to spell everything correctly and if I am around at the time I will write words down for them or spell them aloud, but I encourage them to just do the best they can and not worry about it.

I just have the middle school one and I will take a harder look at it, but this was my feeling about them also.