I hadn't checked the changes in this particular core, but it looks like there are 9 new books and 6 books removed from the old core. That is a bigger change than "normal," but not a big as some (e.g., core F). The only new books I've read are "Pippi Longstockings" and "Encyclopedia," which are both good. The books that are being dropped are good, too, so it's a tough decision. You may want to look at specific book descriptions to see which books you prefer. Have you compared the old IG to the new IG samples to see if you prefer either of those?

If you are not planning on using the SL LA, you'd be paying about $30 extra for a new core. I don't think there are major changes in the books from the old core to the new. You could always buy the old core and add in any of the new books you think you'd like - I've done this in the past even before the IGs changed. You probably won't be able to buy the old IG and additional new books from SL at the same time, though. You can always buy the new books later from SL or from another book seller. As far as not using CHOW, that is an option for you. There are people who do not buy CHOW (it's not part of the core price, but a required resource). Some people use SOTW or MOH, and build in their own schedule. If you do use books that are not scheduled in your older IG (like the new books or an alternative history spine), you won't have the SL notes for them. If this is a major problem for you, then it will influence your purchasing choice. For me, I don't use the notes for every book. Lots of times I never even look at the notes. I don't particularly like to use their discussion questions - I ask my dc questions that seem relevant to us, or obvious vocabulary and/or compehension questions. One thing I try to do is pre-read each book before reading it with my dc. This will give me a better sense of any potential problems or issues than SL notes, especially because every child and family has different sensitivities. Hope this helps a little.

I'm not a professional writer, but my children have done exercises similar to this for other reasons, such as learning how to identify adverbs in a sentence, and increasing their vocabulary. And who's to say that there is only one way to make a sentence more interesting? I wouldn't necessarily discard an entire curriculum based on a single exercise one sees in a sample.

I've been using it for several years. I like the variety all in one place. Spelling (for the first couple years), copy work/dictation, beginning grammar, creative writing, poetry, etc. It may not be perfect in all these areas, but it's been working well for us. It also incorporates the history and literature we're already doing into our LA. I can choose to drop or change certain exercises if I wish, or use it in combination with other curriculum.

I have done this to varying degrees with cores B, C and D. We've used resources such as Handle on the Arts, History Pockets, SOTW AG and some of those books published by Williamson (I think) -e.g. Ancient Egypt, Lewis and Clark. We actually spent 18 months on core B, having fun doing extended units on the different ancient civilizations. The kids really enjoyed that. I'm also doing a long "unit" on Canadian history parallel with cores D and E. It is definitely possible, though it usually adds time to the core to avoid overload or a rushed feeling.

I've used SL cores preschool up to E/4. Over the years I've tried a number of different things to suit our family and our needs: - combining two children two years apart, with the older child being at the top end of the recommended age and the younger child at the younger end. - having one or two younger siblings tagging along, while having age appropriate books for the youngers (not necessarily on the history topic). The youngers didn't have to sit and listen to all the olders materials. - Doing separate cores for the children, but allowing them to listen in on each other's books. - speeding up a core, - following the IG in a vertical fashion, where you do all a single book's weekly reading in one sitting. - adding in "bunny trails" and/or hands-on activities and stretching out the core. - adding in my own Canadian history to cores D and E (including having tag along youngers. There are just so many ways to use SL books. If YOU find the books a little light for YOUR child, but essentially enjoy the curriculum, then it's not difficult to use a core the way you want.

I was going to suggest getting the SL core D now before the changes, but I see you've already thought about that. We just finished core D and absolutely loved it! I ended up buying the next two SL core IGs now, and get the books when I needed them. My dc and I love the SL we've been using, and aren't too excited about the changes.

You're being internationally minded and joining us in March Break! Enjoy the awesome weather. :001_smile:

My dc really enjoyed the Classical Kids Collection CD's, which includes "Beethoven lives upstairs," etc. We also have "The Story of the Orchestra" book and CD, Peter and the Wolf CD, The World's very best Operas for Kids CD. We've added to the collection of CDs over time, and listen to them over and over.

I found food the best manipulatives and highly motivational. We counted, did adding and subtracting, graphed, organized M&Ms, then the kids loved eating them. I have also invested in lots of math manipulatives over the years, but in Kindergarten I didn't have a whole lot for my oldest dd. My favourite manipulatives, which are easy to pull out and use over and over are: - Math-U-See blocks - junior balance - linking blocks - 3-D solids - faction tiles or circles - clock - real coins (we keep both American and Canadian on hand as the Singapore Math has American)

When my children were very young, I didn't do much organized physical activity classes. We did a lot of backyard play, park play, hiking, biking and swimming. I would try to bike, run or play alongside my children rather than simply send them outside to exercise. As my children have gotten older, we've participated in more activities which cover physical fitness as well as social interaction with friends. We do organized swimming, Taekwon-do, basketball and soccer. We also skate and ski once or twice a week in the winter, bike, hike and swim in the spring and summer. Myself and my dh both have degrees in Physical Education and know the value of starting healthy fitness habits early in life. Exposure to a variety of activities and teaching basic skills such as kicking, throwing and catching are important. It's also important for parents to stay fit and active both to stay healthy themselves and be positive role models for their children. My main goal with my children is not to raise up competitive athletes, rather individuals who have tried a variety of physical activities, and are coordinated in a variety of physical skills, so they can choose one or more physical activities to pursue for a lifetime.

I would also suggest the SL A core, rather than core B or B+C. It has some great read-alouds and history overview books, and you can add in more ancient history books and activities if you and/or you child wish. Core B is a stretch for a 6 year old, unless they are really good at long read-alouds and detailed history readings, such as they'd get from the Children's History of the World and many of the read-alouds. Or you could stretch core B over 18 months - two years. I've used both Cores A and B, and found that the child gets a lot more out of the readings and history when they are a little older than the youngest recommended age. I find it a lot more fun to speed up a core when a child is really loving the readings, than overwhelming the child. You also seem to have a really full load of academics in other subject areas, so going a little lighter on the history takes the pressure off trying to fit in long history read-alouds.

I missed a few ages because I didn't notice the "would read" part. We have history, religion, science, math (Life of Fred) and literature read-alouds now. Some of these subjects will evolve into individual study, but some will stay as read-alouds until age 15 or 16. I love the interaction with my dc and the discussions that happen are amazing - not to mention that I'M learning as much or more than my kids!

I haven't used core F yet, but from all I've heard from those who have, they recommend using it with a child no younger than 11 years old. I'm really excited to do core F, but I'm waiting until my two oldest are 13 and 11, so they'll get the most out of the core.

That is so wonderful for your dc and family!! Thanks for sharing your success story.

Sorry it took me a while to get back. We've used all the Sonlight cores from P 3/4 up to core E. For your aged dc I'd look at the P 4/5 core, especially the science books. They are so awesome! You can probably get most of them from your local library. The core A, previously core K, is much better for grade 1 and up. I'm doing it with my 5 and 7 yo boys, and the 7 yo loves all the books. The SL science K books are great, but the P 4/5 books I find even better.

I did Core B with a third grader and it was awesome. I learned a ton. It's also very easy to add in extra material if she wants to spend more time in certain civilizations. If you look at the reader selections on the SL website, it lists books from the grade 1 readers, but you can choose grade 2 readers. The read-alouds were what really made this core special for us. They are wonderful selections, and not all tied to ancient history.

We've used Singapore Math all through with all the dc, and just recently started using Life of Fred. It's been more of a supplement for the Elementary level books we've used (Apples and Cats), as it only takes a couple months to finish the books for that level. It is a lot of fun, but doesn't cover the math concepts in the depth that SM does. With my older two dc they are going through LoF Fractions, which seems to be much more comprehensive and takes longer. It has been excellent for ensuring the dc do their work carefully and check their answers, especially for the "bridges." This is exactly what I was hoping for. The dc are all enjoying the books and fight to be the first one to do LoF math with mommy.

My 4th grader does: Daily: - math - LA (rotating through dictation, spelling, writing, cursive, grammer) - history (includes geography) - music - reading - religion 2-4 x/wk: - physical activity (skating, skiing, Taekwon-do) - science - Spanish Art in the summer.

It looks like you have a very comprehensive list of letters already formed. I believe that Handwriting without Tears has some really neat wooden block pieces (straight rods and curves) that can be used to form letters as a basis for beginning handwriting. For fun fine motor-skill training I had my dc write letters, shapes, etc. in shaving cream on a cookie sheet. You could use sand or rice, too, but the shaving cream is easier to clean up. We've also done writing on our white board or with a stick in the sand/dirt for fun. Letter stencils can also be fun.

I had always felt that starting to play an instrument was best left until age 7 or so (when I started as a child), but my 2 youngest started piano and violin at age 5 and I'm really amazed at how well they are progressing and understanding. I would highly recommend a parent sitting in on the lessons and helping the child to practice daily, especially is you don't have musical background yourself. You will be the daily "teacher" for your young child.

I've found SL readers lists great, too. There is some advancement built into the SL reader lists, though, so if you just look at one book it may be easier or more difficult than the average. You probably want to try out two or three books from a given list.

We've used Singapore Math up to now, but I never used the tests. I found my dd especially made lots of small, sometimes silly mistakes. I recently started using Life of Fred Fractions with her, and it is wonderful, because after 5 chapters there is a "Bridge" where she has to get at least 9/10 questions correct, or do a second (third, fourth or fifth) Bridge, before being allowed to go on. After missing one Bridge, she is VERY careful about double checking her answers and her accuracy has gone way up. While you may not be interested in adding in a new math curriculum, the concept of having to get 9/10 questions correct or you have to do another 10 questions may be useful for you.

I'm doing Life of Fred Fractions with my 11 and 9 year old now, and you definitely want to have both multiplication tables down and know how to do long division with double digits. Being comfortable with multiplying double digits will be helpful, too. I'm doing Apples with my 5 year old and Cats with my 7 year old. I started them both in Apples, but my 7 year old started really complaining that it was way too easy. I change some of the addition and subtraction questions to make it more challenging for him. I see most of the concepts from Apples repeated in Cats, so I'd guess you wouldn't miss out on tons if you started out with Dogs or higher.

It sounds like you are getting a good handle on what works and what doesn't work with your family. It takes time and some trial and error to figure this out. I've got unused curriculum sitting on my shelves, too. The great thing about the SL core, is that you will be able to use all ths books you've bought at some point in the future, even if you never use the IG. And who knows, maybe in a few years you will be more than ready for a curriculum that you can just open and go. I didn't start using SL until I'd been homeschooling for 4 years and I was just too tired to keep figuring out my curriculum for 4 children year after year.