This topic makes me laugh because I was the kid who got disciplined by not being allowed to read for a day because I was skipping schoolworkfor books, etc. :) My oldest seems to be the same, so I don't require anything outside of workbook reading or asking her to read to a sibling. But the question also makes me think - I'll have to watch I don't get careless with the others and reading time, if they aren't all quite as book addicted as I am.

The artful parent blog has a lot of good ideas, as does TinkerLab.

My biggest concern is me... finite patience, a toddler, pregnancy, and a newborn in March. I'm praying that my limitations don't come out onto my children in a negative way... and that I will be wise enough to choose sleep over all the other tempting options in my evening hours.

I have 2nd and 1st graders and a 1yo, and am pregnant. Our schedule this year is similar to last year's, which worked well. I slot times for everything, but I use it more like a routine, with times flexing as needed. 7am - I'm up (when not nauseous!), nurse 1yo, shower if lucky 7:30 - kids out of rooms, dressed, beds, tidy 8 - breakfast 8:30 - Bible and prayer, memory work, journals 9 - read alouds 9:30 - 11 - Basic curriculum slot. LA, math, etc. They do most of their work around the kitchen table, where I go between and help with this or that, teach chunks as needed. The 1yo mills around and the girls also take some turns playing with him for breaks, etc. 11 - content block. Mon and Tues, SOTW. Thurs, science. Fri, art. 12ish - lunch, then French DVD. 1-3 - Quiet time/naps. 3-6 - Chores, piano practice, play, etc. Read alouds, depending on my availability. 6 - dinner 7:30 - Get ready for bed and reading time. On Weds we are out all morning at a homeschool class/women's group. That is our full school for that day. And Thurs from noon on, they are at my parents' house for Grandma/Grandpa day.

We travelled for a month last winter and I used a portable file box for school supplies. Files for everything that fit in files, with thicker books at the back and a small case for pencils, etc. It worked well!

I print out memory work and put it in a tabbed section in my binder. We tend to do poems and long Bible passages. I highlight what we've learned as we go along. How much we do varies each day - some days we focus on one new verse or line, some days we go through a whole passage (50 verses sometimes), or all our poem collection. I always put new stuff at the front of the section so things naturally move back as they get more familiar. By the time something is older and solid, we may only go over it twice a month, but I've found that to be enough.

My 5yo will just refuse to play a game she doesn't think she'll win. I know that sounds calm, but I'd like her to at least be willing to engage in a game where losing is an accepted possibility... them we could begin to work on how to handle it!

I have a mix of supplies with different levels of availability. There is an art table in the playroom with cheap printer paper and colored paper, Crayola markers, tape, glue sticks, and a 'making bin' full of scraps and toilet paper rolls and yarn and whatnot. They use that all at will and I keep it stocked. I have a lot of 'good' art supplies as well, which I am generous with... but they are tucked in a dining room dresser and they have to ask to use them. I basically always say yes, but the asking just means that heavier/better paper, good markers, stamping supplies, quality watercolours, etc aren't grabbed at will for any careless scribble. My 7yo is all about art and she uses those supplies frequently... generally at the dining table, where the toddler can't reach. We also give art supplies as gifts. The 7yo has many on her wish list and she's received them for birthdays, etc. She had a shelf in her room for them, they are for use at her discretion. She does share at times. She generally uses them during quiet time, which is nice because that also gives her uninterrupted art time to really focus. My 5yo cares a bit less for art, but still appreciates having a few supplies in the basement where she spends quiet time (paper, markers, tape). I've found that dividing up the supplies has made the cost issue easier. There is a built in understanding that the 'special' supplies are to be used with focus and care. It's working so far. ETA: The library is a fabulous resource for art books of all kinds... very affordable. :)

I am approximately useless in the afternoon, even if "all I did" in the morning was parent and housework. Through most of my own homeschooling years, we were done by lunch and I think there is a part of me that feels overworked when I pass that time. :-P That being said, there were several years during high school when I worked at the local pool from 7:30am until 11:30, and then did school work in the afternoons. That worked perfectly. The flexibility to adjust to individual needs and opportunities is one of my favorite things about homeschooling. The concept of having mornings free for play is definitely appealing to me, but every time I consider it, I come back to the 'approximately useless in the afternoon' issue. :)

I print a spreadsheet for each subject at the beginning of the year - just the weeks I plan to school in one column, then the chapters of the book or whatever lined up week by week in another column, and a column to check them off. That gives me an idea of how much I need to get done in order to finish in the number of weeks I want to school. That ends up being flexible, though - since the sheet also just lists the chapters/sections in order, it means I can easily see everything and check off in order, even if we get ahead or behind. I don't do any more detail than that until I get to the particular week and break down the day to day stuff in the child's checklist notebook. If I want records of what we finished in a year overall, I can check the printed spreadsheets. If I want details, I can check the notebooks. It's been working well that way, but my kids are pretty young, so maybe I'll need more complexity as they get into higher grades.

We take photos near the same (growing) small tree each year, with each one holding a small chalkboard with their grade. I wrap new curriculum as gifts and we have a special breakfast. Out for lunch or ice cream after our morning's work is done! We start with a full schedule. But the Friday of the first week is a special field trip which we all anticipate!

This is how I like to do early math - more playing with it. So I don't use a curriculum for Gr.1. I printed off our province's Gr. 1 math guidelines and used that to jog my memory about topics. We would discuss adding one day and use chocolate chips. I gave them a kid's measuring tape and a list of things to measure after I showed them how to use it. Skip Count Kid songs took care of skip counting (they love them). Had a small clock that we used to discuss time, then played on an iPad app for a bit to solidify time. I did buy MUS blocks and they played with them... that helped with number quantity concepts. Even simple fractions with baking. That sort of thing. No problem with moving on to higher levels and we had fun. I just checked the standards list every few weeks to get an idea for another topic, then we talked about that a lot. No pressure, which is nice.

We love ETC, but we did Not Like book 4. The syllable rules seemed clunky and confusing and I never remember thinking about them that way. I found it hard to remember, which made me wonder about the usefulness for my first grader. Though the vowel diagraph and common ending parts were good. Probably useful and helpful for some students, but we did not find that it clicked in the same way as all the other ETC books. Next time I'll just skip that one.

I learned to read on the 1986 version and that's what I bought to use with my daughter a few years ago. It worked well. I can't see much different about the new one except the cover.

History inspired Lego is amazing! My daughter spent ages building a labyrinth after learning about Crete in SOTW.

I haven't found any kids' books on this topic, so it's basically me telling them kid-appropriate versions (especially since a lot of the stories involve people operating in the face of great evil and none are perfect). But some that come to mind are Oskar Schindler, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Georg Duckwitz, Werner Klemke, Karl Plagge (had to Google to remind myself of some of those!). And our family has the benefit of the personal stories my grandparents told - amazing stuff. :) Another one: http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/righteous/stories/abegg.asp

No answers for you, but my ears are also wide open for advice!

No idea any about the printer, but have you checked out Chromebooks? We love ours - affordable, fast, simple. That being said, it only works with online programs, not CD drive stuff.

My kids are five and seven years old and very fascinated about WW II (and playing related imaginary games of heroism) because of reading about Corrie ten Boom and some other things. I come from a German background and my very German grandmother sees my children several times a week. My grandmother's family was very much anti-Nazi during the war, and knowing her has certainly made Germans less of the 'enemy'! I've tried to make a point to talk about Nazis vs Germans, because they are two very different things, and that's what my kids refer to (which has thrown back a few people who've overheard them playing!). Also, finding stories to share about Germans who stood up against the Nazis can be a really good idea. Many Germans were absolutely heroic in their efforts to rescue people from the Nazi regime. I think trying to communicate about Germans as individual people, rather than as an enemy unit helps, just as it's accurate to refer to the 'Khmer Rouge' rather than 'Cambodians' when discussing that atrocity. ETA: My great grandfather was forced into the German army despite having deep moral objections... his family would not have survived if he refused. Thankfully (!), their house burned down not long after so he was allowed to come home. All that to say that 'Nazi' isn't even synonymous with 'German solider'. To me, those individual stories speak volumes when we are trying to communicate to kids about wars and ideologies.

I've used the wagon (I LOVE having a library within walking distance!), but my normal equipment is sturdy canvas bags and the van. That can get heavy going across the parking lot, though! I've never heard of a limit here. I topped 100 books out once. No holds limit either. And our library has an app, so I can renew on my phone and therefore keep low-demand books for 9 weeks. Our library is just about my favourite thing.

I've been doing memory work with my 5 + 7yo for a few years. I think my 7yo started at 3 (Bible passages, no other schoolwork). Until this year, I just gave them separate passages and worked with one after another around the table. The younger's passage was shorter and simpler, but they both picked up most of the other's work, which was my sneaky plan. This summer I combined them - first time. It's working. When I add the next one in, these two will be 9 and 7-ish. I just plan to start on small passages with the younger and let him soak in the olders' work - which he will have been doing anyway, since we do it during Bible Time at the breakfast table. Sneaky. :) I think it's an exciting thing for a younger to start the progression which they saw older siblings follow. Can you just add her in by starting at the beginning? It will probably be way easier for her because she's heard so much! The only downside I've found of different kids having different memory work is that it takes longer. :-P

I second the Staedtler pencils. I've been very impressed. My 7yo's last box lasted until they were worn down to to nubs and not one broke. They cost a bit more than Crayola, but aren't terribly expensive.

That's a totally different thing, then... I hated going to the teacher I mentioned. :) But she was NOT kind and fun and definitely not patient! I hope you are able to find a balance that works well!

I haven't required read alouds since my reader finished 100 Easy Lessons and a couple of readers and then took off with her own books. I ask her about the books afterwards (she's burning through the Boxcar Children right now, which I read as a kid) and she is always bang on and detailed about the plot and characters. That being said, since seeing this thread I've asked her to read to me a few times while I was knitting. :) She reads well, but I have been able to help with a few words she would have skipped, so I can see the benefit! I'll probably keep it occasional, rather than scheduled.

Ours share rooms as well. One goes to the basement for quiet time, where I've set up an art desk for her and there is a couch and Playmobil. Once they get into the rhythm of quiet time, I find I can put them anywhere. If we have guests staying in the basement, one goes in my room. At the family cottage, they went on either side of a double bed and chose one story together. They are old enough to be in the habit of quiet and it works.