I get so frustrated when teacher websites want money for their lesson plans and worksheets. I know there are plenty of great websites that offer these things for free. Anyone want to list some of their favorites?

I stopped eating sugar for a few months when I found out my blood sugar was running a little high, and I lost about 15 pounds in just a few weeks!

I love this idea!

Shaklee makes a soy energizing protein mix that I put in my orange juice in the morning. I really think it makes a difference.

My 5th grader will be doing Saxon 7/6 this year, and in the past, I've always allowed him to look at his notes for the tests. Now I'm wondering if that is a bad idea. I'm thinking maybe it's time he started studying for his tests..:001_huh: If your students use Saxon, you know the tests have a lot of information on them (not a mastery situation with only one concept to study). What do you think?

I would love to hear your responses after reading the following: College Professor Critiques Homeschoolers copyright 2009 by Greg Landry, M.S. I teach sophomore through senior level college students - most of them are "pre-professional" students. They are preparing to go to medical school, dental school, physical therapy school, etc. As a generalization, I've noticed certain characteristics common in my students who were homeschooled. Some of these are desirable, some not. Desirable characteristics: 1. They are independent learners and do a great job of taking initiative and being responsible for learning. They don't have to be "spoon fed" as many students do. This gives them an advantage at two specific points in their education; early in college and in graduate education. 2. They handle classroom social situations (interactions with their piers and professors) very well. In general, my homeschooled students are a pleasure to have in class. They greet me when the enter the class, initiate conversations when appropriate, and they don't hesitate to ask good questions. Most of my students do none of these. 3. They are serious about their education and that's very obvious in their attitude, preparedness, and grades. Areas where homeschooled students can improve: 1. They come to college less prepared in the sciences than their schooled counterparts - sometimes far less prepared. This can be especially troublesome for pre-professional students who need to maintain a high grade point average from the very beginning. 2. They come to college without sufficient test-taking experience, particularly with timed tests. Many homeschooled students have a high level of anxiety when it comes to taking timed tests. My advice to homeschooling parents: 1. If your child is even possibly college bound and interested in the sciences, make sure that they have a solid foundation of science in the high school years. 2. Begin giving timed tests by 7th or 8th grade. I think it is a disservice to not give students timed tests. They tend to focus better and score higher on timed tests, and, they are far better prepared for college and graduate education if they've taken timed tests throughout the high school age years. In the earlier years the timed tests should allow ample time to complete the test as long as the student is working steadily. The objective is for them to know it's timed yet not to feel a time pressure. This helps students to be comfortable taking timed tests and develops confidence in their test-taking abilities. Greg Landry is a 14 year veteran homeschool dad and college professor. He also teaches one and two semester online science classes, and offers free 45 minute online seminars.. http://www.HomeschoolScienceAcademy.com _____________________________________

Preserving the love of reading is a priority in my homeschool planning, so, I really don't want to give my son a long list of vocab words to define before he reads a chapter in a book. I know that there are probably a lot of words that my 10 year old comes across while reading that he doesn't know and doesn't look up. Some of those are figured out in context, but the others are just skipped over. He doesn't have the desire to look those up and learn them on his own. Do you teach vocab in their reading books or a separate program for vocab? I know it is beneficial to see a vocab word used in context, but I can't bring myself to add all that written work to a good book. Suggestions?

Thanks for all the advice. I made an appointment with a reputable chiropractor for Friday. I'm nervous but hopeful!

I'm having a lot of pain and discomfort with TMJ. My jaw has always popped, but it was never painful until about 3 months ago. I think it happened when I yawned while holding a phone with my jaw against my neck which somehow got everything out of line. A dentist made me a mouthguard which helped a little, but it's stilll difficult to open my mouth very wide and there's still pain. I'm considering seeing a chiropractor, but I'm so scared it will only cause me more problems and pain. I'd love to know if you've been helped by one!!

:lol: fingerprints under control :lol: The very thought... :lol: I use a stainless steel cleaner I bought at Lowes. But, I don't think fingerprints in my house will ever be under control... :001_smile:

I used the good feet arch supports for about a year. It took awhile to get used to them, but after I did, they really helped. - BTW, my arches are so high, you can practically put a golf ball under them when I'm standing up!!! Anyway, my feet started hurting again after using them for about a year, even with new pads to go over the arches. Recently, I've discovered that Dr. Scholl's memory foam inserts are fantastic (only the men's - they've done something weird to the women's). I'm thinking I should go buy up all the men's around here before they change those too!

I forgot to mention that there is a yahoo group devoted entirely to self-learning. You'll find lots of ideas/curriculum people use when their children work independently. It's called raisingSL4life (raising self learners for life).

I've tried just about everything when it comes to chores, and I'm still sadly lacking consistency in this area!! My kids know to do some basic chores each day (emptying the dishwasher, straightening their rooms, folding and putting away clothes, etc.). Some chores are morning chores (making bed, brushing teeth, taking out trash, etc.). Others are after meal chores, and some are before bedtime snack chores. We eat dinner early and stay up late, so they like to have a snack before bed. They know their bedrooms should be clean, all clothes should be folded and put away, kitchen area should be fairly clean, etc. before they get their snack. This helps us remember to get those evening chores done before bedtime sneaks up on us. One thing I've started doing this summer is an "extra jobs" jar. I use different colored strips of paper for each kid and write age appropriate extra jobs on them. I threw in a couple of "free days" for fun (I think I got that idea somewhere on this forum). This helps with all those extra things that need to be done - just not every day. Some examples: washing the front of appliances, sweeping the stairs, dusting, arranging the shoes in the laundry room, cleaning mirrors, windows, etc. Every day, they pick one extra job from the jar to do. My sister-in-law had a great idea to add to this. She said if a child hurt/offended a sibling, a good way to make it up would be to have him choose one of the sibling's jobs to do that day as well as his own. Also, if two siblings are arguing, they can each pick an extra job out of the jar to do that day. Hope these ideas help!

Thank you!!! :001_smile:

How do you know if someone has responded to one of your posts, or quoted something you said without going back through all your posts/threads? Is there an easier way to keep up?

I think Saxon is a good math curriculum for self-learning. You can use the Dive CD (pricey) if you want, but I just have my son read the lesson on his own each day. I started his 4th grade year with Teaching Textbooks 5, but after Christmas I switched back to Saxon. TT was like taking a step backward - even though it was the 5th grade level.

One of these days I'll figure out how to quote just part of the post - anyway, I'm not familiar with the Sam Cambell series - what are the books about?

Both my sons needed speech. When they were four, the school system "encouraged" that he attend their preschool program, but it was not required. As a taxpayer, you are entitled to speech services from the public school even if you homeschool. My son was in kindergarten last year, and I took him to the public school for speech once a week.

I'm wondering if you have found an alternative program you like better- one with the wow factor?

I'm really excited that my son is going to read some of the classics this year. I wish I had the time to read them all before he does so I can discuss them with him. But, I don't want to discuss every single book, and I don't have the time to read them all. So, I'm thinking I will focus on 1 book each month to "analyze" with him and just let him enjoy the others. How do you do it with this age?

It helps me to keep a list of all the meals we eat. We live about 25 minutes away from the grocery, so I can't go every day! I try to arrange my list according to type of food (chicken meals, fish, meats, pastas etc.). It's a lot easier to plan my meals if I have a long list in front of me! I also try to simplify - Wednesday night is breakfast-egg night (easy and cheap protein) Thursday night is usually pizza. I try to do a fish once a week and a chicken/pasta once a week too. I also put a star beside any meals that are "stretcher" meals, meaning I can stretch them out over 2 days and try to incorporate them at least once a week. In the winter, soup night once a week; in the summer, a grill night once a week. Hope this helps!

You can have them do rainbow words where they write each word and draw several outlines around the word using different colored markers. If you have alphabet stamps, they can use the stamps to stamp out the words on index cards - then use the cards to study. I also like to use the cards to put the words in alphabetical order. It's much easier for them to correct the order if they only have to shuffle some cards around. www.wordduck.com is a cute sight that is similar to hangman - only the duck is standing on a bridge and falls in the water if the word is missed. The duck says some pretty funny things while you play. My kids love it! I like to do a spelling scramble - there are several websights that let you put in the words, then they'll scramble them and give you a key. I'll let you know if I think of any more ideas.

I don't have my son do all of Saxon every day. He knows his facts pretty well, so I only have him do the facts practice once a week. Mental math is once a week also. He reads the entire lesson and does the lesson practice in about 30 minutes - I have him do math first thing in the morning. After lunch, he works on the mixed review. He starts out doing just the odds or evens - if he gets them all right, he's done for the day. If not, he does the rest of the problems. I have found that the hope of doing only 1/2 of the review problems is a huge motivator for double checking his work and avoiding careless mistakes!

You guys are awesome!!! I can't wait to try out some of these recipes!

I'm getting a little sick of tilapia and would like to start eating more salmon. The problem is the taste- I really don't like salmon at all. Does anyone have a great recipe for salmon? Oh, and I keep hearing about wild and farm-raised salmon; is one supposed to be better for you? Thanks!