Jamberry has been an absolute favorite that we keep wearing out. I recently bought our 4th copy. Also a really fun one for toddlers is Peek A Who? - there is a series of them but we like the first one the most.

Thank you for this! My 6th grader is getting ready to start and it's a big change from Singapore. (she has done some BA on the side)

I like the pulled pork idea. Watermelon or other fresh fruit is great this time of year.

My oldest used the same outlining book and we both liked it.

I started them with my 2nd child as a form of review and hopefully to help with spelling. I don't think they have helped much with spelling, but they do give him a little confidence boost since they aren't hard. My almost 1st grader has been doing them this past year because he loves to have school work that looks like his brothers' lol. (He's very insulted if his "assignments" don't seem legit and it's an easy way to indulge that.)

This is for my almost 3rd grader who hasn't had formal spelling yet. I'm not actually sure if struggling is the right word, but he is not picking it up on his own. I've heard a lot of good reviews about R+S but I'm wondering if it's enough. We own the first two levels of AAS, but he is already growing a little weary of AAR and I think he would really resist both at once. Thoughts?

If you are planning to order the PDF's, they are supposed to be having a sale at the end of the month.

CP Primer One was kind of a flop for us this year. My 2nd grader hadn't had prior spelling instruction and definitely couldn't manage the spelling in the book. (I know they recommend using a separate spelling program - I just think the spelling in the first book was way above a beginner level.) I really wanted to like CP but it just wasn't a great fit for this child.

Haha, I changed a lot more than I usually do!

My daughter likes these too. We've also found longer length athletic shorts at Walmart.

I've had good luck with Neutrogena Visibly Even spf 30 for several years now. I recently tried the Neutrogena liquid spf 70 but found it a little irritating.

I will keep the suggestions in mind!

I posted early in this thread, but now that we are nearly finished I can offer a review. It hasn't been a favorite for us. I found it really tedious and cumbersome - so much flipping around in that giant book. The scoring system is ridiculous and I'm glad that my daughter can also roll her eyes at it now lol. My biggest complaint is that the amount of parent involvement required is inconsistent and I never know which lessons will need more of my time. While it hasn't been so bad that we ditched it, I think it is overpriced and I'm so ready to be done.

Thanks guys! I am definitely working on setting up a routine for writing. (part of the reason I avoided BW in the past is that I thought it was too unstructured - and I didn't realize until further research that she encouraged routines) Unfortunately, those two don't combine well because their needs are so different. My 3rd grader has some challenges and isn't ready for Partnership Writing. The Arrow exercises are going to stretch him a lot as it is, even with modifications. I'm flexible of course - we can adjust the plan if he outgrows the JiD projects.

Thank you, that was helpful!

I bought The Writer's Jungle several months ago and am working on a plan for the fall. I'll have a 6th grader (accelerated, loves writing), 3rd grader (good reader, resistant writer) and 1st grader (he's eager to be included in everything). I'm sure my 6th grader could do the pouch of Boomerang's, but I'd like to keep everyone on the same novel this year. So we could do Arrows and make it more challenging for her? I'm a little uncertain what that looks like. I just purchased one Arrow issue to look over, because the sample issue was a little unclear to me. My 1st grader would do shorter copywork and no dictation. I'm planning to use Faltering Ownership with the 6th grader. Do I need Jot it Down or are the ideas in TWJ enough for the younger ones? I don't want to push my 3rd grader too much. He's very hesitant to write, though he has recently told me he would like to improve his spelling. Thoughts or suggestions?

My 5th grader is using Prufrock Press books. She alternates between Logic Liftoff and the 3rd level of Logic Safari. Most people say to start with Logic Countdown no matter the age, but from the samples I went with Liftoff. It was challenging at first but she got the hang of it pretty quickly. There is a good list somewhere on this board of logic games. We've had fun trying some of those too.

We have liked Latin for Children. I think Analytical Grammar includes diagramming, so you wouldn't need the Drawing Sentences book. I'm not 100% certain though. Following this thread for the writing suggestions. :-)

Oh thank you! I'm not sure how I got confused on that, as I've looked at the sample pages several times.

My oldest will be in 6th grade this fall. She did WWE for 3 years and was in ps for 4th. (I'm not sure what they used but she loved writing in ps and the writing assignments I read were quite good.) This year for 5th she is using Writers in Residence, which I do not really like for a number of reasons. Truthfully, her writing this year is rather dull compared to what she did in 4th/ps. She's also had a few meltdowns about writing assignments this year. We took a few weeks off and she seems to be okay with it now. She is also doing outlining for history and science. I really want to go back to dictation exercises, as I think that skill is important. We did some samples from Writing and Rhetoric Narrative II during her break from Writers in Residence and she didn't love it. Are there other options besides WWS that have dictation? I'm worried it would be too overwhelming, though I know we could slow the pace down and alternate with something else. (which would be ???) Another option I've considered is outsourcing to a local instructor/class that uses Writeshop I. I don't know anything about the book, but thought she might benefit from a "not Mom" teacher iykwim. Any other suggestions? Dh and I both want to foster her love of writing and help her grow in writing skills. TIA

I agree with those who said a facial won't improve acne on the same day. It will likely get a little worse before it gets better. For skin care info, you might try searching "acne over 40" on Pinterest and Youtube.

I thought the fourth episode (autumn) had several touching moments, but I was mostly disappointed.

My younger kids have jumped in on their own by age 4, so I think having a K-er do it would be fine. My current K-er can answer many of the study guide questions surprisingly well. Remember, with young children you can do history slightly out of order or stretch the 4 year cycle out much longer and it's still so much more exposure than they would get in public school. (especially early elementary)

OP, if it will bring you joy then do it. I've usually splurged on something with each baby that wasn't totally necessary - pretty diaper bag, new little sleepers or yummy smelling natural baby lotion etc. Those things made me smile when I was so exhausted and overwhelmed. I know people who love carseats/strollers/etc and like to try something new each time. It's fine. What I have noticed is that the bigger infant seat limit enables me to postpone "graduating" older siblings to the next seat, if that makes sense. The longer baby can stay in the infant seat means the longer the toddler can stay in the convertible. Then I can move that child to our forward facing 5pt harness seat and baby to the convertible, instead of buying a second convertible. That all depends on the spacing of children but ours averaged 2.5 years apart and it worked well. I left the infant seat in the van for the most part once the baby was 7 or 8 months old, but it was still nice to have the option of pulling it out for the occasional times I didn't want to disturb a nap.

Following because I've had my eyes on grade 7 for the future.