1) The perpetrator sits on the couch (or in time-out, or sent to bed) with no toys and no tv for the duration of however long it takes to comfort the victim. If that takes 45minutes, then it takes 45 minutes. 2) Discussion with the perpetrator of, "How would you feel if someone hit you?" and "That was not a good choice. What would have been a better choice?" and "We don't hit in our family. Does Mommy hit Daddy?" This teaches that a social norm has been broken, and it is a big deal. If you spank you can't take the moral high ground on this one, but this is simply what works for our family. Other parents must make the judgment of what works best for their children. I also take responsibility for MY part in the situation. Was I properly supervising the 2yo? Did I provide a location for dd6 to play undisturbed for a special activity? Should I have made sure that dd2 had her own page to color? ***This doesn't let the perpetrator off the hook for THEIR part!*** 3) I pay attention to snacks, meals, and naps. Everyone (adult included) make poor choices when we are tired or hungry. (I'm not perfect on this subject, either.) 4) Perpetrator must apologize to the victim. It must be a sincere sorry, and they MUST be looking at the victims eyes when they apologize. (This always seems to kill the kids I have worked with, because they are not able to get away with just a half-hearted "sorry" and be off the hook). If the perpetrator is upset about this, I hold their hand and walk them over to the victim as they apologize. 5) Judgment of whether perpetrator needs some downtime in their bed. Some kids are just tired. 6) Daddy is told at the end of the day, and the child feels Dad's unhappiness in their behavior. We don't spank in our family, but Daddy gives "the look" with a "not-yelling" tone of disappointed voice. 7) If behavior continues, we tomato stake. If child complains they cannot play with legos at this time, then I ask, "Why do you need to stay with me?" The child goes with me to move the laundry, make the bed, go to the bathroom, EVERYTHING. 8) I try to praise good behavior on a daily basis,and as often as I can. "Thank you so much for playing nicely with your sister while I made lunch." "What a nice sister you are to share that with dd2!" "I know it is hard to be patient with dd2 because she is so little. You are a good and patient sister." "It makes me so happy to see you girls playing so nicely!" "That was a good solution to make sure that dd2 had a bunny and a stroller, too!" Dd2 is also praised for her part in patience and asking and respecting older sisters projects.

I had a discussion with dd6 a couple of weeks ago over something similar to this. We have had issues with her waking in a timely manner (after 10am) and being cranky and unproductive during the day if I woke her earlier. It is understandable that dd6 (as a 6yo) would question why I was being tougher on getting her to bed by a certain time. I finally told her, "I don't really care if you stay up. I also really don't care if watch more tv tonight. But you DO need to be awake by a reasonable hour in the morning, and you DO need to be able to get the things done during the day that you need to get done, and you DO need to be pleasant. That doesn't happen when you stay up too late." For us the issue was not bedtime, or snack, or tv. The issue was, "Are you getting done what you need to during the day?" and "Are you being 'not cranky'?" I suspect that if OP Mango's kids were able to be productive (schoolwise and chorewise) with a good attitude in spite of staying up late, she would not have cared. Disclaimer: There is also the issue that adults in the household need time to be together alone as adults: for intimacy, for relaxation, and to discuss the children needs and triumphs.

NaturalKate, I like your policy of, "if you don't want dd to play with you guys, you need to go to neighbor girl's house; Dd lives here and I'm not going to make her stay away from you while you're playing." I'm going to use that! I have kids of the same age: 6&2. And I am also a little sister. I remember my older sister and yes, a MUTUAL friend (in my grade, but a year older age-wise) shunning me in my own home and kicking me out of the room I shared with older sister. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Things I have done when dd6 wants to play exclusively with a friend: 1) Plan playdates for when dd2 is taking her nap for a part of the time. Or I invite dd2 to help me do cooking, wash dishes, or we do special crafts for a 2yo. The other part of the time, they must play with dd2. 2) Insist that older sister is at least polite. You may not want to play with her, but you DO need to be polite and kind about it. How would you feel if no one wanted to play with you? How would you feel if you were the only one not included? Just because dd2 cannot verbalize does not mean that she doesn't feel your rejections. We try to be kind to one another in our house. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Since the neighbor girl is getting a package deal (crafts, games, sports, admiring fans) out of visiting your home, could you lay down some rules for her? Especially since this is less of a scheduled play date, and more of a "neighbor kids wanders over to play often." For example, if I had a child over for a couple of hours, they would be a guest, and certain behavior would be tolerated because they are a guest, and they are only visiting for a couple of hours. If someone is in my house every day, there are certain behaviors that I would put an end to sooner than later. I wouldn't say she is a "member of the family," but if she is there often enough to feel confident to dictate play (Let's go in your room now; let's go find the dog; let's go do a craft), then she is no longer a guest. And you would never let your son treat his sister this way. Why would you let his pseudo-sister treat the 2yo this way? This is also teaching your son that this is acceptable behavior towards a 2yo. If 2yo is wrecking their game or craft project, I could understand. If she is just following them, I don't tolerate the rejecting behavior.

Playdoh is a good way to clean up glitter. We just do a glitter project, then play with playdoh afterwards.

We have no school name, but we could be: Duckens Academy: Treading Water since 2010 My girls' last names are fire related. We could be: [Last Name] Academy: Lighting the Fire in Young Minds. Does the OP's last name have a meaning historical meaning? (You don't have to answer here. Just trying to "light the fire in your mind" and inspire you.

This will be my second summer to over-schedule dd6. Mostly it is because I suck lemons at arranging playdates for her. We don't belong to a church, aren't close emotionally or geographically with cousins, and don't have a lot of kids in our neighborhood that aren't in public school and daycare all day. Our general plan for this summer, so far: 1) two sessions of swim lessons (8 days each) 2) two sessions of Nature camp (mornings only, 1 week each) 3) Clover Kids (4H) and the county fair (1 or 2 items to take to fair) 4) Girls' (t-ball) Softball (during the months of May/June) 5) Library Reading Program, and possibly their weekly K-Club activities. Our library has extra summer activities like "Hot Dog Dinner Theater", story tellers, "Read to a dog," and Free Friday Flix. 6) Naturalist's Lunchbox: Our local Nature Center has free programs under the trees every other Friday in the summer. Pack a sack lunch and hear a story or two. Afterwards, there are crafts and activities for the kids. 7) Frontier Girls: Last summer, we adopted a city garden at one of the parks. The city provides the flowers. We plant them and weed them all summer. We are hoping to do the same this year. We do this to earn volunteer hours....and as an excuse to go to the park. :001_smile: 8) Dd6 said she wanted to try dance, so I signed her up for the Zumba class for kids (6-8). She is entranced by the adults doing Zumba as we leave gymnastics, so I hope she enjoys it. (Once a week). 9) We have access to a little pool at our trailer court. After morning activities, we often take a sack lunch to eat at the pool and swim for an hour. Once a week, I send out FB invitations to friends to swim with us on a certain day. Sometimes we have company swimming. Sometimes we are alone. 10) A trip to Grandpa's house (out of state) for a week of family vacation. We don't do this every summer. Dd6 has said that she doesn't want to do Gymnastics this summer. If she changes her mind, I will sign her up for gymnastics and gymnastics camp. I am also waiting for information on Engineering Camp and programs at the local Butterfly House. If those don't work out, I'll sign her up for beginning Tennis (if she still doesn't want to do gymnastics). Dd2 is finally old enough to have activities of her own. She will be in Tumblebugs ( gymnastics fun stuff).

Sometimes it's just an off day. I usually push through until we finish the subject we are on. Then I let dd6 pick what subject she wants to do next. "Under the Sea" (our unit study) has been her favorite recently. Sometimes she picks Geography. It will also be a day of cooking together, reading all those library books that are overdue, art projects, being on the computer, legos, snap circuits, and playing games. We also do this if I know we will have a shorter time period for schoolwork; like if we have an appointment or sleep in too late. If we're not feeling well, we do what we feel like, then watch a lot of PBS Kids.

Summer can be such a busy time: swimming, playing at the park and yard, riding bikes! 1) Can you set a quiet time each day for reading to himself? Come home from the pool or in from outside, and send everyone to their rooms for a half hour of quiet time. Tell him he doesn't have to read for the whole time, but ask him to read at least one book to himself. A good time for this might be while you lay the youngers down for a nap. Then come and join him (unless you need a nap yourself) to read aloud together. 2) Library reading program 3) Can you find a "Read to a dog" program? Our library usually sponsors this. Sometimes it is in the summer with therapy dogs. Last year, it was in the spring with a group of 4Hers who were training their dogs. 4) One of the latest studies I read about "paying kids to excel in school" paid first graders 25c/book they read. It was the most effective of the three paradigms studied because the positive effects followed the kids through third grade (when they were checked) because the kids became good readers. For anytime: 5) When dd6 was in Kindergarten, I put a shoebox next to her bed filled with BOB Books, and other various little books. We added her readers from schoolwork to the box as she completed them. This created a little library of books she could "mostly read" on her own. When putting her to bed, she was allowed to stay up (in bed) as long as she was reading. 6) Find some games to play. 6a) There are many apps to practice reading skills that you can download for an ereader or ipad or iphone. We have a ton on our Nook. 6b) Reader Rabbit on the computer. Dd6 started with this one. 6c) Board games: We've had good luck with games from Scholastic Books.

OP Kara, Hey! I think we have the same life! We also have a Ker and a 2yo in the house! I just wanted to say that we are in the same boat. We just finished two (unplanned) weeks of no traditional schooldays. (Appointments for Mom, sickness, coop field trip, more sickness, poor sleep schedule, etc). I count days of curriculum left, and schooldays left, and I wonder what will not get done. I have a lot of things listed in my sig, but most days, Math and Phonics are a challenge to get done before afternoon activities. For me, a part of the struggle is balancing the 2yo. There are days that she only wants to nurse. And she needs to be played with, too. Today she insisted that it was nap time, so she lay down on the floor as I finished a topic with big sister. So, I took her into the bedroom to nurse her to sleep. A half-hour later, she was still not down. Repeat an hour later. Thank goodness for PBS kids + TIVO for the older one. Big Goals for next year: 1) To progress in Math one year 2) To progress in Phonics one year 3) To improve reading compared to this year 4) To improve writing skills (style, spelling, basic grammar). 5) Basic Cursive (I would not do this if dd6's printing wasn't so good. DO NOT compare your child to dd6). 6) 15minutes/day piano 7) 15minutes/day typing (I would not do this if dd6 wasn't doing so well with coordinating fingers for piano. DO NOT compare your child to dd6). 8) Science: we will have a curriculum, but this is secondary to the 3Rs. I mostly want dd6 to have exposure to ideas in science. We'll see if we can get to it. We also read many science magazines and watch Nova and Nature for science ed. 9) History: we will have a curriculum, but this is secondary to the 3Rs. I mostly want dd6 to have exposure to ideas in history. It would be nice if she could say, "The Egyptians? I've heard of them...I think." We'll see if we can get to it. 10) Foreign Language of any sort would be nice (Spanish, Latin, Chinese), but I'm not going to hold my breath.

I have friends in town with an extra house. They had intended it as a rental house, but it eventually became their homeschooling house. The mom liked it because she could control the kids' distractions. Currently, a relative is staying here, so they are back to homeschooling at home. ------------------------------------------------ Younger dd is currently 2yo. Once she turns 3 (Thanksgiving) and is potty trained (nearly there), she can go to preschool. (We may wait until the following fall to send her, so she will not be so young. The preschool is held in a church, and only meets MWF 9 - 11:30am. I plan to pack up older daughter with a backpack of math and phonics, and use the lounge at the church rather than running back and forth for just a couple of hours. We live in a college town, and the janitor has made it clear that the lounge is OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. I've been there miscellaneous mornings, and no one else is there. (The students are all in class). They have great big tables, fabulous lighting, comfy couches, and a view of the campus. ----------------------------------------------------- I've also considered using a study room at the public library when the girls are older. When I was in college in Boston, there were several universities that shared an agreement that we could all use each others' libraries. Some libraries locked their study rooms, and one needed a student I.D. (of that university) to check out a room. Other did not, so I would find an unoccupied room. If someone showed up saying, "We have the room," I would cheerfully vacate it. So check out university study rooms, too.

I am hoping to order most of my Rainbow Resource items before the convention. (Free shipping over $50). Then I can browse and pick up the items I missed. (You know I'll miss something!) I need to browse for grammar programs at RR, but I'm not sure I will find what I am looking for. I'll probably just stick with Saxon, but we'll do it early. ------------------------ This is the year we take the very expensive plunge and buy IEW's TWSS. I am confident about this because we have been using their PAL writing program, and it is a good fit for us so far. ------------------------------------ The Keynote Speaker is Gregg Harris. He has a talk about getting kids to do hard things. I may purchase his book Do Hard Things. -------------------------------- I need to stop at the Iowa Public Television booth. Thanks to the Wild Kratts and the rest of the IPTV lineup, my daughter knows and understands lots of "Way Cool Stuff." "Where did you learn that?" I ask. "Kratt Brothers," or "Ruff Ruffman," or "Martha Speaks," etc. How else can I reply? "I need to let you watch more tv." This is all IPTV's fault!

I am the clutterhound in our house. I could be on my way to being a hoarder. Loverboy commented to me recently that he knew how poor I had been for years before he met me, and that he knows that it is hard to toss things out because one does not know if one will have the resources to replace it if it was ever needed in the future. I also grew up in a family that was a lot poorer than I realized at the time (no health insurance, no college fund, and we owned our house, but had no money to finish the remodel or paint the outside). Both of my parents are hoarders. I know things are bad when it bothers even ME. --not being able to find something --computer desk too cluttered to use fully --island in kitchen is currently full of junk, so no extra projects like making cookies or big art --small room is too full to reach things at the far end; cannot find things without rearranging boxes; cannot find things at all. Some things that have worked for me: It is overwhelming and emotional to deal with my junk piles. Here are some strategies. I do not know if it will work for anyone else. 1) Sometimes I lock myself in the bedroom to clean out a basket. I make the bed first to have a flat surface. Loverboy entertains the kids. 2) To deal with feeling overwhelmed, sometimes I set mini-goals: "I will clean off 20 items from the island." The counting helps with whatever form of obsessive-control my clutter comes in. I don't know if it would help anyone else. Also, if I have cleaned off my 20 or 30 or 100 things (divided into groups of 20), then I am entitled to sit down and relax and not feel guilty or bad about the state of the house. 3 )As I put away things, for every item I put ON a cluttered place (suppose I piled something on my desk from the island), I must remove TWO items from the desk to put away. 4) Put away easy things first. Right now on our island, I can see: an ace bandage, a wood project of dd6, markers, glue, stapler, and old dvd remote, a towel, the lava lamp, and the Nook. Most of these items have a specific and easy home. 5) The hard stuff is usually the last 5%. These are usually paperwork or projects that need just a little work. These items are not done until they have been "processed" and have a specific home. Simply putting them on the desk in a pile doesn't count. Loverboy knows that he must run interference with the kids while I finish these last items. It is soooooooo hard to finish these last items because of mental blocks on my part. 6) In my old apartment, I would work until a small garbage can (lined with a grocery sack) was full. When I was on a roll, I did one every day. Then I was entitled to relax. My apartment didn't get cluttered in 2 days; it will not be cleaned up in 2 days. 7) I must be vocal and specific with Loverboy when I need things removed from the house. Often, I sort out things for donation, and I just.can't. seem. to get it to [charity of choice]. Loverboy lovingly packs the items in his car and drops them off before or after work. Please take the good advice of a pp: don't go telling your hoarder partner how to clean up their mess. Ask how you can help the best. As you can see above, I have a LOT of support from Loverboy. --------------------------------------------- Several friends of mine have talked about watching episodes of "Hoarders" and how it motivates them to clean out and donate away ~2 boxes/episode. Hoarding: Buried Alive is available on Netflix Instantwatch. Disclaimer: I have not watched any of the hoarding shows.

We have this in Iowa. It's called "open enrollment." If the school system has room for your child, your child is welcome. It has not closed down any schools, but more parent choice is ALWAYS a good thing. Within the past year, we have had many friends from dd6's preschool enroll their K'ers in a school system 10 miles away to avoid 30+ K'ers in a classroom. (This is not the norm in our school system. A part of this was a failed bond for rebuilding several of our elementary schools). -------------------- I have gone back and forth on vouchers for 25+ years. At this point, I believe that vouchers are a good thing as long as: 1) the school is accredited. These are tax dollars we're talking about. Me being sarcastic: Let me tell you about my new private school. I plan to put the kids in front of the tv for 6.5 hours a day to learn. (I had a bf that experienced this tv education when his parents put he and his brother in Christian school as kids). Wanna give me tax dollars??? None of us want our tax dollars for substandard education for our kids. There are, however, many VERY GOOD small (Christian and secular) private schools across the country that do a superior job educating children. 2) public schools are funded for an extra % of their student body. I posted earlier that the schools must take our children on short notice. Private schools or other school systems can say 'no' if they do not have the room for your student, or the skillset to handle your child (special needs). The public school system is there for everyone. If ten new families with 6yos move into our neighborhood in the month of April, our local elementary school must figure out textbooks, desks, and school supplies for 10 more kindergarten/first graders....with less than 30 days notice. Unlikely scenario, yes, but still part of their mandate. Plus, in the idealized voucher system, the kids left in the specific school are most likely the ones needing the most care. Lower income comes with less stability, fewer pieces of print in the household, English as a second language, and parents that are less engaged (than parents that shop around for private schools or homeschool).

That would be great, Sheldon! I sincerely believe that ALL families should have this as a part of their disaster plan. However: 1) Let's take a poll of how many families on the WTM website would still be able to homeschool if this was required. (For those unaware, Loverboy just looked into life insurance. Annual cost: $600. We haven't looked into disability insurance.) 2) Is this going to count as part of your homeschool budget? Jus' wondrin'.

Tracy and Sheldon, Respectfully, you are missing the point. For many things, you say, "We would just use the stuff we already have in the house anyway, so it doesn't count (including the house)." Newsflash: The school system is not going to get 25 sewing machines from your exMIL or a piano from Sheldon's mom. They have to pay for these things. Even keeping the thermostat in your home set at a certain level, you still need to pay for utilities....which you did not include in your homeschooling costs. Imagine utilities at 78dF on a 5000 sq ft building. If the school system has to include utilities in their "per student cost", then you do, too. Oh, and a building. If the school system "per student cost" includes buildings for students to learn in, you need to count your building, too. Everything I listed, if the school system has to count it, you do, too. -------------------------------------------------------------- It's rather like me saying to you, "I can have a vacation in California for $100. Why is it too expensive for YOU to go? You must be incredibly wasteful!" And yet I would have free room in board by staying with relatives, discount or free tickets to Disneyland because Uncle so-and-so's neighbor is an imagineer there, and the grandparents would pay for all other entertaining (SF Zoo, Whale watching, etc). Grandparents would also pay for the plane tickets. We wouldn't even have to rent a car. I would, of course, pay for my own souvenirs (~$100) You, of course, would have hotel, restaurant, and car-rental costs. Your souvenirs cost $50, but your overall costs are higher, so you are accused of being wasteful....and you got less value for what you brought home, too, because the perceived cost is $4K for a few tshirts, compared to my $100 for tshirts AND hats. (This is the place where detractors say, "But we have relatives in California, too!" or "Well, we would never go there for vacation!" Please don't miss the point. Just change the imaginary vacation spot to New Orleans or New York City or the moon.)

We're also paying for the convenience of having a building full of teacher ready at a whim to teach our children. (Within the reasonable time period of a few days/weeks to let the school system know, fill out appropriate paperwork, and get on the bus schedule.) The school system HAS to take our kids. Whether they have major medical needs, behavioral needs, or educational needs (from dyslexia to "my mom never taught me how to do math when homeschooling"). And they have to take them on short notice. I know there are several here who declare, "I would NEVER send my kid to public school!!!" That may be so, but many of us here live vicarious lives. What if mom gets sick with breast cancer and dies? Will dad quit his job to homeschool the kids? What if dad gets in a major car accident and takes over a year to recover? Does mom quit paying the bills, or does she put the kids in school and get a job? This happened to a homeschooling family in our county just a few months ago.

Another advantage of homeschooling: Naked Science Experiments! We're doing water experiments today. We're making FLIP boats and using balloons to raise treasure (marbles, coins, cars, rocks) from the bottom of the ocean (5-gallon-bucket). Wouldn't you know it -- 2 minutes into experimenting, and the 6yo had stripped off her jammies (the official uniform of homeschoolers) and was IN the 5-gallon-bucket. :rolleyes: I should have filled the bucket with COLD water. I'll know for next time. :)

:iagree: Other things I have wondered about unschooling: 1) Yes, a 7th grader can learn all of their times tables in an afternoon......but to really know times tables and all math (decimals, fractions, money, time, patterns) takes years of study and practice. Sure, some kids can learn their times tables at a late age and major in Physics in a top university. Most can't. (We are a science family, so learning math --the language of science -- on schedule to do Calculus by Freshman College is important in our family. If our children develop different interests or goals, we will reassess the math marathon of reaching Calculus). 2) Unschooling takes a special kind of parent AND a special kind of child. The child must be self-directed and self-motivated. The parent must recognize the interests of the child AND have the wherewithal to nurture the interest with appropriate books and activities (and money). Example: Two siblings attended a (mostly unschooling) Waldorf school. Older sister learned TONS that year. Little brother spent the entire year playing on the playground in a "Lord of the Flies" fort. At the end of the year, the parents agreed that little brother needed a more structured learning environment. 3) I'm not sure that dd6, or any 6yo would know the right questions to ask. Last year I organized learning units on weather, rocks, and volcanoes. Dd enjoyed these units, but I doubt she would have been self-motivated to say, "I want to learn about volcanoes. Let's make our own book about them!" And yet, she takes pleasure at understanding material on tv or in books about these subjects now. Currently, we are learning about "Under the Sea" with an old curriculum from Usborne books. Today dd learned about fish that follow scuba divers, the sign language that divers use, and we read a fun puzzle story about a sea monster. Under the Sea has become her favorite subject, even though she had no interest in the subject before we started this a few weeks ago. 4) It's NOT fun to be dumb. This is not to be taken that unschooling kids are intellectually inferior in any way. It is, however, uncomfortable to have all of your 9yo friends reading chapter books....and you are not. Or to have your 6th grade friends able to beat the pants off you in mental math. Or to not know that the capital of your state or country. Or basic spelling rules. Classical Education provides a framework for knowing what you need to know when you need to know it to get to where you want to be.

Dd6 is a perfectionist. 1) We have had many discussions if I feel she is at risk for meltdown about how "It doesn't need to be perfect. It's just for mom." or "It doesn't need to be perfect. It's not life or death." 2) In working on a poster project, I introduced the concept of, "Perfect is the enemy of good." 3) Sometimes dd6 needs to be reminded that "Knowing when to ask for help is a good skill," or "Knowing when to take a break is a good skill." I try to catch her before she is in full meltdown mode if something is too overwhelming for her. 4) I have started letting dd6 know out of school situations how awesome she is academically. I'm sure she sometimes feels it's too hard. (She IS working above grade level for math and phonics). But I really need to give her credit and reassurance that she IS brilliant and a hard worker and awesome in every way. I hope these comments give her confidence to work on challenging concepts.

I wouldn't do it. I strongly recommend against it. A couple of things from my experience: 1) If you child works during the gap year, their income will count against them for financial aid for a couple of years to come. One year, I made a whopping $16K (before taxes), and I had made too much to qualify for grants. I lived and worked out of state of my parents, so I still had living and transportation expenses. (The minimum has probably been raised since then). This is further complicated because: Consider that your child earns the $16K in the year 2014. He/she will have probably quit working full time in mid-August 2014 to live off savings and go to school full time for the Fall 2014/Spring 2015 year. Income from the year 2014 will be used to determine financial aid for the Fall 2015/Spring 2016 school year. In essence, if your child earns too much in 2013, they will be penalized through September of 2016 -- a full 21+ months after 2013 ended, and two years after their last good paycheck. 2) In our state, there are many general scholarships awarded to all Seniors with good GPAs. Here's an example: Iowa Scholars Award For incoming first-year students who are Iowa residents Value: $2,000 Minimum Requirements: 27 ACT (or combined SAT critical reading and math score of 1210) AND a 3.80 GPA on a 4.00 scale; OR 30 ACT (or combined SAT critical reading and math score of 1330) AND a 3.70 GPA on a 4.00 scale Application Process: None. Scholarship is awarded automatically to eligible students upon admission. Deadline: Must apply for admission by April 1 Renewal: One-time award for incoming first-year students only Contact: Office of Admissions Notice that if I am an older student that has been working and paying taxes for a few years, I do not qualify for this $2K scholarship because I will not have a GPA. In fact, I have usually heard of these these scholarships as being just for high school seniors. So if mom and dad are sending me directly to college, I get a $2K bonus. If I have to work for a few years and save up for college, I'm on my own. 3) You DO forget things in a year out of school. You forget the bones of the body, the periods of writing, and how to do higher math. I have had to start and stop college many times due to financial and health reasons. DO NOT DO IT. DO NOT make things unnecessarily hard for yourself if you can at all avoid it. 4) If you take a year off, you will develop other commitments that may interfere with college once you go. You may start ballroom dance lessons, or join the Young Republicans, or play D&D once a week with friends. You may get a girlfriend or boyfriend, and all of the time commitments that goes with that. Yes, college students do all of these things, but usually they start college first, then add activities if they have time. If you take a year off, you will have lots of free time for activities, and it will be difficult to cut back (friends will give you grief) when you need to study. Ask me how I know. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My dream is that my children can go to college, go directly to college, do not pass go, do not collect $200. My dream is that Loverboy and I can support them (in housing and food, in partial tuition, in transportation, in finding scholarships). My dream is that they will not have to start and stop school as I had to. They can graduate from college at 22 or 23 debt-free with a degree that no one can take away from them, and they can qualify for a job unlike the ones I worked for years an years....with a good paycheck, healthcare, sick days and vacation days. -------------------------------------------------------------- If you do take a year off, use it productively. My best friend in high school graduated a year early and won a Rotary Scholarship to study in Germany for a year. So, of course, she learn how to speak German fluently during her year off, plus had the "European Experience."

Tree of Life: The Incredible Biodiversity of Life on Earth by Rochelle Strauss -- sets up discussion of biological classification system by exploring each of the Kingdoms (Monera, Fungi, Protoctista, Plants, Animals); and moving through the Animal Kingdom of Vertebrates vs. Invertebrates; and Vertebrate categories of fish, birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. 40p. When Bugs Were Big, Plants Were Strange, and Tetrapods Stalked the Earth: A Cartoon Prehistory of Life Before Dinosaurs by Hannah Bonner -- Graphic Novel of life prior to dinosaurs. Yes, this book is a graphic novel, but it is still too advanced for dd6. I checked it out from the library and learned TONS!!! You will need to read it many times to get everything out of it! Also in the Bonner series: When Feet Got Fish, Sharks Got Teeth, and Bugs Began to Swarm When Dinos Dawned, Mammals Got Munched, and and Pterosaurs Took Flight ETA: Below are reference books, but they have already gotten a lot of use in our home: DK Animal Encyclopedia...probably close to this. (Ours has 376p.) DK Human Body Book The Elements

We use Add-a-Century Timeline. http://addacentury.com/

We don't have a homeschooling room, so this would be a luxury. BIG table (wide as well as long), overlooking the yard through a big window. Blinds if it got too hot through that window. Magazine holders on the big table to hold current curriculum. 3 office chairs with rollers and arm rests for schoolwork. Carpet in this area. Secondary table for art projects. Non-carpet floor in this area for easy clean up. Big, dual basin sink for clean-up. Room is situated off a full bathroom (because some stuff doesn't go down the sink, and some projects need a bathtub). A full bath could also sell the house as "nanny quarters, grandparent apartment, or mini-apartment for your college-aged student." Shelving. Storage closet (for brooms, vacuum, stash of rags). Extra closets for bins of unused curriculum. Shelving unit for dd2's toys (the ones only used at school time). Enough play area for her tent or her little kitchen or whatever. Mini-fridge. Adequate shelving. Exterior door to mini porch that has steps down into the yard. A few lawn chairs or a picnic table (for outdoor messy projects) on the porch for reading outside when it is nice. (Nanny quarters with an exterior door is also a win). Make sure there is an exterior hose spigot nearby for easy cleanup of the picnic table. Get one of those roll-down awnings for that side of the house, too. Three computer desks. One for me, and one for each of the girls to work at. Big comfy couch, with pillows. As long as we're dreaming, how about a clawfoot bathtub filled with pillows? I've always wanted one. (My sister had a 6th grade teacher who had one in her classroom for a reading nook. Banned now because lice could be spread.) Ample electrical outlets. A piano. Programmable thermostat for zoned for just that room.

Introvert crisis in our home this week. Dd came out of gymnastics in tears on Thursday. The class warms up together, then breaks into small groups to rotate through vault, balance beam, and the bars. (Nothing fancy. She just a 6yo taking gymnastics at parks and rec). Dd says that she is ALWAYS last in gymnastics. I don't think this is intentional. She is just not an aggressive person who pushes herself to the front of the line. Fortunately, the teachers were very concerned when I brought dd's distress to their attention. I also discussed with dd about how "everyone is last sometimes" and the good parts of her sweet and gentle temperament. 1) Has anyone else found a place for their introverted children in the competitive world of sports? 2) Is there a better way to discuss this with a child?

Maybe the question is "How are science fairs judged?" A nice poster is great, but what about having judges ask kids questions like: 1) Tell me about your project. --Could child do this? --Could child outline scientific process? 2) What made you think of this project? 3) Why did you choose to do it in this way? The child will either understand all of the ins and outs of their project (if they did it) or they won't (if parents did it). Disclaimer: The better communicators will do better in this scenario. That would be a disadvantage for thoughtful, introverted children like my daughter, but it should mostly weed out the ones who did the work vs. the ones who didn't. ------------------------------------------------- At what point should parents not help kids? Does taking your kid to Walmart and paying for their cardboard and construction paper consist of "helping"? Does helping them set goals of reading background info consist of "helping"? (Honey, have you started reading those books from the library yet?) How about picking a project? (Honey, I know you wanted to take something to the science fair. Any ideas what you want to do? Ya wanna look through this book on science fair projects?) These things would have been "helping" in the household in which I grew up. Guess how many science fairs I participated in as a child? 0