I really appreciate the breakdown of what writing at this age is all about. I understand and agree with the concept. It reminds me of a new writing curriculum I saw (I didn’t buy lol). I trimmed a lot, and am looking forward to seeing how our schedule goes. Thank you all so much! It’s given me a lot to think about, especially in terms of what my goals are for her education. I did place her in 4A for Singapore, she passed the 3B test. She is quite bright. She tested into GATE and was in a dual language immersion program at her ps. Part of what convinced me to pull her was that she was breezing through everything and spent her whole day assisting other students with their math and reading, and her district doesn’t have an explicit GATE program/class - they just move along the honors track in middle school. Also, they move down to a 20/80 Spanish/English ratio for learning in 4th, and that’s just not enough to keep it going. We’re a bilingual house anyways. I guess I was just… ignorant to what I was hoping to provide and what education actually looks like. I still am 😬, but feel more confident after making these cuts.

This is pretty much exactly what I’m planning to do, thank you!

Can you elaborate on what is vs isn’t superficial? Above people stated that analysis and whatnot isn’t age appropriate, so do you just mean it’s just doesn’t go into nitty gritty detail in terms of like, cultures and such? I feel like ALL the curriculums require all these extra supplements to not be superficial, kwim? So I’m confused because it seems like it’s counterintuitive advice when I’m hearing KISS from some and don’t settle for surface level from others.

This is going to sound bizarre, but I really need some guidance/comfort/advice from other homeschoolers because I know no one to go to about this. I’m homeschooling my 4th grader for the first time this year. It will likely be only this year, as she wants to try it/dislikes her school more than I am philosophically minded to homeschool. I have overbooked our day with way too many writing options, notebooking/extras for THREE history curriculums, picked out over 20+ read alouds for LA/history, and am just overwhelmed with ALL the stuff. I know, the answer is to cut stuff out, BUT I want to make sure she is hitting grade standards and I don’t miss anything. I want to do book reports/analysis of every book she reads (unreasonable), I want her to practice writing all the types of essays in addition to her IEW and TGATB (unreasonable), I want to do CM style notebooking for SOTW2 and BF CA history along with writings/activities (unreasonable?). I don’t even subscribe to the CM philosophy, but the aesthetics just *are*. I spend more time finding the perfect mix of stuff than actually doing it (not really, but kind of). I’m just so worried I’m missing something, and I know, it’s only grade 4, she’ll relearn it all just about every year. Swiss cheese and all that. But my head and my anxiety are clashing and I could use some advice or maybe permission to cut some things? Here is what we have: Singapore Dimensions 4 TGATB LA 4 IEW SS1A Fix It Grammar Sequential Spelling Word Roots BF CA History SOTW2 Studies Weekly Science Studies Weekly CA History 20+ Medieval Read Alouds 20+ Readers (mostly NF that go along with what we are reading) A huge assortment of random writing guides for different essays, topics, writings, etc. ( I feel like I have to do ALL of these) Lit guides for all those readers (again… I feel compelled to do these….) Literary devices supplements 6 different logic books ALL the supplements, supplemental books, graphic organizers, activity guides, worksheets, vocabulary for ALL the curriculum above… all the video link and encyclopedias referenced. It’s SO much, and at the same time I don’t know what I can do vs not do to make it all well rounded. Please, please help me accept that I don’t have to do all the activities for everything.

Hey yall, it's been awhile since I've frequented here. You all have been such a blessing to me, and I just want to share some thanks and appreciation. I chose to HS my struggling 5th grader last year, and with your advice and a lot of hard work, my daughter met her 5th grade standards for ELA and math. I got her results today, and I am so proud of her. Like, I teared up. She was never even in the near grade standards brackets, and here she is now. So thank you all for your patience with newcomers and short term homeschoolers, you really help guide parents to work with their children.

I don't think the writing or spelling is enough. I like their grammar, geography integration, reading selections, and other bits and pieces.

In regards to writing and note taking, if the hangup is spelling/handwriting, have you considered having an app or computer next to him while he's writing so he can quickly see how to spell a word he wants to use, or even dictate what he wants to say and then rewrite/edit based off that?

Thanks for saying it. So many people here aren't willing to admit that even a crappy PS is better than crappy HS.

Sonlight and Bookshark sell lapbook kits, or you could supplement with a related coloring book or activity while she listens to the story or audiobook. I do this with mine. I looooove Bookshark's history. LA not so much, but the history is top notch.

Evan Moor and Critical Thinking Co have Daily Paragraph Editing and Editor in Chief. They're paragraphs though.

Whay are the issues? BA is pretty tough and conceptual... So what are the areas he's having trouble with? Or are you just wanting a program that properly explains every problem before they're presented? (If so, I don't recommend Math Mammoth)

Duolingo

My will be 2nd grader is in a Spanish immersion school, so she'll be doing that most of the day, but I'm mean and do work with her after school and during breaks. So her load is lighter compared to a fully homeschooled kid. LA- TGATB 2, but will likely break into Killgallon and FLL1 as well, along with Syllables Spell Success for English phonics. Tons of reading and read alouds. I want to transition her to chapter books and away from audiobooks. Handwriting - Evan Moor Math - Start BA3, wherever she is after summer. Science - if she wants extra science, I'll figure it out. She's sometimes around for her sister's science, so she can tag along. She also gets Kiwi Co crates. History - she'll tag along to whatever she can of her sister's, which is ancients this year. I also read SOTW at night, and should be doing Early Modern. She'll probably want more, she loves history. Latin - Song School Latin Keep working on memory work and fact memorization, Prodigy, Reading Eggs, and maybe Night Zookeeper because she writes nonstop. Other stuff, like PE, will likely be soccer, surf, and a dance and an art class - but idk if those will be open in our area yet.

Also, their placement tests allow for a 75% score to move on if I remembre. It's encouraging because other programs want mastery to move on, so you get mostly too easy material mixed with 1 troubled area.

I agree with MM. Weirdly, it's tough and high concept, but I have a 5th grader too (in progress ADD/dyslexia diagnosis) who is thriving with it doing it 2x a week for 30 min. at her tested level. It's behind her other program, but the one on one reinforcement has been great. We are doing it alongside Teaching Textbooks, also with Prodigy and ST Math. (She likes TT! It is an easier program, as in it doesn't explore theory or expect kids to understand what or why just hHOW to do it) It's a lot of math.... but she has such a hard time remembering what she learns. She can DO the algorithms in the unit, but if she's in a testing environment where she has to know what to without being explicitly shown after a month or two without seeing it, she fumbles unless reminded with pointers. She still counts basic adding and subracting on her fingers while doing long division and such, but knows her multiplications mostly by heart through song/rhyme. She is nearing grade level, and I think the constant review over and over and over is making the difference. I will say that with fractions, place value, and decimals she understands only on a solve basis - she doesn't grasp place value 100% and likely won't for a few years. She'll still not realise 0.25 x 0.11 = 254.5 is obviously wrong unless I guide her to double check EVERY problem. MM is inexpensive, and I would look at a lot of program's placement tests to get an idea of where the issues are so you can help her. If it really is only 1 issue, like fractions, either MM or Math U See or whatever you're using with additional manipulatives. If it's a general behindness, you might need to figure out specifically what the root issue is.

I've found Saxon as PDF downloads online easily. Mostly by googling Saxon whatever PDF

I can't believe I've already planned out next year, but this is what I hope for: Latin - Lively Latin Math - Finish up TT7 by Oct, then TT PreA, also MM6, Prodigy, and ST Math 6 Writing - IEW, with some WWS1 here and there, and Killgallon elementary History - Bookshark G Ancients Lit - Bookshark G readers, read alouds, and whatever random read alouds I pick to do in addition. She doesn't read herself on level, so I read aloud or do audio books for her. Spelling - Sequential Spelling 2 and Spelling You See F Grammar - Fix It 1 or GFTWTM, I'll try both and see Science - idk yet. Bookshark maybe or I'll use a CA 6th grade textbook. I want something planned that also hits our state standards, so who knows. PE - surfing and gymnastics Also Critical Thinking Co's Thinking Skills 2, Reading Skills, Inference Jones, and Reading Eggs. She wants to do TGATB 5, but it's not enough, and I don't have it in me to do a full LA curriculum and then all the peices I've found that actually work with her. Sorry DD, likely not happening.

I like it for my not mathy kid. She does well, but it teaches the way I (and likely you) were taught in public school. So it's not strong in explaining why math is done the way it is, it just teaches you the method. For example, you're just shown the algorithm for doing long division - not why it works. So my kid can do long division in her sleep, but not explain why it works in any capacity. That's fine with me, but might not be for you. Also, you have to adjust the grading settings imo to get an honest look at how they're doing. It's set at getting 2 chances per problem, which let my kid coast by without understanding. I had to change it to get an honest look, and she's been forced to be more careful about self checking, which is great.

YouTube lectures to listen to. Usually they'll be community college courses, but for Economics it's likely all the same. Just search the specific topic and go. Books can be so dry, but if you have someone teaching it to you it's much easier, and college courses are mostly lectures - so all audio. For his future - I think now with recordings, YouTube, all the tech, there're so many more options than that generic talk to text speech. There will be a lot of online lectures and info to listen to over and over until he can either write down his thoughts as notes or recite them in his head to know he knows the topic.

Yes, thank you so much for all your advice and knowledge. I knew something was off and was brushed off by her teachers and I failed to advocate for her when I still felt like things were off. Good news, she's capable of discussing what is and isn't an issue, and I think you're on to something with her eyes. I talked to her today about how she seems to have an easier time reading and understanding her science book than her chapter book, and asked if she preferred one over the other or something. She told me she likes the big letters. Guys, the science font is huge, early reader font. She can work with it even though it's 5th grade science, because it's BIG. Her novel? 3rd grade level, and usual small book font. Wow, her huge regression and stagnation with reading, especially when she read it herself, started when books started naturally transitioning to a smaller font. So I have things going with her MD, and I plan on emailing her charter liason and being upfront about my concerns and I'm not taking a let's wait and see as an answer. I'll reenroll her in thr local district if that's the only way to get this going. I want the IEPs for her, because I think with modifications she can keep up with her class when she returns to public school.

Isn't TGATB in the process of redeveloping their curriculum too? Idk what level you'd want, but they are selling their stock of k-3, and developing their 4pt2 and plan on selling that single issue and then it's done. I think they plan on having an entirely new curriculum in 2022 for all levels. Just in case you don't want to start something you can't continue. I have TGATB 2 and 3 I bought like, 2 months ago bc my 6yo hated MUS. She loves BA and she's flying through and weirdly able to apply what she knows when I give her more conventional math worksheets. We supplement with Prodigy and ST Math. We tried TGATB 2.5 and then 3. She HATED it. Too many problems, too repetitive, she wantes to just do it. She also didn't warm up to the fun gamey vibe it had for practicing problems. She even told me, I can add, why does it have me do this adding every day when I know what to do, this is for kids who don't know. Yikes. It's in the cabinet. If, by chance you are very serious about wanting TGATB 2 or 3, message me.

I haven't finished reading but you are SO right. I did call about an eval and got a referral, so this ball is rolling. You are SO right, so far my only argument against meds has been "what if we could manage without" - literally I didn't even think of drug side effects, I was concerned about me feeling like a failure for not being able to alter the chemical makeup in my kid's CSF instead of thinking to weigh results of her on meds vs. side effects of her on meds. I can get them, and see how she does after a month. I'm a self centered fool, thanks for spelling it out that this isn't about my oppinions on meds. It's about her and results and trying every possible avenue. You are a saint. My husband has mostly been the one reluctant to seek professional help, likely because he doesnt want to admit it that there's a high chance that our kid's issues are a direct result of his families failures. Yikes.

Thank you for responding! We did the MWIA and she scored 19%, which I found interesting because her accuracy was great and until I did the calculations I assumed she was a-okay. I'm willing to dive in and give a month or so to strictly phonics instruction. You mentioned refraining from outside reading, could you elaborate for me what counts as outside reading? Should I just read her personal stories aloud to her, or do I need to also read all directions/instructions/etc. so the only interaction she has with words is within the phonics program? Second and final question, how much time should I spend daily with the diliberate reading off these word lists? I've looked at some of the materials you recommended (they are printing and others are shipping- I got them all!), and I have another Don Potter book and it was just text to be read. I'd like to know if you have a rough 20min/day or 15/2x a day or 5min/10x a day of reading from the nonsense lists you like to throw about as the right amount to work to. Thank you so much!! I'm all in a flutter, I feel like you're a celebrity. Sorry I don't mean to be weird. Thanks for all the good you invest in the world!

Thanks for responding, I'm reading through these now myself. I should clarify that I'm not actually a foster or adoptive parent. She's my neice who we took from my in laws to raise as ours when she was almost 5 due to their inadequate care. There's been no custody or social services, we just decided we could and would raise her, and that's been that. It's an uncommon situation, and figured foster or adopted parents would have similar struggles, but we are not either. If you don't mind me asking some questions about your choice to medicate. The ones you haven't bothered to, I'm assuming you think they could qualify for meds, but haven't bothered to persue that. Do they still struggle more than others in certain areas and how is that dealt with? Do you work within in, have you modified the behavior, do you think it's held them back in any way? I know those sound leading. My kid is unable to focus. I have to sit with her during every assignment, redirect and keep her on track. She can't do her independent work without me there to watch over her, like sit next to her or constantly make sure she's on task or else she makes careless errors, walks off distracted, and just... can't do her work in time. If I tell her its time to do xyz go do that, she will take 15 minutes to get the book and pencil, 20 to do it, and get half the answers wrong because she didn't read the directions carefully and oh look she forgot to write the last letter of her own name. That should have been a 10min thing, grading and all. So to help her, I will watch her get her supploes and guide her back when she drifts. And ask her if she read the directions, noticed this chart, noticed that she wrote d not b. I'm afriad she's growing too dependant on me to make sure she doesn't make careless mistakes and stays on task. She will fidget on her chair for 20+ minutes when given something to correct (like, hey you forgot a period in your essay) and when asked say she couldn't find it. She waits for me to show her. She's sweet and well behaved and I know she means well and is trying, just idk if medicating her would help her focus and thus help her to help herself, or if her issues are only a nuisance to me and minor hinderance to her in the grand scheme of things.

What resources have you used for nonsense words? I usually see just a lost of words but no plan. We did Phonics Pathways over the summer, but that doesn't have nonsense words - that's probably how she was able to do it all pretty easily.