I'm so sorry One Step. :(

I missed this earlier. One thing I do is have my son do 2 lectures + practice problems and only do the problem set for the second lesson of the day. This might depend on the grade level but in elementary school they will have similar types of problems in both lessons and definitely some from the previous lesson. If he starts getting more wrong I check to see if they are the same type of problem and make sure he understands those and maybe redo just those specific problems.

I actually read a study where it said the less someone knows about a situation the more confident they are. My life experience tells me the study was probably correct. The more you know the more complicated things become. I'm sorry. People are annoying.

Camps that are associated with a church or the Boy Scouts are mostly paid for through donations not camper fees. That is why they can be so cheap. I imagine a camp that has employees, taxes, insurance, buildings to maintain, animals, all the tools needed, and probably a commercial kitchen is going to need to get their money somewhere. If I was really set on it. I would ask Grandparents to chip in as his birthday present or something and tell child maybe if he earns half pet sitting, or scooping poop on lawns, or snow shoveling then we can try to make it work. My daughter's harp was saved for years. I opened her an account and anytime she got a $20 for birthday or Christmas or paid for cleaning someone's house etc. she put it in her account for that harp. I did end up paying for a lot of it after a couple years but she had a big chunk of change to assist.

Darn Tough socks at REI or other similar stores. I started buying them for myself because my heels are so bad I could only wear regular socks a couple times before they got holes. Darn Tough socks last me years. They have a lifetime warranty too.

Someone once was advertising a marriage weekend retreat/conference thing and my husband said a very simple yet insightful thing. He said, "I don't need to study marriage, I need to study you if I'm going to be a good husband" I think that applies to homeschooling children too. Philosophies and techniques and curriculum are nice to choose from but really I should spend the same time or actually way more studying my children, getting to know them as people, their likes and dislikes, their talents and struggles, how they take things I communicate to them.

People usually don't blog about their child if their child didn't do well under whatever method they were using. So you are comparing yourself to cherry picked examples and they probably blog on the successful things they are doing and ignoring the other stuff. I do use many unschooling principles and like many of their ideas but I think blogs of any type of homeschooling philosophy will run into the same problem. Trust me there are a ton of homeschooling kids out there from many types of homeschooling families who don't like to do schoolwork. I do think that if you start with a 6 year old you can do a short reading lesson daily and then ask what he wants to study whether it's geography, robots, a math game or whatever. It is ok to mix work with fun. It is also ok to let them have choices. In fact letting the older ones pick their subjects (as long as they get the 3 R's in somehow) is ok and might help their attitude. I do find screens addictive though so giving them specific screen times will encourage them not to just rush through their work to get to screen time.

Yes, and sometimes it is an unpleasant odor and sometimes its more like a certain perfume or something. It took a couple months for my current home to smell like ours. For a while it had an elderly smell. Which didn't seem to fit at all well because it didn't. Now I'm pretty sure the teen boy/ sweaty man smell has taken over. It's not an improvement but it's ours.

Jean- I'm sorry that you have to deal with that. I'm always so impressed with people who continue to work through the pain although I know the consequences of not are also pain. You have my respect. Safe areas to walk has been a huge issue I would like to work on in my own city. Why are all public areas for roads? Why do you have to be wealthy enough to drive to safely go anywhere in a city? There is much tension between people who think public through ways should be for cars only and those who think through ways should be for people in general cars plus pedestrians plus bikers etc. Why huge amounts of tax payer money should go to only one group is beyond me.

Our state has this. If a path or ATV route was already in place you can't suddenly block it off. It is "grandfathered" into place. There are particulars to the law but no need to get into that here. That wouldn't apply to camping though but the majority of our land is public anyway.

I lived on the border of Canada and we often visited Dawson and had Canadians work and live in the same camp as us. A Canadian family built our house while we camped with them for a few months for example. I can't help but think Dawson Canadians had more in common with the people they worked with and swapped stories with then they did with Canadians in Montreal but maybe you are right. Of course there is border towns like Hyder, Alaska where people just claim the American population is secretly Canadian. I remember chatting with a Canadian in a little town west of Prince George and he was asking me about the problems on the Mexican border and if they really were that bad and I had to respond with the fact that he had access to the same media as I did (in fact I often go to the BBC for news ) and lived a lot closer to the Mexican border than I did so maybe he could enlighten me. He had to chuckle at that. I also find Canadian words mixing with ours and I'm always saying "eh". But there is still a major American influence here especially in politics. UK is I'm going to assume, more cohesive due to geography. There probably aren't any places you fly to in the UK where you feel like you just flew into a third world country. Where you get off the plane and people live in housing that most people in the same country would find unacceptable, there aren't any paved roads or there are but you still can't drive out of town, milk is $10 a gallon, and you eat a lot of whale blubber. Lol So I'm having a hard time believing that bush Alaska is closer to Washington DC than the UK is just because it they are both "American". I have been reading the replies and what I see is how the UK is different from some specific place in America. I should probably just accept the fact that I'm an anomaly and not really an American.

I'm curious if the differences between the UK are really anymore dramatic then say the differences between Boston and Texas or Manhattan versus Alaska. I remember going to my first semi-formal business gathering. I wore a dress but didn't own a gown. Where I grew up semi formal meant Dad put on a flannel and jeans without grease stains and holes. We really only knew the term formal. We were teased by our friends (in a friendly way) and looked at funny by others. Fast forward to a recent business party here in Alaska. DH and I now know about formal, semi formal, cocktail, business attire etc. We go wearing the normal recommended for cities stuff and sat at a table with two guys in jeans and t-shirts. They actually had been traveling and hadn't planned to go but were told to come anyway because no one cares in Alaska and no one did. Though my mom's generation wore make-up almost no one I hang out with bothers with it. We are too busy with school, work, excercise, running a chainsaw, shooting, or canning an entire garden. Not everyone does all those things but most people do something like that or similar rather than shop or wear make-up or get a pedicure or whatever. Not that some people don't do those things also but it is not expected and most people I know don't. And you can get away with wearing rubber boots or snow boots with any outfit and no one cares. People are busy but they will stop and pull you out of a ditch. They mind their own business and it is hard to get to know people but often they'll offer to help if they see you need it or do something. They simply don't sit around and chat. I find life very different in the lower 48. I also noted big differences in the South West from Seattle. Parts of our country always wear shoes in the house and parts always take their shoes off at the door. Food is different, terms and slang are different. Many of the differences mentioned above only apply to some parts of the US other then which side of the road to drive on and Americans tend to drive everywhere although a few cities have better public transit.

I'm so sorry. :grouphug:

I don't know that the commercial is helpful or not. For many that need exercise getting to where those women were probably seems impossible. To a 50 year old woman in need of losing 60 lbs is that video encouraging or defeating? I think community is incredibly helpful. Having friends to go for a walk with or plan healthy meals or trading kids. I'll play with the kids on the playground while you jog and next time we'll switch. Having people encourage you and have respect for your getting out there rather than the nasty comments mentioned above. Yikes! Wish I could get a hold of those jerks. Having kids is tough but it is doable. I'd clean house double time. Honestly, scrubbing and running up and the down the stairs instead of walking IS exercise but it won't make you look like the people in the video. Push-ups, crunches, exercise videos, dancing with your baby (they love that), jumping jacks, etc are all doable and once they are able (about 2 years old) they will start copying you. We could never afford the gym until this year and it is a stretch. I'm trying to take the kids swimming as much as possible while we are members and hoping they learn before our contract is up because there is no way I'm paying again but why, why do you have to go to a gym? Honestly, that seems the most boring way to exercise ever although I realize many live in places they can't just hike, bike, ski, outside their door. But even the living room sounds better than the gym. Now health issues do make things hard. My heart goes out to those with issues that keep them from moving or are in constant pain if they do. That is an extra dose of toughness there. Having sidewalks instead of snow piled up from being plowed off the road so they have to drive everywhere. Not having open spaces in a city. Unsafe areas where you feel like you must be inside with the door locked. These are also difficulties and not really one that can be solved by a commercial.

I used two programs to help me get started as an adult but I'm thinking about letting my children use them along with something else and they are free so no harm in checking them out. One is a podcast- http://www.learnoutloud.com/Podcast-Directory/Languages/Spanish/Learn-to-Speak-Spanish-Podcast/30314 I just listened to the podcast. I didn't use the whole program. Secondly was spanishdict.com , they changed this a lot since I have used it but I found that it was doable and think it would be for maybe 6th grade and up if done at a reasonable pace. Also it is an adult forum and I never ran into anything questionable but depending on your child's internet savvy I don't know that I would let them use the question and answer forum etc. Anyway both were free, very easy to use in small amounts, etc so thought I would mention them though it's likely there are better things.

My son is in exactly the same place. 2 years high school Latin but really wants to take programming and multiple math classes and must continue on with his variety of English Communication courses, etc. so he doesn't want to continue Latin as it won't really help him reach his goal despite the fact he has leaned a lot from it. He has worked on it for four years and is translating so I wish he could get more credit for where he is at than just Latin 2 but I haven't figured out how. In looking at college after college I have found what GGardner stated. Though most will accept Latin for fulfilling the entrance requirement that leaves him with taking a "living language" at the college level when he gets there for requirement purposes. But every college is different which makes the search frustrating especially since every website is a hide and seek game for the specific info you are looking for. Often they will state that X number of foreign language credits are required but of course they don't mention Latin so it takes a little searching whether that even counts. If your son quits now he will forget a lot of Latin before then anyway so it is unlikely he would test out even if they gave that option.

He took Latin for high school credit, not college though he is translating and has covered most grammar because he started in 6th grade. So two high school credits is what we planned on for high school transcripts. My concern was ending up having to take a Foreign Language in college might be a bear for him if he didn't have some background and for what? It's not likely he'll be fluent and if he doesn't continue in some way to study it will likely forget it so it's frustrating to me. I can understand a BA degree requiring it but not necessarily every degree in the school. I guess rather than change plans we will just continue looking at more colleges and their requirements.

Hmmm. I like that the BraveWriter Classes are short. At least you won't feel like you lost a whole year if you find one that isn't great. You could take another short one with a different teacher.

My son will be 17 starting next year but he isn't a quick writer nor is he really proficient. His spelling and grammar aren't perfect but adequate or average at least. Getting words on a paper though is torture. I have paid for a private tutor but it may be time to have a class. I don't feel I personally have the skill set to break down writing for him and he needs to be prepared for college. Does anyone have specific class recommendations for a young man with great vocabulary, ok spelling and grammar but in need of remediation at the process of putting all his thoughts on paper and turning out an actual research paper or opinion essay (which is even more difficult then the research paper). I've looked at Potter's School but am worried it will leave him in the dust. I've looked at Write At Home but am unsure of the quality of their teaching. If there are specific classes or teacher's at either I would love to hear reviews.

Hate to disappoint but no there is always reevaluation even with something genetic like my brother's Down Syndrome. My step -mom just had to take him in for psych evaluation and fill out a ton of paperwork. He is 34 and has had the same Chromosomes since birth.

What I might try- I would constrain the flash card pile to these three flash cards just for a little while and train her to look for the differences. Lay out the three cards on the table and point out the differences. All the silent letters etc. should be marked in red. Go through them a few times specifically pointing at the h or apostrophe and say the word. I'd probably run my finger across the bottom and stop at the h or apostrophe pointing at it while I say the word. Then when you do "were" your finger will go all the way across without stopping. Once or twice after you point at each word and say them then have her say them WITH you 2 or 3 times using the same finger motion. I wouldn't have her read them by herself the first couple days although this is dependent on how difficult sight words are for your child. After a few days start by reading them with her and then have her read it by herself. When having her read the flash card by herself go ahead and point to the differences in the same manner as before to have her automate looking for the difference. Explaining the difference and automating it is different. When she is reading it will have to be automatic. I would take just a minute to do this before each lesson for a few days depending on your child. Once she says the wrong word she is practicing the wrong word and then the next time she will wonder which one was the right one so for awhile do it with her until you really think she has them down. Then move to you doing the finger motion for a day or two. Then move to her doing the motion and stopping her finger at the difference and reading it. It sounds like a lot but really you are looking at about 1 minute before each lesson and then do your regular lesson. Once she can do it by herself without you reminding her at least three times you can add them to your review pile. I also would add another game thing at the END of our quick lesson where I would rearrange the flash card and have them find "we're" or "where" then mix up the cards and find a different word. But this needs to be when she has had a lot of exposure. You don't want her guessing, you want her looking for the difference. Guessing will get rid of the automaticity you are looking for so only play something like that after she knows and will look for the right cue. Don't forget to review sometimes! They will go away unless she is reading them in books and seeing them all the time.

Up until recently the neighboring school district where my MIL worked used Spalding so definitely a strong phonics program in case you aren't familiar. They added in other things like Reader's Theater and sight word games but I think they did make changes recently.

Guest Hollow would be a good choice as would any "conceptual" physics with less math. I plan to use Paul G. Hewitt's Conceptual Physics for my math adverse daughter but there are others made for 9th graders.

When your kids outgrow the young ones. Limit yourself to a collectors or 10 of your all time favorites and dump the rest at that goodwill. Share the love for other families that want cheap books. Meanwhile keep collecting. Mine are logged so I know what I purchased or just remember from a catalog or the library. I'm getting rid of all my younger kids books except the super specials. Next to go will be elementary books. By the time I'm ready to downsize I hope my children will be settled in homes so they can come pick what they want and the rest will go to the "Friend's of the library" sale since they have given me 100's and 100's of books for 25 cents to $2.

Perhaps we need to just keep searching.