There might be other places that have it but it's free on Archive.org https://archive.org/details/handbookofnature002506mbp/page/30/mode/2up

The book is written by Anna Botsford Comstock and is likely to be a free download online because it's fairly old. You don't need it to do ENWC Lynn has re-written the introductions to make it simpler (also only chosen parts of the book) as well as adding in Art work for picture study, a poetry piece and a book list each week alongside some crafts. IMO it's more targeted towards those with young students or new home schoolers who aren't used to building a unit study themselves. I bought and did ENWC and used it for a while before I bought the book, ENWC is a year long study which some will use every year although I think for many it might be a bit repetitive. If you use the book it will give you years of fresh subjects to study and allows you pick the topics that most appeal to your family and your local environment.

The handbook of Nature study is the book Exploring nature with children is based on. It's a big intimidating toom of a book but a fantastic resource if you just look at the topic you are studying. The teacher is suppose to read the book informing themselves of the topic so they can facilitate the learning. At the end of each topic it gives a method such as observe a goldfish during fish studies then a list of observations which are usually questions or activities for the children like How many fins has the fish? Make a sketch of the goldfish with all it's fins and name them. It goes into more depth later asking why they have a dorsal fin and how does it help move through water. Once I bought that book and coupled it with Cindy Rollins suggested method of Nature study (go on regular nature walks but do the Nature notebook part at home during morning time with the kids copying pictures from books whilst she read) I realised I would never buy a Nature study curriculum again.

I have loved Classical literature ever since I was a child. I really hated Pinocchio it's a horrible story and I'm not one to shy away from the non-Disney versions of fairy tales and the like but I just can't bring myself to read it to children. However I heard a talk Andrew Pudewa gave talking about his son's reaction to reading it and now I want to go back and read it with fresh adult eyes. My favourite books from that time that I read over and over again were Edith Nesbit's Psammead series, the Narnia books, Black Beauty and What Katy did. I didn't come from a bookish family so I was limited to what I could find without the guidance of my parents, I wish I had known about Little Women and The Hobbit those are two books that I would have loved as a child. I also read plenty of the Babysitters club 😆

We are rather eclectic but I do like using curriculum and having a bit of a simple plan that keeps us on track. Maths Reflecting on last years maths and all the various curriculums we have tried over these last few years my choices are Rod and Staff 2 mostly the Teacher manual and drilling alongside Math Mammoth 2 A & B. ELA I am still pondering this, reading is only just taking off. Once we have finished with MP FSR E and Storytime treasures I think we will move on in a different direction. At the moment it's looking like CLE 1st Grade ELA might be a good option to help practice and review phonics without being too tedious for her alongside OPGTR if more reinforcement is needed. Later on I will add in Rod and Staff Spelling 2 and FLL 2 and WWE 1. My main priority is practicing lots of reading together and work on handwriting with Draw.Write.Now. History For Spines SOTW Vol2 and Our Island story which I will read aloud and she will narrate. Science BFSU (taught by me at co-op) and some unit studies based on her own interests. Geography Work on drawing the world and learning the flags of the world.

We have done some Montessori Maths mostly 0-6. I would strongly recommend investing in the Albums before buying the Materials then buying the Materials as you need them. There is a sequence to the way the materials are introduced and not all are suppose to be on the shelves straight away. A lot of materials can be DIY but there are some that you really need to buy like the Beads. I am UK Absorbent Minds has a really wide range of products otherwise Facebook selling pages. Montessori Research and Development are really well respected with clear instructions and ship to the UK and they have recently started making some of their albums available online at a fraction of the cost to ship them. Montessori Research and Development | Montessori RD There is also an Online Montessori school called Guidepost that do online classes in European time zones. They do send some materials out that you DIY and the online teacher guides the child with the materials. In regards to Hopping around in Rightstart and Shiller IMO its mimicking how kids in a Montessori classroom will explore the maths materials it just doesn't work out as well in book format because it's not working to the child's own natural exploration.

I didn't know the English curriculum comes with extra worksheets I will look into them. I managed to get the English 2 TM used (a rare find in the UK) my approach is the same as yours to do it orally or on the white board, picking a few pieces out for my daughter to writing portion. Thank you so much for this I had been pondering going with this approach next year with my math able kid. My plan is to buy the TM and use orally then add in Math Mammoth. @Ellie thank you Ellie I will order the Blackline masters too. The 1000 book sounds similar to the Montessori number roll that I was thinking of doing.

I used the new 1st Grade maths this year I was impressed with it's a really solid program. For me the strongest component was the Teachers manual I found if I stuck to the TM it really reinforced the learning and if I needed to cut the lesson down a bit I would stick to the TM and the loose worksheets. When I bought it from MP, I didn't pick up on the fact it came with 950 loose worksheets 😯 but I much prefer them to the workbooks and useful if your student needs to be stretched more.

Yes very dry. We have enjoyed the books (although I feel we got just as much out of the Evan Moor Art book) but if the reason for buying them is the DVDs I would suggest finding another program.

We have the newer versions of K-3. I haven't been impressed with the DVDs (especially when I had to buy a DVD player!) so we just use the books.

Closed, I'm British most people I know keep it closed. We live on a narrow country lane in an old Weavers cottage our loo is directly in front of the bathroom door, opposite that door is my daughters bedroom which has an old window you can clearly see right through. She once left her bedroom door wide opened and walked into the bathroom when I was on the loo. My neighbours walking their dog were kind enough to pretend they didn't notice me but we all the know truth. So we have a keep the bathroom door closed, knock before entering unless you know where everyone is at, and Ideally if you aren't going to knock please at least lower your bedroom blind...

I am a leftie with a leftie, the faster you can move your student towards cursive the better. I clearly remember the relief when I learned cursive as a 10 year old writing suddenly became much easier and neater. I like the Stabilo triangle pencils too, they also do a half sized pencil for smaller hands.

I don't have any experience of 4th grade maths but your description of games and activities with fewer worksheets made me think of Moving Beyond the page. You can buy their maths units as individual online units (I just cut and paste them into a word document then print them out) for $7.50. Each unit finishes with a fun hands on project like make your own board game or make a museum display. I like to pair our MBTP units with Math Mammoth for extra practice.

I was just wondering if they were traveling by camper van/caravan? In the last few days the rules regarding the CalMac ferries and caravans were changed, they need to book their spot ahead they are no longer allowing Caravans to sit in the stand by lane and chance a spot. This is to allow islanders to get on and off the island with more ease due to the huge increase in caravanning. By October with all the UK schools back it shouldn't be so busy but its worth them knowing ahead of time.

What about something like Letters from afar subscription? or an art instruction book that you can work through together?