in the states where homeschool parents have to have teaching requirements, does one have to actually show them prove or how would they even know if one says the are qualified but really isn't, to their standards?

What is the difference between their standard edition and the U.S. edition? Thank you!:)

Thank you for your suggestion!:)

i'm looking for suggestions on a great book on world history. not a textbook, i prefer the living book approach. i want to keep it light and simple since it will be my first year of homeschooling and i want to mainly concentrate on the basics. i really just want to have something to read a chapter a day or something. it would be for 2/3rd grade and K/1st grade. thanks!:)

:iagree: that's a great way to look at it!

Yes, I was thinking of getting another one for dd this Christmas. Guess now I know which one to get :) I wanted to get Kirsten anyway though...

Thanks everyone for all the replies! I need some time to look through them:)

It's funny how this always seems to happen right before Christmas!:)

We are in Alaska right now, but we will be moving in less then 2 years and we are thinking about where we might want to go next. We are strongly considering Wa State or Oregon and I just wanted to see if anybody on here is from there and can tell me a little about it! How homeschool-friendly is it? Is there lots to do for families with young kids? How are the Winters? What's the cost of living like? and anything else that you'd like to share! Thank you!:)

Did you find that you could save money buying the books on your own?

If you are wanting a variety of manipulatives, then you might take a look at http://www.mcruffy.com/1M.htm#1ColorMath http://www.mcruffy.com/3M.htm http://www.mcruffy.com/HandsOnMath.htm Thanks for the links, I will check those out!:)

Thanks for your reply :) Which program did you do?

Next year, I will have a 3rd grader and a 1st grader and I would like to keep them together for history/science. Just wanted some opinions on American Story 1 and Animals and their Worlds by Winterpromise. How did you like it? Is it worth getting the IG? Did you do the same program for two children at once? If you decided to do AS1, what did you do for science? If you decided to do AatW, what did you do for history? Thank you! :)

I'm thinking ahead to next year when dd will be in 3rd and ds will be in 1st. (They are in ps right now) What kind of manipulatives do you use? Is there a kit that you would recommend? I'm not sure what program I will use yet. Thanks:)

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome! :) "Welcome!! As far as doctor appointments, I am fortunate that my dh can come home and work if I need him to watch the dc's." That would only work sometimes for me, because dh is army and he's deployed a lot. "I went to nursing school while homeschooling. Definitely a challenge at times, but we worked around it. What kind of schedule would you have for school? Most of my classes were evenings and weekends." I'm planning on starting with 2 online classes in the spring. I want to do as much as I can online and what can't be done online, either nights or weekends. My plan is to let the dc finish this school year in ps, so I can see how it will workout taking classes and taking care of my littlest one. "Welcome! Love your Screen name...my children always ask for rainbow sprinkles on their ice cream." Thanks! :) That's how I like my ice cream too...:) Thanks again for all your responses. I'm not sure if I did it right with the quotes, still learning :)

I have 3 children, ages 7,5 and almost 9 months. We don't actually homeschool yet, but I'm seriously considering it. I do afterschool them a little bit, but it's not on a everyday kind of basis.I do have a few questions and I hope that someone here will be able to help me out. My first concern is how do you take care of things like doctor appointments when you homeschool? Do you try to find a babysitter or do you take them with you? I'm planning on going back to school in January and I'm wondering how I can do it all: homeschool, baby and my classes, not to mention household chores and just everyday life. It seems a little overwhelming, and I guess I just need some reassurance from people who are also going to school themselves or have done that. I'm so glad I found this board and I'm looking forward to meet some of you on here! :)