I'll commiserate! We're testing dd9 for the first time this week. Our main goal is to get her used to taking standardized tests since I'm pretty sure that college is in her future. Testing isn't required by our state, but I'm also a bit interested in how she stacks up to everyone else. I know she's ahead in a lot of areas, but there are those gaps . . . Anyway, today went pretty well. Ice cream appeared after each test session, and there was no other school done. Her younger sisters got ice cream for playing quietly together and not bothering us. Two more days and we're done! Then there's the waiting for test results . . . If I were someone else, I'd chuckle at me and my nerves! Mama Anna

We use it for a fun supplement to MUS. Both dd9 and dd6 enjoy the narrative style. I wouldn't feel comfortable using the elementary series as a stand-alone curriculum, but the older books might possibly work if you're sure the kid is understanding things. (And, incidentally, the Bridges show that fairly well.) Mama Anna

Just to keep life interesting, here's another book rec for you: Cathy Duffy's 101 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum. It's available at my library - it may be at yours, too. Duffy takes you through various considerations as you're trying to figure out what you want to do: goals, philosophy, learning styles, actual time/involvement available from you as parent, etc. Once you've considered these things, she then gives curric. suggestions for each of the different variables, choosing from the 101 curric. that she considers to be "top." I don't want to knock TWTM - it's what really got me onboard with hsing back when dd9 was 3 and I use it constantly! But I wish every new hser could check out a copy of Top Picks to get oriented in the field of hs curriculum-choosing. Mama Anna

I like the bite-sized chunk idea. When dd9 starts taking over an hour on her 20 problems of math, I'll often send her outside to run around the cul-de-sac (let the fresh air flush out the brain-crud), and then start her doing 1 or 2 of her remaining problems at a time. In between, we shift modes and do other things; half her grammar, dictation, snack, another run, whatever. Of course, this might work partially because she's also stressed out about how much time it's taking her and really wants to try something that will help stuff move faster. She's very bright but complains of difficulty focusing. I let her go off by herself and ask her where she is in her work every 15 minutes or so in order to keep her accountable. I encourage her to read a problem aloud softly to herself to refocus herself. Sometimes it works for me to read the problem to her - somehow hearing it focuses things better. It's when all of these things fail or she's becoming emotionally overwrought that I start the small-bites-at-a-time technique. HTH! Mama Anna

I can't speak to possible dysgraphia, but my oldest was called double-jointed by her pediatrician (She likes to gross out adults by doing "first position" for ballet while turning her toes out so far that they actually point backward.) and her handwriting is pretty neat. Of course, she's also a little perfectionist and generally writes slowly enough to make sure it's that way. My dd6 is much less concerned about her handwriting. She's sloppy as all get-out in her exercise book, but she'll be careful when she's writing a letter. For her, she just doesn't see the need for neat handwriting unless someone is going to read it. Once I figured this tendency out I lowered my expectations for neatness in her exercise book, but still ask her to do obviously dreadful letters over again. Most copywork, correspondence, or spelling exercises must be better, though. She has asked to start cursive now, though it was originally slated for half-way through next year. I'm moving her into it. If she can't keep it neat, she'll lose it, though. :D HTH! Mama Anna

:blushing: Thanks all! Mama Anna

The one where I ended up running the 5K because I'd hurt my knee - remember? Well, I just finished the half marathon today. My first! :D Mama Anna

I'm just getting into this with dd9. Her reading level is high, and she's the eldest so she constantly asks to read adult-level books. (She's into the "I'm a grown-up/I'm a child" struggle right now!) I struggle with it constantly because I don't want to expose her to a lot of sludge, but on the other hand she's thirsty for deeper topics. I tend to encourage her to look for older books (she's caught my love of the old, musty library books) from an era when themes didn't have to be couched in racy plots to catch a reader's attention. I've also let her read some more-difficult-to-deal-with stuff and then discuss it with me. Her time for being interested in Twilight and Hunger Games will come, and we'll see about how I judge her readiness when they do. For me, it's not just about protecting her from exposure to worldly things. Given the fact that I'm mortal and will die (likely before she does), I can't protect her from the world all her life. But there's a rawness, an ugliness in a lot of literature that I don't really want her coming into contact with until she's older, when hopefully she can judge it for herself. Can a 14-year-old handle such things? I don't know. It depends on the 14-year-old. I just know that dd9 is still pretty tender when it comes to the cruelty of humankind and there are lots of books that would stun her so thoroughly that she wouldn't take much else in. This means that I have to find a way to gently introduce such things to her before allowing her to plunge into them. (Not one of my favorite things to do, but studying 20th Century history this year is sure helping in that . . .) My suggestion would be to make sure when you tell your dd "I'm not comfortable with you reading that book" that you can give yourself a clear answer as to why. Then give it to her. If she's 14 years old, then she's likely to be on her own within the next 6. Are you helping her build a good method by which to judge which books are edifying (although the material may be difficult to deal with) versus books that are only meant to titillate or shock? It's not an easy task, and each of us probably go about it differently. But as we train these dc to be adults, we have to give them the tools to make wise (for my household, the term is "Godly") choices for themselves. From my Christian perspective, it's not about raising my dd up in my image ("You musn't like this because I don't like it!") but about guiding her to strive for the image of Christ. Does that make sense? HTH! Mama Anna

LOL!

:bigear: We're at this place, too! Mama Anna

I would third (?) Spelling Power. I use it more flexibly than the author intended, I think, but it works for us. The multiple learning styles,etc, come in with the study guide and activities. I have a couple of bones with the program that I regularly sigh over, and it does mean face time with each kid as they use it (a 5 minute test each day per kid), but once you have bought the book (it's non-consummable so you can usually find it used) and understand the set-up (plan on spending several hours for introducing yourself to it), planning is pretty routine and implementation is smooth. There's the added perk that it includes a section on editing for older kids as well. HTH! Mama Anna

We've used OPGTR twice now. I like the scripting and the thoroughness, as well as the fact that it takes them so far. (I've not used other programs so I don't know how it compares to other in that way. The final lessons practice sounding out 5- and 6- syllable words, etc. There are a couple tough spots where the program seems jump forward a bit and it can take a bit for the kid to catch up, but that's my only concern with it. It is not colorful or pretty, though. HTH! Mama Anna

I can answer the first part of your question but not the second. I use the Student and Teacher Texts only. I don't really use the instructional info in the Teacher's text, just have it as an answer key. I'm not sure about crossing over from FLL4 to R&S5, but dd9 was able to cross over from FLL2 to R&S3 all those years ago and be fine. I've noticed that within each section R&S tends to review previous concepts as a lot of grammar programs do. You might want to buy R&S 6 to take a look at it and then save it for next year if it won't work now. HTH! Mama Anna

Well, there's no subject, for one thing. Who is doing the sharing? Mama Anna

And here I was hoping dd9 would be growing out of this stage soon! <sigh of resignation> Mama Anna

I just wanted to suggested being okay with stalling her in her lessons until she's learned her facts. We use MUS, and I've had to stall each dd where the facts begin to pile up in order to review until they've got them. It's waaaaay to frustrating otherwise. We've used Learning Wrap-ups and copy-work, skip-counting and hand-jive rhythms. Whatever works! Mama Anna

There are things I just can't seem to share elsewhere because no one would understand . . . so I bring them here where I figure you all will appreciate them! Dd9 and I were working on her Latin lesson today. Dd6 was in the next room creating something out of fabric and popsicle sticks. Suddenly, her monotonous chant pierced our consciousness and we realized what she was repeating to herself: "ow, ouch, ow; ouchis, ouchus, ounch." I never did figure out how she hurt herself . . . :lol: Mama Anna

I've got a couple criticisms. I'm using FLL 1/2 for the second time and I'm happy with it, but there are a couple things that don't fit us perfectly. I like that it's a gentle introduction. However, my dc are able to sing back the definition of a verb to me (no, the tune isn't in the book, it's just the product of a music-major mom) within about 1 1/2 lessons. They don't really need to review it 4-5 more times before moving on to something else. There are lessons in there that I feel perfectly okay with mostly skipping due to the repetition. The lesson length is not consistent. You'll have an (understandably) short lesson on "brief" very close to a loooooong one that focuses on finding action verbs in a paragraph. You need to look ahead to know how much time to allow. The full scripting of the lessons can be a help or an annoyance depending on how comfortable I feel with a certain concept. But since I can always depart from it without consequences, I can deal with that! :) The copywork exercises, introduced by the second half of the first year, seem very simplistic to me. But then, again, that's part of the gentleness. I will say that in spite of the gentleness of its approach, dd-now-9 learned her stuff well when she went through it. So, there you have the parts of this program that I don't like - while I do like the program overall! HTH! Mama Anna

I second SOTW's Activity Guide, for both the coloring pages and the projects. (And the mapwork, for that matter!) Do you need a phonics program or something to help her practice her oral reading? We've gone along with WTM's suggestions and used OPGTR for Phonics and McGuffy's Eclectic Readers for oral reading. I don't know if you're interested or not, but if you want a wacky way to supplement your math you could always check out Life of Fred Elementary. It's sort of expensive as an entire set, but the books are totally non-consumable and your youngers would be able to enjoy them in their turn. That's my 2 cents! (Have fun - this is one of my favorite parts of homeschooling!) Mama Anna

For anyone else who's interested, I just found that Rosetta Stone http://www.rosettastone.com/ is having a sale through the end of March. Just FYI!! Mama Anna

Good point - thanks, WendyK! I'm not really having visions of dd ending up on the stage as a professional. I want her to be able to express herself musically in her own way (differently from her sisters) and maybe feel comfortable playing in a church-like atmosphere. However, my personality is such that I don't like to start a project if I don't think I'll be able to finish it "properly" (whatever that may mean) and I prefer to plan things out so that they can be finished "properly." Homeschooling hasn't taken it all out of me yet, but I'm gettin' better! :) I just want to make sure we're not going to go to be gamboling along happily only to be blind-sided by some huge unexpected cost (like a moderate quality, full-sized instrument, I guess). Again, I appreciate all the responses! Mama Anna

Dd6 has just begun the LoF Elementary series. We came across the chapter on Archimedes and the vigintillion grains of sand this morning. The text refers to Archimedes' work as The Sand Reckoner. Dd6 asked what "Reckoner" meant. I told her that "reckoning" means figuring out or adding up. She looked at me and said, "You mean, Archimedes was a Sand Adder?" <chuckle> It makes perfect sense! No, she didn't know that an adder is a type of snake. She does now. Mama Anna

Wow!! I really appreciate all your replies and help! I'm especially glad to know about the less-obvious costs that might come up in the future - we'll have to seriously consider as to whether or not we can afford this. It's amazing how one simple decision can enter you into an entirely new world with new vocabulary, new aspirations, technical knowledge, a new budget, etc. Thanks again! Mama Anna

Dd6 wants to learn violin. I know a great teacher (don't know her fees, though) and have access to a student-level instrument, probably of the correct size. Dh and I both have music degrees and he's been teaching dd6 piano for a couple years now, so it's not as if we have no clue. However, I was a band geek/vocalist growing up and I have very little experience with strings. What is a typical lesson fee in your area? How long before a kid needs to move up to the next size instrument? How often to you need to replace stuff like strings or the bow horse-hair? What would typical costs be? What different styles of teaching are out there? (I've heard of Suzuki, but not others by name.) How much do the books tend to cost? I know this is dependent on skill, but how long does it generally take for a beginner to be somewhat "musical" - in other words, play well enough to be pleased with what they hear instead of just doing training exercises? Any other "head's up" I should be aware of? Thanks!! Mama Anna

I'll put in my 2 cents, not because I've got any highschoolers, but just because curriculum-shopping has taken over my life for the past 4 weeks or so. As it does this time every year. :) I'd suggest trying to lower the Chemistry cost. I know that any lab kit is going to be pricey, but if you try for a combining a couple of partially used sets (which would require you to research the contents of each and ask specific questions about what is still there), you could be surprised at how much less you'll spend. Also, whatever text is used will most likely be available separately due being the non-consumable part of the entire kit. Here's what I do. (Note: I follow WTM fairly closely, so I use that heavily in my research.) First, I figure out what specific books/kits I need. I record the MSRP for each one, and then research it (new) on Amazon and Rainbow Resource Center websites. If possible, I base my budget on this second total. (It makes me feel so much better about the large number when I realize how much lower it is than MSRP.) After a discussion with dh where I run the curriculum and numbers by him, explaining why I want to get full sets or an especially expensive lab kit, I got to work. Because I know exactly what I'm looking for and exactly what I'll have to pay for it new on Amazon or RRC, I can tell at a glance whether a used price is too high. I look for stuff on Amazon (really good for used texts, I've found), Ebay (you can save your searches to easily do them over and over again), and here on the classifieds. Note: remember to look at the shipping cost when deciding whether to snap up a "deal" or not. Inexpensive items are the hardest to save money on because the inevitable shipping eats up your potential savings. Then I just try to check each site for my items each day. Ebay is the easiest because of the saved searches. You want to be careful about used workbooks, though - sometimes the person entering in the item doesn't do more than a cursory look and you find yourself with a lot of answers to erase. Any money I manage to save from the budget (which doesn't initially cover school supplies, etc.) is mine to play with for more art supplies, more history stuff, extra science, or just a really nice electric pencil sharpener or something. Or, whatever I realize I completely forgot in the midst of my curriculum choosing. In the midst of all of this, I have to be ready to flex for a different curriculum if I find a huge price difference and can rationalize the different coverage/learning style/whatever that didn't make me choose it in the first place. I admit, I'm somewhat compulsive about this. (No, really? :) ) But I take until our local HS conference (and the curriculum fair, one of my favorite places in the world) to shop and then buy my leftovers at RRC with free shipping. Except for the odd kits that they don't offer and I have to buy online. Does that help? Mama Anna