We use Spelling Power, which has you test the kid at the beginning of each year to find their spelling level. When they test out of the top level, they're done! From Public School, I have vague recollections of doing spelling/vocab in at least the first two years of high school. I used to challenge myself to make a story out of the friday tests . . . anything to keep back the boredom . . . :) HTH! Mama Anna

I don't know if this is what you're looking for, but dd6 and I go over math facts while doing hand-jive. We used to do phonics laying on the floor, sometimes with her laying on my back and looking over my shoulder at the book. Or she'd sit on my feet (while I was laying on my stomach) and balance or play while answering review questions. She sits most quietly (Notice, I didn't say she ever sits quietly :)) in church when drawing or sitting on my lap. I still pick her up for the times of singing. (That won't be possible much longer, despite my upper-body strength training!) She likes to lean her forehead against my jaw while I'm singing, and I figure she's more likely to learn the words that way than just as her eyes happen to flit over them as she's gazing around the sanctuary. Her fine motor skills are amazing to me for her age. She also has a pretty good ability to judge spatial distances - she has cut out and sewn a dress by herself (without using any type of pattern) that just about fit - with the exception of any "ease" for movement. I could be wrong, but it seems that cuddling while she learns often helps her focus better. At least at this age! Mama Anna

For us, we don't do sleepovers. Dd9 had a friend over several years ago for a sleepover (the girl's parents needed to be out of town for a night and g-parents were too far away) and it was a bad experience from my perspective. They were too young and sleep didn't happen very soon. Since then, I've read too much about abuse and (since we don't seem to live around one set of people for more than about 3 years at a time) have decided that it's just not a good idea. Dh is onboard with the decision. We did make an exception with dd's friend (same as above) when she visited last summer. We hadn't seen her for a year and it was dd's birthday, so I let my olders and her sleep in a tent in the backyard. They got to hang out by themselves until 10pm or so (about 1 1/2 hours later than usual bedtime) when it became fully dark, then I came out and stayed in the tent with them. That worked well and seemed to be an unusual enough circumstance that it was an okay exception to the rule in my dc's minds. I still get asked, "Mama, can we . . .?" from time to time and I generally say, "I'm sorry but that won't be possible." If other kids (as in their friends) are really harping on it, we avoid them for awhile. My girls won't be sleeping at someone else's house without me for the foreseeable future. One set (maybe both sets) of grandparents excepted. Mama Anna PS: I grew up w/out sleepovers. My mom said that she didn't like the next-day-zombie. I begged her into letting me go to one when I was about 11 or so. I was sorry - the other girls (it was a large one) weren't friendly, thoughtful, kind, nor anything else I really wanted to be around - and the group mentality was very present. I figured after that that I hadn't really missed anything.

Just wondering - does she actually want to do school? I, just this morning, had a set-to with dd3 wherein she threw a fit about putting her bowl in the sink after breakfast. After we dealt with all of that, she and I had a heart-to-heart talk about how a big girl helps around the house and does her part (and gets to do school, which dd3 loves) while a baby just has to be served all the time and goes to take a nap during a good part of our school-day morning. Dd3 is doing well as a big girl right now. I don't know that this helps at all - I'm talking about a 3-year-old and you're talking about a 5-year-old - but if she's just not personally ready yet for the rigors of a K program (such as they are), maybe scaling how you treat her down to the age she's acting might help her realize the benefits of acting her age. Or maybe you'll realize that she simply acts younger than her age and needs a little more time before she gets into school. Belligerence is hard for me to deal with in school-work. If I let a dd slack I feel like I'm being irresponsible as a teacher. Yet, if I hold her nose to the grindstone while she's kicking and screaming, I fear I'm instilling a dread of learning in her. I've never dealt with it in K, but in the older grades I've sat the dd down at a calm point in the day and tried to get her opinion of why she's not happy with a particular subject. Then I have an idea of what to change and she gets some input into the learning process. But then, it's never gotten quite as bad as what you're describing. What curriculum are you using? Mama Anna

Dd6 does FLL 3x/wk. Dd9 is does R&S5 4-5x/wk, but we take two days to cover most lessons that have writing in them so we only get about 8 lessons done in two weeks. She's starting to get into the tougher, pickier grammar and I like to be able to give her a day off every once in awhile. HTH! Mama Anna

Again, I don't know if this will help, but I just usually remind my girls of the rule when they make a mistake while reading aloud (we're into McGuffy's 3rd reader now with dd6, whence she reads daily portions) and then go on. I considered OPGTR to lay the groundwork by introducing the rules. We never memorized them by rote. If the child needed it such a practice might come in handy, though. Mama Anna

I'm not sure I'm reading your post right, but it sounds like your dd is doing very well with reading. I've used OPGTR with my oldest two now, and we've gone through the whole thing with each for different reasons. For dd-now-9 it was just to make sure all the holes were plugged. I think the only lesson in the whole book that she really needed was the one about soft c and g vs. the hard sounds. Dd-now-6 needed the whole book in order to have a step-by-step progression towards confidence in reading multi-syllable words. If your dd is having no problem and you're impatient to finish the book, one possibility is to do more than one lesson per day. As long as it's not too much for the child, there's no reason you have to plod through. HTH! Mama Anna

I haven't read all the replies, but I often feel sort of . . . like I'm not quite fitting in. Of course, I'm used to that because I've never really fit in all my life. This is the way I look at homeschooling (Your POV may be different, and that's fine - this is just what I've worked out in my own mind.): All homeschoolers are on the fringes because the "norm" in our country is public education. In some locations, the fringes are pretty long and their practices are rather widely accepted - these are places where homeschooling is common and doesn't raise very many eyebrows. There are even small pockets of culture where parents are negatively judged because they're not homeschooling - but these pockets themselves tend to be on the fringes of the society as a whole. Those of us who are "fringe people" tend to like to do things our own way and often find that we're on the fringes in more than one way - maybe our diet of choice is unusual or our worldview differs from the "norm" - but we're weird in a couple different ways. (Or more.) This means that I, in my weirdness, am probably not exactly like you in your weirdness - whether or not we can accept each other will depend on how important to each of us our differing weirdnesses are. In my mind, that goes straight back to how accepting of differences in others each of us can individually be, whether it's because of homeschooling, spiritual beliefs, political views, or whatever. Personally, I'd love to find someone whose homeschool priorities are the same as mine, with whom I can discuss curriculum until I'm blue in the face and who will actually sharpen me in my pursuit of educating my dds well. It's been almost 6 years and I'm still looking, but hope springs eternal! :) Mama Anna

I can't give a review of many globes, but I will specifically not recommend the plastic National Geographic globes. We spent about $85 or so on one about 6 years ago and I was very disappointed in the construction. The meridian and base were made of plastic and fitted the globe in such a way that the meridian was always under stress. One of the girls dropped it 18 inches onto thick carpet and it snapped. Later, the tape around the equator came loose and the whole thing popped apart. It's sitting over there on our piano with Scotch tape around it's middle, sort of dangling half off a meridian mended with a couple pieces of an old Indiana license plate and some small bolts. I heartily despise it. The map on it is wonderful but the construction is execrable. :rant: Thanks for letting me share. :) Mama Anna

I have three kids whose ages cover some of the same spread as the ages of yours. We've schooled from the beginning - which was pretty early for our oldest - and it's gotten harder as we've added more kids into the mix. I'm not ahead of you, so I can't give you an idea of what your kids "will be like" based on mine, but I want to point out that (in my experience, at least) schooling with a 2-year-old is the hardest time. Happily, it doesn't last more than a year or so. :) As your kids get older, they can work more independently and things will likely morph into something less difficult. Hang on!

FWIW, dd2 is presently doing first and here is our curric: Math: MUS Alpha, Learning Wrap-ups (+ and -) LA: Zaner-Bloser Handwriting; FLL with copywork (we used WWE 1 copywork suggestions until it showed up in FLL); OPGTR at first, moving to McGuffy's 2nd and 3rd Eclectic Readers; Spelling Power; various memory pieces Hist: SOTW 4, State History, and US States and Capitals (all with dd1) Science: WTM-style biology Art/Music Appreciation: Bellerophon Coloring books of Great Composers, library resources Art: Drawing with Children We wouldn't be doing quite so much if she was the oldest child. Mama Anna

We talked about being done all through my last pregnancy. I never dreamed of a large family growing up - for crying out loud, I never expected to have a husband, much less children! So my circumstances are probably a lot different than yours. It came down to 1) I struggle with depression while pregnant and caring for a newborn. This means Monster Mama comes out for about 13 months every pregnancy. Bad. The more babies I have, the more people have to deal with it. 2) Back when we got married, we decided we'd be done by age 35. That decision wavered and loosened, but it was convenient to remember. :) 3) Our financial situation is hard and not likely to get better soon. The more mouths we have to feed, the more stress gets put on dh's shoulders and that's bad for other reasons. 4) Dh didn't want to see me go through another miscarriage. Do I regret it? Occasionally. Babies are cute after all, and there's not much else that beats having one snuggle into your neck. But then, my favorite age seems to be older elementary, so I'm not one who adores a baby. I'm glad we had dd3. But if we'd stayed on our normal schedule I would now be changing diapers on a 2-3 month-old and figuring out how to fit four children and two adults legally in a Ford Escort. I'd be not sleeping through the night, unable to exercise to keep my mood up, and never able to handle the stressful semester this has been anyway for dh. I'm cool missing that right now. Will I regret it? Probably, at times. But there are so many other things that I regret a ton of a lot that this one will likely not be huge in comparison. If that makes sense. FWIW! :grouphug: for whatever you decide. Mama Anna

DH is presently working on a PhD. For us, it's a long road - he started his second Master's in 2007 and probably won't finish this degree until 2015 or so. The Downsides: We're poor. We live in student housing. If we had any debt, finances would be impossible, even with the small amount of help we're getting from extended family. I'm working a very small amount on the side while being a SAHM and homeschooler. "Dates" - as in, meals away from home - happen about twice a year. (We don't live near any family at all.) Dh often feels as if he's not really gotten anywhere in life because he's still in school at his age. It can be really depressing to fill out a Medicaid form and list 3 Master's Degrees (I have one, too) in the household with such a low income. The Upsides: We're poor. We can't buy stuff, so we learn how to make stuff, fix it, and do without it. We live in student housing, on a very family-friendly campus that has way more green space than any place we could reasonably afford. The kids can be out of my sight outside and I still feel safe about them as long as they're following the rules. Its a safe, fairly secluded neighborhood. Because of our lack of debt, dh can work less than full-time and we get along. This gives him an amount of flexibility that has been great for our dc. He can't always drop everything, but studying at home means he's here for most meals and can take a break to appreciate special stuff we're doing. A couple of things to consider: Moving close to grandparents for several years (as long as you get along well with them) could be a wonderful experience for your kids that they'll always appreciate. Do make sure that if you'll accumulate debt with this, that you'll have sure employment to clear it later. One thing that I'd recommend that we did: Make a priority list so you know where the JD fits in. If things get hard, what goes first? For example, which is more important, homeschooling or the degree? It helps to not make emotional decisions in the midst of the "I can't take this anymore!!!!" stress that seems to come around every once in a while. HTH! Mama Anna

I know around here people get deliveries by Schwann's (you can google it) from relatives who want to help them out. I don't know that it's ready to eat, but I think it's at least ready to throw in the oven. HTH! (It's great that you want to help her out!!) Mama Anna

We sort of are. Dd9 is officially in 4th grade, but she's ahead in several areas and one of them is science. So she's doing 5th grade science, WTM-style. I tried to follow the directions. She and I together picked out enough of the suggested project kits from the book to more than cover a 34-week year, according to how many weeks WTM says you're likely to spend on each kit. Then I plotted them through the year on our master schedule so that things would work pretty well together. (Making sure that I left time for seeds to germinate, etc.) We spend two hours a week on science. On Tuesday, she'll do one or more experiments, plant seeds, do whatever, and then write it up like she's done before on one or more experiment page(s). Then, on Thursday, I ask her to write a one-page report on something specific having to do with Tuesday's experiment. For example, last Tuesday she spent an hour dissecting an owl pellet. (Clean-up from that was interesting!) On Thursday, I gave her a couple books and told her to go figure out about the feeding habits of barn owls and write them up. I still get the books out for her in advance. It seems to work pretty well, but there's not a ton of continuity in it. Still, the goal is to give her hands-on science experience and a solid understanding of the scientific method. I think it's working, so far. She enjoys it! HTH! Mama Anna

Haven't read responses, but here's my system: We do laundry twice a week. That means that we need to go 3 - 4 days between washes. I'm generous :) - I make sure that each girl has 5 bottoms and 6 tops for everyday. (A play dress, while rare in our clothing pool, counts as one of each.) I try for 6 pairs of socks and underwear each, and at least one Sunday dress. If I have time, I'll sew a second Sunday outfit. Each have 2-3 sets of pajamas (depending on where they are with potty-training). Ideally, each dd has one pair of Sunday shoes, one pair of "tennis" shoes, and a pair of boots or flip-flops, depending on the season. They each need a jacket or a coat, depending on the season. I try for a snow-suit each in winter. Anything above this quota is gravy and has to have space found for it before I give into the pleading. I do a clothes-switch in spring and fall. Their storage space in the bedroom is one dresser drawer in their shared chest of drawers, with dresses hanging up in the closet. Dd9 is now hanging her jeans in the closet as well because she's wearing size 12 and they take up too much space in her drawer. I've wondered if this is too little because they do end up wearing the same things over and over and over again. But then, since they're usually at home it doesn't matter so much. If they were ps kids, I think I'd try for more. HTH! Mama Anna

Yeah, when I don't have my husband's tastebuds to impress, things go downhill. Maybe that will change, though. He's not often gone, and usually only for 1-2 nights. But he's looking at a 3 week mission trip sometime in the next year and I'd better plan carefully for that! Take-out is not an option for us and I don't want to go back on the Mac-n-cheese 7 nights/week that I ate in college when I was on my own. <blush> Mama Anna

I vote for second opinion, too. I took up one of those spiffy, new, "brighten your smile" places on a "free" cleaning (if you pay for the digital x-rays or something) before we had dental insurance. I was told that two of my fillings need to be replaced and I need a root canal and two crowns. To the tune of about $2500.00. When I mentioned that there was no way I could afford that and asked what the lowest-cost damage control was, I was told that there were payment plans available so I wouldn't have to pay anything up front but could pay it off over a couple of years. (As if our financial situation is at all likely to significantly improve over the next 3-4 years!) We had an opportunity to get low-cost dental insurance and I went to a dentist recommended by a friend. He does stuff the low-tech way: old-fashioned x-rays, no dental hygienist (he does the cleanings himself), etc. He worked things over, tapped here and there, asked if I was having any pain (I wasn't) and stated that things looked good for the foreseeable future. My lesson learned was that those sparkly, new, high-tech places have to find some way to pay for all their sparkly, new, high-tech-ness. My smile might truly be brighter after they finished with it - but I have better places to put my money right now than in a brighter smile. Hope this helps. (The vent relieved my mind a little . . . :)) Mama Anna

Pistou!! (It's a veggie soup.) Ingredients: 2 zucchini, diced 2 small potatoes, diced 1 onion, chopped 2 carrots, peeled and diced 1 can of tomatoes 5 c. chicken stock 1 c. green beans, cut into 1/2" pieces 1 c. small pasta shapes 4-6 T. pesto 1 T tomato paste Salt and pepper Grated Parmesan, to serve Place the zucchini, potatoes, onion, carrots, and tomatoes in a large pan. Add the stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the green beans and pasta. Cook for 10 minutes longer, until the pasta is tender. Adjust the seasoning. Ladle the soup into individual bowls. Stir together the pesto and tomato paste. Stir a spoonful into each bowl. Sprinkle in the Parmesan cheese. It's very rich, but soooooo good! HTH! Mama Anna

I don't know that dd6 is average. She's a later reader than her older sister, but she's just starting to get interested in Magic Tree House books now. Her reading aloud is generally a little laborsome and monotone. She spent most of last year belly-aching about reading until I brought home some new books that were "hers" - the McGuffy's Eclectic Readers. She went through the Primer under her own power and on her own time and has begun to enjoy stuff more since. She still prefers me to read picture books to her, though. Mama Anna

I managed to avoid Disney princesses for the first two dd. They got past me with the third. I have some objections to the movies - lack of respect toward parents, specific scary parts that still give my dd6 nightmares, totally unreal representation of "true love," merciless slashing of original tales, etc. However, my real objection is the commercialization. It makes me feel like my wallet is being manipulated through my dd by some unknown product designer, putting me on the defensive through most stores. I've heard people pull some good stuff out of them, and I understand why they're revered by a certain segment of the population. I think, anyway. But, me? <shudder> And then, there's my apparent prejudice against cartoons in general . . . <sigh> Too many problems, too little time to list them! Mama Anna

I echo the pp on using manipulatives, etc. to get him to spell the words. Also, does CLE use phonics-based word lists? If he were to focus on one sound for each list, it might lessen the guessing. We use Spelling Power, even though it's not technically meant for kids under 8 years old. HTH! Mama Anna

Haven't read all the replies, but this is what we do - always live on last month's income. For instance: Right now it's the end of September. All the income we've had in September has gone into the bank, while we live off of what dh brought home in August. After the last income is in, I will have to set up a budget for October, using the amount of September income that we have. Our income is pretty low right now, so that's always interesting. But I try as best I can to divide yearly bills (i.e. Auto or Renter's Insurance) into monthly amounts to tuck away as part of the "required minimum" budget. (In other words, if we don't have enough income, they'll get funded out of our savings.) This means that we shouldn't be hit by a huge surprise bill in a lean month. If we have a "fat" month and I have some left after chucking the minimum amount in all the different categories, then I have the freedom to plump up various categories that we'd like to put more in. For you that might be Homeschool Extras, New Home Savings, etc. One idea that might work is to have a sort of running minimum in a certain category. For instance, if you want to be able to pick up cool homeschool add-ons when you find them on sale, you might make a note to plump up your Homeschool Extras category to a certain amount whenever possible. If you don't spend any money on homeschool for a particular month, you don't need to put any more into it - you still have the minimum. On the other hand, if you plop down $200 for awesome Math manipulatives, you'd want to replace that when possible. But there's no percentage involved. As someone suggested, it's just a priority list of where the extra money goes. Clear as mud, right? HTH! Mama Anna

I agree - just send them home. As long as you say it with a smile, there doesn't seem to be a problem. Even when it's, "I'm sorry [Friend], but you can't stay for dinner regardless of what you say your mother told you. It really is time for you to go now." So be firm. With a smile. It's always easier to stretch a firm boundary later (if you feel you're being too firm) than to firm up a floppy one. Mama Anna

Here's another option I've used at times: Maps that Teach HTH! Mama Anna