History Odyssey

You're welcome! :)

Did you see the thread on Chalkdust Pre-Algebra? I'll try and link it: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67418&highlight=chalkdust+cheaper I don't use Chalkdust, but I remember KatKat saying something in that thread about doing Chalkdust Pre-Algebra much cheaper.

Is she going to school for high school? If so I would use their 8th grade Algebra and 7th grade pre-Algebra books. If she is staying home, I would work backwards from what you plan to use for Algebra I and Algebra II.

Not in this economy I wouldn't. You would need: a long-term business plan lots of start-up capital reliable additional funding a good location dedicated parents qualified teachers the ability to work "in the red" for several years the ability to make very difficult choices the ability to collect money from both parents and suppliers (much more difficult in a bad economy) willingness to put the school before everything (including family at times) solid administration (business manager, principal, board that all have similar long term goals) ability to work through all the red tape involved insurance advertising etc., etc. It is a lot of work trying to keep a school afloat. My oldest dd went to Montessori for kindergarten. It was a constant struggle to keep the school functioning. They raised the rates after kindergarten and we decided to homeschool. One of the things people do in a bad economy is pull kids from private schools and make due with the public ones or choose to homeschool. Even in a great economy I wouldn't do it until my own children were grown. It is too time consuming. A small cottage school or co-op is as far as I would go with young children.

Thanks for the advice! We will send a card and flowers in the morning. Is there anything that is suitable to take to the funeral itself? Neither dh nor his boss would be comfortable with dh showing up at his boss's door, even with the best of intentions. And we do not live close - about an hour away. Any offers to help in a personal way would be declined. (But, I suppose dh could offer, all the same.) Can baked goods be brought to the funeral and given (maybe to a relative) to pass on? Or would that be too tacky? With friends and family you just "know" what would be helpful and considerate. We don't really know any of his family and friends to even ask. Maybe just being at the funeral is enough for now? :confused:

Dh's boss's wife just passed away today. It was very sudden and unexpected. She wasn't feeling well this morning and died around lunch time. How does one show sympathy to a man who has lost his wife so suddenly (and has an elementary-aged daughter)? My dh doesn't think flowers and cards would do much for him if he were in the same situation. He and his boss aren't close in a chummy way, lots of differences in views. But he talks to him several times a day by phone and sees him at least once a week. He feels terrible about what happened, but we aren't sure how to support him at this time?

We don't have a library to speak of, so we rely on our home library. My dd will be doing History Makers next year. I plan to use an assortment of world encyclopedias (Kingfisher, Parragon, etc.) the What Life was Like series (really love these) Oak Meadow 6 and 7 history and a couple of textbooks I have from freshman college Humanities (Gardiner maybe?) And then an assortment of biographies, histories and historical fiction that we have on the shelves to round out the reading. She will also be allowed to do some research on the internet. I'll link a What Life was Like book. It seems the series has gone out of print. :glare: They really are very nice. http://www.amazon.com/What-Life-Like-Banks-Nile/dp/0809493780/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233369522&sr=8-9

Hi Tracey, I know the laws are state regulated, but if there is a county that is homeschool friendly, I would prefer to be there. Lafayette county is very homeschool friendly and it has been so much better than Lee county ever was. The homeschool liason is wonderful. We've actually had interesting coversations. My dd9 did Stanford testing for free at the elementary school. Everyone was just friendly. The teachers, the librarians, the school officials, other parents, the karate instructor, etc. supported the children and our choice to homeschool. This has been so different than the constant state of confrontation I felt in Lee county. If one of those four counties is homeschool friendly, that is where I am going to begin my search. :)

OOPS! That should say West-Central Floridian homeschoolers!! My dh has just been informed that he is being transferred in two weeks. (This is basically a good thing - just not great timing.) We currently live northwest of Gainesville (in Lafayette county.) The counties we have to choose from, as far as finding a new home are: Pasco Citrus Hernando Pinellas I really don't know much about this area. Is one of these counties better (or worse) for homeschooling than the others? Lafayette county has been an excellent place to homeschool (as opposed to Lee county which I found more restrictive, but not difficult.) Dh will be working out of Spring Hill. Again, I don't know the area - is there a nice town for children in the area? I think we could live anywhere between Tarpon Springs to the south and Homosassa to the north. We would prefer to stay nearer the coast. Any suggestions or warnings? Thanks!

We try and follow a structured schedule. 7:00 - 10:00 Latin, French, Math Snack and short break 10:00 - 12:00 History, Science, Geography, Art 12:00 - 1:00 Run/walk, memory work 1:00 - 2:00 Lunch and chores 2:00 - 3:30 Language Arts 3:30 - 6:30 Outside time and/or karate 6:30 - 7:30 Dinner and chores 7:30 - 9:00 Literature and free reading I have been completely unsuccessful in finding time for music this year.

I didn't realize publishing had been pushed back to May. :glare:

Do you have a link to the Cutterbee? When I tried to search for it, it seemed to be a name brand for lots of scrapbooking supplies. I'm not sure which one it is that you like. Thanks!

Robin Hood of Sherwood Forest - McGovern

Thanks Lori! That is the one I thought I bookmarked!

We will be doing the ancients as well. I'll link what I am going to use with dd11 (12 next year.) I can't really recommend it - it isn't out yet. But, I think it looks great. I contacted Ellen McHenry to make sure it will be ready. She said she will have it ready in May. If you download the sample pages, she has seven chapters of readings followed by seven chapters of drawing and finally seven chapters of activities. (So keep scrolling past the readings. The drawing part looks really good to me.) Mapping the World with Art http://www.ellenjmchenry.com/id144.html

I thought I had bookmarked it, but now I cannot find it. If I wasn't imagining it and there is such a group, could someone provide me with a link? Thanks!

I would like to buy a paper cutter. Do you like the rotary blade trimmers or the old-style guillotine cutters? And do you recommend any particular brand? Thanks!

I ordered anything I wanted from Book Depository (Galore Park items, etc.) because the rate is so good now. But then again, it might keep dropping. :001_huh:

math phonics literature handwriting nature study

1. Dolciani Algebra II 2. Euclid 3. complete works of Shakespeare 4. complete works of Aristotle 5. Oxford English Dictionary 6. Henle I (I would need to find a copy that had the answers in the back. :)) 7. the last one would be some sort of anthology (Norton's maybe?) I would want it to include important American documents, selections from the Bible, additional literature, etc. I would have to research anthologies before deciding. I think I could teach K-6 skills using the above books and my own knowledge from teaching the older kids.

This is what we did as well. When it was time to get rid of the board books last month. Each child chose two or three favorites. And I chose a few favorites as well. :) The rest were put in a box for their younger cousin. This cousin will not want all of our old board books, but there will be a few she will want and a few more that someone she knows might want, etc. We try and give away what we can rather than just dropping it all into a donation bin. It is somehow easier to pass on important items rather than just "dumping" them.

Our grammar curriculum ends at 9th grade. I think that will be fine for us. Beyond 9th grade, the kids can use a reference book if they have any questions.

Classical Writing uses Harvey's Elementary Grammar.

The Assist 2 Sell in Fort Myers was excellent. I sold two houses through them. And both times they did a wonderful job. Now we have a house for sale way out in the boonies, nowhere near an Assist 2 Sell office, so I am using a full service realtor. Based on past experience, I would use Assist 2 Sell again if it were an option for us. Assist 2 Sell should have your home listed on their website (MLS is generally optional, I used it) with several pictures including inside pictures. They should have a full page flyer in your yard, kept stocked at all times. And your house should be listed on the back of any flyers of other houses for sale by Assist 2 Sell in the area. In Fort Myers, they also do open houses at your request. In our case, they also sent our listing directly to other agents and invited them to tour the house. I think that is what sold our second house. A realtor that toured the home returned a couple of weeks later with a potential buyer who eventually bought the house.