This is helpful. Thank you. I was thinking that I would have a student planner of some sort and write out the weekly assignments for him. It's on him to complete the work, and he comes to me with help, or we at least have a time to work together for a bit everyday. I was looking at some Seton materials for basic grammar and spelling, with Memoria as a reading program. I was thinking those would be better for more independent work.

My son will be entering 4th grade, and has spent the last 2 years in a brick-and-mortar school. It has not gone well. We homeschooled for K and 1st, and he attended school for 2nd and 3rd after the birth of my daughter who was born with medical problems and a disability. We knew when we put the kids in school, that it would be temporary until we got our bearings back as a family. We aren't quite there yet, and will have a K'er and 1st grader in public school this year, but we actually have had a good experience with them in the early grades thus far. My 4th grader has Aspergers. He is very bright in math and a good reader, although he doesn't enjoy reading. He is also argumentative and demanding. If I want homeschool to be successful, it has to have me as a minimum player, as we will surely butt heads if I am constantly at his side telling him to do the next thing. Because he is bright and naturally curious, and also because I am extremely busy, I'm wondering if I can take a very laid back approach? Specifically, I want to buy curriculum for Math and Language Arts, and for those to be our "anchors." Everything else he'd supplement with books, documentaries, special classes, etc. Does that sound reasonable? For math I want to do Teaching Textbooks. For LA I want to either do MCT or Memoria Press. I'd say his weaknesses are writing and not having a love for reading. He reads about sports, and that's about it. I am overwhelmed by the idea of several different programs for LA (grammar, spelling, vocab, comp, etc.), and really want an all in one program that works collaboratively with all the LA subjects. I am open to any and all advice! Especially on a thorough and strong LA program that will yield a great writer and reader!

Thank you! I'll check it out.

I'm looking at a computer-directed program because I was formerly a homeschool failure :( I have a special needs child, and health problems. When I was homeschooling previously, everything I did was very teacher-intensive. I burned out and was unhappy, exhausted, and stressed. To public school they went! It's been almost three years in school, and I'm ready to consider bringing them home again. But, the whole we "do school" needs to be overhauled if I want to keep the family running smoothly. I'd have a 1st grader who I'd need to do sit-down work with, so for my 4th I'm thinking a computer based program.

I should have clarified. I am considering pulling him out of school. I want to reignite his math confidence. He was homeschooled at one point, and was FLYING through math material. He's a mechanically-minded kid, and I want to cultivate, not stifle, his natural gifts.

Can I get a recommendation for a computer-instructed math curriculum? I know of K12 and Teaching Textbooks. Math comes easily for DS, but he rushes and is careless in is work. Any program we did online, I'd definitely want a hand-to-paper component. What are some great options? He loves math, but is currently in public school, which has made him hate math :( . Ideas?

Thank you for taking the time to share this with me. I will look into some of the online programs. I know many who have use Teaching Textbooks. It does sound like Kumon could be a great fit for my oldest. Sadly, we live in a very rural area, and those resources aren't available to use, unless we were to connect remotely. Please, feel free to share anything else!

Also, with K12, are you typically able to just pick the courses you want and not enroll full time?

It seem that you are doing what I am asking is possible, then? Pretty much math and LA, mixed in with whatever else? What is ETL?

I will look into this. Thank you for the suggestion!!

Thank you! Yes, my daughter is 3, and while her health is improving, it is still a great deal to manage. Having the kids in school has been ok in some ways, but now it is beginning to eat my alive. I have looked into CLE, and it looks fun! I have also been looking at R&S. We are Catholic, but I don't see any conflict with using a Christian program for LA. When I dove into homeschooling, I was very much under the mindset that we'd be the most well-educated HS family that every homeschooled. And, that method burned me out and made me ultimately extremely unhappy. We know how bad things are getting at the school, so my standards are quite low at this point. I also need to look at the situation honestly, meaning, homeschooling is not going to work unless I have time to do the laundry, buy groceries, cook dinner, keep the house reasonably clean and functioning. That definitely wasn't happening when I was pouring hours into each subject before. I

Hello, everyone. I've posted from time to time, and want to get some feedback on our situation. My 4 children are enrolled in public school in some capacity (3rd, k, preK, and special ed preK). I homeschooled my oldest for K and 1st, and then put him in school when when my daughter's health became too much to manage, along with teaching him. My own health is not the greatest, and because of it, I need to make sure I have adequate rest and help at home. The situation at the school is not a good one. I won't elaborate, but I hope and pray that I might have what it takes to bring the two oldest home for 4th and 1st grade. When I previously homeschooled, I was doing rigorous, intense curricula--for first grade! (IEW, Right Start Math, Story of the World, Nancy Larson). I know my limits enough at this point to know that if we wanted to SUCCEED, that everything would need to change with my expectations. My plan then would be to make sure that the 4th and 1st grader had a comprehensive language arts program, along with math. The other subjects we'd leave unstructured, and pick a topic, read some books, do a project, etc. There is a co-op we could join that would help with that, too. My question is, what's a great program for a 4th and 1st grader? They are both smart, but very different. The 4th grader is quite intelligent, but he rushes and doesn't put in any effort, making his grades poor despite his very high testing. School is distracting and boring for him, even though everyone can see his potential and natural gift to pick up on everything with little effort. My to-be 1st grader works slowly and meticulously. He is reading and sounding out words, has beautiful handwriting, and seems to take school more seriously, although he's not as naturally bright as my older one. Neither of them are ones to sit down and read. They prefer to work their hands, and play. Is this even a possibility to do school this way? To learn reading, writing, math, and leave the rest up to our whims? TIA!

Thank you all in advance for all the help you've given me over the years. I'm not on here often; usually only to ask questions and get feedback. I have homeschooled, and I currently have my kids in public school(PS). My oldest son is 9, and going into 3rd grade in the fall. He's an extremely challenging child, although bright. I put him in school because I *could not* homeschool him. Last spring he was diagnosed with Aspergers, which made my dh and I breathe a sigh of relief over his sometimes odd and difficult behaviors. PS has been ok for him, but not great. There have been some big issues, mostly having to do with my son's fixation on certain things (right now it's morals, and people using language that is inappropriate in our home, and he not able to let it go). When he is at home, he can't really play with my younger two sons, who play very well together. He causes problems, fighting, constant demands things, etc. However, my younger sons will go to kindergarten, and preschool this year, respectively. I PLAN on having my son start 3rd grade, but I am extremely worried about how it will go. I also worry about having him home, too, because to get him to do one simple thing could take all day. Does anyone have experience with this? Is your environment extremely structured, or more loose? Do you run things like a drill sargent? I kinda feel like I'm in a lose-lose with my son's education. If he's home, I'm afraid I'll be fighting with him all the time. In PS, and he getting in trouble or driving the teachers crazy. Thoughts??

Thank you all for your very wonderful feedback. I have a lot of thinking and researching to do. This is a lot to weigh! My 6 year old will likely go to Kindergarten at the PS this fall. My 4-year old will go 2 full days a week. If it weren't for this, I wouldn't even consider HSing for 3rd grade. My oldest causes a lot of problems with the little boys...nothing would get done, it would be a war zone. I will have some in-home help with my daughter, which is incredible. Could I find the time to sit down with my oldest? Probably. The funny thing is though, that even though I am not homeschooling at the moment, I have found ways to fill my days to the brink. I suppose that's how it goes, though. You have to readjust, shuffle priorities, etc. And yes, as awful as it sounds, a poster above mentioned chores. Keeping my son busy and motivated would require him to have A LOT of work to do. He'd need to do vacuuming, laundry, cook, etc. He wears on my sanity and patience, and needs SO MUCH TO DO. I am a very self-driven person, and don't really require a lot of structure, if that makes sense. I wake up early, and I get to work. It's hard for me to do things like map out our days, because to me it just comes naturally. But yeah, I'd have to do some soul-searching to see if I could provide structure and consistency, because right now I don't know if I could. Thank you!! A LOT!

Thank you, and I appreciate your responses. Also, my siggy is outdated. Not that that matters a huge amount...but my kids' ages in the fall will be 9, 6, 4, and 2.5. I like the public school for K, and 1. We've had more issues in 2nd, primarily with other students and their behavior, plus we've actually battled a little bit with faith-based things. We're not out to start a revolution, but we have been offended and thought that teachers have acted incorrectly in their dealing with faith-based issues. The 2nd grade teacher in particular. It's so tricky. The time thing...I know in my heart that HSing requires that time. But, I feel stretched right now without homeschooling. I know either decision will be a sacrifice. I'm thankful I have the spring and summer months to really question if I have what it takes. I'll update my siggy now...