Spelling for 1st is built into CLE LA (along with grammar, copywork, etc.). 2nd too, then it's on to Rod and Staff :).

We are another family that was using a mastery program (MUS) and despite knowing the content cold, it would be forgotten without enough ongoing review. We tried MM but ultimately ended up with CLE and love it. It isn't flashy, but my girls are so confident in their math abilities now,it's amazing! No needing to reteach entire concepts and topics again and again because they were forgotten due to lack of review. My girls don't think it's super boring, but then again, not everything is flashy fun and games here either :). My 2nd grader LOVES the story problems :).

At 5 it is pretty easy. Read aloud daily, devotions of some kind, and some gentle introductory work. We use R & S ABC series and do a few pages/day - then we'll do CLE II. The rest is playdough, puzzles, free play (rather random too). Your philosophy will change as you go too :).

I lost 45 lbs. this year. Easily :).

We almost finished level 2, loved it, very sound, but needed something more independent once I hit 5 children. The Sound literacy app is great, we used it (for AAR too). Moved to R&S for third grade and up. CLE includes phonetic spelling in grades 1 and 2 LA.

Once you're an adult, it's fine. DH is 13.5 years older than I. Yup. Married when I was 22 after 3 months of dating. It's been 12 years this fall.

I'd vote CLE all around except for content subjects. Read alouds can cover those. We started LTR this year and it's been very good. We've been around the block n reading programs too :).

I gave mine away! Too much writing in early grades. Decided they were fluff and that I'd teach thinking skills through critical discussion instead.

Hey...ketchup chips are GOOD! Milk in a bag is regional. Never saw it growing up in MB or AB, only here in NS as an adult. Thankfully there are jugs here too (whew!)

I'm throwing my vote in for CLE as well.

They call Rockets Smarties in the US??? *shocked face*. My little sisters do love their spray cheese in a can though....

Ketchup potato chips! Apparently not widely available outside of Canada (gasp!!). Traditional foods tend to be very regional. Here in the Acadian region of Nova Scotia, rappiere or rappie pie is very traditional.

We've read Lad too (and a sequel). So emotional!! EVERYONE should read Owls in the Family, LOL funny! Red Sails to Capri was also LOL funny for my girls when I really got into it. Mr. Popper's Penguins is read almost yearly here, and we discovered the original Chitty Chitty Bang Bang this year - it's great! Also, Homer Price is fun. Now, one I haven't seen mentioned is The American Twins of the Revolutuion. Vintage, funny accents, my kids have made me read it 3 times now (and we are Canadians!)

CLE? It's very traditional, spiral, focuses on basics, introduces concepts slowly and logically. Cheaper too! :). Worktext based. Goes through to 8th so if you like it, you can stick with it too :).

If my thyroid is whacked out. Caffeine after 3 p.m. PPD. Melatonin GABA tyrosine. They help. So does exercise.

Yep, school got done. DONE! Finshing whole levels and everything! Even though we'd just moved cross-country into a house that needed major renovations and had a new baby :). I guess your generally repeated advice here freed me up to do what needed to be done without (quite so much) guilt. Thanks so much for hanging out here and being a voice of reason. I've been wanting to tell you that for a while now!

Some good ideas here. I have some dawdling going n here as well, but I couldn't do it at all with my 5 (only 3 schooling) without leaning heavily on self-directed materials for my oldest. 7-yo and 5-yo still need me for almost everything.

This is JUST the feeling I was getting when I looked at it! Thanks, Sara!

Erm, I'm becoming much the same. The longer I'm at this homeschooling mom gig, the simpler, more practical, and easier to implement I want things to be. You've rubbed off on me, Hunter. I mean that, and it's been a good thing for us this past year and a half. I've also been able to let a lot of my mom-intensive, so complicated for a mom with a newborn to pull off, does a 1st grader really need that anyway, resources go to new homes. :D

There seem to be 2 streams for grades 5 and 6, the regular God's World general science progression, then a life sciences focus God's Marvelous Works 1 and 2 in those grades as well. They seem to be all about animals and look so neat, are these extra science options? Does anyone know how those are worked in?

Is anyone using this? I looked at some samples and I sort of like the writing style (surprisingly). Looks pretty doable as well.

Just saw this and praying for a full and speedy recovery!

I get the TG. Easy to grade work and don't forget those alternate tests in case you need them! :)

Do you do Bible? CLE has some nice, simple workbooks that include coloring. I bought them for my 2nd grader for just that reason.

We do like CLE quite a bit here, integrates all of LA, even copywork in the lower grades. Not to fond of the spelling after 2nd, but that's easy to skip. It is spiral though, we like that. :)