In the easy to teach category you should look into CLE too.

I think yours will be fine. They have nice, study flashcards that come in a nice box with dividers. They are also letter-coded so you know which ones to review. I love them but if you are trying to save a few $ they are not a must have.

I don't think you will ever find a program that discusses ancient Egypt and ancient Greece and does not mention their beliefs/gods. It was a HUGE part of those cultures.

We didn't get into this in TOG (we learned about mummies but not the details) but we didn't read all the books. I think no matter what you choose you will just have to pre-read and decide how to handle it. Have you thought about using just the OT for year one of a 4 year cycle? Then maybe pick up SOTW or TOG or whatever you choose as they move into the middle ages. FWIW I do skim a lot over what *I* feel may be inappropriate but when false gods have come up we talk about these people not knowing the True God and how sad that is. We then have talked about how there are still people who don't know God. This has not been a source of confusion at all and I am really glad to have been able to handle it myself.

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15534

Thank you!:001_smile:

I know that I want Level 1 and 2 for my dd. I think she will go through Level 1 quickly. I want to start now with her. But I don't know what to do with ds. He is reading Bob books, early readers right now. Should I start Level 1 with him next year? now? the year after(1st grade)? Should I order him his own material packet?

I was raised in a home that was pretty strict about witches and magic more than fairy tales in general. I haven't really sorted out a strong opinion yet so this is interesting. I do know that while I can't decide what is *right* my kids are too sensitive for many fairy tales. Snow White caused nightmares for example. They also have a hard time with Cain and Abel. But it seems that the jealousy felt by brothers is easier for me to explain than the jealousy of a wicked stepmother with magical powers towards her stepdaughter. Hmm, I guess I'm thinking out loud right now but this is definitely interesting.

I knew what you meant.:001_smile: You are the one who convinced me. I was hoping you would answer me here. Thank you so much. It is really funny to me how reading other threads (PR and Aubrey's LA thread specifically) can be so helpful to see what would and wouldn't work for me. I am so glad to have found this place.:D

Thank you! I think I'm sold. I'll admit it didn't take much. I have been following the PR thread and it is tempting but not doable for me. I love the looks of AAS! I also like knowing the rules since I'm a fairly good speller but I have no idea why so I feel a little at a loss at what to tell dd. Where is that party icon? That is what I feel like right now.:D:D

I really like the looks of AAS. After the initial sticker shock I realized it is not bad considering I will eventually have four kids use it. So my questions are 1. Is this really geared toward kids that struggle with spelling? If my dd spells okay naturally, would I be better off with something simpler? 2. How much time does this take? The website says 20-45 min. Is that everyday? Any other info that may be helpful is very welcome too. Thanks!

Yeah!!! We Love TOG !!!! My kids didn't bat an eye at going "back in time". But, I also don't think they really grasped that we were "flashing back" so it lost some of its purpose. They kind of had a we don't care when Moses wrote it can we start our creation book yet attitude.:glare: But they are young so what do you do? All this to say - do what makes you comfortable. I don't think you can go wrong.:001_smile:

Yeah, SOTW is on the alternate list. The spine of year one is mostly the Bible. A couple picture books on ancient Egypt(easy to substitute), DK Ancient Greece, and a book on the Romans complete the year. To add to my pp we don't go for most of the lg lit because at this point we are focusing on the "learn to read" stage. Most of them are meant to be read aloud and can be fun but I don't beat myself up if we don't do it. I figure once they are reading on a solid 3/4th grade level they can move to ug lit regardless of age and then I will purchase more books.

TOG's position on this is that with a familiarity of the story you will be ready to "tackle" the original work at a later time. It makes sense to me with The Odyssey for example but I don't know about Little House on the Prarie.:D Either way though I can't imagine any harm coming from it.

I know your kids are young so I don't know if you are thinking of starting next year? or later? I think the best thing you can do is buy one DE unit. That is what I did because I just couldn't wrap my head around it any other way. If you hate it then at least you know. As far as a buffet - each week has history core, in depth, literature, activity, worldview, vocabulary, geography and writing assignments offered. Nobody could possibly accomplish this all! With my young kids we read the core history assignment and they do a draw and caption/narration page for their notebook. We do the lit only if my library carries it. I add Magic Tree House or other books if they fit but it is not a big deal. We do an activity occasionally. This is first grade for dd. Next year we will do most of the lit and add geography, writing, and vocabulary. Some people would see this as a waste of money. I see this as spreading the cost over more year. I have no doubt this is where I want to go dialectic and rhetoric so I figured why wait. You may end up being unhappy though if you don't realize that the bulk of the program is for the older students - so just a heads up.:001_smile: As far as scheduling - the assignments are broken down weekly so I just write down which day we will do what in my planner. I print off lit worksheets before each unit. Easy! Again I think the teacher intensive part comes with older students but by starting now I can already envision how it will work later. I imagine it is hard to jump in with an 8th, 6th and 4th grader. Not impossible but very daunting. That is why I personally am loving using it with youngers. Not everybody would agree though and I think a good argument could be made for just doing SOTW first time through and starting TOG when oldest is 5th grade. I think trying it may be the only way to know for sure. Good luck with your decision!

I absolutely agree. We are also just plain bored with it. I did copy a few of the stories and that really helped the length but we are bored. I am going to ETC to reinforce what we have learned so far. IMO 100 EZL is great for getting a kid reading/decoding really fast but needs to be followed up with something else. I think you are doing the right thing by ditching it and mixing it up with something else.:001_smile:

I had NOTHING in my house so I needed to buy a globe, magnifying glass, magnets, a compass, a skeleton (I couldn't resist :D) and iron filings. So it really is stuff you have around the house. Wow, Tracy. Great review on your blog. That really covers it well.

My 4 yo loves Essential Math and we are about to start Explode the Code. We are also going to start BFSU later in the spring. It sounds like they can be hit or miss but my ds LOVES the bob books. He is sooo proud to read his own book. We are also using Pathway Readers. You need to be reading fairly well to start but they move slowly and have very sweet stories that my kids really enjoy.

I bought BFSU last month in preparation for next year. I'll start by saying I'm not planning on waiting that long. It looks like so much fun I think we will just slowly start later in the spring - I promised the kids we would do dinos next.:tongue_smilie: Pros Starts out easy but systematically moves into science concepts I never completely understood and the way they are presented I think my kids will actually understand too. Very affordable. You can spend as much time on a topic as you want. (this could be a con if you want something scheduled and laid out for you) Covers life, earth, space, physical science but not as something separate but shows how they are all intertwined with each other. Cons This will take quite a bit of prep time on my part to implement. I worry that I may burn out trying to keep up with it. However, even if I do I would want this book because it would make a wonderful reference book. I am learning from it and I always love that.:001_smile: HTH!

My biggest worry is what would happen if she had to go to ps for some reason. Would they make her go into her listed grade? That would obviously be a disaster. Does anyone know how that works? I suppose it is probably different in each state.

This subject kinda makes my head spin because I have changed my pov so many times. :tongue_smilie:But I *think* it really won't matter. To graduate you need Algebra, Geometry, Biology, Chemistry, etc., etc. When you take those classes doesn't matter. Assuming this is true there could be no harm done in listing them as their "technical" grade. I am curious to see how others dealt with this.

I would start with the core history books. Are you going to read aloud to upper grammar? You could buy either upper grammar or lower and then combine for read alouds instead of buying both. I would get the in-depth history books from the library - you won't feel bad if you run out of time and I would rather spend my $ on the lit books. Then I guess it just depends how much $ you have left. Start with the lit books that get used for the most weeks and that are for the olders first, then shop for lower grammar. I would buy only one level of art/activity book for them to all share. This is making me want to buy books. I think I have a sickness - LOL.

We just bought the Merriam Webster Children's Dictionary and my kids LOVE it. They have literally spent hours looking at it in the last month. I will have to buy another though because we have already looked up a couple words that are not in it. I would go ahead and have both.

Delete.

I am using CTGE, Learning through Sounds 2, and Pathway Readers (w/o workbooks) for complete LA for first grade. Next year will be same except I will add spelling and drop phonics (LTS 2) for second grade. It is not the most popular curricula so it is a little hard to find reviews on but we are very happy with it so far.