I would agree with not ditching piano lessons! Yikes! But I think learning to "improvise" should be encouraged. However, not all piano teachers teach it. Knowing how to move away from the page and be creative and original is a great skill to have! It's very freeing and offers an outlet for personal expression. Some people can improvise without understanding theory at all, or they just pick up the theory that they need along the way. But if you know chord theory and scales, you have the foundation for beginning to improvise. It just involves taking a risk and stepping off the page. The theory gives you the rules for keeping the train on the track, for the most part. The pianists I know can either sightread really well and can't leave the page OR they can improvise really well and can't sightread worth a lick. Both pianists are handy for different things, but having both skills would be ideal. It shouldn't have to be either/or. For adults I like the book "The Aspiring Jazz Pianist" by Debbie Denke for learning chord theory and for providing a framework to practice improvisation.

Thanks! I've heard that those are good pencils as well. I'll look into getting those. I like the way Ticonderoga pencils write, but I've found the erasers to be rather crappy. They break off easily.

Go for a run, go to local consignment store & shop....and one of favorites: sit in the van in the driveway and drink a multi-calorie milkshake while listening to my ipod.

I second all of this. We're using them next year, so I also watched the first lesson to see how it works. If you're planning on teaching it yourself, then I don't think much would be gained by getting the DVDs. We're using them because I need writing to be at least partly an independent subject while I work with my other children.

Does anyone know if these erasers properly fit Ticonderoga pencils? Last year I bought a pack of those colored pencil-top erasers from Walmart, and they were just too loose on our black Ticonderoga pencils. It was very annoying! I want good pencils with erasers that fit!!

I abhorred PE. I distinctly remember being the person who throws the ball in in soccer. I never knew which direction to throw it and was extremely stressed. I never swung at the ball during softball because I didn't want to miss. Besides the pitcher was always another kid that couldn't pitch anyway. And oh the horrors on the days we did square dancing! I'm still trying to repress that! Oh, the ridicule you had to endure depending on who your dancing partner turned out to be! The only good thing that came out of my PE experience was the desire that my kids start a team sport at an early age to build their confidence. I don't want them to be intimidated like I was.

Many people have given ideas for providing outlets to meet her desire to be a helper and work in the kitchen, and I think that's the best way to try to improve your problem. But honestly...yeah...I think you are a bit over the top with the food/menu issue. I was stressed out just reading about your system and it's possible that your DD finds it exasperating as well, especially given the strong helper personality she seems to have. I do understand the concerns about the stove and money issues.

Some financial advice: Even if both of you work, try to live off of one income. When you have children, finances won't be a problem if you want one of you to stay home with the kids.

I don't know if West Michigan (Grand Haven, Muskegon, etc) is an option for you or not. We found this house to stay in this fall while we're visiting family. This particular house is not big enough for your needs, but it would be the perfect location, I think! It's right by Hoffmaster State Park with lots of hiking. The beaches on Lake Michigan in that area would make for nice swimming. A little cold for me, but the kids don't care!

I agree! I've read "Total Truth", "Saving Leonardo", and "The Soul of Science: Christian Faith and Natural Philosophy". All very good and very meaty!!

My kids always liked these books at that age: I Can Draw People I Can Draw Animals

I plan for 36 weeks. This is what's needed to complete most of our curricula. Some things take less time. Some of those weeks may be 4 days of schoolwork, so we just make adjustments to get the week's work done in 4 days. However, on our off weeks, we sometimes will do 1-2 subjects. I count these days as school days (because I can). This also has the effect of lightening the load a bit for one of our regular weeks. In the end, I always have over 180 days.

As others have said, they just need to play with them. Building and staircase and numbering them out loud is a good way to do it. My 4 yr old has been playing with them off and on for the past year and he knows the number values 1-10. While it is true that the number value can be different depending on what you're doing with them, in my opinion I still think it's okay that in the beginning they just know a 1-10 assignment. Then later they can they use them in different ways (like with fractions) when they have a math foundation to build on.

I haven't sold anything, but I always check Amazon and Rainbow Resource before I buy anything used. On the Classifieds board, I often see stuff (could be great condition or like new) being sold at or near the Amazon price. I'm not going to buy something from someone I don't know over the internet when I can get the same thing, brand new, for the same price, from a reputable merchant. That's just the way world turns.....for me, anyway. :)

I didn't notice much difference going from 3 to 4. As the kids get older, the dynamics just change. As you have that 4th child, the oldest is likely to be more independent and more of a helper. But in the end, you just go with the flow and adjust and learn. When I had my first child, I couldn't get anything accomplished when she was an infant. I just didn't know how! And then, I remember when my 3rd child was an infant and a friend offered to baby sit the older two while I took the day to clean the house and get ready for a trip. I thought, "Wow! Think of all that I can get done! I just have a baby to care for!" Haha!

Our YMCA also has a homeschool class that meets once a week. First half of the class is gym time and the other half is instruction in the pool. We also play soccer and basketball. I do understand what you're saying though. For example, my only exposure to softball when I was a kid was in my P.E. class. (And I wasn't very good at it!) I would like for my kids to have some basic softball/baseball skills, but the time commitment for softball/baseball leagues in our area is just too much for our family (practices plus at least two games per week! Ain't gonna happen!) But here's the bottom line for me: Sports and P.E. are a means to an end, not an end in themselves. My goal for them is to be active and healthy, develop some gross motor skills, learn teamwork, develop endurance and perseverance, etc. Those things can be accomplished with just one team sport. And if they never play a game of softball (for example), I have to admit that in the big scheme of things it really doesn't matter.

I agree! Summer is hard for me, too. I want to get certain things done, and the kids just don't know what to do with themselves. If I leave them to themselves, it usually results in mass chaos of the sort you describe. The days when I have more structure (of any sort!) go so much better! We do a little bit of math in the summer and I still have scheduled reading time in the afternoons.

We just bought 10 Days in the USA. It's a great game, even for adults! My 9 yr old DD has caught on quickly. My 7 yr old DS has needed help the two times that we've played. We have Great States Junior and they enjoy playing that. We also do GeoPuzzles and Sheppard software online.

It's just tough. My kids are about the same age, plus I have a 3 yr old. I have independent subjects designated for each child. My oldest can do most of her stuff on her own. My 7 year old boy needs prodding, but he can do handwriting, Explode the Code, and his Bible study on his own. I find it works best when I do tablework with my preK/Kinder kids first thing while the olders work on some independent subjects. This takes no longer than 30 minutes. I then let them play together or give them things like drawing, or C-rods, Lauri toys, etc. I do reading with the littles in the afternoon while the olders do their independent reading. Some days are okay and some days I'm pulling my hair out! Some days the littles are fighting with each other and the whining is incessant. Eventually those challenges will fade away (I hope!) and new ones will arise!

The first thing I do is figure out how many lessons need to be done per week for each subject to complete the curriculum. With the materials I use, this is usually obvious or divided into 36 weeks, for example. I then figure out how I want to divide the subjects over the course of a week, generally speaking. For example, grammar on MWF, science on MW, art/music appreciation T/Th, etc. (I do all "together" subjects in the afternoon.) I make a one page schedule that is basically a checklist for each day. Some weeks I may put more detail on the schedule. For history (TOG), I just list the books and decide each week how much I should be aiming to read in one sitting to finish the books in 3-4 readings.This is the point where I'm flexible. I may have a general plan for how each day of a week will be laid out, but really my goal is to complete the work for the week. I will shuffle things around to get that accomplished and just check them off. At the beginning of the year, I will also work out a daily schedule with times allotted for each subject. I have yet to ever follow this schedule to the letter because life gets in the way. But it does give me an idea of how things could "possibly" be organized and how I can divide my time between the children. This past year we were rather successful. Our geography, art projects, and science experiments were hit and miss, but other than that, everything else was accomplished. I attached a sample week from this past year. Sample Week.pdf

We've used WWE1-3. Next year we're trying Classical Composition Fables (Memoria Press) and just a little of WWE4. My plan is to use it as a bridge to Writing With Skill, but we'll just see how it goes. Of course, I don't have a review to give you!

Looks like many people have given you ideas to try, but I would say at least 80% of your problem is you have a 7 year old boy!! I have one, too! ;)

I've used both Prima Latina and Latina Christiana. I agree that Prima Latina would be way too slow for a 10 yr old. First Form Latin is recommended for that age by Memoria Press, but if you want a bit slower start, then I would definitely go with Latina Christiana. We're doing First Form next year (4th grade), and I just watched the first five lessons last night. Whew! I'm glad I've seen most of that stuff before in LC! Much faster!

Science, geography, art and/or music.

I agree! My husband is also from Grand Haven. It's a nice little town. :)