I have trips as well. Homeschooling first grade sounded less time-intensive than it has turned out to be. Group lessons in the skill subjects (reading, writing, math) just did NOT work out at all at our house. Lessons come extremely easy for 1, one kid is normal, & #3 is SLOOOOW. Group lessons meant one kid was bored (and therefore causing trouble), one was appropriately challenged, and one was just completely lost. The content stuff is, of course, easily combined. (Social studies, science, art, music, etc.) If I were you, I would estimate 1 hour per kid, plus another 30 min to an hour together. And practice saying "it's not a race - everyone works at their own pace". You'll say that A LOT as fast kid talks about how far they are ahead of slow kid. The other thing to realize is that they don't always learn at a nice easy one-lesson-a-day pace. Three of my kids learn at a consistent pace. But I have one kid gets on a roll, and I can't give it to her fast enough, and then when she is finally satiated, she has to sit and digest for a month before she is ready to move on. In the end, she gets to the same place at about the same time, but her learning is in fits and starts.

Have you seen Wisdom & Righteousness CC lapbooks? Check those out, as well as the blog by Sola Gratia Mom (I always search based on "Classical Conversations Wonderful Wednesdays" to find it. Also, you can buy a set that has ALL the Magic School Bus videos. We also use the Let's Read & Find Out book series - each of those has an easy hands on activity.

I would say yes, you should consider adding spelling.

Spelling? Science? You have a few choices with regards to the CC work. You can treat CC memory work as a completely separate subject, and only memorize it, OR, you can flesh out the timeline, history, science, & geography at home instead of adding separate science and social studies. My original plan was to really work hard fleshing out the CC stuff, but it just got hard as it didn't really align with any other curriculum neatly. Now, I usually do one SHORT picture book or Magic School Bus video or whatever about the CC ones that I can find, and otherwise just treat CC memory work as a separate subject. If my kids didn't care, I wouldn't even bother to do this, I would just do straight memory work, but my kids really WANT a little context or they don't want to memorize. :) My kids are always SO excited when we come across something in our non-CC curriculum that they have learned separately as part of CC memory work!

Sorry - should have been more clear - this was NOT a CC co-op that I am struggling so much with.

That's awesome!!!!! :)

Anyway, this has become my standard advice to everyone - don't join ANY co-op or group before visiting and deciding whether or not you fit with the other participants! The CC group is the only group of classical homeschoolers in my town, and so it is the best place to meet like-minded families! ETA - deleted post about different co-op to reduce confusion

Most of the timeline, history & science is very easily explained quickly. We have full collection of Let's Read & Find Out and that type of book just for this purpose. A few times a week I grab one to read at breakfast, and then they know the context. We also have the full Magic School Bus & Bill Nye videos. Then when it comes up in our normal schoolwork (whether that is next week or 6 months from now), they have a bit of a framework. They remember those things MUCH better than the stuff we study it AFTER we hit it at CC. We definitely have seen the fruits of the math memory work as well when we reach it in our math studies. We haven't used the geography much, but I can see that it will be useful in future years. And it is VERY impressive to non-homeschoolers who are antihomeschooling. :) The Latin & grammar is supposedly very useful when you hit it later, but we haven't gotten that far yet. I put a lot less emphasis on reviewing those. That memory work could easily be replicated at home, though. The other things are the real value of CC. Meeting like minded homeschoolers (the program doesn't attract the less rigorous homeschoolers as much as the more rigorous), practice being in a class & learning from someone other than me, exposure to science experiments & fine arts (which often get skipped here), practice speaking in front of others, etc. - to me, that is the real value. The other co-ops we have tried have not been a good fit, just because the homeschoolers are a LOT less focused on academics. It feels like a complete waste of time, as well me being awkward around the other moms b/c I don't fit. (I am unable to discuss the 42 uses of rosemary oil, the benefits of sprouting before baking your bread, etc.) I DREAD going every time. I don't feel like I can quit halfway through, but CC is the only co-op we will go back to next year!

My kids would be bored stiff if all we did was skills, which is my primary purpose in doing the content subjects. They enjoy them, and constantly talk about how much fun history & science are. That's the real goal, right?

Here they actually say "grade" instead of level, and have them listed as grades 1-7. http://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/free-spelling-lists I see too, though, where they say that by the end of Level 7 of the program "the student will be spelling at the high school level". I think that just means "done" - I don't think most people do spelling in late middle / high school.

I looked for the same thing recently, unsuccessfully. Here's the only stuff I could find. Note, we are NOT very far into Level 1 yet, so this is not based on my personal experience - just what I have read. I have seen the target audience listed as K-8 in some places, and as 1-12 in others. All students are supposed to begin in Level 1, regardless of age. Older beginners will usually complete 2-4 levels the first year, then usually do one level per year after that. Sonlight has this: - Level 1 - 6 to 11 year olds - Level 2 - 7 to 11 year olds - Level 3 - 8 to 11 year olds - Level 4 - 9 to 11 year olds - Level 5 - 10 & 11 year olds - Level 6 - 11 year olds - Level 7 - 11 year olds Based on that, I *assume* that the levels roughly correspond to grades, even though you need to start at Level 1 no matter the student's age.

When we are at home, we do school in the kitchen. When mine aren't working, I say "get the rods out - call me when you know the answer" and go empty the dishwasher. :) It doesn't solve the issue, but at least I'm not sitting there stewing.

I joined CC with low expectations. My kids have some learning challenges, and I didn't expect them to be able to hang with the memory work, so we truly just joined for the social / class experience. My kids have really surprised me though. They have done GREAT with it! They have learned WAY more than I ever imagined. I am seeing the memory work really pay off. None of my kids could remember ANYTHING before this. Now, they can remember dance routines, follow instructions with several steps, etc. The practice memorizing has really improved their ability to memorize, if that makes any sense. The other real benefit is that they are SO interested in our history and science when it overlaps something we have learned previously at CC. Even if they can't quote the memory work exactly, they perk up and get all into it when they have been exposed to it before! The campus south of me is extremely fundamental Christian. The one north of us is much more hippie, and doesn't seem religious at all. Ours is somewhere in the middle. One of these campuses has tons of Memory Masters (kids who have learned 100% of the material) every year. Another has never had a Memory Master, and there is no emphasis on it at all. One campus somewhat near us has had 100% turnover several years in a row. 100% - can you believe that? Another has had 100% retention. My point here is that it is REALLY important to visit and check out the other families and the director to decide if the campus is a good fit for you and your family. The curriculum is the same, but it is a vastly different experience depending on the campus. I love ours b/c I fit in well with the director & other families, but would not be happy at all at some of the other locations near me. Our group meets from 9 to 12 for Foundations. 9 - 915 - big group assembly - pledge, prayer requests & prayer, announcements - a different family leads each week 915 - break up into classes & walk to classrooms (classes have 7 or so kids who are roughly grouped by grade level / age) 30 minutes - new "grammar" - memory work in 7 areas - timeline (high-level), history sentences (details about one event), geography, math (skip counting, conversions, etc.), science, English grammar, and Latin - taught using songs, jumping jacks, etc. 30 minutes - fine arts - 1st quarter drawing, 2nd quarter music/tin whistle (which is like a recorder), 3rd quarter art, 4th quarter orchestra/composers/music appreciation 30 minutes - science experiment / demonstration - they walk through the scientific method every single time - older kids write up a lab report 30 minutes - each child gives a presentation to the class (basically show-and-tell in lower grades, gets more academic as they get older) 30 minutes - games reviewing the memory work from prior weeks there is a snack/bathroom break in there as well, so that gets us to noon We then go back to the gym where we had assembly, and everyone eats lunch together. At 1:00, kids 4th grade and up go to Essentials. Some of the youngers leave, others stay for either martial arts or a lego class from 1-2. From 2-3, optional enrichments for youngers are art and Playball (sort of like PE). The format from 9-12 should be the same at most campuses. The afternoon programming varies a lot - some campuses have several options, some have none. We also do a fair number of field trips together - we have group children's theater tickets and that kind of thing. Some families from our campus are also planning next year to add a second day each week, patterned after this: http://solagratiamom...ns-week-13.html It will of course be optional for families at our CC - just a way to fill out the memory work a little more, as well as get together with others more. (It will probably be 2-3 hours, not another full day.) I always have great intentions of doing this kind of thing with my kids at home, but don't get around to it as much as I'd like, so my family is definitely participating! As for what you'd need - - Foundations Guide - one tin whistle per child - we primarily review in the car, so for us, the audio CDs with the memory work on them are essential. You could download it all off CC's website (if you pay to subscribe - $6 per month for people who attend a CC campus). Personally, though, I like having the labeled CDs with the box so it is easy to find what we want. - you could get away with not getting the timeline cards, but your kids will be asking you "who is Confucious?" and "what's the Council of Trent?", and it is really nice to be able to just flip that card over and give them a summary rather than having to look it all up! - we used the flashcards to play games a lot last year, but haven't done so this year for some reason - I bought the maps, but HATE them, so we haven't used them at all. They are black & white, and would be SO much easier to use if the water was colored blue. All those tee-tiny black outlines are just impossible to distinguish. - science cards - I have them and haven't even opened the pack yet, so I can't comment on what they are like, but they would be an extra, not a necessity - the resource CD is basically a power point of all the memory work. My kids would never sit for that, but I have a friend who really likes it. - I have not used the Latin trivium tables at all. Maybe someone with older kids would?

Thank you so much for these ideas!!!

I had the same dilemma. I ended up going the WTM / classical way for skills (reading, writing, & math), and AO / CM for the other subjects. I'm happy with this choice thus far...

Did you end up ordering this? Did you like it? How independent was it?

OK, so I don't need to be investigating a learning disability, and re-running first grade math 18 more times, huh? Someday, I will quit panicking and be more confident!

Can you give me more info on this? I have tried to buy it, but can't figure out exactly how to!! :)

I didn't think they were going CC - just adding word problems and expanding explanations on some topics?

I have a child who is almost 8. We have worked and worked and worked at place value, including working through Miquon Orange (several times), most of RS A, and MM 1A. She gets it at the moment, but it is gone several hours later. She just does not get it. She does not understand that the place the number is sitting in matters. She wrote the date today as Feb 91, 3102. Today both numbers were backwards, but it is about 50/50 as to whether they are backwards or not. We've been through vision therapy, and she is reading beautifully now, so I don't think vision is a factor. Thoughts? Suggestions?

For 2nd & 3rd graders, maybe. Below that, no.

Thank you!!!!

Can you tell me the difference between Logic of English and All About Spelling? Both format of curriculum and philosophy? THANKS!!

That's exactly what we ran into. The traditional doctor kept telling me there was nothing wrong, when there clearly WAS something wrong. (It is not normal for kids to walk into doorways and trip over curbs every single time they pass by!!) I too asked about vision therapy and was told it was a gimmick. I am pretty conservative by nature (I was a CPA in my past life), but truly was desperate enough to try something out of the box even with very little hope of it doing anything. It was well worth it!!

Be sure you are looking for a COVD fellow. My kids could pass a normal eye exam, b/c they could work to pull their eyes into focus for long enough to pass the exam, but then they would relax and their eyes weren't in focus any more. They walked around 90% of the time out of focus (sort of like when you go off in a daze, and things are blurry). They also were unable to track across the midline. As long as the book was on the right or left, they were fine, but if they were looking straight on, they just could not follow a line of type across the page. FYI - the therapy is expensive and not usually covered by insurance. Our initial exam was $350, and then we had 6-15 months of twice-weekly vision therapy at $135 per session. We got back about 20% from insurance. It was just SO much money (times 3 kids!), and we really couldn't afford it, but we were so desperate to try anything to fix these kids. We just didn't feel like we had a choice but to try it. It was so worth every penny!!!!