Your 1.5 year old is WAY too young to worry about. For your 4 year old, is she a perfectionist? My kids HATE open-ended stuff. They want EXACT instructions on how to complete whatever we are doing. After a few repetitions, they are willing to branch out and enjoy a little more, but they need the reassurance of some background knowledge. We recently went through "Coloring 101" b/c even coloring stressed them out. They knew it didn't look good, but had no idea how to be neater. I literally came up with a list of steps that we go through for every picture. After a month of reviewing the steps every single time we color, they are finally actually enjoying coloring, and choose to do it during free time!

A lot of our "extras" are done via readaloud. It works best when I have a captive audience at mealtime.

Do a search on these - you can't go wrong with any of them! RightStart - fully scripted, almost all manipulatives, very strong conceptually, uses games to reinforce stuff that needs to get memorized Miquon - "discovery" math - not traditional or scripted at all, but strong conceptually MEP (FREE!!!) - my kids call it "puzzle math" - I don't know how to describe it, but it's awesome. http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/projects/mep/default.htm If handwriting is strong - Math Mammoth - very similar to Singapore, but in smaller bites

I WOULD start with HWOT PK, b/c it goes fast! We have done the PK books several times, and are about to start the K book again. Even doing everything outside the workbook, it just, well, it goes fast! By starting with PK, it wouldn't be quite as repetitive. I started CC with the same intentions as you. In the beginning, my kids were utterly bored when presented with facts that meant nothing to them, so I started checking out books about the facts from the library. For example, the week before we learned the Christopher Columbus sentence at CC, we read about him at home. Same with all the areas except grammar & Latin, which we have chosen to skip this year. Now, my kids LOVE the material at CC, and they have memorized probably 90% of it, even though I have done nothing but check out/read books, and play the CD in the car. If you asked them their favorite things they have learned this year, that CC material is going to be the first thing named every time! So we have gotten a LOT more out of it than I expected! For Christian ed, we have really enjoyed "Leading Little Ones to God". "Big Truths for Little Kids" is another we have heard really good things about, and we plan to jump into that next. For readalouds, check out some of the many lists you can find online: - Ambleside Online - Sonlight (we have LOVED the books from the P4/5 list this year, and gotten much more out of them than we would have a year ago) - Five in a Row - Core Knowledge - the readaloud lists from the many packaged kinder programs like Memoria Press, Hearts of Dakota, etc. etc.

Fear. :) I use several programs b/c I always hear people saying this or that program isn't working for them, and then you hear about people saying that if you switch too much later on, you can end up with gaps. We are kindergarteners this year. We have more time now than we will in the future as we pick up more subjects. By doing several math programs now, we can see what approach works best for our kiddos, as well as really creating a firm foundation by hitting all the basics in several different ways so I KNOW they got it! I am hopeful that this year will really set us up for math success in the future. As it is, one program (Miquon) isn't ideal for one my kiddos, but the others (RS & MEP) work for everybody. I'm glad to figure this out now rather than later - I have learned that one of my kids really needs direct instruction. She just is not going to noodle through and figure it out herself. If I had done only Miquon, I'd be a little nervous now, having to start something new next year and hoping to land on something that worked. B/c if I didn't get one that worked after that, it would become a lot more stressful as we headed into 2nd grade and had to start with another new program. Also, there are some programs that work better at certain times. On days that we have a lot of appointments, RS is not happening b/c I can't lug all that stuff, so I need to choose one of the others. On other days, when the kids have done a lot of handwriting work in other subjects, I need to take that into account - they aren't going to want to do worksheets b/c their hands are tired. As for having time, we are required by the state to school for 180 days. RightStart A has 77 lessons. MEP has 60. Miquon Orange has 127 lab sheets, and my kids usually do 2-3 at a sitting. So really, you CAN do 3 full programs in a year only doing one lesson per school day.

Have you already bought it? Earlybird is not as well-liked as Singapore Essentials, Miquon, or MEP Reception.

Tell her that all college dorm rooms have twin-size beds - best get used to it! (And since many college beds have TWO people in them most nights, I'm sure the twin is big enough for her!) My DH had a queen-size growing up. He never learned to stay in one place in the bed. The first few years we were married, I would have to literally get out of bed & walk around to the other side several times a night b/c he was just completely sprawled out and was constantly rolling all over. It was awful! NOT good to sleep with! My kids will be in twins until they buy their own beds in their own apartments, and then they can decide. I want them to learn to sleep in a smaller space. Their future spouses will thank me!

We have had an issue 2 years in a row with the state - they delay refunds over some amount, but process refunds for smaller amounts. They do eventually pay the refunds, but they wait until after April 15 when they have received money from people who owed. Our problem is that DH works in one state, but we live across the border in a different state. His company's HR can't seem to figure out how to stop paying the state they are in, so they withhold large amounts and pay to the state that we end up getting refunded, and then we turn around pay that in to the other state. Annoying, b/c it's a wash financially, but when one state holds your refund, we end up having to pay one state long before getting the refund from the other. Anyway, I wonder if the fed govt has set up something like that, where they delay paying out until they get a certain amount paid in.

You silly girl, you should have said "well, we do have an early morning" when they asked! Having missed that, 30 minutes later I would have waited for a lull in conversation, and then said "this has been so much fun, thank you so much for coming! We'll have to do it again sometime!" And stood up and started edging toward the front door so they would hopefully get the hint & follow. Yep, I've done it!

I totally agree. I had this image of Tennessee in my mind before we moved there - Nashville, country music, mountains, etc. Memphis was NOT like that!!

I grew up in Greenville, SC (northwest), spent a year in Columbia (middle), spent 3 years in Memphis, TN (far southwest corner of TN), and am now in a suburb of Charlotte, NC that is technically in SC (Charlotte is right on the SC/NC border). SC has 3 parts - upstate, midlands, and low country. - Upstate (northern part) of SC has great weather. Easy access to mountains & beaches. That's where Greenville is. Everyone I know who lives there loves it. Those who used to live there are always trying to get back. Lots of people moving in and out, so easy to make friends. Spartanburg is also in the upstate, but much more industrial / less cultural, and has higher crime. Greenville's crime rates aren't crazy-low or anything, but the crime is all concentrated in certain areas that most of us never go to, so we don't see it. - Midlands - Columbia SC is the capital of the state, and is smackdab in the middle of the state. You couldn't pay me enough to move back there. The city is sort of in a bowl, so there is never any breeze, so it is always hot and smells yucky. Also, the people are primarily govt workers, or people connected to USC. Not much culture, and crime was in your face all the time. - Low Country - schools are definitely weak in general in this part of the state due to higher poverty levels, so you would probably want to continue HSing through high school if you can't afford private. People who have lived in Charleston all love it. Hot hot hot, but the beaches are right there, and are gorgeous. There are lots of small towns in the low country, but most are extremely poor. You would want to look at a bigger city on the coast (Charleston, Hilton Head, etc.) if you want to be in the low country. Memphis, TN - hated hated hated living there. It was extremely difficult to get to know anyone. Everyone there either grew up there, or else went to Ole Miss together, so they already have a set of friends and aren't looking for more. I tried hard, and met very few people. Also, the racial tensions there are like something out of a movie. I truly did not realize that divides like that still existed, but they do in Memphis! Very weird and uncomfortable. Also, it was beyond hot there. YUCK! Fort Mill, SC / suburb of Charlotte, NC - I knew more people within 3 months of living here than I knew after 3 years in Memphis. People are extremely friendly. It still has a small town feel, and I love it here! Very upscale Southern, if you know what I mean. Charlotte, NC - we rarely venture up into town. We are close enough to take advantage of cultural things, but for the most part we stay in our little area. I have heard nightmares about the traffic during rush hours, so if you do end up looking for work here, you would want to live close to your job. A lot of people love Asheville, NC. It's further up in the mountains, so weather is cooler and it's gorgeous to look at. It is more hippie/liberal/organic/laidback, compared to other places around here. Homeschooling in SC is very easy - very few legal hoops to deal with. Also, there are lots and lots of homeschoolers here, so co-ops and friends are easy to come by.

They teach you in RS how to use an abacus in detail - it's actually very easy! Do not let that keep you from using RS.

Church is one place that I really want my kids with kids who are on a similar level. They write/color/draw in Sunday School, and who wants to be the only kid who can't write? Same with kids' worship service - I want my kids to be with kids who can sit still about the same amount of time. Etc. etc.

I for one really appreciate it! My kids are definitely not accelerated! :)

I'm running into the opposite extreme, but let me just throw this out there. I have one child who writes prolifically - pages and pages every day. We still have "quiet time" at our house every afternoon, and she writes almost the whole time. She asks me EVERY DAY to come up with some sort of silly prompt. It was fun in the beginning, but at this point, it's HARD to come up with original things! And she doesn't want "tell me about someone who loves you", she wants "what would happen if Cupid flew into a wall?". She writes and illustrates every day, and then wants to share after quiet time every day. Interestingly, this is my only child who can't read! :) This is not something I intituted, it's HER decision to do this. I do not correct spelling, capitalization, grammar, etc. - I've just let it be her fun hobby.

This is very helpful - thank you!!

Thank y'all so much!

MEP, Miquon, RightStart They are all so DIFFERENT. Miquon is figure-it-out ("discovery") math. It's really hard for one of mine - I do so much hand-holding that I'm not sure that she is really getting the benefit she should. The other 3 are getting tons out of it. RightStart is more a direct teaching in an orderly fashion kind of math. And MEP, well, somebody else will have to give a summary of that. It's different too but I don't know how to describe it!

I think I'd jump in and ask "are you trying me feel bad? I need someone to vent to, and all you want to do is tell me how great your kids are and how perfect your life is!" Sales: "Why in the world didn't you call me to share the news? That wasn't very nice. I always let you know about these things!" Classes: Again, "I really wish you had let me know! My kids would have really enjoyed that! Is there some reason you don't want my kids to attend with yours?" With people like that, you have a few choices: - silently be mad, and increase the stress in your life exponentially - cut them out of your life - deal with it directly. Anytime she says/does something rude or in your face, kindly but firmly point it out. "Are you trying to make me feel bad?" "Wow, what a rude thing to say!" "As much fun as it is to compete with you about xxx, I'd love to talk about something else today." Etc. Etc. It takes a lot of guts to do it the first time, but gets easier. (I have kids who are developmentally delayed, and all my friends are CPAs, so quite competitive. We can't compete, so I have had to learn to shut these conversations down!)

For Christian girls, everyone in NC/SC LOVES Camp Greystone. It's pricey, but I have yet to hear anyone say anything negative.

Love this idea! Is just building it enough? Or does MUS have them making hands and moving them and so on?

Thank you thank you!!

What's your best suggestion for an 8.5 year old 2nd grader who is REALLY struggling with telling time? Same question re: money. Math Mammoth? DVD suggestions? Other ideas? Is this an indicator of other issues? (Conceptual basics that were missed?) May I ask you to list exactly what those would be? Skip counting by 5s? What else?

We definitely do, b/c my kids have some developmental challenges. We do work that fits their abilities, and have assigned a grade that fits that. I would much prefer to register them for Sunday School, sports, etc. based on grade (which is where they fit) rather than age. I know my kids progress at a normal rate, they just have always been about a year behind everyone else. So knowing where everyone else at our grade level is helps me to see gives me a benchmark to compare to, so I know if we need to seek additional evaluations and so on.

My son was diagnosed with the same 2 things when he was 4. Therapy has been AMAZING! SID is all but gone. We still see it when food is too mushy, like pancakes with too much syrup (gagging), but that's about it. We don't see any of the behavioral issues that we were really struggling with for a long time. As the SID disappeared, the autistic symptoms significantly decreased as well. The average person who doesn't have close, extended interaction with him probably has no clue that my son has anything wrong. Honestly, I'm not sure he'd get the diagnosis if we had him retested now. Just wanted to throw some hope your way!