We're trying out year two. I'm just trying about 1/2 of the history questions. Not doing all the other stuff. He's just not retaining what he reads at all. I'm trying out to see if telling him where the answer is located will help.

It's becoming clear my ds12 is an auditory learner. I have been trying to slowly get him answering TOG dialectic questions (I had the curriculum already) and am finding that he gets about half the answers if he reads the material himself and all of it if he hears me read it. There is no way I have the kind of time to read or even part of his TOG history out loud every day. I understand that eventually, he is going to have to learn how to learn from text, but what would be a nice curriculum compromise of auditory and learning from reading? Am I looking at Sonlight? What would help with this?

I wouldn't want to leave my teen boy at home every day all day (he's a good kid, but there is also another homeschool girl in the neighborhood who likes our house and is left alone all day), but that being said, he is totally responsible to do all of his work and does it. He is in all online classes through an online non-public school or CC classes. I do not really supervise him at all other than giving input on the occasional paper or helping with math at times. If I had a part time job, it would be totally doable. My son has enough social action with his youth group since a good portion of the weekends seem to be spent doing something with them. That being said, are your children self motivated to get their assigned work done? If so, it's totally doable.

I would love to live in a home where we could walk everywhere - the library, places to eat, ice cream stores...My mom lives in a home like that. Unfortunately, many homes like this are older which means not wheelchair friendly. My 16 year old has that dream also. My kids wish there was a candy store nearby. You're living my home dream!

Good prices on produce. We have one coming in 1/4 mile away from our Costco so I'm very happy! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was one of those kids. When I talked, it sounded like a normal volume to me (I have no hearing issues). What was yelling to me was a normal speaking voice. I just had to learn to "yell" so that people could hear me. Most people can hear me now but I really had to be cognizant that what I perceived as yelling was a normal volume. I helped with a speech club for a year. The soft speakers I told to yell. When they "yelled", it sounded about the right volume.

Potter's school records each classroom section so the student can review it later if needed. If you're wondering about the course of action your kids need to take, they do provide academic advisors. My ds16 has taken English 3 with an American history combo, English 2, English 1 (Journey to Narnia - Mrs Richards), and now Advance Composition 4/5. He has Mrs. Troxel for Advanced Composition and likes her. English 2 was Mrs. Frederick who was also good. For non English courses, he has taken Propositional Logic with Apologetics and Starting Points (both excellent). My ds12 is taking writing fundamentals with Mr. Leonard. He's good with that class. Very encouraging and positive with feedback. He's a younger/newer teacher. I can only say positive things about TPS English classes. They will require your child to submit a placement test in order to enter their classes at any level. I feel like TPS shines in their English department. My ds16 is an excellent writer. With English 4/5 advanced composition, there is a section that can qualify for college credit through Bellhaven University. I feel confident that his writing abilities are enough for anything college can throw at him.

I've used Bob books, Nora Gaydos books, and the Sonlight little beginning books with Alpha Phonics. I used Alpha Phonics with all of my kids. One tip I have is to copy the pages and cut them up into smaller sections. That whole page of words or sentences to read overwhelmed each of them. If I cut it up and gave it to them in chunks, it helped them not to feel overwhelmed.

Our son had all chromosomes tested to look for abnormalities when he was a newborn because he had a heart condition consistent with Chromosome abnormalities. He has a really really rare chromosome problem that doesn't even have a name - only markers. A very very small portion of one side of his 8th chromosome duplicated and inverted itself. It's caused chaos. I've found that parents tend to do above and beyond the first five years or so, like I did, because they can beat "this". I saw my friend do this with her daughter. She was wearing herself out to help her daughter beat her diagnosis. I don't think that's all bad because it probably progresses some kids past where they could be. It seems around 5 years old or so, there's an acceptance of a disability - maybe an acknowledgement that they may never catch up - and then you raise the child you have helping them to be the best they can be. It was frustrating to us when they stopped using the charts. It meant for us that he really wasn't progressing much at all any more. Today, he's happy, content, and social but still has interests that he had when he was 18 months old at almost 18.

Have you looked into chromosome testing? I have a child who never even got on some charts he was/is so far behind. Those first few years are hard because you hope and hope and keep getting hit with those stupid charts and the reality of a child who is just not doing what they are supposed to do despite the progress you see. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I don't want to rain on the original poster's happy ideal parade, but ideals don't always happen. So, what's your story? What was your life plan when you were in your early 20s and how has the ideal been different from the reality? My plan was to get married right after college, wait a few years to have kids and have 4 children at least by the time I was 30. Homeschooling wasn't even on the radar since I believe it was still illegal (or perhaps just turned legal) when I was in my early 20s. My reality? I didn't get married until I was 24. We waited two years to try to get pregnant and had 2 years of infertility. I was 29 when my first child was born with severe special needs. We do have four children, but our last child was adopted when I was 40. We wanted a larger family, but being pregnant while taking care of my oldest son was too taxing on my body. Finally, for the first time in our married life of 22 years do we feel like life is not a chaotic mess. And just when we were thinking everything was going smoothly, life has thrown another curve ball. My ideal was to be an empty nester by 50. Now, we will never be empty nesters. YET! While my ideal plan wasn't accomplished, I am wiser and more content because I have learned to be content. I have learned joy despite the chaos and disappointments. My life is probably richer because my ideal never happened.

Get out of debt. I know that seems to have nothing to do with homeschooling, but debt and money problems only add stress to a marriage. If you are in debt, think of what a relief it would be to start a family fresh without that hanging over your head.

Yes, I know he can have services until 21. Apparently, as long as i don't issue a diploma, I can have him attend transition services next fall. So far, the one we did see that was "highly" recommended was basically adult day care where we figured he would spend most of his day in a corner being his usual content self because he didn't make much racket and they didn't really have the space needed to care for so many adults. Parents of toddlers would have been horrified if they had the number of toddlers in that space much less adults with wheelchairs and walkers. So, I'm still looking for some place that he would enjoy and we could trust. Trust is huge with me. The school has broken the trust BIG time and I am not going to try to fight them at this point. I know what constitutes a good special ed program. He had it in the previous state we lived in. Transition services from 18-21 left much to be desired there, but we were in a small town and I didn't expect much different. Transition services at some places I plan to visit sound much better and it makes me wonder why they don't provide similar in the public school system. Next step is to figure out how to set up transition services for fall and get him out of a bad situation without having to fight them again. I have found an advocate so that's good.

My son is 17 almost 18. I could sue for failure to provide IEP services (it's a legally binding contract with the school district). The teacher who recently quit because she just couldn't take the lack of support would agree with me. She has a student who can be very aggressive when agitated. The whole class of 5 moved to a safe room one time when she had an episode and another time she hit another student. The teacher asked for an aid just for her. The school refused. Their refusal has made it so the whole class suffers with achieving individual goals. He has 4 months left of that school and by the time anything is resolved, he'll be done. He is uneducable--it's not a pessimistic thought just a reality. Some kids are just like that. I have video of him doing similar activities now as when he was 18 months old. He does have services but they too are changing in 3 months so I don't want to go through the effort to get something that will change right away. I will try to figure out more crock pot type meals and freezer meals. I told DH that getting take out will happen once a week instead of once a month. I did talk with an advocate and came up with a plan that DH feels like is the only way that makes sense. I will for the first time with my children be officially homeschooling all of them. It's amazing how the school system can so totally fail to the point of neglect a whole classroom of vulnerable children. I think I'll get a plan together where my other kids will spend time with my oldest much like others do with their toddlers. I've told them they can read with him or play with him. It will be a positive experience for them. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It looks like my special needs son will be home full time. His school program is failing him big time and he is no longer safe there. I am drowning in stress due to multiple needs. Imagine having full time toddler needs but knowing that your toddler will never get older so you will always have a toddler. Now imagine you're also in your mid 40s and your toddler is your size. I need to rethink my life. I know that school won't get done by noon. My kids wouldn't always be done, but my time with them usually was. Im thinking about going back to Sonlight because my special son enjoys being read to, but I am liking the dialectic questions my 12 year old is doing with TOG (which requires discussion time from me). I also need to rethink groceries. We are constantly running out and I do not have time to go grocery shopping. I am having trouble just cooking. I am wiped out by that time. I can have the grocery store bring groceries out to my car after I shop online, but that still doesn't work through my energy level by the time I need to make food. Money is a little bit of an issue, but energy levels and time are a bigger issue now. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

No contract, no agent agreement. I would find someone who sells a lot of houses in the area you are selling. When we sold our home, our agent sold over 100 homes a year in our area. Part of his agent package included a consultation with a home stager. I know Dave Ramsey's site includes preferred real estate agents. Ours was one of those.

I live in Colorado Springs now. I have lived in eastern Texas. I find it very easy to homeschool here and there are a ton of co-ops and enrichment programs available to those who want them. Also, dual enrollment is really taking off here and there are a lot of options for high schoolers if you go that direction (tuition and books paid for by the public school system). I don't find the politics really all that different but I am coming from Minnesota so maybe I'm used to it? I would have to agree with you on cost of living. We've only lived here two years and have thought about building an accessible home. To get close to what we currently have, we are looking at an additional $200K in costs. The median price of a home has gone up 40% in 6 years so I get it. We lived in east Texas and it was hot hot hot in the summer. The kind where you walk outside and start sweating. The winters were mild which was nice with the occasional ice storm that messed things up for a few days, but doable. Personally, I prefer the mild winters and lack of summer humidity that I'm experiencing in Colorado vs. the humid summers of Texas. I'm not a fan of air conditioning so that probably plays into it (I just like being able to open windows for a nice breeze).

What would help kids learn their countries the best?

Doesn't it taste sour? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My DH started a job interview with a company that said it could take 4-6 MONTHS of interviews and flying him out times to make sure he was a good fit. It was a management job with high profile people but still! The job he has now took about 2-3 months of interviews, mock proposals, and work samples. It is annoying! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've never tried it because you have to sprout the grains and then dehydrate the grains from what I've seen. That's too much work for me. For healthier bread have you looked into sourdough? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I moved to a location that has 300 days of sunshine. I always thought I was a melancholy/ pessimistic person. Just having so much sun has really changed my outlook. I am a lot happier and more optimistic despite the stress I do have in my life. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Also, if you go with Sherwin Williams, around here, you can ask for a "paint specialist" who will come out to your home to pick out colors. And for the privilege of having someone do that, they give you $75 in credit to use at their store.

This is coming from a 16 year old boy who "knows everything" so take what he says with the teen boy filter...He talks before class and during group activities online with other homeschoolers and homeschool girls. He's know a few irl. He says he will never marry a homeschooled girl. Trying to get what he's talking about, he basically sums it up that a lot of them he interacts with, have no personality. They are sweet, kind, good with small children, and obey their parents, but have no "zing", no "fire", no "passion about anything". Not all of these I'm assuming are from the quiver full movement, but some are. Yes, I did bring up some exceptions with a small minority of other homeschool girls he knows, but the moms in these minorities usually have something that makes them less of a "sweet homeschooling mom". One of the girl's mom he knows races mini cars with her husband. Nicely, he says his sister will never be like that because I guess I have some decent "zing" to me. He says he will most likely marry someone a bit sarcastic just like me....NOOOOO!!!!

Sherwin Williams has full quart samples that you can paint in a large swatch on your wall and watch how the colors react to light. We had a grayish brown color that looked great on the sample card, but when applied to the wall, looked almost white. So, go with samples to paint on the wall and then decide.