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momto2Cs

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Everything posted by momto2Cs

  1. My dd13 is not a natural speller... she still spells very phonetically. She wants an online spelling program that offers some game opportunities and is NOT Spelling City. ETA: Software recommendations would be great too! Any recommendations? She loves the Prodigy Math game, so I am hoping there is something like that out there for spelling!
  2. We're doing a fairly loose study of world geography/cultures for my ds's 10th grade (and dd's 8th grade) year. I am looking for recommendations for books (fiction, nonfiction, travelogue, whatever) and movies and/or documentaries set in different locations around the world. I'm not looking for a textbook recommendation at this point. Resources can be vintage or modern. Thanks!
  3. I am teaching remedial freshman comp this fall at the local university, and need to get my book order in by tomorrow. I am having a terrible time choosing which of two books to require. The college already requires all of them to get Emerging: Contemporary Readings for Writers, but I know I want them to have some more solid help with actually putting their writing together. Thoughts?
  4. My dd13, a rising 8th grader, is somewhat behind in math, about 2 grades. I would like to work on remediation for the next year or two, but am trying to decide which program to use. In the past, we have used primarily Saxon and Math Mammoth, as well as some Mastering Math Essentials with her. She does not like any of those programs (or I would go back to Saxon), so I am trying to find something that will work, AND that she can tolerate. She also really dislikes the looks of Teaching Textbooks. She's dyslexic, but that's another story. Here is what I am looking at so far. Advice/feedback/suggestions more than welcome! AGS Basic Math Skills CLE Maybe Lial's Basic College Math, but would that be overwhelming? Math-U-See Other ideas?
  5. Thank you! I am trying to fill in gaps with my dd13, and this looks perfect!
  6. I am not sure how to address the issue of her just not doing things... that's a rough one, and hopefully someone here will chime in on that. For math remediation, I would get something like Lial's Basic College Math (an older, cheaper edition would work too). It is really good for kids that age, and if she is willing to apply herself, should help her catch up. Does she understand the potential consequences of failing high school? It will affect everything -- career, potential college, etc. Are there any privileges you can take away from her until she buckles down a bit?
  7. I just browsed through this a bit, and it looks like it would be such a good fit for my dd!
  8. Googling for other options, I found this, and it looks really cool! Choose Your Own Adventure History Tasks
  9. I really, really want to buy both the complete sets of history and science. I think they would fit in very well with our interest-led approach. But, do they ever have a sale?
  10. I know, I'm really late to this discussion. But having flirted with interest-led/unschooling for years now, we've officially headed off the rails, out of the box... except for math and language arts. Currently, what this looks like is math and writing (spelling also for dyslexic dd) most days (4-5x weekly). I also read out loud almost every day, from a variety of books, based off current interests. We're watching Downton Abbey, documentaries, plagues, and currently Anne Frank: The Whole Story for history The kids are reading everything they can find on black holes (ds) and animals (dd) for science, plus we garden, do Citizen Science projects, etc. We're reading about micro-climates and DNA as well. Ds is also spending an entire day a week this spring helping rebuild a 1940 Ford truck from the frame up. Dd spends an entire day a week at my mom's, where she works on sewing and art projects, and sometimes baking projects too. She also volunteers weekly as a puppy petter, helping puppies that will be guide dogs get used to people. Next year, it will be more of the same, plus possibly a lit study based off the show Once Upon a Time. And a little more focus on life skills. Ds may be taking his first auto shop class at the junior college next fall, or astronomy and ???. He took Machine Tool Technology and 3D art earlier this year and loved it! He also wants to learn to weld, and to sew. Dd wants to volunteer at the wildlife rescue center, now that she's old enough. That means we may also be fostering some wildlife next year! She's getting good at sewing dresses for her dolls, so might work on some more fashion design, and eventually, sewing for herself. And we're expanding the garden, putting in rainwater caches/cisterns, and things of that sort. Here's my recent blog post on what it looks like over a week. And I updated my signature to reflect current studies and books.
  11. Let's see... Beyond Five in a Row? Homeschool in the Woods has both Project Passport and Time Travelers Beautiful Feet maybe Sidenote: the first two books I listed in my previous post are basically memoirs of homeschooling, from two very different parents who both took outside-the-box approaches with their kids.
  12. Let's see... First off, you don't have to use textbooks. Except for math, and an occasional science textbook chosen by one of the kids, we don't. We still love read-alouds, and living books. Some of my favorite homeschooling books, where you might find some inspiration: The Year of Living Dangerously Dan Riley School for a Girl Project Based Homeschooling What are her interests? Does she prefer books to hands-on projects? What about a curriculum that has a different focal point (such as Where the Brook and the River Meet, or world cultures, or ???)
  13. Current plans, subject to change as always... DsAlmost15: Definitely: Finish Tabletclass Algebra, start Geometry Writing across the curriculum, w/Writing With a Thesis as a guide, and some parts of Brave Writer Lifestyle Fencing and parkour Probably: The Big History Project w/additional science, mainly biology Auto shop (or other class/classes, but auto shop is his dream class) at junior college Dd13: Definitely: Continue w/Math Mammoth and Math Essentials combo (pre-algebra) Continue w/Spelling Workout Brave Writer Lifestyle Roller derby Probably: Mapping the World with Art, plus folk/fairy tales from studied regions May sit in on Big History w/brother, will be doing biology
  14. Background: dd13 has studied animals/zoology extensively. Id like to round out her biology background a bit next year (8th grade). ds14 has studied physics, some chemistry, and not a lot of biology. I would like him to get a decent background in it next year (10th grade). Is there any program/book out there that would work for both of them, so we could do it together? We'd like to do labs at home too, and I have a good microscope, slide materials, etc. I'd prefer secular recommendations, please. Thanks!
  15. My ds is not planning on going the standard 4 year college route. He wants to be a mechanic. That is his dream, and his goal. Specifically, he wants to eventually specialize in restoring and modifying older cars, but he's willing to do general mechanic work until he gets to that level. He plans on getting his mechanic's certificate at the local junior (community) college. How this affects high school is this -- he's already gotten one pre-req for the program out of the way through dual enrollment, and he'll hopefully get into the basic first-level auto shop class in the fall. At home, we focus on math, writing, and good literature, plus science/history rabbit trails. He also plans on taking the basic requirements for an associate's degree, which also act as transfer units should he decide to go the university route later. And this will help ensure he hits all the graduation "requirements" for our state. We'll do a semester of business math at some point, or he will take it through the JC. My dd on the other hand, wants to be a wildlife biologist, which will require a four year degree, so I'm much more about prepping her for undergrad work at the JC. Part of the reason we chose homeschooling was to give our kids space to explore passions. Both have known what they wanted to do since a very young age, and now it is my job to help facilitate that.
  16. For my darling, dyslexic dd: Math: continue with Math Mammoth and Math Essentials combo, pre-algebra Language Arts: Spelling Workout; BraveWriter Lifestyle; some writing instruction tbd Foreign language: Probably Spanish with Mango languages through our library, or through Duolingo. Literature: continued free reading. Family read-alouds, inspired (for 2016-17) by the show Once Upon a Time, plus various books of interest in science, history, geography, etc., as part of our Afternoon Basket. Science and history, etc., are all interest led at this point. I keep eying the Creek Edge task cards, but don't want to part with the money!
  17. We're studying history all together, but not from a pre-made source.
  18. My ds is going from Teaching Textbooks to TabletClass math. I emailed them for placement advice, and to ask if they have any sales coming up, since I missed the last one. John Zimmerman emailed me, asked if he could call, then spent half an hour on the phone with me, targeting where ds should be. He topped it off by giving me 12 months access for the six month price! I love it when places offer such good customer service!
  19. A Wrinkle in Time The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Downfall of Imperial Russia LoTR: The Fellowship of the Ring (bedtime book) The Royal Road to Romance (travelogue by Richard Halliburton)
  20. Both ds and I read that book! Very inspiring. And I'll check out that website -- thanks!
  21. Since we're about halfway through the year, I thought I would update with how it is going! During the fall, ds took two cc classes, one in Three Dimensional Art, and the other in Machine Tool Technology. He loved both, and did very well (straight A's). He worked on plenty of free writing, as well as some more structured writing, and read voraciously (books of his own choosing). He's doing very well with Teaching Textbooks Algebra. As for history and science, we watched documentaries, read a few books... kind of a hands-off, easygoing approach. This spring, he's taking just one class at the cc, Intro to Engineering. He'll continue with his math program, and we've added in The Lively Art of Writing. He still reads like crazy, and we're reading some lit aloud, as a family. For science, we're doing some hands-on suggestions from HHMI, and he's doing an online robotics course from Coursera (at a slightly relaxed pace). For history, we're using Downton Abbey as a launching point for modern history. SO MUCH FUN! He studies German on his own, off and on. And, he'll be spending one day a week working with his best buddy and a gentleman who restores cars/trucks. They will be first rebuilding a 1940 Ford pickup. While it does not follow a WTM approach, I think it is working beautifully for him. We're covering all our bases, some in a much more relaxed way than others; he's building strong basic skills (writing, math); and he's getting to explore options through the cc and this awesome hands-on opportunity. I want to thank each and every one of you for your feedback to my original post!
  22. Currently, for 9th grade: Lively Art of Writing I might use The Great Grammar Book with him as well, since I was just given a copy for tutoring. Plans for 10th: Writing With a Thesis Writing across the curriculum Maybe: Excavating English, for fun 11th-12th: Writing across the curriculum, maybe a cc class (I know...that's outsourcing. But he's planning on working toward an AA bit by bit.)
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