You probably know this from reading the other recent iPad threads but I'm a big fan of the iPad. I originally planned on getting an android but ended up with the iPad because the company dh and I work with said the iPad would be better for our work software. I strongly feel now that it was the right decision. To me the big difference is in the availability of educational apps and ease of use. I would not however spend over $500. There is absolutely no difference between a new iPad and a refurbished one purchased from apple. If you don't need the camera you can get the first generation wifi with 64gb for $399. If you absolutely need a camera you can get the 32gb wifi iPad 2 for $499.

We've rented from vrbo and http://www.homeaway.com and have had great experiences every time. We just booked a week in Orlando for $600 in Feb. there were lots of options with good reviews for around that price.

I think when you discover a child lying and you're sure of the situation it deserves well thought out consistent punishment. We never extend grace or let dd out of punishment if she lied and we know it. That being said, unless I'm absolutely sure of the facts I don't punish her. I think I came up with this based on something I read in a book but I have no idea what book at this point. Basically, the relationship is more important than being right so if I'm not certain about what happened I don't punish. With kids there are plenty of opportunities to punish when you know the facts and the damage to the relationship done by wrongly accusing a child of lying or punishing when they didn't lie isn't worth it.

Looks pretty good to me. I'm still working on my loop plan for the new year but it loosely looks like this: Morning Bible - 15 - 20 min Math -15 - 45 minutes of mus (using a acceleration plan previously posted) Latin - 30 min Memory work - 15 min FLL - 15 min WWE - 15 min Subjects for the loop Mct island series Science History Mindbenders Greek Art Geography Famous men of Greece History timeline Life of Fred Khan academy online Singapore cwp Various other things I can't remember now because I'm away from home right now.

Dd6 and I read it and enjoyed. It was available from our library so we just borrowed it instead of buying.

I would think you could start with level 4. Both levels include review. You can review samples of both. If I remember correctly the samples include lessons from the beginning, middle and end of the books. I skipped level 2 with my daughter and we're about 25 lessons in to level 3 now. We're going t finish it at an accelerated pace but it's still pretty simple for a child who picks up grammar easily. In retrospect we could have skipped all the way to level 4 without issues but since I already bought level 3 we're going to finish it.

I am going to admit to not reading the other responses because I'm short on time. I wanted to respond because I've felt the way you feel about being at home. I may be repeating advice already given but here goes... First, your walk with the Lord and marriage need to be the first priority. IMHO it takes a lot of work to counteract the negative cultural impact on our thinking about marriage and staying home. I struggled at first because I didn't have any friends who decided to take the path I did. They are working moms who are just in a whole different world with a different set of challenges. I found the best thing for me was to saturate my mind with reading from authors and listening to podcasts, etc from people who value the role of a mother. Nancy Leigh Demoss is one example that comes to mind. Also, The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace has been turned in to a devotional. I found it helpful. http://www.christianbook.com/excellent-based-the-wife-martha-peace/karen-eiler/9781885904867/pd/04867X Next, at five with a child who is already ahead in academics should take a backseat to getting the behavior under control. It is impossible to teach a child who won't obey you and I heard a wise person once say if you can't get it under control now add ten years and what is your life going to look like. In other words if your five year old doesn't respect you, how is your fifteen year old going to treat you? Because you mentioned God I will recommend some great resources that helped us with setting up a structured approach to discipline in our home. Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp and The Heart of Anger by Lou Priolo. All of the books by these authors are great but those are the best starting place IMHO. Hopefully this post is coherent because I'm typing while having a conversation.

There are a few apps in the AppStore. I think if you search for homework or school or class schedule they will come up.

We almost missed it because we got a MSG on the screen with less than a minute to go that the channel was changing because of a previously scheduled recording. Fortunately my dear friend dove across the room to th couch and got the remote to save the day. We'll be laughing about that one for a while. We still have 30 minutes to go before midnight here but we went with eastern time because gh kids weren't going to make it...they were fading fast.

Thanks for sharing. She is only 6 but pretty advanced in language arts. We focused on the alphabet first with Greek and she picked it up easily so that's probably a good way for us to start with Hebrew. I will check out your materials at Currclick! Dd is a big history junkie so learning about other cultures is exciting for her so that wouldn't be an issue for us.

Linking here since there's more traffic. http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=335179

She was referencing th old testament because she's already doing Greek.

I can't believe I'm asking this but dd is asking me if she can learn Hebrew. My initial reaction (which I didn't share with her) was no way because I can barely keep up with Latin and we just started Greek. She said she really wants to be able to read the Bible in its original language. So...does anyone know of a self-paced option for learning Hebrew? A gentle introduction would be great if such a thing exists. I would like something I could give her that she could do on her own. Fwiw dd seems to have no problem keeping up in Latin and Greek. It definately comes easier to her than it does for me.

I love this idea!

We drove a few hours to spend the weekend with friends. The kids are playing and having a great time. We are just sitting around visiting and enjoying ourselves. Tonight we plan to eat Chinese food, play some board games and watch the ball drop.

This is pretty close to our philosophy. We have an iPad and a wii not a ds but basically it is just a feel thing for us too. I find that because dd was an avid reader before she was introduced to technology she is just as likely to sit down with a book or play with toys as she is to ask to use the iPad. I do think video games can be addictive especially if introduced too young but it hasn't been an issue for us. We play wii maybe once every other month and a lot of times it is family Jeopardy. I also agree with pp who said what is being done during screen time determines how much should be allowed but I would have a hard time putting a set time on it. That being said, I doubt dd ever has more than an average of 30 minutes a day and goes days on end without having any. I probably need to implement a no reading on the Internet until school and work is done rule for myself. :lol:

Thanks for the link. I enjoyed then laugh.:lol:

So...do you think the information you find here saves you money or motivates you to spend more money. I was just here reflecting on all the valuable tips and ideas I've received here that have saved me a tremendous amount of money and time and wondering if it's made up for the things I've purchased because I found out about them here and suddenly couldn't live without them. A Few Examples of Things I've Saved Money or Time On Curriculum choices I realized after reading about weren't right for us Disney tickets after reading about the Education options for homeschoolers Reducing the choices on curriculum by reading about it here before shopping Setting up my iPad (thanks Reg) Free curriculum resources from blog links A Few Examples of things I've purchased after reading about them here A lot of iPad apps life of Fred MCT snap circuits Robot to build from Superdriod 1O days in Africa book Several books I'm sure there are a lot more but that's a start...how about you?

Thanks for sharing!

We have been using the free app for a while. I really enjoyed using it while listening to sermons or just reading on my own. It's also great for when you are teaching because you can just click on a reference and it brings it up for you without turning pages. The paid version is just like the free version on steroids. It has all those tools plus a lot of others. The main benefit to the paid versions are the book collections that come with it. The free version has some books and commentaries in it that are used when you search a topic or verse. Each level of the paid version comes with additional books. It ranges from 80 or so books in the home study light version all the way up to something like 4000 books in the top package aimed at Pastors. Also the paid version comes with the desktop software which has pre-loaded reports that give you an exegetical breakdown of the text as well as links to every book in your collection/library that references the text you searched for.

I see in your signature that one of your children attends Christian school. If you aren't opposed to reading Christian materials I highly recommend the books Shepherding a Child's Heart and The Heart of Anger. I have two friend's who were in your exact situation and used the techniques in the books successfully.

Unless you want to spend money I would suggest avoiding the website:lol:

I've found the best option for me is leave him alone and let him sleep. I check in occasionally to see if he needs meds, food or fluids and try to stay downstairs.

My dh isn't a pastor but we've been attending some biblical counseling courses for the last few years and they have mini sessions about the software. We have to submit a large number of lengthy essays when we decide to pursue certification so dh really wanted the software but every year decided he couldn't spring for it. He even avoided going to the mini session so he wouldn't be tempted since he's a sucker for a good sales pitch:lol: I surprised him with it on Christmas but he hasn't even had a chance to play with it. I started playing with it and immediately got excited about using the handouts and visual aides. I know dd will the love biblical family tree section and I am excited about using the Latin and Greek tools in the future.

Bumping