Someone recently recommended these books to me for ds7, who loves mystery stories. I just looked them up on Amazon and they seem very scary! Are these books appropriate for a 2nd grader? He's a big fan of The Boxcar Children so I was thinking The Hardy Boys or Encyclopedia Brown might be better choices. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated -- thanks so much!

We use ABeka flash cards and the Straight Forward Math Series by Garlic Press -- they have worked wonders for ds7!

I'm so glad someone mentioned this -- it is exactly the reason why I now buy all of our books. I can't tell you how many times we've checked out a book only to open it up and see something absolutely disgusting. We stopped checking out books about a year ago but we do still check out audio books and movies. I now buy from Amazon, CBD, and various school supply stores.

The Early Readers Bible by Thomas Nelson is great. We bought a copy for ds7 when he was 6 years old and he loves it! http://www.thomasnelson.com/consumer/product_detail.asp?sku=0718013301 It retails for $19.99 but you can get it cheaper at Amazon and CBD.

We already have McGuffey's readers and several from Pathway Publishers. Are there any others available? Thanks in advance -- any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks so much -- I am definitely going to check it out!

It is amazing, isn't it? After school, we get a snack and then immediately get started on school work. If we were to turn on the TV, the plans for the whole rest of the day would be shot! Ds is much more cooperative (and much less whiney) when he does his school work before watching TV. May I ask what you're doing for Classical Writing? Thanks!

I have been afterschooling my ds7 since he was 4 (although, I've been calling it part-time homeschooling, hence my user name). He goes to a small private school and I work with him after school, on the weekends, and during the summer to make sure he understands and retains what he is learning in school. He has a mild case of Auditory Processing Disorder so he needs a little more time to process the information he sees and hears. Afterschooling has helped him maintain straight A's and also allows us to work on subjects he doesn't get in school, such as classic literature, Latin, Spanish, etc. So far, this has worked wonderfully for us! I started using the OPG with dd4 last week and we are now getting settled into our homeschooling routine as well. I've been reading the WTM boards for about 2 years now and I have learned so much -- it is a wonderful resource!

I thought I would share what worked for us... When my ds was 6 (he's 7 now), he was struggling with his math facts. I ordered the ABeka flash cards (they go up to the 16 family for both addition and subtraction) and bought the Straight Forward Math Series workbooks by Garlic Press ($3.95 at school supply stores). By the time he finished the workbooks, ds7 could whiz through the flashcards with ease and he was actually enjoying math! When I saw how well the flashcards and workbooks helped him learn his addition & subtraction facts, I ordered both the division and multiplication flashcards and workbooks and he is memorizing those facts very quickly. I hope this helps -- good luck!

Wow -- thank you SO MUCH!

Is it too early to start The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading with DD4? She knows the alphabet and has a good start on phonics already. I don't want to overwhelm her but at the same time she seems ready. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated -- thanks!