Thanks for your replies! I'll look into these. Keep the suggestions coming! :)

Thanks for your replies! I'll look into these. Keep the suggestions coming! :)

Hello! I'm in the market for a good Biology/Life Science curriculum for my 8th grade son (for next year). Any recommendations? Thanks!

The Lion Storyteller Bedtime Book has a lot of fun short fable-like stories. My ds enjoyed it when he was your son's age (in fact, the book is still on his shelf and he's almost 13). It's designed to be used as a bedtime read-aloud for younger kids, but the stories are interesting and may be a good length for your ds to practice his reading skills. http://www.sonlight.com/PA03.html You might also try something like Aesop's Fables or Greek Myths for Young Children. http://www.sonlight.com/BA07.html BTW, I have no experience working with dyslexia so take these suggestions for what they're worth. HTH

:lol: Wow! Can I totally relate to that! I wanna pull out my hair sometimes when I ask ds about something we spent an entire year on and he just stares at me blankly! :svengo:

We've done well with Wordsmith Apprentice. From there, we're moving into WriteShop 1 (7th grade next year). For creative writing we've enjoyed using the NaNoWriMo Young Writer's program. Ds is part of a "class" that works through this every year, which makes it that much more fun, but it can be done on your own. Your dd might find it interesting & fun if she's into the creative stuff, and when she completes the program & editing she'll have a completed, published novel with her name on it. Very cool! http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/ BTW, the way ds' class usually figures out word count goals is grade level times 1000. So for 5th grade, the word count goal for a novel would be 5000 words. HTH!

How 'bout Khan Academy - online and free! https://www.khanacademy.org/

I didn't vote in the pole, but wanted to chime in here. As a student in our local parent partnership program, ds is required to school 25 hrs per week. We tend to school 4 days per week which can make for some long days, but it ultimately gives us more family time. 25 hrs is what our district/state requires for grades 4+ (20 hrs for grades 1-3; 10 hrs for K) so maybe that can give you an idea of how many hours your dc "should" be working.

Thanks for the suggestion!

You might try having him do a writer's notebook or a daily writing prompt. You can find all kinds of writing prompts online for free. WriteShop has a series called Storybuilders that is sort of like a game where you choose cards for different story aspects (setting, character, etc.) and use those to create a story. http://www.writeshop...ucts.php?cat=16 They also have a series of workbooks geared for the younger set (I haven't used them, but they look good. I'm planning to use WriteShop 1 with ds (12) next year). There are a couple books I just got from the library entitled, "Written Anything Good Lately?" and "Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street." I plan to use these with my ds to explore different forms of writing (creating his own ABC book of writing as in the first book listed), and to grow in his observation skills (as in the second book). I got the ideas for this from this website: http://corbettharris..._notebooks.html I haven't implemented this yet, but it's given me a lot to think about. Granted, this site is geared toward older kids, but I think there are some great ideas that you could easily implement with your younger. You may also be interested in the Just Write program. I used one of their books with ds when he was about 7 or so. http://eps.schoolspecialty.com/products/details.cfm?seriesonly=2625M We used the Write About Me book. HTH!

Okay, so I've been planning to use A History of US (Hakim) for history, beginning next year (7th grade). I have recently begun reading, however, that there are accuracy issues with Hakim's books. For those of you who use/have used this series, how did you deal with these problems? For those of you who use something different for American History, what do you use, and why? TIA for helping me sort through my current dilemma!

:bigear: My ds is approaching 7th grade so I am listening with great interest!

Looks good! Other writing programs you could consider are Wordsmith Apprentice and Writeshop. I haven't been to the Writeshop website recently, but I know they are in the process of designing books for the "tweens." We plan on using Writeshop 1 over 7th & 8th grades, so you would likely want the one below that (if it's available yet), or begin with Wordsmith Apprentice (which is what we did). You can find info on both programs here: http://www.writeshop.com/ Another thing you may be interested in is The Writer's Jungle. This is more of a method than a curriculum, which means you could take your history assignments, for example, and do writing projects corresponding to those. I plan to use some of this next year (7th grade) with ds, but I will not be adding in Bravewriter, just using some of Writer's Jungle. http://www.bravewriter.com/program/home-study-courses/the-writers-jungle/

Okay, trying this again (the site crashed just as I was posting). As I was saying, I agree with Merry. I think I was 13 and in 8th grade before my school tackled Algebra (granted, this was eons ago). So I figure, if your dd is enjoying what you're doing and it's working, keep it up!

Okay, so I think I mostly have it figured out now that I have the class list from our PPP. Language Arts: Novel Writing (PPP) - uses the NaNoWriMo program Vocabulary from Classical Roots Writeshop 1 - planning on half this year, half next Growing with Grammar 7 - if there ends up being time; if not, we'll skip it Math: Teaching Textbooks Pre-Algebra Khan Academy Social Studies: A History of US - beginning in book 1- we'll likely do some writing, q&a, and quizzes along the way, as well as related reading Earth Science: World Physical Geography - we'll likely only get through half of this in 7th and finish it in 8th Science Investigations (PPP) World Languages: Rosetta Stone (or other) Latin American Spanish - cont'd Korean - as needed/desired for TaeKwonDo The Arts: Art (PPP) - drawing, painting, 3D Beginning Sewing (PPP) - this was actually his idea, but I figure it's a good skill to have Music - remains to be seen since his piano teacher will no longer be available and he's requesting violin lessons. Hmm.... Health/Fitness: TKD - continuing 2-3 times per week That oughta be enough to keep us busy! :tongue_smilie:

I might suggest seeing if you can get your hands on a copy of Writer's Jungle. It's kind of a "How to" for the parent/instructor on teaching writing skills. It might give you an idea of what you can do with your ds. I'm planning to use it with my ds (12yo) next year. Here's a link so you can check it out. Be sure to read the whole description. Lots of good info there. http://www.bravewriter.com/program/home-study-courses/the-writers-jungle/

Woo Hoo! That's great! I wonder if he would like a penpal or something?

Well...I'm looking to use Writer's Jungle (not all the Bravewriter stuff) along with WriteShop. I haven't used WS before and I'm not sure what all the younger levels cover (we're starting with WS1). You can take a look and see what you think, but it may be more writing than you want to do with your dyslexic. http://www.writeshop.com/

I don't know if it's exactly what you're looking for, but have you looked at the "Come Look with Me" series? If memory serves, this series shows paintings from various artists and offers information and discussion questions. Here's a link to one on Amazon that you can see inside of: http://www.amazon.co...e/dp/0934738955 Rainbow Resource has a whole bunch of the books on their site: http://www.rainbowre...6&category=5140 Another couple of series you may be interested in is "How Artists See" and "Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists". You can also find these on Rainbow Resource.

My DS liked Dance Mat also - and it's free. http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/

I hear that!

I think it's different with each child. Could be months; could be for a goodly portion of the teen years. Just know there is a light at the end of the tunnel! In the meantime, we do what we can. The conference is called "Crossing Thin Ice" if you want to look it up. It's geared toward parent/teen relationships, especially in the church, but he also discusses teen brain development. I haven't read his book, but I imagine it's the same info as in the conference. http://www.crossingthinice.com/

I would second Khan Academy. She can start with the basics and move ahead at her own pace. She can also see clearly the paths to take toward higher level math and can map her progress - it's all right there in front of her with no labels (such as "basic" or "remedial"). Plus, it's free! https://www.khanacademy.org/

We have entered this phase also, with ds age 12. It took 30 minutes to do 3 math problems today because the dots just weren't connecting in his brain (and he has mild neurological issues anyway)! I first learned about the "brain fog" at a conference a few months ago. Since then I have seen proof positive of its ever-growing existance in my son. Ugh. I keep telling myself there is hope. He will get thru this AND have the ability to be a capable adult...in spite of what the current situation seems to indicate. :001_rolleyes: Until then...I pray.

We're looking at using Writer's Jungle in conjunction with history studies, and Writeshop 1. http://www.bravewriter.com/program/home-study-courses/the-writers-jungle/ (be sure to read the description - it's lengthy, but good) http://www.writeshop...l.php?prod=0011