Cool! Thanks for sharing. I'll have to check this out. Still trying to figure out what to do for middle school science next year.

I would second Timez Attack if your child enjoys computer games. I believe they now have games for all four basic operations. You can check it out here: http://www.bigbrainz.com/ Battling ogres may not be her thing, but my ds loved it! You might also check out the Reader Rabbit and JumpStart series'. Other sites to check out: http://www.sheppards...re.com/math.htm www.khanacademy.org I know these are all on the computer, and you may not be looking for that, but they may be handy to have in your arsenal anyway! ;)

There is a book I used with ds a couple of years ago, that goes thru line, shape, texture, etc. that may be helpful to her - http://www.amazon.com/How-Teach-Art-Children-Grades/dp/1557998116

Awsome! Lots of information and fun to read - what more could you ask! :p

That's awsome! What a great start! My ds was in 4th grade when he did his first NaNo. I was amazed at his creativity. I'd say just let him (?) keep writing. Give him a journal and allow him to write without fear of grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. Just get the ideas down and enjoy the process of learning how to put thoughts on paper. The mechanics can be tackled in other assignments. If he enjoys writing a lot you can find writing prompts to get him started with some ideas. A Google search should offer a bunch, or you can make up your own. I think at this point, you just want to allow the love to grow without puting too many restrictions on the creativity. When ds did his first NaNo, I walked through the editing process with him to prepare for publication. We talked about adding detail and description, word choice (Did Michael 'say' or did he 'shout' or did he 'bellow'....) I tried to get him to imagine what things the characters might have heard, seen, felt, smelled.... As he gets older he's adding more description into the first draft of his writing. We'll see how he does this year. I'm about to begin the process with him again, editing this year's NaNo. If I might put in a shameless plug :D ds' book can be purchased on lulu.com. Actually, I mention this, not only for my budding author, but it could be an incentive/encouragement for your dc to read/see a book published by another young author of about the same age. Ds has the blessing of being part of a writing class that does NaNo together. Great inspiration! If you're interested in taking a look at his project you can pm me and I'll send you the title/link. Sorry, I probably told you more than you wanted to know. Anyway, kudos to your author!

You've gotten a lot of great responses, and I've only read the first page so forgive me if what I say is redundant. Lego Mindstorm was mentioned, but have you checked out Lego Master Builder Academy? That would be a good one to invest in as well. Tangrams Pattern Blocks Unifix Cubes Art Supplies (check out http://www.dickblick.com/ ) I recommend Prismacolor pencils - they have a softer "lead" and blend nicely. Classical Kids audio books ( http://www.amazon.com/Classical-Kids-Collection-Various-Artists/dp/B00000212C ) other audio books (we like a lot of the GreatHall Productions http://www.greathall.com/ ) I would also do some of the other things that have been suggested, but I won't trouble you with repeating anymore things. Good luck with your selection process! What a blessing and a challenge!

There are a couple series of books you may be interested in checking out: Meet the Great Composers Getting to Know the World's Greatest Composers The Classical Kids Collection (audio books/music) Aside from the first series, there are no work/coloring pages that go along with these, but you can find suitable pages on notebooking sites such as http://notebookingpages.com/ Hope this helps!

Ds is using TT Math 7 (6th grade). Toward the end of the decimals unit they have a section on learning to use a calculator...after having learned to do the problems without one. I think it's important to know how/when to use a calculator, but not be dependant upon it. State testing will often allow the use of a calculator in specified sections for the older grades.

Another resource you might like is called The Story. It follows the main thread of Scripture chronologically and in story form. There's an adult version, a youth version, and a children's version. This would be a good read to give you valuable insight into the Christian faith and way of life. Click on the links below and you can find a link to the first chapter(s). http://www.thestory....7C3CF6559A79FDF (children's) http://www.thestory....15A4E01AEA041AC (adult's)

Usborne books might have something that fits the bill. You might also look at the "If You Lived..." series (history), although those might be a bit old for 7. I'm sure your local library will have some if you'd like to check them out (so to speak). :p There's also a series called "You Wouldn't Want to..." that you should also be able to find at the library (history). Again, you may want to preview these to make sure they are appropriate for your 7yo. HTH!

We used it a couple years ago and really enjoyed it. I did not have ds do all the notebooking at the time (we only used the textbook, and handwriting was difficult for him), but we did get some good discussions out of the readings and questions. I like the multi-cultural elements to it, too. I had thought to use the sequel this year, but don't have the extra cash at the moment, and ds has taken to daily bible reading on his own (yay!). Hopefully, you'll get some more experienced responses!

At age 5, I wouldn't worry about using an actual curriculum. File folder games, counting/sorting objects, reading books like Dr. Seuss' ABCs, tangrams, pattern blocks, unifix cubes.... I used 100 Easy Lessons with ds and it was helpful, but ds still had to be ready developmentally, to put it all together. Young children tend to learn more through play and experience rather than "book learning." ETC is also a good program. Just be careful about pushing academics too early. You don't want to burn him out at the beginning of the game. JMHO

Fabulous video! Thanks for sharing. Now if I could just figure out how to make that work in 7th grade.... :glare:

Perhaps a different format? Have you looked at doing notebooking or lapbooks? Currclick may give you some ideas. http://www.currclick.com/

This may be deeper than you want to go at this point, but check out the Lego Master Builder Academy. It's a subscription program that teaches Lego building techniques with kits, detailed books and online activities. http://mba.lego.com/ Also, if you live near a Legoland, they have (at least when we were there) an area set up with parts of kits that the builders have gotten into for their park projects. They were selling those at $25 for a gallon-size ziplock bag - all you could stuff into it and still close the bag. Couldn't hurt to call and ask. ('course that would mean park entrance fee as well.) Well, it was a thought anyway. :001_unsure:

"treasure boxes" - anything that can be counted, sorted, patterned....(buttons, colored paper clips, links...) unifix cubes tangrams pattern blocks play dough with letter cutters sensory tubs (sand, cornmeal, beans, rice...and stuff to go with them) file folder games (a google search will give you some good ideas) Kumon workbooks jigsaw puzzles magnet sets a box of art supplies that he can use relatively unsupervised (pipecleaners, for example- he can make all kinds of creatures, shapes, etc with them no glue or scissors required) sticker book / stickers if you like computer edu-games, I like Reader Rabbit and Dr. Seuss' ABCs for that age

You've gotten some good responses here. My first thought, as I read your post, was ADHD. I agree that consistency in your routine and discipline/structure is necessary, but also do what you can to understand how his brain is wired. I also wanted to mention that, if your ds does have an LD, he could very well be tired (in spite of all the bouncing!). Children with neurological issues often have sleep problems as well. I'm no expert. I've just been doing some research because my own ds, I believe, has an undiagnosed case of TS (he was dx'd with motor tics at age 7, but I'm convinced it's more than that). He sleeps 10 hrs or so each night, but always complains of being tired. We're using low doses of Melatonin, and Vitamins B & D to help with that (Dr. recommended). He's also beginning Taekwondo to increase his activity level (he's more sedentary than he ought to be, which could also affect his sleep). Anyway, you'll have to wait and see what results come back to you from the pro's and take it from there. :grouphug:

Reading one of the previous posts reminded me of a book we enjoyed (yes, my then 9-10 yo son enjoyed it; I add this because I notice you have a 9 yo son; he will likely enjoy it, too.)- Gooney Bird Green. It's a ficticious story, but within it you learn about what makes an interesting story. Another thing you may be interested in is NaNoWriMo. It's a great program to "get your feet wet" in. There is a free downloadable workbook on the site that takes you thru the process of writing a novel. Typically, a student goes thru the workbook Sept/Oct; the month of Nov is spent in writing the novel (word count goals are set according to grade - for example, a 6th grader would usually have a 6000 word count goal). After Nov, the student edits the novel and gets it ready for publication. I'm not sure which company they are using at the moment, but a free proof copy is usually issued, with the opportunity to order/print more for a price (dependant upon various things) as needed. Ds does Nano frequently (he did it for the first time as a 4th grader), but he does it within a group context at our ppp, and we use a local printer, which adds even more to the experience. I encourage you to check out the website. It's a really neat program and the kids have such a feeling of accomplishment when holding their own printed/bound novel in their hands! http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/ http://www.amazon.co...y/dp/0440419603 BTW, I would also encourage you to finish reading Writer's Jungle. I'm a little over halfway thru it, and loving it. There's a lot of great stuff in there - some of which you mentioned in your post (copywork, dictiation, creating appropriate writing assignments).

Basher Science books might be helpful. You might also take a look at Currclick for some unit studies on the chosen topics. http://www.basherbooks.com/usa/aboutbooks.html http://www.currclick.com/

Scholastic also has a series called "No More Boring Practice, Please" that may fit the bill for you, too. I haven't found a place that lists them all, but this site has several showing so you can get an idea of what's available. Often-times, when Scholastic Teacher's Express has their $1 sale on ebooks, a couple of these will be included. http://books.google.com/books/about/No_Boring_Practice_Please_Spelling.html?id=ieuVHAAACAAJ Amazon also has several listed.

This is late in the conversation, and perhaps a mute point at this juncture, but I wanted to second (or third) the NaNoWriMo idea. Maybe you participated this year already? You mentioned something about not wanting her other schoolwork to suffer. As this is our third year of NaNo, I can whole-heartedly attest to the fact that nothing else will get done during the month of November. :001_rolleyes: After our first experience, for future years I planned for that reality; it is such a valuable experience, tho, I think it's totally worth it. We are part of a PPP in our district and ds does NaNo with a "class". It's so fun to see them all huddled under & on top of tables and counters with blankets, hot chocolate and computers/notebooks just writing away! In this setting, they also have the experience of critiquing each others' work, sharing input and learning from their instructor who is also a practicing author. At the end of the whole editing process, and the books are published, there is such a sense of satisfaction from each of the kids - joy at what they've accomplished. And then there was the year ds was invited into a younger writing class as a "guest author" - he sat in a seat of honor and read from his published book. He absolutely beamed! :001_smile: But I digress...really I just wanted to say that I think it would be a valuable experience for your dc. There are always encouraging notes emailed from various authors as well (such as "Erin Hunter" the authors of The Warriors series).

Have you looked at WriteShop? I haven't used it yet, but plan to use WriteShop 1 with my 7th grader next year. They have books for youngers as well. Another approach might be Writer's Jungle, which I'm also planning to begin implementing in the very near future. Lots of great stuff in both of those! http://www.writeshop.com/ http://www.bravewrit...writers-jungle/ As far as writing a story goes, check out the NaNoWriMo program. My ds has done it three years now, and plans to again next year. Just an FYI- it's more fun with friends because during the editing process you can critique each others' work and share ideas. (There's also an adult version!) The workbook is a free download. http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/

I realize this is a little late in the conversation, but have you considered Writer's Jungle? There's a great explanation of what it entails on their website. It encourages freedom of expression while giving guidelines on how to teach good writing skills. From what you describe, it might be a good fit for your reluctant writer. I'm in the process of reading through it now, in preparation for next year's schooling. http://www.bravewriter.com/program/home-study-courses/the-writers-jungle/

So I'm not in this alone...good to know. :tongue_smilie: I have a 12 yo son who doesn't like me to sit with him or "watch" him do his work. He prefers to do it on his own. However, if I let him do that, a 30 minute math assignment could very well end up taking 3 hours! Now, he does have his on/off days with his ability to concentrate (in part due to his undiagnosed TS), but he is also beginning to develop that "teenage brain" (or lack thereof) thing. :001_rolleyes: On top of that, he can be difficult to motivate. He has his assignments and his chore chart which he is suppose to complete each day and turn in at the end of the "pay period" for his commission / pay day (for the chores). No chore chart = no pay. And the pay could add up quickly if he consistently turned in his "time sheet". You'd think that would be a good motivater, but he is just not organized enough to keep up with it. I keep hoping that one of these days the light will dawn and he'll realize that the ds he wants could quickly be obtained by just doing/recording his responsibilities. I have visions of him out on his own and unable to hold down a job because he forgets to turn in his time sheet. :001_huh: I realize he's only 12, but really..?

One thing that left a huge impression on me when I entered high school was my mom making a point of telling me, "If you make a mistake, bring it home." That spoke to my heart and let me know in no uncertain terms that my parents' love for me was not conditional, they were on my side and whatever happened they would be there to support me. That kept me out of more trouble than almost anything else. When my friends were locking horns with their parents I could count my blessings and know just how good I had it.