I viewed the first assignment from OCW and was surprised at the spelling errors! Avocado. There, my eyes feel much better now ;) Editing to put guacamole on my quesadilla. Really, all those were misspelled. It gave me quite a fright :lol:

Funny, I was just browsing OCW and requested the textbook from the library, as well as another called What Einstein Told His Cook. I can tell, though, that I'm already veering over into overcomplicating things, so I will probably just read parts of those books for ideas, and stick mainly to the raw materials I already have (pun intended)...unless I can find an actual curriculum like "teaching chemistry through cooking (and cleaning) to elementary aged kids" but no such luck yet...

Forgot to say my kids have been loving Masterchef Junior, so that's part of the inspiration. They are quite picky and don't know how to cook anything really, despite my husband and I being total foodies from ethnic cooking families (Filipino and Russian-Jewish mothers!). We have a really tiny kitchen (smallest room in the house besides laundry room/bathrooms) and I'm not a good multi-tasker, so mealtimes don't tend to be an ideal time for cooking instruction. I have no excuses about the cleaning (they do chores, but not actual scrubbing/cleaning type chores) - that and exercise are my least favorite activities :001_rolleyes:

...So we've spent the past few months going through Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics (Apologia Young Explorers) and we're just wrapping up the last chapter on chemistry, but I don't feel ready to be done with it (also because we're nowhere near through the periodic table, though they've memorized it thanks to a 1000 piece puzzle of it they recently finished). At the same time, my grandiose plan to spend 1-2 hours a week on "life skills" hasn't panned out, so as I took delight in tasting the butter we made today (chemistry experiment), the idea popped into my head that maybe instead of going forward with physics (which we could save for next year), we ought to spend the rest of the year on chemistry, but make a hybrid of life skills by centering it on cooking and cleaning. We tend to be more bookish around here and neglect those practical, hands-on tasks, so I'm thinking this could be a means toward balance. My "curriculum" so far (for my kids ages 8, 10, 12), but I'd love to get other suggestions: Home Skills for Girls Home Skills for Boys Science Experiments You Can Eat Basher's Periodic Table The Elements (Visual Guide) This is intriguing but I'm not sure if the science is up to date and we don't want to use harsh chemicals. Anyone done anything like this?

I appreciated that this post contains the specific text referenced in this thread: http://www.housewifespice.com/2013/12/the-trouble-with-house-of-hades.html I'm grateful to the OP and I echo gratefulmother's comments.

:lurk5:

Trying to decide what to read to my 2nd & 4th grader, and what to assign to my 7th grader. Has anyone used Little Pilgrim's Progress? What about the study guide that goes with it? Has anyone used Pilgrim's Progress in Today's English? What about the two companion guides written for that? Last time we were in this time period, I used the Family's Pilgrim's Progress, but there is no study guide and I'm not sure how it compares with Little Pilgrim's Progress. I am also wondering if I should just have my oldest read the original and use the Today's English companion guides.

I have been planning to use this for the coming school year, but I read through the couple other threads here about it, and the feedback was primarily negative, even from others who generally like this series. Since it's a pretty recent title, and those threads were from last fall, I'm wondering if there is anyone out there who used it over the last school year and had a good experience. Also, would it work well with a 7th grader? My oldest has enjoyed all the other books, so I'd like to be able to have her finish the series with us (my younger two are 9 and 7).

Checking in here to see if those who made the switch after CLE 600 have had a smooth transition to Saxon 8/7. I'm about to embark on that, so I'm just looking for some reassurance (I did give my daughter the placement test and she qualified for 8/7).

The OP here, just updating this to say that I decided not to do any co-ops (for the first time in our 5 yr history of homeschooling) and to launch Gameschool, like I had talked about doing in this thread. We had our first beta test yesterday and it went wonderfully! Thanks for all the encouragement :)

Well, this is finally settled for us. It didn't work out for the tutor we were hoping would become the Challenge Director, and he was the biggest selling point, so we're out. We're taking a full summer off so I can buckle down with planning to do 7th grade (and my younger two) the WTM way plus whatever else we throw into the mix. Definitely going to start gameschool :) (see my other CC thread - the "famous" one, lol - for details on that)

The Challenge thread I started (sort of a spin-off of this one) is here: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/510149-wtm-way-andor-cc-challenge-a-for-7th-grade/

Still on the fence...I'm calling 2014-2015 our "11th hour" school year ;)

Marin County is quite small in terms of the Christian population, smaller still when you narrow that down to homeschoolers (in fact, only one other family in my church homeschools). I have been part of this small community for about five years (and have the pulse on it, since I was the Christian homeschool group coordinator here until last summer), so I'm pretty aware of most everyone in it. Most of the kids in this age bracket - especially boys - are in a private home-based co-op (which is not an option for us). Another friend has her daughter in CC in SF - actually several Marin families do that because either CC Marin didn't exist when they joined and now they are grafted in there or because it's bigger and almost as close to them as our campus. All I can do is hope for new families to move here this summer (which does happen) and for more Sonoma County people to come here, since there isn't a CC there yet (though one may have been recently started or will be soon). I'm still very much on the fence with whether to do Challenge but I'm glad to be much better informed now, thanks to those of you who shared here.

Paula, that is extremely helpful, both to know that about the guide and the stance CC takes on that issue, which is what I suspected, though the book doesn't seem to, so that's a bit odd. I will be discussing all of this with the tutor (if we have one - nothing has been finalized yet that I know of). The YEC is going to complicate things, especially with it being in the catechism. Not so much for us (I'm sort of agnostic on that one) but for...well, let's just say "others" (sorry to be cryptic but I don't want to get anyone in trouble). Still, despite my flexibility on that issue (or maybe because of it), I might not be comfortable with that approach either. So many variables at this point...sigh...must remember that God is in control...breathe :)

Really appreciate this feedback - lots to consider! And of course the whole wait and see part...which clearly is my strong suit ;) ...One more question: How much does it get into creation vs. evolution in Rhetoric for Challenge A (the catalog course description seems to frame it around that issue)? And if they do emphasize that, is it from a heavily young earth perspective? I have the book - It Couldn't Just Happen - and it seems balanced regarding young/old earth, so I'm wondering if there is young earth material in the Challenge A guide - I would love to see that portion.

Angela - your feedback is super helpful and sounds very parallel to our situation (except that we have been doing the history and science cycles all along). Based on what you shared, I am now fairly confident that we could do it all...well, except that we may also be doing an Odyssey of the Mind co-op, so we'd only have three full days to do the work at home, one of which is a Saturday (we school Tues-Sat). Serious buckling down would be in order. Question 1: Is it true that the work is done the previous week at home and the tutor just goes over it with the students...or do they introduce the new concepts? I haven't been able to get a clear read on this. It's also frustrating (that word seems to recur with CC) to not be able to see the Challenge A guide before enrolling. CC doesn't allow it to be purchased before then, but even if they did, why should I have to buy something without getting to preview it first? Is the idea that the Challenge Director will show you their copy? (ours doesn't have it yet) Question 2: Peskyreds's comment applies to us as well - this will be the first year of Challenge, and although the tutor is totally qualified (our CC directors are a couple who have their own tutoring center), there isn't a large pool of students in this age group. So far I only know of three, including my daughter, who may be in it. Because the tutor is so dynamic - he tutored Foundations masters this past year, which my daughter was in, with just three other students - I am inclined to think he could draw out the group dynamic, like I saw him do this year with much more limited material (i.e. memory work). Still, if it only ends up being two students, would that be worthwhile?

:lurk5:

Good to know - thanks. My daughter really enjoys life science (well, anything pertaining to animals), so I think that part might be a good fit for her, but if we go this route, I will probably have her join my younger two and me as we go through our last Apologia Exploring Creation book, Chemistry/Physics, and possibly use the chemistry kit recommended for the logic stage in TWTM.

When I started this thread (which I had no idea would turn into such a long dialogue), it was mainly addressing Foundations. Now that that we have finished out the CC year, I have decided we will not continue with my younger children, but Challenge is still a question mark for my oldest (putting aside my misgivings about the character of CC as a business), so last week I started a new thread asking for input on that. Interestingly, the comments on this thread turned toward that topic as well, so I'd like to steer the discussion about Challenge to where it's already underway: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/510149-wtm-way-andor-cc-challenge-a-for-7th-grade/

Good to know about the science, although the tutor is very science-y (it's her current CC tutor for Foundations), so I would think he would bring more to it. It's also not my strong suit, so we haven't really been doing science the WTM way for the logic stage. Just sticking with Apologia, which I think is a great program, and then experiments at CC (and before that, in a co-op). As for Latin, that wouldn't be a problem because she's been doing Memoria Press Latin since second grade (we're now in the midst of First Form Latin), and she's quite good at it (amazing memory for grammar, facts, etc.). She also excels at logic, which we've been doing over the course of this year (using WTM recommendations for 6th grade). I'm not extremely comfortable with her only getting grammar through Latin, but I might be okay with trying it for a year, especially if the writing program is strong. All good things to consider...I think in my other CC thread or maybe on my blog last fall, I said we were leaning away from doing Challenge because she had already read some of the books for lit, but moreso because it didn't match with the TWTM, which I had deemed our educational standard, but now I'm rethinking my reservations because of different factors, like the social aspect, and rounding out the instruction I give my children with the gifts others have to offer. It's difficult prioritizing academic goals (and whether they are the best ones or not is another question) with the other aspects of development that come through different kinds of learning experiences. Thank you for sharing that information.

Oh, and foreign language, English grammar, music, and art aren't in Challenge A :ohmy: ...but it's got math (!) and science and logic and Latin and writing... so I guess I really am weighing the benefit of the tutor (who is extremely knowledgeable, fun, and can focus a whole day on teaching one age group) and group dynamics (peer interaction, discussion, etc.) against the benefits of covering certain subjects (whether I actually would, and thoroughly, is another matter altogether, but I have to be realistic).

I was typing just as you were, hence the repeated info :) I've got to sit down with TWTM and really explore seventh grade (as well as backtrack the whole logic section) to do a fair comparison, but I was just hoping someone out there might have attempted to do both, or had tried each separately in the middle grades, and could tell me how that worked out (or didn't). I probably need to search the forums...I remember a thread with people debating whether it was possible to supplement Challenge A, and the consensus (but for a dissenting few) was that it wasn't, because it was so time consuming already. Not really ready to give up the history cycle after we've come this far, and it's one of her favorite subjects...so I'll likely either attempt the unadvisable (do it all) or forego Challenge. Always wanting the best of both worlds...to have my cake and eat it, too...wishing we could all be one big happy co-op together ;)

There is no formal study of history in Challenge A or B. Instead, there is "Debate" - in A, that's geography (drawing a map of the world from memory), and in B, it's current events and a mock trial. I plan to continue the WTM history cycle (early modern & modern times) for 7th and 8th grade. If we do the corresponding literature, though, it might be too much on top of what is assigned in Challenge, although those books are easier, and my daughter is an avid reader. She would have no problem reading it all, but processing it, particularly in a written format, could prove overly challenging!

Can anyone give me feedback on using the WTM for 7th grade? We've been loosely following it for the past five years since we started homeschooling, but as I've moved into the logic stage with my oldest, I feel like I've slacked off even more when I should be stepping up my game. I'm considering putting her in Classical Conversations Challenge A, because the tutor is amazing, and the curriculum looks pretty good. Not as rigorous as WTM but since I haven't been fully keeping up with that, it might be a good thing. We would still keep the WTM history component, though, since Challenge doesn't offer that (despite being a six subject program). Thoughts?