I let my kids use my kindle to listen to audiobooks. I have a subscription to Audible and this has been very convenient as far as downloading and managing my audiobooks. HTH, Linda

No. In fact, my nine year old can handle the information in Biology 101.

Doodler, thank you for posting this.

:bigear:

Maggie, Check out http://essentialsinwriting.com It would cover your entire English credit except for literature. You could add some books and poetry with study guides for that. HTH:)

:bigear:

:lol:Yes, I can see this. I have actually had that feeling over at the AO forum. Someone will asks a question that to me calls for a very practical answer and people will respond with "Well, Charlotte would do it this way" or "Charlotte wouldn't do this". :lol: I follow the philosophy of education that Charlotte Mason espoused, not the woman herself. If what she did is not practical for me homeschooling in 2012, then I move on. I think AO is used best when one views it as a suggestion for putting the philosophy into practice, just as WTM is full of suggestions on how to put a "classical" education into practice.

Yes, this is true. The economics needs other things added in for balance. Yes, you are right. I guess because I am one who never has used anything strictly "as written/scheduled", my definition of that is different than it may be for others.:D

I can see where one might get that opinion. And, it is true that the new AO forum is quite a bit more conservative than this one. However, it is quite easy to make substitutions. For history, we are adding in A People's History by Zinn for some balance. AO also recommends many of Hendrik Van Loon's books. I don't think I would call him libertarian.;)

I use AO for high school. Although, I also use WTM suggestions for writing and math. But otherwise, AO is the spine of our homeschool and has been since dd16 was in 2nd grade. The reason I like AO is because it really is a very deep, rich curriculum. There is a new forum for AO users here http://amblesideonline.org/forum/index.php The one thing I learned from using AO for so long is not to be afraid to make book substitutions if your child doesn't connect with a particular book or if it doesn't suit your purposes. For example, if your child doesn't like Churchill or finds him hard to follow, look for another book that will cover the same material in a literary way. I think to use AO/HEO sucessfully one needs to have a good grasp of the Charlotte Mason philosophy - Goods books with good writing that convey big ideas. I know that might seem like an oversimplification, but so far, keeping this in mind has really helped me when selecting material to use with my kids. For us, AO is the starting point. I look over the list and schedules and then I make changes according to our needs/desires. For example, this year we are doing YR 10 which schedules Frankenstein for literature. My daughter has already read this book. So I get out my WTM and select something else for her to read from the same time period. Years 9-12 are written as suggestions for you to choose from. Using AO in the high school years does take some time and effort with regards to selecting material and scheduling it, but so far it has been worth it. My kids enjoy school and are passionate, interesting people. HTH:)

Tibbie, My daughter took Spanish from BJU online last year so I'll try to answer some of your questions. 1. Parental involvment - BJU does manage the classes. They do all the grading. However, time management is the students responsibility. The student can log on to complete their work at any time, moving as fast or as slowly as needed. I believe the student has 13 months to complete the course. My daughter completed Spanish totally on her own. 2. Hidden costs - There was not any hidden cost with Spanish. Science might be different depending on the labs. I have a friend who does BJU satellite school and I think she buy her labs from Home Science Tools. 3. Substitutions - I don't know the answer to this one. You might have to call and ask. 4.Day Length - Their classes are at least 45 minutes long plus the student then has worksheets, homework, etc after that. I have no idea how long the paper/bookwork takes. My friend who does total BJU said her 11th grade daughter works from early in the morning to 5:00 at night. Now, this girl does her violin and piano practice during this time also. She is a very bright, disciplined student. Hopefully, that will give you some idea to go on.

Thank you everyone for your replies. I feel somewhat better. For now, we will keep plugging away at Dolciani. I do know some people who could help with tutoring if we get into real trouble. Thanks again. This forum is wonderful.:)

We are in section 5.10 - Factoring by Grouping. I can solve all the A level, but I need the answers to figure out anything beyond that.:001_unsure:

Gwen, Thank you. This is very helpful. We are mastering the A level problems. However, I definitely have trouble helping him at the B level. This child could possibly be headed for a STEM career. Should he be doing all the B level problems? I want to fully prepare him. I guess I am trying to think long-term and whether I should stay with Dolciani or go with something like Chalkdust that has teaching videos.

Brenda, Thanks so much for responding. I am really enjoying math this time around, but I am not sure I have a deep enough understanding to teach it. I can teach all the "A" problems, but what about the "B" and "C" problems. Those require a bit more thinking. Are the B and C problems for average students or are they only for advanced students? I really like Dolciani too, but I don't have a solutions manual, just the teacher's edition. (We are using a 1990's edition.) This makes it hard and I assume it is only going to get harder the further we go. If I did switch to Chalkdust, should I start him over at the beginning and quickly go through what we have already covered so there are no holes in his understanding?

I need help! I have a ds14 who is halfway through Dolciani Algebra 1. I am doing the teaching. I am now starting to worry that this is a mistake. Yesterday, as we were working through a lesson, we came across an example problem that I didn't understand. I read it through a number of times and I just couldn't follow the text's solution. So I told my son to take a break while I figured it out. Eventually I did figure it out, but now I am questioning my ability to proceed with teaching him. Although, he doesn't yet know what he wants to do in college, I think there is a good possibility of him deciding to do something in science. I don't want to mess things up for him. I want him to have a good, solid foundation to build on. I always knew I couldn't teach past Algebra, but now I am thinking I need to outsource that too. I could really use some advice. He is a good student, very bright and very logical. He is averaging an A so far. What are my options?

Jen, I so needed this. My son began Algebra I in the second semester of 8th grade. Now at the beginning of 9th, he is over half-way through Dolciani. I had originally planned on finishing it around December. Even though he is doing well, I've been feeling lately like I shouldn't rush, but take all of 9th to really solidify everything. I wasn't sure if I would be hurting or helping by doing that. Your post makes me feel much better about it. Thanks :)

:lol: Bonnie, that is too funny. Yes, it has become quite obvious to me that the atmosphere over there is much more conservative than it is here.

Well, I probably do things a little differently from most of the ladies on the AO forum. I believe the recommendation over at AO is daily written narrations. I do not require daily written narrations. We orally discuss most of our books. However, both my 14yo and 16yo have weekly written assignments. Right now, we are studying Bach for composer study so last week I had them write a short bio of his life and accomplishments. They will spend the next few weeks listening to his works. This week, I am letting them choose which book they want to provide a written narration on. Next week, it will be something different. I try to alternate between the different subjects so they are not always narrating/writing about the same book. We also use a separate writing curriculum. I tend to follow WTM recs when it comes to writing. I love AO and I believe in the value of narration, but I also want my kids to be familar with the different types of essays before they go to college. I believe this is still very much in line with Charlotte Mason's philosophy. If you look at what she was doing with her older students, you will see that the narration assignments became much more specific. For example, in the upcoming weeks I might decide to have them write a descriptive essay on a particular selection of Bach's music. I don't really have a schedule with the assignments planned ahead of time. I just have a general idea of the type of projects/assignments I want completed this year. Because I am reading and discussing the books with my kids, it is fairly easy to come up with more specific assignments as we go along. HTH :)

:iagree:Reading a textbook and then filling out a worksheet is not my idea of a quality education. If I wanted that, I would send them to public school.

:grouphug: I notice that you are a Christian. Is she involved in a youth group? If she already is, what is the atmosphere in the youth group? Sometimes they can be cliqueish (sp?) They shouldn't be, but sometimes they are:glare: It can be hard, but if you can find a spiritually mature group, it can make all the difference.

Here is a thought, The Hunger Games is written in the first person. In my opinion, that is what really pulls you in. Could that be what made the difference? Maybe you should look for books written in first person. Just a thought.

I've used AO since my oldest was in 2nd grade. She is now in 11th. Yr 7 is a wonderful year, very rich. Do you have any specific questions?

Is anyone familiar with this text? http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471144401/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0MP7RWQ011E2CHCNJ95V&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846 It looks interesting. There are two volumes available now, with a vol. 3 in the works. Do you think it could be adapted into a 9th grade course?

Okay, I was a music major in college. How can a student possibly do this online? :confused: