Every time I think I'm getting closer to having it figured out, I discover another curriculum I need to check out, or I find out that a curriculum I thought was a strong choice has another shortcoming! AArrgghhh!!! Here's my working list: Math- Chalkdust OR Saxon OR Video Text Vocab- Wordly Wise 3000 2nd, ed., Book 7 Reading- Lightning Literature 7 & 8 OR Prentice Hall Literature & Discovering Literature Writing- WriteShop II Grammar- Analytical Grammar (Season Two) History- Undecided (World History) Science- Undecided (Life Science) French- Galore Park

I need a secular world history (not world cultures)program for 7th grade. I have to cover ancients through the 1700's or so. I know it's ambitious to cover so much in just one year. We just finished a year of world cultures and we need to focus on history this year. The secular middle school curriculum I have seen is more world cultures oriented than world history oriented. I did find Global History but that seems to be high school level. I really wanted something a little less intense for 7th grade. Any ideas?

My ds missed out on certain science topics when we first started homeschooling because he was so behind in math, grammar, and writing. Science got the short end of the stick for a year. Because I am following the science curriculum sequence my older son's private school is using, we needed to cover specific things (catastrophic events, rocks and minerals, and human body systems- musculoskeletal, respiratory, and digestive.) That is the only reason why we didn't finish the books. They were good for him with resources!

provides a gentle easy to understand explanation of grammar. We used it for 2 years (4th & 5th) then did Winston over the summer. My ds just finished the first of three years of Analytical Grammar, and with great success! I think Easy Grammar is a great starting point.

We do secular science and I was looking for Life Science for 7th grade. I will seriously consider these.

Plain and simple: My ds does not like math. However, using Singapore has helped him immensely. We started in 4th grade but he had to start with 3A. He is finishing 6B now as he we close out his 6th grade year. We did spend a little extra time catching up in the summer, but once he got the concepts he missed in school in 3rd grade, he flew through a lot of the lessons. The pros for him were the simple uncluttered pages and the emphasis placed on actually understanding what he is doing and why. I can't express how important this is! I think this is where a lot of programs fail. The cons for him were the lack of pure computational practice. Even though we did use the Challenging Word Problems book, he found the "Take the Challenge" problems very difficult. This is a book of word problems so he couldn't get the repetition of practice he needed. He also used the Intensive Practice book, but he didn't like it because it was harder than the what was in the textbook and workbook. Also, my ds is resistant to figuring problems out visually and that is how the math is taught. He realizes that the visual techniques work, he just doesn't want to do math that way. I know it seems that there were so many cons for him, but understanding math was more than half the battle for him. If your child is not mathy, I don't think he/she will become mathy. I think the best thing you could do is offer your child a program that leads them to understanding which will reduce their frustration with a subject that is not intrinsic to them. Don't be afraid to try Singapore with your child. It is inexpensive so if it is not right you haven't wasted a lot of money. I recommend getting the Home Instructor Guide. Even if you're good at math (I am) the guide will help you explain the math the Singapore way. I found that helpful.

I feel my ds had a good base in grammar though. We did Easy Grammar in 4th and 5th grade, then Winston over the summer. It really clicked for him. I think AG is challenging. If your child is pretty good at parsing sentences at a 5th grade level, I would do it.

The books have a few different projects that repeat itself throughout the book. Many topics begin with a larger "Shutter Fold" then you paste various other smaller paper crafts, from following lessons onto it: Accordion books, 3 tab books, vocabulary books, etc. (My ds loved making 5 top tab books, which stood alone.) I have half of the Human Body book left over if you want it and I also have the Earth book (not sure how much is left in it.) We are done using them.

My ds is finishing up Singapore 6B. I need to back into the plan for 7th grade: In 8th grade he will enroll in Laurel Springs School. Since math is not his thing, I will be happy for him to do Algebra 1 as a ninth grader. That being said, Laurel Springs will put him in Saxon 1/2 as an 8th grader. What should I do for 7th? Should I do Saxon 87, even though I've heard a lot of mixed reviews about it? I really like TT Pre-algebra and Chalk Dust Pre-algebra. Would those be better than doing Saxon? Do you think they would be too easy or too hard for him? Would it be awkward to go from any of those to Saxon 1/2 the next year? He gets math concepts but he makes a lot of computational errors. Some of the CWP in Singapore were really hard for him. Any advice on these programs and potential pathways?

for my 6th grader. I used these books as guides to creating lessons from. I think it is best to use other books in addition to these to go further in depth with each topic. I think the lessons would be too short for the books to function as stand alone programs. The books do contain "library books" that you cut out and staple together that really do have all the information your child needs to complete the exercises. I wouldn't recommend them as a supplement to another program though. I don't think they're meaty enough to add to another program, but function better as a starting point. Just my opinion though.

My ds hated it. I found that he spent more time looking for answers than actually learning. My ds learns best when he reads and then answers questions. That way he can just relax and enjoy his reading. This program takes him away from the joy of the learning and he finds that he is "on a mission" to find an answer. I'm sure it's a good curriculum for a certain type of student. If anybody wants to buy my books, they're for sale. I've got the tascher's manual in great condition (and 3 continents of the student workbook that have not been used.)

Yes that is correct. Although, each level of the second edition of the 3000 series reflects the actual grade. So, if you don't have the second edition, you would have to add 3 to the book level to find the corresponding grade level.

Saw this at a convention. It looked great but, oh my, $85 for a 6-week course? Also, I think I would need a book from the library to make sure I didn't miss anything for a 6th grader (but that's just me), although the lab sheets in the kits did seem fairly comprehensive. I was considering ordering a kit, using the 10% discount card I received at the convention. However, I think these kits are too pricey for what they are.

The American Heritage Student Dictionary is our pick.

How quickly you go through the program is entirely up to you. The great thing about this program is that the books are written to the student and are enjoyable. You can supplement with as much or as little material as you want to tailor the schedule to your needs. However, I will say that some of the important themes would have gone over my son's head if I had handed him the book and had him read through the whole series in one year. I found the teacher guides to be a great supplement. We did books 1-6 in the 180 days of 4th grade along with the Oxford elementary school guides. The guide presents written questions, oral discussion topics, and a multitude of written projects ideas.

It's funny, we used it last year and even though it does teach rules, we never feel like we're bogged down with spelling rules. We will use again this year. I've looked at a bunch of other spelling programs, but many of them look so serious. My ds was the most horrible speller (I mean really horrible.). His spelling is okay now. He's come a long way. SW is fun and I never have to fight with him to get him to do it.

My ds couldn't learn his multiplication tables with traditional memorization. We found this product at a home school fair and tried out the online sample when we got home. He was begging me to order it. I did and it was money well spent. Interestingly, the program got stuck at one point and every time we restarted/rebooted it (let's not get into any of that technical stuff please) it would still get stuck at the same point in the game. The good news was that my ds had so much success with multiplication at that point, it didn't take much to get him to learn the last few tables that the game just wouldn't play.

We're going into 6th grade, but I have my eye on Lightning Literature for 7th and 8th grade.

Thank you. I should have also added that I do want him to learn grammar and writing. I don't want to rule out a possible AP French exam or an SAT II French exam in high school. I also want to make sure grammar and writing is covered as he learns the language. Is that included in the curriculum?

[My ds is going to be in 6th grade. He had 5 years of exposure to French (PK-3rd) in school. I dropped it when we started homeschooling the past 2 years. Now that we've caught up in our basic subjects, he really wants to learn French. I'm really bad at French. I assumed that Rosetta Stone is the way to go because it's so popular, but I have questions about it.] I've read that it is high school level. Should I wait a few years until doing it and use a different program for now? I've looked at Galore Park and I like it because it looks traditional (it's similar to how I learned Spanish, but that's not necessarily the best way to learn a language.) The Learnables looks similar to Rosetta Stone but perhaps on a more appropriate level?? Can anybody offer advice on foreign language curriculum? I feel clueless.

My ds loves it. It is quite fun and unlike any other math "program" we've ever used. I would not use it for him as a stand alone program. While it's fun and all that, it just doesn't offer enough practice and depth for him. We use Singapore as our primary curriculum, and we will do LoF in the summer as a fun reinforcement. Lof is great exposure for him to the self-teaching concept. He checks his own answers after each chapter. When he gets to the Bridge, the 5 chapter quiz, I check that. So he knows that if he peeks at the answers while doing the chapter questions, which is very easy to do because they're right there on the next page, he won't be able to successfully complete the Bridge. He really is learning the value of self teaching and how important it is to be honest about his work.

Yes same here. We received it last month (I read all the rave reviews about it here on this forum.) My ds really loves it. We are on chapter 17 of the Fractions book. For the summer, ds is between Singapore 5B and 6A and LOF is the only math he is doing this summer. The LOF website (I think it is the publisher's site) is a great resource because you can actually check out the pages of text from each book. Please don't ask me to provide a link here (I had googled it) because if you notice on my signature, I'm technologically challenged. A request like that may cause me to sweat profusely and hyperventilate.

History of Us (Joy Hakim.) My ds has not been enthusiastic about history. However, Hakim's series has made it interesting for him and light. I supplemented topics that he showed particular interest in. The series provides a fantastic overview of U.S. history in an engaging style. Check out the Oxford teaching guides for a more intensive study of the series. I highly recommend it.

My boys (16 & 11) really liked Hancock. There was some violence but it wasn't too bad compared to what's out there. There is one really bad (4 letter) word and a lot of less bad words (mostly -----le) My 11 year old says it is one of his top 5 best movies of all time. Probably because it's the second PG-13 movie he's ever seen. My older son enjoyed it too, but it's not in his top 5. One very mild kissing scene. There is a scene in a jail where it gets rough and the actual thing that happens is so ridiculous (ie. impossible) that it's funny. Boys will love this movie. If you want more detailed info, PM me.

Writeshop is at the top of my list for this fall. My ds is a rising 6th grader. He writes fairly well, but I'm not sure if I am skipping anything important. Sometimes his editing is done haphazardly and I really want to get him on a system for approaching his writing assignments. When I thumbed through Writeshop, I got that AHA! feeling. It lays out everything quite specificallly. I think Writeshop will help me be sure that I've taught everything. Once we complete that program, I will feel more confident about moving into more advance writing assignments. If you need/want step by step instruction on how to teach writing, I think Writeshop would be a good choice for you.