BCM sounds very good, but would I attempt that now with dd, who has struggled so much with Sing 6A? I have not spent a lot of time looking at 6B, but I shudder to think of it after what 6A has been for us.

Dd 11 seems to be struggling more and more with Sing 6A, to the point where she's just shutting down and copping an "I can't do this" attitude. She's very resistant to backing up and relearning concepts. I think she's a fairly bright math person, but she disagrees :001_unsure:. Singapore has never been a piece of cake for us, but we've stuck with it from 1A through 6A. It has not been easy for me to teach, and I've made good use of the HIGs. She's experiencing typical adolescent woes at this time in other areas of life, too. Using WTM as a resource, I am wondering about using Saxon. I had dd take the placement test and she scored ready to begin math 8/7. I am inexperienced with Saxon. Will you give me your thoughts on switching her from Singapore into this program? My idea was that perhaps Saxon would solidify some of the concepts and strengthen her confidence. I'm in a quandry and could certainly use some opinions about this. Thanks so much.

It was probably a good thing you went through the process and put your uncertainty to rest. I'm happy for you:)

I wonder how this situation turned out for you:lurk5:?

We begin the week with a chapter in Human Odyssey. We take turns reading paragraphs or sections (which has helped dd's oral/reading skills significantly). We discuss points of interest together. Then comes an outlining exercise from that chapter. Later in the week we use KF for a fact sheet and timeline work. Last step of the week is picking a topic of interest from the HO chapter and doing a notebook page on it (using the Internet, encyclopedia, or library book). This method seems to keep dd moving and interested, and I really don't feel we need a structured guide for discussion.

Sue, thank you for your review. About how long would you say your learning curve was?

To clarify, I am looking for a writing program but would take the whole package of LLATL if it's a good program. We are using VIE for grammar and trying to implement a separate writing program (per SWB's recs). Dd is a good writer, but she is just not making the connection with Writing Strands and is floundering. CW was good, but I could not retain the info I needed to teach it. I was under the impression WWE only covered thru 4th. Is there a middle-school level for it now? Thanks for this helpful info.

We are CW dropouts. Writing Strands is not going well either. Any opinions about LLATL for a 6th grader? Any other favorite programs? I need help with this one! Thanks:)

Thanks for all the leads. I'll be checking these out:001_smile:

I'm looking for a stocking stuffer, possibly a PC game. Not sure about the Nancy Drew ones...? Ideas for something appropriate for a tween girl that would be fun (and wholesome, lol)?

Laura, we have sunrise at about 7:00; sunset is around 5:00. The shortened days are tough. What I find helpful: A blue light for myself. Plenty of exercise for everyone -- a workout that works up a good sweat. Some sort of work with the hands (my case, knit). Frequently connecting with friends or attending something with a group. Getting out every day to a store, even for a brief time. I also started taking Sam-E this year and it seems helpful. Take care.

Colleen, you have given me reassurance and confidence that we are edging in the right direction. I just purchased TWTM 2009 ed, and will continue studying the LA section, particularly outlining. Thank you so very much for all the guidance!:seeya:

Colleen, I'll try to give a few details... My 5th grader did very well with CW Aesop (and I enjoyed teaching it). With CW Homer, I felt overwhelmed, and our writing time started to slack off. We switched to Writing Strands (3), following TWTM's recommendation. Dd seems to like WS and I am okay with it, too (we're not very far into it). But...I have always liked SWB's material, and would like to use a program that she has authored. I was not at all familiar with Writing With Ease, because I thought it was for younger kids. Now I am getting the impression that WWE 4 could work for a 5th grader, so I'm trying to get a feel for whether or not we could use it. Today, I happened to notice for the first time Writing With Skill. To summarize: I guess I'm really interested in a SWB writing program, but am not sure if WWE 4 (after a good two yrs with CW Aesop) would be the way to go, or if we should procrastinate a bit with Paragraph Writing Made Easy and dictations until Writing With Skill comes out. Thanks for any thoughts.:)

So I guess Writing With Skill would be the series that would be optimal for a 5th grader. Looks like it will be a while before that one is published?:confused:

Colleen, I didn't know about the workbook option. I am new to the series, so I really appreciate this helpful input. Thanks!:)

Heather -- such helpful info -- thank you!! I do not have The Complete Writer Instructor Text; I will look into that. You've really thrown me a life-line and I so appreciate your help.:) Off to investigate your tips...

Heather -- thanks. I could not make my way thru CW Homer, so that one is out. I've heard good things about WT. Maybe for now I will stay the course with WS and see what happens...:)

I wish this were available now; I have a 5th grader that I would love to use it with. Right now we are using Paragraph Writing Made Easy and just dipping into WS 3. Based on your experience with the WWE program in general, do you think this level (4) would work with an advanced 5th grader, and would holding off on another program til this one is available be a good move? Thanks.:)

We use Zaner-Bloser and are very happy with it.

We did JAG in 4th. This summer we'll go through Voyages in English 5 (loosely), then do VIE 6 in the fall. Maybe AG then for 7th-8th...

Thanks, Claire!

Claire, we have done testing before. She was fine with the ITBS, but I believe this fall she is taking the Stanford (which I am not familiar with). What did you use for ancients? Thanks.

:confused:

World history (starting with ancients) or American history at this grade level -- or both? Does the Hakim series plus Human Odyssey (K12) sound reasonable? If so, how would you implement both? Dd will be doing standardized testing in the fall (beginning 5th), so I'm trying to consider this as well. Thanks for any advice.

I forgot about JAG (we used it a few yrs ago); it's excellent.