I'm glad you're happy, Scarlett, but as a grown child of divorce, I can't help but also mention how hard it can be for children when their parents date. Even though my parents had a horrible marriage that I was desperate for them to end (even at age 6), and even though I wasn't close with my dad at all, and even though my mom waited several years after the divorce to date, it still was very painful for me when she dated. It was like she could replace my dad with another man (and truthfully it wouldn't have been hard to find someone "better" than him), and be thrilled and happy and over the moon, but I could never have another real father. I felt as though we had been together in our pain and loss, but once she met someone she was suddenly all better, and I *never* would be. I felt very separated from her then. I don't know what the answer is, because most divorced parents do want to remarry... I guess I just wanted to give a little reminder that for many children, watching their parents happy with someone new after a divorce isn't very happy for them. I would just recommend being very sensitive to your son right now, as I sure you are being, and make sure he knows that he will always be number one in your life.

I don't know anyone who has a home worth that much around here. I think our friends with the most expensive home are probably around $250,000-- that is for a very large house, 4-5 bedrooms, two living rooms, several bathrooms, 2 acres of land, in a very nice neighborhood. I can't imagine what $450,000 would buy here!!

I like this simple approach! I will look at The Lively Art of Writing soon, and see if that might work for us. I will also download Susan's talk-- it sounds very helpful! Thank you!

I am trying to wrap my head around what high school writing should look like. I feel like I'm trying to do everything during 9th grade, instead of spreading the learning out progressively over the four years. Would anyone be willing to share what you have done (or what you are planning)for writing each year of high school-- the programs or books you used, the goals you set for each year, etc.? That would be so helpful!

I'm rethinking my history/lit plans for my 9th grader this year. My head is swimming, but I will try to simplify this as much as I can... we are focusing on the time period 1900 to today-- that much is set in stone. We've never covered this time period and ds and I both really want to. Ds prefers learning about history through textbooks and nonfiction books rather than through literature, even though he loves literature! (And I'm the same way--I know, we're weird!) He prefers them to be separate courses. In 10th and 11th grades we are planning to use Notgrass World History, and Notgrass American history. 12th grade will cover government and civics. So we are not doing the WTM four year history cycle, but something more like the social studies programs commonly used in schools today. So, what would you suggest for this year's modern history study? I'd like something simple, interesting, easy to follow, easy to add on movies and books that strike ds's interest. I have TOG 4, and was planning to use just the history portion of that this year, but after looking at it for several weeks, it seems like a lot of work and thought required just to cover history. I have other options I prefer for literature and writing, and we're not using any of the other TOG stuff. I'm still considering it, but I would be interested to hear more suggestions that anyone might have to offer. Thank you!

I used to understand it the first way you described, that everyone has free will to choose or reject God. However, over the years I have encountered too many verses that very clearly state that God is the one who gives the ability to believe to whom He chooses. Acts 13:48 is one that hit me most directly: "And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed." There are many, many others throughout the NT. As far as your question above goes, I think it's a total fallacy to believe that belief in election negates the need for evangelism (one that I heard often in my Baptist days). There is no contradiction between the two. God chooses who will believe, but the Bible is clear that the way those people believe is by hearing the Word of God preached!! Romans 10:13-14 says, for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" That is the method by which God brings His elect to Himself. So we preach the Gospel, not knowing who the elect are, but knowing that God will use our witness to bring faith to those He is drawing. What it basically comes down to for me, is that in our sinfulness, we are not able to choose God-- we will only choose what is evil, unless God intervenes and gives us the ability to choose Him instead. Why he chooses to intervene for some and not everyone is something I don't totally understand, but as far as my understanding goes, this is what His Word teaches, so I must accept that and trust the Lord that His plan is best.

That is encouraging to hear! My youngest is turning 8 this month and not yet reading fluently, and it does worry me at times. She is very bright and verbal, and it's strange to me that she isn't reading well. I do wonder how much of it has to do with birth order and the amount of focus on reading we are able to give each child. My first son was reading well at 5, my second at 6, and I'm hoping for 8 for dd! It's definitely a priority for me this year.

But if the tshirt is over the bathing suit, all it can reveal when sopping wet is the bathing suit. That's not very revealing, imo. And when the suit isn't sopping wet, it covers a lot. So I'd say that wearing a tshirt over a one piece is a pretty modest way to go!

I wouldn't mind writing in conjunction with literature, because ds does need to learn both of those things. I don't *need* the writing program to cover literature this year, because I could just use TOG's literature and Starting Points for literature, but at the same time I'm open to cutting back on the TOG literature if needed to make time for a program like LL. I just am not so interested in focusing writing around history. Even though we're using TOG this year, we're not really after a history-centric course of study.

I didn't know you were still here, Christine!! :seeya: Well, it's funny you would suggest this, because earlier tonight I was searching some old threads and The Lively Art of Writing was one that I jotted down to check into! So that would be great if I could look over your copy. Thank you!

I have considered that, but I think I would prefer a separate, stand alone writing program. I don't love having everything revolve around history, and neither does ds. We're not doing grammar this year, and I have literature covered, so just a writing program, not connected with history, would be a better option for us, I think.

I don't think it's weird. I'm actually a bit surprised that family rules like this are a surprise to you. Not wearing tight shirts or short skirts or wearing belly-revealing tops/swimsuits are all common among my Christian friends. I think what she said about her son and not seeing girls in bathing suits or immodest dress, at their own home, sounds reasonable. We personally haven't had the need for rules like these for guests at our home, but I know many who do, and I understand their reasoning. If we did have a swimming pool, I wouldn't allow any two piece bathing suits that intentionally show the midriff, either. I would just try to not take it personally, and if your dd enjoys being with this family, explain that they are fellow believers, but have different ideas about how to honor God than we do, and that that is fine.

Hello! I posted a few weeks ago, lost and confused about planning for my rising 9th grader's high school years, and I'm happy to say that I am doing much better now! Thank you so much for all the great responses to the threads I posted. I was a bit too lost and overwhelmed to have much response at the time to each post, but those and other information on this site have been invaluable to me. I have a general plan of where we're headed now, but I still need some help on writing. Here is what we have so far: 9th grade: Math- Chalkdust Algebra 1 Science- Apologia Biology History- focusing on 20th century history using TOG and other resources Bible- Starting Points, plus Bible reading and other Christian books Literature- using TOG and assigning other classics from the 20th century Speech, Health/Safety, and Phys. Ed are all covered through our co-op My ds is a good writer, but hasn't had a lot of formal instruction. He's written book reports, how to give directions, narratives, just very basic things like that. He used Jump In last year, and did very well, but it was a bit easy for him. He also hasn't done any literary analysis. I'm not really comfortable teaching him writing without a detailed resource, and both he and I tend to prefer concrete, textbook-style learning, so unfortunately something like IEW doesn't appeal much to me. What other options for writing might there be? I'm wondering if Lightning Literature (8th grade) would be good for this? How much writing is done in that course? Stack the Deck was recommended to me as well... any opinions on that? Or other options?

My dh is an illustrator, and he would like to give our 14 yo art lessons (mostly drawing), but doesn't know where to start. With his busy schedule, he doesn't have a lot of time for lesson planning, and doesn't want to reinvent the wheel if there are resources he could use to provide structure to his lessons. Ds has very good natural drawing skills, and we'd like to see him grow through more formal lessons. It seems silly to hire another artist to teach ds, when dh has the skills and interest in doing so-- it's only the lesson planning that's holding him back. Are there any resources that would work well for this situation?

I just wanted to thank everyone for their input here. I appreciate each and every response. I am currently very overwhelmed with just getting started planning for this year, so I can't quite wrap my head around the details to respond to each of you individually.... but I will come back to this thread when I'm thinking more clearly. Thank you for posting! :001_smile:

My son is starting 9th grade this fall, and I'm floundering. I just don't know what to do or where to start planning. I'm scanning the thread titles for inspiration, and I just keep wondering how you all got to the point where you are. How did you come up with that book list for ninth grade, or that list of history programs you are considering, or that list of videos that you plan to have your student watch that correlates with your history. etc....? I'm so far from having all of that together, and I don't know where to start. I think a big part of the problem is that it's been a long time since I haven't had a guide to follow. Throughout our homeschooling, I've used TWTM as a guide, and used suggestions from the curriculum boards to substitute programs and books where they fit better than TWTM in that area. However, I reread the high school portion of the book, and the classical model doesn't really fit my ds anymore (or appeal to me, for that matter.) I want ds to have a rigorous college prep education with a strong Christian/biblical emphasis, but I don't know of any books that would help guide me in planning that. So I just feel like I'm going on nothing, with no safety net to help me make sure I am covering the bases... as though no one has ever done it this way before, and I need to totally come up with it on my own-- when I know that's not true, and I'd really be reinventing the wheel to do so. Some things I do have figured out... I have a book that tells me how many credits are needed in which subjects for college. I have a good idea of which books we're using for math, and science. But other than that, I really don't know what to do. So I guess what I'm asking is, how did you get your bearings and come up with a plan for high school? Was there a book that you used as a resource? Any thoughts and suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I hope it's okay, because I have three "average" students here! :) I think in homeschooling circles there are so many who are working above grade level, that it's easy to think that we're doing something wrong if our kids aren't. As long as my kids are on grade-level, or as close to it as they can be based on their ability, then I think we're okay!

I am gearing up for my oldest son to start high school this fall, and though he has been homeschooled all along, I am realizing some areas where I've failed to take advantage of some of the benefits of homeschooling, and where I need to regroup and make the most of these last four years. One area is giving our homeschool a distinctively Christian focus. I want his high school years to be more spiritually-focused than just choosing classes that colleges want to see, and using Christian textbooks where possible. There are so many great Christian books, both classic and modern, that I would like ds to read, alongside the more traditional classic literature that is assigned in public schools. Teaching and discussing the Bible in a much more indepth way is a priority as well. I'm also wondering if a world view curriculum would be a good idea? I guess what I'm asking for are examples of materials you may have used or subjects you studied that made spiritual topics a central focus in the high schooling years. I don't want to just plug through our academics each week without a focus on spiritual topics, and rely on church and informal conversations to cover those things. Our faith deserves serious study, and homeschooling offers a great opportunity to delve into that-- so I want to take advantage of it! Any suggestions? Does anyone have a list of Christian books that you assign your student in high school?

You have two of my all-time favorites on your list: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Catcher in the Rye. I have a bit of a melodramatic streak when it comes to reading. Some other books I have really enjoyed are A Prayer for Owen Meany, The Lovely Bones, Great Expectations, The Hiding Place, The Amateur Marriage, and Memoirs of a Geisha. I will have to look at the other recommendations you've received, because I am looking for a good novel myself!

Everyone else has had good tips, and so I'll just add a couple notes. Aldi's is the best for stocking up on the basics. Flour, sugar, oil, eggs, milk, sugar, baking powder, beans, canned items, etc. It is well worthwhile shopping there for just those things alone, imo. The only thing I have ever tried and not liked was pasta sauce, but that was so many years ago, they may have changed their recipe by now. Just read the ingredients and make sure that they sound good... if they do, then you will probably like it. I bought some chocolate gelato yesterday that is really good! Also, keep an eye out for handwritten signs advertising a manager's special, because these are really great deals... yesterday I got avocados for 25 cents each, and bags of spring mix salad for 75 cents. While I can't get everything we need at Aldi's, it does save us a lot of money when I buy everything I can there, then buy the rest at another store. I hope you enjoy it!

A few months ago I mentioned that we were buying our first home, and right now we're painting it and getting ready to move in next Saturday! :party: However, there has been a slight glitch in the painting... my 7 yod's (bubble gum pink) and 9yos's (lime green) rooms both turned out obnoxiously bright. They are really so bright that they make me feel dizzy in the room, and send out a glow into the hallway. They almost look like those neon poster paints! But the kids chose those colors themselves with so much excitement, and are so thrilled with them, that dh and I don't want to paint over them, at least not right now. So, I'm looking for tips on how to decorate the rooms in ways that will detract from the bright walls. I was thinking maybe brown curtains, to block out some of the light and provide a darker color to draw the eyes? Ds has a green, blue, tan, and brown bedspread already, and I was thinking maybe a pink and brown bedspread for dd. We have a lot of brown in the rest of the house, so that would help tie it together. Does that sound like a good plan? Any other suggestions on dealing with these really bright paint colors??

Isn't what you're saying that you don't believe in a literal 6 day creation, so you don't want it taught? It doesn't surprise me that someone who believes that God used evolution to create the world wants evolution to be taught. I think that's everyone's position: we all want what we believe to be actually *true* to be taught in schools. It's not truly a question of what is religion, what is science, etc. Truth is truth, and since there is a very strong level of disagreement among Americans as to how our universe actually was formed, I think it's reasonable to present several options.

I see nothing wrong with this being a topic, especially in light of the fact that evolution is presented throughout schooling as the way life came into being. There is a very large percentage of the population who does not believe that theory to be true, and many who believe that God created the world, so in a public education, why not give at least some limited time to a different theory? It doesn't surprise me that parents who subscribe to evolution would oppose this, but I don't really understand why someone who does believe that God created the world wouldn't want schools to ever mention that, but are fine with schools consistently teaching the opposite of that throughout their child's schooling?

Homeschooling isn't necessarily the answer. I have some young homeschooler friends on FB who have dreadful spelling!! :tongue_smilie:

How many children do you have who are pre-school age? What would they do while you and your husband teach full-time? That would play a large role in any decision I would make.