I never made makeup a big deal. At around 10 my daughter started using a bit of lip gloss. At 12 she uses some foundation/coverstick when she has break outs and then uses other light makeup for dress up occasions. I have showed her how to use it so that she looks natural and have never made an issue of it. Sometimes I think things escalate when they become too big of an emotional issue and then the child won't listen or cooperate when you do want/need to show them how handle it.

Homeschooling laws are different from state to state. You probably need to talk to somebody from your state who is knowledgeable about those requirements. Also, if there is a possibility of you re-entering the school district, there might be some requirements that they demand that you meet in order for them to accept your homeschool credits. Again, that varies from district to district.

I just ate healthy like I did in pregnancy and also nursed both of mine for 18 months. If your extra calories come from junk food, it doesn't do you or your baby any good. The calories need to come from good foods because your milk needs to be nutritious, not just voluminous. I was back to my regular weight within a few months time.

On the college board site there's a daily SAT question that my son have been answering daily for about 2 years. Next year (10th grade) we'll start doing some SAT prep - mostly the writing and the subject tests.

I love hearing what people are using and sharing with others what I use. I've found this forum so helpful and I hope that I can be of help to others here too. I don't get being competitive about curriculum. Isn't the point to find the best options for each individual. If it's a one size fits all thing, what's the point of homeschooling? I like it when people list what their using, because then I can see who I can ask about specifics when I'm interested. When I see parents that use their children for their own competitiveness in education, sports, etc., it just makes me feel sorry for the children who are stuck trying to win for the parent rather than developing their own special talents and abilities.

Has anybody used Singapore NEM all of the way through level 4. If so, how prepared was your student for precalc and calc?

We used IUHS for Spanish this year and the turn around time for a grade was much too long for my son. He needed quicker feedback. We are dropping that program for sure and considering Rosetta Stone.

Conceptual Physics. Conceptual Chemistry.

My kids spent their elementary years in Montessori, so math was a lot of hands on work which is good for the more active child. I learned about the method and made a lot of similar materials for home use. After that, my daughter moved on to Singapore which worked quite well. I do like Singapore and she seems to also. I'm transitioning my 10th grader to it next year. On the other hand, sometimes it's a good lesson to learn to do stuff that we don't want to do. If you like the math program and it's covering the material, then maybe you should teach your daughter to stick to it.

Welcome to the homeschool world! My son has already started reading Zumdahl, so it's actually possible that we will do both The Spectrum and Zumdahl in depth this year...we'll just see how it goes. The Spectrum has basically the same stuff as the Apologia kit along with lab experiments. Thanks for the links. I'll look into them.

I believe an AP class has to be approved by the College Board to be called that. But, if you call it 'honors' and you pass the AP test, it reflects on your transcript that you did AP level work. Also, an AP class isn't worth much if you don't pass the test. The proof is the test and that's what really matters to the universities. Another question back at you: I see that you're doing(or did) Zumdahl Chemistry w/lab. I plan on doing The Spectrum using Zumdahl as an additional reference this year for 10th grade chemistry and then doing Zumdahl to prepare him to take the AP test in 11th grade. Is the lab work with Zumdahl doable at home?

I have to agree with the other posters. Public schools cover American History/Government but seem to be lacking in world history/geography. I would go with world.

Be careful about rushing math. It's more important that he gets it than that he gets it done quickly. Having a solid math understanding will pay off at the higher levels. Calculus really can wait until college. But, you may want to combine geometry and algebra. Programs such as Singapore Math do that and I use it partly because it advances them concurrently. It might be too much to get through both subjects in one year. What's wrong with it taking 2 years?

We'll be using The Rainbow because it offers a lot of labs and because it's a two year curriculum.

If your daughter is good at math , she may be able to handle NEM or her own. Although I like to present it to my 12yo daughter, often moves ahead on her own, looking at the examples and the teaching materials. You might try it before resorting to Discovery Mathematics.

The anti-environmentalism approach that I saw in the Apologia descriptive material also bothered me.

Thanks for all of the feedback...it has been encouraging for my daughter to learn what other people are doing.

Both of my children, now 12 and 15, just took off with reading too. Once they could read, I completely dropped the phonics. What I did was to get them books that were challenging and interesting to them. Sometimes we read together so that I could correct problems. Also, they began to expand their vocabulary and I could then correct any pronunciation problems. By age 6 both were in chapter books with very few pictures. The biggest problem I faced was that their reading skills were above their maturity level, so for a time I had difficulty finding them the 3 to 4 books per week within their skill level at the library. I turned to some of the older books that I read such as Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Little House, and history type subjects. My theory was to keep the content interesting so that they would develop a love of reading. It worked. Both now read at college level and can do most of their schoolwork independently using research based curriculum. Both also prefer to read rather than watch TV.

My 12 year old daughter takes adult classes at the local art league. Most of the teachers there are professional artists. To make her more comfortable in that environment, I take the classes with her. Her work far surpasses mine! :) Another good resource is the book called "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain." It's been around for a long time and is still used at the college level even for art majors. I have an older version and it steps you through drawing assignments. Although I find that particular book excellent for developing the skill of drawing, I'm not so sure that a book based curriculum in general would be all that helpful for developing as an artist. You also might try visiting an art show/sale in your area. You may find artists there that would be willing to work with your child and/or will know of some other local resources.

Thanks for the input. I have already purchased Bridge Math because I wanted to get a look at it over the summer, and possibly start him on it before fall. It looks like that will be fairly easy for him as he is solid, though not A+ in math. I figure that the practice doesn't hurt and that it's better for the math be 2nd nature while he's learning the science. Along side of The Spectrum, I plan on using Zumdahl as another reference and then to use it more completely next year for AP Chemistry. My son is so excited about learning both chemistry and physics that he started doing Conceptual Physics on his own time. So now I'm also trying to work fast at putting the rest of a physics curriculum in place for this summer, because he's not waiting for me. He doesn't have the math yet for a higher level physics, so for now, Conceptual Physics will work fine. If I had the chemistry materials ready to go, he'd probably be doing that now too. Maybe we've found his passion? We'll see....

My 12 year old daughter is working about 2 years ahead in most subject areas. In a discussion with her about how much of her coursework that she completed this year can be counted as highschool, I mentioned that she could probably graduate at 16. She said "I don't want to go to college at 16." I assured her that we could do a number of things - even if just holding off graduation for another year and doing more coursework or letting her spend a year working on or apprenticing in art which is her major area of interest. What do your children plan on doing if they finish their coursework early?

I vote for renting something and waiting for the right house - one that you'll be sure of.

Has anybody actually used the The Spectrum Chemistry? Any comments would be appreciated. Debb S.

It can go either way. Or you could choose a curriculum such as Singapore NEM that doesn't break up the subject areas but advances each every year. You want to keep in mind that Chemistry requires Algebra and Physics requires some Trigonometry so it would be better if these areas are covered in advance of the sciences.

I am looking for an introductory course that would prepare him for an AP course next year.