Yep, this was my beef with it last year in public school. It was the only tool used and it was not successful for my dd.

Contracts, what a great idea! Thanks! My dd (total boy mentality though) is also in 2nd grade and had been in ps for 4 years. We've had a few spats (this is our 3rd week) with certain subjects and wanting to watch tv or go play, but I made it clear in the beginning that there would be absolutely no electronics until after 3pm, regardless of school being done and no free time either until school is completed. Give it more time and don't give in. He needs to see that you are 100% serious and this is how it is, period. We also do fun things once school is over....park, library, nature walk, bike ride, feed neighbors' horses, friends house, museum, etc. and this gives her motivation to get everything done with a good attitude. If she gives me attitude, no fun activity for the day. This is coming from a newby so take it with a grain of salt. ;) Oh, one more thing. I started slow.....only doing the minimal....spelling, reading, math and grammar. If she became frustrated, I backed off. We have yet to begin science, music, art, history, geography, etc. I will gradually introduce these, but didn't want to overwhelm her in the beginning. You could go back to the basics for a week or so and see how he does?

I purchased this workbook (book 2)from a garage sale for really cheap. After getting it home and reviewing it, I'm wondering if it's just busy work? The words look fairly simple for a 2nd grader....calf, claw, flap, couple....(maybe she would need book 3?) Would love your opinions and advice on how to use it, also. Do you cut out the word definitions, have your child study for a day or so and then move on to the exercises? Do you do 1 exercise a day? How often do you use the book? Did you see an increase in your childs' vocabulary and understanding of words? Just curious if this is something beneficial or shelve it? Thanks! :)

I am brand new to hs'n and I can see stressful days ahead of us, but I figure nothing will be as stressful as what I had to deal with when dd was in public school for kinder and 1st grade. For us ps was a living hell. I'd rather spend 4 hours a day hs'n than 1 hour a day of ps homework any day!!! It was horrible!!!!! I love that she will not be exposed to the ps atmosphere, teacher favoritsm, PTA meetings, being pulled for "special ed", bullies on the playground, lack of supervision on the playground, waiting in lines, being shuffled from room to room, etc. etc. etc. It is extremely discouraging seeing friends ship their kids off to ps (I can see my friends pulling away from me because I've chosen HS for my family) after putting in the time and effort of hs'n. But, hs'n is the best thing for our family and I know this with all of my heart and will not be influenced by other peoples' circumstances. :grouphug:

:iagree: I just realized my cat peed on our love seat. It's at the dump and the cat is now an outdoor cat (he was already an in-outdoor cat, so no biggy.) UGH!

Since this is my first year, I do like a little hand holding but was hoping I could get by without it due to cost. Thanks!

I did! I had several weeks filed and it's just not going to work. I estimated how fast we would move and I estimated wrong. Some areas we are moving faster then anticipated and other areas slower. My dd decided to do a lot of art (dd is not artsy so this was a surprise and I was so excited) so we ended up going in a different direction for a few days and a lot of what I had filed was pushed back to later days. I can see us doing this often and I hadn't planned on it. I also learned real quick to use pencil in my planner instead of a pen. Oh well, hoping once I get the hang of things I can try it again. After all, this is my first year hs'n. Ahhh, so much to learn...

Had I payed more attention, I would have seen the signs in Preschool but I didn't know until 1st grade (6 yrs. old) when it became quite clear she is extremely auditory.

My dd was in ps for K and 1st grade. We began hs this week and I had decided to begin with FLL1 but at an accelerated pace (goal is to finish 1 and 2 this year.) She did not retain much from ps and I felt she needed the extra review. But, FLL is so redundant and she is beginning to get irritated when I pull the book out, even though I'm skipping through a lot of the pages. Should I completely skip through 1 and move on to 2 or continue as is? Also, if you have a 2nd grader, would you mind sharing your weekly schedule with me?

I was going to ask this exact question today. My dd, 7, was drawing family members today and it looks like a 3 year olds drawing. Sad! I cannot find a program that goes back to the basics. Hoping to hear more suggestion.

LOVE this. Off to order it now. Thanks!

Thanks for all the feedback. I think we are going to try it out and skip the harder stuff. If it isn't a good fit, I'll put it away for next year. I'll let her guide me. She shows an interest in learning about other countries and the people. Just last night she asked me about the people of India. Thanks again for the feedback! :)

I've never looked into this curriculum until today when I purchased it from a garage sale for $15 (couldn't pass it up for that price!) After some research I've discovered several ppl on this board think it's too much for a 2nd grader. Maybe I should shelve it for a year or two? What are your thoughts? I'm mainly looking to use it for geography, bible and the cultural aspect (have 2 adopted kiddos -- Vietnam and Guatemala.) Oh, and it's the older version, if that makes a difference.

Our whiteboard is on the wall and we love it. It was around $50 from Staples and is magnetic, 2'x3'. You can get them cheaper if you do not need the magnet feature but we need it for AAS.

This is me too! Maybe once I officially start hs'n, I'll understand the need and concept.

If I understand correctly, you place a library pocket on the front of the folder and in this is what? List of books needed for that week? Post-it notes? Help me understand the purpose and what you use it for. Give me an example, please.

You will be fine skipping and squeezing more than 1 lesson in at a time. We will be doing 2-4 lessons a day (skip if repetitive) 3x's a week and 'plan' to finish by Dec./Jan. for my 7.5 yr. old. If I feel we need to slow down, so be it. My goal is to have it completed by the end of the year but hoping for Dec. I would think you could do the same with WWE.

I love this, thank you for posting. I didn't realize there were pre-made units available. This totally made my day. One less thing to have to organize/plan on my own. YAY!

I know I should be able to go to the library and check out good literature for dd to read; However, I need some hand holding and guidance. If we have a program to follow, I'll be more disciplined and feel more secure knowing we've covered reading completely. What do you recommend?

This is our first year hs and I don't want to overdo it with my dd in the LA department. She struggles with her penmanship (writing is that of a 4-5 yr old) due to her visual motor integration disorder. I worry about her becoming frustrated with the amount of writing required with all of these programs. I feel she needs to fully review what she's learned in K and 1st grade in order to build a new foundation (ps was horrible). She's formed some bad habits and I want to correct these, but at the same time not over do it. So far I've purchased FLL 1/2 AAS 2 ETC 3 HWOT 2nd Grade Do I need to purchase WWE? What about a phonics program? Should I begin with OPGTR for review? Her phonics is not the greatest; however, she reads at 'grade level'. Thoughts?

:bigear: This sounds like my dd. My dd, 7.5, has not absorbed any math facts whatsoever (attended K and 1st grade at ps.) I purchased Rightstart math beginning with B. Hoping it will be the perfect fit.

Me too! 7 year old is picky so she prepares her own lunch which is usually Ramen Noodles, Sandwich, Hot Pocket, Chicken Nuggets, Hot Dog, etc. with a side of fruit and a veggie.

I'm a newbie too. :) DD has been in ps since preschool and I decided last year (1st grade) we'd be homeschooling for 2nd grade and on so I've had a good 6-8 months of planning. It is extremely overwhelming...there's so much curriculum to choose from. I'm in the beginning stages of organizing 36 weeks using the file folder system. We are still waiting on some books to come in the mail as well. I've decided to review much of what she learned in 1st grade before moving on to 2nd grade work. We will move fairly fast during the first quarter. I'm following WTM recommendations. I am not a 'natural' teacher so I like teacher intensive curriculum. I need all the help I can get. :) Language Arts: Spelling: All About Spelling Grammar: First Language Lessons 1/2 (starting with 1) Phonics: Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading and Explode the Code. Copy Work: The Complete Writer Writing: Handwriting w/o Tears, 1st grade Reading: Tons of good literature and history books. Math: RightStart Science: Still deciding... History: Story of the World -- private school 2x's a week. Art: Pulling lessons from internet (following dd's interest.) PE: Swimming and gymnastics Music: Violin lessons Also doing Latin 2x's a week through private school.

HA! This will be my first year hs and I haven't even began and am already daydreaming about sending her back to ps. The planning, time, money, decisions, responsibility is all on me. me. me. and this scares me to death! But then I think about the 30 minutes of ps homework each night, incompetent teachers, the pressure my dd faces daily from teachers to do better, permission slips, drop-off/pick-up fiasco, lunches, kissing on the playground (lack of supervision,) fundraisers, PTA meetings, dd sitting at her desk struggling w/ no help, exposure to sick children daily, teacher giving my dd answers to tests, IEP meetings, etc. is enough to snap me back into reality. real. quick!

My dd is 7.5 and does not draw or write well....it looks like a 4yr old. She has some vision issues and needs vision therapy (at $800 a month, we cannot afford it, unfortunately.) DD has always had poor fine motor ability and does not enjoy drawing or writing, although she thinks her penmanship and art is beautiful. :) I'm trying really hard not to poor so much time and energy into teaching her how to draw or write, instead we are working on her strengths...reading, memorization, etc. We've done Occupational Therapy and HWT for the past 3 years with little progress. I know in my heart vision therapy is what she needs. ETA: So basically what I'm saying is if you are concerned, I wouldn't delay having his eyes checked by a Pediatric Ophthalmologists -- not just any Ophthalmologist but one who is experienced with children and vision problems. Trust your motherly instincs!!!