Can you help me organize our main school bookshelf? We are swimming in books, and I am looking for a better system, at least for that one area. We have books on shelves, books in baskets, books in crates. I'm pondering rain gutter type bookshelves for the little one (but have some time there, since she's only 3 mos old, for now, she's doing okay with me choosing the books to read aloud). Every room has a bookcase, and some hallways have built ins. In general, we all know which type of books are in each area. We have an area for our current curriculum. And a large bookshelf which generally holds a lot of reference books pertaining to that year's studies, plus any books we already own that we will be reading that year (I try to pull them all together while planning the year). Library books go in a basket. It is the large bookshelf, the one that holds curriculum and our yearly books, plus often-used reference books that has me stumped as to organizing. There are too many books to put them all in crates or magazine holders, really. I think. :) But I would like my 7 year old to be able to walk to the shelf, and know that *this* area holds science books, *this* area hold math readers, this one history... and so on. He needs something visual. I looked at library dividers, because I thought that would be ideal. Thought I could print a label for each section, and be done with it. I was hoping to find upright dividers, the kind that attach to bookends rather than horizontal dividers that dangle from the shelf. But everything I'm finding clips to the shelf, and that won't work on our bookshelf as the shelves themselves are too thick. Here's our bookshelf, if that helps to visualize: http://www.lafuente.com/Mexican-Furniture/Rustic-Pine-Furniture/Bookcases/48/ Can you think of any way to visually separate the groups? I am just stumped. But I think we need to do something. The kiddo was looking for the Math Curse today, and I told him it was with his math readers on the shelf, and apparently he'd never even realized there were sections! Not that I can blame him. :) How do you organized your shelves? Any secrets out there? Has anyone tried the color coded dots on the spine method? Did that work? Thanks!

You might consider asking ahead of time about dress. Yarmulkes are usually provided, but there might be other issues, for you specifically. My sister is Orthodox, and the expected dress for women is very specific. While she knows that I am not Orthodox, nor is my family, and does not expect us to conform to her beliefs, I do make every effort to dress appropriately while at events or in her home. Especially at events with her community. The very basics: skirts (no pants); knees (if your skirt has a slit, pin it) and elbows covered (3/4 length sleeves ar fine); no collarbone showing. I don't cover my hair, as my sister would find that hilarious, but many of the women are wearing wigs anyway, so I don't feel out of place there. Then again, chances are they're not Orthodox. You'd probably know already, since this is a close friend. :) You will have a wonderful time, and learn a lot! We love Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. Always fun! Our kiddo loves them, too (and has always attended, by the way). You might want to ask about the kids, too. I know that my sister's very tight-knit community is extremely kid-centric, and would never consider an event like this without children. But, again, ask ahead of time to clarify. Oh, and if you give money... Multiples of 18 are auspicious.

MUS bored my kiddo to tears. I wanted to love it, but it didn't work for us. Scripted programs work for us only if I prep ahead of time enough to figure out the lesson *in my own words* and do it without the book in front of me. Oh! Sing, Spell, Read, Write was a colossal failure here, too. That was an expensive mistake. Too much busywork, the songs were fun for a day or two but that was it. And too much repetition.

I have not read this entire thread, so this may have been mentioned, but just in case it hasn't, I wanted to throw it out there. It's not a huge help, but may be a small one. Once you have a doc and meds are prescribed (if they are), please check into Glaxo-Smith Kline's program Bridges to Access. With a scrip from your doc, an uninsured patient can receive a year's worth of meds. I have not used it, as I have insurance, but am involved in a support group of people with a disease similar to malaria, and the med runs about $1300 per month. Many have received it through Bridges to Access. I am so sorry about your DH. My mentor in college, who later became my best friend, had a non-alcohol related liver issue. She was uninsured as well. Getting her proper care was a fight. Thank goodness we were near a teaching hospital, which did help. But the bills were astronomical. My heart goes out to you.

You're fine. I went through the same panic last year. You can send in your NOI, and state the above. Don't worry.

Glad that you have them, and sorry you need them. One great piece of advice we received was to use our expired epis to practice on citrus fruits. The trainers were great, very helpful, but practicing with an expired epi on an orange actually had me shaking! It was good practice, and helped me get a better idea about how hard to push, etc. We've only had to use our epi once, and it wasn't as bad as I'd imagined. In fact, I wasn't even sure the needle had come out as DS and I counted to 10. We knew when I pulled it out though. :) If you ever do use it... I sure wish someone had warned me about the shaking. All that epinephrine in a little body... Even though I *knew* what was happening, it would have been nice to have been warned. DS said it didn't hurt, by the way, for all the other kids out there who are scared!

We listen to a lot of audiobooks. Audible is my friend! :) There are a ton of classics, just do a quick search. Sometimes I line them up with books listed on AO, or hunt for books discussed here. At that age, though, Jim Weiss books - even though they're not on Audible - were our big hit. Still are, actually. My 7 year old is, at this very moment, revisiting the Egyptian Treasures recording and setting up Egypt with his Playmobil people... The Nile is a blue sheet, and there are pyramids, barges, you name it... Fun! Oh, and the audiobook of Mary Pope Osborne's Odyssey. That's another good one.

I'm not that creative either. :) I read a ton of blogs, gleaned ideas, then made and laminated a bunch of cards. I had stopped using the activity cards, but have recently found that my kiddo is very motivated if he knows there is something fun to come. So we are back to the cards. I had really forgotten that aspect of the workboxes, how important it is to give them something fun to anticipate. This week's cards (we are doing school-light for the summer): cooking (we watch Jamie Oliver and kiddo chooses a recipe); educational computer game; Lego task cards (these ask him to build something specific, but don't give directions); board games; nature walk; audiobook. HTH.

We love the ball here. We don't have the little legs, just the ball. We use it during read alouds, RS lessons, and anything that doesn't require a lot of writing. For writing, we use the regular chair. Adding gum to the grocery list right now, what a good idea!

If you end up using the folders, just thought I'd share one of my kiddo's favorite things to find... Along with our subject cards, I have some cards that say "choose 1" or "choose 2"... I put those on the velcro dot on the pocket... Kiddo reaches inside pocket to find several different cards with activities listed, then chooses the appropriate number to do. I went a bit crazy making activity cards and laminating them, so there is no shortage here, but you could write activities on an index card and that would be just as exciting.

We had to hunt a bit for the folders, and I *think* I found them in the Target school section last year. They are plastic, with 4 clear inserts inside - pockets on both sides of each insert. Here's something similar: http://www.amazon.com/Esselte-Oxford-8-Pocket-Folder-Letter/dp/B000V9CQ1Q/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&qid=1311024246&sr=8-27 (Sorry, I don't know how to make the cute little links.)

What about nice looking magazine holders? They would hide the books, but wouldn't be quite so heavy for the kiddos to pull off the shelf. Interested in more ideas!

I struggle with this question, too. We have chronic health issues in our house, so I have to factor that into the daily "enough" formula. And an infant. :) My enough is probably bare bones, compared to some here: - feed the family - keep the main areas clean enough that I won't want to crawl under the sofa if a guest surprises us - the 3Rs for school, and read aloud time (we are doing a modified summer break, so our school schedule its light right now) I try to accomplish more than the above, but if I don't - no guilt. There's always another day.

Last year we used 2 of these units from IKEA (not the 3 pictured) with only the green bins. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S19873974

We just started a new system. We've been using the Trofast bins from IKEA, but I found that we slowly were moving toward more of a workfolder approach. Now we have plastic folders for each day of the week (the kiddo decorated each folder with stickers and used scrapbooking letter stickers to write the day of the week on each folder). Inside each folder, there are 8 plastic pockets, and I've put 2 velcro dots on each. We don't use the number cards that Sue suggests, I just make cards up with the subjects (I don't care if he does the work in order, as long as he finishes it each day), so each plastic pocket gets one subject card and, if necessary, a work with Mom card or a time card (15 minutes, etc). If I can't fit the actual activity in the plastic pocket, I have cards made up to slip in the pockets. If all else fails, I can draw a quick picture to put in the pocket! All 5 of these folders fit into a little decorative file box from Target, which lives on top of the re-purposed Trofast bins. When we are ready to work, the kiddo grabs the appropriate folder and he's all set. The Trofast bins are now divided into subjects, and all of the necessary manipulatives, etc are in bins for easy reach. So far, this is working well, taking up less space, and I like that I fill the folders weekly rather than nightly. Hopefully that made sense! HTH a bit, and that you find a new system that works well for your family.

I understand, too. It's hard to live with these types of allergies. My DS is anaphylactic to peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, banana and coconut. He has more allergies, as well, but those are the biggies. We were once leaving the indoor pool, and there was a circle of kids sitting next to the elevator, having an impromptu picnic. They were pouring cashews into bowls and passing them around. DS saw, and took a step back. I did not want to make a big deal out of it, and whispered, "We'll just stand back here, and jump on the elevator quickly, it'll be okay." Famous last words. By the time we made it to the car, DS had hives and breathing difficulties. In that case, we should have taken the stairs. I would not have said anything to the kids, but could have opted for a different route out of the pool area. (Although, at the time, I did not know that DS would have a reaction to airborne particles, and at least now I know!) ...Another time, we almost had to use the epi in a store that was passing out peanut laden samples... Benadryl and the inhaler worked that time... We discuss allergies with family, and with close friends. It is a necessity, and according to our allergist, it's not a very good option for us to avoid the discussion. Life and death, right? It's not a matter of a stomachache or a case of eczema if someone convinces my 7 year old that it's okay to just try a little bit, it won't hurt you. A little can hurt! A lot. We take all food to parties and outings. If I can, I gently ask in advance about whether there will be certain ingredients present, not so that we know if DS can eat the foods, but so we know whether kids will be smearing crumbs or sticky allergens on items DS might touch. If I were to find that someone were serving something that outright contained his allergens, I would probably decline the invitation politely. That may change as DS grows older and can recognize dangers and early symptoms quicker. We eat at a few restaurants, and each time discuss everything with the manager. It would be nice to be discreet, and go into another room with the manager, but that's not possible because we have to specifically request that our table be wiped down with a clean rag - not one that has been used at another table first - before we sit. Sometimes we have DS bring his own food to the restaurant, if it's one whose kitchen we don't trust, but we always call first to okay this with the manager. ...And, oh, the production of going to a movie theater! The wiping down of seats, the asking ahead to bring our own popcorn! Sometimes I catch other parents looking, and I know they must be thinking I am a germaphobe. :) All of this to say... you are not alone. And learning to navigate the world with your allergies is part of your path. I hope that my son will someday learn to advocate and speak up for himself as you are doing!

Do I have the only boy who doesn't care for video games? :) We don't play video games because my 7 yr old doesn't care for them, but even if we did... After reading Boys Adrift by Dr Leonard Sax... We would opt out of violent first person shooter games. It's not that I think those games will lead our kids to be violent - I don't. I think kids are smart enough to understand that games are not real. But I do think that Sax had some good points on those types of games, and that there are long-term impacts in other areas, including motivation. But take my thoughts with a grain of salt. My stepson played those games at his mother's house - loved them - despite not playing them at ours. It could be that I am blaming some of his current issues on games. He was the reason I read Sax's book, he's my boy adrift, and it's possible that I am reading too much into it. There are a lot of factors that have led to his being "adrift" as a young adult, and games are only one small component. Just for the sake of clarity though, maybe I should add that we don't allow weapons play at all - no toy guns, etc.

I'm right there with you. Last year, after K, I kept seeing such beautiful pics of school rooms. So I converted our guest room into a fabulous school room. It looked great! And it *was* great, until about the second week of first grade - when I realized that we just aren't school room people, we migrate all over the house. It was good for storage, though. :) Now I have areas set up around the house, based on our activities in that area. And the school room has been converted to a nursery. I still love seeing the school room pics, and dreaming that we would use one. It is very difficult to fight the urge to create another school room. So maybe, I want one after all... (In fact, I am in the process of purging a lot of our school room furniture and supplies so that I don't get carried away again. Freecycle, here I come!)

We use an insulated case. I think ours is called KozyEpi, but we chose it based on the patterns available - there should be many insulated cases available if you google. I wouldn't put it with an ice pack, but if you keep it clipped to your belt, and if it's insulated, it should be okay.

I'm in, too. I've been working on school areas, so will continue there. Wish we could trade off houses - I'll organize yours, if you organize mine? :)

We've moved our school area all over the house, and have finally settled on using the entire house as a learning space rather than keeping it confined to one area. We started with an area off the kitchen for supplies, and using the kitchen table in K. Then, the summer before first grade, I kept seeing threads full of schoolroom pictures. Ooooh, the bug hit hard! I re-painted our guest room, spent a small fortune on fabulous adjustable child-sized tables and chairs, shelving, you name it. It was wonderful fun setting it all up. :) We had learning centers, a math lab, a science lab, space for art projects. And then... School started. We used it for, oh, maybe 2 weeks. Then we migrated to the couch, then back to the kitchen table. We still used the school room for storing all of our homeschool supplies, but just didn't use the room for school. Now we have reference books on the bookshelves in the living room, book baskets on every floor, workboxes near the kitchen table with our basic subjects, science and art supplies in their own closet off the kitchen, educational games in the game armoire, and other supplies stashed all over the house - close to the areas we actually use them. It sounds terribly unorganized, but I took a long look at how we used our house, and created centers and labs in each area. The school room has been converted to a nursery, by the way, but the move away from the school room happened before we knew the stork would be visiting us again. Have fun creating your space! And if don't be afraid to make changes, or move things around as you go!

Alley, LOL, just saw your mention of Liberty's Kids!

On American history: do you add in another subject for this daily or weekly? We address this in a fairly spontaneous way, as we live in an area rich in history, and my kiddo asks a lot of questions. But I haven't added a specific subject onto our days, as I thought we'd likely hit it in more depth when we reach that level of SOTW. [Does watching Liberty's Kids count? :001_smile: ]

Ok, I'm convinced. :) Song School Latin has been a huge temptation, and now enough of you have thrown it out there that, well... Why not? Alley, did your kiddos watch the Science of Symphony videos? Bill Nye appears in a few, and it's like a superstar making an appearance if your kids are Bill Nye fans! So grateful for all the thoughts on our year - thanks!

Oh, I should have included handwriting! We are working on moving over to D'Nealian from HWOT, because it seems a bit easier for lefties. I usually make our own copywork, once we've worked through the basics. At least, I did with HWOT this past year. This year I was hoping to do the same, just tying it in with other subjects. Would that be enough? Thanks for all the help!