Ah...thanks for the reminder that I'm expecting too much out of my dc and myself. This is the ideal that I have in my head, and I keep thinking that if I "could just change X about myself," my homeschool would look just like this. Seeing it written out like this, and reading all the responses shows me, what folly that is. Tomorrow, I'm going to relax and enjoy my dc more.

:iagree: I switched my dd14 from Singapore to R&S 2 and back to Singapore in 1st/2nd grade. Then, I switched her from Singapore to MUS Gamma and back to Singapore when she was a little older. I did this each time because she struggled so...I think there just wasn't enough practice in Singapore, plus she has a terrible time memorizing math facts (or latin word endings, which is why I let her drop Latin early on). She got through Singapore 5A at the end of 7th grade, then did Lial's BCM in 8th grade, and has just started Lial's Introductory Algebra now that she's in 9th. We'll see how things go for her this year in Algebra 1, but I suspect she'll do well enough. The foray into R&S for addition facts, and the foray into MUS for mulitplication helped her a lot. I guess in the end it looks like R&S and MUS were just supplements, but that was not my intent when I moved her to the new curriclum. Neither time did I think I'd switch her back into Singapore, but she ended up begging me to go back to Singapore, and . So, switching around isn't all bad. Sometimes, for some students, understanding math is a brain maturity issue, and exploring another curriclum can keep the learning moving forward until the brain matures and the light bulb turns on.

How about a "Lurker" badge? Or the "Mike's helps me keep my sanity" badge?

I knew I couldn't be the only one. I'm sure there are others, but they're too busy posting on the thread about gays or the thread about whether Muslims and Christians worship the same god to come over here. :-)

I wonder, too, if SWB's ideas on narration have shifted a bit. In the 1st ed. SOTW 1 activity book, the sample narrations are longer, and more detailed than the narrations in WWE 1. (Or is it just that there is more information in the SOTW1 readings?)

I got two--yes, two--tickets within a month of each other. :auto: :auto: I had to just pay one ($175--ouch), and take the points on my license. :glare: But I'm taking defensive driving for the other. I started out watching the videos in earnest, but...so boring :bored:. And I watched the exact same course a couple of years ago, and believe it or not, I learned a lot, and remember quite a bit...but I keep thinking, "Yes, I know that already." So, I am listening...but reading and posting over here. :blush: Guess I didn't learn how to pay closer attention to the posted speed limits. :tongue_smilie:

"...we worked to maintain the communion despite the diversity of beliefs..." Yes, and to me that is a true expression of the love of Christ, and a big part of what drew me to this church. The particular parish dh and I belong to is an incredible mix of political/social beliefs, and they had some issues a number of years ago when Bishop Robinson was elected. The parish members came through that, and learned how to love each other even if they don't agree with each other on the issue. I love that!

Unfortunately, though, this has caused schism within the Episcopal Church, and is still causing issues within the Anglican Communion. There have been, for example, entire parishes leaving the Episcopal Church, and joining the (Anglican) Church of Uganda, which has very conservative views on homosexuality. Indeed, in the Ugandan parliament, legislation has been introduced that says it's okay to kill known homosexuals...and the Church of Uganda has not spoken out against this (as far as I know), although I think there are individual priests who have. There have also been lawsuits in the U.S. over buildings, money, and property when a parish leaves TEC for one of these other Anglican churches...it's all very ugly. I was confirmend as an Episcopalian one year ago. I love this church, and finally feel like I have found a permanent spiritual home. I'm still trying to sort out all the goings on over the gay bishops (only 2, and one is retiring)...and may have some of my information wrong, so forgive me if I do. I think things are starting to settle out at this point, at least in the U.S., but within the worldwide Aglican Communion...let's just say that at the last Primate's Conference, the head Bishop of the Church of Uganda refused to sit at the conference if Bishop Schori (of TEC) was going to be there. yuk

I wouldn't spend that much on an instrument for a child until they had played for a number of years, and show that 1) they're really interested in pursuing it, willing to practice, and are getting serious about it; and 2) are responsible enough to care for the instrument properly. Even a very responsible 5 yo is more likely to have "accidents" than an older child. I payed $0 for my dd14's clarinet, dd9's flute, and ds15's french horn (I paid $110 worth of repairs for the horn he started on). I paid $75 for ds11's trombone. I asked around in every group and e-mail list I'm on, and people were willing to donate or let us borrow the instruments they played in high school and had sitting in their closet collecting dust. The trombone I found on Craig's list. Of course, those are more common instruments for young people to play (excepting the f. horn--around here those are provided by the school for ps kids), and easier to find in the way I did. I would be willing to rent the string bass, or to pay a few hundred dollars for a small bass, but not $900. Could he start on cello, then switch if he sticks with it? Or could you try Craig's List or one of the online rental places???? Good luck.

So happy for you. I spent many an hour on the phone with my aunt when her 3 DSs and 1 DIL were in Iraq (not all at the same time, execept for the husband/wife, who were in the same unit)...I remember how much she worried, and how she would drop everything if they called or Skyped her.

It's a great church that is very much like family...only the kids and I feel like outsiders sometimes because almost everyone goes to the public schools in our small town (one high school, so most of the kids go there). And most of the parents just think the schools are fantastic. But then I'll hear things like this: One of my dd's teen friends was complaining that she doesn't really have friends at school because the kids at school only ever talk about alcohol, drugs, and sex. Makes me not doubt any more, and makes me feel right fine about being an outsider.

apparently I was writing at the same time as Stripe and HSLover, but I was slow. :-)

How do they know why people are sending you money? If I go to Paypal, and click on "send money," then click on the personal tab, I don't get an option to indicate that I am making a purchase. I get these choices: gift, living expense, payment owed, cash advance, other. Are there different types of accounts, i.e. business vs. personal, that are different?

:iagree: Coming of age in the 80s...we were the children of the Baby Boomers, who had fewer children per family, and much more disposable income, as more families became two-wage families. Making a huge generalization, and speaking more of the generations and not individuals: I think our Boomer parents, after not changing the world in as many ways as they wanted to, tried to instill that in us. Maybe? Beautiful! I had a close friend, a homeschool mom, who died from cancer just before Christmas last year. Both before she got cancer, and certainly during her battle, she was a shining example of that last statement. Yep. It's one of those "find a good balance" things that I struggle with, too. I worry that I don't pump them up enough, but then worry that they'll end up with something different than what they wanted. I guess, though, it's one of life's lessons when we make plans, but have to change our expectations and learn to be okay with where we end up. I guess ultimately it's about having the confidence to know that you can handle any thing life throws at you with courage and grace, whether it is what you have planned or not.

:lol: What a great idea! I'd like a large-ish emerald, surrounded by tiny diamonds. Oh, and I found white gold, which I love: http://www.ross-simons.com/products/494877.html

But be prepared to slow down or even stop and stay on a concept if he gets stuck at some point down the line. Not that he will...there are many students who do well with Singapore, and finish level 6 in 5th or 6th grade. But there are some conceptual leaps Singapore expects the students to make some times; and apparently students in Singapore don't start school until they are 7...so it's intended for kids slightly older. One last thing...let him use manipulatives for as long as he needs them. Since he's also doing Miquon, I assume you have cuisinaire rods...I don't know how those would work, as I've never used those. The manipulative I like best for use with Singapore math is the abacus from Right Start math.

I'm using the one called Make it Pop!, on pop art, with kids aged 5-12 in my co-op class. Each book features a different school of art: impressionism, expressionism, abstract, surrealism, and pop. There is a very brief explanation of the school, then the art of 6 different artists from that school is explored. Again, a very brief discussion of the artist, then 2-3 activities based on the artist's work are offered. The activities are very doable, and they have just enough instruction so it's not frustrating, but still leave a lot of room for creativity on behalf of the kids. There are also pictures of actual kids' work, too, although most of those are from 9- and 10- year olds. They are written for the above age range, and I wouldn't hesitate to use them with a K and 1st grader, as the amount of information is just right (could be beefed up with other resources for use with only older kids), and there are enough activities to choose from that you can probably find at least one per artist that will fit your kids' abilities. Here's a link to the pop art book. If you scroll down to the "customers who bought this item also bought," you can see the other books. http://www.amazon.com/Make-Pop-Activities-Adventures-Explorers/dp/0823025071/ref=pd_sim_b_4

Keeping my fingers crossed in hopes that my kids won't hear about this or ask about it? Unfortunately, it's already a struggle for us because all their friends in youth group go to the local high school, and they feel left out quite a bit. I'm thinking that once those kids are Juniors/Seniors, I may be looking for other, similar rites of passage. If it comes up, I'll probably explain that their dad doesn't even have one, and I only wore mine for a year or so after I graduated high school. I ended up not even purchasing a college ring, since the other one just sat in my jewelry box, and I deemed it a waste of money. (I will say I wish I had the college one, but not the high school one.) I might think of some alternate idea, or ask them if they had any alternate idea of a better way to spend that money that would be more meaningful to them or to us as a family.

It's true for me, too. Even when I was in college, and just out of college, I thought I wasn't going to get married until I was 40, and kids? Ha! Not me. Then, when I was 25, I met dh, and had ds #1 when I was 26. Changed everything I thought was important. I think what I'm doing know is more fulfilling than any paying career I was considering.

My older two dc had a terrible time with spelling. They were terrible spellers, and the spelling programs we tried ususally made one or both of them cry, with no improvement in their spelling. Starting when they were in K and 1st, we tried: Spelling Workout Spelling Power Sequential Spelling I gave up and let it rest. I had them doing lots of copywork, not to improve their spelling, but for writing purposes (ds had an issue with writing hurting his hand). And, BTW, that was the only writing they were doing. Lo and behold, their spelling improved! They began to be able to spell one-syllable words. They eventually stopped spelling "they" with "thay." :D When they were in about 5th and 6th grades, I found and tried Megawords. It was great for us. There were no tears, because there was no "pretesting" of the words. It was largely independent, which totally suits dd. I had them work through the Megawords series, through the end of 8th grade. Neither of them finished the series, but their spelling is decent enough now, in the 9th and 10th grades. Also, I willl say that some of the improvement in spelling was probably just due to their brains maturing. That is especially true for my dd, who also had a hard time with math facts and Latin. :tongue_smilie:

Sorry I didn't respond sooner. Yes, it did add, as it gets into some basic, simple Latin grammar concepts, and has memorization of some prayers in Latin. Also, there is some overlap in the vocabulary between the two, but there was a lot of vocabulary in PL that was not in SSL.

8FillTheHeart...Can you tell me how long that major paper/week is?

Ooh--my vote just edged "shared living space" over "school room," 155 to 154. I feel like my vote counted. Ours is in our dining room, and we also have a U.S. wall map on the opposite wall.

Here's our plan: --Read the assigned chapters. --Write a 2-5 sentence summary of important people/places/events in notebook, and place them on a timeline (probably shared w/ logic-stage brother). --Some type of mapwork: either just finding the places on a globe and in an atlas, or perhaps finding them on a globe and filling in a blank outline map. --Complete some type of longer paper or project on a topic of their choice every two weeks. What the paper or project is will be their choice, too, as long as they are writing some papers. I think I got all the above ideas from SWB's workshop on classical ed during high school. I also have Jansen's History of Art for Young People, and I think I will incorporate the part on art in ancient times into what they're doing as well, if they have an interest. And off the idea from another poster on these boards, I also purchased Hewitt Homeschooling's honors ancient history syllabus and the art history syllabus for the project ideas, because I'm terrible with that sort of thing. HTH

My dd did SSL in 1st, Prima Latina in 2nd, and will start Latin for Children A in 3rd this year.