justasque
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Posts posted by justasque
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but I'm not really sure how it can be done any other way. Boo (first grade) had a spelling assignment to write a story entitled "The Big Mess" that had to include all of her spelling words: don't, can't, mess, less, lend, bend, come, help, tell, fell
It's just a way to make the dreary task of writing spelling words fun. We've done it just to liven things up. Something like this (off the top of my head, writing one sentence at a time, not thinking about where I'm headed next):
The Big Mess
I don't want to clean up the mess.
I can't pick up all these toys!
This whole room is a mess.
I wish there was less mess.
Will you lend me a hand with the mess?
I hate to bend down to pick up toys.
Will you come and help?
Come and help me please?
You can tell me what to pick up next.
Oh no! You fell in the mess!
Do you know any moms who have had a kid in this teacher's class before? If so, put them on speed dial! Seriously, it really does help to have another mom you can consult when something looks like a big deal. They can give you examples of what their own kid and others have done before. I have sometimes asked teachers for examples, and been relieved when I've found that what to me sounded like a huge project was actually something quite simple and easily done by the child with minimal help.
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I'm a fan of McDougal-Littell. I've taught their Middle School Math 2, Pre-Algebra, and Algebra. There are a lot of problems to choose from, so you can customize for the child's needs. The work builds in review, partly by having a few review problems to do, but also by actually using the concepts in further work. For example, there might be an area of a triangle problem in a section on how to use the distributive property with variables - the sides of the triangle would be things like (x-2). So there is review, but it's not tedious. The TE gives suggestions for "homework" for three levels of the course, Basic, Average, and Advanced. There are lots of support materials available too, so you can really mix it up and keep it interesting. There is a nice review section with sample problems at the end of each chapter.
I also like that their books are sort of half a year apart. So you can really choose the book that is at the right level, and skip one if need be. (For example, my class did MSM 2 last year, and they're skipping MSM3 with no problem this year. Had they done MSM3, they probably could have skipped Pre-Algebra.)
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Dispose-all overflow making your under-sink cabinet damp?
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Well, yes and no. Your cable has to have the same input dohickys as your laptop, and the same output dohickys as your TV monitor. You'll have to look at your laptop and see what kind of output jack holes it has, ditto for the TV monitor (though they are usually that RCA thing?).
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When people find out my kids were reading by the time they turned 2, they assume I used the baby reading DVDs. I didn't use anything. They taught themselves.
BTDT. What I hated even more was when adults who saw my little one looking at a book felt it was important for them to tell my child that he wasn't *really* reading. Speaking directly to the child! Now even if the kid *wasn't* really reading, what would be the point of making a big deal about it? Isn't pretending to read a healthy, desired stage in the process? This happened surprisingly often. I didn't really know how to respond, without being rude or snarky or putting the child on show.
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c) Just open myself and the kids up for it is an educational (math, crafting, business, etc.) experience and hope to break even.
This, yes.
Ask the other moms. Is the idea to have entrepreneurial-minded kids have an outlet for their creations? Do kids sell to other kids? Or do moms actually buy the things made by kids? We attended a middle school entrepreneurial fair recently. Items included decorated flip-flops, tie-dyed shirts and socks, baked goods, melt-and-pour soap, homemade barrettes, etc. The actual buying was probably half-and-half the kids and the teachers. Lower priced items went well, as did well-done items like the flip-flops.
Christmas ornaments are a possibility; we've seen nice origami ones that were inexpensive to make, so they could be inexpensively priced.
Honestly, you should budget both for creating/selling (materials cost) as well as for buying from others. If it's not your thing, consider skipping it.
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Also, check out Patternreview.com - they have some really helpful discussion groups there.
PatternReview is super-helpful. Any time I buy a pattern, I look it up on PR. Chances are several people have sewn it before, and I get all kinds of tips that make my project more successful. People talk abut whether certain pieces are bigger or smaller than expected, whether certain steps can be done in a better way, whether the fabric they chose worked well or not, etc. It gets you to where you'd be if you had already made the pattern up a few times and knew the modifications to make already.
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Also, a new needle can work wonders.
I agree with the suggestion to check the bobbin (right kind, wound correctly and not super-full), and to try using quilting cotton at first. I also agree with finding the manual - checking your threading can help a lot. Also be sure your thread is running freely and not caught on something somewhere. And ditto the quality thread suggestion.
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Fallon is, I believe, a fairly common Irish first name. I remember several characters on UK shows over the years named Fallon, including a very nice Fallon in The Archers (a very long-running radio soap opera, set in a rural English village). If it were me, I would NOT spell it "Fallan", though it's pronounced that way to my US ears; better to keep the original Irish.
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First, Library Elf is wonderful and well worth the very small annual subscription fee. All of your cards at a glance, plus email reminders. I cannot begin to tell you how useful this is.
I keep a small change purse with our library cards in it in my handbag. Mostly, we all use my card, unless we are checking our more than the library's limit (99 per card) or there are fine issues with a particular card.
I have notes taped to my computer monitor listing the library card numbers for each member of the family, plus passwords, for the three library systems we use. That way, I can renew and request without removing my library card from my purse. Which means it's more likely to get done, and I'm less likely to think the card is in my purse when I've accidentally left it at the computer.
Books are kept in a large basket when not in use. My kids can check out as many books as they want.
Books can go out for 3 weeks and we can renew twice, so if a book isn't found the first time around I renew it and it usually shows up in time for the next.
Library elf has significantly cut down on lost/late books. Even a few fees, though, are significantly less than *one* trip to Borders, so with our systems in place I can be fairly relaxed and still come out OK financially.
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:grouphug:
It sounds like the nursing part is important to you, and you're concerned about their nursing relationship. Remember that even if the nursing doesn't go well at first, and supplements are needed etc., that it still may be possible to get it going well in a week or two. Hopefully the hospital folks are thinking along those lines - stabilize the baby, etc., but also help mom keep a milk supply.
When I read your post, the first thing that came to mind was infant botulism. I hesitate to even mention it, because I am not a medical person and I'm sure the docs have everything under control, etc., and again I really don't know much of anything about such things (except that a friend of mine's baby had it). But part of me feels I need to mention it, so I am.
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Although the article said ~100 per day "sent", it wouldn't surprise me if they meant "sent/received". So right there it would be only ~50 a day sent. I'd say about a third of my texts to/from my kids consist of one letter: K. Which basically means "ok, I got your message, thanks for letting me know you're leaving cousin Joe's to go to the store to get a soda" or whatever. So if for every two substantial texts you add in a "K" text, you're down to 34ish substantial ones. It doesn't take a whole lot to get there. Dd and her friend will watch Project Runway "together" (though they live 30 minutes apart), so the whole time they're sending things like "love that dress" and so on - this goes on back and forth for the whole show. Add in a conversation about how/when they can next get together, and it really does add up quickly. For us, it's a great way that homeschooled kids who live fairly far apart can help maintain their friendship. (Yes, they could get on the regular phone, but texting, oddly, is less intrusive to our family time.)
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I am fond of The Chalet School series, though it's old and obscure and partly in Austria rather than Switzerland. Basically, it's a boarding school series (60 books!) spanning many years (including the WWII years) and several generations of kids (old students marry and send their kids to the school), featuring families from most of Western Europe. I would only hand it to a serious reader who is interested in older books; more "lite" readers or those who prefer modern books would find them quaint and perhaps a bit dull.
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I'm trying to decide between Apples to Apple Kids version and Apples to Apples Junior as a Christmas present for the kids. Any recommendations? They are both good readers if that makes a difference. I can't really figure out what the differences are and if one has more "mature" cards. Thanks.
If my memory is right, the younger versions have cards like "Big Bird", where the older versions have cards like "Richard Nixon" - people and references that aren't "mature" per se, but are less likely to be understood/known by younger people. As to Kids vs. Junior, I don't know, my kids have always played with Junior or regular even when they were younger without problems. I can't remember ever finding anything objectionable in any of them.
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eventually there ARE tests my DD will need to take, and I'd rather have her experiences be "Oh, I've done this dozens of times before. It's no big deal" than the PANIC I see some teens in as they have to do gateway exams or college entrance exams.Dd10 is used to taking yearly Terra Novas so we'll continue something like that. I don't want her to forget taking standardized tests before she'll take the biggie for high school scholarships and placement.
We have rarely had time for any kind of serious test prep for the later years; I have considered the more-or-less-yearly, low-key, since-third-grade testing that we've done to actually be test prep, in the way that dmmetler explained.
My older kids have saved us tens of thousands of dollars in private high school and college scholarships by scoring well on standardized tests. They have also had doors open for them because of their test scores. It's not the right choice for everyone, but for an academically-oriented kid who does well on testing, test-taking can be a useful skill to have.
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As far as thrush, I didn't think about that, but I see nothing in her mouth. I can take a couple of antibiotics and see if it helps...after the pregnancy test of course.
As a pp said, antibiotics is the last thing you'd want for thrush. Antibiotics actually makes it worse. There are some natural remedies, (maybe?) some OTC remedies, and some prescription remedies. Sounds like things are going better, but if you do suspect thrush, come back and ask again, as it's something you'll want to hit hard on all fronts, rather than trying one thing then trying another. If you see a doc about it, make sure they understand they must treat *both* of you, otherwise it's pointless as you will constantly re-infect each other.
In the meantime, if you suspect thrush, boil pacifiers daily, wash anything toy-wise that goes in her mouth with hot soapy water, minimize your sugar intake, air out your nips after nursing. There's more, but I don't remember it all!
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In our local co-op, they started that way (volunteer), but now they set prices for various classes, and pay the teachers. Moms who teach a lot come out financially ahead, moms who teach a class or so come out even, moms who drop off help fund everything.
Everyone has to clean twice a year, and everyone has to volunteer a certain number of hours each quarter (so many hours per class their dc are taking) - this includes things like monitoring the lunch room or study hall, and certain other logistical jobs.
The benefit of this is that moms who do teach can/will teach more than one class, the co-op gets gifted dedicated teachers, the teachers are rewarded for their work financially, and we typically retain good, experienced teachers even after their children have graduated.
The co-op is ten years old and thriving.
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I've had that happen. I hurt like crazy at first, then every time I moved it a certain way. It took a good long six weeks to heal, if I remember correctly.
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Do whatever you can to keep ds in his sweet deal college situation. Resell his used books on Amazon and offer to broker his classmates' for a cut as well.
Do whatever you can to keep dd in her perfect private school. Talk to the school. Buy her books used (if books need to be purchased).
Keeping your kids in school frees you up somewhat to earn income, plus you expressed the feeling that these school placements are best for your dc.
If you want to stock up on things, do it only if you can do so at significant savings, and if they are things you really need and will really use.
Talk to your mortgage company to get a sense of options should you find yourself stuck - can you ever skip a payment, is there an opportunity to refinance for a lower payment, etc. etc. You may not need to *do* any of these things yet, but knowledge is power.
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I just found this. For $30 you can prepare your child for the actual test you are using, unlimited practice testing online. And this way you can KNOW you are doing it legitimately.
OTOH, the cost is as much as the test. If money's not an issue, then have at it. If money *is* an issue, then talk to a few moms whose kiddos have done the testing to see whether they feel test prep is worth it at that price.
If you're testing just for the state requirements, you don't need to ace the test - folks who are "doing school" in a WTM kind of way should be appropriately prepared already. A bit of exposure to multiple choice questions and filling in bubbles might be worthwhile; you can get that cheaper from the Spectrum books.
If you're testing to see what your kiddo knows, then test prep kind of defeats the purpose. (I'm assuming, here, that we're talking about for-the-portfolio testing for younger kids. SAT prep and so on is a whole 'nother thread.)
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I have found that work with reducing fractions and factoring (GCF, factor trees) can really help to solidify facts, plus of course they're learning all the fractions/factoring stuff at the same time. *Using* the facts helps to build a more complex understanding of them, which is more useful in the long run than rote memorization, IMHO.
Quite a few kids aren't solid on the facts at the beginning of 5th. If you have a good year of math work, they generally are much better by the end of 5th.
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The advantage of hanging out with this group, even though your dd is younger, is that you will learn a lot from talking to the other moms. If you're serious about homeschooling, it will help a lot to hang with moms who already have some hsing experience. So, as long as your dd isn't hating the experience, and as long as the other mothers are welcoming to you, I'd continue to go.
That said, you might want to find a playgroup that is more for your dd than for you, *in addition* to this group, which is mainly for you.
You are still very new to this group. Often, in groups as open as it sounds like this one is, you'll see new people quite frequently, but they may only come a few times. So folks learn not to get to invested in any particular new person, because they may not stick around. The kids at your church have known your dd since she was a babe-in-arms, I'm guessing, but she's new to these kids, and it will take a while for them to include her. Plus, of course, she's only two, so she can't play the same way they do, at least not consistently. I'm also guessing that the other kids your dd's age are younger sibs. In a homeschooling family, a lot of things are driven by the needs of the older children, and the little 'uns are just along for the ride. I don't know how to explain this exactly, but the moms are probably more focused on what their older kids are doing, and less focused on their little 'uns practicing welcoming skills. They probably just haven't noticed who is or isn't playing with your dd, and/or have other priorities they're juggling.
If it's OK with the leaders of this group to seek out new people with younger kids to join the group, then go for it. Understand, though, that many families with 2 year olds either don't know yet what they'll be doing school-wise, or aren't savvy enough to network about it yet. Homeschooling families with 2 year olds and older kids aren't seeking out opportunities for their little 'uns to socialize, they're just taking them along to whatever the olders are doing. So you may find it hard to find anyone in your shoes.
Plus, if the group doesn't want to reach out to others with little'uns, please be respectful of that and glad they're including *you*. If this is a group where space is an issue, that is if you meet in people's homes or a limited-space public place, then they may want to focus on members who have older kids rather than filling it up with youngers.
You've said, "The time, location, mission, feel, and values of the group are exactly what I"m looking for (and I've been looking at groups for months now), so it's very hard to just abandon it." Frankly, playgroups for two year olds are mostly for the moms anyway - if you've found kindred spirits, enjoy the group unless your dd really hates it. I would stick with it, just know that it's for you more than for your dd - and that's OK.
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Thanks! I accidentally ordered the test prep book for the ITBS. I now see my daughter is actually taking the Terra Nova. UGH! Wish I had gotten the right book! What is the difference?
My impression, though it's been a while, is that the Terra Nova was shorter and easier. So if you prep for ITBS, you'll be in good shape! I don't know if there are any parts of the TN that aren't in the ITBS.
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From a cached version of the Riverside site:
(Sorry about the weird formatting.)
Q: Can I purchase older versions of the tests so we can get a better idea of what the ITBS measures and have my child practice on the old test to improve his/her scores?
A: Using old tests to improve scores is not a recommended practice. It will not help your child handle some new skills measured on the new forms of the test. Your school or home-school provider may be able to supply you with information that is available in one of the current manuals about the kinds of skills measured by the current test. The Message to Parents and/or Practice Tests provide additional information about the tests and the format of the test items. The main purpose of the Practice Tests is to provide information to students about the item formats and the marking procedures. Consequently, they do not provide examples of the full array of skills measured, especially the higher-order skills.
Q: What test preparation booklets can help improve my child's test scores the most?
A: There are some test-preparation products, such as Test for Success which focus students' test-taking strategies on developing a wide range of skills. These are probably most useful as supplements to the regular instructional program and the overall preparation for testing. Several years ago an article by W. A. Mehrens and J. Kaminski ("Methods for Improving Standardized Test Scores: Fruitful, Fruitless, or Fraudulent?" Educational Measurement: Issues and Practices, 8 (1), 14-22, Spring, 1989), reviewed test preparation practices used in some schools. The broad-based, generic test preparation practices were deemed acceptable. Practices such as using old forms or products developed to "raise scores" in specific achievement tests were deemed less acceptable or inappropriate.
When you can't pay your mortgage, what do you do?
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
Can your dh call the bank if you are stressing over it? I know what it is like to dread making a phone call. But it is important to call earlier rather than later, as you have more options at that point. Don't just ignore it and hope it goes away.
I'm assuming your dh *and you* are actively looking for other work. Any little bit will give you more options than without it. Let everyone know you are both looking. In addition to your fields, look at seasonal work, nursing homes, night shift at stores or FedEx places, fast food, cleaning of any kind, child care. Look at the college where dh works - is there something in tutoring or food service or the library that will work for one of you? Apply for everything! Scrambling now will give you options. If you end up losing the house, you will still have to pay for housing one way or another, so might as well see what you can get going now.
Can your dd16 find a little something of a job to take care of her own bits-and-pieces? It could help her keep her self-esteem through tight times. She can also watch your youngers while you and dh work and get the house in order.
I understand you feel the task of getting the house in shape is overwhelming. Nonetheless, you have to give it your best shot. Now that you've sold a lot of things, it should be easier. Just pick something small to start with, to get the ball rolling. It doesn't have to be perfect, just do what you can. I agree about paint and carpet - no need to spend money on it. Your house doesn't need to be without flaws, just make it as nice as you can. Clean and de-cluttered goes a long way, especially with a house as new as yours. With dh home a lot now, you can team up and work together. Maybe tackle a room at a time - do what you can to get it decent, then maintain it while you do the next room.
The good thing is that it sounds like you have minimal debt, which is great! That can really help you through this.