Lol -- ya, there is always that option! ;) I like the rotation idea in theory, but I don't want to use it as a crutch to not let go of things (which would be my tendency). But after some trimming, maybe a simple rotation would be something to consider. Thanks! OK, I noticed that too, that were all bold when I pasted it in! I did actually go back and edit my post to say "starred" instead of bold, but ya, apparently I didn't save that change because it still says bold. It did make me laugh though to read that. lol I enjoyed reading your list, and the other lists that were shared. And I like the criteria you cite. Can you give me some examples of things that "can be done with playing cards" and what games they might replace? We played a card game at my brother's house over the holidays that was so much more fun than I expected. I think they called it "99" although I can't remember the rules and my 4yo partnered up with someone for each round, but it made me realize that there are probably a lot of fun games we could do with cards. Growing up, we always played poker, lol, so those are pretty much the only kind of card games I know. At the risk of parading my complete pathetic-ness, the "put the card games in a basket" is just the kind of thing I needed to hear. So obvious! Yet this kind of thing eludes me. Seriously. I realized in going through all the games and puzzles just how many were either not very accessible (a bunch of smaller games like Bananagrams and Uno in a Sterilite box with a lid), or the bigger issue of just having too much for the space allotted makes all the games less appealing. So maybe from a "presentation" perspective, the card games or smaller games we keep could also look more appealing and inviting and accessible with a basket idea. (Probably pushing my luck here, but if anyone wants to post a picture of how to make this look cute and inviting, I would love it! Yes, I am THAT uncreative.) Thank you ALL for your comments so far. More ideas and opinions are welcome! I also love to hear what others are doing along these lines of simplification. Part of my motivation for posting here -- besides getting valuable insights from others -- is that it makes me feel a little more accountable to follow through on my good intentions too. You guys are great!

So I've been working on downsizing and also reading Simplicity Parenting, with a focus on our environment. Right now I'm working on puzzles & games, with toys coming up next. With that in mind, I made a list of all of our games and puzzles, and was shocked to see how many there were when written in list form. But here's the thing: we're not really a "puzzle & game" family.... I'd like to at least be a "game family" and maybe once we trim down that will be... easier? And I think of puzzles for developmental... something or other. lol I tried including some photos to show the big closet where all the toys, puzzles, and games are stored -- with a few in small Sterilites on a bookshelf. This is really messy, but it is very much "as is" -- sometimes it's tidied up, but I wanted an honest depiction. But it won't let me attach. :( I will try to do a follow-up post. And a list of what we have. How would you trim? Or what do you think is a "must keep"? My kids at home are 8.5yog, almost 7yog, and 4yob. I asked the two oldest what two games they most wanted to keep from the first list and those are in bold (ETA: it's the starred items! sorry about the whole list pasting in as bold the first time, lol). Some of these we haven't played. I'm curious to hear what others would do. Games: Skip-Bo *Uno Phase 10 Playing Cards Playing Cards Go Fish (small) Go Fish (large) (why 2? IDK) Blink *Rummy Roots More Rummy Roots Hi-Q (solitaire game) *Bananagrams SET Cubed (the SET game as a board game with cubes...always wanted the SET game but found this at Goodwill) Where In The World (Aristoplay geography board game) Quiddler Pick-Up-Sticks Wake-Up Giants *Sleeping Queens (Gamewright) PandaMonium (Gamewright) Animal Yahtzee (HABA game) Zitternix (HABA game) Ziggity Animal Bingo (eeboo game) Life on Earth matching game (eeboo game) Rack-O Twister Melissa & Doug 11-n-1 Game Set (checkers, chess, Chinese checkers, generic chutes-n-ladders, parchesi, mancala, backgammom, hi-q type solitaire game, dominoes, playing cards) Hi-Ho Cherry-O Battleship Muggins/Knock-Out (math games -- very nice but very heavy double-sided wooden board with marbles) Pictionary Card Box (tossed the game board but kept the cards for just the drawing part of the game) Happy Highway (AAL family communication game) Candyland ETA: Forgot to say that we also have the RigihtStart Card Games set Plus we have these solitaire thinking games by ThinkFun: Rush Hour (apparently there’s a game app for this on the the phone they can play on?) TipOver Block by Block Shape by Shape Brick by Brick Solitaire Chess Puzzles: (plus we have a container of plastic Pattern Blocks with a Patternables book) Lauri Primer Pak Lauri perception puzzle - cars Lauri perception puzzle - people Melissa & Doug: Animals -- set of 4 separate puzzles in one box, each picture is 12 pieces 20pc Schylliing wooden: 3 Little Pigs 25pc Gardener (framed heavy paperboard) 20pc Bob & Larry / Veggie Tales (framed heavy paperboard) Ravensburger 40pc: Madeline at the Circus ("look inside" pictures underneath) Ravensburger 41pc: Airport ("look inside" pictures underneath) 35-pc Madeline at park 35-pc Madeline playing 60-pc Madeline playing at park 70-pc Madeline with balloons at park 100-pc Larry Boy / Veggie Tales 100-pc Daniel in the Lions' Den USA Map wooden puzzle (each state is a piece)

Wow -- I totally thought I looked there. Thanks!

Love the explore station idea! The only place they can do messy stuff is the kitchen table (small space), but maybe I can get a box of stuff... Hmmm.... Both of your experiences with boxing up stuff is interesting. One of my college kids did that a few times during the teen years -- put a date on it, then pull it out after 6-12 months and realize she lived fine without it. HOWEVER, my tendency is to open the box and see some stuff to toss, and more stuff that's, "OH! I forgot I had this! I should really use this!" Seriously?? Why am I like that?! Or I think that a younger sibling might like something. THAT is probably my worst excuse (i.e., most often used excuse). Toys, games, books, homeschool materials. If someone didn't love it, I think a different child *might* and therefore I should keep it. Ugh. Maybe I need to get some good sayings up in different places -- to remind me of the life I want to live, the goals I have, and so on....

Both of these intrigue me, but I am unclear as to how they differ. I was in physical therapy for a few months and used a balance board, so I get some of its uses. But from an exercise perspective -- core strengthening, with toning and maybe a 10-15# weight loss as a goal... what do you think? I do have Zumba DVDs for cardio, and then other DVDs that I don't really use. The Bosu is around $100 :( while the Reebok Balance Board is more like $15. Obviously I like the price of the cheaper one, but not sure which is better suited for the results I'm seeking. Oh, and what about storage for either the bosu or balance board? Would kids ages 4-8 benefit more from one or the other... if I let them use it? lol

Thank you all for your encouragement and suggestions! I *want* to be organized the IKEA way. lol I love the way it looks, etc. Of course, the closest IKEA is like 5 hours away so it's not practical, but still.... Thankfully I'm not much of a knickknack person so at least -- with all my other many issues -- that is not yet another issue. :) But Lily_Grace I loved your specific suggestions and ideas for dealing with my limitations. I didn't used to be so unfocused...although I have been for many years and perhaps my focus is lost amidst the clutter. I've read so many organizing books, including Sandra Felton's stuff. I don't remember Messies No More above the rest but I'm sure my library must have a copy of that so I will look into it. Actually, Peter Walsh has been my favorite for the past few years because I love his "get rid of it" and "it's not about the stuff" mentality. But of course, for all of his wisdom it still comes back to ME doing the work. Bummer! ;) Along the lines of what SheepMama said, when we were considering a move to Hawaii I thought, "You know, if I look around at what I would really want/need to come with me, there is very little." Thinking in terms of what I would bring (or repurchase, like what she said) was such a paradigm shift. Instead of looking for things to get rid of, I was looking for things to keep. But I didn't keep that mindset, obviously, when we just ended up moving a few states away instead. I remember my dh and I saying it would be so great to get all our stuff into one of those little moving trucks.... Instead we ended up with the biggest U-Haul, stuffed from floor to ceiling, front to back, and some stuff at the end that didn't fit. And that was AFTER getting rid of some appliances and such. :cursing: Oh and one other thing -- I'm always thinking about how we should take this to consignment or sell it on Craigslist or whatever. I mean, money is tight, so there's that... but it's ridiculous. Honestly, if I had $2000 and could pay someone to come in and "organize me" for a life of simplicity, would I do it?? YES!! So I should probably just think of whatever money I might recoup as going toward that, and then just take it all to Goodwill, right? I really needed to hear this, Donna! Thank you.

I took photos tonight of some of the "trouble spots" I need to declutter. Ugh. Eye opening. Besides the chaos, there's a lot of good stuff... I mean, I picked it up because I thought it had value, and I am great at justifying keeping it because it still has that potential value. But this is not a solution to my woes and it is a sad realization that much of it goes unused. Plus. this is just a small apartment so it's not like there's tons of space.. Yet I have such a terribly difficult time letting go of things because I think about it's potential and how I WANT to be using it (and don't want to have to buy it again). Is that weird? I've been reading the environment section of Simplicity Parenting and still find myself trying to justify everything. Of course there are some more "junky" toys, but we have a lot of good toys and games and books (and then there are the homeschool books!). I need some encouragement from those who have struggled to let go and then overcome and felt the reward and lived it. Is it real? Is it worth it? I feel like I have been working at decluttering for years and have little to show for it. Or at least, not the simplified life "carrot" that is dangling out there. We moved last year and got rid of a lot of big things (some furniture, appliances, etc.) but not nearly as much of the little stuff (everything else!) that we should have. Now there is another move looming on the horizon in the next 1-3 months. But even without that, I need things to change. But a few minutes into working on a shelf or a closet or whatever, I just feel immobilized. Can't make any decisions. I know the theories of "group like things together" and "a place for everything and everything in it's place" and so on, but I've never managed to truly live it. Just frustrated. Encouragement and specific examples are welcome! Please!

You could just use the 3rd grade list at Jerry's Artarama and compare what's there versus what you already own. Alternatively, once you get the DVDs and see the sequence of lessons, maybe you could stagger your purchases a bit (like if watercolors aren't used until the 4th lesson, for example). But I don't have the 3rd grade DVDs, so I can't give you an idea what that sequence is. Good luck! Art supplies -- especially decent quality ones that are much more fun to work with -- are not cheap! :(

I'm looking for a great post I read and "liked" and can't find it with the search function. But then I thought maybe there is a way to see a listing of all the posts I've "liked" (or at least the most recent ones). Is there? Thanks!

OK, that makes PERFECT sense and I quite agree... just wasn't thinking of it in that way. Thanks for clarifying!

I'm confused about how you can lose all your content on the Kindle. I'm new to owning the Kindle but have been using the Kindle App for a while. I thought (but may be mistaken!) that everything you get from Amazon is stored in the cloud, where can choose to send (or re-send) it to any Kindle you own, or Kindle Apps. And if it's a file you bought, say files from Yesterday's Classics, or even freebies from other sources -- you either still have them on a PC somewhere or you can store them in the cloud too as personal files, right? We just got a KindleFire for Christmas and I have my eye on maybe a Paperwhite or original for the 8yo, although the Kindle App on defunct smartphones does the trick for now. But I'd like to understand this problem better of "losing files." Thanks!

Jan -- thanks for sharing that. I like the 2x weekly meetings, too. Would love to hear an update on how it goes! There are both options if you buy directly from the author's site. If you click on the link in my original post you will see it. I think it's $39 vs $29... wish the PDF was less, lol, but still a $10 savings is something! PDF makes me nervous because I can't resell it if I don't like it, but I like paying less for it AND the space saving aspect is huge too. (Although I admit that I worry about forgetting that I have it in PDF form though... is that weird?)

OK, I am using MM and WWE so this may seem way out there compared to some of the PPs, but we don't worry about grammar in those first couple of years. <gasp!> I have not felt like it was necessary to have a separate program and pretty much just teach at the point of need, usually through copywork, dictation, a letter to grandma, or anything else that is written. Also, and this may seem silly, my little ones will do Mad Libs from time to time and that helps solidify basic parts of speech from a young age. Admittedly, I get annoyed at the silliness of Mad Libs at timess, but the kids do enjoy them and come up with great words and do make parts of speech connections quite solidly. I have been considering trying Rod & Staff for 4th grade, but I don't know that much about it. Personally though, I wouldn't bother with formal grammar until 3rd/4th at the earliest. That's just my experience and preference, though -- no disrespect to others who choose a different path. :)

Was it pretty printer-friendly? As in, not using excessive ink for unnecessary pictures/graphics? How do you envision yourself using this? I see you've got a nice span of ages and think this would've been quite helpful to me when my older ones were in high school and I had trouble keeping up with all their reading. But now I just have the elementary set so I'm not totally sure how I want to use it with them.

Would love to hear from anyone using Reading Roadmaps -- what do you think? how helpful is it? in what ways is it helpful? I am also wondering about the versions.... I like the idea of PDF because of the space-saving aspect but wonder how user friendly that version is. I really want to get using Teaching the Classics principles more with my younger crew and thought maybe this would be a helpful resource to keep me moving on that. Thanks!

My dh and I really need to make wills and considering going with something like a Quicken Willmaker tool. We can get the 2012 Premium version for a great price, but I don't know much about different versions (Pro vs Premium; 2012 vs 2013) or other offerings (like Suze Orman's willmaker software). Can anyone recommend a product? Also, if anyone is a lawyer or is married to a lawyer, can you speak to the legal qualities of these programs? Recommendations? I don't feel like we have extenuating circumstances or a large estate, lol. Just 5 kids, 2 of whom are in a different state for college (and we would want them to become the legal guardians for the younger kids), no relatives in this state. Thanks so much!

IDK if this would be what you're looking for, but Heritage History has great history e-books, and Yesterday's Classics has some history, some science, some lit, etc. And from both of these places you can buy individual e-books or a set. I think it's a good value. Ugh -- I was going to do the hyperlink thingy but it's not pulling for some reason. Here are the links: http://www.heritage-history.com/ http://www.yesterdaysclassics.com/ Quick listing of all 225 Kindle Files (ePub/Nook also available): http://www.yesterdaysclassics.com/catalog/indivkindlebytitle.php (They were having a half-price sale that just ended a day or two ago. If you were looking at a big purchase, maybe you could ask when their next sale will be?) Looking forward to seeing other replies!

Alte Veste, I love the way you described how you actually *use* the WWE textbook! That seems so doable. And I see what you mean, Kathy, about the parent still needing to be involved with the narration and dictation. I will have to think on that. OK, so I was just reading through the evaluation link A-V included and some questions of clarification for how WWE is actually used. One thing that struck me about the WWE-3 evaluation in particular is that it might be nice to have some of the later material chosen for me. That "Rabbit Hill" passage was the only literature that I hadn't previously read, and so it gave me a fresh perspective on what WWE is doing and the level that it's moving at. I like it! Copywork Level 1 (all quoted examples are from the online evaluation questions of that level, as linked by A-V's post above) WWE "Before moving to Year Two, the student should be able to copy a ten-word sentence without error..." WWE "Copy out the following sentences on ï¬rst-grade lined paper, in neat print handwriting. Ask the student to copy them out in her own handwriting below your model." Me: So copywork is just straight copywork with the handwritten model right in front of the student, correct? Narration questions -- The narration questions specifically would be a new thing for us. My typical approach with narration is to let them tell me whatever they want, basically a straight retelling . Sometimes it's great, sometimes they don't remember much, and sometimes they remember every little detail so the narration can take even longer than the original passage, lol. I may ask specific questions, but typically do not unless they just need a prompting. But it seems like in WWE you *start* by asking specific questions -- the point being to guide their thinking in what are the important aspects?? Then after the specific questions they give you a general, "What was this passage about?"-question... is that correct? So when WWE-1 evaluations says this for Day 2: "The student may need to be prompted for the answer to one of the questions that follow, but if she doesn’t know the answers to two or three of the questions, she should practice listening on more passages of this length before going on to Year Two." ...are you still (at the end of the year) specifically asking each question and getting response? Or is just by this time narrating without any questions and covering all the stuff in the questions, but perhaps you would give her a question or two if she's not covering it on her own "free narration"? It kind of seems like you ask all the questions one-by-one, she answers each in complete sentences, then you follow that up with "What is one thing you remember from the passage?" and she gives you one complete sentence that you copy down while she's watching. And presumably, that sentence would be longer and more sequential-storyline based but contain redundant material from the questions just asked moments before, right? By the end of WWE-4 they are narrating from 2 full chapters of Black Beauty -- are all the narration excerpts this long by this time? And are those weekly long excerpts all included in the workbook? Dictation Passages -- (year 2) these look like the student does not see the material at all, first. You simply dictate the sentences and by your voice indicate where/what punctuation might be. WWE-2 says "Before moving to Year Three, the student should be able to take one long (12 to 15 words) or two short sentences from dictation, after two repetitions." What does "repetitions" really mean here, as I notice in WWE-3 it's a similar pattern with a longer sentence and three repetitions. So does this mean you read it twice in a row with appropriate pauses and then they write from memory? Or are you going phrase by phrase 2x through it as they write each phrase? And by the end WWE-4 it directs the teacher for dictation: "You will read the selection three times, and you will prompt the student one more time if necessary." Just trying to get a feel for the approach with this. What about spelling during dictation? When my kids do copywork or dictation their eye is first drawn to any potential spelling concerns and I make sure they've got that word before writing the larger sentence(s). For example, in the WWE-2 example "beautifully" is one of the words. That's one that they would likely study first at that age before dictation. So after reading through all the evaluations, I am feeling even better about WWE. I will have my kids do some of these and see where they are at. And I am excited to get going with Teaching the Classics, too -- so glad I already own that one from my older ones! ;)

OK, you guys all had such great replies -- thank you so much!! I read these this morning and didn't have time to write but have been thinking about it throughout the day. AND I just read 8FillTheHeart's method of teaching writing incrementally and -- wow. That is just the kind of homeschool mom I want to be! But, getting back to reality... I think I should shoot for some outside structure while challenging myself doing more like what she talked about. So... follow-up questions for anyone: I am leaning toward wanting to get all of this stuff! (Grr!) --It sounds like I could get Writer's Jungle for me to read (and re-read), but not expect much from it for day-to-day stuff. But you guys think it's *that* good, right? I didn't know about the BraveWriter Lifestyle emails, so I am looking into that too. --Maybe get the WWE textbook that covers all 4 levels? So it looks like it has one week laid out in detail, then 3 weeks of more of the same with material of your own choosing -- is that right? Is that pattern for all of each level? I admit that I'm a little concerned about my ability to be consistent with choosing our own material and the workbook has that open-and-go quality... but then I will end up just not even being involved and they will be totally on their own; I can just see that happening. Thoughts on WWE textbook vs workbooks? Which do you use and why? --How do you know where to start in terms of the WWE levels? --Consider SWI-A for the oldest, maybe after a some more consistent dictation and narration -- and this is where I can see 8FillsThe Heart's linked post being really well-suited in bringing her "up to speed" with whatever her current deficits are. --I appreciate the reference to Teaching the Classics because I was just thinking a few weeks ago that I could totally be doing that with these guys (seeing the elements within a chapter, a novel as a whole, a short story, etc.). I had actually forgotten that I was thinking about that until you mentioned it! --What about R&S? I've read about it a number of times on the boards here. I know they are supposed to be great for grammar. Not to open another can of worms, but how does one use that with the other program(s) and not have be overwhelming? I was never one for formal grammar when they are young. Some Mad Libs and teaching at the point of need seemed fine for the younger years, and even in upper elementary I didn't see the need to "do grammar" every year. But my oldest ones had a natural grasp of the written word so that may be part of it. But one thing I thought of when reading that 8FillTheHeart's post is that my own grammar understanding is a little rusty once we move beyond direct/indirect objects. Excited for some positive changes ahead!

Oh so many thought-provoking comments -- thank you! I've been thinking about so many of the comments throughout my day today, thinking about what to change and how to change. I think after some more reflection I will get some thoughts from the 8yo in particular -- she will love sharing her thoughts with me, I'm sure. ;) On a tangent, my kids received some Legos for Christmas this year (a new thing for us). They actually got more Legos than I expected because relatives bought Legos too, which was a surprise to me. But anyway, the 8yo excitedly told me that now no one will "have to" play the GameBoy or watch TV because they can just play Legos all the time. It was so funny when she said it, but so sad too. I think I may start another thread about simplifying our environment, too. Hmm.... much to consider.

Thank you so much for all the thoughts shared! Keep 'em coming! ;) You know, when my college ones were young we had a TV in the closet that was only occasionally watched, no hand-held electronics, no Wii... maybe an old Atari game from time to time. lol Life was so different. <sigh> So this is going to be a big change but I really want this! (Today he woke up asking to play the GameBoy, which he did because I have not yet steeled myself for this battle, then later he played Reading Eggs, and now after lunch he wants to play a phonics game on the computer. I do feel better about the phonics stuff, but still!) And I did "teach to the oldest" as mentioned, but they were only 1-1/2 yrs apart and no younger sibs then. In fact, the younger one ended up keeping up over those years and ended up going across the country to college when she had just turned 17, essentially graduating early in terms of ps ages...but really she just started K early. So it definitely worked. But while my almost 7 and 8.5yo are only about 21 months apart, I do recognize that I need to be more aware of the differences between them and not just try to do EVERYTHING together. That's my struggle is recognizing their differences and meeting them where they are. Evanthe -- I seriously burst out laughing (to tears!) at your Biomes vs. "The Llama Who Had No Pajamas" comparison! And I will look into the Simplicity Parenting book on Amazon. (ETA: the library has it -- yay!) Chris in VA -- thank you for taking a crack at a schedule/routine! I appreciate the starting point. I do teach piano (other kids and my own), but they can do practice on their own so that works. Lots of other things we're not really getting to, but one thing at a time, right? I should sit down and list out everything based on together vs independent maybe as a first step. Another problem I have is how to "step things up" for the 8.5yo or ease up on the younger sister when it comes to an assignment. I'm sooo bad at this because I just had the older crew do everything like they were twins! (Which really wasn't the best idea, in retrospect.) In fact, I started another thread on comparing WWE vs IEW vs BraveWriter vs DIY, so if anyone else wants to chime on that issue, I'd love to hear it. I need to differentiate more than I do, but I need to keep it doable for me too. I forgot I have some R&S workbooks for my little guy -- thanks for the reminder, Boscopup! I know I didn't mention everyone by name, but I really, honestly appreciate every word that was written. You guys are great! Thanks for the specifics and all the encouragement!

The title says it. I am a long-time homeschooler, but now my oldest two are thousands of miles away and I have left at home a 8.5, almost 7, and 4yo and feel clueless. I feel like the 8.5yo isn't challenged enough and the 4yo gets pushed to the side too much and the almost 7yo gets lost in the shuffle. They all are suffering from a lack of consistency and good habits, aren't anywhere near reaching their potential, and they have a guilt-ridden mom now. ;) I know some of the common solutions -- do as many things together as you can, like history, then have the older one read more challenging books; have special time with the youngest, a box of toys that only comes at certain times when you are working with the older ones; and so on. It all sounds good in theory, but in practice?? I'm dying here! I feel ridiculous even bringing up this topic. Oh ya, and I feel guilty because I should know this or just be better organized or whatever. Plus we've had like 4 major life changes in the past 6 months, so that doesn't help, but I can't keep living like this and there are no legitimate excuses for this anymore. Oh, and about the youngest: My 4yob will play electronics EVERY chance he gets. It started as a crutch of desperation on my part while coping with some extreme challenges, but I've created a monster. From the moment he wakes up he is asking for the Gameboy or the Leapster. The older 2 have discarded smartphones on which they can use the Kindle App and play games, so he also plays games on that. And some of them are good games. I don't mind some electronics use. But I actually got to the point this week of saying, "No, you need to watch a video. How about Little Bear?" So now I'm pushing TV on my kid? Oh how the mighty have fallen! lol OK, so I do love the sweetness of Little Bear, but can't believe it's come to this. The 4yo is happy when he has my full attention or is doing anything with electronics. We have much work to do. Much.work. :( And I just want to get rid of everything in the house and live a life of simplicity and meaning. Would love to hear some realistic schedules and routines and habits out there! I want a certain level of academic rigor and love of learning -- had that with the college kids when they were this age, but am not handling this new season well. At.all. No more excuses though. This needs to happen! All words of encouragement will be received with extreme gratitude. :thumbup:

That's a lot to compare! I am trying to think this through, but feel like I don't know as much about these as I should to be fair in my comparisons. Can anyone help me with this? In theory I like the idea of finding a publisher and sticking with it for the long haul, but maybe I shouldn't be worried about that right now. I realize too that part of my problem is that I am trying to do much of the same work with my almost-7yo and 8.5yo (almost treating them like twins), but really I am probably stressing out the younger one sometimes and very definitely holding back the older one. She's the one I'm most concerned about. She is capable of so much more, but I'm not fostering an environment for her to thrive. How to challenge and encourage growth while still maintaining the "fun" element? With my older crew now in college, we focused on copywork, dictations, oral narrations for elementary, phasing into written narrations maybe beginning in 3rd grade a bit, but more in 4th-6th (a la Charlotte Mason), and also used Primary Language Lessons by Emma Serl which offered opportunity for discussing punctuation, etc. We did do IEW SWI-C and SICC-C and another thing or two, so really any formal writing instruction didn't happen until high school. It worked and they were solid writers, although in retrospect I think they should've been better prepared a little earlier so they could do more meaningful academic writing throughout high school, with papers growing in length and complexity. Maybe it's because those older ones were my only focus at the time and raised like twins, but I am having a much harder time doing those basics (copywork, dictations, oral narrations phasing into written narrations) with my younger set of kids in these early-mid elementary years. They are very strong readers (in terms of fluidity and complexity), although their narrations and comprehension are average. I know I am woefully inconsistent with them and it just drives me crazy because I was so very consistent for K-4th with my older ones (then more babies came! lol). I'm sure a lot of this is personal preference, factoring in what works for mom and kids, but I would love to have someone give me a master plan to follow! lol Seriously, though, I see value in everything, but can't figure out what to do and would love to sit and chat about your experiences..... Here's my quick summary of what I think are some pros/cons of each (I've only seen samples of these, so keep that in mind): WWE -- new to me. Has dictation/narration/copywork worked in which I like, although perhaps out of context and ends up being busywork compared to pulling that stuff from classic literature we are reading? But then at least it's done for me and one more tool for being consistent. IDK anything about the next level to WWE (is it WWS?), but I remember thinking that it was meant to guide that higher-level academic writing. Would WWE be the way to go to then later phase into WWS? IEW -- younger levels are new to me. While I feel the formulaic approach has it's place at times, I am concerned that starting it (like SWI-A) in elementary would be too stifling at this point. Not really familiar with some of their newer offerings, so would welcome specific suggestions on that. I think Andrew Pudewa on a SWI or SICC DVD would be appealing to my 8yo, because my older ones really enjoyed his personable style on the DVDs when they were in 9th grade. BraveWriter -- new to me. Like some of the principles behind it, no doubt because of the Charlotte Mason connection, but don't feel like I have a good representation of what it is even after looking at some limited samples. All the different components confuse me a bit. Jot It Down: too young? IDK. Writer's Jungle: just more theory or actual assignments to challenge my kids? The Arrow or The Wand: can't get a sample of The Arrow to load, but The Wand seems like it has a few good things, but either way to easy or busywork. :/ My DIY plan with the older ones (described above) -- didn't do a great job working into more analytical writing, although I thought it was very solid for elementary (because we were consistent then... by the time they were in high school they had too little feedback, I realize now). For my current younger crew, we are kind of doing the copywork and narrations, but haven't done very much dictation. They do Spelling Wisdom quotes for copywork (on HWT paper but straight off the computer monitor) after they review any more challenging words for spelling. And we kind of do Primary Language Lessons, but again are inconsistent. Notice a theme? :glare: And then there is the 4yo.... <sigh>

AprilMay -- I was writing my previous post the same time you were writing yours! lol OK, so based on what you said, I think I made some good choices. I was willing to buy a few primary color RAS paints because ours are quite old and I like what you had to say about them. Oh, and I did order Sculpey, but through Amazon because otherwise it would've put me into a new shipping bracket. AND I placed my HSBC order too -- just got the 3-pack bundle of K-2. Really debated about buying more, but this will be a tremendous number of lessons and maybe they'll do another HSBC sale at some point. My oldest at home is only 3rd grade so I think she will be happy with the younger stuff. Thanks so much for ALL your help, both of you!

OK, I bought some! I bought 2 packs of the construction paper, the backordered other kind of paper, new primary paints and white, the markers because they were only $1 on a super sale, and .... was that it? Oh, a couple of the flats. I think (I hope!) we will be well-stocked for a positive experience. We shall see! The shipping charges are what get me. Wonder if they ever have free shipping on small orders....