http://www.yourchildlearns.com/megamaps.htm You can print them off up to 8 ft. x 8 ft. if you want to! :001_smile:

No advice just...:party:

I haven't started using it yet, but here is something I wrote in another post when I received it back in April: I've got it and I am going to use it next year with my 3rd grader who is not ready for SWI Level A yet. We'll be skipping the first part. It teaches the students how to form their letters and do story summaries to learn narration. My son knows all of that. The second part is copywork, story summaries leading into narration, and learning some of IEW's style and techniques. I plan on using WWE for the copywork and narration instead of their copywork. Theirs is very basic. The style and technique is what I hope to get out of part two. It covers: Nouns Ending punctuation Who/Which clause Strong verbs quality adjectives "-ly" adverbs The third part is where the students start doing compositions. It works them through Unit 3 (story writing), Units 1 & 2 (outlines and summaries), and unit 7 (creative writing) of the TWSS in a simple way. This program looks to be an ideal lead in to the SWI. I still plan on using it this way and am very excited to start in Sept. :001_smile:

http://www.yourchildlearns.com/megamaps.htm It's free and you can print them out up to 8ft. x 8ft. You would have to color and label it yourself though. I printed off the US states (7x7) when we were going through The Little Man In The Map book. It was a bit of a pain to piece together, but worked great for us.

My link is in my signature.:001_smile:

It's the same for us. The charter school route was a great option for us. (I know it's not for everyone and it may not be for you.) They (at least our charter school) have very little involvement with what or how I teach. I choose everything myself and if it isn't sectarian (Christian, really) I purchase it with the LARGE amount of funds available to me. I'm also able to buy supplies (printer ink, paper, watercolors, pencils, stapler, lab stuff, etc.) and have my boys take lessons (fencing, Jui Jitsu, art, music, etc) with that funding. It's been a blessing for us because my boys wouldn't have been able to do as much as they have been without that funding. I meet with my adviser (who has become a very good friend of mine! :001_smile: Oh...and she happens to homeschool too!) once a month in my home or at Starbucks and I tell/show her what we did. She keeps a few assignments as work samples. It's really quite simple. We do have to participate in the state's standardized testing, but that is not a big deal for us. I could care less how my boys "measure up" and we don't do anything to prepare for the tests. They just show up and do their best. I have been told that once they hit high school, it gets a little trickier, but that is already being discussed in this thread.

Our plan this year: TOG Y1 Ancients Apologia Zoology 3 TT 4 and Math Mammoth Light Blue series Rod & Staff 3 IEW PAL Writing...not doing Part 1, heavily modifying Part 2, and using Part 3 as is. AAS Sonlight Reading 3 (used to be Intermediate Level2) Extras: Building Thinking Skills, typing, and Brazilian Jui Jitsu :001_smile:

I want to but we only have one car. Guess my husband could be showing his support for smart, sexy girls! :001_smile: Or skinny girls who read. Or perky girls with pony-tails who sit in weird positions to read. However you want to interpret it.

I've seen some cars that have the silhouette, but it is a lady reading a book. I LOVE it!

We started using one last year and have continued it this year. My boys need to have a visual of their work load for the day (sort of the way people use workboxes) and they need to check it off when it is done. It gives them a sense of completeness. It also holds them (and me :tongue_smilie:) accountable.

My ds 10 adores her books. His favorites are: The Book of Dragons The Railway Children 5 Children and an It Wet Magic The Phoenix and the Carpet He is reading The Magic City right now, but not feeling the love.

Right Start math is a great option for hands on learners. :001_smile:

Timez Attack by Big Brainz is great for learning math facts. They have free versions of their multiplication and division you can play. We bought it though and can play all the worlds. Great investment. Addition and subtraction are coming out near Christmas. :001_smile: We loved the book Super Science Concoctions. Lots of fun experiments and explanations.

Started back today. It's going to be a long year. :glare: Oy.

We're starting today too! :001_smile:

I'm going to use a Barbie doll (ahem...not a Star Wars figure, mind you) with my boys. Obviously we're not going to go through the mummification process, but I am going to figure out a way to wrap it and then make the various "coffins" for it.

Yay! Thank you so much for linking those!!!:D

I really like this idea! It seems rather doable. I have another friend who has her kids draw pics. It helps them "own" the word by coming up with an illustration. Thanks! I'll check it out! No worries! I do it all the time! :tongue_smilie: I've gotten some good feedback. Go Fish! My boys love playing games. Yep...I'm thinking bout testing too even though mine have a bit of a ways to go before that. I *really* want to give them a strong foundation though. Hmmm....memory card boxes. Now you've got me thinking... Glad I am not alone! :001_smile: Anyone else care to share their ideas? :001_smile:

I've had the book and the flashcards for years. I bring them out of storage at the beginning of the year (this year not being any different), look at it, get overwhelmed, and put it back. :blushing: I'm sure I am making it harder than it is, but I just can't wrap my brain around how to use it effectively. So, how do you use it? How do you schedule it? How many words per week do you work on?

My boys LOVE playing a computer game called Age of Mythology. ;)

These are amazing, Lee! I am going to be sitting down today and tomorrow to figure out the first few projects we are going to do for our Ancient study. These pics have inspired me! :001_smile: I'm going to try to do better with blogging this year...I regret not doing it last year :glare:...so I'll be sure to post some of our projects. ETA: The beaded necklace is fantastic! I think we'll definitely have to do that one.

As far as the dry erase board, I have slipped mine behind a bookshelf, under the couch, and behind the couch. Out of sight and easy to get too. :001_smile: I hang maps up in the boys room instead of our living room. I also have a smallish bookshelf in the bottom of their closet for books and supplies. FWIW...I feel your pain. We live in a very small apartment and I don't like seeing the school stuff all over. I need a break from it sometimes. :svengo:

My boys know their multiplication facts better than the others and I credit it to Timez Attack. They have a free version, but we opted to buy the extended version so the boys could work through all of the worlds. Totally worth it. I'll be buying division soon as well as addition and subtraction when they come out. :001_smile:

We just spent the last two years in US History. We really enjoyed working through the Homeschool in the Woods Time Traveler cds. I highly recommend reading through the books by Betsy and Giulio Maestro as well as books by Jean Fritz. Oh, and the Liberty's Kids videos taught my boys a lot about the Revolutionary War. George vs. George was another great book. :001_smile:

We'll be jumping into everything Aug. 1.:willy_nilly: We needed to get in a good four weeks in before taking a few off in Sept. DH works a crazy job in the summer and we don't see much of him. That'll end the last weekend in August. Then he'll have 3 weeks before school/teaching starts. We're planning a camping trip or something during that time. I've spent a lot of time this summer creating lesson plans so I won't have much to do during the school year. The only thing I have left is to gather supplies for science experiments and history projects, organize our school supplies and learning space, and purchase the components of Math Mammoth I need (I'm waiting until the Homeschool Buyer's Co-Op sale in August). I plan to take the boys out for breakfast on the first day of school. We'll take pictures and I'll give them some special little gifts (school supply type things) they are not expecting. We'll also discuss expectations and any new curriculum. I'm way excited to be back in Ancients! I'll be a good year!:001_smile: