Dolphin

January 13, 2011

I used the dr. seuss wall clings that I found on amazon. If I link this correctly you can see them in the school room. There are 2, and were fairly easy to put up. My favorite is " Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."

schoolroom

January 13, 2011

This is my first year doing this. I spent all of ds son's second grade year researching and buying things for this year. This is my first year as an already established homeschooler.

When do next years things come out. For instance I am looking at Clavert for PreK next year (I think I might want to use it for middle school for ds, so preK seems a good trail year with dd). They are still selling their 2010-2011 school year. When will they have their new one out.

Is there a time that curriculum publishers put out a lot of new material. I see that there are a lot of conventions in March. I don't want to buy in Febuary and then find out that there is a flood of new editions and curriculum on the market that I missed as I already spent my budget.

Also, do people sell out of things? I don't want to wait to long and find that I am back-ordered and can not get started.

What is the ebb and flow like? We had conversations this week, and we are all happy with home school and are going to do it at least another year (ds included)

Thanks in advance

Nicole

January 12, 2011

I am looking at Clavert for Pre K. It looks good, open and go. I have wanted to try it, but I was put off by the price. The PreK is not to bad, and I thought a good way to dip my toe in and see if I like it. I have also been looking at Singapore Math. On the rainbow resource page it says that the Kindergarten version is actually a two year course meant for PreK and K.

January 12, 2011

That was the cleanest the school room has been all year. It does not look that way anymore. I found the Dr. Seuss wall clings on amazon, and made the mobiles out of a bulletin board kit.

I love all the photos of the kiddos looking how I feel by the end of each term, and all the snow makes me jealous. It's been about 3 years since we have had a good snow fall here.

January 12, 2011

cute house.

I will try and do this. I finally took pictures of the school room. Here is one.

pic1

January 12, 2011

Sorry, I just looked at your other posts. I believe that the blue cover you are talking about is a extra math practice series. It is not published by Singapore Math, it is a workbook in the Singapore style. It is not the complete Singapore Math program, but a review or supplemental math workbook. THe yellow is Singapore Math

January 12, 2011

Are you talking about more than just the levels?

1A and B are yellow

2A and B are blue

2A and B are green

January 11, 2011

Singapore Math does some computer games too. I believe it is Rainbow Rock for 1&2, we now use Vroot and Vroom. My son loves them, he earns time with it. We also have a Flashmaster which I like a lot. It is an electronic form of Flashcards and he does prefer that. We have been having problems with some basic fact, so I enrolled him in Kumon last week. We have only gone three times so far, but I am really happy with it. I am relaxing and my son likes having a different teacher on occasion. They are working on the facts and catch up, and I am now just working through the Singapore books with him.

Nicole

January 11, 2011

I am getting the feeling that there is someone lurking here who is really displeased about this book. Oh well.

I am really looking forward to getting and reading this book. I hope the activity guides come out quickly. This is one of the few areas that I need something for. I am piecing together lots of things, but it would be nice to have a guide.

January 10, 2011

That is a great idea, I had not even thought of just using separate paper. Sometimes the simplest ideas just fly over my head.

January 10, 2011

I am not that tech savvy. My BIL recommended that I get a roku player. He said eventually I would want a apple or google, but they still have some kinks to work out. The Roku is cheaper (Only $60-100) and you can play hulu on it.

January 10, 2011

So, my DS is in 3rd grade and this is our first year of HS. When we started I found that his handwriting was horrible!!! So, I started GD at level 1. We love it, his handwriting has improved so much. The one problem is that the lines are so big in it (as it is meant for K-1). Everything else he does, FLL, WWE, etc has the appropriate lines for a 3rd grader. We are finishing book A this week. I have both books B and C, and my question is, as he is older, could we just skip to book C? Is there a major step that I would be missing out on by skipping book b?

January 10, 2011

Have you posted on the general board? I was feeling a little lost and out of it at the beginning. This board is primarily about curriculum. I found that when I started looking at the general board, I found out more about homeschool in general. The talk is about everything, but there is a lot on there about the emotional side of home educating, for both kids and moms. Back in October, when one part of my wanted to throw in the towel I posted on that board. The support was amazing, as were the ideas. Give it a try, I found when I only looked at the curriculum side of I felt lost too. This journey that we are on involves more than just picking the right curriculum and implementing it.

Welcome!

Nicole

January 10, 2011

I second the Peter and the star catchers series. My 8 year old LOVES them. He has read the firs three. He finished book 3 in 5 hours if that gives you an idea of how he inhales books.

Guardians of Gahoole

Harry Potter (he has read all 7)

The Famous Five by Enid Bylton is great.

He is about to start the Charlie Bone series, so we shall see how that goes.

Narnia

The Hobbit

Black Beauty

The Jungle Book

How to train your dragon

Percy Jackson

Those are the ones we found for my son.

January 8, 2011

I do lose it sometimes, but I am finding it is less and less as I get older.

I have embraced what is important in life. If I have God and my family, everything else is just stuff. Sometimes I do things like pull the cuckoo clock that my mother and I got in Switzerland when I was 17 off the wall, that almost brought me to tears. At the end of the day it is just material and I still have the memories of the trip.

I do not think that I am explaining this well. Everything in life could be kept safely on a secure shelf, bolted down behind glass, but then we would not have the enjoyment of things. I decided to use our things and not have it be the end of the world if they break.

As for worry, I used to get myself sick. Now I ask myself if worrying will do any good. I learnt this is college. I used to be ill waiting for my exam results, then I realized that worrying would not change anything. Once the exam was turned in, there was nothing I could do about it. Now, after almost 20 years, I am good at letting go of things, If worrying about it serves a purpose that will help something, I do it, otherwise I move on and accept whatever is coming.

I am generous to a fault. I will give you my time, money, my car, forgiveness, whatever is needed. I always want to help. I get walked over A LOT! However, at this point in my life, I have some of the most amazing dedicated friends. I would not have these people in my life if I wasn't the way I was. Being walked over and taken advantage off is worth it to have the people in my life that I do.

The main reason though that I think I am that way is that I am happy. I had very reasonable goals in life, and I achieved them. I wanted to be a wife and a mother. Everything else is just gravy. Instead of being disappointed when things do not go my way, I am pleasantly surprised when I get an extra. I look for the good, and there is a lot of it out there.

Our vicar had a lot of nice chats with us before my dh and I got married. One thing that he said to us the day before our wedding has really stuck with me. He reminded us that we would enter the church as 2 single people. As long as we left the church married, the day was a success. That was all that really mattered. There really is surprisingly little that is truly important. I think we all (and yes I have my moments too) where we get caught up in everything else.

I am not perfect, I also do not desire to be perfect. It will never happen, so why get myself worked up. My children are not perfect, they can drive me up a wall and have me pulling my hair out. However, I love them and feel so fortunate that I have them. My dh is also not perfect, but he was made for me and surrounds me with love.

I don't know if that makes any sense, but it is how I ended up where I am.

Nicole

January 7, 2011

So this is the one that I have

http://www.youngliving.com/thieves-essential-oil/Thieves-Oil

I have heard of lots of ways to use it, the website even has one way. What we are doing is I put one drop on my finger, put it on the back of my tongues and inside of each cheek. This was how my friend who is a daycare teacher told me to do it. I do the same with the kids. The first few times it is a little shock as it is strong. We are all used to it now. My kids don't like the taste, but even the three year old associates feeling better from a long cold with the taste.

The next thing I am going to try is the hand sanitizer. It is oil based instead of alcohol based, so it is not supposed to dry your hands out as much.

I have also decided to meet an aromatherapist. I am so surprised that an oil is helping with so much. (I am a skeptical better living through chemistry person), but this is changing my mind. I heard they do mouth washes. Lotions to help with insomnia etc...

January 7, 2011

with Thieves oil. Does anyone else use it? We were all passing a cold around for 6 weeks, we started this oil and all started feeling better that day. We use it everyday and we have not had any colds in over 2 months. (including 3 weeks in New York City and 2 plane rides) I love it! I don't sell it, I just want to make sure that other moms know about it as I can no longer imagine life with out it.

Nicole

Also, our friends have been sick for 2 weeks now, we have played with them 3 times, and still nothing. I am a dancing happy momma!

January 6, 2011

On the 12th day of Christmas...

we take down all our decorations. Anything that we forget has to stay up and in place until next year. We sing lots of hymns while we take down our decorations.

Last year I forgot my row of Precious Moment Christmas Ornaments, so I have had to explain those away for a year. I wonder what I will forget this year.

I think I will add cake to the festivities this year, thanks for the recipe ideas.

Happy 3 kings day!

January 6, 2011

I would put Grammar in the title so those who are not familiar with the WTM or classical education will know what it is. Grammar is sadly lacking in the middle school years in PS< and parents might get it as a supplement.

Great Grammar Lessons

Then a subtitle of some sort that lets parents know that they do not need to know Grammar to teach it to their child

Teaching your children the Grammar you were never taught.

That is, if it is anything like FLL. I am learning more grammar through FLL than I was taught in school.

January 6, 2011

shower curtains can not be pulled back around me, I never know what is behind them. I have replaced our shower curtain with glass doors. My kids one is bunched together, twirled and looped over the rail. If I am at someone else's house, I open the shower curtain, do my business, wash my hands and close the shower curtain before I leave the bathroom. I am totally scaried of them.

My husband and I each have one person that we are allowed to kiss if we ever meet them. Mine is Ewan McGregor. I think he is so sexy, and he can sing!

January 4, 2011

I was recommended Draw Write Now's book 7 for doing Geography. Someone on this board recommended it. I love it so much that I bought the series. I love it. I am horrible at drawing, the cow I did yesterday with my son, it is not great art by any means, but it looks like a cow!

January 3, 2011

I have the What your 3rd grader should know book.

k12 has free placement tests

https://eprcontent.k12.com/placement/placement/placement_langarts_2.html

For reading

http://theteacherscafe.com/Worksheets/Reading/San-Diego-Quick-Printable-Reading-Assessment-Instructions.htm

January 3, 2011

My DS is also a great reader, his spelling was sadly lacking. We started it later, at 3rd grade. We love it. Spelling is now one of his favorite subjects. We started with Spectrum spelling, he did not like it, complained every time we got it out.

January 3, 2011

Spanish!!!. It will help both kids if they can speak it with each other. If they learn Spanish, if they want to add French later it will be pretty easy for them. My High School Spanish made college French very easy for me.