We really enjoyed the books in Core D when my oldest was in 3rd grade (and was an advanced reader and a history buff). It was Core E where I was just burnt out on historical fiction and switched to something else. I think it would have been better to have more non-fiction mixed in with the good fiction books. Oh, and the very first read alound - Walk the World's Rim - is a bit slow. We liked the book, but some of the other books were faster paced. So I could see someone thinking that one and maybe a few others are boring. I've heard people say Landmark was boring, but we LOVED it. Found it very interesting.

My first graders have all been different! The current one just turned 6 a couple months ago. He's the 3rd child, is Mr. Independent, has crazy good fine motor skills and overall LA skills, and he's the easiest homeschool child ever. Chores: Absolutely. He can empty the dishwasher (uses a chair to put stuff away), take out the trash, take the big trash cans to the street (quite a walk down our driveway), feed the dogs and cats, clean his room, pick up around the house, vacuum, swish toilets, wipe down sinks, wash windows, etc. Really, he does almost everything his older brothers can do. He's also learning to cook. He has made cinnamon toast in the oven completely by himself (supervised, of course). Reading: He's not really into chapter books that much, though he'll pick up a Magic Tree House book and read it in an hour. He currently prefers various library books, mostly science related. He loves to read and is very good at it (including attacking new multisyllable words). That's part of what makes him so easy to homeschool. He can read the directions to himself, and he can also read to learn (does CLE Math and LA completely independently - I'm available to help, and sometimes I'd prefer to help, but he's been Mr. "I do it myself" for a LONG time, and he'll have it done - correctly - before I get a chance to go over new material :tongue_smilie:). Hobbies: He plays hockey and likes Pokemon. Initiates activities: Yes, I don't suggest activities to my kids. If they can't figure out what to do, I'll give them cleaning to do. So they are very easily able to find something fun without asking me. ;) He also makes a lot of suggestions for things to do. He's very outgoing. Naps: Not since he was 2. Sigh. He wanted to be like his big brothers who weren't napping! Behavior problems: Not really. He sometimes pouts and gets whiny, mostly when big brothers aren't listening to him. Or if he really wants to do something and you say no, he might get pouty. But he's overall very well behaved. I trust him to be better behaved than his 8 year old brother. And most of the whiny stuff happens when he's tired. Non-fiction: He LOVES science. Totally digging science. History is meh. He really doesn't care that much about it at this point. He does history, but I think a lot of it goes over his head. He enjoys his Bible class at church and learns a lot there. My 8 year old asked us what "winnowing" is the other day, and my 6 year old answered him with a very thorough and correct explanation of the process. I was impressed! They've both been studying life in Bible times in their classes the last 6 weeks. Interaction: He's near me all day long, and he talks my head off. He dotes on his baby sister and I'm constantly having to tell him to get out of her face. :lol: He can listen to read alouds pretty well, but I haven't been doing them since pregnancy/baby happened. Art: He'll draw for science and history. He learned this week how to trace maps for history, and he LOVES doing that (and his tracing is impeccable!). He's not big into art in general, but he does it occasionally on his own. I'm not an artsy mom at all, and in fact I HATE art, so the kids are kind of on their own with it. I do provide crayons, color pencils, markers, glue, scissors, and all the free printer paper from Staples that they can use. :D Singing: He sings pretty well. He and my oldest are both decent singers. My 8 year old can't really carry a tune, but he's also the one with speech problems, so I suspect there is an auditory issue causing that. DH and I are both musical and can both sing decently.

My 6 year old is a lefty. He was ambidextrous for a long time, and he still is in some cases, but he prefers writing with his left hand. When I taught him to write, I just said to use whichever hand felt comfortable. Sometimes he'd start with his left, then switch to his right when he got tired. :) He loves writing, and he can write neatly with either hand. But he has always preferred his left hand for thumb sucking, opening doors, picking up utensils to eat with, and writing/drawing. I noticed it early on and just let him use whichever hand he wanted. For sports and other activities, I've sometimes had to suggest that he try his left hand. For example, when he got to tag along at Cub Scout camp at age 3 (his brother was a Tiger that year and I had to stay with him), he tried shooting the bow and arrow with his right hand first. He was getting nowhere near the target. So I suggested using his left hand instead. Lo and behold, he hit the target! He did better than his older brothers. :p In hockey he still holds the stick right handed, I think mostly because no one ever suggested the other way. He hits baseballs right handed, but again, I think because that's what he saw others doing. He also uses right handed scissors, usually with his right hand. I've seen him cut with them left handed also. I'd only want to get him left handed scissors if he wants to cut left handed most of the time, as right handed scissors won't work well in the left hand (I once tried to cut with my sister's left handed scissors... didn't work very well!). Thankfully, he has amazing fine motor skills with either hand, so he hasn't needed special lefty tools. If he needs special tools, I'll get them. But if he can function normally with right-handed tools, that would be easier in life. If he's in an office and needs to borrow scissors briefly, chances are they won't have lefty scissors. ;) I agree that not everyone can do that, but since he has been somewhat ambidextrous most of this time, he definitely can.

My 11 year old probably couldn't spell it, though he'd make it look somewhat phonetically correct. The way your DD spelled it is like my 8 year old would probably do it. He'll throw in random letters or leave out vowels completely. He pretty consistently spells "Israelites" as "Isrwts" or something like that. He does have undiagnosed issues, so I suspect he isn't hearing words properly or isn't able to process the sounds that well. He does fine in "spelling", learning to spell individual words, but a word he's never written before will be crazy when he tries to spell it on his own.

I've totally btdt with the heavy phonics-based spelling programs. The fact is, not all kids need those. If yours doesn't, don't kill yourself trying to use one. My oldest wasn't really a natural speller, but he did spell well once he'd written a word correctly. A basic list-based spelling program works great for him. At 7, his spelling was pretty awful. At 11, it's pretty good. My third son is a natural speller. The only spelling he's doing is what's in his language arts workbook, and it's pretty light. I didn't even do a full phonics program with him because, like your daughter, I noticed that he could sound out strange huge words and obviously had intuited the phonics. Woohoo! He's the easiest homeschool kid ever. My more struggling speller (and reader) definitely needs spelling instruction, but I found that the programs such as LOE just confused him. It was too much, and there were too many exceptions. He does better with just focusing on a list of words, noticing anything phonetic that helps you spell those words, but otherwise just practicing the word. Oh, and I have used AAS, Spalding, LOE, and a few others. Frankly, I found myself getting confused when focusing too much on rules, especially when you get into larger words. The rules seemed to work great for the early elementary words, but then you get into high school words and it all goes out the window. So for me, thinking up my own think-to-spell method of remembering how to spell those words makes more sense. Those programs are interesting, and you can learn a lot, but you can also get bogged down if you think too much (as my struggling speller tends to do :D).

Last year we were combining science, and science never got done. This year, I have split it up into my 6th grader doing his own science and my 1st and 3rd graders working together on a separate science. Even there, the little ones are really doing it on their own instead of working together. We're using task cards for them, and they just read the encyclopedias and library books and do whatever the card says to do. My 1st grader is often done with his other work long before my 3rd grader, so he just goes on and finishes science too. He's a real go-getter, while the 3rd grader is... not. :)

CLE has improved versions of Lifepac. Their Sunrise Editions are waaaaaay better. CLE isn't colorful, but many kids like it anyway.

I used it with my oldest for 5th grade last year. Honestly, I didn't do anything else LA, as I was dealing with complicated pregnancy at the time. Once baby was here, I had him do Hake Grammar and R&S Spelling, both of which he's continuing now. At that point, he was in the writing section of TC, so adding more grammar wasn't overkill. This year, we're putting what he learned to use.

I don't think it really matters what part of history or science you do. Your children will remember bits and pieces but not all of it. You'll come around to it again and fill in holes, which they may still not remember long term until you hit it again in high school. ;) I did the 4-year history cycle starting when my oldest was 1st grade and next one was 4. So the 4 year old didn't get anything or even listen in. He wasn't at all interested. That child joined in history when he started 1st grade and we were doing year 4. I used TOG Y4 that year, so he got inventors and such and really enjoyed it. It didn't matter that he hadn't had ancient history or middle ages. He found it really interesting. Last year, we started Ancients when the kids were 5th, 2nd, and K. We only got about 1/4 of the way through it (complicated pregnancy), so we're finishing that up this year. My now 1st grader isn't getting as much out of it, but that's ok. For science, I've done library books the whole time until this year. My 1st and 3rd graders are doing Creek Edge Press Life Science task cards and really enjoying them. Of course, it's basically library books with some specific assignments involved, so only a step above what we did randomly before. :) They LOVE science so far (this is our 3rd week). Anyway, again, it doesn't much matter what you do for science at this age. Just do what they enjoy. It will all come around again when they're older.

My 6 year old uses Math and LA with no problem. He enjoys them, and he likes that he can get them done independently. He did the Math last year, and started the LA in February this year. My 8 year old is only using the Math right now, and he kind of complains that he has separate phonics, reading, and spelling workbooks (all R&S) and thus has more subjects. :p I want him to get through R&S Phonics 2 before moving over to CLE LA though.

We've started as of last week, and he's almost done with CLE 3. LA is staying the same for now. History is MOH1 still. Science is Creek Edge Press Life Science task cards, which he is enjoying. I'm thinking when we finish MOH1, I'll probably get the middle ages task cards.

1-2 hours is about right here. My current first grader probably spends 1-1.5 hours, all in one sitting. He's typically a fast worker. He's like the unicorn of homeschool students. :lol:

CLE has plenty of depth. In fact, when I used it at grade level as review for my Prealgebra kid in 4th grade after completing Singapore 5B (in 3rd), he was finding things he hadn't done much of in Singapore. I don't see how working ahead equates to lack of depth? Are you then saying that Singapore lacks depth? And AoPS, for that matter? He finished AoPS Prealgebra in 5th grade, and I know you don't believe it lacks depth. :) CLE had enough depth that my middle son was able to do Beast Academy 3A while still near the beginning of CLE 200. He didn't have any problems until he got to the perfect squares chapter in 3B, and his then first grader brain wasn't ready for that yet. Having used Math Mammoth, Singapore, Beast Academy, CLE, and AoPS... CLE has plenty of depth for an elementary student, imo. It's really quite thorough. I've been very happy with it for my mathy kids who work above grade level regardless of the math curriculum used. Is it a difficult as Beast Academy? No. But does it provide a solid math foundation that can lead into AoPS for upper math for a math inclined kid? Absolutely.

Still working this morning. I like the interface, but I probably won't use it, as I'm spoiled by HST+'s reusable lesson plans with no dates attached. I'll play around with it anyway though.

My 6th grader is doing General Science this year. My younger kids hang out for experiments, but they're doing Creek Edge Press Life Science task cards and really enjoying them.

CLE. My youngest son is using it for math and LA, both ahead of grade level. He's doing great. Those are his only workbook subjects.

I agree that curriculum doesn't really matter. An AoPS kid probably picks up math easily with just about any curriculum. Plus you yourself are clearly mathy, so you would impart that naturally. My child that has used AoPS did Saxon K-1, Math Mammoth 1-4, Singapore 4-5, then AoPS Prealgebra. My other kids are using CLE, and they'll likely use AoPS later. We sometimes play with Beast Academy, but for a main curriculum, I've found that I actually prefer a traditional elementary math. I really felt like Math Mammoth and Singapore pushed the different mental math techniques and such to the point that my oldest son wasn't coming up with his own as much anymore, whereas when he was bored in school using Saxon (at grade level), he would come up with his own methods and think more. So I kind of feel like some kids don't need all the explicit teaching of those things. I know I didn't get that stuff until math team in 6th grade, and I excelled at math into my college years, naturally thinking the way the Asian programs teach. So YMMV. :)

My second son went through Singapore 1A/B, but he needed continual review of some topics. So I switched him to CLE. We did 201, skipping the lessons he already knew inside out. He's in 309 now. It's working well for him. His younger brother did Singapore Essential K at age 4, so I used CLE 100 in K. He did great with it and loves it, as he's my independent child. He's working in 203 now and still doing great. Both of these kids are mathy, but my friend with a kid that was scared of math and doing poorly in public school math really soared with CLE also, going from behind in math to doing algebra in 8th grade. I think this program can work for a variety of kids. With my mathy kids, I'll sometimes skip ahead a bit (I've done that recently with the kid in the 300 series), but I'd need to do that with almost any program. I like that if we do skip some reviews, I know they'll still get those reviews again, so it's not a big deal.

I feel your pain! My 8 year old was like that for a long time. He finally clicked around the time he turned 8. He's still a bit slow, but it's not nearly as bad now. You know what helped? We didn't do any reading lessons for a good month. Sometimes kids' brains just need a rest. So try taking a little time off. Make books available, and read to her frequently, but drop the formal lessons for a bit.

I have an 8 year old who reads at Magic Tree House level also, and both his brothers read at a much higher level than him. It's not fun to read when you have to work at it. Things that encourage him... 1) picture books!, 2) nonfiction books. I learned #2 with my oldest when he was a very advanced young reader but didn't like the novels I was giving him. He actually didn't care for fiction at that point. He does read fiction now (LOTR sparked that interest, and now he has several series he likes), but when he was younger, he'd read more if I gave him science or history. In fact, SOTW is what really built his stamina in first grade. He totally loved it. Another thing that gets my kids reading is going to the library, picking out a slew of books, then coming home and reading what they just picked out, since Mom is mean and won't let them have screen time. ;) This year for 3rd grade, I'm hoping to get my 8 year old reading longer books. I've got some easy novels picked out that I'll have him read a chapter per day. They're fun books that aren't very intimidating. Size and difficulty are similar to Magic Tree House. I'll also have him researching science topics with his younger brother. That will get him reading more challenging texts without realizing it. ;) He really likes science.

I had a difficult pregnancy, so we didn't get as much done during the year as I would have liked. Once baby arrived, I took a couple weeks off, then started up again strong... but just math and LA. Kids had checklists and knew exactly what they needed to do. Baby slept a lot, so we didn't have much trouble. I let history and science slide. My kids were all elementary grades, so there is no "behind" there. Before baby came, I made sure we were using curriculum that could be done mostly independently. I think the only thing that was completely one on one was writing with my oldest (Treasured Conversations) - his weakest subject. Other things we did during pregnancy... taught kids to do more housework and basic cooking. My husband explained to my oldest that he really need his help around the house since I wasn't able to do as much (I was essentially on bedrest the last few months). My son really stepped up and took responsibility, and that has stuck. As far as meals go, we always get meals provided by church members the first few weeks, but after that my husband and I lowered our expectations about dinner. It wasn't all made from scratch. We did some more convenience foods. Around 6 weeks, I eased back into my normal dinner routine. Now I'm back to mostly from scratch, and I'm even making extra to put in the freezer for bad days (like the day I left my purse at karate, realized it when I got home, had to drive back 25 minutes each way with baby crying the whole time, and I had no time to cook a decent dinner).

My oldest used Math Mammoth, then Singapore for elementary math. He used AoPS Prealgebra and is starting Jacobs Algebra next week. Next kid did Singapore K-1, then CLE 2-3 so far. He'll continue with CLE until he's ready for Prealgebra. He'll likely use AoPS. Third kid did Singapore K, then started CLE 1-2. He'll likewise continue with CLE for elementary math. #4 has a long time before she starts math, but I'll likely use CLE with her also. I really like it. There is a short new instruction, then practice done independently. Speed drills are built in. Kid #3 is very independent, so I love that the new teaching is written to the student. While I go over major new topics (such as addition with regrouping), if the new topic is just a couple new math facts or something fairly simple, he can learn it himself. He prefers to work that way, and it works for him.

This is my third first grader, and each one has done something completely different. :) DS3 will be doing... CLE Math 200 CLE LA 100/200 (he's on 107 when we start school back up next week) Mystery of History 1 Creek Edge Press Life Science task cards Literature will be a stack of novels I pick out for him. He's a strong reader.

I used A with my second son and hated it. He didn't learn anything because it jumped around so much and used a different manipulative each lesson. He needed consistency. I switched him to Singapore for K-1, then CLE after that, with a side of Beast Academy. He's a mathy kid, but needs a consistent approach. He doesn't do well with using several different manipulative to explain the same idea. Other kids need that approach though. My other kids haven't really needed manipulatives as much. My oldest used Math Mammoth and Singapore for elementary math. My third kid is using CLE with chocolate chips as a manipulative when needed. :D My husband and I both naturally do mental math the way these Asian programs teach, so I haven't really had to explicitly teach my kids those methods. They usually figure them out on their own, and thus any math program will work for them.

Another difference is that CLE is spiral, so they're continually hitting certain topics and getting more review. R&S will have a chapter on nouns, a chapter on verbs, a chapter on adjectives, etc. And it's the same order each year. There is oral review, but the main teaching is sequential. My son that gets grammar easily found it really boring (he's used parts of grades 2, 3, 4, and 5). I don't have experience with CLE LA beyond grade 1... My 3rd son finished 106 before our school year ended. He'll start 107 next week. He loves it. My kids enjoy workbooks and the satisfaction they get when they complete one. Also, R&S breaks up the subjects into separate books, so for grade 2 you'd have a grammar book, a phonics workbook, a reading workbook, a spelling workbook, and a handwriting workbook. My rising 3rd grader is doing R&S for phonics/reading/spelling, but adding in grammar and handwriting would be too much for him. I will probably move him to CLE once he completes the phonics and spelling books he's working in now. CLE LA includes phonics, grammar, spelling, and handwriting at the grade 1-2 levels. They have a separate reading program. CLE LA would not have worked well for my oldest, who got grammar and reading easily but struggled more with writing and spelling. He needed different levels for different LA subjects. My other two boys seem to work roughly at one LA level across the board. So that's something else to consider.