ACE is from a conservative Baptist viewpoint. I hope this helps. :) They don't come out and say "We are conservative Baptist-and you better be , too" ;) However, I am familiar with the curriculum from using it and from seeing it used in the Christian school at my former church. If you would like more specific information, I will try to help. You can pm me if you like.

ACE gets my vote for ease of use, flexibility, and fostering independent learning. Rita

I like several things about ACE. It's easy to use and inplement. It is very flexible. The child works independently for the most part with the parent there to help as needed. Also, it is very wholesome and teaches character traits and scripture. We have used ACE for math since first grade and dd is finishing up third now. Math is not her best or favorite subject and this is a good fit with the mastery approach. It is a bit slower starting than many curriculums but that is by design since the student works independently and is expected to master material before learning a lot of new concepts. From what I have read, it catches up by middle school. There are free diagnostic tests on their website. Do use these and it will help you to know where to place your child in the curriculum. It will show any gaps to be filled and where to start. I have not used Rod and Staff, but am considering it for English next year and possibly science and social studies. Rod and Staff is very wholesome and God centered and from what I understand, very thorough. HTH Rita

I used this to teach dd to read. It's a great program and I highly recommend it. It's so straightforward and no nonsense. :) If there seemed to be to many words in a lesson, we would just do part of a lesson and pick up the next day where we left off. Of course, sometimes we got stuck and just stayed on a lesson for a few days or so until dd was able to "get it". I do recommend teaching letter sounds first because this does not teach them. I just did this with letter flash cards. Rita

I have it and am considering using it for my dd who will be in fourth grade and nine years old. Rita

Thanks. I could really use this.:) Rita

Donna Young's site has some information about planning for the curriculum fairs and conventions. She gives advice and has some printable forms. Check it out at : http://www.donnayoung.org/forms/help/thefair.htm Rita

I really like ACE and use their math with my dd. :) If I were to choose a full traditional curriculum from one publisher , they would probably be the one. Not sure what the original poster doesn't agree with since so far I have just seen basic Christian teachings in the paces, but if it's serious differences, I guess it's better to switch. HTH Rita

This sounds a lot like the method Ruth Beechick explains in her book, "You Can Teach Your Child Successfully." I recently read this book and will be implementing some of her approaches in the next school year. It will be sort of a combination Charlotte Mason/Ruth Beechick method. Also I will be doing some of the notebooking like in TWTM. If you have not read this book by Ruth Beechick , I recommend it. If you like this method for spelling, she also advocates using it to teach grammar.:) Rita

I will do art appreciation either by using library books or prints if I can find them inexpensively. BTW, I will be adding in some music appreciation also. I will also scan the library for books on how to draw and paint etc. On top of that will be any handicrafts dd will work on such as sewing, latch-hook rugs, etc. We will call those "practical arts".:) Rita

Since I am considering this approach for next school year, I decided to go ahead and start today. I am considering it a trial run to see how it works out, if dd and I like it, and see how dd responds in various ways. Not sure how long the trial run will be-maybe a couple of weeks or maybe couple of months.:confused: One of my goals is to feel better about being flexible. I intend to be pretty relaxed. When using workbooks, I feel stressed out when things come up and we get "behind". I would like to feel that we can just pick up with what we are doing the next day and not worry about the lesson numbers or day numbers being "off". Last week I found some books at our library's used book store. They sell library books they take out of circulation as well as books that people donate. I bought several books including some Eyewitness books about energy, music, plant life etc. Dd and I chose a couple of those books to start out with. My library also has "This Country of Ours" on audio CD's. I checked out the first volume and we will listen to it and see if we like it. It was recommended on a couple of CM sites I visited. Anyway, we will just be sort of trying out this approach and I will see if I can get a general routine or schedule figured out that works for us. Today would be a great day for nature study-it's sunny and warm outside. Probably won't get to that today , though. Also, I am not trying to do everything. No grammar for now, no dictation, no art study. Just some basics to try to get acquainted with the method and how to practically apply it. Rita

My dd reads constantly and writes stories. She likes to draw, also. Pretty soon we are both going to learn to sew. Rita

My name is Rita and I live in FL. I have been married to my dh for 19 years and we have one daughter who is 8 years old. I have homeschooled her since -well, I guess since birth.:) We are pretty eclectic and use mostly traditional materials and have done a couple of unit studies. For next school year, I may be doing a complete different approach and going to a Charlotte Mason/Ruth Beechick sort of homeschooling. I lurked a good bit on the old board, but decided to jump in here on the new board and post when I can. Rita

Thanks. This should be very helpful.:) Rita

Yes, my dh is also 100% supportive and almost completely uninvolved.:)

I like "So You're Thinking About Homeschooling" by Lisa Whelchel. Even though I am not new to homeschooling, I like to get this book out and read it from time to time. There are several different families and different kinds of homeschooling portrayed and I like to read about all the ways there are to homeschool. Also, I like "Beyond Survival" by Diana Waring Rita

Thanks for posting this. :) I am praying about going to a more Charlotte Mason-type of approach. Nature study sounds like a good way to start to work it in to our schedule. We live in FL in a rural area, so we really have no excuses for not getting out there and studying Creation. We have done nature walks in the past, and dd has done some sketches, but I never kept up with it.:( My dd has the Keepers At Home handbook, and there is a section on preserving flowers. Maybe I can talk dh into making a flower press for us. Rita

You are all really kind and I appreciate it.:) It's nice to be welcomed and made to feel at home here.

I lurked quite a bit on the old board, but really only posted a couple of times. Mostly I didn't post because I am not really a classical homeschooler, but am soon to change my style of homeschooling. I live in FL with my dh and our 8 yo old dd. We have homeschooled her from the beginning and plan to do so through high school. We are a Christian family and our faith is a big part of why we homeschool, although it's not the only reason. Eclectic is probably the word to describe our approach. This year I have been using a good bit of traditional curriculum, but feel the Lord is leading us to a change in the coming year. I am looking into a Charlotte Mason or Ruth Beechick approach. I did read TWTM and will likely use some of the ideas in there such as the notebooking and history summaries. This year we have used: Christian Light Language Arts and Reading, ACE math, BJU Heritage Studies, and Abeka science. Right now I am reading the Catherine Levison books about Charlotte Mason homeschooling. They are very good and help me see how I can practically put this method into use for our homeschool. Up until now, I didn't really understand the method. Anyway, I have enjoyed all the recent CM discussions and look forward to posting more here when I have time.

New here and testing also.:) Test.