Evan-Moor has Geography workbooks. They are secular. We have used them in the past and really liked them. Sonja ____________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Thanks Drew for recommending these study guides. They look wonderful.:D Sonja ________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Ladies, thank you so much for your recommendations. It's exactly what I was looking for. Now, I just have to make up my mind. However, as of right now, I am leaning more toward Spelling Wisdom. Anyone else?:glare: Thanks again! Sonja ____________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Due to financial problems I am trying to combine as many subjects as possible. I am looking for a 4th grade program that does combine spelling and copywork. Is there somthing like this out there? Thank you for your help! Sonja _______________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Thank you everyone for all your encouring e-mails. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of you who are in a similar situation. I am just so glad to have this board as my support system. Thank you all! Sonja __________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Thank you so much for your warm and caring words, your prayers, and good vibes. It means a lot to me/us. By reading all of your posts, so many of you have been in our situation, and I feel a little bit ashamed of feeling so weak and discouraged. I need to be strong for our family because we ONLY have us. Foremost, we need to keep communication open and going, especially right now. Dh tends to retreat into a shell when things go wrong - so, I need to be very sensitive. Sonja ___________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Well, today we received the news. Dh LOST his job - effective Feb. 1, 2009. Boy, I just wished it would not have happened. First we need to get rid of dh's big a** truck that costs $573.00 per month. He needed this monster for his job - there is nooooo way we can swing this. So, let 'em take the car - we try to hold on to the house as long as possible. I want to continue hs - but at this point I don't know how. I know there are lot of others in our shoes - but it is sooo hard. I can't even think straight right now. :confused: It's just such a blow. We gave up everything to move to this area 2 years ago. I know there is a reason for everything that happens in life, a purpose for things. But at this moment I just can't see it. I am just so upset tonight. We have had some rough times in the past - but I never felt as helpless as right now. Dh thinks HE let us down because he made us move out here. It brakes my heart to see him this way. Ds is scared, crying right now - and I don't know what to say. It seems I just can't find the right words tonight. Thanks for listening to my rumbling. Sonja ____________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

:party:How wonderful to have all of your kiddos at home. Surely, there will be rought times but nothing compared to the joy of hs them all. Sonja ___________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

We have JUST ONE - ds 9. After several miscarriages and one still birth we finally had our darling son. What a precious gift. Sadly, I can't have any more children. Sonja ____________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

I am using EEC with a 3rd Grader. It is our second year using MFW. We did Adventures last year. I really love the Teacher Manual. For me, it's open and go. I don't worry about the book basket too much. We have lots, and lots, did I say lots :D of books at home. If I don't find the right one - I just use a similar book I have at home. I am honest, I do change the curriculum to fit our schedule and needs. When we were studying Europe my son wanted to study more countries - so, I just continued to add some more countries since the TG gives you some room at the end. It's just so easy to use. On the other hand, if I don't like one of the craft ideas - I just skip it. The world won't stop. My son has learned so much this year in a fun and nurturing way. I just love MFW. I am planning to use MFW Creation to the Greeks as my spine next year in combination with Story of the World Volume I. I think MFW has one of the easiest TM's to use. Of course, this is a biased opinion. ;-) Sonja _______________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

You know, I am in the same boat you are. My ds 9 just wasn't eager to do narrations, WWE just didn't work for us. It felt like a constant struggle to have him do a somewhat decent job. This year, I started him on BJU Reading for 3rd Grade. It's very different from anything we have done at our house - but he really enjoys it. Go figure. I never thought ds would enjoy a workbook format, but he feels a kind of accomplishment when he can look at his work. KWIM? I pick and choose from the TM what I like to cover, we still read a LOT of books recommended in the WTM but I feel much better about what we cover and how we go about it. Ds who is a visual learner especially loves the colorful workbook and the stories. They are really great, the drawings are just wonderful. However, if you don't have a visual learner, all the colors might be a distraction to him/her. Just my 2 cents. Sonja _______________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

We really love Saxon Math at our house. Currently, we are doing Saxon 3. I love that the TM is scripted. However, as mentioned before, starting at Saxon 5/4 the format changes drastically. No more scripted TM's for the teacher. It just depends how you feel about teaching math. Some people like the scripted TM's, other prefer not having them. I guess, it's just a personal preferance! Sonja ______________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

We tried R&S for 2nd Grade it was a disaster. My son started throwing a fit each time I would pull out the book. This year, we are using GWG 3. Boy, what a different. We do our Grammar lessons without any moaning and groaning and he even fell in love with diagramming (:confused:). It's just the right amount of work. It usually takes us anywhere from 10-20 min. The constant (sweet and short) built in reviews are perfect for my ds. Sonja ___________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Hi Stacy, I think Growing with Grammar would be a great fit. My ds 9 uses GWG 3. We really like GWG at our house. It's easy to implement, the explanations are short but precise. It does not require any busywork, the writing is "doable". Furthermore, I really appreciate the short constant build in reviews - it helps to "cement" a concept. It takes anywhere between 10 and 20 minutes to do grammar at our house. Since my ds LOVES diagramming (:confused:) I substitue with FLL - BUT only the diagramming. I really like the diagramming part of FLL 3 since it explains the "whys" and "hows" of diagramming. Just my humble oppinion.:). Sonja __________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

A lot of boys have problems with fine motor skills at this age. Your son is still so young - just 1st Grade. I would not introduce cursive until at least 3rd Grade. I started my son in 3rd Grade using HWOT, but still - all his copywork and writing is done in manuscript. Just keep on working with your son. It will get better and his confidence in writing soar. Just my 2 cents.:) Sonja ____________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

We are doing R.E.A.L Science Level 1 - Life Science this year. My son really loves this curriculum. Just the right amount of hands-on, writing, lab sheets, etc. Plus point for Mom - so far, all of our experiments have worked!:001_smile: We will continue with R.E.A.L Science Level 1 Earth and Space after we have finished up Life Science. R.E.A.L. Science is coming up with Chemistry as well. There are some people who do not like this program (too dry, not enough experiments, etc) - but at our house we LOVE it. Sonja ____________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Wow...how wonderful. What a great opportunity for your kids to learn music history and what a wonderful teacher. Can I play "genie" and secretly listen to these lectures? ;) Sonja ____________________________________________- Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

Thanks for all of your replies. It looks like LC I might work for my ds 9. I just love this board. You ladies are wonderful. Thanks again! Sonja __________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

We are using Saxon 3 this year and my son IS learning A LOT. This will be our 2nd year using Saxon. For 1st Grade we used CLE and it brought tears into my son's eyes each time I pulled the math booklets. Just as others mentioned, Saxon has the right amount of hands-on, it's easy to tailor to fit your family and I LOVE the incremental style. Finally, my son is getting his facts. We do supplement with RightStart Math Games on Friday - just for fun, but we really love Saxon at our house. I just wished we would have started from the beginning (1st Grade). I already have Saxon 5/4 for next year! :D Sonja __________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

I am glad I'm not the only one thinking of going this way. Thanks for your input Christina. Sonja ________________________________________________- Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

I'd like to change our hs to a more LCC approach. Currently, my ds 9 (3rd Grade) is studying Latin using Song School Latin. He really loves Latin and would like to continue with his studies. What program would you use? Latina Christiana is for 4th Grade and up. However, with Song School Latin ds has no exposure to any formal Latin grammar, declensions, etc. Is it o.k. to start with Prima Latina (going faster than normal) and than continue with Latina Christiana I? I just don't want ds to be overwhelmed with Latin grammar. I don't want to kill his love for this language with chosing a wrong Latin program. :confused: As of right now, he wants to go ALL the way with Latin. And as a Mom, I want a Latin Program that incorporates English Grammar as well, so we can drop our formal Grammar studies. Any ideas? Inputs? :glare: (BTW - I am waiting for my copy of Latin Centered Curriculum 2nd Edition. I am sooo excited!) Thanks! Sonja ________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

What a wonderful site. My sun will love surely love these activities. Thank you so much for sharing this awsome site with all of us. Sonja ________________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

I'm sooo jealous. ;) I can't wait for your review. It is one of the books I am considering for ds down the road. Sonja __________________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

This is our third year. :001_smile: Sonja ______________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9

After several miscarriages and a still birth we were finally blessed with one child - our ds 9. I was 34 at this time, my dh 37. I have developed a heart condition that could require a replacement of my left heart valve - so, YES, we are done. First of all, I consider myself too old for another one, second of all, my medical condition does not allow for another pregnancy. On top, ds suffers from a chronical medical condition. We always wanted LOTS of children - BUT we consider ourselves blessed with the one we have. But, at times I just wish for a little girl!!! Sonja __________________________________ Homeschooling JUST ONE - ds 9