I have definitely evolved in my views of homeschooling over the yrs. I was always adament that homeschooling was the best choice when my kids were little. I absolutely no longer believe that at all. Quite honestly, I believe that older children need the separation of mom and teacher roles. Homeschooling is simply one option among many.

Rhonda, I messaged the OP with a reply that basically mirrored yours. I didn't realize you were a former SDA. Do you realize the exit I told you about when we thought we might meet up that time was in the middle of a HUGE SDA community?? Being Catholic here is rather interesting, to say the least. ;) There have been huge billboards around our area for yrs stating that Sunday worship is the mark of the beast. Catholics are definitely part of the beast. They used to come to our door quite a bit, but no longer. I would always invite them in and engage them in conversation. It was immediately obvious to me that they had never encountered Catholics who are really knowledgeable about theology and scripture. (not surprising considering we are less that 0.1% of the local population.) I think they stopped coming b/c I had them leaving with too many questions of their own. :o I also sincerely believe they are Christian. I do believe they are misguided and have no accurate historical understanding of Christianity. I have to say that they do have some great vegan stores that I love to shop for produce. :) Ironically, the Church views itself as the only source of Christianity b/c Christ established His Church with Him as the head and we as His Body. Not an establishment of many churches. Therefore, if compared to math, Catholicism is the complete set and other denominations are subsets that embrace partiality of the revealed truth with only the Catholic church encompassing It all. BTW.....I only say ironically b/c Protestants would be horrified by the concept. ;)

I have always taught my children to substitute in numbers that they intuitively know the answers to if they can't figure out how to set up solving the problem. So if the numbers are large, put in 1 or 2. If there are fractions, substitute in 1/2, etc. Usually once they "see" the problem with simple problems, they get that light-bulb moment. :)

Our breakfasts are normally sweet potato muffins. Very easy to make and have the benefit of being healthy. :) 1 mid size can of sweet potatoes, drained and mashed 4 1/2 c. freshly milled whole wheat flour 1/2 c olive oil 3/4-1 c. succanat (I prefer less) 2 c. buttermilk (I use 2% with 2 Tbsps of vinegar added 5 mins before mixing into recipe) 2 eggs 2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp baking powder 2 tsp salt (only 1 1/2 if using sea salt) 2 tsp vanilla I usually add 3/4 c. choc. chips to ours. (Ok, that makes them not quite so healthy!) Makes 24 large muffins. I spray my pans with Pam. Bake at 400 for ~16 mins. My kids devour them.

I tend to agree. I personally believe that "home-study" curricula for upper science and math are not equivalent in quality to standard texts. There are numerous choices that are not marketed to the home school educator that are wonderful. It simply takes some effort to find which ones appeal to you. Some examples......Prentice Hall Explorer series, Conceptual Physical Science, Conceptual Physics, Singapore science, Zumdahl chemistry, Campbell Biology, etc.

Yrs ago we adopted the kitten of a stray (I am pretty sure the mom was a ferral cat) She is an awesome hunter. Every yr when it starts to get cold, critters try making their way into our attic. She starts camping out in certain spots, yr after yr. Never have never heard anything for more than a couple of days, so she knows where they are trying to get in and takes care of the problem before it becomes a long term one. We tried to give her to the people that are buying our house b/c this mountain is her home. She has been here since she was a little kitten. They declined. I am sad for her and for them. They have no idea the amount of wildlife she keeps away and sad for her b/c she is so used to roaming and being queen of the mountainside. I did find someone on land to give her to. I just hope she doesn't run away from them. :(

Hi Cleo, Have you looked at Prentice Hall Explorer series? I have dropped Apologia from my selection as well. I am using PH with my current 8th grader and she really enjoys the different books. As a side note, I wouldn't consider General a high school science. I personally don't consider anything before biology hs credit-worthy. I originally thought I would count physical, but ds's university didn't count it so I'm not planning on counting it for the rest of my kids. I want to make sure they are competitive with other applicants.

Call your mortgage company. Many will do a "no-fee" or "low fee" refinance to keep your business. Like someone else pointed out, look at the difference in your pay off down the road. We move a lot and 2 homes had 15 yr mortgages vs 30. Equity builds up much more rapidly with a 15 yr mortgage. Unfortunately different regions of the country have different housing prices, so some places we simply can't find a house we can afford at a 15 yr payment. Mortgage rates are definitely coming down. Our quoted rate between yesterday and today was a 1/4% down and they believe they will drop again in the next 48 hours.

Thank you to everyone who was praying for her. (For those who don't know what I am talking about, I posted on the old board that my ds's girlfriend is a leukemia survivor and they were concerned that her mono test was falsely positive and it was actually secondary cancer.) My stress level has plummetted and I can now actually think straight enough to go and finish everything I need to do before the packers arrive Thursday morning. Thank you again for praying for her. :) She is such a beautifully kind young lady. Praising the Lord again for His Tender Mercy!!

Have you tried explaining it using a 100s chart? I always use a chart for +1s and +2s as well as minuses for the same. They usually catch on quickly b/c they understand the "what comes next" idea. That visual cue might help the process.

I would like to understand that as well.

I don't mind teaching writing. What I detest more than anything about homeschooling is grading. I can't stand to finish a long day of teaching, knowing all the "life" stuff I have to do, and have a pile of work I have to grade. :o I wish I had an assistant to do all the grading. (I would rather clean bathrooms than grade papers!!)

Honestly, I don't take off much time when they are newborns. I find it much easier to teach when they are at that stage then when they hit around 6 mos and are suddenly mobile! I would probably plan a week for recouperating and allowing for all the baby-mushies that the older ones want to constantly dote on new baby. Then I would probably start back with basics (math and reading) for a couple of weeks until you get into a groove. By about 3-4 weeks, I would be back in the swing of things and giving myself permission to not do school on days when things are just going haywire (or ped appointments, colic, no sleep, etc)

It would be a great idea! For all you prayer warriors, please keep praying for my ds's girlfriend, Rebecca. She goes back into the drs today. We are all so extremely frustrated that they have not given the test results. I am very alarmed by the fact that she is becoming more anemic, but am confused b/c she actually is less jaundiced and looks better. I pray it is only mono. I really hope we have definitive answers by this weekend b/c that is the last time I will be living in our TN for ds to be home with us for the results.:(

Have you tried just walking through the 500s and 600s in the library? There are literally 1000s of books on whole topics in even our very small branch library. When we need something different, we get them to order it from the main library. I'm cutting and pasting the dewey decimal 500/600 categorization for you so that you can determine where you want to look for the different topics. (500 is the classification for math and natural science and 600 is more applied technology type science) 500 Natural sciences & mathematics 501 Philosophy & theory 502 Miscellany 503 Dictionaries & encyclopedias 504 Not assigned or no longer used 505 Serial publications 506 Organizations & management 507 Education, research, related topics 508 Natural history 509 Historical, areas, persons treatment 510 Mathematics 511 General principles 512 Algebra & number theory 513 Arithmetic 514 Topology 515 Analysis 516 Geometry 517 Not assigned or no longer used 518 Not assigned or no longer used 519 Probabilities & applied mathematics 520 Astronomy & allied sciences 521 Celestial mechanics 522 Techniques, equipment, materials 523 Specific celestial bodies & phenomena 524 Not assigned or no longer used 525 Earth (Astronomical geography) 526 Mathematical geography 527 Celestial navigation 528 Ephemerides 529 Chronology 530 Physics 531 Classical mechanics Solid mechanics 532 Fluid mechanics Liquid mechanics 533 Gas mechanics 534 Sound & related vibrations 535 Light & paraphotic phenomena 536 Heat 537 Electricity & electronics 538 Magnetism 539 Modern physics 540 Chemistry & allied sciences 541 Physical & theoretical chemistry 542 Techniques, equipment, materials 543 Analytical chemistry 544 Qualitative analysis 545 Quantitative analysis 546 Inorganic chemistry 547 Organic chemistry 548 Crystallography 549 Mineralogy 550 Earth sciences 551 Geology, hydrology, meteorology 552 Petrology 553 Economic geology 554 Earth sciences of Europe 555 Earth sciences of Asia 556 Earth sciences of Africa 557 Earth sciences of North America 558 Earth sciences of South America 559 Earth sciences of other areas 560 Paleontology Paleozoology 561 Paleobotany 562 Fossil invertebrates 563 Fossil primitive phyla 564 Fossil Mollusca & Molluscoidea 565 Other fossil invertebrates 566 Fossil Vertebrata (Fossil Craniata) 567 Fossil cold-blooded vertebrates 568 Fossil Aves (Fossil birds) 569 Fossil Mammalia 570 Life sciences 571 Not assigned or no longer used 572 Human races 573 Physical anthropology 574 Biology 575 Evolution & genetics 576 Microbiology 577 General nature of life 578 Microscopy in biology 579 Collection and preservation 580 Botanical sciences 581 Botany 582 Spermatophyta (Seed-bearing plants) 583 Dicotyledones 584 Monocotyledones 585 Gymnospermae (Pinophyta) 586 Cryptogamia (Seedless plants) 587 Pteridophyta (Vascular cryptograms) 588 Bryophyta 589 Thallobionta & Prokaryotae 590 Zoological sciences 591 Zoology 592 Invertebrates 593 Protozoa, Echinodermata, related phyla 594 Mollusca & Molluscoidea 595 Other invertebrates 596 Vertebrata (Craniata, Vertebrates) 597 Cold-blooded vertebrates Fishes 598 Aves (Birds) 599 Mammalia (Mammals) 600 Technology (Applied sciences) 601 Philosophy & theory 602 Miscellany 603 Dictionaries & encyclopedias 604 Special topics 605 Serial publications 606 Organizations 607 Education, research, related topics 608 Invention & patents 609 Historical, areas, persons treatment 610 Medical sciences Medicine 611 Human anatomy, cytology, histology 612 Human physiology 613 Promotion of health 614 Incidence & prevention of disease 615 Pharmacology & theraputics 616 Diseases 617 Surgery & related medical specialities 618 Gynecology & other medical specialities 619 Experimental medicine 620 Engineering & allied operations 621 Applied physics 622 Mining & related operations 623 Military & nautical engineering 624 Civil engineering 625 Engineering of railroads, roads 626 Not assigned or no longer used 627 Hydraulic engineering 628 Sanitary & municipal engineering 629 Other branches of engineering 630 Agriculture 631 Techniques, equipment, materials 632 Plant injuries, diseases, pests 633 Field & plantation crops 634 Orchards, fruits, forestry 635 Garden crops (Horticulture) 636 Animal husbandry 637 Processing dairy & related products 638 Insect culture 639 Hunting, fishing, conservation 640 Home economics & family living 641 Food & drink 642 Meals & table service 643 Housing & household equipment 644 Household utilities 645 Household furnishings 646 Sewing, clothing, personal living 647 Management of public households 648 Housekeeping 649 Child rearing & home care of sick 650 Management & auxiliary services 651 Office services 652 Processes of written communication 653 Shorthand 654 Not assigned or no longer used 655 Not assigned or no longer used 656 Not assigned or no longer used 657 Accounting 658 General management 659 Advertising & public relations 660 Chemical engineering 661 Industrial chemicals technology 662 Explosives, fuels technology 663 Beverage technology 664 Food technology 665 Industrial oils, fats, waxes, gases 666 Ceramic & allied technologies 667 Cleaning, color, related technologies 668 Technology of other organic products 669 Metallurgy 670 Manufacturing 671 Metalworking & metal products 672 Iron, steel, other iron alloys 673 Nonferrous metals 674 Lumber processing, wood products, cork 675 Leather & fur processing 676 Pulp & paper technology 677 Textiles 678 Elastomers & elastomer products 679 Other products of specific materials 680 Manufacture for specific uses 681 Precision instruments & other devices 682 Small forge work (Blacksmithing) 683 Hardware & household appliances 684 Furnishings & home workshops 685 Leather, fur, related products 686 Printing & related activities 687 Clothing 688 Other final products & packaging 689 Not assigned or no longer used 690 Buildings 691 Building materials 692 Auxiliary construction practices 693 Specific materials & purposes 694 Wood construction Carpentry 695 Roof covering 696 Utilities 697 Heating, ventilating, air-conditioning 698 Detail finishing

Our 15 yos starts his first day of private school today. Until now, I have always homeschooled all of them from K up. This young man is extremely intelligent and I can't challenge him enough here. His boredom has lead to huge behavioral issues that were not only disrupting our homeschool, but intimidating the other children and causing extreme stress. We are praying that being in an all boys school will help him blossom into the young man we know that he desires to be and wasn't finding a way to that person at home. We aslo pray that by being around so many different personalities, he will find friends and realize that he has incredible gifts to share with others and that they will recognize his strengths. Whether it will turn out that way or not, only time will reveal. Either way, the other children and I need a break from him during school hours. I am also hoping that being on a strict routine (he will have to leave at 630 am to get to school) will force better sleep habits and that he'll come home tired at night (less energy to provoke and aggrevate.)

Most libraries carry at least a few of the Teaching Co titles. I would suggest checking to see what science and history titles yours might have. I can't even begin to describe how much I have learned from them. Combine those with reading books on the topic, and you are on your way to a solid self-education program. :)

:) I can't believe the variety of delicious choices. I am THRILLED that I asked. I'm going to take the approach I did yrs ago when I had 5 young ones. I am going to take an entire day and bake huge batches of a wide variety and freeze so that I should have about a month's worth to pull out on a day to day basis. When I did it yrs ago, I save a lot of money by buying in bulk and in pre-determined quantities. There was no waste and saved even more b/c I wasn't running to the store and buying more stuff while I was there. Between the soup and getting back into backing our own bread, I can't wait to use my new kitchen. :) Thank you all so much for sharing!

My boys use theirs all the time. They don't listen to them when they around us (except in the car), but since they tend to spend the majority of their time in their rooms, outside, etc, they use them hours everyday. They definitely have them on when studying. Personally, I can't stand my ds's choices in music. I am thrilled I don't have to hear it anymore. I gave up battling the music selections a couple of yrs ago. Dh kept defending their choices by pointing out he listened to that type music at that age and he turned out be a wonderfully moral man of character. Don't know why, but I do restrict my teenage dd's music selections more. ;) (Maybe b/c she is more compliant and doesn't argue for hours on end about it.:o)

I am trying to plan a new food budget for our family. (Ummmm....new expensive house, one in college (which will now be 9 hrs away!), one attending all boys' private school.....need I say more :eek: ) Our lunch time meals have become quick throw it together deli sandwiches lately. Definitely not a cheap choice. I used to cook spaghetti, fry up ground turkey and make sloppy joes or burittos, etc. But I would really prefer something that I can prepare several days worth and freeze and simply pull out and heat up......soup leaps out at me as a good choice. That and chili. I don't know many soup recipes b/c my older boys couldn't stand soup. Since they won't be home for lunch and my little ones really like soup, I am ready to jump on the homemade soup wagon. Any favorites? Thanks so much!! :)

I purchased a lot of GP materials. I really enjoy the English, but I don't believe it is a very thorough English program. We are having fun with it, but we do much more than is in the text. I have currently dropped French. I really like the course. It definitely isn't its fault. I have no French background and it was moving too fast for me to keep up with the teaching expectations. I switched to Memoria Press's French and it is a better fit for me right now. Once I hit overlap between the two, I will add it back. I have dropped the science. It is way too surface oriented for us. It does give a nice overview. But we have spent all our yrs up to now reading entire books on specific topics. The surface skimming of ideas was driving us crazy b/c we want to understand topics more deeply than the simple introduction type material in these books. Also, there is a page in the biology section that is way more graphic on copulation than my comfort level for 12 yr olds. :o Overall, I wish I hadn't spent the $$ on the 2 for 1 exchange. While the French and English are nice, I think you can find something fairly equivalent without the expense. The Latin.....that I can't comment on since we have been focusing on French and the Latin is on my shelf.

For a 6th grader, the first thing I would do would be to form a basic long term subject plan, yr by yr. This doesn't have to be cast in stone, simply an overview that lists subjects you want to plan for each yr. Based on the lists that many posters on this board have posted in the past, I would encourage you to limit subject matter to ~7 per yr for 8th up. One way to generate your plan is to look at your state's college bound grad requirements and treat them as the minimum. Another plan is to look at universities and see what the require for admission. Once you have a reasonable plan for high school, I would work my way backward for middle school planning. What do you need to do to solidly prepare them for the courses you have listed in grades 9-12. Middle school in our household is very strongly focused on expanding writing skills, learning to distinguish important from the unimportant in books they are reading, and solidifying math skills. Does that help? Yearly goals and objectives for specific grade levels are a beast of a different nature. ;)

Glad it's just one. Maybe it is simply b/c I am stressed to the max by life in general, but I don't like the new format. I miss how the other board allowed conversations with ebbs and flows. They twisted and took on life and were interesting. This format is just soooooo......ummmm.......boring. The thread titles hold all the power and unless you take the time to click on them and skim through them, you have no idea what discussion is taking place. It is very sad for me. :( I'm moving in 9 days and leaving friends I love dearly here (and my oldest son). I always felt like the WTM board was a refuge of friends. A place I could turn to for cheery, interesting conversations. You know....a comfy place to put up my feet, drink my coffee, and chat. This is so formal and controlled. It is probably a good thing for me though. I was spending too much time here anyway. I just don't think I'll be able to put the time and effort into making this a new "Cheers."

I have 2 children like your ds. Very bright but can't spell. Unfortunately my oldest graduated that way!! I am currently using Apples and Pears with my 6th grader. Correct spelling is actually making its way into his written work....that is a miracle. http://www.prometheantrust.org/usshop.htm

I don't use the k-2 TMs, but I do use them for 3-6 for grading. I don't have time to work the problems (heck, half the time I struggle finding enough time to grade......my least favorite part of homeschooling :eek:)