My kids and I have been working through the Chronicles of Narnia using Roar and have loved it so much. My daughter dresses like a Narnian (especially Lucy) and my son talks about Aslan all the time. She's making a book right now about her heroes and most of them are Narnian characters. They are 11 and 8. So I don't know of many books that have that same quality of inspiring us to greater godliness, to great imagination and creativity, and wondered if you all know of any things that would fit this category of great children's literature. I don't mind Narnian magic, but I don't like dark stuff that has no purpose but to be scary and creepy. So, anyone have suggestions?

I was just thinking about this curious One Note application that keeps popping up on my screen and wondering what it was. Then I see this thread and am already in love. WILL CHECK THIS OUT! Thanks all for possibly the best advice ever! I need to organize!

This is so cool because I decided to do this for my daughter next year (MCT and Hake combo) and spread the Hake over two years, but felt like it was "against the rules". Thanks for making me realize it's okay! Yeah!

I feel the same way...and this week I was really struggling starting on Monday and so were the kids. So I decided to pare down and do just what was necessary to finish the school year (crossing out any projects or extras that would be fun if we weren't so stressed out). Now that I have it down to bare bones, we are going to stick to it, be consistent and just get it done, whether we like it or not. It's funny you mention the "David Ramsey" approach because I told my daughter about a time that we got loaded down with bills and paid off the smallest one first then added that money to the next smallest until we had the whole thing paid off. I told her that's how we were going to attack the rest of her school work. We counted how many days it would take to finish each subject and will work on them all until she finishes the shortest. Add those 15 minutes to the next one until it's done, and so forth. She could see that and it has encouraged her. I keep reminding myself that I'm training future employees who will need to persist, persevere, be diligent, whether they are sick of working, whether it's the week before vacation or not. And I'm needing to lead the example on this diligence, perseverance angle in order to show them the right way to be, help them have a hard-earned sense of accomplishment, and feel good about the reward at the end (a camping trip away for a few days) that we've been looking forward to all year. I have so many projects that I want to attack, but I just need to resist the urge to dump school and let that be part of my reward as well. Now that I've made that decision, and we have a plan of attack, I think we're all at peace about it and feel like we can accomplish it. I keep saying to the kids when the whining starts, "Let's finish strong!" That's going to be my mantra too!!!

What about All American History by Bright Ideas Press? I haven't used it but it was highly recommended by Kathy Duffy.

I'm using God's Design for Heaven and Earth with Geology Rocks, The Night Sky Atlas, Discovering Ocean Science and A Weather Kit from Usborne plus lots of field trips (we'll be traveling a lot next year) and some extra visual books. I'm very excited for next year.

I've just spent $1250 total, I think for two kids. This is buying most of it used at a good price, and buying all literature/reading and some additional resources just in case plan A doesn't work. We live overseas so I have to buy my backup right away. Hopefully I don't need them, but just in case. We'll see.

We forget that this is God we're talking about. He doesn't succumb to our standards, but us to His. I guess I'm not shocked when I see God dealing with sin ("And they did what was right in their own eyes" Cain murdering his brother only 1 generation after Eden). I'm shocked when I read Genesis, too. Not by God who acted within His rights as God, but by the people who so quickly turned away from their Creator and acted as they wanted to. I am saddened, yes, by the need to completely exterminate the race and most animals, except for a select few. But we must remember, God could have decided to just start all over again altogether. But He didn't, He chose to show mercy on those who still believed in Him, but the thing was, it was only one family. If there had been more, He would have preserved them alive. If God was just some other being or didn't exist (you have the choice to believe or not), then He wouldn't have the right to do what He did. But since He is God, and He is sovereign, and He is completely Holy and Just, He had the right to act in judgment on them. That is what the Bible teaches and that is what I believe. Others don't see it that way and I have to respect that. But God did show mercy then and still does today. And He acted in judgment then and He has the right to act in judgment now as well. I agree with Bill that reading the original source is the best and if you skip the genealogies (though there are some hidden gems in there), it's not too hard a read. You can pre-read it and see if it's something you want your kids to read as well. It’s actually very interesting and show’s God’s relationship with sinful people and how even then they were supposed to live by faith. I also agree with fluffybunny who says that to get the real flavor of Christianity you must read the Gospels. But I would counter that Jesus is the central point of the Bible, around which the whole revolves. The O.T. sets the stage for the need for Christ. The law was impossible to fulfill in every point. Only Jesus was able to live a perfect life, in complete fulfillment of the heart of the law. And that is why His last words on the cross were “It is finished (or concluded/fulfilled—based on the original language). He is the fulfillment of the law, deeming it done, not necessary any longer. The rest of the N.T. teaches us how we are now to live under this system of Grace, being new Creatures in Christ, having realized we are incapable of living perfectly ourselves, realizing our need for a Savior and accepting what He did on our behalf. It is such a huge issue, and this may not be the place to have this discussion without it getting out of hand. I have no desire to offend, but to clarify what Christians believe based on Biblical teaching as a whole. Everyone has the right and the duty to make a decision, not based on bias but on information. You cannot make that decision without reading the information yourself. That is why it is important to read the Bible for yourself and not just read what others write about it, but the original message itself.

I'm international, too. I was able to download the 1st section, but not the 2nd as well. Hmmm...

I have to tell him what to do today! Do I do CLE Math Unit 110 and 201 (Is that too much review?). Or Do 110 and then go directly to 202? Or Skip 110 and do 201? I looked at 201 and it looks like pretests to see what he learned from last year.

I'll preface by saying that we are Christians and I have my degree in Biblical Studies from a well-known conservative seminary. Now, that does not mean I know it all. I would think if your purpose is to give your kids a good idea of what Biblical History is, what it's all about, etc., you cannot skip the beginning. I would say from Creation (Genesis 1) all the way to the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, a little of their wanderings and the giving of the Law including the 10 Commandments. If this is in Story format (I'm not familiar with this exact story Bible) it should skip the genealogies and difficult city names, etc. You would after that want to give your children a flavor of the main stories, the well known ones, so the famous people like Joshua, Gideon, Samson, Samuel, Saul, David, Solomon. From that point it fits nicely with other civilizations like the Babylonians and Persians. Greece at its height happened during the Intertestamental Period (between the end of the Old Testament and the New Testament) and then comes Roman dominance throughout the New Testament. You can't skip any of the story of Jesus in order to understand what Christianity is all about. He's just amazing. And then the spread of "The Way" through the book of Acts is exciting as well. I'm not sure if that is what you're looking for, but that's a general overview of the contents of the Bible. The most important parts being Genesis and the Gospels. And maybe along the way you'll decide to read more. It's really the best book in the world.

I've been thinking of using the grammar and spelling for my 3rd grader too, but have not been sure if the long term retention and quality of the program. I like what I see, but I'm no expert.

Hi all, I'm looking for a good historical atlas that my kids can use (they're going to be in 3rd and 6th). I'd still like it to be complete, but accessible to their ages. Any suggestions? What are your favorites?

I wasn't sure about The Children's Homer, but my kids are really enjoying it (we're only about 5 chapters in), even my 2nd grader. The TM really prepares you for reading it and has a question per chapter that you ask the children to listen for the answer of the question during the chapter. My 2nd grader is really getting most of it. If I run across a word that I believe it too far above their vocab level and they won't be able to figure it out easily within the context, I read the word then give a brief explanation, trying not to break the narrative. There have been times that I've stopped at the end of a paragraph and recapitulated it with them, or I ask if they understood it or not. I asked the kids what they thought of it today and my 2nd grader said "It's good, mom" in a matter of fact way, and my 5th grader said, "It's actually really interesting." So we'll keep going on with it. I think it's stretching for them, but they're rising to the occasion. That's a good thing that I wouldn't have thought to offer my children with MFW's direction. Yeah, MFW!

If you're not opposed to a Christian perspective, the 2nd volume of Mystery of History is Church History and Medieval Period. That's what we'll be using.

Well, I'm using it this year with a 5th grader and 2nd grader. The highlight of the MFW program is reading through the Old Testament and understanding Biblical events within the timeline of Ancient History. So naturally, you study Ancient Egypt quite extensively during the time of the captivity and Exodus. They mention the gods that the Egyptians worship and you study them within the context of God proving his power as the only true God over the false gods of the Egyptians with the plagues. We have actually had some good discussions about this and shown how even though it looks different, there is still idolatry today that people choose to worship the created (materialism, self, celebrities, etc.) instead of the Creator. Even my 2nd grader got that and really internalized it. My older child and I will usually continue discussions and my 2nd grader will either listen or more likely ask to get down to play and I allow him to if we're done with the lesson. But the concentration is not on the gods and their worship so much as it is about their culture. It makes it interesting though to understand the history of the Egyptian pharoahs and how things went down eventually with the decline of the civilization. It was not too heavy for my 2nd grader. Now I tried reading the D'Aulaires book of Greek myths and both of my kids hated it, saying how weird the stories were and the illustrations were creepy ("icky" to be exact). So I found a more succinct book that briefly describes the Greek gods and some of the more popular myths. These are not scheduled in the book but I thought it would be helpful to know who is being referred to in the Trojan war book when they mention Athena and it's even mentioned in the Bible (Ephesians worshipped Artemis, also called Diana; Athens named after Athena, etc.). I'm not going in-depth with it but want them to be familiar with the things that shaped and influenced the culture. They will also mention the Philistines and other civilizations with brief mentions of what they believed. The illustrations in the Usbourne IL History book are pretty benign and are just an overview with rare mention of their religion, not in-depth at all. I have felt quite comfortable and safe with using their resources. The Streams of Civilizations book goes into quite a bit of detail at times but it's something that is used as a parent resource for us to know more background and be able to pass on the info if we think it's helpful. The notebook pages are good to help you process what is going on. All in all, I am really glad I did this program.

I'm buying God's Design for Science by Answers in Genesis for next year. It's 4 years worth, but can be used with multiple ages. I'm looking forward to it, but can't give you any experience with it yet. Hopefully someone else can chime in with experience using it.

For handwriting practice, they must be at the table. All other subjects, they must be where I can see them. That's about it.

I really enjoy it, I think their history cycle makes sense, and I love the books they choose to do it. That said, I won't be doing it next year because of personal reasons, but I wish I could. My kids love history because of it.

Thank you, Merry, you are always so helpful. I need to digest everything everyone has said. I keep thinking about the auditory processing problem. Can anyone direct me to where to find more info about this, exercises I can do or anything like that to confirm whether this is it or not. She had a whole year of almost constant ear infections as a baby. Could that have affected her hearing? Or is that not the deal, it's a processing issue? I'm just not sure about all this. Thanks, everyone. Been busy today, so couldn't reply until now.

Thanks to those who have directed me to the Barton screening. I looked through some lists for dyslexia warning signs and didn't see much that my daughter identifies with, but the auditory processing is interesting. I just keep thinking, "Even if she can memorize better with music?" Is having an auditory processing disorder possible if you have a auditory learning style? It's so confusing. I'm going to do the tutor screening when my internet connection is faster this evening. Thanks, also, Chelli, for your review of Apples and Pears. I'm going to do what you mentioned of trying a few lessons with my daughter online before deciding. And I need to add lots of prayer to all of this too! Thanks to all of you and please let's keep up this dialogue! It's very helpful!

What is the method that Apples and Pears uses? Do you have a website I can look at to get a feel for the program? ETA: I just saw the link, duh!

She does hum or whistle (very loud sometimes) while doing school work. But she can't stand the slightest sound from anyone else. I should try to the Classical music thing.

Thank you for your replies. I don't know how to multi-quote, so this is a general thanks and I will do some of those assessments you all mentioned. Clemota, that is the direction I keep thinking of going with this my DD. She hasn't learned to loved language and finds it a drudgery, any form of output or studying it, but she loves to read. So I thought that MCT would be a good direction to go along with trying Sequential Spelling. I resonate with it a little more than with Phonetic Zoo, even though I think if I understood the PZ reasoning, I would like that better because of the independence factor. I keep thinking though, is this a reading problem or a spelling problem, or both. Is it something else? I'm just not sure but will try those assessments to see what comes up. Anyone else?

By the way, we live overseas and do not have access to testing for learning disabilities. We will be returning to the U.S. in 2014 so we can do that then, if needed.