DD started in a different mastery math program, and she was like your son MORE MATH NOW. But you can't really do 8 pages of addition -- it takes time to sink in. So I just had her working in 3 or 4 chapters simultaneously. Math is NOT linear, so it's no big deal to work in addition and time and geometry and....In fact, I personally think it is a better way to learn math! A side effect was by the end of K she'd completed both 1st and 2nd grade math and in 1st grade was halfway thru 4th grade. Since I don't want to be teaching calculus to a 10 yo (nad I don't think she'd be developmentally ready anyways), this year I've gotten her doing more depth and breath (thinking about math in different ways; puzzles; algebra) instead of marching forward as fast. :D One of the reasons I chose MM is that I felt it would be trivially easy for me to shuffle the topics to suit us. In fact, I think it is a lot easier to adjust the pace in each section since there isn't a set "lesson" to do, you just work until you stop, then pick up where you left off the next day. Easy.

I wanted to add that people felt more free to openly challenge homeschooling as an option when I said, "we PLAN to..." than when I said, "we are..." If what people think/say matters to you, you might find it easier to not disclose your plans to hsing until it is a fait accompli. :D Although I really liked the way PP worded the e-mail, your friend may be embarrassed enough to try to change your mind. Only you know your friend, but we do know she's willing to criticize he hsing friend to strangers, which doesn't reflect well on her character as a friend, now does it? So, under the "forgiveness easier to get than permission" theorem, perhaps it is better to only discuss hsing with folks who can be supportive, at least until you've got a few months of hsing under your belt and you are less sensitive to perceived criticism of your choice. ;) I also agree with the PP who said we shouldn't have to defend our choices. But whenever we do something outside the "norm" people will ask us about our choice, sometimes rudely. Since most questions come out of ignorance, I find a (non-defensively worded) rapid info session effective at, if nothing else, shutting them up. :lol: There was a post a while back about handling rude comments from strangers, which were often pointed and hilarious. :lol: On these social Qs always remember YMMV. :)

I would put CLE aside for a week. Get the MM 1A samples (if you don't have them already) and have her start working in those. It's ok to skip pages (not in the sample) since she's seen it already. Give it a week. If she's still excited about math, then switch to MM permanently. My one caution would be to NOT expect to move through MM fast. She may, but she may not. As you realize, the important thing is that she is confident and feels GOOD about math. At least for now, let HER set the pace, whether she chooses to blow thru it or go at half speed. If you have in your head she'll get "caught up" you can inadvertently set you both up for trouble down the line. ;) The other thing is continue to work with DD and DS on not being competitive. especially about math. Probably tall order when they are so close in age. :D Repeatedly explain that everyone's brain is just a little different, people learn differently. What matters isn't how quickly they get thru math, or even how good they are at it, but how well they learn how THEY learn. Once they learn that, they can learn anything! Between 7-9 the brain goes thru a major growth and rewiring corresponding with the emergence of empathy and abstract thinking. Some kids are naturally wired that way and can do abstract thinking before this. Others will be on the later end. It has NOTHING to do with how smart they are or how good they can eventually be at math. As I tell my kids, it's nice when things come easily, but what *I* am most proud of is when things are not so easy for them, yet they try and they persevere. Continue to really praise her effort and draw attention to those things she overcomes. The best praise, btw, is the praise they overhear you tell another (such as dh). :D Good luck!

:iagree: There is perhaps nothing that people find as threatening as when you choose to raise your kids differently than them. Most of us first see that in our own mom or MIL when our first dc was born. :D It seems to hit on some primal insecurity on their own choices and a sense of defying the "social contract". It elicits a visceral response form folks who honestly have no reason to give a hoot at all! :lol: It starts with whether we breastfeed and how long; paci or thumb or neither; cosleep or crib; on and on it goes. ps or hs is just the next one. Don't take it personally. For good or bad, your friendship will likely sail just fine thru this -- good odds that once she hears you are hsing she'll keep her trap shut around you. ;) Beyond that, this is a good time to arm yourself with facts and knowledge. Those with strongest anti-hs opinions usually have the least reason behind their certitude of the evils of hsing. :lol: There are plenty of hsing websites with the top arguments against (and counter arguments for) hsing. Read them. Then, have fun with it. I'm fond of the "shock and awe" approach and enjoy rattling off the research studies from the last few decades when "socialization" and "college readiness" come up. :D [bottom line: hs kids do as well or better than their ps peers in psychological wellness testing, have higher average college entrance scores, and some colleges are now actively recruiting hs'rs because they do better in college classes.] Deep breaths. Follow your heart and your calling. Let God take care of the rest, including annoyingly judgmental friends. :p

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:bigear: ANyone know how to get the sale prices?

About 3% of all glucose (sugars) you eat are directly converted into trigycerides. So to lower them, you need to cut sweets and carbs. If you need to lower cholesterol, niacin is a lot cheaper, has less serious side effects, and works as well as statins. Don't take the "no flush" type -- doesn't work. SLo-niacin was recommended by a pharmacist friend, and take it at bedtime (so any flushing doesn't bother you). Your liver needs a break from niacin, so take it once a day (not split up; slo-niacin releases in bursts, so is ok but other slow release (continuous) are not). When you start niacin, take an NSAID with it for a week or so (ibuprofed, naprox) which should avoid the flushing that bothers some. I agree with pp though -- first you need to figure out if it is an issue. If it is just your PCP being a lipids nut, JUST SAY NO. Their diploma does NOT read, "I am a god and all shall do as I say..." :D Jplain: can you post any links to more current research, or names or researchers I can look up on PubMed? Esp about women and statins. :)

Please get your facts straight before you post. An easy to understand discussion of this can be found at: http://www.suite101.com/content/is-the-38-capital-gains-tax-on-the-sale-of-a-house-true-a293718 This doesn't affect you unless you and your spouse make more than $250,000 a year AND you sell your home for over a half million PROFIT (more than you bought it for, not likely anytime soon) AND you don't use the proceeds to buy a new home. If you are that rich and make a killing in the RE market, then you will pay an extra 3.8% on the amount of PROFIT OVER $500,000. For the record, the independent CBO projects the Health Bill will REDUCE the deficit by over $143 billion in the first decade and over a TRILLION in the second. Personally, I don't like many of the details of the plan and would rather see a system where people can buy into medicare pricing (but pay the bills themselves; insurance often pays only 5-10% of the bill an uninsured person would receive because of "negotiated prices"; it's quite a racket). But let's debate the real issues with the plan, not some false claims by fear mongers in the media put out to (IMO) protect the extremely wealthy with their cadillac plans at the cost of the rest of us and especially senior citizens and the working poor.

DDs are 24mo apart and school together. They do separate math and writing, though (but at the same time), and when I work on teaching reading/phonics to teh younger the older has free reading. It's working well for us and simplifies my day tremendously (vrs doing sep activities for each). I think it depends on the kids and the family. Cooperative vrs competitive has been a high priority to me since they were born, so we haven't had any issues with rivalry or fighting. I've never tolerated it. :D It's paying off with how good they are with their little brother and during homeschool. The younger gets cross sometimes when her sis tries to "teach her" something, so I keep a short leash on that. IMO math is a subject that is best taught at the child's level. It doesn't conform as much as others (science/history/art/music) since it is painful when it goes too slowly and devastating when the kid falls behind (to their confidence), so even if dc's were twins I'd plan that their math paths will tend to diverge over time, esp if one is more interested in math. You can keep them together if you offer the one ahead special, deeper problems or allow to work ahead in a different area of math (geometry, sorting, games). It's also possible to teach it at 2 levels at the same time - for example, discuss addition then addition of larger numbers or decimals, then each does their own worksheets. The younger one gets exposure to higher concepts and the older one gets new material grounded in the basics. Or you might be lucky and your younger be mathier than the elder and they pace together for a long time. In any case, good luck! And above all, keep math fun!

Got both color and B&W lasers; print most things on B&W and select pages in color (if important for content or just as a treat). ETA: I print single-sided then comb bind a chapter -- can use the back of last page as extra scratch if needed.

:iagree::iagree::iagree: From ALL accounts, the families were happy with the service and touched by it. Who are we to criticize? Maybe we should just hug our little ones and be glad it wasn't one of us. I was at a family memorial service the day of the shooting. THere was laughter, tears, and even some applause there, too. I thought that was the point -- for the family and friends to feel better for it and to start the move from devastating grief to joyful remembrance. But I'm sorry if it didn't meet some folks meter of tv entertainment. But I haven't heard a bad word about the service from anyone who was actually there.

I compared both and chose MM because of simplicity, cost, and adaptability. I am extremely "mathy" and both are good curricula as far as that. The simplicity of a single text is huge -- more I do this the more I like things to be simple which gives me time/energy to tweak topics and be "creative" in other areas. As to cost, can't be beat: I like that for $100 (20% off) I've got math covered thru 6th grade for 3 kids. :D I also like how adaptable it is -- unlike lots of "highly spiral" or incremental programs, I feel comfortable tweaking the topics covered to suit us -- I know I'm not going to mess up "The Program" if I give a few pages from a different chapter when dd needs a break or is sick or needs more practice. I also like that it is set up s that you work until you stop, then pick up where you left off the next day. So, some days yoy dc may blaze thru 4 pages and another only 1 -- that's ok since there isn't some overarching "structure" of starting each day with X then Y and finally Z. This has been especially nice with my K'r who is doing 1A, can handle the material but wouldn't be up to a full structured lesson -- I can keep the pace gentle and fun and take breaks to act out math with her toys. :D If you are interested I'd definitely get the free download of samples -- try to do a few pages with dc now. Also, Maria (author of MM) is very responsive to questions or problems, which isn't true of a mega-publisher. ETA: on using MM1 with a K'r: I think it can be a good choice if your dc has those basics down (counting, less/more, number recog/writing), which is likely the case if you and dh are science/math lovers. The adaptability I mentioned means being able to take a side trip reviewing these skills if you hit something and feel dc needs more practice. I'm also going slower for now. IMO preK thru 1 should be especially fun and light. Teaching your kids to enjoy math in all it's flavors (geometry, shapes, sorting, arithmetic) is paramount. Learning skills and facts are just gravy and will happen soon enough if you teach them to have fun with math. :D With my first, I had to fight the urge to pull out partial differential eqns. :lol:

I think you need to teach to where she's at and forget about where she's "supposed to" be. Math has many different components (as you see by her abilities in geometry, etc), but arithmetic builds on itself. It is excruciating to try to move forward if you are struggling with the basic math facts. Trying to soldier on will just scorch the earth with her and math. The good news is that you are hsing, so you can teach to where she is. You need to rebuild trust and her confidence. My 2cents: To start I would take a hiatus from "math curricula" and work just on math facts until she has them cold. You can try to make it as fun as possible (there are free computer games and such) or just explain that learning those facts are no different than learning to spell and it's something you just have to do. That will depend on your style. I would also make some really clear game plan -- we all hate it when we can't see where we are headed, so clear expectations like "we'll do addition until you can answer each in under 3 sec" then it'll go into this pile we'll just review once a week/month. Come up with some strategy that will help her feel motivated to move them along. Great time to use your mom knowledge against her. :lol: WOrk thru addition, then subtraction, multiplication, division. That may take several months so don't expect an instant fix. Once that is on track, start working in bit of the "fun" math -- geometry, graphs, whatever she doesn't despise. Do it AND her math facts, but keep your focus on the math facts. As she gets traction, slowly start working through the curriculum that is at her LEVEL (forget grade level). You may want to change curriculums so it doesn't seem as much redoing. If you run into a topic that pushes her buttons, table it or take it at half speed. If you're successful getting her math facts down pat and rebuilding her confidence, she may well fly through material over the next couple years, but don't waste your energy trying to get "caught up". Just make sure she really "gets" whatever she's working on. I would strongly consider keeping up with math over the summer. Partly to help progress and partly to avoid any backsliding if she has too much time off. Doesn't mean doing full curriculum, just something to keep skills up. But then we do school year round, so I'm biased. :D Good luck! ETA: I would step back to the point it is EASY for her, not just to the point she can handle it. She needs confidence and success. ;) You may not have to "teach" everything again, just treat it like review.

How would needless suffering make you a better housewife? Just a less sane one, in my book! We NEVER take the kiddos on any trip that isn't necessary for them: 1) good to have time with the other parent (they have 2 parents you know, and need time with both ;)); and good for the shopper to get out by themselves (faster, more relaxed); 2) car accidents is a (in some ages THE) leading cause of death of children -- we religiously put our infants to sleep on their backs to reduce a ~1 in 2,000 risk of SIDS by half; yet suggest reducing how much time they spend in the car is like sacrilege. But it's simple: less miles = less risk. 3) reduction of colds and flus -- until a child has something resembling basic hygiene (like not licking the cart :tongue_smilie:), I don't like to take them anywhere. When we take them out it seems like at least 1 in 4 trips ends up with an illness. 2 kids are prone to febrile seizures, so no fun, and since a cold virus mutation is only on earth for 5 years on average, the idea that you'll get it "sooner of later" is just bunk. We're designed to live in small isolated groups, not this massive germ-swap of modern life! :lol: I'm not a germaphobe, but prefer wiping up a minimum quantity of snot and vomit, and I tend to feel GUILTY when the kids are sick out of an avoidable outing since it was my decision to put them at risk. Anyway, just a few reasons you might actually want to feel GOOD about not shlepping them thru the stores with you! :D

The lit was the part of K12 LA I liked (the rest was fine, but too many sub-subjects; I prefer unified LA/history/science). 4th grade is mostly stuff like Robinson Crusoe for novels, Match Girl, Rikki TIkki Tavi and such for short stories and a lot of Stevenson for poetry. So, pretty much classic works you can find anywhere. You can find online their list of materials which will specify their lit books (look for package contents) and probably even used copies of their specialty books (with all the short stories and poetry) fairly cheap at online bookstores. Just another option if you are comfortable developing your own discussion questions and don't want to get the whole LA.

When "experts" make recommendations, they are thinking about what will work for the widest spectrum of people. That doesn't mean it's best for a particular child or family. Saxon has been used widely and solid. It's like ice cream. If I ask you what your child's fav is, maybe it's pistashio. If I ask you what flavor you'd serve at a party for 1,000 people, you'd probably say vanilla. Saxon is vanilla, maybe bland but don't have to worry about killing anyone off who has nut allergies. :lol: That's a great strategy for ps, and vanilla is the best choice for some, but isn't part of why we're hsing that we want to be able to offer that pistashio if that's what is best for OUR child? So, the experts will always suggest vanilla choices, which may or may not be best for our child. The hive is a group of pistashio lovers! :lol: [Ok, or maybe you'll hear more about an array of "flavors" the experts overlook.] Time to go look in my freezer for some ice cream....

They have the whole catalog online, so go thru it SLOWLY (lots of little stuff is on the pages of big stuff -- everything in there is sold somewhere in Ikea). Even without looking at furniture, we buy a lot there. Linens: all-cotton twin bed sheets for $4.99; really waterproof, non-crinkley mattress pads for $15. Fabric I used to make drapes. Towels. Throw pillows. Rugs (esp wool). Cheap but nice hardware (curtain rods, etc). $1.99 oval waste baskets. Laundry drying racks. Cheap toilet brushes. Dishes: their ceramic plats and mugs don't get hot spots in the microwave (like my expensive ones, lol). Cheap kitchen gadgets, brushes, utensils. BPA-free leftover food containers. Kids toys; craft supplies (lazysusans, plant pots for painting). Bamboo plants -- don't know what that has to do with Ikea, but they are ubiquitous. We get the meal to start: swedish meatball meal ($3.99), gravlox, or stuffed salmon (my fav). ETA: at the end browse the food market -- esp rye hard flatbread; filled cookies; cheese. Have fun!

I don't assign grades because I use mastery as my criteria. If they aren't over 90% then they don't move on until they are.

First things I'd do is add days. A half-day of a couple core subjects on Saturdays, do some work on key areas over breaks and plan on a "fifth quarter" (summer school, which would give 3mo of catch-up). I'd focus on reading and math, getting them up to level. Fun activities (mad libs for grammar, for example) and interactives. 1-2hrs per day could do wonders on closing up the gap.

I think the important think is getting dc used to reading for fun. We started with the books from the end of the book, then did lots of the Amelia Bedelia, "I can read" series (progressing to chapter books) and then the Magic Treehouse series (she read the first 41 books in 3mo). After that, the world is pretty open for the reader. I'd spend about a year just reading before worrying about grammar and spelling. The reason I don't think I'd introduce grammar and spelling just yet is that so much of that they will pick up from reading and speaking, and too much "structure" too early is a joy killer. Regardless of level, I'd hold off until 6-7 yo or until they are writing a lot -- spelling and grammar are more of a writing skill (encoding vrs decoding). If you want to do some grammar, start doing mad libs with her -- teaches parts of speech and it's fun! :D I did point out when dd misspelled something, just so she knew. And each quarter we'd make a list of 10-15 things like "animals" that she wanted to learn how to spell. I taped the list to the fridge and she read ti every morning and we'd quiz in a "fun way" weekly. When we got around to a formal spelling program, she was way ahead -- she's finished the 4th grade list in 2nd grade and rarely misses more than 10% of the words the first time. I believe her voracious reading did more than suffering through spelling drills. ;) K12's program doesn't even start spelling as a subject until 3rd grade.

:iagree: and I agree with the PP about importance of snuggle time. The book itself is a bit dry, but then that's why I'm there! :D With DD#1, when we first started it was a bit of a struggle (she was 4.5yo) so I tabled it and tried again just before her 5th birthday. The first time we were doing 1-2 lessons a day and I think she hit a point around lesson 20 and resisted. The second time I was more relaxed, we did half a lesson a day and somewhere between lesson 25 and 50 it clicked. There is a point about 3/4 of the way in that they transition style and so we backed up and redid about a dozen lessons (dd is a perfectionist, so doesn't like to struggle). We finish at the start of K (about 5mo total), and 2 years later and she's testing in reading at the 6th grade level. I'm in the middle (lesson 56) of teaching DD#2, opposite in personality, but doing great with 100EZ. The more relaxed and fun I have with it, the better she does. I like that at the end they really are pretty proficient (I'd say 2nd grade level). It's definitely special one-on-one snuggle time she loves, and the last thing she needs to do to get on the Wii. Lots of motivation to NOT be bored! <g> Anyway, I think the first 30 lessons or so are too much per lesson to do (even when they can do it, they need time to soak it in). It's also nice she can read 50+ word stores already and by the end of the book, they are reading more per page (2 page stories are over 200 words) than is in an entire early reader book. I think it does a better job of training their eyes to read lines of text instead of just single lines. Of course, YMMV. Snuggle, bribery, and fun will make any curriculum succeed. :p

:iagree: If it's not engaging, it's probably not teaching them much either. No, every moment doesn't have to be ponies and ice cream with sprinkles on top fun. But it should be interesting. I carefully sandwich the mundane in between more "fun" aspects, and figure if I can't make it fun, or at least interesting, I need to work harder. As guy I worked with once said that a great job isn't one you wake up excited to be at EVERY day, but one where you are glad to be there mroe days than not. ;) That's a good lesson for kids. So not all fun and games, but enough fun and engaging work that the kids continue to buy-in to their own education. For the effort I get the bonus of no guff from them and overall more effort.

Article fails to mention that Wakefield also holds a patent for a competing MMR vaccine (claims to be "safer"), something else he didn't disclose. And the journal Lancet retracting an article is almost never done -- they actually went so far as to have it removed from the archives. I read Lancet and BMJ a lot and they do not balk at publishing papers that oppose the common beliefs or the opinions of the health dept, so the publishers must have felt something was really wrong with that paper to take the extreme step of retracting it. I'm not debating the issue, just adding a few facts. :D

First, if it were my child, he'd probably get the "life isn't here just to amuse you and most work you'll ever do is boring" or the "boring is a choice and measure of your creativity" lecture, depending on my mood. :lol: Then, I'd probably ditch the idea of homework. Doesn't sound like it's working for you or your son, so why be aggravated? Instead I'm a believer in building your schedule to encourage success. First, what do YOU need? I found I can't stand still overseeing school work after 3pm, 3pm is the cut off -- if it's not done, it won't get done today. But whatever was scheduled after their hang-up isn't getting done either and there's no tv or wii that evening. [ETA: we do the core "boring" stuff first, and all their fav courses after, piano/latin/crafts. If core isn't done by lunch, it cuts into their "fun" courses. Not done by 3pm -- we skip the fun courses for that day. I will give them a reminder, but no scolding since they know what they need to do, and their actions choose their consequences.] Your sig mentioned he loves math and science. Why not move science to the end of the day? If he doesn't get his spelling done by a set time, no science. You might also have to plan to sit there and do it "with" since he isn't doing it unsupervised. Maybe have him try to spell the words orally instead, or use a whiteboard or chalkboard if you have one. Or use more carrot and less stick: if DD did well enough on a spelling quiz, she was done with spelling for the week. In K I'd give her a folder full of 2 weeks worth math worksheets and the promise when they were done she was done for the week -- she'd be done with them all by Wed. :D How many hours a day of work is he doing? When do you start? Is he more an early morning or late starter? Make sure these answers are working for you rather than against you. My 7yo DD is stubborn, and once sat and stared at her notebook for 2 hours rather than write THREE sentence. So, instead of direct conflict, I just stack the deck in my favor, kind of the work hard or smart philosophy. Around here we call it "aikido parenting" (dh and I studied aikido which is all about redirecting the other person's energy and using it against them, rather than directly opposing it). :lol: Good luck!

7yo DD wouldn't know how to teach her shoe laces yet if she hadn't wanted to learn how to tie a bow on the front of a pair of hand-me-down pants. :p She's a perfectionist and it only frustrated her when she was younger, so we tabled it and stuck with velcro or elastic type shoe closures (most for sale now are). I remember when my eldest DD was 1 or 2 and the "developmental questionnaire" for her well-check had all these questions about if she could do "pat-a-cake" and other activities I HAD NEVER DONE with her and kept thinking, "oh, should I be doing that with her?". :lol: I felt like I had neglected her. For about 2 minutes. Then I realized I'd just been doing different activities. No worries. Just make sure dc can tie his shoes by the time he's 18yo and you've done your job! :D And I disagree with PP: I think velcro shoe closures must have been designed by a mom who'd tied too many laces! Viva la velcro!