Unfair. Maybe her children don't need instruction. Mine didn't, and they are practically saints when in any social situation (I'm not exaggerating even a little bit). Although they probably behave more like "standard issue" children when at home, which is the way I like it. ;) There is no "must" when it comes to ways to raise one's children. The idea that there's a recipe for good manners is ridiculous. Different children learn in different ways, and social mores are no exception.

For the most part, we do it inside. We have an open floor plan in our house, so there's a big open space where the kitchen, living room, and dining area/computer room meet the entry way. I can stand in front of my computer (so I can see the pdf) and face that open space where there is plenty of the room for my 3 oldest kids (and occasionally my husband). I have enough room in this area to demonstrate as needed as well. This area has ceramic tiles that kinda act as space markers, so that has been really helpful for things like Jump the River, Line Jumps, and other things where they have to go from point A to point B (like when it says "across the floor and back"). That way I don't always have to drag out the jump ropes. It's not a huge space, but it's perfectly workable for everybody, and somehow everything runs really seamlessly. I only watch the videos if it's not something I know how to do. The best thing would be for me to watch things I have questions about before we start so I can demonstrate to the kids and not have to stop and wait for a video to load (we have less fast satellite internet). However, sometimes I have my baby in arms and can't demonstrate, or I haven't really had time to prepare, so it's helpful to have the kids just come watch at the computer and move back to their spots. Now, once it cools down outside (it's still 110 every day here), I will do more outside (probably just jot down notes about what to do in what order, by then I hope to not have to demonstrate or watch the vids), but for now we only do the suggested outdoor activities outside. Sometimes we don't play them as long since it is dangerously hot, and we always wait until DH comes home from work so it's more fun (more people) and it's cooled off some by then. The kids REALLY love it. My 5 year old has been asking all day if we can do more PE, and I've been putting her off until the baby's naptime so I can participate, because it's fun for me too. Plus it really lends itself to informality, which is my style. :D

I've only used the trial for this, but my kids LOVE this (they are 11, 7, 5). What's more, DH and I love doing this with them to. We have a blast! Just in the first lesson alone, all I could think was I was definitely buying this, no matter the cost. It was that fun, and just challenging enough for all levels. Now, my question is, is there any benefit from buying it at the Homeschool Buyers Co-op vs. buying at Currclick? Currclick has it for cheaper than the Co-op (even if the Co-op gets down to the biggest discount) so I assumed I would just buy it from there. Even the sets of workbooks are cheaper than the cheapest Co-op option. But in looking it up, all anybody is talking about is getting it from the Co-op so maybe there's something I'm missing. :confused:

Yeah, we still have several full concepts of MBTP which seemed PERFECT (I would have loved something like this as a kid), but it somehow didn't work. My son is very against going back to it (and we barely did any to begin with). He plowed through all the lit books because they ARE good and he is a voracious reader, but that was it for him. I've been holding on to everything in case he grows into it, but DH is now after me to sell everything and just get something else already! Thanks to everyone all the suggestions so far. I've been having fun researching new things. :D

I was just looking at this today but I haven't got a feel for what I'd need to get or where to start. My 10yo is a pretty good speller due to being an advanced reader, however, I'm sure there are plenty of spelling rules that he needs to officially learn (we've never done a spelling curriculum) and I could probably use the refresher as well. Is it something that people start at the beginning with, no matter grade level?

Rightstart is the first curriculum in over 5 years that we all LOVE. Not even "first MATH curriculum", but the first curriculum, period. I've owned many programs, and never could get very far because it wasn't workable for the family dynamic, or it wasn't a match for either myself or my kids. But oh, the miracle of Rightstart. My younger son is loving level B, my older son is loving level E, and finally, *I* actually am loving teaching! (I actually think that it is working so well and my kids love it BECAUSE I love it so much, does that make sense?) Now I wish that I could find another curriculum (history, science, LA) that works for a similar type of learner (or a similar type of teacher). I'm especially interested in core subjects for a 10yo as he is the one who is the hardest to accommodate out of all of my kids. He really prefers the "open and go" format so he can get back to his "fun" reading as soon as possible. So...if you and/or your kids found Rightstart to be a good match, what else worked for you? We *strongly* prefer a secular curriculum, if possible. Thanks!

I genuinely loved school, from the day I skipped off into my kindy classroom leaving my mother crying in the hallway, to the day I graduated. However, I was very social and I loved to learn. Being in gifted classes I also had perks that other students may not have had. I hated being out of school, and would lie to my mom if I was sick so I wouldn't have to miss even a day. My whole group of girlfriends were the same way. My husband was also in the gifted program and loved to learn, but was pretty anti-social and didn't have any friends at school (only at church). He still loved school. So who knows, if these people's kids are either into the social aspect or the academic aspect of school, they probably DO love it.

I was raised Baptist (we were taught that the Bible was THE word of God, not open to interpretation), and sometime in my early 20's I realized that the Bible was turning me off of God (and it was very anti-woman, besides). It's not that I'd never had these thoughts before, but I felt guilty, asked forgiveness for doubting, etc, etc, and thus quashed them. But after having my first child I starting questioning the status quo of medicine, and then ethics, and then I started questioning everything that had ever not seemed quite right to me. I reallllly questioned the Bible. If "THE" God is the one in the Bible, I realized that I didn't want to know him at all. My feelings for and from God didn't seem to jive with what the Bible told me about him. So during this time I figured I'd drop the Bible and it's trappings and just go the direct route. After some years (it was a long and complex journey) I finally realized that I didn't have to live my life with the sole purpose to worship a deity or to earn my spot in the afterlife. I could live for MYSELF. I was important enough to be my own purpose. That was my Best Day Ever. (I remember hearing a non-vegetarian person asking "what's wrong with eating chicken, I mean, what else is a chicken good for?" I said something like, "duh, a chicken is good for being a chicken." I thought about that conversation MANY times over the years, and it helped me draw the conclusion that "Hey, I'm also good for "just" being me. I don't have to have a greater purpose besides just Being." It's funny the things that make an impact on us. :D) I appreciate seeing "ex-Christian" in people's signatures, if only because my de-Christianing was a very important 5 years of my life, and I feel a kinship with those who have also made the journey.

Very cool little Dalek!

Your description has been my last year, exactly! Every night I would lay in bed and make vows to myself that tomorrow would be different, that whether I felt like it or not I would get up and do lessons with the kids, and wash some work clothes for DH, and if I were feeling really ambitious, I would even take a shower and change out of my sleep pants. Then the next day would roll around I would lay in bed and mentally berate myself, but nonetheless I would be completely incapable of...anything. It's so exciting to be feeling GOOD again and to be excited about things again! My kids are all starting to catch my excitement about homeschooling and it's wonderful! I can't wait for my stuff to get here. :D Thanks for the reassurance! It's difficult because my oldest was one of those kids who started reading early on his own, before he was 4, and my younger son wasn't interested until he was 6. My younger son knows that by the time big brother was 7 he was finishing up Half-Blood Prince while he's still reading Dr. Seuss. When he feels disappointed with where he's at in his reading it's hard to not feel responsible since I've failed to provide consistency this past year. But all we can do now is move forward.

Same here, except that our period of unschooling (alternating with "floundering") started in Nov. of '09. I was struggling with depression following a m/c and I really could do only the bare minimum...basically I kept us stocked with library books. So I've decided that in January we're starting back with Ambleside Online with my 7yo and 10yo, plus Oak Meadow 5 with my 10yo. My 7yo will be continuing with some easy phonics (he's still in the early/easy reader phase...totally my fault...I'm scum) and his Singapore math. I am extremely glad to be "back in the saddle", so to speak (I'm in Oklahoma, they really do speak that way here. :D ). I feel like we've wasted a lot of time and the kids have gotten extremely bored. The weather has cooled off enough that they don't want to spend hours a day outside doing nature study and I'm tired and pregnant so library trips have lessened. My older two are starting to become curious about public school and my 10yo (who was previously "away school"-phobic) was telling me the other day that away school might be an "exciting new adventure". Yikes! I'm hoping with a fresh start we'll all get enough intellectual stimulation to keep everybody happy. :) C'mon, January!

How soon will I need a microscope for the Science portion of OM 5? I ask because we intend to get one for DS but with the holidays and purchasing the curriculum itself, it would be GREAT if we could wait until tax return time (say, the first or 2nd week of Feb) to purchase the microscope. I looked at the OM sample of grade 5 and it looked like I will need it for Lesson (week) 4, so if I start the lessons at the beginning of January, I could stretch it out so that we have a microscope by lesson 4. But if we need it before then, it'll mean some financial juggling. Also, if you have used OM Science, what type of microscope is used? The website doesn't have any info, and I don't want to spend more than will be needed the next couple of years as we have a baby on the way right now so finances are tight at the moment. I'm okay with buying a nicer microscope 2 years down the road, I just need to get going with this year's homeschooling asap!