Thanks. I do need to work more on math (and other basics) at home :). Seems like when we begin something new we swing back and forth between both extremes a (from strict ps at home on one side to unschooling on the other) little before we finally find our comfort zone and what works for us and our kids. It's just taken me too long to find a happy middle ground and realize that it's OK to require certain things (be tough and just have them do it) and OK to let them go off on their own on others (don't worry about cramming everything in).

Yes, my oldest 3 started back at a local charter school after 4 years of hs. And overall they are adjusting quite well. I'm pleased at how well ds 12 (7th grade) and dd 11 (6th grade) have acclimated themselves to the math programs (this school teaches 1 year above grade level as well) there. After 4 years of homeschooling and not using a formal math program (just a little bit here and there that had to do with various projects they were working on) they have caught up fast and are A students so far. I've heard of studies that say once kids hit puberty they can do an elementary math curriculum in a matter of a few months. I can see how that is true, there is so much repetition in elem school. They are probably a little behind in writing/grammar but they are catching on and doing fine. Ds 9 (3rd grade) is behind in reading but that is mostly due to some eye tracking problems we discovered last Feb. After some therapy he has made huge improvements between now and then and a couple weeks before school started it all began to click. He is probably on a 2nd grade reading level right now (compared to K last Feb). His handwriting isn't beautiful and his spelling is atrocious which makes it hard as they are supposedly doing 4th grade level spelling words but I don't worry so much about that. I think spelling comes with a lot more reading experience. The school uses WRTR so the kids learn phonograms and do their spelling program. It will come. Other than that, he has adjusted very well after having homeschooled since the beginning. So no, they aren't spouting off amazing facts and appearing as these homeschooled child prodigies but they are adjusting very well and definitely have a great foundation of good character. (I hear stories from them about the things "other kids do" that they point out to me like they can't believe anyone would act that way...) I know that they hate that "school" takes up so much of their day between classes and homework. I regret that they have less (read: virtually NO) time for the things/projects they are interested in studying too but now they are learning more about "certain things just have to be done first" and being independent and accountable for your own work/time schedule so that is a good thing. I wasn't doing as much as I should have to teach that and plan to do those things differently with the youngers.

Would you mind elaborating a little more on what you felt the essential components of your homeschool were? What the "active and engaging" atmosphere consisted of? I think this is where I get off the path - I think I'm providing a good atmosphere and "much more than curriculum" but then look back later and realize I really did neglect the basics and now we have to play catch up.

Aime, You said so many things that resonated with me. How I've been, where I need to go. Thanks for sharing. Also, thanks to everyone who's shared advice on this thread. You've empowered me to start again. I'm going to go through my FIAR and Sonlight schedules and pick out some basic things we can do each day and if nothing else, make sure we do reading, writing and math. I think you've made me see it doesn't have to be hard and complicated (ie trying to do everything in a perfectionistic way) and I just need to make the choice to move forward and stop hanging myself with my insecurities and indecision and having guilt over what's now in the past.:banghead: I don't know if my 3 olders will ever come back home. We'll see how this year goes for them and then look at our options and how well I've got it together. But for right now I can start again with my K dd and make it the best I possibly can at home for the younger 3 at least. Thanks so much everyone, I feel so much better about what I have to do and what I can do. Thanks for a dose of reality and a good kick in the pants!! :tongue_smilie:

You all are amazing - you inspire me. I get frustrated that my own studies move at such a snail's pace with everything else that demands my attention. And there are so many things I'd love to learn but so little time. But I guess we learn little by little and line upon line right?

So if I can come up with my own schedule from the book lists maybe the book notes aren't so critical - at least in the younger cores? Save my money for the high school cores?

Yes, you're exactly right. It has to be THE MAIN FOCUS - nothing else. So two years huh? Did you do a lot of hopping during that time trying to find the right philosophy/curriculum fit? Did it fit all your kids or do you have to have a lot of separate plans and methods for each? Mind sharing some of your process/journey/lessons learned?

Yes, my hands are full. Thanks for sharing the recipe. It sounds so yummy and I can really go for simple right now! ;) The placenta? Is that really what it's called? :D That's funny! Or maybe it's just my condition right now... 4 weeks till my placenta (and a baby) pops out... Can you tell I'm at the count down stage?

bump

Yes, I've read that one, it's a good one. And I have tried to simplify our environment. Less toys, no TV, no video games and we live in a rural area so neighbor kids aren't an issue either. I've got good systems in place for laundry and chores though sometimes they would take us long enough that we didn't really get to much more school than just reading together. We did do that consistently. My kids just have other interests that they'd rather be working on that can be considered totally valid for learning (machining, designing, animals, inventing, engineering etc) but just not necessarily considered academic...

Yes, I do have the book and I like her ideas. I also have a handful of other home school how-to books and have just had trouble finding a method/philosophy that works for me and for all the kids. I didn't want school to be a dreaded part of our day and for someone different each time it always was something they wanted to hurry through so they could get to what they really wanted to do. But it was also hard to school each child in a different way... (more on that later) Yes, I'll come back. Deep down I know what results I want and I know (think) I should be able to do it but sometimes the "how to" in making those two mesh in a happy way that works can be hard to find. I'm probably too much of a perfectionist. I wanted to see these perfectly happy children willingly doing their assignments (which they love) and checking the boxes but that doesn't really happen, right? I'll give some more details below on my situation and maybe someone will have some suggestions or at least can say they've "been there, done that, here's what helps"...

Yum! I'll have to try the olive oil thing! I'd love your pasta recipe if you care to share - that sounds really good. Unfortunately our tomato crop didn't do all that well this year and I'm not going to get my year's supply of tomato products canned that I was hoping too. In some ways that's OK I guess. Less work for this mom expecting #6 in 4 weeks :).

Am I just not disciplined enough for homeschooling? Seems like I have trouble following any kind of assignment schedule. I get sidetracked by other things/ideas/subjects that look neat and end up "hopping". Even if I make my own schedule/plan I tire of it and can't seem to stick to it. Yet, I don't do well flying by the seat of my pants either. Nothing seems to flow in a logical progression or be related to each other. Or else I get sidetracked by various things happening outside homeschool (errands, field trips, canning season, holidays etc) and then feel like I really didn't accomplish a lot because I don't have this great plan I can say we actually completed. Am I doing my kids a disservice by hopping from topic to topic without any reasonable connection? Anyone else have this problem? What do you do to keep yourself going "on a plan"?

Just curious...Does anyone here have things that they are personally studying on their own (on a regular basis) or are you spending so much time homeschooling your kids that learning along side them is all you have time for? If you do have separate studies... what are you studying and is it a formal "course" or just a topic you are researching on your own?

Anyone ever tried dehydrating them? We do. Roma's work best because they don't have as much juice and are more meaty. We dry them down, vacuum pack them in jars and then use them to throw in soups and sauces. They give a really rich tomato taste and we've even been know to pop a few in our mouths - they aren't bad that way either.

We've used vocabulary cartoons too and really like them. I'd read 2-3 words per day and then by Friday we'd "quiz" on the 10 words in that section. I was amazed at how the simple cartoons and word associations were so easy for my kids (and me) to remember even when we'd go back to some weeks later. My kids were 11, 10 and 8 when we were using them.

I've also heard that spreading some bay leaves in your pantry can help repel them.

Let me add one more to the list... Oreganol (can order at vitacost with the other items). Small bottle and a little pricey but WOW - put a couple DROPS in a little water and swallow when you have a sore throat and it works wonders. It's a powerful antiviral.

Just wondered which part of Sonlight is the greater "draw" for you users? The schedule or the book notes? Do you use the book notes/discussion pages extensively or do you mostly buy Sonlight for the nice schedule they include?

Yea, matching socks!! I forgot about that one...

We had a brother in law telling us last weekend that as long as he doesn't eat sugar (refined/processed sugars) he doesn't need deodorant. Makes sense it has to do with our diets here... My husband likes to use a Thai Crystal. A more natural alternative to the regular deodorants out there. He says it works great and I haven't noticed any problems with it working :).

That is the one we have and it works great! I thought air popped was great but now I'm sold on a Whirly Pop. My mom gave it to us for Christmas last year (and I didn't think I needed one when I got it...) Can't wait to try the kettle corn!

In your experience do your kids learn to spell as they are learning to read and use phonics or has that come later? My oldest is a great reader and a great speller (always has been). My second is a great reader and now at age 11 is learning how to spell better because she is learning the spelling rules from WRTR. For my 9 yo son, reading has just started to click. He is an atrocious speller (did I spell that right? :)) though because he just throws in whatever phonogram makes the right sound. The reason I ask is that my kids have had to go to a charter school this year. If it were me, I'd forego the spelling with him for a while longer until he really gets reading under his belt but they have to do it at school. The school uses the Spalding method very intensively (WRTR) and it has helped in his reading to learn the phonograms but he has a really hard time with the spelling. Any suggestions? Would you just let it go and not worry about it? It's really the only thing he is really struggling with at school (he's been home schooled up until now so this has been quite a transition in itself.)

The binding machine I've seen there is called "Bind-it-All". I haven't researched it to see how it compares or anything.