I put a long strip of velco along the top of my white board and at the top of all my maps. That way, I can hang which ever map I need at the time, and then take it down when finished.

Hi Robin!!! I'm visualizing it this way....We are using a lit based history program in which we read from a spine and then spend the rest of the week doing projects, writing assignments, map work, extra reading, etc. If I see that I'm going to miss a day of school this week, I might decide not to do some of the supporting work so that we can keep moving on. The hands on activity not get done, or we may not get to the extra library books. If Ben's really lucky, we might skip the writing assignment. :D Science I can't really speak to, as we don't do it regularly enough to skip anything! I'm working hard to change that this year.

I use dawn dish soap to treat stains. I usually buy it at CVS with coupons and ECBs, and it works wonderfully, especially on grease stains. I've even gotten stains out that have been through the dryer.

Thanks for posting this again! I missed it the first time.

I can think of three books we've dropped here over the years: Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome, The Wind and the Willows, and The Wheel on the School. We are not a sailing family, and didn't understand much of the terminology of Swallows and Amazons. The Wind and the Willows was just very slow as a read aloud. The Wheel on the School may have worked better had my dc been older. I tried reading it to a 2nd and 3rd grader, and it never really captured their imagination.

Dulcimeramy, My almost 11 year old ds would be in heaven! He wants to learn to play the banjo, and I haven't yet found a way to make it happen. Sounds amazing!

Our children usually have a small glass of milk before bed. My boys like theirs warmed.

Oh, those Oxford U. Press books look good! Thanks for the recommendation!

Oh, Kai, I wish I had discovered K12's books sooner so I could do that! Unfortunately, I'm off schedule at this point, and I'm not very good at planning my own thing. It just seems to overwhelm me if things don't match up perfectly, and well, they never do, do they? :001_smile: Thanks for your thoughts!

If you use K12's HO, how do you stretch this out as a spine for an entire school year? I was hoping to use this as the spine for History Odyssey level 2, but after looking through K12's HO Vol. 1, I see that the first three parts of the book are dedicated to the ancients, leaving only Part 4 (12 chapters) to address the Middle Ages. I'm not sure how to make that last a whole year. I'd really like to avoid buying the next volume in the series as these texts are rather pricey! :) Any suggestions? I'd be using this with a 5th and 6th grader. Also, how would you combine these two children in their history studies? ds11 (6th grade) - loves history and will write enthusiastically when it involves history. Strong reader, but loves read alouds, also. dd10 (5th grade) - somewhat ambivalent toward history and would prefer to spend more time doing science. Loves crafty, hands on activities. Highly visual and prefers to read her own books. My original plan was to have 6th grader do HO level 2 using a different spine (hopefully K12!). My 5th grader would do SOTW 2 adding in hands on activities as we could. However, I would really like to combine them so that I have more time to work with my K'er. Any ideas? I've bought several resources to review. I love Gombrich's Little History of the World and Susan Strauss Art's Story of the Middle Ages, but neither of these seem to have enough material to stretch a whole year. Dorothy Mills' The Middle Ages looks a bit beyond the reach of my 5th grader. I like SOTW 2, but worry that these older kids need something more. K12's HO looks wonderful, but again, not enough material! I just bought a used Sonlight Core 6 schedule, but I'm not sure my 5th grader will get much out of the read alouds. :glare: I've looked at this issue for so long, I think I've lost perspective. Can anyone help me out? Thanks so much!!

Karen, that's great to know! I just bought two Science Wiz chemistry kits for next year!

Yes! I've been more structured with our oldest kids (now finishing 4th and 5th grades). But for our son going into K next year, we're doing our own thing using the scope and sequence from Rebecca Rupp's book Homeschooling Year by Year. This book is a treasure! I love how it helps me figure out what topics to touch on, and then I can pull from the books I've collected over the years from thrift stores and yard sales!

Hits: CLE Math 4th and 5th GWG Apples and Pears Spelling Megawords Augustus Caesar's World D'Aulaires Greek Myths Mindbenders HO Level 2 Middle Ages (Really helping my history fanatic but reluctant writer develop his writing skills) Outling - Remedia Publications The Body Book (part of MFW RTR science) Hands and Hearts Middle Ages kit SOTW 2 and AG for 4th grader Evening Read alouds! Misses: CLE Reading Kumon workbooks for review of facts (kids don't like, not sure how effective they've been) MFW RTR (We just don't use very much of this program. Parts of it worked wonderfully, but much went undone) God and the History of Art (I love, the kids don't) IEW Theme based writing (like the concept, doesn't quite fit. Trying MC next year) Workboxes. Why did I even think I would be able to maintain this system? BJU Science 5

For my dd who will be 10 in the fall, we will do the following: CLE Language Arts CLE Math Megawords Meaningful composition and Remedia Outlining book SOTW vol 2 with AG. Will also use Hands of a child project kit. Science ala WTM, with Reader's Digest books: How the Earth Works, How the Universe Works and recommended experiment kits. I'll also be adding in the Tiner books and the AIG student books for creationist perspective. Literature: I'll be making my own workbooks using the Elson readers and TGs. Additional reading as recommended in WTM Great Latin Adventure Logic Liftoff, Orbiting with Logic Art, music, drama, pe with weekly enrichment program. She also participates in girl scouts and 4H.

anyone? :bigear:

It's been a while since I taught reading, but it's time to get started with my youngest (almost 5). With my two olders, we used a hodge podge of materials. Every time we would settle in with a program, their skills would jump way ahead, and I had to scramble to keep up. At different times, we used Saxon Phonics K and 1, The Reading Lesson, ETC, Pathways Readers, and BJU Phonics. They are strong readers now, but this time I'd like to be more systematic. I really don't want to use Saxon again, as it seems to move so slowly with too much repetition, and I didn't care for the word families approach of BJU. So, I'm looking for something new. ;) Can anyone compare Phonics Pathways and Reading Made Easy? I haven't been able to get my hands on either book, but they both sound appealing. PP seems to be a bit less expensive, which would be nice. Would love some feedback! Oh, and can anyone speak to the difference between the 2000 version of PP versus the 2005? Any reason not to buy the older edition used? Thanks!

Yes! I've been using both this year with my ds10 who struggles with spelling. Each program only takes a few minutes, but I've seen considerable improvement. I think they complement each other nicely!

Winter Promise has both American Story I and II, for grades 1-3, and American Crossing for grades 4-7. I wonder if one of those programs would work? We enjoyed American Story II, but my children were a bit younger at the time (first and second grades, I think?)

Let's see...My 5th grader's most recent favorites are the Grain Brain series by John Fitzgerald (he devoured the original and all the sequels!) He has also really liked Danny Champion of the World, by Roald Dahl. Oh, and just in case you haven't seen it, there is a sequel to Homer Price entitled More Homer Price. My son enjoyed both of those. I'll be following this thread eagerly! My son is finally expressing an interest in fiction after years of reading only non-fiction (mostly history). The possibilities are exciting!

How about Kate Klise's books, beginning with Regarding the Fountain? These are delightful books that incorporate visual clues and wonderful illustrations. There are quite a few in the series, too. My dd9 is devouring them.

Oh, so many great ideas! I've been taking notes and researching at Amazon. Thanks so much for the replies. By the way, has anyone read Secret Agents Four by Donald J. Sobol? I ordered it, along with some other books, from Bethlehem books (great sale there!) It looked interesting, and I thought we'd give it a try. Thanks again!

Stacia, thanks for the recommendations! I've never heard of the Warriors series. I'll be looking it up, too! Amy, My Side of the Mountain is another one we have on the bookshelf. It's one of those that I never read as a child, and so I wasn't sure about it. Thank you! And I'm adding your blog to my bloglines!!

Laurie, You know what? We have The Mysterious Benedict Society somewhere around here! I need to dig it out. I remember it looked really intriguing! Thank you!

Thank you all for the suggestions! Jennifer--I'd never heard of The Incident at Hawk's Hill! Thanks for the recommendation! I think he might like the Percy Jackson books also! I just checked paperbackswap and the version I looked at had 114 members wishing for the first book in the series. Sounds like a winner there! Dawn--Artemis Fowl! Yes, I remember reading that awhile book. That sounds good, too! Thank you! Eternalknot--sounds like our boys have similar tastes! My son also loved Homer Price and Cheaper by the Dozen. Did you know there is a sequel to Homer Price called More Homer Price? Thanks for your thoughts on Tom Sawyer. We just saw a local production of Tom Sawyer at our local children's theater, and he noticed the similarities between Tom Sawyer and the character in The Great Brain (who I believe is also named Tom!) But, it is good to know that he may enjoy it more farther down the road. Also, I think we will read Phantom Tollbooth for our next read aloud. Thanks for the glowing recommendation! I've never read it, and it sounds like one I don't want to miss. :001_smile: If you do look into The Great Brain series, please know the main character is a mischievious con-artist, but I do believe his character grows and matures throughout the series. He does learn, in time, to use his remarkable intelligence on behalf of the underdog. He has stern but loving parents who offer guidance along the way. Holly--Thank you! I just checked out Peter and the Stargazers at Amazon, and it looks wonderful, too! Thanks everyone, and keep the ideas coming!

Hi everyone! My 10 year old son has just blown through The Great Brain series, and he has just loved them! He is generally a history/non-fiction kind of guy, but this series has really excited him about reading some other novels. So, I'm coming to the hive for some suggestions. Please? He has read and enjoyed Charlie and the Chocolate factory and its sequel as well as the Redwall books. He has just started reading Danny, Champion of the World. Some read-alouds he has enjoyed: Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankenweiler, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Owls in the Family, and Gone-Away Lake. So, I'd like to strike while the iron is hot and find some engaging reading material for him! I'm thinking about the Narnia series and maybe The Phantom Tollbooth? He's also interested in Tom Sawyer. Is that appropriate for this age? It's been so long since I've read it. He's reading at about a 5-6th grade level, but I don't mind giving him something easier, as he is reading these on his own time for his own pleasure. ;) Thanks so much for your help!