SabrinainPA
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Posts posted by SabrinainPA
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We started on Friday, Winter Term 2009. When we do TOG, I find it always works well to have the weekend for all the reading. Happy New (School) Year to all.
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Hi. I just spent our break trying to do just this very thing. What I came up with looks like this:
AM hours dedicated to Latin, Math, LA {Grammar (I know, I just can't give it up), copywork/dictation, spelling, vocab.} and independent literature reading by the kids.
After lunch, we will do the TOG readings, with one day each week primarily dedicated to focusing on one of the following: Bible, History, Geography, and fine arts.
I am hoping this works, because I love the idea of LCC - but I also love Sonlight, TOG, and Ambleside. Best of luck to you.
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Thank you for all the alternatives. I guess I just was taken aback by how dismissive the enrollment/advisor person was. Remember the good old days when internships and apprenticeships counted for something? I am just feeling a bit defensive about all we do to educate our kids. Sometimes when I read this forum, I feel stupid - the knowledge base here is so high. To have our experience as teachers discounted just because it is not an acknowledged or ... what's the word ... accredited avenue is frustrating. I know classroom teachers have it tougher, due to the nature of the classroom and the limitations placed upon them. But, when it comes to planning, and implementation of lessons - the actual teaching - what we do is quite similiar. Sorry, I do not mean to belabor the point. I still can apply to one of the fast-track programs. It will just take longer. Thanks for the ear.
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I have been doing a lot of thinking about my future, after the kids are done with their schooling. And, even though I am trained as a Marriage and Family Therapist, I have some concerns about the future of mental health in this country. So, I have been looking into education programs. I thought almost ten years of educating my children might count for something. (They have great standardized test scores, portfolios are provided by me every year, ... someone taught them to read.) But, despite having a Masters and 50 Doctoral credits with a 4.0 GPA, I was just turned down for entry because ... I lack practical classroom experience. Hmm... I am not sure if I want to laugh or cry.
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Short, sweet, and to the point!
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Hi. We have used these for a number of years now. My girls love the Bible felts. I have never really made use of the manual for lessons. But you could use the felts to supplement any Bible lessons - or just a regular story, or just to play with. The math felts have been enjoyed, also.
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Another week down - one to go! A two-week break is looking good!
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Thanksgiving was followed by the stomach flu here, but we managed to get through another school week.
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Wordless .. and then some!
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We are doing the History of Christmas, from History Scribe. It looks very interesting, and requires drawing, which my kids love.
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Thank you. I am using it as a supplement - it really is challenging them to think a bit differently.
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If you make use of this program, would you please tell me what you do when you come to a block of lessons that are password protected. The web-site states that the password will only be given to "official" schools. Thank you.
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Can I play, too? It has taken me over one year for thirty posts on the WTM, but this blogging thing is soooo much easier ...
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It can, until the child requires further explanation. We hit a snag this year with Epsilon, because I learned fractions a different way. So I could not help my daughter with Mr. Demme's method. I tried to teach her the way I knew how, ending up confusing her, and now we have switched to Rod & Staff. I think, even if you want them to be independent, you somehow have to keep up with what they are learning, and how they are being instructed, so as to be able to offer help when needed.
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JCPenney has bamboo panels for sliding glass doors and windows. I bought the longest ones, attached the track to the ceiling, and now have a partition that can be opened or closed based on our use of the room. It also looks very nice.
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Hi. My kids are 16, 10, 9, 7, and 5. We school three weeks on, one off. And it is very helpful in maintaining some order in the house, especially when it comes to projects that need more than the usual day-to-day attention. We started our year April 28, are on week 22, and will take off for a long break before Thanksgiving. I divided the year into three terms (a la Ambleside), twelve weeks in each term, and it beautifully meshes with the three weeks at a time. If we are sick, or something else happens, we can easily move our "off" week around. As for "flow", I look ahead to see where a good place to wrap up will be when it comes to our extended holiday break. I have not found the week off to be too difficult for the children. Take care.
Sabrina
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We had aeration lines installed following a broken pipe in our sand mound. The technician mentioned that replacing the top layer of gravel and sand with fresh would buy us some time if we keep having difficulties. We have a family of seven. Replacing the toilets with low-flush ones, doing laundry less often, and cutting back on showers is helping us.
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Choreganizers is a big hit here. I ordered it from Christianbooks. The kids are learning about chores & responsibilities, personal care, keeping the home neat & clean, and money. They can trade in their chore dollars for a treat, or save up for real money. I highly recommend it.
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The King Arthur website has a great, easy-to-store all-purpose baking mix. I keep it in a tupperware container. You can make pancakes, biscuits, muffins, scones - so many things from one mix.
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If what you are asking is, did we find scheduling Saturday to Friday helpful, my answer is yes. In my case, I gave my children their schedule on Friday morning. They had the weekend, in addition to Friday, to do the readings. At the Dialectic/Rhetoric level, this is especially helpful. It also helped me to do my planning on a weekday, instead of using up all my weekend time.
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"And my particular vitriol with HSLDA comes from their habit of speaking for all homeschoolers. They usually do *not* speak for me. If they kept it to hs'ing, fine. But they have become a conservative political lobby, working for causes with absolutely nothing to do with hs'ing. It is annoying in the extreme that they are the "face" of hs'ing"
Sorry, I don't know how to quote ... Why does this make HSLDA "bad"? They do not profess to be the be-all, end-all of homeschooling organizations, but they do have all our interests at heart. There is a war on in this country for control of our kids - "professionals", whether they be physicians, social workers, nurses, or school administrators, want to tell us that we can partner with them, but that we do not have the right to decide on our own how to raise our kids. We need their permission in Pennsylvania, based on current legislation, to continue with homeschooling if they decide we do not do our job well. This is ironic considering the state of the public schools - publis schools that are on probabtion for the poor academic performance of the children. This past month, two major school districts in my immediate area went on strike. At issue were none of the concerns we talk about on here - academics, availablity of materials, outcomes. The teachers wanted contracts for three years, guaranteeing 8.5% raises each year, and full medical benefits - no co-pay. How many of us see this kind of a raise each year, and how many enjoy free medical benefits? Yes, teachers have a difficult job. But, in reality, if taxes are raised each year to pay the teachers' salaries, and parents can't afford to pay for food to feed their kids or lose their homes because they can't make the mortgage, the teachers' jobs will just get harder. The home-life of students impacts their academic performance, and their overall well-being. The American government at all levels seems to have forgotten the very foundation upon which it is based - the American tax-payer, presumably comprised, at least in part, of families. I, for one, am extremely grateful that HSLDA is available to notify me when legislation is pending that may affect my rights. I do not believe this is an issue that should divide itself along party lines, race, or religious beliefs. I often believe if, as homeschoolers, we could all pull together, our numbers alone would safe-guard our parental rights. It is sad that we, too, are so divided.
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Thank you, Laura and Ellie. You articulated my fears. I know we need social service programs, but they seem to come at the cost of our freedoms. I know HSLDA is a hot-button issue for some, but, in this case, I believe the message is being lost because of the messenger. I just cannot believe a $190 million program like this is being tossed about now, with so much else going on financially. We live on so little already, with 5 children, and we have never asked for any help. I just want to be able to take care of my own, in my own way.
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I do not post often, but I am surprised to not see any posts concerning this bill that is to be voted on this weekend. I get my sense of "community" from this forum (sad for my life, I know), so please tell me I am not alone in my feelings of anger that the government wants to allow others to tell me how to raise my kids. And don't get me started on the money that is to fund this!
From HSLDA e-mail alert:
"Action is needed now to stop a harmful early education bill, H.R. 2343, the Education Begins at Home Act. Despite the bill’s seemingly homeschool-friendly title, the legislation is actually yet another “big government†encroachment into the sphere of education.
H.R. 2343 seeks to expand the Head Start Early Home Visitation program to supposedly “educate†parents of children from infants to 5-year-olds on parenting strategies. If passed, this bill would literally open the door for government employees to enter private homes to impose unelected officials’ educational agendas, which may prove offensive and contrary to many families’ moral and religious beliefs. Although at this point enrollment in the home visitation program is voluntary, government programs almost always grow beyond their original scope when bills are amended.
This intrusive and unnecessary legislation comes at a whopping starting cost of more than $190 million—a burden that will be incurred by already struggling American taxpayers. "
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all different styles .. but pricey!
For those who have kids in dance ...
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
or any extra-curricular activity that you child is really passionate about:
Have you ever had to forgo a season (at least) due to finances? How did your child handle it? How did you handle it? My girls are in dance at a college community dance program - the 10 yo is in her fifth year, ballet, jazz, and tap; the 7 yo in her 2nd year of ballet and tap. The training they are receiving is wonderful. They are really dedicated, never complain on the early Saturday mornings I drag them out of bed for the one-hour car ride. But it has always been a stretch financially, and this session would mean putting it on a credit card and paying it off over the months ahead. I am so torn.