I guess I just wish there was something similar to the set up of FLL. I loved the gentle approach, the conversational tone. I loved doing poetry, and picture study. I am probably much more Charlotte Mason than I am Classical in my tendencies. (Sorry!) ;) I just know I find a wealth on information and knowledge here.

Well, I like R&S. It is a solid program, but it doesn't work for my son. Every kids learns differently I guess. He is also on the Autism spectrum. So when something doesn't work. It just doesn't work, and I'd prefer to find a good fit. what is MCT?

These are all great thoughts. I have so much to think about it. A couple of things that came to mind as I read through them all are: 1. I would definitely have my dd come along for part of it. She does not need to have that much alone time. I agree, time is short, and she is most definitely in a very important stage of her life that I need to be and want to be involved. 2. Home repairs are not always the most important, but it's hard to think it's not necessary when the water is streaming down the inside of the windows above your desk. The roof is bad, the walls are bad, and the windows are shot. It's time, or we might not have a house for too many more years. 3. We live too far to have them over here for bus transport. We're thirty minutes away in another town. 4. State laws forbid homeschooling other peoples children that are not under my guardianship. 5. It would be an INCREDIBLY LONG and tiring day. My home and family would most likely suffer. I'm asking myself is it worth it? 6. Could I do it? Probably, but it would be a COMPLETE change in lifestyle for me and my kids. 7. Dog walking is not really an option. We live in a pretty rural area. 8. I'm leaning toward not doing it. I'm just torn. My children and their needs come first. I need to pray. Thanks for all of your thoughts. I am looking forward to more. :)

Hello, I am not terribly active on this board, but I am frequently searching for info and others experience. Today, I have a specific issue I am looking for advice, experience, and thoughts on. I have been homeschooling my children for eight years. My oldest will be entering eleventh grade next year. My younger child is eight and has Asperger Syndrome. We are a single income family, with my husband working a full time job, a part time job, and going to school online to finish his bachelors degree in accounting. He is working himself to death without getting ahead. We are barely staying afloat, and we do not live extravagant lives by any stretch of the imagination. I'd like to think we are fairly frugal. Recently, I have been hearing my husband revisit the idea of me finding a means of income to supplement what he brings in. Our house is in desperate need of repairs and we really don't have anywhere else to pull money from. I do not have a degree. I had always waitressed, and am a licensed hairdresser. Neither are lucrative, and both require too much time away from the kids to home school them. My fear is being gone every weekend, and holidays. Well, the other day an opportunity presented itself to me. A family that we are very close to, we are basically like family, is expecting their second child. Their oldest is 5 and entering kindergarten in the fall. Their childcare provider is closing before the baby is due. They are looking for someone to take over care of the baby, as well as provide before and after school care for their son. The position would be in their home. It would provide a nice supplement to our income, and I would be able to have my children there with me. That would mean I would have to homeschool my son in their home. My daughter could also stay home most days if she'd prefer since she is so much older and very much self directed anyway. Basically, (Ideally), my day would look like this: 7:30 arrive at their home. (a 30 minute drive) 7:30-12:00 I'd have all three children. We'd have breakfast and some down time. During this time I would have story time, and do any activity based subjects, such as science experiments, crafts/activities related to history. I think it would be good to do activities that include all of the children while I have their son home from school. 12:00 put their son on the bus. Then I would try to have the baby nap during this time, and complete lessons with my son. I keep lessons short for him anyway because of the Asperger Syndrome. This works best for him. 3:30 get their son off of the bus. Have snack time and play time. Probably get dinner set up for mom, and clean up from our day. 5:00 parents arrive home, and we'd leave after a short update. (To take care of MY home.) This would be Mon, Tue, Thu, and Fri until spring of next year, and then it would move to five days a week. In addition to working as their nanny, I also have other responsibilities that take me out of the home on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evenings. Those nights I am gone until 9pm. Then I have to consider that I will not be home like I am now. I won't be here taking care of my house, my garden, and I won't be as available for my teen daughter who will be off to college in two short years. However, with the additional income, I will be able to help with the cost college. OY! I am so torn. It could be such a great situation. How many moms can take their kids to work and homeschool them? Also, I should mention that the parents are very excited about me including their kids on our homeschooling adventure. The mom in particular thinks it would be fabulous for me to take them on field trips, and on our usual outings to the library and museums. So, have any of you out there been in a situation like this? How has it worked out for you? What are some of your thoughts? Thanks for your time! Tina

I just thought I'd share the whole LA plan I have come up with for her. We will use: Teaching the Classics, we'll do this for the first couple of weeks to get a jump on Lit analysis. Learning LA Through Literature Wordsmith Craftsman When we get to the portion on writing research papers we'll take a break and use: Writing Research Papers with Confidence. Winston Grammar Sat and College Prep for the Christian Student (Stobaugh) My plan is to go heavy on the language arts this year. What do you think?

"We also have the tension between trying to give my two younger NT kids at least some of the same fun experiences that their friends get, and not overwhelming my SN son or having him feel left out. And the social struggle of Asperger's is particularly hard - sometimes I think kids would play better with my son and be more sympathetic if he had a more "obvious" disability. But since he looks "normal", people fall into expecting him to act "normal" even when they know his diagnosis. " YES! We have a 15 year old daughter, and balancing everything is tricky some times. Also, That very thought about "if his disability were obvious" crosses my mind so often! Yesterday was so tough. We were at the beach and there were other kids there that he sort of knows through the homeschooling circle, and I just wished they could have more compassion. He tries so hard, but then reacts just as hard when things go wrong. And trying to facilitate play and trying to guide the interaction is SO tiring! It just ended badly. *sigh*

Thanks for all or the encouraging replies. I have read Welcome to Holland, but maybe it's time I read it again! :) Good to know I'm not alone.

I need to just reach out and find out if I am alone here. My ds is 8 and has Asperger Syndrome. Sometimes I find it so difficult to just accept that I CAN'T do all of the things "other" moms get to do. I sometimes "forget" just how much he is affected by the AS. Sometimes I get complacent because he's doing so well...for a while...and then whammo we have a period of time when things get rough again. Sometimes during those times I lose sight of the fact that my mission field during this season is my children and meeting their needs. I can't hold a job. I can't go to all of the social functions that other moms bring their kids to. I can't volunteer for all of the things I'd like to at church. My son needs me. Today was just another glaring example. And you know what? Sometimes it's hard to accept. Sometimes I'd like to have that perfect job for a homeschool mom. Sometimes I'd like to go to the beach with other homeschool families and just relax while my son plays with the other kids. Sometimes I'd like to serve in my church. And I feel guilty that I can't do those things. So, I am trying to learn to trust God through this. Accept our circumstances. Understand my son unconditionally. Forget about what others think. Trust God's plan and timing in our lives. I'm also trying to sit back and enjoy the ride. It may not be what I thought it would be, but I really am blessed. Thanks for listening. :)

In our style there are no contracts, no fee for testing except for purple and brown (and that is only because everyone tests at one branch and that fee is only 10 for the belt), black belt is EARNED in a minimum of 5 years, and that is ONLY if you are exceptional, and the test is broken up into 3 parts. The problem with many schools from what I see is ridiculous fees and belts that are just handed out to those who can afford the test. Remember a belt is only a piece of cloth and the purpose is to hold up your pants. Everyone should thoroughly research a school before you join or sign a contract, and a teacher should be up front from the beginning about all fees. I'd also like to mention that in our style, the schools are never run as a full time job, therefore the fees are only $20 a week per person for as many classes as you'd like to attend whether at your regular branch or at another branch. The instructors do it because they love what they do and want to pass it on to their students. I love our style and school. It is the best form of practical self-defense that I know of. Sorry you had to go through what you went through with this testing experience. Honestly, I did not finish reading all of the posts. I hope your son did well.

I have a problem. I am not very confident in my teaching writing to my 15y.o. dd. We've struggled in this area for a long time. That coupled with the fact that I have a special needs son who requires a lot of time, has left me feeling anxious about her writing abilities with only a few years left of HS for her. She is very bright and really does do a decent job of writing, but I really feel like I've let her down in that area and I am looking for a solid program that will help solidify a good foundation for her before she heads off to college. I am afraid when asked to write for school, (or worse the SAT) that she won't know what to do or how to approach the assignment. The program we have on our shelf currently is Writeshop. It's OK. Maybe it's something I'll use with my son, but I find it to be a bit of a pain to flip back and forth through ALL of those sections to find the information I want. We really put it off this year and did not accomplish as much as I would have liked to. I am curious about your thoughts on Writeshop, Understanding Writing, and IEW. Please understand that she is 15, going in to 10th grade, and has not had a classical education. I do use a modified classical approach with my son. If there are any other programs out that that you might want to bring to my attention I am willing to hear any suggestions. Thanks for your time!

...the same thing. Have you begun using it yet? If so, how is it?

Thanks for your response. I think I am leaning toward doing both FLL and PL. I, also, think I will definitely use those DVD's myself. :) I'd still like to hear others opinions/experiences, too. :) I should add, the reason I am questioning this is that the rep that I spoke to about Prima Latina said that I wouldn't need to do both English grammar and the Latin. It really didn't seem to make much sense to me. That's why I came here. Unfortunately, I'm not getting much of a response here either. ???

Hello, I am looking at curriculum for my son for next year. We'll actually be finishing up his grammar book in a few weeks and I'd like to just jump right in to the next level. However, he is asking to learn Latin. We used FLL this year successfully. It went very smoothly for us. He's learned quite a bit. I am happy with the curriculum. I am looking at Prima Latina. They state that they cover both english and Latin grammar, and I do not want to go into overkill. What have your experiences been? Would you recommend ditching FLL and just using PL, or would you use both? Also, how is the ease of use in Prima Latina? I do not have any experience with Latin. I just have a little guy eager to learn that because I told him he needed to do Latin before Greek. He's 7 and highly motivated to learn "ancient Greek". Last though...the reason I want him to do Latin before Greek is because I figured that would be a better foundation for English grammar. What do you think of that? Thanks, in advance, for your time and thoughts! Tina