Yes, Steve Demme does explain that. Not that I remember it...:D But, you won't start dividing fractions by multiplying by the inverse. No, you'll do it the long way first. You'll have to hide from dh for a few weeks ;)

Although it doesn't seem as popular as other programs, I was very happy with Matin Latin. It has a reputation for being good for those of us who know no Latin. I will admit that towards the end of ML 2, I needed to keep a day ahead. I have written a detailed review. Email me if you would like it.

:iagree::iagree::iagree: Your ds won't be doing it the long way very long anyway.

I love MUS because it lays the foundation first, it doesn't skip it. What he is teaching is that you are not multiplying 3x1 and putting the answer in the 2nd column. You are multiplying 3x10 and writing the 3 in the 10's place. You are not multiplying 1x1 and putting the answer in the 3rd column. You are multiplying 10x10 and putting the answer in the 100's place. To me, it is brilliant. Your child will understand WHY you do what you are doing. They do teach a more traditional approach in MUS, but the carrying is taught a bit differently. They are just drawing it out a bit so that they child understands the place value behind multiple digit multiplication. One of the strengths of MUS has to do with the student's understanding of place value. I love how they do it with the blocks and how easy it is to SEE the answer. Multiple digit multiplication and long division are the 2 most difficult concepts before Algebra. Kudos to your son for picking it up so quickly. And about your husband. You paid good money for Mr. Demme's expertise in teaching math. Why throw it away by not taking his counsel? I see again and again the wisdom to his method. If it makes a difference to your dh, I have a degree in math. I think Steve Demme is a genius math teacher.

I used RS4K for 4th grade physics. In a nutshell :), I thought it was expensive for a 10wk long program. Dh used the Magnets Nutshell kit with ds. I think they enjoyed it, but dh said that there were many experiments but little explanation. I have written a detailed review of RS4K Physics. Email me if you would like it.

I forgot about these. They do give you 10 multiple choice questions. You can ask for more, but the next 10 will have about 5 of the previous questions, and the next 10 will have about 8 of the previous questions. I thought it was kind of lame, but we do them anyway.

Hi Stephanie, We started Write Shop this year. We will be using it for 6th-7th-8th. We have completed 8/11 lessons for this year. There are 30 lessons in all. I believe they recommend Wordsmith Apprentice for younger kids. I have been pleased with Write Shop so far. There is a bit of a learning curve for me, because it is very detailed. But, that's good for me, because I need a lot of instruction on teaching writing. It's also very detailed for the child. They know they have to write a paragraph of 5-7 sentences, including a topic sentence, a closing sentence, a title. They are told how many "to be" verbs they may use. They learn about paired adjectives (ex. Large and grey, the elephant...) and are required to use that variation in many paragraphs to come. They learn how to start a sentence with a participle (ex. Looking at the moon...) and are required to use that variation in many paragraphs. They learn about similies (ex. as black as night) and are required to use that variation in many paragraphs. And more. They teach the students to brainstorm with several different methods before they write their paragraph. They have the student edit and rewrite their paragraph several times. They have a checklist for both the student and the teacher to follow in critiquing the work. I think only one lesson has them write more than one paragraph. We used Shurley English 5 and Writing Strands 3 before this and both did not teach him well or teach me how to teach him. Write Shop is definitely a great improvement. Finally, I have a review written by a mom years ago on a hs list that is very detailed about Write Shop. I don't want to paste it here because it's not my review. But, if you email me, I would be happy to forward it to you.

Each chapter in SE is broken down into several sections. After each section, there is an assessment ie. questions on the section. After each chapter, there is an assessment also. The answers are in the TE. I believe that there are tests in the All-in-One Teacher's Resource, but at the cost of $99, I don't know of a homeschooler who has bought it. You could try calling PH 800 number and asking if there are any less expensive options. They are very helpful.

I am investigating The Art of Argument for 7th grade. I believe it's secular. I'd be interested to look at other options as well :)

I think it would be a good fit for both. I love it because it is clear and concise. The only other grammar program I seriously considered was Stewart English which is for grades 7-12. Here is a post with my review in it: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16693&highlight=analytical+grammar

We used Story of the World volume 1 through 4 starting in 2nd grade. I thoroughly enjoyed this curriculum. Honestly, the best part of this curriculum is learning history myself for the first time. I used to say that history was my weakest subject. I learned more in my son’s first year than I learned in my entire school career. I feel so good knowing that my son is being presented with history in a logical, engaging, and painless way. This curriculum allowed a history-ignorant mom to give her child a great introduction to world history and a love and enthusiasm for history as well. The readings are perfect for early elementary age – not too simple and not too difficult. The activity guide is a priceless resource, and we used every bit of it. That is what made the program so rich. Ds used the coloring pages while I read. We used the review questions usually verbally, but one year, I used the review questions to give my son practice in writing complete sentences. Doing narration and summary paragraphs helped with writing, although this was my son’s least favorite part. The map work was helpful. We borrowed many of the supplemental books from the library. We even read most of them. The activities and projects were fun and really helped to bring history alive and be remembered. We met with other families 2x a month to work on projects. Besides gathering the library books and project supplies, there really is no other preparation needed. For some people, this curriculum is too secular. For some people, this curriculum is too Christian. I prefer secular resources, and I thought SWB did a great job of introducing the different world religions in an unbiased manner. I highly recommend this program. It spoiled me. My only complaint is that that there is no similar program for logic age.

I just wanted to let you know about my favorite elementary age Astronomy author - Franklyn Branley. Check him out at the library. http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/HarperChildrens/Teachers/AuthorsAndIllustrators/ContributorDetail.aspx?CId=11830

http://www.writeonagain.com/index.html or http://members.aol.com/cmarsch786/

Our official start was January 2000. Ds had just turned 5, and we started "formally" hs'ing. We school year round and for years I thought of him as moving into the next grade in January. That changed at some point though around 5th grade, and now I just consider him the grade he would be in had he started K in the fall of 2000.

I have been looking at the Mosdos Press Literature Series and thinking that it was LL. Thanks everyone. I have no problem paying < $100 for any subject. Y'all are so kind. How embarassing :blush5:

I am considering using LL7 next year. It seems to get good reviews, but many say that it is "lite". I just looked at the price - $50 student $70 teacher. Wow! :ohmy: That's a lot for a "lite" program. Those who have used it, do you feel it was worth the cost? Any ideas on where (besides here) to get it used? Is the student book consumable? Thanks!

Here's a thread with my review: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16693

My review is in this thread: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=939&highlight=sue+st+pete

I agree with kRenee and disagree with Jenny in Atl. I bought all the additional books new. That was a big mistake! There is almost no reference to the books in the program. It would be better to buy used, borrow from the library, or substitute from the library. The only assignments based on the books were to compare Athens & Sparta and create a map based on Theras and to write a summary of the Greek gods from the Greek Myths book. Also, I highly recommend skipping the History Pockets if your children are not into cut-and-paste. A nice supplement is Life in the Ancient World by Bart Winer.

But, I became disenchanted with him after Hatchet and Cook Camp.

Dh used LLATL with ds in 2nd-3rd-4th, I think (I'm a little fuzzy on it since I wasn't the teacher). We used Shurley in 5th. I liked it, but the subsequent grades were way too repetitive. We also worked through Matin Latin 1 & 2 which is helpful for English and Latin grammar. I would say that the daily lesson for AG is under an hour. We did it 5x per week, but next season, I will skip the paraphrasing on day 4. Since it's only 10 weeks the first year, it leaves lots of time later in the year for writing and spelling, which we put on hold while we're focusing on grammar.

We started Matin Latin 1 when ds was 10. We completed Matin Latin 1 & 2 in 2 years. We homeschool year round. I liked the looks of Latin for Children, but I read a review that called it "ambitious". It looked great, but ambitious to me. And since I have NO Latin background, and Matin Latin is supposed to be good for those of us with no Latin background, I went with it. I've been happy with it. Matin Latin 1 covers nouns (subject, predicate, direct object, indirect object, object of the preposition, possessive), verbs (present, future, imperfect), sum (the verb “to beâ€), adjectives, predicate adjectives, prepositions and prepositional phrases. Only 1st declension nouns (feminine) are introduced. Each topic is presented first in English, then in Latin. So, present tense verbs are presented first in English, then in Latin. It has an answer key. It has quite a bit of translating from Latin to English. We worked 2x per week up to an hour a day for 8-9 month to complete it. Matin Latin 2 covers 2nd & 3rd declension nouns, more verb tenses (perfect, pluperfect, future perfect), 2nd & 3rd conjugation verb, adverbs, conjunctions, and more. The last few months, we worked 3x per week, and I found that I needed to study more beforehand. We completed Matin Latin 2 in 1 ¼ years. The best advice a woman gave me about ML 2 was to allow it to take more than a year. Ds has now moved on to Oxford Latin with a Latin tutor. Yippee! Matin Latin was a great foundation! In Matin Latin 1 & 2, there are several stories from the Old Testament: Joshua & Jericho, Daniel & the lion, Adam & Eve, Noah, Tower of Babel, Abraham & Isaac, Jacob & Esau. There is the Roman myth of Androcles and the lion, Ceres and Persephone, and the Roman god Bacchus. There are stories about Roman life and a girl named Julia who lives with her father by the seashore. There are no prayers to be memorized and chanted daily. The only specifically Christian content is Jesus Loves Me on a “just for fun†page along with the song America. Hope this is helpful. :001_smile:

Analytical Grammar website is http://www.analyticalgrammar.com. The videos at the website do a great job of explaining the program. We are using Analytical Grammar for 6th-7th-8th grade. AG breaks it up into 3 seasons. 6th grade has 10 weeks of daily grammar work, then review 1x every 2 weeks. 7th grade has 7 weeks of daily grammar work, then review 1x every month. 8th grade has 17 weeks of daily grammar work and then you are done. It can be completed in 1 or 2 years as well. We have completed Season 1 and are reviewing the rest of the year. Season 1 - basic grammar (parts of speech, parts of a sentence, basics of diagramming Season 2 - advanced grammar (verbal phrases and subordinate clauses) (this completes the study of grammar) Season 3 - application of grammatical knowledge to the rules of capitalization, punctuation and usage Pros: • Clear and concise • Pick up and go (little to no preparation required from mom) • Teach lesson on first day of week and student can work on their own for rest of week. Only checking/correcting required from mom. • Each lesson has a theme (American flag, humorous Johnny Carson story, women & math, Mexican-Americans, Martin Luther King Jr., Jewish Americans, fairy tales, etc.) which makes the lessons more interesting. • Sentences are much more complex than Shurley grammar • Novelty of getting a letter grade on test • Comfort of letter grade for perfectionist mom (ds is missing some but still getting an A) • Student book turns into a reference manual when you remove student exercises. Cons: • None that I have found • Some say it’s expensive. I spent $120 but will use it over 3 years. Disclaimer: I have a master’s degree in Operations Research, which is concerned with all things efficiency. Part of the reason I love AG is that it is the most efficient use of my time and my child’s time. This leaves time for other wonderful things like math, history, music, and sports! I suppose if you are a good teacher and you teach grammar year after year after year, you learn to make your lessons more and more efficient. That must be with the author, Robin Finley, did. :auto:

I am no expert on evaluating writing. All I can say is my 12yo 6th grader could never have written something that length. 5-7 sentences is more his speed. I am amazed.

Here's my review: We used NOEO Biology II with our 5th grade son. He is not particularly science oriented. Neither am I. I have mixed feelings about the curriculum. The advantage is that it is all laid out for you. The reading is not too difficult for a 5th grader. In fact a bit on the easier side since it's targeted at 4th-6th grade. It is not time consuming - we spend perhaps 30-45 minutes 2x per week. After a week or two of guidance, it can be done fairly independently. It’s secular, which I prefer. The disadvantage is that it is not very challenging. The "experiments" were fairly lame - mostly looking at something under the microscope and sketching it. There are a few kits that come with it. Dad and son did the kits on eggs and owls, and they were good. Okay, my son thought the owl pellet was really gross. There is a long section using the Body Book, which is all cut-and-paste. The plant kits were decent. But, what I found with Noeo is that there is too much freedom for my unmotivated student to do a mediocre job. Because all he has to do is read 2 pages and write about them, I find that he reads the pages and picks out 2-3 sentences to write down. I need more accountability. If I want to quiz him about what he’s read, I have to read the pages and determine the questions to ask on my own. That, coupled with the lack of hands-on activities, is disappointing.