[Personal Finance vs. Economics for HS credit...??]

Thanks so much for all your suggestions, I really appreciate it! You ladies are the best !

[Personal Finance vs. Economics for HS credit...??]

Hello!

I was wondering if a Personal Finance course can be used for Economics credit for HS? In Texas we need 0.5 credits for Economics to graduate and all the textbooks I looked at seem a lot more in depth than I was hoping. Since my kid will  be doing a Personal Finance course ( Dave Ramsey) I was wondering if that would suffice?

If she has to have Economics rather than just PF, do you have any book suggestions that cover enough to understand it, but don't take up too much time?

Thanks so much!!

[LIghtning Literature for High School Question]

On 9/12/2018 at 2:16 PM, Lori D. said:

re: using LL in high school
DSs used and enjoyed LL7 & 8 in middle school. At that time, we were also slowly ramping up a more DIY style Great Books study, ala WTM. (So by high school, we were not using Literature programs (other than Windows to the World) -- so I can't help with personal experience with high school lit. programs, but can link you to some programs to look at.) The Lightning Lit. high school programs differ a bit from the middle school programs in that there are no work pages. I understand from others who have used them that the LL high school programs are not much more in-depth or rigorous than the middle school programs -- just cover "harder" works.

re: 20th century lit
Most standard high school literature programs do not have contemporary works in their programs -- frequently, there will be a few 20th century "standards", with the most recent of those having been published in the 1950s-60s. So even those programs with "modern" works are covering books that are over 50 years old. 

re: World Lit
Because so many World Lit. programs DO focus on Western (European) literature, I would guess that LL's 2 World Lit. programs are an attempt to provide balance by focusing on Eastern Hemisphere literature (African, Asian), plus some Latin American literature. Most high school students do a year of British Lit and another of American Lit, so that would explain why a lot of World lit. programs don't include works from those nations.

Below are several programs and textbook programs that might work for you, and below that are ideas if you want to "DIY" (Do It Yourself). BEST of luck as you plan for high school! Warmest regards, Lori D.

___________________

Excellence in Literature: World Literature
1 year, 9 units, variety of works/nations; see more at the publisher, and samples at Christian Book

• ancients - The Odyssey (Greece), Antigone (Greece), Aeneid (Rome)
• medieval - Inferno (Italy), Don Quixote (Spain)
• early modern/modern - Les Miserables (France), Russian selections (Russia), Faust (German), Out of Africa (Denmark/Kenya)

___________________

LLATL (Learning Language Arts Through Literature): Gold: World Lit
1 year, 5 units, variety of works/nations; see more at the publisher's website, and more sample pages at Christian Book

• 1. early lit: myths, fairytales, folktales, fables (world); African proverbs/parables (Africa); Epic of Gilgamesh & the Bible (Middle East); sacred texts; Tanka poetry/haiku (Asia); ancient poetry
• 2. epic poetry: Odyssey (Greece); Mahabharata/Ramayana (India); Aeneid (Rome); Beowulf (Anglo-Saxon); Song of Roland (France); Nibelungenlied (Nordic)
• 3. medieval/renaissance: 1001 Arabian Nights, Ghazal & The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (Middle East); Canterbury Tales, sonnets, Romeo and Juliet (England); Don Quixote (Spain)
• 4. enlightenment/romanticism: Pilgrim's Progress (England); Divine Comedy (Italy); Gulliver's Travels (Ireland); Faust (German); Les Miserables (France); Importance of Being Earnest (England); 9 short stories (France, England, US)
• 5. 20th century: The Little Prince (France); Cry The Beloved Country (South Africa)

___________________

textbooks with teaching material
Prentice Hall Literature World Masterpieces (1996 edition) -- table of contents listed at that link
World Literature (Rinehart & Holt) -- lit. excerpts, analytical questions, intro info, author bios
Classics in World Literature (Scott Foresman) -- historical background; author bios, discussion questions, writing prompts, explanation of literary terms, breakaway sections that cover types of writing or literary elements common to that time period

year-long guide
How to Teach World Literature: A Practical Teaching Guide (Marlow) -- includes various European authors/works

DIY with an Anthology
Norton Anthology of World Literature -- see contents -- wide variety of Western and Eastern authors/works
Other Voices, Other Vistas -- Eastern Lit. focus; short story anthology; 5 each from: Africa, Latin America, China, Japan, India

___________________

DIY World Lit -- lots of European lit. ideas
Works from the past 200+ years -- PREVIEW, as many of the 20th/21st century works  are mature/intense:

1800-1850
Denmark -- fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen -- short story
France -- Count of Monte Cristo; or other (Dumas) -- novel
France -- Cyrano Debergerac (Rostand) -- play
Germany -- Faust (Goethe) -- novel
Germany -- fairy tales by the brothers Grimm -- short story
Russia -- "Queen of Spades", or other (Pushkin) -- short story
Russia -- The Nose; The Government Inspector; or other (Gogol) -- short story

1850-1900
France -- Les Miserables; or other (Hugo) -- novel
France -- "Fight With a Cannon" (Hugo) -- short story
France -- Madame Bovary (Flaubert) -- novel
France -- Around the World in Eighty Days; or other (Verne) -- novel
France -- "The Storm" (Verne) -- short story
France -- "The Necklace"; or other (de Maupassant) -- short story
Ireland -- Dracula (Stoker) -- novel
Japan/Greece/Ireland -- "Reflections", or other (Hearn) -- short story
Norway -- A Doll's House; Peer Gynt; Hedda Gabler; or other (Ibsen) -- play
Germany -- something by Friederich Nietzsche
Russia -- Fathers and Sons (Turgenev) -- novel 
Russia -- War and Peace; or other novel (Tolstoy) -- novel
Russia -- "How Much Land Does a Man Need"; or other (Tolstoy) -- short story
Russia -- Crime and Punishment; or other (Dostoevsky) -- novel
Russia -- The Grand Inquisitor section from the novel, The Brothers Karamotzov (Dostoyevski) -- novel, or the excerpt
UK/Hungary -- The Scarlet Pimpernel (Orczy) -- novel

1900-1950
Armenia -- The Road From Home (Kherdian) -- biography of a victim of the Armenian genocide, by her Americanized son
China -- The Good Earth (Buck) -- novel by an American who grew up in China
Denmark -- Out of Africa (Blixen) -- novel by a Danish author who lived for a number of years in Kenya
Denmark -- Ordette -- (Munk) -- play
France -- The Wanderer (Alain-Fournier) -- novel
France -- Phantom of the Opera (Leroux) -- novel
France -- The Stranger; The Plague; or other (Camus) -- novel
Ireland -- "The Dead" (Joyce) -- short story
Japan -- "Rashomon" (Akutagawa) -- short story
Poland -- A Day of Pleasure (Singer) -- autobiographical sketches
Poland -- The Cinnamon Shops (Shultz) -- short story collection
Germany -- The Metamorphosis; The Castle; The Trial; or other  (Kafka) -- novella
Germany -- All Quiet on the Western Front (Remarque) -- novel
Russia -- The Cherry Orchard; Three Sisters; or other (Chekov) -- play
Russia -- The Master and Margarita (Bulgakov) -- novel
Scotland -- The Lost Traveller (Todd) -- novel
UK/Greece -- My Family and Other Animals (Durrell) -- autobiographical sketches

1950-2000
Argentina -- "25th August, 1983"; or, other short story (Borges) -- short story
Chile -- House of the Spirits (Allende) -- novel
China -- Red Scarf Girl (Jiang) -- nonfiction/memoir
China/US -- Joy Luck Club (Tan) -- novel
Colombia -- One Hundred Years of Solitude, or, a short story (Marquez)
France -- In the Labyrinth (Robbe-Grillet) -- novel
Japan -- Artist of the Floating World (Ishiguro) -- novel
Japan -- The Samurai; or, Silence (Endo) -- novel
Japan -- Hiroshima (Hersey) -- non-fiction; by an American, but from interviewing survivors of the Hiroshima atomic bomb blast
India -- City of Joy (Lapierre) -- non-fiction; French priest living/working in the slums of Calcutta India
Italy -- The Name of the Rose (Eco) -- novel
Italy -- CosmiComics (Calvino) -- short story collection
Nigeria -- Things Fall Apart (Achebe) -- novel
Poland -- Solaris (Lem) -- novel
Romania -- Night (Wiesel) -- novella
South Africa -- Cry, The Beloved Country (Paton) -- novel
USSR -- a short story by Vladamir Nabokov
USSR -- One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich; or, The Gulag Archipelago (Solzhenitsyn) -- novel

2000-present
Afghanistan -- The Kite Runner; or, A Thousand Splendid Suns, or other (Hosseini) -- novel
Algiers -- The Swallows of Kabul (Khadra) -- novel
Botswana --No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency (Smith) -- mystery/light novel
Canada -- Life of Pi (Martel) -- novel
China -- Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (Sijie) -- novel
Germany/Australia -- The Book Thief (Zusak) -- YA novel
India/Nepal -- Sold (McCormick) -- novel; human trafficking
Iran -- Persepolis (Satrapi) -- novel
Iran/USA -- Reading Lolita in Tehran (Nafisi) -- novel
Japan -- choice of classic work of Manga -- graphic novel, as in "comic book" - illustration + story
Nigeria -- Say You're One of Them (Akpan) -- short story collection
Pakistan -- My Name is Malala: Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban (Yousafzai) -- nonfiction/memoir
Sierra Leone = A Long Way Gone (Beah) -- nonfiction/memoir; boy trained to be a killer child soldier
South Africa -- Born a Crime (Noah) -- nonfiction/memoir of the boyhood of comedian Trevor Noah

20th century USA (minority viewpoints)
- Their Eyes Were Watching God (Hurston) -- African American woman (U.S., 1930s)
- Black Like Me (Griffith) -- African American / Civil Rights & Deep South era (late 1950s)
- The Chosen (Potok) -- immigrant Jewish sub-culture within 1940s U.S.
- I Heard the Owl Call My Name (Craven) -- Pacific Northwest Native peoples (or possibly Canadian First Peoples)

Fantastical Short Stories from around the world:
- Black Water (anthology; Edited by Alberto Manguel) -- short stories
- Black Water 2 (anthology; Edited by Alberto Manguel) -- short stories

MORE IDEAS:
"World Literature That High School Students Actually Want to Read" -- public school teacher list
"World Literature" -- old thread, but check out Eliana's SEVERAL posts in this thread, with a ton of ideas of authors around the world/through the ages

Wow, thanks so much for this extensive post! I really appreciate it!!

[LIghtning Literature for High School Question]

Hello!

My dd is currently in 8th grade and is using Lightning Literature for the 2nd year and really enjoys it... My problem is that they seem to focus on 19th century lit for high school and have no 20th century literature at all...I was surprised when I realized this and now I'm not sure if I want to use it for HS...?? Has anyone successfully used it? Did you supplement? It also bothers me that their World Literature is focused on Asia and Africa only, no European writers (other than British) at all...

Can anyone recommend a different Literature program for 9-12th grade? I'm just trying to look ahead, so there's no rush for me to decide, but I'm really surprised to find this...

I appreciate your time!

 

[Looking for German workbooks...]

Hi!

My kids are learning German using Rosetta Stone and they don't really like it and I don't feel it's working well... does anybody have a recommendation for German that's more book based- Workbooks, etc? I can work with them on the pronunciation...just need something for Grammar and vocabulary...

Thanks!

[Looking for good French program]

Thanks for the suggestions! So, she could use "First Start" in 8th grade and then continue with BTB or FIA in 9th?

[Looking for good French program]

My dd (13) wants to try French and I'm looking for recommendations other than Rosetta Stone...?? Ideally, this would count as her Language class for High School credit... We tried Rosetta Stone for German, but neither of my kids likes it much and I'm not convinced it's as great as people say... I don't want to spend a huge amount of money right away, until I'm sure she'll stick with it long enough to get her 2 credits...

Thanks!

[How much time daily for 7th grade?]

Thanks so much to all of you! This was very helpful and I greatly appreciate all the sugestions!

[How much time daily for 7th grade?]

My 13 year old 7th grader works from 8-3 daily, so about 7 hours. Friday’s are usually shorter (~4 hours). She takes 4 online classes (roughly 12-3 M—Th) and the rest is independent work time.

 

For the two subjects she does outside of an online class, I chose programs with prescribed output: CLE for history which includes daily worksheets and quizzes/tests; AG for grammar. It would definitely NOT work for me to just assign reading without some sort of output. It’s too easy to just skim through without retaining anything.

 

ETA: She is a serious ballet student, dancing 18-20 hours per week, so she has no evening homework. She does usually spend 1-2 hours on Sunday evening preparing her planner for the week ahead and tackling anything she wants to get a head start on. She’s freakishly organized and mature for her age.

 

Thanks! I have a question about CLE History... is it very biblical? We use CLE for Math and it doesnt' bother me there, but I prefer a secular program for history...

 

[How much time daily for 7th grade?]

Hello!

 

I'm wondering how much time your 7th graders spend daily on school work? My dd (almost 13) wants to do most things on her own now and I do check her Math every day and do spelling with her, but everything else she works on on her own. The problem is, I don't think she spends enough time on it and she balks at writing summaries for her History and Science lessons, so I don't really feel like I know what she has done. I don't feel that just reading a chapter in her history book or science book is enough at this level...am I wrong? How do you deal with this surging independence, but still make sure your kids are doing enough?

TIA for your advice!

[History: The Human Odyssey - how to use?]

HI!

 

I just bought the first of The Human Odyssey books for my 12 yo and I'm wondering how people are using it?

Do you have your kids write up a summary for each chapter? Note just the main points...?

I don't want her to just read it, because I think writing things down keeps in your memory better...but I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it, so it doesn't become too tedious...??

Thanks!

[Typing Program recommendations? What age to start?]

Thanks so much!

[Typing Program recommendations? What age to start?]

Hi!

 

I'm wondering at what age my kids should start to learn typing on the computer? I have a 12 yo and 9 yo and they can type a little, but have never actually learned it properly with a program...

Any recommendations?

Thanks!

[Looking for secular Biology course for midddle grade]

I bought a used Holt Life Science (2005 edition) for about $10, and spread it over 6th and 7th grade, adding in McHenry's Botany, Cell, and Protozoa units, as well as "The Way We Work". My kid loves to read and make art, so McHenry was a great fit for her. The Holt text gave her a broader understanding, and was easy to implement independently. We haven't done many labs, but that wasn't my priority for this time period.

Ruth

 

Does Holt include evolution in their book? Thanks!

[Looking for secular Biology course for midddle grade]

Hi,

 

I'm looking for a secular biology course for my 12 yo dd. She would prefer to work on it on her own.

We've used RSO Chemistry with her younger brother this past year and while I thought it was pretty good, she wasn't too crazy about it...so I'm not sure about RSO Biology 2, although she might like it better doing it on her own...but it's soo expensive!!

Any other good secular courses that don't break the bank?

Thanks!

[suggestions for secular pre-teen Girls magazines??]

HI!

 

My dd is turning 12 soon and I was thinking about getting her a Magazines Subscription, but I'm having a hard time finding anything secular that's not all about make-up, dating and gossip... I checked into New Moon Magazine and while it looks great, I can't afford $40 for a Magazine subscription... Does anybody have any suggestions? She loves fashion, sewing & crafts, animals...

Thanks!

[Good Grammar program for 4-6 gr?]

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll check it out!

[Good Grammar program for 4-6 gr?]

Hi,

 

I'm looking for a good basic grammar program, but haven't been able to find one I like...preferably secular... Any suggestions?

It's not our favorite topic and I'm not looking for anything for a future writer or English teacher... just something that will teach them what they need to know. Also I don't have a big budget, I was using something from McMillan I downloaded for free at some point, but it doesn't come with an answer key, so it's hard to correct it.

I have one in 6/7th grade and one in 4th, so if there's something I could use for both, that would be great, otherwise it would have to be pretty inexpensive...

 

Thanks!

[looking for good easy chapter books for (almost) 8yo boy...]

Thanks so much for all the suggestions, we'll check them out!

[looking for good easy chapter books for (almost) 8yo boy...]

Hello!

 

I'm hoping to get some recommendations for chapter books for my (soon) 8yo son. He's outgrown the Magic Tree House series, but I'm having a hard time finding something for him that's worth reading...? He doesn't like mysteries or spooky stuff... Funny would be good, as long as it's well written... Any suggestions?

TIA

[Recommendation for Life skills Math workbooks]

Hello!

 

I was wondering if there are any good workbooks for life skills math? We are thinking about trying Kahn Academy for math next school year, since my dd (11) doesn't like TT any more, but I heard a lot of people supplement with some workbooks...?

Any suggestions or advice? She doesn't really like math, so I don't need anything advanced...

Thanks!

[Teaching Textbooks question - advice needed!!]

Thanks for all your advice! I think we will try using xtramath or something similar on Fridays to supplement during the school year and just work on some practice sheets and xtramath over the summer... It's mainly long multiplication / division that she has trouble with and it's usually a simple mistake that gets her on the wrong path... She did the TT6 placement test and passed... but there are lot of times where she has to use the "second chance" during the lessons...

Thanks again!

[Teaching Textbooks question - advice needed!!]

Hello!

 

I'm struggling to decide if I want to keep using Teaching Textbooks or not and I'm hoping to get some advice...

My dd (10) just finished TT5 and her average score is 92%, but she still struggles with multiplication and division and I don't think she's a 92% student in Math. It seems that it's too easy to get a good score ? I just had her do an assessment for a summer Math program through tenmarks.com, so she could practice some of the things she needs to improve before the next school year. There seem to be a lot of things that were not covered in TT5 and she is really getting frustrated with it. :-( And so am I!

Has anybody used TT through Highschool successfully? Is it a good enough program to graduate High school? My dd hates Math, so I'm not looking for something above and beyond, I just want to make sure she will learn all she needs to graduate HS once she's old enough. I liked TT because I don't have to teach it, since we both get frustrated with it, but if there's any other program that's better and still more of a self learning program I'd rather switch now than later...

Thanks in advance!!

 

P.S. She started out using Calvert Math from K- 2nd grade (we had received it from a friend) and started with TT in 3rd.

[Any good German learning apps or programs for kids 7-10 ??]

HI!

 

I'm trying to teach my kids German (I'm a native speaker), but I'm having a hard time sticking to it, without some kind of program to follow... (I've lived in the US 17 years and have nobody here to speak it with, so I automatically speak English to them...)

I've looked at different programs but it seems that it's either for Toddlers or Teens/Adults. I haven't been able to find anything that would appeal to them. Anybody have any suggestions?

I would greatly appreciate any ideas!

Thanks!

 

P.S. We'll be going to Germany next year to visit my Mom and I would like for them to be able to communicate somewhat with others while we're there.

Thanks.

[Good German program for Kids (7 & 10) ??]

Hi!

 

I'm looking for a good program to teach my kids German, before we go visit my Mom next year. So far I've only found programs for little kids that are too baby-ish for my kids, or ones geared towards Teens/Adults... I can help them with pronunciation, etc, but I'm having a hard time teaching them without some kind of program to follow. They both have Kindle's (Fire), so an app would also be an option.

I would appreciate any ideas!! We've tried Muzzy before, but I'm not too fond of it.

 

Thanks so much!!