I have used the Botany and Zoology 1 books and I think the ideal range would be 3-6 grades. My second grader listens in, but the reading has way too many details to keep his interest. If I didn't have my 5th grader I wouldn't even considered it for my second grader alone. I think teaching it to K and 1st grade would be a waste.

Every school district is different. In our district you have to go to the school board with the request (and prove your point). I would call the superintendent of your district and ask what you need to do.

Hmmmmm. . . . . . . I don't remember any discounts except for this year.

:lol: :iagree: You're not alone! :tongue_smilie:

MFW is not my favorite. I learned that my kids can't be combined! Well, I do combine them for some things, but history just didn't work. (We now will do the same type of history, but different resources.) I also didn't like some of the books that were used in CtG. We did enjoy adventures, but I did it with just one ds at the time. My oldest told me he isn't a fan of history (right now, hoping this will change in the future), so it didn't make sense buying a whole program that was focused around history. Wish he would have told me this before I bought the whole basic program!! :lol:

CBD Amazon Barnes & Nobles (we have a local one and we get lots of gift cards from birthdays!) Catholic Heritage

Which one would you recommend to get first? I think I will teach the ABCs first, but a book at the library should be good for that.

You have received some great advice! I have a son who is two years "behind" in spelling and another who is good at and on target for spelling. So, I have used or looked at a lot of these programs! Spelling is one thing that my boys can't use the same program. Here is what I have looked at for my struggling speller. My favorite is Spelling Plus. It is at least worth getting to read as it has a great introduction on how to teach spelling. I have the dictation book for it too and we still use that and I have my kids study spelling words using their technique. (I just don't use their list at the moment.) The How to Teach Spelling looks great, but it doen't break it down and have lesson plans. AAS is great too, but my oldest became overwhelmed with it (too much information and activities). We just started using Apples & Pears and I like it, but too soon for results.

I just bought it and you click on USA store and they are printed here, so they should be American . . . . . I haven't found any problems, but haven't been using it long. We do get a kick out of all the dictation sentences about the queen. There was the the quid that I have never heard before and we looked it up, but it was used differently in the dictation sentence. Still not completely sure what that word means. :lol: There was a couple more words that were never use that I thought was weird to teach a kid to spell so I just assumed they are more commonly used in the UK. So far we are liking it but too soon for results. I started at the very end of Book A with my 11 year old. You are suppose to do one level for a lesson, but it is just a little too long for him. It take 30-40 minutes and he has had his share at 20 minutes. I haven't decided if we will take two days or maybe come back and finish it later in the day.

Thank you! I searched old post and the Signing Time videos seem to be popular. I wish my library had them. Maybe we will purchase one to try it out. Will look at the website!!

I bought it last month and started reading it, but only on chapter 5. I think it is going to be a very useful resource to have on hand for our whole homeschool career! I think it is overpriced, but still a must read. But, if I still find it useful in 5 years then it will be worth the price!

Simply Charlotte Mason website is awesome and I enjoy reading many of her free ebooks. I have read some of the original books, but I struggle with them. SCM quotes the originals a lot! And I have some of her DVDs and she does a great job of saying which ideas are CM and which ideas are CM influenced. Lots of free e-books on the website too! IF you can handle the originals, pick one up and read it!

Sounds like burn out to me. :grouphug: Perhaps take a week off and then ease back into school for a week or two. Do some fun activities with the kids and get some time away from each other. If this doesn't help the attitude/discpline problems, work on those more. We are just getting back to work after a burn out last month. Easing back into for two weeks worked good for us and we didn't get too far behind on schedule. ETA: My heart was not in teaching my kids and this is why I knew I had to take time off. It took a week and half off from school 2-3 weeks at half speed to get my heart back into teaching my kids.

We are interested in learning sign language. Does anyone have any resources to recommend? I checked our library and there are lots of books, but not much DVDs and most were checked out. I was looking to make a purchase, but no idea what to get or what resources would be best to self teach.

I "thought" we could get 2 books done in a year, but it is a struggle. If you do science 4-5x a week, it shouldn't be a problem. We only do science 2x a week, so that plan isn't working for us. :glare:

He loves to get out our cookbooks and cook, but he struggles with knowing all the terms and needs help. This is why I thought a program might help. I have only found ones for girls and they are really girly. :lol:

My boys have asked to listen to music during school time. I told them that pop music wasn't going to happen. :lol: They are not fans of classical music. Does anyone have any music recommendations that works for school time?

My 11 year old Ds enjoys cooking. I would like for him to learn to cook. I am looking for recommendations for a program. I would like something that he can read and do on his own (I will be in the kitchen to supervise). Is there such a program?

CBD since it is always 10% off and I wait till I can get free shipping with that. Sign up for their emails and they send them out once in a while.

I have no help! It looks wonderful! I just didn't have the time to make my own lesson plans. I returned it. :glare:

Short story, we didn't have any problems switching with print or cursive. :001_smile:

I just bought Stories of America over the weekend. So, no review yet. We are doing American History with my will be 3rd & 6th grader Ds next school year. I got it for extra reading material. Since it is sold my SCM, I assume it is a living book.

Thanks!

I am considering to a unit on weather with my DS 11. Does anyone have any recomendation on books or resources to use.

HOD is what got me thinking about dictation. My youngest DS is using HOD next school year. I got Bigger this week and was looking at the spelling and it will be too easy for him next year. I was considering buying Spelling Wisdom from SCM to use for him. I also have AAS 3 that he will be ready for by that time. I thought about doing both, but maybe dictation is enough. (Note he is not my struggling/visual learner, that is my oldest.)