Are you learning Norwegian?

Thank you for sharing! It's really nice for those of us in the trenches to hear from parents who have graduated their children.

I completely understand wanting to eliminate the stress. I've got six more children to get through highschool :svengo::eek: and I know that each of them will have different wants and needs that I'll have to work with. I also know that I couldn't ask for a better student than DD 15. Some of my other children will be much more challenging and the stress issue will come up more. I'm saving this thread for future reference.

:iagree:and have experience with the bolded,too. :(

A surprise!

This is me, too. If only I had more time to practice.

Flummoxed :001_wub:

:iagree: I've had "bacon" bits on salad and I'm a fairly strict vegetarian. As to whether or not to eat the salad, I think it varies depending on the person's own Lenten journey.

I live in the boonies, 30 km away from a town of 2500. The 30 km seems to increase significantly in winter; I may as well be on a different planet then.

I'm glad you said this because I was starting to feel like a freak. :tongue_smilie:We do all subjects every day as well, but we don't start so early (I can just imagine the look of utmost horror if I told my 10th grader to start her work and 5 am). DD 15 does work well into the evening and, while I found her school hours weird at first, I've discovered that they suit her very well. So, my only bit of advice is to find what works for you. :grouphug: You can do it!

DD 15 spends 45 min - 1 hr. each day, five - six (the sixth day is labs with DH, she does this every other week) days a week. She's using Campbell's Biology: Concepts and Connections, Chemistry by Chang, and Physics: Principles with Applications by Giancoli which are all university/AP level texts. She's also reading one living science book of her choice, currently, How I Killed Pluto: And Why it had it Coming. She's probably not spending as much time on science as most other students using texts of this level, but I feel that, based on DD's interests, she's doing enough.

:iagree:And I only have one in high school right now. The thought of more is...terrifying. Our days are long and full (no, I should not be on the computer right now :tongue_smilie:). I focus on the younger kids (10, 8, and 6) in the morning while the older children (15 and 13) work independently. The littles are all done their work by the afternoon, so I work with the older two then. My highschooler is very motivated and self-disciplined, and she studies well by herself. I wouldn't be able to manage otherwise. The whole thing is a balancing act I'm not quite in control of, but I'm able to bumble along and pray it will all be worth it in the end.

:iagree: And I was definitely not going to have seven children that I homeschooled.

She's quite proud of her asymertic hands. :tongue_smilie: a. Musical Instrument played Violin b. Hours/week practicing 14 hours c. Practice history (approximate hours/year for each year playing...can give an average) 4500 hours? d. Age at which the instrument was taken up 4 e. Age now 13 f. Handedness (for playing) Left, but she plays the same way as other violinists g. Gender F h. Are you involved in any non-musical activities that might regularly stress the fingers: e.g., typing on keyboard, or dribbling a basketball? If yes, please list Lots of drawing and painting Measurements: (Please take in cm from the middle of each knuckle. We found we got more reproducible measurements by drawing a dot on the middle of each knuckle and measuring from there to the end of the finger.) Right hand Left hand Index finger 9 cm 9 cm Middle finger 9.75 cm 10 Ring finger 9 cm 9 cm Pinky 6.5 cm 6.75 cm a. Musical Instrument played Violin b. Hours/week practicing 3-4 hours if I'm lucky c. Practice history (approximate hours/year for each year playing...can give an average) Maybe 7000 hours d. Age at which the instrument was taken up 9 e. Age now Uhh...37 f. Handedness (for playing) Right g. Gender F h. Are you involved in any non-musical activities that might regularly stress the fingers: e.g., typing on keyboard, or dribbling a basketball? If yes, please list Too much time typing on the computer Measurements: (Please take in cm from the middle of each knuckle. We found we got more reproducible measurements by drawing a dot on the middle of each knuckle and measuring from there to the end of the finger.) Right hand Left hand Index finger 9 cm 9 cm Middle finger 9.75 cm 9.75 Ring finger 9 cm 9 cm Pinky 6.5 cm 6.5 cm I also have younger kids (10, 8, and 6) who play violin and cello. I can measure their hands too, if you want.

I'm not, but I still remember my first RCIA class 18 years ago. As someone who attends a parish with dwindling membership, it's very heartening to know all of you are doing RCIA. I'll be praying for you. :grouphug:

:grouphug: Those situations are so awful. Congratulations on your boy, though! He has a lovely name.

:iagree: We're a family of Shakespeare lovers, so I really have no idea when we started "doing" Shakespeare, it's just always been a natural part of life. An 11 year old is plenty old enough to be reading, acting, and enjoying Shakespeare.

I'm pleased to say, this is no longer a miss! :D After a ten day break from Greek, DD 13 said, "I can't believe I spent all that time learning Greek and I'm not even going to get to read Homer." So we're back at it now and doing Norwegian as well.

When I first discovered AoPS I believed it was the perfect math text. DD 12 (now 15) started Intro to Alg. and within a few weeks I was sure I'd use AoPS with all my children. The rigour, excitment, and joy contained in the books made them completely perfect. Here, I thought, was the curriculum to beat all curricula. I had two years of blissful AoPS love, then disaster struck. My second daughter, 12 at the time, hated AoPS. I let her skip all the challenge problems and she still hated it. Some days weren't too bad, but far too often math resulted in tears. "I can't do this! I'm no good at math!" She'd done SM all the way to 6B and, while she certainly wasn't a math lover, she did well enough. But AoPS was just too much. I finally got the message that AoPS wasn't the all-perfect curriculum I had thought, and switched DD 13 to Singapore's NEM, which is also a challenging math text. The difference has been extraordinary. NEM challenges DD at a level within her capabilities. It makes her think, not cry. She doesn't love math, but she does it without fuss and even admits that it can be kind of intriguing. We are very happy with the switch to NEM. But I'm not nearly as anti-AoPS as it may sound. DD 15 is doing Intermediate Algebra, her fifth AoPS book, now. She (and I) have been thrilled with how well AoPS works for her; the discovery approach could not have been a better fit. She relishes the challenge and has come to love math so much more than I think she would have with any other curriculum. It's currently 11:40 on a Saturday night and DD, of her own choice, is working on an AoPS problem. How her brain can function so well at this hour is beyond me. :001_huh: Anyway, all this rambling to say, it really (really, really) depends on the child. Don't set your heart on AoPS. It's not for everyone, and that's okay. Not everyone needs to use the most challenging curriculum on the market. From the AoPS website: The Art of Problem Solving curriculum is designed for high-performing math students in grades 6-12. I hate to break it to you, but it's mathematically impossible for everyone to be in the top of the class. ;) Your child might be perfectly bright and still not be at AoPS level. That does not mean that he/she is doomed. I am all for pushing children, but only as far as they are capable. The problems in AoPS are not just hard, they are at a level that might be incomprehensible for those of us who are used to the formulaic problems in standard high school math texts. Like others have said, I'm not wanting to discourage. I'm just offering the some words of warning from someone who's used AoPS very succesfully with one child and found it to be a disaster with another. :)

DD 15 doesn't really like soup, but would probably eat it just to be polite. DD 13 loves soup.

My children started playing violin or cello between the ages of 3-5. I let them choose what instrument they wanted to play, but, given that all but one of them play violin, you'd never guess it was their choice. Here's my favourite piece for recorder Telemann Recorder Concerto.

I'm working on: Linguistics (TTC courses) Early Christianity Latin and Greek with DD 15 Violin Early modern great books which DDs 15 and 13 will be studying next year. Don Quixote, here I come. ;)

:iagree:I've taught all of SM primary math and DD 13 is now working on NEM 2.

I love that evenings aren't taken over by homework. I love that read alouds are such an intergal part of our family culture that my teens still want to listen. I love that my children have time to practice their musical instruments. I love going on nature walks in the middle of the day. I love the strong relationships I have with all my children and the I love learning languages that aren't normally taught at school. I love doing school wherever we feel like it. I love how much time we spend reading. I love praying the Liturgy of the Hours as a family. I love going to the library during school hours. I love that my children know who they are. I love how much my children love learning. I love the discussions we have. I love not being tied to the school schedule. I love when my children point out faulty arguments. I love that my children don't care how old their friends are. I love how my children have passions. I love self-educating. And a whole lot more. :)

:iagree: You might want to try Singapore's Challenging Word Problems, Ed Zaccaro books, and living math books (there are lots of ideas here).