Awesome! This will be perfect for my little guys. :-)

I have never used ELTL so I can't give you advice on whether that is enough or not. What helps me the most when I start doubting myself on writing is to listen to Susan Wise Bauers conference talks. I also feel very inadequate when it comes to teaching writing but these lectures helped build my confidence. I highly recommend the following audio lectures... A plan for teaching writing: focus on elementary years A plan for teaching writing: focus on high school years The Joy of Classical Education Literary Analysis Here is the link to the store to purchase the mp3s... https://peacehillpress.com/a/susan-wise-bauer/ Julie bogart also has some great advice on her website for teaching writing. Here is a link to two of her great podcasts... http://blog.bravewriter.com/2012/05/30/03-jot-it-down-stage-of-development/ http://blog.bravewriter.com/2012/06/19/04-partnership-writing-stage-of-development/ Hopefully some of this will be helpful. :-)

We still have a long way to go. Who knew puppies are soooo much work?! It's amazing that anyone survives the puppy stage. We have a baby gate set up as well as a crate. They are both very helpful, but that day I had already exhausted all my resources. The only thing I worked on was having him lie on the floor while we sat at the table. It helped that he was on a leash while working with him. He was more then happy to obey as long as I kept the treats coming. I am still working on it, but he is getting a lot better. I am sure we have plenty more puppy days in our future. ;-)

I really appreciate everyone's advice. I am glad to hear that I am not the only one that has sick kids right now, LOL. I am also glad to hear that I am not the only one struggling with this. Thank you also for the "toughen up and just get it done" advice, LOL, I needed that as well. I should clarify a little. I don't usually take 6 full weeks off, last year I did light school through the first two or three weeks of December. This year I planned to do the same, I even made the kids do math and reading while their cousins were staying with us over thanksgiving break. Unfortunately despite our good start two things really threw us off. We got a puppy, which has been WAY more time consuming than I thought. Also my youngest was unexpectedly admitted to the hospital for several days and she had to have surgery. She was then put on a couple of antibiotitcs for about four weeks. This resulted in several very messy diaper changes a day, often requiring a change of clothing each time. Between the diapers and puppy it was a ridiculous December. Most of those things have settled down. This is why I have been so frustrated, I am in a (slightly) better position to get school done and my kids have been sick off and on this month. I do my best to do school with whom ever is healthy enough to do it. But as Critterfixer described sometimes illnesses result in my time mostly being spent caring for the sick child. So it can get a bit frustrating. But it sounds like I need to just keep pushing through as I am and get the skill subjects done and perhaps lower my expectations for the content subjects and have a plan B for those. I always tend to over plan for the content subjects which often contributes to my frustrations. I will also most likely do what several of you suggested and perhaps only take one month off in the summer to make up for it. As far as keeping my kids from getting sick I do my best. Unfortunately I think the most common place my kids pick things up is at church but missing it is not an option for us. I had to chuckle at the fishy cracker comment, it is sadly true. I think it is slightly helpful that I currently work in the nursery so I do my best to slather my son's hands in hand sanitizer before he eats his fishy crackers. I can see a light at the end of the tunnel as my 10yo gets sick less often then the rest. I think it will get better as they all get older. So I guess one positive from having sick days is their immune system is learning something LOL. Thank you all so much I really needed some words of encouragement right now, this will help me have the endurance to push through February. Today was better school wise despite my daughter still feeling a bit on the edge from throwing up yesterday. And over the last week or two I did force everyone, including whomever happened to be sick at the time, ;-), to listen in on read aloud time. Most of them have had their share of fevers and vomiting over the last month, yep it's been lots of fun.

Welcome, I am so glad you found this forum it has made a huge difference for me on my homeschooling journey. First off I highly recommend you read the book "The Well Trained Mind" by Susan Wise Bauer, it had a huge impact on my confidence to homeschool. I have yet to read it myself ( I hope to soon), but I have also heard very good things about the book "For The Children's Sake." I think every homeschooler goes through the doubts that you described. Will I be doing my child a disservice by denying him/her a "real" school experience? It is true that if your child homeschools all the way through your child will probably not experience school in a classroom setting. They won't experience waking up early, sitting in a classroom with a bunch of kids the same age for 6-8 hours a day, standing in a lunch line, asking for permission to use the bathroom, coming home with homework. No really, there are a few positives about going to "real" school that they would miss. But if they go to school they will also miss out on the many positives of homeschooling. To name just a few...getting enough sleep, short lessons, no busy work, no waiting for crowd control, ability to go at ones own pace, study what you are interested in, use the bathroom when needed, get a drink or snack when wanted, more time with mom/family, more field trips, more time out in the real world, more free time to socialize, more free time period. There are positives and negatives of both options, either way your child will miss out on something, you need to honestly ask yourself what positives matter the most to you. Once you figure that out you can most likely find a way to make up for what you are worried they will miss out on, in time you may discover those things really were not that important. I also suggest once you make your decision write down the reasons you chose what you did and put it somewhere safe, next time you doubt your decision, which I can guarantee will happen, get it back out and read through it. Providing Social opportunities... Homeschoolers often have more time to socialize then their public school peers. The harder part is providing opportunities to socialize with peers. Just remember socializing does not have to happen in the classroom. My kids get most of their socializing opportunities at church, church activities, neighborhood kids, and cousins. Also remember just because you homeschool does not mean socializing has to happen with other homeschoolers or during school hours. What about extra curricular activities like soccer, swimming, etc. You could also look into starting a homeschool playgroup, park day, low pressure mini science class, art class, PE class, etc. What about play dates, neighborhood friends, etc. ? Like you I also decided to try homeschooling my oldest for preschool, then kindergarten, and because it has been such a success we have continued. I love the flexibility it provides our family. I have a hard time imagining being tied to a school schedule. I myself attended public and private schools as well as homeschool. My fondest memories come from my homeschooling years, rarely do I look back at my public or private school days with fondness. In fact often the opposite. This is also one of the many reasons I homeschool. But not every family's needs are the same. Do what you feel will be most beneficial for your kids and family. Hope some of this has been helpful. I hope you are able to figure things out. And no matter what decision you make I hope you stick around the forum. :-)

We often end up taking off or doing light school the last half of November and all of December. We have three birthdays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas spread out through those two months. Come January I am more than ready to get back to work with school. But every year it seems my kids are constantly getting sick through January and February. Since we have lots of littles illnesses take a while to work through our family, often a week or two. As soon as everyone is healthy again one of our kids get sick again and the process starts over. Despite this I do my best to get the basics done, but subjects like history, science, and this year grammar and spelling often get neglected. Then come March I am often trying to work overtime in the neglected subjects on top of the basics. I always plan on schooling year round but come summer I am worn out. Anyone else stuck in this cycle? What have you done to help?

When you call off the remainder of school to work on puppy training, we were getting nothing done with him jumping up on my lap and table and nipping my toes. And after doing so the advice of " frequent but short lessons are more productive than long drawn out ones" popped into my head, um yeah, I completely ignored that advice. He was full of treats by the time I got done ;-), and he was much better behaved today :-).

Thanks! 😀

I am terrible at this as well. Ironically I don't feel ready for the day until my own teeth are brushed in the morning, but my kids always look at me funny and ask why I am brushing my teeth so early. I guess this is a quirky habit I should pass on to my kids, lol. :-)

Mmmmm. I hope you get a lot of free samples. My mom worked for Hershey's for about a year and we were constantly getting free, almost reached expiration date, candy bars. I think I gained several extra pounds during that time, although I was pregnant at the time so that was excuse enough right?! :-)

Okay I have been totally panicking over the fact that my oldest is on the verge of Logic stage (5th grade next year), only four more years left before highschool. I know, I know that is a Long time away but it doesn't seem like it. I finally feel like I am getting the hang of the grammar stage and now I am being thrown back into the deep end and need to learn how to swim again. Okay enough of my self pity party. :-) So these are my plans so far... Dd 5th Math: SM, maybe BA, Key to series, and probably hands on equations Spelling: AAS Grammar: I really don't know, I am leaning towards Jr Analytical Grammar Writing: This is the area I am the least sure about. I am debating between CW, IEW, BW, slowly starting WWS, or something of my own Reading/Literature: Probably SL Core E readers, along with other things Foreign Language: Start being consistent with Spanish, and I really need to start Latin Logic: something to get ready for formal logic. Still figuring it out. Dd 3rd Math: CLE/SM Spelling/Phonics: Barton Grammar: FLL Writing: WWE Reading: SL readers Dd 2nd Math: SM and maybe Miquon Spelling/Phonics: Barton Grammar: FLL Writing: WWE Reading: SL readers Ds K Not sure what I will use with him. Mostly depends on where he is at the beginning of the year. All together Science: I really want to figure out how to make BFSU work for us. History: I am really considering doing TOG Yr. 1 next year. However my Dd 10 really wants to finish American History, but I want to get back on track with the four year cycle and get going on the cycle with my Dd8 and Dd6. I am considering doing a combo and do a bare bones American history along with Ancients. Not sure yet.

dp

This was me today. Although I discovered my 4yo son had a fever midway through the day so I called off half the day. :-)

I am not trying to side track this thread. But I wanted to give an update. So I finally bought I timer and tried it out yesterday and today. It was a night and day difference. I did end up breaking it up into two shorter times. Yesterday I gave her 20 min and she finished in five, it was a really easy couple of fraction lessons. In the past she probably would have spent an hour on this, she doodles a LOT and easily gets distracted. She loved the idea of having free time, and she spent the remainder 15 min doodling in her math book, LOL :-). Today I gave her 15 min, for two more fraction lessons (4 pages) a little more time consuming than yesterday, she finished with 7 min to spare. Both days I did 10 additional minutes in her IP book. I plan on slowly increasing both times, but right now I am thrilled that she is finally focusing on her work and getting it done in a realistic amount of time. I really wasn't trying to sound punitive with the homework, i wasn't telling her in a punitive way more like a matter of fact natural consequence way. If she were giving it her all and ran out of time I would not be forcing her to finish it later as homework ;-), only if she were not staying on task. I was pretty sure that having the carrot of free time hanging out there this wouldn't even be an issue. :-). Lori D Thank you so much for all your thoughts!

I am so glad to hear that I am not the only one struggling with this. What should only take my Dd10 (4th grade) 15 to 20 min to get done she manages to stretch out to 2+ hours sometimes. I know she is not struggling with the material because when motivated she can easily fly through it. She just cannot stay focused. I have decided that I am going to try and set a timer for 45 min to 1 hour and tell her that she needs to complete her work in that amount of time or it is homework. If she completes here work sooner than she can use the remaining time as a break. I am really, really hoping this will make a difference because the long drawn out days are getting very old. I am also considering breaking up her lesson into multiple math sessions.

Yes it is possible, not always easy but possible. Unfortunately, I also tend to gravitate towards teacher intensive curricula as well. Subjects, like math and phonics, I need to sit with each of my kids and teach/guide them through the lesson no matter what curriculum I use so I use what works for each kid. For the other subjects I just have to pick and choose what I really want to spend my time on and what will realistically happen. Easier said than done ;-). I have discovered that for me finding a routine that works the best for our family, which is constantly evolving, is more important than finding that perfect curriculum. Also this year I have been trying to prioritize what is most important and make sure no matter what those things get done first. Here is what I would do if I could go back in time to when my oldest was eight. I would focus on the three R's using what best fit the learning styles of my kids. For us this would have probably been Singapore Math, WWE, FLL, phonics/Sonlight readers. Your kids may thrive with very different curricula then what has worked for my kids, use what is working. Aside from the skill subjects reading aloud would be my next priority (science and history would be included in that, and I would also pick a fun chapter book such as one off a sonlight list). For history I would use something simple like SOTW and living books for science. I would try and leave time for nature journals and science projects and activities. I would also do an art project here and there, nothing too formal and time consuming. The other thing I really, really wish I would have done better at, and we are currently working on, is getting down a good chore system/routine. Having a good system where everyone pitches in to keep the house at an acceptable (not perfect) level of clean makes a big difference. Like I said we are working on this, and we have a lot of room for improvement. Hope some of this might help. You can do it. Figure out your goals and priorities, a realistic way of making them happen, and take it one day at a time. :-)

You have had some great responses so far and so I will try to not repeat what others have already said but I can tell you my personal experiences with both programs. I used AAR levels 1 and half of 2 with my second Dd and level 1 and the beginning of 2 with my third Dd. I have now switched them both to Barton and they are both now in level 3. Both programs are great for different reasons. As others have said they are both Orton Gilingham based programs so the rules that are taught are very similar. AAR moves more quickly than Barton, although there were times that it seemed to be moving at a snails pace ;-). I usually spent a few days on a lesson to try and give plenty of practice for the new concept being taught. We did the lesson with the letter magnets and played the lessons game/activity. Both girls usually enjoyed the games, I would also have them read words and a couple sentences from the practice sheet at a separate time in the day. There are also lessons, often 2-3, between each new concept, assigning stories from the readers. My kids enjoyed the first vol. in level 1 but after that they came to dread the readers and would complain. I eventually ditched the readers and just worked through the lessons adding in BOB books to increase confidence and fluency. AAR is a lot like AAS (I have used AAS 1-4 with my oldest), they teach the new rule/concept, give you a list of words for you to practice, then you move on to the next lesson, there is also a bit of built in review as well. For some kids this is plenty and works very well. AAS has worked well for my oldest. For my other two it was okay, but my second was struggling to apply rules after moving on to the next rule. Barton teaches those same rules but in a very different way. Not sure if this will make sense but AAR feels like it skims the surface, it teaches the rule and moves on, which is plenty for most kids. Barton digs deep and makes sure the kid knows the rule inside and out. They teach it forwards and backwards. Barton has the kids learning how to take a word and sound out then read it as a whole word. They also make the kids break a word into its individual sounds and then build the word. There is a TON of active practice built in, much more than just a list of words to practice reading. So far one lesson takes us a whole week to get through, so it is not a quick program to work through either but it is extremely thorough. My daughter who was having a very difficult time with blends, she would mix up the sounds like s-t and read it as t-s, she was able to practice this skill over and over and now she has improved a lot. So far we love Barton it has made my two Dds slow down, stop guessing, and actually focus on the word in front of them. One other thing I love about Barton that AAR did not do is having the kids practice reading nonsense words in addition to real words making it difficult to guess. I don't have any answer as to what program will work best for you, but I am hoping my thoughts on both will be helpful. Both programs are excellent choices.

Thanks! :-)

No, I have one of these for each of my kids... http://www.staples.com/Staples-6-Drawer-Mobile-Organizer-116862-/product_809574 They have been pretty durable. I don't do a true workbox system, but I store each subject in different drawers so all their books are easy to find and have a home to go back to. ETA: Not sure if the drawers are large enough to hold binders, but the have held our books just fine.

I highly recommend listening to Susan Wise Bauers audio lectures on the different stages of writing, they really helped me see the big picture. Here is the link to purchase them from peace hill press... https://peacehillpress.com/c/language-arts/ I also really love The Joy of Classical Education for the same reason. https://peacehillpress.com/p/the-joy-of-classical-education-introduction-to-classical-education-at-home-mp3-download/

((Hugs)) Hang in there. This is a hard time of year. Do something different and fun for a few days. Take some time off, put away your teacher hat and be just mom for a few days. My 9.5 year old does the same thing. Sometimes my kids seem to go through a learning slump here and there. Give it some time and see if it gets better. :-)

I know you said you don't really want books, but I thought I would mention a couple we have liked just in case. My husband, who loves cooking and experimenting with new recipes, has really enjoyed tax couple of the Cooks Country and American Test Kitchen books. He appreciates that they teach why they are doing something not just the what. He also really enjoys the Cooks Country shows for that same reason. Cooking shows and reality cooking shows are a regular in our house and our kids have picked up on a few things here and there. Another show that might be fun to help kick start the desire to cook is Master Chef Jr., my kids love this show, I will be following this thread with interest. It would be fun to do more thoughtful direct teaching in this area of life. :-)

I can't speak for all Mormons, but I am LDS and can tell you my stance on this topic. I am happy for my kids to socialize with any kids whether Mormon or not. Honestly I care more about the family's values than I do about which church they belong to. For example, if the family were constantly swearing or their children were playing video games that I disapprove of my children would not be spending much time with them. I hold the same requirements for LDS friends and friends of other faiths. Unfortunately there are LDS members who try and have their kids play with only other LDS kids (I personally don't know any like this), but not all and I hope most are not like this. Some of my best friends growing up were not LDS, and my parents never encouraged or discouraged friendships solely based on church membership. As far as being really busy with church stuff this could be possible. It depends on what positions the parent(s) hold in the church. I know my husband's current calling (how he serves/ position in the church) keeps him pretty busy. It also depends on the age of the kid in question. If he is 8 and older he is most likely involved with scouts. If he is 12 or older he will have mutual (youth group activities) once a week. In addition to any other extra curriculars it can quickly add up to a busy schedule. I would say go for it. Feel it out and see how the mom feels about them getting together. It might require her getting to know your family better before she trusts sending her son over to your house (I feel this way whether or not the friend is LDS). The one advantage of playing with a fellow church member is that the parents have usually had ample time to get to know the other family and parents, so you may have to put extra effort in there. If his schedule is truly busy maybe your son could go to some of the activities with the other boy. Could he attend scouts or mutual once or twice with him? Not always but often mutual activities are either service projects or purely fun activities (i.e. Ice skating, hiking, paint balling, making cards for local children's hospital, etc.). If you feel comfortable with that it might be a good option, if not I am sure there are other ways to get them together. Just trying to throw ideas out there. Hope you are able to make the friendship work. :-) Also either Mormon or LDS works. The official name of the church is The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. LDS is an abbreviation of the last three words. The term Mormon comes from The Book of Mormon. :-) ETA: sorry just realized this is an old thread.

So sorry I didn't see this until just now, I have been busy with Thanksgiving and family. Here is the link, let me know if it doesn't work.... http://www.audible.com/mt/Treat-Yourself-2015/?source_code=AUDOREM1110159FJ7 The sale lasts until Dec. 2 I got some great titles like Rats of NIMH, Mary Poppins, and Anne of Green Gables. ETA: Sorry everyone that I didn't post the link to begin with I was in a hurry this morning. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. :-)

Not sure if anyone has mentioned this already. I received an email from audible with select books on sale for $4.95. The History of the Ancient World is on sale as well as a couple great courses. There are also a few other great titles as well.