I also wanted to add that you may want to do BA in the morning if that is when he is fresher. Even though the comics are fun, the problems are hard and take mental effort.

I found with my mathy kiddo that I could zoom through SM3 (textbook and workbook only - I circled practice problems for him to do). We slowed down for a few new things, but most things he got pretty quickly. We started SM 4A, but then switched over to BA. I just let him pick which one he wanted to do. He usually picked BA, but sometimes SM if he was tired that day (BA made SM seem "easy"). We spent most of the year on BA, but I think he got a lot out of it. We did not do IP/CWP because I felt he was getting plenty of problem solving and challenge with BA. This coming year we will stick with BA and do SM while we wait for the next level of BA to come out.

Awesome! I did this just for social studies last year and it was soooo nice. You are going to love having those all prepped!

Yikes! That sounds insane. Umm.... my first instinct is to stay away from UCLA! I was a Chemical Engineering major and took a lot of chemistry. I did not feel it was sexist. In fact, chemistry was much more even male/female than physics. I'm pretty sure our lab classes went over everything. My high school chemistry class didn't even have a hood. This is not to say that lab skills aren't important, but it seems like this story is extreme.

I am an introvert and it would depend on how well I knew the person. If I definitely knew his/her name, have had several conversations with them, then it would be a nice surprise. If it was someone I've seen at park day a few times, maybe chatted with, but didn't know his/her name or the names of his/her kids, I would probably hope we don't bump into each other because it would be awkward.

Yes! I had science all figured out and now I'm completely changing it. But I think it will be worth it.

I agree that Cornell is very good at meeting financial need. :)

This is an interesting topic. I tested my kids at home last year just to see how homeschool was going compared to their previous school. But this year I didn't. Every other year might work for us. What do you all think about taking tests online versus bubble tests? I was thinking of having ds take the Stanford test online at the end of next year, but that obviously wouldn't give him practice filling in bubbles in a test sheet. Are most tests moving to the computer? I think the SAT is on the computer now, is that right?

Hee hee, Farrar. I think my biology book list came from one of your posts! (Including the Seymour Simon ones). :) Hmm... but let's see if I have any to add anyway. ;) Here are some on the plan for us for health: "It's So Amazing!" (human development/growth/reproduction) "Understanding Myself" (A Kid's Guide to Intense Emotions and Strong Feelings) "Janice VanCleave's Food and Nutrition for Every Kid" I also saw some interesting kits in the Homeschool Science Tools catalog - one was how to give a medical exam, another was blood typing, and a few more that looked interesting.

I know what you mean and I don't know if it is necessarily a midlife thing. I had the same questions in high school. I heard some great advice to start where you are. Look for a need around you or help a cause that has a powerful draw to you personally. I think raising children is an important contribution to the world for sure, so no need to feel that it isn't "enough." However, if you feel drawn to do more - figure out what is pulling you the most. You can start small - make a small donation or research. A small thing may lead to a great thing, kwim?

Did they check his vitamin D levels? I get really tired when my vitamin D is low (even when I've been in the sun fairly often it can still be low).

Singapore Science (My Pals Are Here)?

Do you really not see a distinction between a relationship that results in marriage and a relationship between a mother/daughter pair who live together? If you sincerely do not understand, I'm glad people are here to answer you. I would say a marriage is a union of two people who are romantically in love (not the same as loving a parent/child/sibling). I don't think sex has anything to do with it, btw, other than people who are romantically in love often express that through physical intimacy. I hope that helps! Sorry you are so confused right now.

I think it looks super cute! It is much better than my last haircut. I think the lady was going for Rachel from "Friends" but it ended up way too mullet-ish. Ugh!

I wouldn't correct them, but if they asked I would tell them (or maybe guide them with questions like "What sound do you hear first?").

I wouldn't have him copy the word 100 times. Typing sounds like a good idea. If his cursive looks nice, why not have him use cursive for most of his hand-written work? It may get him used to slowing down.

How old is your daughter? We used Song School Spanish this past year and enjoyed it. I am hoping to use an online tutor next year if I don't find a local class.

As for evals, if there isn't a COVD nearby, you could have an ophthalmologist give him a check up. They should be able to tell you if his eyes are working together or if he is having trouble tracking. They probably won't recommend vision therapy (that a COVD would), but at least it might let you know if there is an issue there. For writing, you can get him evaluated at an Occupational Therapist. Are you thinking it might be dyslexia/dysgraphia? I'm guessing the EdPsych can help with that. Some tutoring centers and clinics can do testing that doesn't officially diagnose, but can tell you a bit of what is going on (strengths/weaknesses). But if you are taking the summer off, I would probably wait for the EdPsych visit. In the meantime, keep the audio book level high and let him read slightly easier books - wherever his comprehension seems to still be good.

Hmm... Maybe step back the reading level of his books for a little while. It may be that they are a bit beyond his independent reading level (usually defined as 97% correct). If he is getting stressed by the reading level being too high, that may be the reason his comprehension is going down. I think it would be better for him to comprehend well a book that is easy to read. Then just gradually bump up the reading level and see how it goes.

How well does he read an easier book? Does he still mix up the order of the words and have trouble remembering what he read? What I'm wondering is if struggling to read the book is making it hard for him to focus on what is happening in the story. The fact that he comprehends read alouds and audiobooks well is great (so he is able to picture the story in his mind as he listens). For font size, one thing I did last year for a little while was get his reading books on Kindle and enlarged the text. This helped him until he was ready to read smaller text. It was also less intimidating than seeing pages of text at a time.

Dh insists you can "oogle" at someone (instead of ogle at them). I used to think that people were saying they couldn't "make ends meat" - as in they had so little money, they couldn't even buy the ends of the meat (which I guess I thought was the cheapest). :)

I think you should be very proud of your daughter's ability to take initiative! I feel I could learn a few things from you since my kids are the opposite - they are more likely to ask me to get a drink of water or snack for them than to get it themselves. I am working on it! I think it says a lot that you asked what other people think. I love the idea of having a list of things that she can help with when you are not there with her. Keep encouraging her and letting her know how much you appreciate the things she does. Maybe it would help to get her even more involved in cooking, laundry, etc. so she herself would know these things. If she was used to making yogurt with you, she would know that there always has to be a little bit of starter saved. Does that makes sense? As she becomes more capable, you will have less to worry about.

We are just finishing up our second year of homeschooling. This year (third grade), ds read 10 assigned books. I think last year it was 9. (About one book per month). I just read that it might be better to not let one book stretch out so long (taking a month per book), but rather a book should be finished within a week or two. What do you think? If he read a book every two weeks, he could read more titles, though obviously we would need to devote more time during the school day for reading. He reads above grade level, but he does not read chapter books outside of school - just lots and lots of comics (like Garfield, Calvin and Hobbes, Pokémon...). So I am tempted to up his required books, but I also don't want to rush things too much. My other thought was that I could assign a book for 2-3 weeks per month and use the last week for poetry or short stories. What has worked for your fourth-ish grader?

Well, I only have two right now, so I don't know. Two is easier than one was for me (in the long run - maybe not right away!). I'm sure the kids' ages must play a big part. I could see how you would be stressed with three little ones! Maybe by the time someone has four kids, it is likely that their oldest is old enough to help out a bit.

I just want to say that this is the kind of thread that makes me love this forum! :001_wub: