I've been reading "The World is Flat" that someone here recommended (thank you!). It has me thinking about careers of the future and what skills will help our kids. It seems like no matter what field they enter, they will need to keep learning. My question is, how do I ignite a thirst for learning? With some exceptions, the kids often just want to get their schoolwork done. They are doing fine and I think their challenge levels are right, but they don't have the love of learning that I would hope for. Ds was in a private school for K/1st and it really burned him out (before that, he loved learning for fun - after, he avoided anything that looked like learning. Now he is coming back slowly!). Dd seems to follow his attitude/opinions about academics and outside activities. So, my question is how can I make homeschool more engaging? I don't think it needs to be "fun" (like Disneyland fun), but I'd love to find a way to pull them in and get them excited about learning. I'd love to integrate some subjects and make them more real. But I also don't want to remove the challenge level. Has anyone here been successful getting their kids inspired to enjoy learning (if they weren't in the beginning! I know some kids are naturally that way.)?

Get yourself in those pictures with your young kids! (Still need to take this advice). I know you think you don't look too great and you need to lose weight and all that. Years from now you will look back at those pictures and think you look great! And your kids will love to see pictures of you with them when they were little.

Groan. Yes, we are exactly the same as paceofnature! EVERY year we say we should get an accountant, but we think of it too late (they are all quite busy this time of year for some reason!). Our taxes are getting kind of complicated and we really should have found someone to look them over. Hopefully TurboTax knows what it is doing.

These are the best we've used: www.cheng-tsui.com/store/products/step_step These are designed to start with pinyin, but then the pinyin phases out. Note: I didn't realize when I was ordering, but "level B" and "Phase II" are almost the identical books. If I were to order again, I would buy level A and Phase II (Phase II has more pinyin and is a little easier than level B ). We finished all of these readers and I wish they would come out with more!

This year (grades 2 and 4), the kids are becoming a lot more independent. I started giving them a checklist each day so they know what they need to get done. They know that school is done for the day when they have completed their tasks, so they are motivated to get them done. I still help with math and writing, and they have tutors for foreign languages. I did a lot of teacher-intensive things in the fall so they could be more independent in the spring. I do want to add in more discussions, so we will probably find a balance in between next year.

We are still working on it, but the kids can converse some with native speakers in Chinese. They were in a bilingual school for a few years (not helpful as a homeschooler, just letting you know how we started). They were then in an afterschool class for a couple years. This year we are relying on tutors (online for one and in-person for the other) and a weekend class. We also have leveled readers which have flashcards that we practice daily. They also write a very simple paragraph once per week (using a dictionary as needed). For Spanish, I am sure you can do it! I would recommend a native speaking tutor if you can swing it. Their progress is way faster that way. For example, if they are reading a book to me, they underline the characters they don't know and I look them up and then go over them with them the next day. But when the in-person tutor is here, dd can just ask her and get instant feedback. She progresses much faster that way. We are also doing a little bit of Spanish and it is slooooow going. We only do it twice per week and I think that is the main problem. We do Chinese every day.

That sounds interesting! But I haven't heard of anything like that. :)

Does he eat a lot of crackers? I was surprised to find out how bad they are for teeth (they stick to teeth longer than most candy or soda, etc.). I also think there are a lot of genetic components - crowding, saliva acidity, sleeping with mouth open or closed.

- Have more fun and more outdoor time. (Make them like school/learning!) - More time just reading, not worrying about curriculum (I wouldn't do history in Kinder/2nd grade again - they forgot it all anyway) - Make *handwriting* a priority from the beginning - it is so difficult to fix now that it is ingrained - Start homeschooling from the beginning to preserve the love of learning (and be there to help with handwriting from the beginning!) - Start math at their actual level, not backing up just to be sure (especially not with multiple books - we went too slowly the first year) - Buy a van *without* a DVD player (so we could listen to audio books in the car instead). - Start read aloud chapter books earlier

Maybe rockclimbing? It is fun, but not competitive (unless you go that way, I suppose). :)

I have terrible handwriting myself, so I sympathize with some of your kids! I can print okay if I go really slowly and concentrate, but then it is difficult to write more than a few sentences that way. Here is what I am doing with my kids: 1) typing every day (10 minutes or so) with an old-fashioned repetitive typing book. It looks boring, but the kids actually enjoy it. :) I also started giving them the option to type longer pieces. 2) asking ds to use cursive on some shorter assignments (such as writing a poem). Dd doesn't know cursive yet, but ds's cursive is pretty good. 3) I give the kids a "handwriting challenge" sometimes and if they write their pieces with about 85% of their best handwriting, they get a small lollipop (yeah, this is bribing...). They love this. I will check their piece (usually about 1 paragraph) and tell them if anything needs to be corrected. They can fix it until it qualifies - so they can always get the lollipop if they choose to. They ask for this all the time, but I only do it once or twice a week.

This is a huge controversy in the adoption community. Some people are very much against fundraising and some support it whole-heartedly. We did not fundraise, but I can understand why some people do. I think it is okay to fundraise to cover some of the costs - up to the tax credit (unless the tax credit is used for another adoption). I do have a problem if the child's photograph is used in the fundraising (as in "save this poor orphan"). I feel when that child grows up, he or she may feel embarrassed, angry, or like she owes people. I never saw this kind of fundraising seven years ago, but I see it very often online now. There seems to be a big push at certain churches to "save the orphan" and I think that is where much of this began. It is disturbing and I hope these kids don't have a hard time later because of it.

I hope it is okay to bump this older thread. Just wanted to check in with you experienced parents to see how prealgebra went! I'm trying to decide what to do after ds finishes Singapore 5B (probably won't be until mid next year). He has done well with Beast Academy (and *I* like it), but he doesn't choose it when offered B.A. or Singapore. I was thinking of doing AoPS pre-algebra after Singapore, but now I'm wondering if I should do something else for pre-algebra (MUS algebra?) and then go to AoPS algebra later. Thoughts? He understand math concepts quickly, but his output is slow. He will need something that doesn't focus too much on output, but yet gives enough practice so he could (hopefully) have automaticity on skills - so he can work a little quicker in the long run. One reason Beast Academy worked well is that it made sense for him to go more slowly, whereas with Singapore I feel like I have to keep him going or he stalls out (mind wanders off... LOL). He might need the challenge of AoPS to keep his mind engaged. Do you think some kind of intermediary is necessary between Singapore 5B and AoPS?

We have used many of the literature units. We have enjoyed them and the kids seem to retain things well. I wouldn't attempt to use them for preschoolers (though I haven't seen the new younger units). My kids are accelerated and I use the range that starts with their ages (so I used age 7-9 for a 7 year old). I feel like they will get more out of it if you wait (for the younger ones, anyway). Again, I haven't seen anything below the 7-9 level, but I wouldn't use that level with a 5 or 6 year old - so I'm guessing the same for other levels. We usually use mbtp for every other literature book. This allows for some of my own writing instruction and mixes things up a little. I'm excited for my younger to use some of the units I did with my older child. :)

The kids really like the geography books. I think they are a little less intimidating (smaller!) than the science.

I think the technical difference between a tic and Tourette's is the vocal component. My ds had a mild case during kindergarten. It went away on its own. I think being stressed and being tired can make tics worse. We did not change his diet or anything. He does get more sleep now that we are homeschooling (he was in school at the time) and I think that has made the most difference. I have heard that magnesium can help - which many people are low on in general. Taking baths with Epsom salt helps some people (because it gives magnesium). I have heard that medication often does more harm than good.

I don't think it is related to him disrespecting you (or "being a jerk"). Some people really do have attention issues. They are not doing it on purpose. That is not to say that the situation can't be improved, but it is going to take time. In the meantime, it will probably be frustrating! You don't want him to get out the door on time just so you don't get mad (that won't work once he is out of the house). It is going to take a long-term plan of building up these skills. I wish I knew how to do that! Maybe someone here knows of a good book that helps kids get more organized/independent.

I would sit down with him and have him make a plan as to how he can be ready (he can plan 10 minutes for getting dressed, 5 minutes to brush teeth, etc.). Have him set the timer for each step (you give him one 20 minute warning or whatever he decides he needs). If the timer goes off and he hasn't finished, that is his cue to hurry before the next timer goes off. Does he have a calendar or planner? Maybe that would help him know what to expect from his day/week. If possible, I would avoid screen time until the end of the school day (and after all appointments, etc.). I have seen a definite difference in ds's attention span after screen time - it lasts for awhile after he stops. My kids aren't at this age, but I could see how this could happen. It is tough because sometimes it is an attention problem that is not "on purpose," but something that still needs to be addressed. It is frustrating for sure!

What I would do is make a big list of good healthy foods and have the kids pick their favorites to have around for meals & snacks. So, if your kids don't like spinach, I wouldn't make them eat it, but maybe they do like blueberries - so you can make something with blueberries. Focus on the healthy foods that they like. Some things they may not acquire a taste for until they are older. (Saying this as a former "picky eater" who now loves broccoli!). :)

I would just tell her this (although written a little more gently).

This is what we are doing, though I pick and choose which books I want to use. We usually use mbtp for a book, then pick a book to just read (do writing separately) and alternate like that. I do pick and choose assignments as well. :) That said, I do spelling and grammar independently. If I was counting on mbtp for grammar, I would probably use all of the books in a level to make sure we covered everything. We've enjoyed it!

Issues like this make me move away from curriculum that is made specifically for homeschoolers. Sometimes assignments are just odd or bizarre. It is like as long as a story or book is old, it is somehow better than a modern story. Somehow the fact that kids at the turn of the last century were exposed to it is an acceptable reason to expose my kids to it? I'm sorry, I just don't get it! If I'm opposed to violence, racism, sexism - why use these materials for our homeschool? Even with an explanation of "those times were different" I don't think it is worth it. Note: I'm not talking about this curriculum specifically, since I haven't seen it in person, but assignments like this I find just strange. I have been moving to more "mainstream" curriculum and actually pretty pleased with what I have found. Multiculturalism, diverse characters, women who are professionals, people with disabilities - all very hard to find in homeschool-specific curriculum.

I am enjoying just using textbooks and workbooks with Singapore (shhh... Don't tell the nay sayers!). I started with the HIGs and they slowed us way down. I have a strong math background and kids who are strong in math as well. Sticking to just the text (and we don't do most of the problems in the text) and the workbook gives us time for things like Beast Academy, games, outside math books, fact review, challenge problems, etc. I do look over the HIGs before we start the school year and make note of any interesting activities or challenge problems and write them at the bottom of the corresponding workbook page. I only do this if I think the kids will learn/think due to the activity/problem.

What you could do is find a used textbook and just go through it with them. It will probably have activities in it as well. I'm considering doing this just to keep things simple around here for the spring! :)

I haven't used public school as a punishment, but we have talked about how legally they need to be in school. If they aren't willing to do their schoolwork at home, I would have to send them to school and it would be fine, but I'd rather homeschool them because it is more fun and we learn a lot! For the whining/complaining - we had that problem. What I did was give them a "checkmark" for every time they stayed calm during the day when they normally complain (for example, staying calm when starting school, when getting something wrong, when dinner is not their favorite dish, when it is time to brush teeth). After school, they could play their DSes for one minute per check. It took awhile, but things definitely improved! Note: They can express their displeasure in a calm way (for example, they could say, "I don't really like baked potatoes."), just not whine/complain. They have been handling things a lot better.