I'm currently working through RightStart D with DD (age 8, 3rd grade). While math hasn't always been a breeze, I was generally happy with RS levels A-C. I was apprehensive about all the review at the beginning of level D since we moved directly from C to D with no break. But DD insisted she liked RightStart and didn't want to make any changes, so we've pressed on and made it through the section with many review lessons (and a few new topics here and there). But, I am noticing that more and more, DD tends to get frustrated when she doesn't understand why we are talking about a particular concept (like when a bunch of examples are given that finally at the end lead to the "point" of the lesson), or when a few examples of easier problems are given, and then she is expected to "take it to the next level" and infer how to do a more challenging problem. I keep thinking she might really like a math program that was much more "straight forward" so to speak. While i think the conceptual understanding that RS develops is wonderful, I think DD would really like it if the lesson said "here is a definition of new terminology" or "Today we're going to learn how to do THIS type of problem and here is how you do it."...rather than these lessons that leave her guessing through many examples as to why we're doing something or what it is leading up to. I know I could try and present the material in the RS manual differently...but I don't find I am very good at that. If I present the material differently than what is written, DD seems to have an even harder time understanding what I am trying to explain! Any ideas as to what DD might like better? I don't think we want anything any more "spiral-y" than RightStart -- even RS feels too spiral at times. Something with a bit of spiral or at least built in review is probably good though. When we picked RightStart, Singapore was my "runner up" or 2nd choice. So I still find that appealing, but I don't know at all if using SM would solve the problem we have with RS.

I've been in small co-ops in the past (6 or 8 families), and I'm currently a part of a larger co-op. All the co-ops I've been a part of used church spaces to meet. Neither of the two smaller co-ops I was a part of were able to offer anything in the way of care for younger children (which is partly why I found a larger co-op). Once you figure that a mom or two was always teaching or helping with the class, and some moms who didn't themselves have a baby or toddler didn't really want to help me with mine, that pretty much just left me to try and wrangle my little one(s) while also helping my older kids if they needed help or even while at the same time teaching if it was my week to teach. It was challenging. Of the two smaller co-ops I was in, one recruited members by advertising on local homeschool email lists and thru word of mouth. The advantage to this is that they could be really up front with the type of group and the philosophy of the group, and members could sort of "self select" if they fit that group or not. We really didn't fit in with that group, which is another reason we didn't stay long in that group. The disadvantage is it might take a while to find enough like minded people to get going. The second small co-op I was in for two years was made up of a group of friends I knew from church. That was nice in the sense that we didn't have to find each other, but just because we were already friends did not always make it easier to agree on how a co-op should be run. When one mom really wanted to bring cupcakes for a birthday while another mom insisted on only non-sweet snacks, we had to work it out and still be friends afterwords because we were going to see each other at church. So if you are going to do it with friends, you have to think about whether your friendships can survive all the decision making! :lol:

Another option would be to just skip out on the grammar parts of LOE -- that's what I am doing for the most part with my DD ths year. My plan is to study spelling intensively this year, and have more of a focus on grammar next year. The phonics/spelling part of LOE is really pretty independent of the grammar.

We are doing two years of US History starting this year, with resources I selected. I have used the Maestro books as my primary spine so far, and we love them. I am bummed that we are on the last one! I am going to have to slow down if I want to make US History take two years. :-) I don't see them as having a real extreme liberal bias. They are not explicitly conservative though either. To me liberal bias might be something like a statement I read in a book published by National Geographic that said, "most people agree that Christopher Columbus committed genocide," without really giving much explanation or reasoning. I thought the Maestros do a pretty good job of portraying the good qualities of, say, the various explorers and the settlers while also discussing the cruel and unfair ways that Native people were often treated. I made a general outline of my plans here: http://homeschooldiscoveries.com/our-curriculum/united-states-history-year-1/ My two primary resources in making my list were Sonlight and All Through The Ages (http://www.nothingnewpress.com/All_Through_The_Ages.html). If you look around on my blog, I've also tried to write somewhat regularly about the books we're reading. I need to put together a post about the revolutionary war unit we just finished...but it's a lot of books to write about! Since we are going faster through the units than I expected (though I think our current one will be longer than I planned), I think my plan will be to cover the Civil War this year, then take a rabbit trail into our state's history to finish out the year.

Okay, I have spent way too much time and mental energy trying to think of a book we read a couple years ago. The worst part is I can't even remember if we liked it or not! But now, like an annoying tune stuck in one's head without the lyrics, I need to know what it is. :lol: Hopefully I am not mixing more than one book together, but here is what I am remembering. It was a chapter book with the main character being a girl with older siblings who maybe made fun or her a for being smaller, slower, etc. I think there was something about a Christmas tree and a special ornament that got broken or lost, and maybe there was an older relative (grandma?) in the story too. Can anyone help me figure this out? Or maybe I am mixing a couple books together in my head and that's why I can't find it!

Just wanted to say that I am so jealous of all of you that have this in your library! I just checked worldcat.org and not a single library in my whole state owns LOF elementary!

My favorite things -- It teaches the rules and phonograms in a way that makes sense to me, it's all "there" (I don't have to make my own flash cards or game cards, there are very detailed lesson plans and even script if I want to use it). I actually could have done without the grammar -- It's just not what I wanted to focus on. But it's not hard to ignore it either. Overall with the workbook it's bulky, and there are a lot of pages you may or may not use. We didn't care for the paper it's printed on (thin). However, now that you can purchase a downloadable pdf, that solves those problems. If you DC needs a lot of review, you may find yourself needing to implement it yourself. There are review lessons after every 4 regular lessons, but my DD needed review of words from previous lessons (prior to the most recent 4), and we have to remember ourselves to do that. I haven't used that specifically. I have used Phonics Pathways, which I believe is similar in the sense they are both "sit down with a book and teach reading" sort of programs. Phonics Pathways isn't phonogram based (I don't think OPGTR is either?) in the sense that you don't learn all the sounds of a particular phonogram at one time -- you learn all the short sounds, followed by some blends, followed by the long sounds, followed by some two letter combos, etc. LOE teaches all the sounds of each phonogram. Essentials is a challenging program to teach a new reader all by itself -- you could do it, but you would be on your own to do a lot of supplementing and slow it way down. Foundations would be better suited to a new reader. I'm using it as primarily a spelling program with my DD, age 8/3rd grade. She is very much a struggling speller, but is a decent reader. We're not doing any other writing program, as she absolutely flips out if asked to write anything containing any words she doens't know how to spell. So we just do the little bit of composition included in LOE and I figure we have plenty of time to catch up in writing after her spelling improves. I aim for a lesson per week with her. I'm also using it as a spelling program and a continuing phonics program with my 5.5 year old K'er. I think foundations might be good for him, but I haven't felt like I had the extra $50 lying around to buy the beta. I went through quite a bit of phonics pathways with him, and I am continuing his phonics via LOE, and whatever he learns to spell is a bonus to me at this point. We also spend 15 minutes a day reading phonics-based easy readers. I plan on a lesson every 2 weeks with him, though sometimes he has made it through a lesson in a week. We are just minimally covering the grammar sections, as I have other plans of grammar materials I want to do with DD starting in 4th grade. I guess I am not sure what is all typically included in a "complete" program. Obviously there is no literature component, which I consider to be a part of the big picture of language arts...but I don't know if that is typically included in a "complete LA program" or not. I think the quantity and type of writing is less than what might typically expected of students in 3rd grade and up...so if you are thinking of using it with a student that age or older and they don't have writing hang-ups like my DD does, you might need to supplement with additional writing instruction or practice of some sort. I am not sure what would go especially well with it. Anything else? I really like the games. I think even if you don't use it for anything esle, the games would make a nice supplement to any phonogram based spelling program. Hope that helps!

:iagree: Except for "ponytail and jeans" instead of "bun and yoga pants". :lol: But in all seriousness, you do adjust. As others have said "school" doesn't take too much time for K, and as the kids get older and it does take more time, but older kids are also able to help more with younger ones, help more with chores or cooking, or do some schoolwork independently. I take my kids with for some things that involve waiting, like the dr or DMV (DD brings a book or schoolwork, toys or coloring for the younger ones, baby in stroller or carrier). Haircuts and some shopping I only have the patience to do alone is evenings or weekends when DH can watch kids. I only pick a few church things or other meetings I must attend without kids, and I either have DH watch the kids or hire a sitter. For some appointments that must happen during the day but I can't really bring the kids for (like the dentist), I hire a sitter or ask my mom to babysit. As you get to know homeschooling families, you might meet ones with teens that are homeschooled who have the flexibility to watch kids at hours that public school kids can't. And my house is rarely very clean or tidy. But as my kids get older that is slowly changing. You'll be surprised how much more your kids are capable of in just a couple years! Dd8 can do her own laundry, clean a bathroom, etc. Good luck with your decision!

My DD8 loves the story. She often reads more than what I assign. She did not enjoy the idea of encyclopedia readings, so we've just found extra library books for at least some of the habitats or featured animals.

I can try and post the topics in order a bit later today if no one else gets to it. You definitely have to do the chapters in order - the 'adventure' book story would be spoiled out of order. :001_smile:

We enjoyed The Thirteen Days of Christmas last year: http://www.amazon.com/Thirteen-Days-Christmas-Jenny-Overton/dp/0192752138/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1352481528&sr=8-4

If you are still looking for more options to consider, my DD is really enjoying the Sassafras Science Adventures Zoology. It is very independent for her -- she reads the fiction book and I assign her living books to go along (they suggest encyclopedia readings, but she didn't care for those), and she does a couple of notebooking pages per week. Easy and fun! We try also to do some BFSU lessons as a family and other random sciency stuff, but this is something I know will happen because she can get it done on her own. She did the Evan-Moor "Read and Understand Science" for grades 2-3 last year (which I have no idea how that compares to the "Daily Science" that others recommended.) -- but she thought that was pretty dry and boring.

That's me too! Cardboard box, laundry basket, shopping bag...whatever I can find that fits what I'm bringing for the week. :lol: Though to be fair I am rarely bringing the same things more than once -- I am teaching a 1st/2nd grade science class for the first time this year, and I've had totally different supplies each week depending on the activity.

Here's mine! :001_smile:

I did know there is a RightStart Yahoo group...I had been thinking of posting there too, but I feel more self-conscious about complaining about the curriculum there...:lol: I want to try and think of a more positive way to say it on that list. Somehow, DD needed more of that review at the beginning of C...not so much at the moment.

I just finished doing Right Start C with DD8 last Friday...:party: It took us 12 "school months" of new lessons (we only reviewed over the summer), and it was hard work and had its ups and downs, but in the end I felt like it was great and DD really learned a lot. I just assumed we would use level D, and bought it at convention last spring. I pulled it out last night to read through the first few lessons and I was shocked. Really shocked. I got the impression there was some review at the beginning, but wow...we're back to doing mostly addition and subtraction, and just writing a few multiples out. Full pages of multiplication practice don't come back into play until lessons in the 60s, and that is after writing out the multiplication table, again (we did that in C!). I'm tempted to skip a bunch of level D, except for the fact that there are random lessons mixed in about things we've never done before, like liquid measurement and some new addition/subtraction strategies. I was tempted to ditch it all together and find something else, but DD begged me not to (I asked her what she thought about leaving RightStart). She really doesn't like change! :lol: And I already have D, which, as much as it seems like it is going to drive me crazy, is simpler and cheaper than having to find something else. Some days it does seem like RightStart is a poor fit for her (she just hates questions like "what pattern do you see here?" or when the lessons have us jump through a bunch of hoops to discover some new principle or method -- she would rather the lesson just explain it to her up front!). But on the whole RightStart has been good for us. So...now that I have all that off my chest...If you have done level D, did all this review drive you crazy? Or will there be enough new stuff in there to keep it interesting? Did you skip/combine lessons? Or did all this drive you away from Level D all together? I feel like at minimum I need to have DD do multiplication practice via practice sheets or iPad apps, or she will forget the multiplication facts she has learned. Sigh. It's so annoying that D doesn't just pick up right where C ends.

I think the secret is to teach your kids to take ownership over their own desire to do those kind of projects! Sure, there are some things that are too dangerous/complicated and require adult supervision. But my DD8 who loves crafts has learned that I am probably not going to set up very many of those for her. She has learned to look through a craft book, read through projects, pick something out, and ask for any special materials. I try to keep a list of special things we need to buy, and she knows that on any given day she might not be able to do any project her heart desires (I do keep a pretty well stocked art/science/etc supply cabinet), but we'll try and make things possible at some point. She knows if she does something she will have to clean up after herself, and needs to ask permission for especially messy projects. I try hard to say "yes" to these things -- but if I know we have something out of the ordinary going on, I may tell her to save it for another day. I find that the more I leave her to her own devices when it comes to these things, the more her skill grows. She is really probably better at crafts at this point than I am! :lol:

I think LOE's biggest strength (the Essentials level) is as a spelling program. Anyone looking for a good rules based spelling program could choose LOE and find that spelling is covered as a subject. The other aspects of the program can be included/emphasized or de-emphasized as desired by the teacher, but it's hard to see someone choosing LOE just for one of those other aspects, kwim? So someone might do another handwriting, grammar, vocabulary or writing program along with LOE but I don't think someone would ever chose LOE for the grammar and do a different spelling program. I think LOE could be considered a "complete" language arts program if the teacher fully uses all the components/sections of the lessons and possibly adds a bit more writing practice. The writing (composition) element might be what most people would consider most lacking as there are not as many writing assignments as a typical program focused on just writing. We chose LOE because DD needed serious help with spelling. We're not doing any other language arts programs other the LOE because I want to focus on spelling this year. We don't even spend a ton of time on the grammar or vocabulary sections! DD really dislikes writing when she doesn't know how to spell what she is being asked to write, so completing the minimal writing assignments in LOE is about right for her this year. Then I am hoping as her spelling improves we'll be able to add in more writing -- whether that's adding another writing program this year or just being able to do a writing program with more success next year.

I skipped it with DD (I think we did one triangle with ten of the little triangles). I just hit that lesson with DS5 -- I showed him the picture and he told me several times he really wanted to do it. I bought the A+B Appendices pack when DD was going through A and B, and it has the triangle copies, so it was no extra work for me. He did one 10 triangle, saw how much work it was, and changed his mind! :lol: But I agree, if you had a bunch of people to do it with it would be much more fun.

I'm also using BFSU in a co op situation (and at home). Even book 1, while it says K-2, has a lot of topics that are typically not covered until older grades. It's pretty easy to take what is in the lesson and use that as a jumping off point to find other activities or demonstrations. You can get the PDF or Kindle format of it pretty inexpensivly.

I had thought about that too for a while with BFSU, but it was overwhelming to find pre-made pieces to correspond with the topics. I have had better luck with finding regualar notebook paper size printables on various topics - check out the BFSU Pinterest boards linked in my signature - there are ideas there for a few of the lessons, anyway!

Okay, I haven't had geometry for a long time, but... A squared + B squared = C squared for triangles So (5x5) + (12x12) = 169 Square root of 169 = 13 So, 13+12+5 = 30 Right???? :lol: ETA: But I guess that's not a 4th grade way to solve it...maybe they are supposed to draw a picture with a ruler to get the answer?

I think the games would make a great supplement to another program....I think some of the other aspects of the mental math are more built in to the lessons in Right Start and would be hard to pull out without doing full lessons. I'm doing the opposite right now with my math-loving K'er. He is flying through concepts in RS B but still could use a bit more practice on facts, etc. if he were my oldest I would play a ton of games with him, but since it is tough to find tie for that, he gladly does Singapore 1a pages for fun. I like that all I have to do with those is read the directions to him and he can go at it.

Now that I'm reading these responses I'm even more mystified...are a lot of lefties cutting with their right hand? I still cut with my left but use all the same scissors as all the righties. They all seem to work just fine on my left hand? Am I subconsciously picking scissors that are more universal, or did I just learn done kind of coping technique without realizing it? :lol:

You definitely need to find the rhythm that works for you! I find we can do an an afternoon activity 1-2x per week, and maybe twice a month we ditch regular school work all together in favor of a field trip for the whole day. For me, being home in the am to do school is more of a non-negotiable...I will sacrifice a younger child's afternoon nap first before giving up our morning school time. But I have friends that can spend the morning out and still get all their school work done in the afternoon. It varies so much. A few things I have kept in mind while making our extra curricular / co-op / field trip decisions is that 1, you can't do everything every year, but most things will be right there waiting for you next year if you pass this year. So we don't get memberships to every museum/zoo/etc every year - we do some every other year. One year we might go to the Nutcracker, the next year a play and the next year an orchestra concert. One year we do pottery class, the next year we might do gymnastics. 2, I try and pick activities/field trips based on interest and educational goals, and look to other venues for social interaction and friendships. We are super lucky that our kids have friends on our block or within a block or two of home they can play with. But if we didn't have that I would be looking to set up play dates or meet friends at the park more often. That kind of social interaction is way more flexible than a class or organized group outing or "park day" or whatever, and I think my kids tend to get more of their relational needs met through these informal settings anyway.