nm

You need a program with an audio component. How old are your kids? For the preschool - elementary ages, I highly recommend Salsa videos. http://www.gpb.org/salsa/term/episode They are online and free. At the bottom of the page, below the video, are pdf files of the transcript of the episode. You can practice reading by following along the transcript. Spanish is a very easy language to learn to read. For older kids, you could look into Learnables, Visual Link, Rosetta Stone, Tell Me More. There are others, but that's what comes to mind.

I'm not sure of the reading level, but for some fun, quirky, interesting history books for a 10yo, I would suggest Horrible Histories by Terry Deary. My dd reads those over & over, giggling the whole time.

I agree with almost all of that.

nm

I saw those crazy levels all the time when my kids were doing AR. It's pretty sad.

I don't have much help to offer, but maybe some support. My kiddos were natural, early readers. However, reading doesn't click for plenty of kids until they are older. Seven, even. My nephew was one of them. It did eventually click (at 7), and now he just started his freshman year at college. I would continue to let your ds read easy books, whatever he's comfortable with for awhile. Go to the library and find easy readers that interest him, not necessarily ones that are tied to a specific reading curriculum. Then after a month or two, see if you can push forward. Help him as much as needed with the difficult words, but have him read the easy ones. Also, it sounds like maybe he just needs a break of formal studying? Maybe he's burned out right now?

:iagree: DH has traveled for business many times to Russia. Alcohol is a way of life for them. Morning, noon, and night. During work, after work.

Since pulling my dd out of ps to homeschool, her reading standardized tests scores have gone up from 40 percentile to 85 percentile. PS vs. Homeschool makes a huge difference. So sorry you had the opposite turnaround with your ds! My ds is in public high school. I have been gently working on him (and dh) to pull him out, too. (DH is still not convinced that a homeschooler can be accepted into a top notch college...but I'm working on that!) The interesting thing is, I don't do any type of specific reading/comprehension program with dd. Hours a day were devoted to that in ps. Now, her reading/comprehension comes from discussing science, or history, or whatever book she happens to be free reading. A solid writing program also works wonders for reading comprehension.

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I detest the way our district handles elementary reading. All my dc were natural, early readers. They spent hours of free time every week reading. Yet, the elementary schools would turn reading into a chore. Reading logs, AR tests, weekly baggie books (that were utterly boring & way too easy), book reports. I told more than one principal that my kids would not do this *required* reading because it was killing their natural love of reading. I think this might be true even for kids who struggle with reading. Many schools focus so heavily on it that it feels like a chore, something to dread. Reading doesn't click for everyone at the same age. By the time it does, some kids have been beaten over the head with it for so long they are not interested anymore. Then there's SR (silent reading). In middle & high school, students are required to always have a reading book with them. Oh, you thought we would learn science in science class today? Nope, it's silent reading day. One of ds's (English) teachers scolded him for reading a magazine - a non-fiction, no-ad history magazine, with high quality stories. Captain Underpants? OK. Cobblestone History Magazine? Not allowed. Mostly, I let my kids read what they're interested in. Sure, ds overloads on sci-fi / fantasy. Dd loves history books. Occasionally, I will suggest a book that I would like for them to read. One that is out of their comfort zone. Sometimes they bite, sometimes they don't. I try not to force a certain book on them, but give other options.

Bump. Still there!

Yeah, in elementary it was called "Low, Medium, and High" groups for reading and math. I don't think those terms are politically correct anymore. Our district now does IQ type tests for their full day elementary gifted program. "Honors" middle school classes are generally based on grade level MAP scores. However, parents can request their kids be in honors no matter what their scores.

We did Apologia Astronomy a few years ago when my dd was upper elementary. I think it might be too light for an 8th grader wanting to go deep. But, maybe one of their higher level books contains a section on astronomy?

nm

I never realized that not using dressers was so common. I would love to get ride of mine, because it takes up too much floor space for the amount of storage space I get in return.

:iagree: Sports participation should be based on age, not grade. Because it is most definitely not fair to make a 12 yo compete for a position against a 13.5 yo on a middle school team. The 12yo is likely to just give up that sport. What's worse, IMO, is that most of the redshirted athletes were redshirted because of sports, not maturity or academics. It is an unfair advantage. I have a Canadian friend who said that their school sports teams are based on age, not grade. I don't know if that's for all of Canada, or just certain schools.

Thank you for reminding me that I don't want to move to PA (or NY or ....). That's just ridiculous.

Last year I paid $30/hour for a private Spanish tutor. My dd also takes Mandarin, and I pay about $10/hour for a class with 3 kids.

https://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/plato-middle-science/?c=1 There are links for the following: Review all the Plato Science course descriptions available at the Co-op. Try a sample Earth & Space (Volcanoes) lesson. Experience an interactive sample Earth & Space (Volcanoes) application. Take a sample Earth & Space (Volcanoes) test. Review Plato Courses Map for additional course info like amount of content, number of units, lessons (exemptible modules), and more

Oh, my gosh. That college sounds like an awesomely fun place for DS. Thanks for that activities list! This school never would have been on my radar.

Yep, Ztwist.

I am okay with redshirting when there is a maturity or medical issue. Unfortunately, too many people redshirt their boys to give them an advantage in sports. In middle school, I was disgusted to see how many redshirted boys made the A team for basketball. That really blows for the boys who are in their age appropriate grade being relegated to the B or C squad.

nm

I just had a glass of water. Probably because before that I had coffee, and coffee dehydrates me. I am also a frequent green tea drinker.