I have tried teaching spelling using only dictation in the past. It didn't work well for us. We use All About Spelling now and really like it. One of the things I love about AAS is that it incorporates dictation in each lesson, but doesn't rely on dictation alone. It is a strong phonics based program.

I would use Leap Frog's Letter Factory DVD, along with Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. I don't know if you've tried that yet, but it's worked great for all six of my kids. More importantly, my mom used it to teach my sister to read. According to the "experts" she should never have been able to read. She's now an adult and reads well enough to get along. I have one dd who had issues with sounds, but it didn't affect her reading. It really affected her spelling. Once we used All About Spelling, the phonics began to "click" and she's made amazing progress. I would probably use all three of these things together. I hope that helps!

I'd probably review for a bit, and then continue on in level 3. Unless you have any children who REALLY struggle in spelling, I would think they wouldn't need to repeat level 2. I'd just make sure you review enough that they've got the other concepts refreshed before moving on to new ones.

You should check out the Beautiful Feet History of Classical Music course. We haven't done it yet, but I'm planning to incorporate it this year. I've got all the materials, and it looks great! For what it's worth, I play violin and have always loved classical music. I'm excited to delve deeper into the lives of the composers!

Our church is only about 15 minutes away, but our homeschool group is about 45 minutes away. We go there once a week, and occasionally more for special activities. I consider it worth the drive because I love the group. My only hang up was that my kids were making most of their friends 45 minutes away! That makes it really hard to let them get together at other times. Now that we're in a church closer to home, it's a lot better balanced.

Thanks for the great ideas! I have to admit, we have the same trouble here. My kids definitely stir each other up. I think a lot of where my frustration comes in, is that school is so much busier for me than it is for them. Individually, their schoolwork really doesn't take all that long. But collectively it adds up to a HUGE block of time for me. Every little distraction makes it that much worse and then I feel stressed!

All the Leap Frog DVD's are great, but especially the Letter Factory. It really locks those basic phonics sounds in there.

Hahaha - that is so hysterical. I would LOVE something like that!

I don't know if it helps or not, but we've just started using it this year. I'm really excited about it. However, I'm using it mainly as a writing program. The grammar looks okay, but my kids will also be doing Easy Grammar Daily Grams this year. In the past, they've done the full EG program, so they're already familiar with the DG material. I figure between the two we'll have it covered. Maybe your dd doesn't need extra grammar. As for spelling, I continue to use All About Spelling. I don't think Writing Tales has enough in there to help my kids in this area. Spelling has definitely been our weakest homeschool subject. AAS has radically changed that, and I'm not about to rock the boat! Have you considered AAS for help with dyslexia? I don't have experience with dyslexia (although at one point I thought my dd was), but I know AAS claims to really help dyslexic students.

I'd move into All About Spelling. When my girls were first starting school, like your DD, they also took off in reading. In fact, they really excelled. But what I realized later was that they still hadn't grasped enough phonics to be able to spell well. My second daughter in particular really struggled with spelling. AAS changed that for her, and now I use it as soon as my kids finish Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. I usually start grammar in 1st grade, using Easy Grammar's 2nd grade book. The kids have all enjoyed it. Years ago I gave up formal "reading comprehension" programs that expect kids to answer questions in workbooks. My kids read lots of books and I just have them tell me about them. We also do read alouds.

My DH works rotating shift work, so he's often home during our school days. As far as him working from home, I would say NO, NO, and NO! It could just be us, but there are definitely concentration issues when he's here. It goes both ways, too. Kids are distracted by Daddy. Daddy feels in the way with school. I'm sure it could work (and does!) with many families, but definitely not ours! A significant factor to consider is that we are a large family living in a relatively small house. Maybe a bigger house would make some difference, but I still don't think I'd go for it. Also, when DH is home, I often feel like I'm getting pulled in different directions. I try to stay on track with school, but sometimes dh has all kinds of questions for me and sidetracks ME with household jobs.

I'm using the Answers in Genesis God's Design for Chemistry series this year with my 4th and 6th graders. I'm really excited about it. The series includes Properties of Atoms and Molecules, Properties of Matter and Properties of Ecosystems.

Have you checked out the Answers in Genesis God's Design series? I'm doing the God's Design for Life series (world of plants, animals and human body), with my younger kids this year. My older kids are doing the God's Design for Chemistry series (Properties of Atoms and Molecules, Properties of Matter and Properties of Ecosystems). You could use them as a springboard if you wish.

My 9yo son likes the G.A. Henty Books and the Ballantyne books. You can often find great deals on them on ebay. Or if you have a Kindle, you can download them free. :D Oh, and all my kids LOVE the Christian Heroes of the Faith missionary stories published by YWAM. They read those over and over. You should be aware that they contain some difficult subject matter (such as some cultures killing twins because they think they have an evil spirit). Overall, I think it's a gentle way to introduce these types of realities to kids. It can definitely start some interesting conversations.

All About Spelling has worked wonders in our family. I have had the opposite experience than your friend as far as kids remembering the rules. AAS is the FIRST program we've used where my kids have retained what they learned over summer and transferred their spelling lessons into their everyday writing. I tend to like curriculum that's not teacher intensive (since I'm hs'ing 6 kids), but I don't find AAS to be too overwhelming. Maybe it's because the program has worked so well, that I'm willing to invest the time. Also, I don't teach spelling to all of my kids everyday. They each have about 3 spelling lessons per week, except my child who really struggled with spelling. She has 4 lessons per week. If you can leave the tiles set up on a board, it's really pretty easy!

One of my daughter's really struggled with spelling until we found All About Spelling. I can't recommend it highly enough.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, All About Spelling! I have a daughter who really struggled with spelling and AAS has been a life-saver. My siggy has a link to our story.

One of my dd is starting 1st grade this year. She is artistic in general and has exquisite handwriting (print) for her age. She literally writes better than my 13 year old. Anyway, I don't normally teach cursive until 2nd-3rd grade, but she ran across a bookmark I had printed for my older kids which showed how to make cursive letters. She used it to copy a Bible verse in "cursive." Of course, she made all kinds of errors connecting the letters, but I was pretty impressed. I realized I'd better teach her cursive now, or she's going to "learn" on her own...:lol:! Bottom line, if you think your child is ready, go for it!