Mothering Magazine's Natural Family Living The Family Bed Attachment Parenting (Why in the world do my paragraphs run together after I post?!)

http://www.librivox.com ( I *think* that is the addy) has children's books you can download. I haven't used this site before so can't tell you how great the quality is. bluecalmsea

Non-Santa/Bunny people, what do you do when your best friend's family does these things and you don't...and their children think yours must be "bad" because Bunny/Santa didn't come to your house? This happened to us at Easter and I still can't get over it. My best friend's dd (also happens to be my dd's best friend) asked me if the E.Bunny didn't come over because my dd was "bad at church" (Her mother tells her the E.B comes if she behaves). I tell her no. Then she asks if it's because she homeschools (like that is something bad!). I tell her no. I tell her that I can't tell her why and that she should ask her mother. This still bothers me. And no I didn't talk to her mother about this, because she would probably feel insulted. I don't lie to my child and I don't lie to other people's children. I know some people might not like how I worded that, but to me it is lying and I don't lie. bluecalmsea

I have 3 different history curriculums for 1st. Help me decide which to use and how to use them please :) We hs year-round, starting in July, and take breaks as needed. I have: History for Little Pilgrims, My America and My World (A Beka), SOTW1 w/ AG. Here are my ideas... Option1: Use one of them only. But which one? This is my least favorite option. Option2: Since HFLP is light, do that for the rest of K and for summer. Then do the other 2 together, alternating. Option 3: Use all 3?! Using HFLP as a read-aloud and nothing more? Option 4: ? Unschooling doesn't work for us, and I can't afford to buy other history. These were all bought used very very cheaply. I am planning on doing history 2x/wk, and am scheduling 1 day a wk for catch up of any subjects. I am leaning towards option 2 or 3, but am unsure. Thanks bluecalmsea

I second the sling suggestion. bluecalmsea

Has anyone used the 1st or 2nd grade CLE science and social studies? The catalog description is not helpful, since these subjects are their optional ones. bluecalmsea

We take out 20 from one library and probably 10 from another. bluecalmsea

Hmmm.... So if I wait till 2nd for Ancients, then what would you suggest for 3rd if I plan on doing state history in 4th? Can the 4yr history cycle be condensed into 3 or even 2yrs? What would a 2 or 3yr cycle look like? Decisions, decisions.... I do have CHOW, but didn't think of it for 1st. How do you use it? Do you cover the whole book in 1yr? Have any websites or blogs w/ suggestions for CHOW? bluecalmsea

Andrea, I have History for Little Pilgrims. I bought it a year ago, planning to use it for first, but realized a few months ago that it will be too simple for my dd and get done quickly. Would it be too much/confusing to use SOTW and do some type of cultures study (like Galloping the Globe?) AND possible basic civics or American History? Thanks bluecalmsea

For kindergarten, we um haven't done much in the way of history/social studies. We're just "unschooling" it and that is not working. I have no idea what to do for 1st. I thought about using SOTW, but now I'm having second thoughts. If we haven't done much in the way of social studies and geography, would it be better to focus on that for 1st? Is it really that big of a deal if we don't do Ancients till 2nd grade? For those who didn't start the 4yr cycle in 1st, what DID you do? Thanks bluecalmsea