[What do I need to for CC?]

We're doing CC this year for the first time - 11year/6th grade boy and 9yr/4th grade girl.

 

I know I'm registering them both in Foundations and both in Essentials.

 

Could someone who's been down this road before give a rookie CC-mom a shopping list please?

 

What do I need to kick it off? Guides? Science Cards? HIstory cards? Audio cd? Subscription to CC Connect.

 

 

[Money's no object...What's on your wish list?]

A telescope! Yes! That just may be the purchase! Great suggestion (now I need to research some options for that).

 

Another contender is a cool rock/gem collection.

 

And microscope with slides.

 

And some great arts/crafts (Waldorf felting, anyone?)

 

Keep the ideas coming...you guys are awesome!

[Money's no object...What's on your wish list?]

Wow, these are so awesome! I love the fantasies of private instructors, cooks, pools,etc. A girl can dream...

 

Maybe I should clarify and ask for realistic wish list items -- like a pricey microscope, rock/gem collection, or science equipment? Or expensive museum memberships? Unique educational camps? Any ideas in the $300 - $500 range?

[Little-known, "secret" curric to try?]

I love the Evan-Moor brand, too, for the reasons you list above. It's a little "workbook-y" but I like that because it keeps it to a bite-size lesson. Very good for ind work, too. I used the word-a-day -- great content! I need to revisit E-M. Thanks for reminding me of those.

 

Keep the ideas coming....dig up those treasures for me...

[Little-known, "secret" curric to try?]

I'm familiar with most of the curric mentioned on the boards -- solid, "mainstream" stuff like Saxon, R&S, WWE, SOTW, and so many others. All great choices I use.

 

But...suggest a little-known curric I'm missing out. What's under that radar that I'm overlooking? What gem is a secret find that's worth a try?

[Money's no object...What's on your wish list?]

If you didn't have to worry about budget, what's on your wish list?

 

Online classes? High-end curriculum? Pricey equipment or supplies?

 

Help me think and dream big. BIG!

[Geography/Map coloring books?]

My DD9 3rd grade and DS11 5th grade could use a little geography help. I'm not looking for a huge, in-depth curric, but a little enrichment to help them with continents, states, Euro/Asia countries, etc.

 

They play the Stack The States/Countries apps and Scrabbled State of America board game. I know coloring books are a little juvenile for this age, but any suggestions on little trivia books or workbooks? Something that takes just a few minutes to provide a little enrichment?

[Other books similar to Ann of GG?]

These are awesome! So many titles I had forgotten. As usual, the Hive kills it! Thanks to all.

[Other books similar to Ann of GG?]

My DD8 in 3rd grade loves her "girly" fiction. But I'm running out of titles. We've read: Heidi, Little Women, Rebecca of Sunnybrook, Ann of GG, AG fiction.

 

Any suggestions for "girl" classic fiction (contemporary titles, too, as long as they aren't too "fluffy")?

[Burned out on Spelling Workout]

My DS10 is a great reader and a natural speller. He's in 5th grade and is burned out on SWO book F.

 

I know in our ps they drop spelling in 5th grade as an "official" subject and incorporate spelling work cross-curric.

 

Is it time to intro some Greek or Latin roots/spelling?

 

Any other suggestions for quality spelling work rather than busy work?

[Something other than WWE for DS11 who wants to write?]

I posted on logic board, I'll post here, too....

 

My 5th grade son just finished WWE 3. We started a lower in WWE because the format was new to us, so I thought I'd get used to it and begin there. He blazed through it writing all his own summaries after reading the passages. He very rarely narrated anything to me. He even went back to proof/revise his summaries. They have all been spot-on with the provided samples and his sentence construction and word choice are very well done. So, I think he's writing at above the WWE3 level. WWE has been a wonderful option,

 

But...

 

He's bored of the WWE formula and how it limits his writing to summaries/dictation. He's a very capable writer and has asked to do more "creative" writing, which means anything other than reading a passage and writing a summary.

 

I know there's WWE4, but I think the 4-day format and more summary will turn him off. I think there's value in continuing some WWE, but I need something else to complement the summary formula.

 

Any suggestions for a writing curric for a capable and eager 11-year-old writer that has some assignment structure like WWE, but gives the child freedom to bust out of the summary mold and be a little more self directed?

[Something other than WWE for DS who wants to write??]

My 5th grade son just finished WWE 3. We started a lower in WWE because the format was new to us, so I thought I'd get used to it and begin there. He blazed through it writing all his own summaries after reading the passages. He very rarely narrated anything to me. He even went back to proof/revise his summaries. They have all been spot-on with the provided samples and his sentence construction and word choice are very well done. So, I think he's writing at above the WWE3 level. WWE has been a wonderful option,

 

But...

 

He's bored of the WWE formula and how it limits his writing to summaries/dictation. He's a very capable writer and has asked to do more "creative" writing, which means anything other than reading a passage and writing a summary.

 

I know there's WWE4, but I think the 4-day format and more summary will turn him off. I think there's value in continuing some WWE, but I need something else to complement the summary formula.

 

Any suggestions for a writing curric for a capable and eager 11-year-old writer that has some assignment structure like WWE, but gives the child freedom to bust out of the summary mold and be a little more self directed?

[Science living books?]

I always considered "real books" to mean books about a subject rather than a text book about a subject.

 

So...want to learn about oceans, kids? Let's check out a bunch of books from the library and read about oceans. To "show you know," we can do lap books, or write a summary, you can narrate, draw a picture, etc.

[Language Arts Curriculum for 4th Grader (new to HS)]

My 4th grade DS used...

 

Hwot

Growing with grammar

Wwe

I just bought No More "I'm done!" for creative writing supp. Search for some good posts about that resource

Reading - anything! Classic kids' fiction plus whatever he wants to free reading. Currently we're reading the Shakeseare for kids series and he loves it!

[Discounts on WTB and FS curric?]

I'm new to the WTB and FS board. I have WTM curric that is brand new, like cover-barely-creased new. I also have other new curric that seem to be in-demand pieces.

 

I want to sell and share my resources so someone can be blessed by them, but, it's brand new so I'd like a fair price.

 

What's the protocol for discounts?

[WWE and benefit of dictation?]

Can anyone share where I would find SWB's lecture on writing? And where I would watch her doing dictation with her son? Thanks!

[WWE and benefit of dictation?]

My DS 5th grade does really well with WWE -- except for the "say back" portion of dictation. He struggles so much with remembering the sentences before writing them down. He can write it all almost perfectly - spelling, punctuation, etc. -- but I need to break it down a few words at a time. He just can't hold those long sentences in his head.

 

Am I missing out on a valuable skill? What's the benefit of saying back the passage before writing it down?

[WTM's idea of study time per subject?]

I just jotted down all the WTM suggestions for subjects for my 5th grade DS. Next, I jotted down the recommended time to study each subject (for example, math 45-60 min 5 days a week).

 

When I look at all the subjects and add up the time, my 5th grade DS will be doing school for, like, 8 hours! And that's not includIng devo/bible, art/music, and SWB's suggestion for that fat rest block in the afternoon.

 

So....how does it all get done?

 

If SWB is laying out a "doable" plan because she wants us to succeed, how, HOW, is this even possible?

[Math Curriculum Advice - Just starting to hs a 6th & 3rd grader]

I am math phobic, and my kids are math phobic. I agonized over my math curric when we started to hs my DD6 and DS8. I chose Saxon. It is one of my best hs decisions since starting this adventure. A hs mentor gave me this advice knowing I was agonizing over my choice: choose a curric that is easy for YOU to teach and follow through. Wise counsel. Saxon k-3 is pre-planned and my daughter is tracking wonderfully. My son now 6/5 is breezing along about 90% independently (with the Teacher CDs). Saxon turned my children from run-and-hide math students into confident math students.

 

About price....Saxon can be a little pricey. But it's worth it. YOu can buy re-sale easily since it's such a popular choice.

[K12 Elementary French - worth it?]

$238.00 That's the cost. Is it worth it?

 

The curric description sounds like what I want for my 3rd grade DD. But can I find that same thing at a better price?

 

I've heard so-so feedback about k12 foreign languages. Please share your insights. Thanks!

[New School Year Resolutions]

I resolve not to overwhelm DS13 with work. I will accomplish this by not being a slave to the lesson plans or the calendar.

 

I resolve to make time for fun.

 

I resolve to be off of the internet after 7am, with the exception of Skedtrack.

 

Contessa20, I'm also adding your first one to my resolution list. It's a great one.

[New School Year Resolutions]

I resolve to get up before my children. I will do this by going to bed earlier (duh).

 

How about you? What are your New School Year Resolutions?

[Skipping levels in GWG?]

Yep, I'm skipping. DS10 is wrapping GWG4. We'll flip through some of 5 as needed. Business letters? Skip. Anto/Syno/Homo? Skip. What we'll work on is same old grammar applied to more complex sentence structure (find those prep phrases, now delete them, do you have s/v agreement?)

 

My son gets grammar. Just needs to practice with lessons that have more varied sentence structure. Then, also apply that to his writing. We proofread and edit nearly everything in every subject -- even rinky-dinky little narrations. So we get a grammar lesson in that way, too. He's taking is grammar textbook/worksheet knowledge and applying to his writing. And isn't that the goal?

 

Even with the repetition, I love GWG. Good ol' grammar the way I learned it. Short, independent lessons. You're in; you're out. Boom.

[Dealing with extreme sensitivity/fear]

I'll chime in with a book...Strongwilled Child or Dreamer. The title is a little misleading. Its about emotionally sensitive children in all aspects of life and how to parent these uniquely wired kids. It's been a huge help in suggestions and insights for parenting.

[K12 people, I'm getting nervous!]

It's true, it is a lot of work when we did it for 1st and 3rd. It's really good content, especially LA and history. We purchased independently, so I could pick and choose and wasn't accountable to anyone. My friends that are enrolled say to always go to assessments to skip what they know. Also, be selective in what is truly optional. Also, find if you can teach the concept in a way that is faster for you. Some of the TG are a little fussy with finally getting to teach the concept when I could've explained it way faster.

 

A tip: spend lots of time now before school starts to get familiar with the content and TGs. I could've lifted a whole lot of anxiety off of myself if I would've become more familiar with the materials before I actually sat down to teach. Duh, right? But it was my first year, and I'm wiser for it.

 

Definitely reach out to your teacher. Don't freak out. I repeat, don't freak out. You do always have to option to step out of the school (if you are enrolled).