We're taking our daughter out of public school after the Christmas holidays. The homeschool organization we are joining requires that the parent keep lesson plans in a notebook on the material covered. This can be in any format the parent chooses. Can anybody suggest an easy format? I'm trying to pull all of the paperwork together this month and order curriculum that we need. We also have the holidays and two of our kids have birthdays this month. Suggestions and advice deeply appreciated.

I'm trying to piece together some curriculum choices for my 6 yr old daughter (1st grade). It appears like she will begin homeschooling in January. I hate interrupting her mid-year, but it's necessary. I need a simple Bible study program for her. I'm ashamed to admit that we do not attend church very often (though I keep trying to begin). Along with regular curriculum, we need to include Bible studies. Any suggestions? Thank you :)

Thank you! That looks like what I'm looking for perfectly. Due to some crazy circumstances today, it looks like my 6 yr old will be coming home after the Christmas holidays so I plan to use it for her first and then order my other daughter's set in a few months. I appreciate your help. :)

I think you should ask him to teach the 16 yr old how to do basic home repair and maintenance. It's a GREAT skill to learn and would contribute overall to the family in general. And it would keep them both busy during those hours that are critical.

Each of our girls receive a pair of pajamas and a new book on Christmas Eve. :) I try to pick out something special for them. It's also a nice way to tone down the excitement of Christmas Eve and going to sleep. We have hot chocolate, new pj's and read together. :)

We currently afterschool, but I plan on homeschooling my youngest (6) next year and possibly my middle daughter (10) depending on how the transition to middle school goes. My 10 yr old dd is considered gifted (and she knows she's smart which isn't always a good thing). Our current district loves her, but they don't challenge her. Her teacher almost seems a bit intimidated by her. (My daughter is not THAT brilliant, but most of the teachers here really have little experience teaching a child who is inquisitive and enjoys learning). We live in a rural area. My current frustration this year is that the teacher is convinced that my daughter is so brilliant, that she doesn't worry about her ability to learn anything, which is causing her to not learn some things. Due to her medical condition and minor surgery, she missed 9 days this past nine weeks. She missed five tests in one class which lowered her grade to a B. (We have 2 1/2 more weeks left in the nine weeks period). I asked for information on what was taught so we could prepare over Thanksgiving for the make up tests. She sent home one worksheet on prepositional phrases. My daughter didn't know how to do these, so I printed more off on the computer until I was satisfied she knew how to do it. I absolutely helped her on the worksheet sent home, marking on it where she made errors so she could correct and learn from it. She turned it in after the holidays and her teacher gave her a 100 and let it count as a test grade. (This pulled her average up to an A). I quickly let the teacher know that I helped, but she said that dd was so smart she knew it wouldn't be a problem. I asked about the other tests and she said that dd is so bright that she would just make A's on them anyway so it wasn't a big deal. To me it is a big deal. My daughter still needs to be taught. I asked what subjects they were on (nouns, verbs, etc) and she said it wasn't a big deal and that there were some prepositional phrases on all of them, so she was fine. I'd look in the textbook, but they apparently aren't using the textbooks anymore. I asked for teacher's notes for the days she missed, but she couldn't locate them. I have a copy of the textbook but dd says it's too babyish and she doesn't want to do anything from it. :glare: I need a good reading program that is appropriate for her age (10 - 4th grade) that might have a greater focus on non-fiction or science based materials, or at least not give the appearance of being too young. This class also does no writing activities (no journals, poetry, reports, essays, etc) which bothers me. I'd love it if I could get reading/writing in one program, but I can also buy two programs if needed. It sounds like an easy solution would be for me to tell her to read a book and write something on it, but, I am not confident that I would do a good job on telling her how to write. I'm new to teaching my girls and while I love working with them, what if I screw it up? I feel more confident with a program. Any suggestions? and thanks :)

Julie, my oldest is severely autistic and we have great supports for her in place (OT, SLP, etc). Whenever I'm facing a difficult time, I turn to them for advice. They have probably seen/heard it all. I think asking them for suggestions is a great idea. Even if you can't talk with them privately today, ask them if they can call you later as you have a situation you could use some advice about.

No good solutions here, though I am mortified for you. I have a 10 yr old daughter (who I 'think' might lean towards aspergerish tendencies, we're still sort of watching) and she is very literal about most things. She accidentally came across pr0n on the computer one day and came into our room hysterical and crying. I know I didn't handle the situation correctly that day. She had already closed out the screen and all she could tell me was that she saw naked men and women doing awful things. She was literally gasping as she told me, "Momma, I don't even think what they were doing is LEGAL!" (I almost laughed, but managed to hold it in). Of course, I'm not sure what she saw, so maybe it wasn't....lol Anyway, good luck with everything. :)

I wanted to comment on the previous comments about school lunches. My daughter has Celiac Disease and is also considered failure to thrive due to being significantly underweight. Her being so small has made me quite nervous. School systems and doctors are more likely to call on a child who is underweight than overweight in my opinion. Other than comments and questions from the school about whether she is being seen by a doctor, we've never had an issue. (And the school questions stopped once they realized how often she does see a doctor). Due to her Celiac, she receives a gluten free lunch daily (they also keep gluten free items for breakfast on the rare times that she needs it). I've become a bit chatty with the lunchroom manager and she said that she provides numerous meals for kids with weight issues (all overweight, except for my daughter). If a doctor sends a note asking for low-fat (or whatever) the school must provide whatever the doctor specifies. (On a side note, although many jokes are made about lunchroom food, there are some good ones and we have a good one now. When my daughter had teeth pulled for orthodontic reasons, they served soft foods only and blended some things to make it easier for her to eat). I hate to call any side in this story. Living with the fear that someone will accuse me of not treating MY child right, makes me automatically sympathetic. However, I also know that if the child is attending school, they are overseeing his lunch, possibly breakfast and one snack. That leaves the parents providing dinner and one or two snacks (after school/bedtime). A child that age weighing over 200 lbs is in crisis. If I were in that parent's shoes, I would be cooking carefully and with the help of a dietician. If I couldn't afford a gym membership/personal trainer, I would be calling my most athletic friend and asking if I could trade babysitting for her helping my child. Of course, I'm also a stay at home mom and we can afford a gym membership and specialty foods. So, it's easy for me to point fingers and judge. I believe the article (or maybe another one?) stated that both parents were overweight (although another sibling had no weight issues). As hard as it is, sometimes the parents have to lead the way and be an example. I hurt most for the child. Before we moved here, my daughter's best friend was overweight (and tall for her age). Her mother was devoted to her and looked after her diet (Grandma was sneaking her doughnuts and cupcakes). This girl was very sensitive about her weight. I hope so much that things work out for this family (and the child's health). With the child being in foster care, it will be evident soon whether he can lose weight somewhere other than home.

We made a dress up trunk for my girls that they have used for many years now. (We started, though, right after Halloween collecting items). We bought marked down Halloween items (witches dresses, fairy wings, sparkling tutus, etc). I went to thrift stores and consignment stores looking for items that were less than $5. I also went to the fabric store and bought a yard of scarf like material in different colors and hemmed those. Finally, I went to the dollar store and bought purses, hats, bracelets, gloves, etc. The girls still play with it and the dresses (because they are real) have held up great. See if any of your friends with young girls have outgrown flower girl dresses, Christmas party dresses, etc.

My daughter is into extreme weather as well. We've bought numerous 'kid' books that she loves. We have bought a tornado in the bottle thing (I ordered it online at Joann's fabrics - they are having a sale this week-end). I'm looking for other things as well.

Thanks, I will definitely look into RAD. My niece's behavior doesn't bother me (even when it turns bad). My sister and bil have over-reacted at times (in my opinion) to their daughter's behavior. One time they insisted that their daughter had hurt mine, but my daughter couldn't recall the incident (even though it had happened less than ten minutes previously). It was awkward because other guests for dinner were commenting positively on my kids around the same time that hers would throw a shoe or something. It would have been comical if she hadn't been so upset. I don't think my sister has really found a parenting style. I think she's still slightly confused at all the work that goes into raising a child. Our relationship is good and I think she would listen to suggestions as long as I phrased it very carefully. I do have time-outs for my kids, by the way, but we don't have a specific place other than their bed to sit. I don't disapprove of her discipline methods other than the yelling. I can be strict and I may yell, but I try to be in absolute control of the situation in regards to calmness (if calmly yelling makes sense?). I can tell that my sister feels like a failure and she's had such a hard life at times that she deserves to feel good about herself. Thanks again to everyone who is commenting. I appreciate your kindness towards the situation.

Thanks for the thoughts so far. I'm not trying to judge my sister. (And I do not consider myself to be a perfect parent by any stretch). I'm very worried about her due to some heart problems she has. She fainted one day last week and my niece woke my bil up from his nap to 'go help mommy'. She seems stressed beyond belief. I'm grateful for any suggestions (and again, they have asked me for suggestions).

My sister has been visiting with my parents (who live nearby) for the past few days. She has a 2 1/2 yr old daughter (adopted at birth) and another newly adopted daughter (2 months). They decided to adopt after she was unable to conceive for 12+ years. She is a nurse (he has a truck delivery route). They are both well educated, church-going, compassionate, hard-working people. My sister does have issues with anxiety and ocd-ish type behaviors. They are both frustrated with the behaviors of their 2 1/2 yr old. She has had these behaviors since she could walk (so they are not related to the new baby, whom she loves). My niece bites, hits, pinches, punches, throws things, screams, etc. Interestingly, she ONLY does it when my sister is around. She had asked me if I could help her watch my niece while she was here and of course, I agreed. The 'watching' turned out to be all day (she tried to keep her here all night, but my niece was very upset when my sis tried to leave at night). I want to help my sister and this post is actually a bit painful to write, but I'm struggling to figure out how to help her (and they have both asked for suggestions on things to try). Both of my parents (divorced) have also experienced this issue - my niece is lovely (a typical two year old, but very polite and mannerly) until my sister walks through the door. What would cause that? My sister told me that I was too nice to my kids and to please, at least yell at her kid when she mis-behaved. She said I needed to scream at her and frighten her into obeying. She suggested that I spank her, but I really don't believe in spanking (please no debates about spanking). She wanted to know where my time-out corner was and they were floored when I told her I didn't have one. (If my kids are that out of control, I tell them to sit on their bed for time-out). I am ashamed to admit that I did look my niece over for bruises after seeing how upset my sister became towards her when she mis-behaved. (And again, she was an angel until my sister stopped by). My Sister didn't spank her or anything like that, she was just very stern with her. The other interesting thing I noticed was that when my husband came home from work, my niece lit up like a Christmas tree and went running towards him. (She had never really met him as he doesn't travel like I do). She hugged him and they played for a while together (he is very, very good with kids). Interestingly, she wasn't nearly as affectionate towards me and when she needed help in the bathroom, she went to him for help (I helped her, but she continued to go to him whenever she needed anything). I'm assuming that my bil is the main caregiver, but I still don't understand why the bad behavior escalates when my sis is around. My sister broke down and cried last night she was so frustrated. Additionally, the baby they just adopted is having some health issues and will probably need surgery soon, so I know her stress is high. Does anyone have any insight for the behaviors? I have heard of kids who behaved poorly when their parents were around, but had never seen it before.

We are hosting Thanksgiving this year and making a completely gluten free Thanksgiving meal. It's a lot of work, but my daughter becomes ill after every holiday meal at other people's houses. She spends a week after holidays with vomiting and diarrhea. I've requested that nobody bring a single, solitary thing. I am so firm in my resolve that I will ask anyone who brings something, to take it back out to their car. My daughter is a child and she deserves a carefree holiday without worrying about being sick. If you feel you must bring something, ask if there is a pre-packaged and sealed item you can buy at the store or offer to help pay for the ingredients. Cooking special meals is very expensive and is a gesture of love. My daughter is isolated at times because of her diet and grown ups can make careless and hurtful comments in front of her. Your presence will show your support and understanding and that will mean the world to your family.

I would try to make a recording of it. Then I would call her (at her school) and ask her if you can come by and meet with her for a minute. Play her that tape and ask her if you can discuss it further, that you're not sure why your polite note elicited such a vulgar response from someone who should be a role model to children. Then if you want to be nice, ask her if she simply had a bad day (which gives her an out) or wait because I bet she apologizes and quickly.

My daughter had eight removed yesterday (6 baby and 2 permanent). We had two removed last year. Her teeth are crowded and jammed together. Our ortho made the recommendation and I discused it with our dentist, who agreed. I also discussed it at length with the oral surgeon, who also agreed. My daughter may still need braces or more teeth pulled, but her teeth can now shift into better position instead of stacking against each other. I don't regret it, even though she's still recovering. She has stitches but says that it doesn't really hurt today.

It has teeth, yes, but there are also a few pieces that stick out.... let me see if I can find a picture... http://www.davesrepair.com/DIYhelp/DIY285770.htm (I have no connection to davesrepair by the way - just using his picture) Also, to figure it out, I googled questions like "Why won't my washing machine spin" and kept going through trouble-shooting guides until I found something that looked like it might work. Our washer is about 12 yrs old, so it was a gamble. I hope you figure it out. I know I always feel absolutely sick when something big breaks.

I personally wouldn't do it, but for something like chicken pox, I don't condemn it. I think the vaccine would be easier on the child, but, I'd certainly rather they have chicken pox as a child than as an adult. Many unvaccinated kids will be unprotected adults. (I'm not condemning those who don't vaccinate by the way - I realize it's controversial but at the end of the day, it's a parent's right to choose).

A lot of it depends on your relationship with the school. If it IS an educational trip, I'd make a list of the things you will be doing (visiting a museum, spending a day studying sea-life, etc) and go talk to the person who can excuse the absences (typically the principal). If it's not an educational trip (and you have a good relationship), you can explain the trip and it will probably be excused anyway. (My in-laws once paid for three school days and a week-end at the beach for our family - I explained that scenario and the principal laughed and told me she would be skipping school too). If you have a bad relationship with the school, I've found that they are really unpleasant to deal with until it turns around. Luckily, i'm rarely in that situation but it's tough when you are. ETA - also it depends on the grade - elem/middle school won't be a problem. Once you're in high school, it takes an act of God it seems to get things excused.

I wanted to post again and try to help with the resolving issues you are having. Having children with special needs, I find myself on the opposite side of the teacher at times, and it takes a lot of diplomacy to keep everyone happy and comfortable. First, I have to tell you that having that many kindergartners is a lot. Our district is economically deprived and still managed to keep 12 kids per kindergarten class. It appeared from your post that she is managing about 22 per class with two different classes she oversees - a total of 44 kindy kids. That's a lot of kids and a lot of parents. I believe your first (happy) meeting was when she didn't have a ton of them to do and your most recent (stressed) meeting came at a time when she felt personally stressed. I would buy a small thank you gift - (I typically buy a pound cake from the bakery or anything that is small but a nice gesture) and write a thank you note to her. "Dear Teacher, Thank you for taking the time to meet with me the other day. I appreciate your taking the time to discuss my child's school performance. We discussed so many things that day, that I'm afraid I left with a lot of questions and things I didn't really understand. Would it be possible for us to meet again? Please know that I'm committed to working closely with you so that 'child' can be successful in kindergarten. Please let me know what day and time works out best with your schedule." When you meet, remind her that you were homeschooled and that some things may be new to you. (If she's feeling threatened that you were homeschooled/homeschooler, this will hopefully calm her down). Let her know that you were unfamiliar with the school absence policy and that you appreciate her calling it to your attention. Then ask her who is in charge of enforcing that policy at the school level (typically the ass't principal). {Side note - you should have received a handbook outlining that at the start of the school year - either read it or go ask for one if they didn't give it to you. Then, make a meeting with the person in charge and let them know you didn't understand the policy until now and ask what you should do when your child is sick for several days but you don't want to take him to the doctor. If your child did see a doctor, ask if you can bring in a doctor's note and have the excuses changed to doctor's note.} If she wants your child to work on comprehension, assure her that you will help with that at home. If there are behavioral issues, let her know that you have a zero tolerance policy on your children being disrespectful and will address that with him. I've found that if teachers are nervous, they come off as defensive. By letting her know that you want to work with her, she will hopefully see you as the parent of one less child to stress over. (Teachers can absolutely tell which parents work with their children and which do not). There are standards that teachers must meet or they receive negative reviews and scores from administration. Once you find out what SHE needs to get done for the year, you'll find what she's worried about. Honestly, if I had to worry about teaching the kids in my daughter's FIRST GRADE class how to read (and there are only 16 in the class), I'd be a nervous wreck. In defense of teachers, they have to work with a lot of challenges these days. There are more special ed kids in the class without extra supports. There are many parents who battle and challenge the school on every little detail. And many of the academic standards they are forced to teach, make little to no sense. Oh, and if you have the time, offer to volunteer in the classroom and help with holiday parties or craft days. And, if you have the funds, ask if she needs anything for the classroom (paper, tissues, sanitizer, etc). Good luck with everything :)

Our washing machine quit agitating after DH 'helped' me out by doing several large loads of laundry on a small setting. It broke a part that is curiously called 'dogs'. We had to buy a long handled thing to get the bolt out of the thing in the middle that spins. (I am not very appliance handy). The agitator assembly that contained the dogs was about $6 from amazon. DH and I spent an hour cleaning and replacing it. It works perfectly now. If you have any friends who are handy, offer to babysit or help out with some holiday cooking (I'm bartering for things right now with the promise of cooking bulk candy and cookies for people to take to Christmas parties) if they can either look at it for you or loan you that long handled tool. (I think the tool was about $20). This is also the time of year where people count their blessings and are more giving and willing to help, IMO. For what it's worth, although the agitator wouldn't agitate, it would still spin. If the agitator is broken it will move easily in either direction without resistance - it feels broken. I don't know how to explain it, except it won't feel right. I was still, however, able to wash clothes but it didn't make them perfect - but nobody accused us of being dirty. :) Good luck.

Sadly, I can answer some of the absentee/truancy issues. Schools typically allow 10 excused absences per year (5 per semester). An excused absence is a parent note. (You can have unlimited doctor's notes). They get very grouchy when you go over that amount. Regardless of your child's grades, they will send you a nasty note stating that education is very important and you should strive to send your child to school every day. Furthermore, if you don't you could be taken to jail and/or pay a fine (per the note). When my middle daughter was in Kindergarten (and doing so well that her teacher told me she felt she was highly gifted and had her do different things from the rest of her class), she began having chronic and daily stomach pain. She missed 17 days before our doctor noticed that she hadn't grown at all (height or weight) in nearly a year and a half. She tested positive for Celiac Disease and they scheduled a biopsy. I received my nasty note from the school and called to explain it to them. The truancy officer was very unsympathetic and told me to send her to school or else. I had to get the principal to intervene. It's ridiculous, but it's meant to keep parents (who aren't as concerned about education as the OP is) bringing their kids to school. So, I roll my eyes and try to be understanding. Make sure you are very detailed in your excuses to the school so if they pull those out to look at them, you look reasonable. Regarding your trip, go talk to the principal and ask them to excuse it in advance. It wouldn't hurt to let them know that you feel strongly when a child is sick, they should be home and that you work with your child at home. If they ever do send you a truancy note, it's better that they know you, than to consider you a stranger. (Truancy is beyond teacher's control.)

We just started using J&J for our oldest daughter with autism (at the recommendation of our eye doctor). Our oldest loves to be outside and plays in the dirt and sand (sometimes throwing it up in the air). She's inside a fenced area so I am not always around her. Recently she had dirt in her eye which developed into a huge and nasty infection around her eye. She's currently using an ointment over the eye with both steroids and antibiotics in it. Our eye doctor said to gently wash her face at night (or after dirt throwing) with J&J due to the 'no tears' factor (so we could clean her eyes without irritation and meltdowns). Any suggestions for a good alternative? It needs to be 'eye friendly'. If this is off-topic, feel free to PM me. Thank you :)

Thank you for all the responses. I wanted to clarify that her stomach aches started last December and gradually increased along with the diarrhea. It decreased somewhat during the summer, but not a lot. It may be anxiety but we have a lot of people in our family with tummy problems. We are using HWoT for her handwriting and that's also what our therapist is trained in. She has a lot of spacing issues and trouble with capitalization throughout words. She has some reverse letters also, but I believe those will self-correct. We do have a library card, but not the best library. :) We're all avid readers though so we have a LOT of books here. We can easily do a study on Greek mythology or Egyptian times without any concerns. Right now, school is fun (although she wishes it was harder) but the teacher is not. I have a conference scheduled for tomorrow with her and it may be that I ask for her to have a different teacher. But if it's just looking like a headache, she's coming home. She wants to come home. And I'm trying to sort how all of this plays into her health. Thanks again and I'll probably move into the K-8 curriculum area for further questions. Thanks for the suggestion. :)