Well, we're reading "1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving" published by National Geographic. It clears up a lot of misinformation about the Wampanoag, and was written in cooperation with the Plimoth Plantation, a living museum in Massachusetts. Did you know that the "pilgrims" didn't even wear black and white clothing, nor tall hats with silver buckles? Their clothing was colorful. I would love to visit Plimoth Plantation someday. They list the following as "further reading": The Wampanoag and the First Thanksgiving (Everyday Learning Corp. 1997) Tapenum's Day: A Wampanoag Indian Boy in Pilgrim Times (Kate Waters, 1996) Giving Thanks: The 1621 Harvest Feast (Kate Waters, 2001) Circle of Thanks: Native American Poems and Songs of Thanksgiving (Joseph Bruchac, 1996) Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message by Chief Jake Swamp (Lee & Low, 1995) Julie

She won't be 6th grade by age, will she? My son is 10 and has been ten since 4th grade, so I can't see how your 9yo will be in 6th next year. My question is actually relevant, LOL, because I came on here to recommend Latin Prep. But if she's 9, I withdraw my recommendation until she's 11. The first chapter is doable, but it gets very intense quickly. It's definitely middle school material. If she's gifted in logic and languages, just ignore the preceding paragraph. HTH, Julie

We're planning on doing Carbon Chemistry next semester. We're really not in any hurry, because our basics (Homer, Math, Latin, Greek & Violin Practice) take up a large portion of the day. So if we have extra time after Elements and before Carbon Chemistry, we will use it to catch up in history. Besides finishing SOTW 4, we are investigating modern history from the perspective of disadvantaged populations, mostly Native Americans. Columbus Day is tomorrow, so we will be reading Encounter by Jane Yolen and looking at activities in the book "Rethinking Columbus: The Next 500 Years" (Bigelow and Peterson, editors.) Julie

Hello, My ds is 10 years old. He just started Latin Prep this year after completing Latin for Children A, B & C. My two cents is that you should drop grammar. All the decent Latin programs (including the two mentioned above) teach grammar very clearly. Much grammar is impossible to teach in the English language, anyway. For example, in Latin one learns to put nouns of possession in the genitive case. (John's book - put John in the genitive.) That kind of grammar is actually easier to learn in Latin or Spanish (Spanish would be "el libro de Juan"). When diagramming a sentence that begins "John's book....fell off the table," American kids might assume that John is the subject of the sentence. Nope, it's "book", with "John's" being an adjective that points out "which one." Do you have the book Latin-Centered Curriculum? Their suggested schedules for 6th graders (is your son in 6th grade?) do include science. If you chose something less time-consuming than Classical Writing for your language arts, I would think you would have time for science. Also, you mentioned the three R's. Well, one of those (that actually does begin with R, snort!) is reading. Your son could spend time reading science books, such as Hakim's wonderful series on the history of science. Then for writing, he could choose a scientist or a topic to write a few paragraphs about. My son wrote a paper on Tesla recently. I do think that Latin develops the brain wonderfully. It makes mine tingle. Julie

If I recommend only one curriculum, it is Right Start Math. Ds completed levels B through E (he went to public school in K) and has a really deep, conceptual understanding of math and easily manipulates numbers in his head. I always get really excited when I meet someone who is looking for homeschool materials and they are in K or 1st grade, because it is extremely helpful to begin Right Start from the very beginning. I have nothing against Singapore, but Right Start is just brilliant. Don't skip any of the games, though. In the book, they say "play ______ if you have time." Cross out the "if you have time" part, because the games are essential. OK, off my soapbox now, to recommend Story of the World (which was probably not out yet when you homeschooled your olders), Minimus for second grade, Latin for Children beginning in third, Elementary Greek (third or fourth grade), Growing with Grammar, Real Science for Kids Chemistry (Pre-Level One, also Level One when they are older), Real Science for Kids Physics, Espanol para Chiquitos y Grandes (the one for littler kids), and those music CD's that everyone likes -- can't think of what they are called, but the titles include "Beethoven Comes to Call." Oh, and I really like Artistic Pursuits. I would recommend letting AP gather your art materials for you if you can afford it, or if not, be sure to gather them all before you start the program. You can do the AP K-2 books in any order, I believe. Have fun with your sweet little ones, Julie

My son would also repeat the model verbatim if I were to allow it. I am so envious of his memory, but like a previous poster mentioned, it doesn't teach writing. So I do require him to write a key word outline. Now we are on the lesson in Homer that specifically teaches paraphrasing, so we are doing a slightly different skill: keeping the exact same meaning, but using synonyms and rephrasing. I do think your daughter got the right meaning, though, with her rewrite. In saying, "I could dance all around you the whole way," the hare is saying, "I could beat you very easily." It sounds like it is going well for you! Julie

Also with IDEA. If you are the type of homeschooler who knows exactly what she wants to use, they will be fairly hands off. But if you need more suggestions, they can do that too. All of the "teachers" are experienced homeschoolers. Julie

I disagree; it is very difficult to reach toxic levels of Vitamin D. Most healthcare providers are now recommending 1,000 to 2,000 IU's per day for adults. In the northern latitudes, our skin is making NO vitamin D at all after about September -- even if it is light out. The sun is just too low. Zero. And even salmon is not sufficient to provide all that we need. Here is the Mayo Clinic article on it, which is quite conservative. Read all the way down to note what the "unofficial" recommendation is and what pediatricians are saying. I am sure that ArcticMom has a severe Vitamin D deficiency in the winter, unless she has a vacation rental in Hawaii. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/vitamin-d-toxicity/AN02008 All known cases of Vitamin D toxicity have involved over 40,000 IU's per day. And even at 100,000 (that's one hundred thousand) IU's per day, it takes a few months for symptoms of toxicity to develop. Here's an interesting Wikipedia article (you have to go way down to the bottom to find "nutrition" and then "overdose" section). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_D Now I really must stop with my internet tonight! Oh, I see that while salmon offers 360 IU's of Vitamin D (not enough), herring has over 1,000. :tongue_smilie: Julie

If the speech therapist hasn't said any of these things to you about homeschooling, don't put words in her mouth. You are doing the best thing for your child right now, and nobody has suggested otherwise. The speech teacher is not qualified to diagnose other problems, and just wants to see if she can help your dd. She's not attacking you, really. It wouldn't hurt to have her looked at, but there is no real reason to do it now. If she was in school all day, her problems would probably escalate and you'd have to deal with it. But since she's homeschooled, you're doing right by her for now and she might grow into more social interactions, might not. Is there nobody at all that she will look at in the eyes? Will she look you in the eyes? If you are not exaggerating this, she probably does have some sort of condition like Asperger's or mild autism. But you know what? Kids grew up for hundreds of years without knowing the words "autism," "Asperger's", obsessive-compulsive disorder, sensory integration disorder, and a diagnosis is not going to change who your daughter is. It is just going to help people help her. By the way, is she crying because she is overwhelmed by sounds/sights/too many people? That might mean she has a sensory integration issue (SID). Julie (whose child is mildly OCD, and HIGHLY sensitive to sound/touch). And he cries when he is trying to understand new ideas! That's who he is, and if he was in school that wouldn't be very convenient, would it?

Not to be trite (I understand your issues are more complex than this), but are you taking Vitamin D? Do you feel this poorly in the summer? Are you overly energetic and ambitious in the summer? I live in Alaska, and when I started taking THOUSANDS of IU's of Vitamin D in the fall/winter, my son said, "Wow, I like this mom way better. Please keep taking Vitamin D." In fact, preliminary studies seem to suggest that Vitamin D might make light therapy unnecessary. I still do both. Vitamin D might also help with your insomnia, unless you are already following a traditional arctic diet including seal oil, etc. HTH a little. Julie

The BSA does not claim to be non-discriminatory, either. Just Google "Dale Boy Scouts" or something like that for the Dale decision. The BSA argued that they were a private religious organization and so were allowed to discriminate. So now they can discriminate, but they have a heckuva time renting public buildings (libraries, etc.) for their meetings because they are not a public organization. Julie

Oh, sweetie, I do understand. And I would so TOTALLY bring you some coffee if I lived a few thousand miles closer. I would even buy whole beans and grind them for you, so you would have fresh-ground ....... grounds. Julie

I don't know, but we finished RS E this summer and we're doing Singapore 5A, Singapore 5B, Life of Fred Decimals and Life of Fred Percents. Life of Fred is taking longer than we thought, so that might be enough. If we finish all that, we will start Right Start Geometry. My son always asks for Life of Fred.... I am rationing it! Oh, I meant to say that RS E is not really thorough in all those topics you listed. So you would really need some fraction work and some decimals work, which both LOF and Singapore give you tons of. Julie

Oh how wierd, I was just wondering the same thing. Great minds think alike! I hope she comes back soon. Julie

Just adding an "I agree" to Heather's post. I'm not sure whether they sell this for Aesop, but for Homer they sell something called "Instructor's Guide to Student Workbook Homer A." Oh, man, would I be lost without that gem. It has suggested answers to all the exercises, it tells the instructor exactly what parts of the Homer Core book (called simply "Homer" if you are as confused as I was) to read every week, and exactly what to do every day. So. Yeah. Get that. And of course, there is one for Homer B too! Julie

Art. And I thought I would be the only one to say that! Perhaps if we had different children (children who eat, drink and breathe art) then it would happen? We are just so busy with music that art is a rare thing. A better answer is "whatever isn't on the schedule." Art.

I don't really understand the part of your question about history. The current edition does have a history sequence outlined in the "scope and sequence" on pp. 61-71. K-4 is ancients (Greece, Egypt, Rome etc.) except for K and 1 when you are supposed to read "topics of interest" in history out of COTW. Grade 5 is medieval history (and literature), Grade 6 is around 1500through the late 1800's, Grade 7 is SOTW Volume 4 (modern history), Grade 8 is civics/government/economics. Grade 9 is ancient Greece, Grade 10 is Roman history, Grade 11 is Middle Ages (primary source material this time), and Grade 12 focuses on the United States (again, mostly primary source material), mostly 18th and 19th century but also some readings that include 20th century history. So, for example, the students read Alexis de Tocqueville's "Democracy in America." Sorry I don't have time to clean up this post! I hope it makes a little more sense to look at the big picture instead of just K-2 stuff. If it makes you feel better, modern history is so horrific that not much is suitable for children. And studying American history at a young age is also frustrating because the ideas that form the foundation of the U.S. government are too often simplified into silly putty. But, hee, that is of course MY OPINION. YMMV. Julie Julie

If you use the Classical Writing curriculum (Aesop, Homer, etc.) recommended in LCC (at least the newest edition), it has a grammar component of sorts. Well it has quite a lot of grammar actually, it's just that from Homer on it requires the use of a grammar book (your choice, they schedule Harvey's but that's way too old-fashioned for us) in addition to the Homer books. But all levels of CW include quite a bit of grammar. We probably spend 1/3 of our total time doing grammar, including diagramming. Julie

Perhaps it would work better if you searched LASIK surgery. I had my LASIK surgery in 2001, and am very happy that I did. I really hated wearing glasses, and couldn't wear contacts. My son loves wearing his glasses (he thinks he looks better with them than without them), go figure. They have improved the procedure since I had it done. My night vision is not terrific. Be sure to go someplace that has done thousands of procedures. It is your eyes - no skimping on a discount place, LOL! Julie

It sounds like a good time for a field trip to Wal-Mart's frozen food section. Let's see: math. How many bags of frozen strawberries can we buy if we have $10? How much change will the cashier give us? Reading: who can find the word with the most syllables on the ingredient list? Why will that mean that mom won't buy that brand? I'm sorry your a/c went out, but I love your attitude! Can you make popsicles? That would count for science in our house.......(two different states of water). Julie

I found the answer in section 7.6 of Growing with Grammar 5, and you both are right. It is an adverb. But if it were "threw the ball down the hallway," then "down" would be a preposition. You all are gooooooooooood. :thumbup1: Julie

"He threw the ball down." Is "down" an adverb, a preposition, or both (preposition functioning as an adverb?) Thanks so much - my Analytical Grammar is coming in the mail soon! Julie

Check out this video: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/videos/g-word-pacific-ocean-trash-vortex.html I don't ordinarily get into these controversial threads, but taking care of our earth shouldn't be controversial. Even if every single one of those plastic water bottles are recycled, that takes a lot of energy. And not every single one is going to make it into the recycling process. Re-use is much easier on the earth than recycling. Julie

You don't list the ages of your children, so this might not be appropriate, but perhaps for the older ones you could write a VERY specific list of things to be practiced so that you could be teaching math to a different child at that time. Just an idea. I am supposed to supervise my son's violin practice, but he dislikes my supervision so much that I've decided it's better to just let him do it by himself. He is beginning to take ownership of his playing a bit more, and paying more attention in lessons. He's 10, though, so YMMV. He used to practice violin at 4:00 each day, but now we've moved it to before lunch (different time every day). It has been a huge relief to get it done, then if a neighbor comes to see if ds can play at 3:30 or 4:00, he can say YES! I know I have only one child, so I apologize for answering your post. Julie

Heather, we finished Level E so recently that if you have any questions about how it plays out, I can probably answer them. But my child LOVES geometry (he would even woo-hoo!!! if it was a geometry lesson), so bear that in mind. I think what makes Level E so challenging is that the topics it teaches don't really lend themselves to the RS (deep understanding) way of teaching math. For example, the students are taught to multiply fractions without the algorithm. This is normal for Right Start, as you know, to teach something the cumbersome way for understanding before it teaches the algorithm. But it is really difficult to multiply fractions the "real" way. (It involves cross-hatching, and also involves that the multiplication symbol means "of.") So for example, 3 x 4 = 12 really means "3 of 4 equals 12." So 1/4 x 1/8 means 1/4 of 1/8. But you can't just start with 1/8 and divide it into fourths, so first you divide your whole into eight parts (cross-hatch one direction), then you realize that you must divide each of those into four parts (because how else would you take 1/4 of one of them?) and cross-hatch one part of that the other direction. So you have cross-hatched one of the (now) 32 parts. That was a more challenging example, of course. They start them out with cross-hatching problems like 3/4 of 1/2. For that you would divide your whole into two parts (to represent "of 1/2"), then divide each of those parts into 4 parts (because to take 3/4 of something, you have to divide it into 4 parts first). So one of the halves is cross-hatched one direction (diagonally) and then 3/4 of one of them is cross-hatched the other way (diagonally) and whichever section is double-cross-hatched is your answer. Three parts are double-cross-hatched, out of the (now) eight parts. I must confess I taught him the algorithm before RS Level E "let" us, because the above method is cumbersome. But it does really well with teaching things like: if we are multiplying, why is the answer smaller than the multipliers? Julie