None of us? ;)

Snap. This is our way to a T. Particularly that I dislike having to do it, but it does work in all areas of life (with 4 very different personalities). I'm just wondering. How important is it you that your 5yo ds is able to do this level of phonics work? Quite honestly, my 5yo ds is nowhere near this and I'm quite happy about that. We do bits here and there, all very relaxed. We're having a stab at Saxon Math 1 (he's a mathy kid), but very slowly and gently. He plays a lot outdoors, regardless of the weather (bundled up if cold, I hasten to add!) which does him a world of good. In fact he plays a lot, period. And learns a lot from it - I'm often surprised at the comments he makes and conclusions he comes to. We don't have anything amazing in our house when it comes to toys - bikes and the grub of the garden outside, legos, wooden train track and craft supplies within. I'm not saying you're wrong in teaching him to read, because if he's ready for it, that's great. It's just that we (and I know plenty of others) don't do it until a little later, and I don't believe our dc will be the worse for it.

Maybe because the smaller pupil:teacher/facilitator ratio is more efficient than PS...

Congratulations! Wonderful news! :party:

I've been mulling over a thread I posted a while ago about learning languages, being good enough to do the language at uni, and fluency; there's also a relatively new thread where a Mom is teaching Math to a 4th grader but finding she doesn't know some stuff. So I just have a question for y'all. How many of you are - or will be, in your current plans - teaching your dc subjects to a level you never reached? How are you/do you plan to achieve this? I ask because I'm "teaching" my dc English Grammar and Latin without understanding a THING about either. We are sort of learning together, although I have to say that they often "get it" quicker than me! It will happen in the end with Math too, because by the time I got to 15yo I was struggling. I'm all ears :001_smile: :lurk5:

I stopped taking the iron tablets myself because I literally couldn't "go" at all and I was in a lot of pain with it. I saw my midwife a few days after and discussed it with her, and she said I was fine to have quit and recommended me the Floradix and molasses. (I never managed to drink molasses straight down though I have to say!!)

I was anaemic through all 4 pregnancies. My Dr prescribed me iron tablets twice and they bound me up something awful. Then my midwife recommended Floradix and blackstrap molasses and although it took longer to take effect, it was very successful. There was no more talk from the Dr about tablets!

I had a good belly laugh over that one Paula.. I can just imagine.

Rod and Staff do a laminated sheet, doubled sided, that covers the basic points of Grammar. One sheet has 2 grades worth of information on it. It's on this page of their website: http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com/list/Student_Helps/

I went in to a big pharmacy store today with dd2, to buy some c@nd@ms. They happened to be on sale, buy one get one free, so I picked up two boxes and took them to the cashier, who was a middle aged man with spiky hair. He muttered something as he scanned my items, which I didn't catch, so I hmm'ed and sort of smiled politely. As I paid, he said quite loudly, "ah.. you've got a perfume voucher on this purchase.. that'll put a smile on your face! Like what you've bought will!" :blush: well I sure did smile then.. but perhaps not for the reason he'd mentioned! I just couldn't get out fast enough...!

If they're travelling evangelists, then yes. Some evangelize in their home area, others move about, preaching as they go.

:smilielol5:

I think "evangelist" means someone who talks to non-Christians about their faith, either one-to-one or preaching to a group. A very similar word, "evangelicalist" is one who has a personal conviction of Christian belief and the authority of the Bible. I'm saying "I think" because my church doesn't use the phrase, but I've heard others use it in those contexts. HTH.

I'm so sorry.. this is just awful. Praying for you all. :grouphug:

I have a friend who never posts anything positive as a Facebook status, but always negative, complaining things about how difficult life is. I'm truly sorry if that's the reality, but I'm several thousand miles away, so I can't do anything but try to be cheerful to this friend and pray. But it does get me down at times. Thanks for listening.

I have no idea about tiny print.. but if you put "dictionary synonyms antonyms" into the search on http://www.amazon.com it comes up with a bunch of suggestions - Scholastic, Oxford, Merriam-Webster etc., and one or two dictionary-thesauruses. I've got a couple of Merriam-Webster children's dictionaries, and the Oxford French and Latin, all good.

Sounds to me like you are doing plenty. She is only 5.. I think if it was me, I'd do some hands on stuff at home - baking, painting, playdough etc. or just let her play. What about learning a musical instrument, or taking dance/swimming - something like that? Re Prima Latina - we had that last year, and although it's a decent course my dd10 (then 9) found it a bit dry, so I'm not sure how a 5yo would get on with it. Just our experience. If you want her to do Latin, what about Song School Latin, which I think is aimed at her age? HTH

I'm sorry, I had to laugh over some of your ds antics. My ds5 is a bit like this, so I kinda know where you're at. Well done, Mama. Deep breath, count to 5. Sometimes I manage it, sometimes not. I'm working on my patience!

My middle sister, known for her snippy remarks, once said to me, "I think homeschooling is great, as long as you do it properly" :001_huh: If you knew my sister you'd know that was laden with meaning.. her way or no way... We don't exactly see eye to eye on life!

I was in labour with dd9. I remember vaguely thinking, oh, there is something going on in the US.. but I am in labour.. I need to call the midwife.. It was only after I had had her (at 5am the next day) that I remembered about the disaster and found out what had happened. My MIL, who was due to fly over from North America, was terribly upset and of course, had her flight cancelled and her visit delayed for 2 weeks.

Praying here.. for a focussed mind for your dh in his exam and for him to get another job. It must have been very unsettling for him to lose a job after all that time. Please keep us posted on how he gets on. :grouphug:

Thanks for your thoughts everyone! I'll look up those books and have a read. I think the issue for us is that my dd is mostly fine, but just occasionally she does something which makes me think - huh.. that is odd.. why can she not understand this/remember how to do this when we've gone over this umpteen times in x number of different ways? Whatever it is, it doesn't affect her math, in fact she is so far ahead of herself that she's on the same level as her sister who is two grades above her and actually finds it easier; it's just the occasional hiccup in reading and writing. As for testing being a rigmarole.. it's very costly, and time consuming (according to some friends who had their dc tested privately). But I see your (plural!) point, that if she is thinking that she's stupid, it would be better to have a proper reason. Sadly, I don't actually know of anyone with any special educational need who has done anything other than just give up, or be extremely hard on themselves, which is partly why I'm rather anxious about all this. Limited experience, I guess. Because dd9 is so good at Math, I've always made the point to her that different people are good at different things, and therefore she doesn't need to feel bad about what she finds hard. We believe in celebrating the people our dc are, as special individuals. Different skills are part of what makes people so interesting, IMO. Anyway thanks again, it's given me plenty to chew over :001_smile:

Thanks so much for your thoughts. I'd be interested to hear more :bigear:

Not at all. We've all done that in our cul-de-sac here. Your child - your choice. :001_smile:

Praying here :001_smile: keep us posted!