I think Right Start A could be great, even if you don't begin it immediately. I used it when my son was quite young. We skipped the writing until he was ready to begin handwriting, but all of the games RS has you play were perfect for him. My son sort of "self-teaches" or learns a lot on his own as well, so I think I know exactly what you are talking about. My tiny bit of advice (I'm still figuring this out myself!) would be to focus on your own education now (look at your weak points, etc). And instead of feeling like you have to buy curriculum for him on certain subjects, you might look at buying something for yourself--something to teach you the subject or use as a reference. That way you can guide him or correct him as he learns/discovers things throughout everyday life. I also agree with getting him outdoors as much as possible!

I recently exchanged (online) a JC Penny's gift card for Amazon credit. I think it took the value down by less than $2 or so? This was on a $25 or $30 card, can't remember now. I'd have to look through my emails to see how I did it. It may have been on Amazon's website even...? It was a cinch--I typed in the number codes on my giftcard and they promtly emailed a credit code for me to redeem.

I was recently given my first few pieces (for my birthday)! I have a couple of "accessories" in Peacock I keep out on the counters--a creamer/sugar/tray set by the coffee pot and a large disc pitcher for flowers above the sink. It looks all beachy. :001_smile: Oh, and I got some yellow cereal bowls. I've been wanting some cheery, sunny, yellow breakfast dishes for the kids.

Sounds like a fun "spring break" to me! ;)

:iagree:I love Don Potter's site! I would definitely look at the actual Blend Phonics book and resources he has linked.

If you do a search for "mep" (or tag search mep), you will find many informative threads. My affection for mep didn't really come until I began using it (I had looked at it before), AND, I will add, using it with a child who seemed to fit it perfectly...it has all just come together nicely for us.

We listened to Harry Connick Jr.'s version of "Supercalifrag..." after the final lesson. ;) (Dancing is optional.)

I'm still learning and exploring as well, but here is a website to give you some more food for thought... On The Book of Centuries: http://childlightusa.wordpress.com/2010/08/15/the-book-of-centuries-revisited-by-laurie-bestvater/ http://childlightusa.wordpress.com/2011/03/28/the-book-of-centuries-revisited-part-ii-by-laurie-bestvater/ (and there is plenty more there to peruse)

Do your kids take much notice of grades? Does it come up a lot in everyday life? (It doesn't as much here, so they wouldn't notice or care so much if they were in different grades--at least in the early years.) I think if he is having a hard time working up to the higher grade I would call him the lower grade for now (at least as far as your state is concerned). Then try to work towards him being able to graduate with relatives/friends. If it looks like that is a possiblity, officially skip him up a grade later on. Having to "hold him back" or stall him out a grade would probably affect him a lot more if he is older. On the other hand, allowing him to "progress" or "skip ahead" when he is older would be viewed as a positive thing. (I know this is a tough decision for you. :grouphug:)

Looking at this again, I have some more thoughts. I didn't quite catch the "grandson" part at first; I guess I read it more as just friends. The thing I'm wondering about is graduation. I love the idea of having more freedom and flexibility at that time, but if he grows up very close to your grandson (we're not talking a casual friend next door who may eventually move out of his life). I'm thinking they will want to share everything together including same grades and graduation. I'm not sure how your state regulates homeschooling or how formally you treat graduation, but I could see this becoming more important to him the older he gets. My kids have an uncle not much older than them, so I'm trying to put myself in your shoes. I think if it was me and I could foresee them having a close relationship (living in same town long term, etc) and not much of a chance he will go to a brick/mortar school, I would probably try to keep them together as much as possible. In my state though none of this would really matter until it came time for them to graduate--then I could make sure they were ready to graduate together--the grades/levels up to that point don't matter as much. We aren't required to test here and that is the part that would make things tricky. I wouldn't want the pressure of forcing him in a grade he wasn't ready for... If your family is as close as mine, I'm thinking I'd make an exception and keep them in the same grade. But I'm me and live in a different state. ;) I don't think its worth it though if testing at a different grade is going to cause a lot of pressure and stress on you or him.

My son has an October birthday (not as close, I know) and will be working at first grade level. However, we plan to call him "kindergarten" as he would be in our public schools. For us: It keeps things simple. It gives us "wiggle room" if the rate of his progression fluctuates down the road. It leaves room on the backside for dual enrollment, etc., and by then a grade adjustment/early graduation call is much easier to make than trying to plan it from here. Also, my dh was grade skipped very early on (mind you, he was in public school) and felt the effects of having to be younger physically and socially than everyone else (he feels this mattered most in trying to play sports as a boy), so we are taking that into consideration where it applies.

Through CBD? Or some other place?

$15 for a puppet? Surely you have a spare sock around the house you could use! :lol: (I'm pretty frugal and tend to look for the "Tightwad Gazette" way of doing things first...even if I don't choose that route in the end.) Obviously, we all have to find what works best for each of our children within our own families and budgets. I know some people would scratch their heads at the money I spent on RS for "pre-school math", but I didn't have the confidence in that area to do it myself. Now that I've done it once, I think I could do it again without all of the hand holding. I love this forum for the variety of ideas, inspirations, experiences, budgets, etc. etc.

Thanks. And yep, that pretty well sums up my #2. :D

Did you like it? Or did you have to sell because it didn't work out for you? :D

Thank you for your time. I'm kind of thinking ahead for my almost 3yo. I'm still "feeling him out"...he is going to be a totally different learner compared to my oldest. I actually own RS A and have decided to hold onto it because I'm thinking it will be perfect for him eventually. He is very energetic and social/interactive!

If it is their abacus you love, have you seen the manual for the AL Abacus? Is it "Activities for..."? I've heard it contains instructions for all activities taught with the AL Abacus throughout all of the levels in the one book. It is next on my list to purchase (I own the AL Abacus and RS A). I love their abacus as well and would like to know how to use it along with whatever math curriculum we use from here on. ETA: it may be tedious, but you could try to do a search for SM/RS comparisons--I know it has come up on here many times.

About how long do you think it can/will be used (on average)? I know a lot probably depends on the child, but what kind of schedule is it broken down into? Does that make sense? Like if you use it as suggested will it last a few months, a comlete "school year", something else?

$100?? To teach pre-reading? :svengo:

This sounds just like me with my oldest at that age. He is now 5.3 and has completed all of the phonics in OPGTR. I picked up a used copy of First Language Lessons 1&2 a long time ago and pulled it out to begin with him at 4. He was capable of understanding it, but I began to question what I wanted to put emphasis on at that age. I know it doesn't take but a few minutes to do a lesson of FLL, but still, I began to look around more and think about ALL of the other things we could devote a few minutes to each day (some things I hadn't thought about before)...memorize poetry, listen to beautiful music, free time on a keyboard (or any instrument), learn to play chess, work through math puzzles, develop fine motor-skills, finger knit, garden, set up a birdfeeder to watch the hummingbirds southern migration...;) you get the picture (and we could spend all day coming up with things). I don't mean to say that you must choose between FLL and all of these other things. But for *me*, I had to think about my personal priorities for this age and decide where to best spend my time and energy. I realized there were a number of things more important to me that we weren't getting around to. So I decided to hold off just a little longer since there will be lots of time to cover grammar/language later. Another thing I took into consideration was trying to plan ahead...if we flew through all of the easier grammar books at an early age, would it eventually leave us hanging? Would I have a 7yo who was done with all the early, repetitive material but not quite ready to handle the more advanced? Also, I think my son will get even more out of FLL now/later than he would have at that age. For example: he has not been an early writer and while we could have skipped the writing portion of FLL, I think he will benefit more from waiting until he can do some of those exercises. And same with the narration mentioned earlier. I pretty much agree with everything boscopup said, and she has a lot more btdt than I do. :001_smile: My experience with an early/voracious reader has been that he has picked up a lot without any formal lessons. We have discussed punctuation and capitalization in the context of his reading once he seemed capable and interested in learning about it. It sounds like you are good at teaching these sorts of things naturally anyway (?). You might like checking out some of Brian P. Cleary's books--fun stories about punctuation and parts of speech--many can often be found at the library. http://www.amazon.com/Brian-P.-Cleary/e/B000APG194/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_9?qid=1330619165&sr=8-9 I'm not trying to discourage from using FLL early. I know of plenty of people who used it successfully at pre-k age. I guess I'm just sharing my experience so far. I am still trying to decide if I want to begin FLL sooner than my son's "official-if-he-were-in-public-school" Kindgergarten year this fall. I don't regret waiting this long, and I think his added maturity will only help. ETA: Oh, and welcome to the boards!

My impression has been from others here (Laura Corrine for one?) that UK standards in maths are slightly more advanced overall than here in the US overall. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong (not that you needed my permission!;)). So while they (UK) are teaching the ages that would be considered "K" here in the US, the content of some of the curriculum looks more like what you would find in our (US) first grade classrooms...?

All I know is my toddler would love your house!! :lol: (I'm glad he can't read this because he might beg to move in with you!)

Thank you for answering me. We naturally incorporate a lot of "languagey" (for lack of a better word) activities into our daily lives, but I guess what gets me wondering is the fact that not much of this has changed between my two children. We read all the time. I have the same flashcards, the same letter magnets, the same videos, etc., etc. My oldest ran with it; my youngest, while showing brightness in completely different ways, hasn't yet. I COMPLETELY agree with you on the advantages of having an early reader. The fact that my son is capable of reading the King James Bible, if he wishes, before my state requires he even begin Kindergarten means we can now put our focus on so many other things in his education. Not to mention the sheer quantity of material he has learned and memorized on his own because he was able to read (maps, globes, Bible, encyclopedia...). However, as I observe my younger son, I wonder if I could really force him to follow exactly in his brother's footsteps. As it stands, I would have to devote a lot more time and energy to it if I want him to "catch up". And I'm just not sure if that is time best spent. I still hope to have him reading as soon as he can...but...? P.S. I realize, too, that we may be approaching this from different angles with phonics vs. whole word (or somewhere in between). I know of some children who do well with either. I also know some families who have taught chidren lots of words with flashcards long before their second birthday. The difference I've seen in some of these kids and my own son is that my son's phonics quickly translated over into reading SO much more (before I officially "taught" it) while these children can ONLY read the words they memorized on their flashcards. ETA: I posted this before I was able to see/read your most recent post. I will have to look through that now...

First of all, I am NO expert in early childhood development. I did teach my oldest how to read at an early age. He was sounding out words at 2yo (not sight words). However, he showed readiness and...um self motivation(?)... from a very young age. My younger son isn't following in those exact footsteps. Even if it is possible to get any and all 3yo's to read, it sounds like it could be challenging and time consuming for some. So I guess I'm wondering, why? It's a big world out there with so many things to do and share with a 3yo...couldn't you find a more productive way to spend all that time and energy for another six months or so? (Genuine question)

I'm thinking justamouse is the one I remember recommending it (with others agreeing). Kinda funny, but I usually make a note of who rec'd it on my Amazon wishlist. ;) I do remember you posting the blog though, and I have it saved in my favorites (now to actually read it). Off to read your review...:auto: ETA: Just read your review, ladydusk. I'm intrigued! (Oh, and I read your review of Evening in the Palace of Reason ...thanks for that rec as well. I can't wait to get it from my library!)