I loop our afternoon studies. We do History, Science, Geography, Music/Art, and Nature Study on a loop, one each day. Because I have 5 days and 5 subjects its easy for me to know what's coming because we do each one once a week. Other families have 7 or 3 things on their loop and just "do the next thing". I imagine you'd want to have 1 or 2 days of each subject prepared ahead of time if you did it that way, depending on how long your loop is. Sometimes I miss an afternoon and things get pushed back. I either double up 2 subjects one day, or I drop something, or we do it on Saturday, or I double up whatever was skipped the next week. Or the whole dang thing gets shoved one day. I plan an extra week every quarter to account for things getting shoved back. Next year I plan on doing week-long loops. A week of History, Science, Music/Art and Shakespeare.

I homeschooled my oldest because he was obviously not going to do well in school (social anxiety, separation anxiety, and sensory processing disorder). I then homeschooled my next in line because I fell in love with the lifestyle and neither of us can imagine him being away from home 7 or 8 hours a day. I take it year by year and kid by kid, but no, school violence hasn't really played into our decision making so far.

We got a Costco sized box of Ticonderogas a while back and I get out the next 12 pack every 6 months or so (2 students, I have my own Blackwings). But we rarely lose a pencil, I threw away 9 or 10 stubs yesterday when I sharpened the next 12 pack.

I made the switch in 2a but these are my experiences... I feel like the scope and sequence is very similar. Singapore goes deeper in its CWP and IP books, but the depth was the same comparing the main PM text/wk books to the MIF books. MIF has more hand-holding, and tends to really baby-step where sometimes Singapore makes conceptual leaps. It still does the concrete, pictorial, abstract thing but it holds your hand a lot more with the switches. The layout is a lot cleaner and the textbook includes all instruction, which I find helpful. I think it's easier to teach, because it's a lot closer to how I was taught. YMMV.

We also finished up LOE C this year and decided to move on. After trying to implement LOE essentials this Spring I decided to switch over to spelling by sound and structure next year. We will continue ELTL as our writing program.

ELTL 2 takes us about a half hour to 45 minutes, if we do it ALL together. 10-15 min to read the literature selection 5-10 min to read the fable and the poem 5-10 min to explain the grammar lesson and do the exersise 5-10 min to do the copywork Of course you can use librivox for the lit. selection, and you could assign the grammar exersise and copywork as independent work. I've done either/both at times and it can cut your active teaching time to a lean 10 or so minutes. Not bad for a 3 day a week program. But then it's less snuggly.

Our light summer load: Daily math basics (+, -, x, /), copy work, and free reading. Monday- math review (I saved the chapter reviews from the previous year) Tuesday- spelling or phonics game ala LOE game book Wednesday- work in the garden w/ nature sketching Thursday- Latin review and Lollipop Logic Friday- letter writing, journaling It's not enough for forward movement but it keeps us from getting rusty or making September a major habit change.

Yeah, color me confused as well. Singapore does take leaps every once in a while, but the teaching came off as pretty explicit to me. I did only use earlybird through 2a. Is it the leaps in understanding, going from small problems to big ones without intermediate explanation, that comes off as "discovery" to you? MIF or MM are more hand-holding in that aspect.

If the child needs preparation to enter first grade work, I do kindergarten. If he does not, I do not. No matter what we do we call age 5 kindergarten, because we use grades as an age-indicator more than a reflection of what our school day looks like or what our kids ability level is. My oldest son, at 5, was "forced" into 4x/wk phonics practice and table work. About a half hour total. Because otherwise he was a kid that would neither recognize a letter nor know how to hold a pencil. Really. Most of that year was doing mazes, the only pencil (marker, crayon, ect) holding activity that he enjoyed. I could have just waited until he was ready and asked for schoolwork, or until he was 7 or 8 or 9...but I preferred easing him into very simple activities and increasing rigor gradually as we went. My current 5yo knows his letters, can read simple words, and how to write many of them. Sometimes he asks to "do school" and we do, usually he joins his brother in activities he deems interesting, sometimes he doesn't.

I did body/health for the first half of this year with a 5 and a 6 yo. I got the DK human body encyclopedia and just basically winged it. We traced their body the first week and as we went along we added bits- bones, organs, ect. There were LOTS of science experiments/demonstrations on Pinterest and plenty of age appropriate books at the library. We finished up with weeks on germs, hand washing, and first aid. If it helps I could dig up my plans, though they are really just a list of topics, books, and demonstrations. Not proper lesson plans at all.

Yeah, its going to be hard to get an answer that's not at least partially church history or a christan perspective. The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, as stated above. Are you asking why there are Bishops in the Christian church and why Rome was one of the seats? That's kinda church history, defined. Or why/how the Pope became the "head" of the Catholic faith? You could look into the schism (In the broadest possible terms...there were disagreements. "Hey I'm the first Bishop, aka the one in charge." said the Bishop of Rome. "No you arent." said all the other Bishops. Schism with the Pope becoming the eventual head of the Catholic faith, and the other Bishops leading the Orthodox faith.) Or why/how the Pope got fancy abilities? That's Catholic history/apologetics.

I do my giant year-long, every subject, every kid plan on an excel sheet during the spring. Finishing it up this month, in fact. Then in September I'll print it out, and every few weeks transfer what's next into my paper planner.

My 7yo loves to cut his own quills. He can't use them for school work, because honestly it's quite blotchy, but it's fun!

Yeah, it's the lack of movie that made me say Hamlet over Macbeth. But being able to see it performed is a really important step for me, and there's very little chances at live theatre in my area (one or maaaybe two a year). Twelfth, Midsummer, Hamlet, Much Ado, and Taming of the Shrew all have excellent movie options. But if seeing it isn't necessarily part of your study than Macbeth or The Tempest all the way!

Since you are dealing with boys, I'd honestly say Hamlet...because ghosts, murder, and sword fights. But those are both great options. Midsummer is more of a classic first Shakespeare but I've always been more fond of Twelfth Night personally. As for appropriateness....in Midsummer there's implied (especially in movies) s*x between Bottom and the fairy queen. In Twelfth Night there's drunkenness. I think that's all?

Yes, you need a buffer. I plan 4 days of work for every 5 days. That doesn't mean we only school for 4 days a week, that means we school 5 days a week but have plenty of time for extra practice on what wasn't fully understood, following rabbit trails we'd otherwise not have time for, taking advantage of opportunities we didn't know to plan for, sick days, tired days, morning appointments, unexpected visitors, and taking the day off early just because. I also plan an extra WEEK for every quarter (we have seasonal 11 week quarters). Again, that doesn't mean we school 10 weeks. That means we school 10 weeks, have the 11th week to tie off ends, and take week 12 off as a break. Repeat 4 times to make a year. That's quite a bit buffer, but it allows me to balance the "scheduler" in me with the educator that KNOWS individual pacing and rabbit trails are where true learning lie.

I think chore charts are overwhelming. Plus, it's hard to know ahead of time what will need to be done, when. Since they are already obediently when asked to help, why not spend the month teaching them how to do things they don't quite know yet, and just get yourself in the habit of regularly doling out chores? My kids get a job each before every meal. So while I am cooking breakfast ds7 is emptying the dishwasher, ds5 is Watering he garden, and ds2 is feeding the dogs. Then while I'm getting lunch ready ds7 switches laundry, ds5 wipes down the bathroom, and ds2 sets the table. Later, while I'm getting out dinner ds7 is chopping veggies, ds5 is folding towels, and ds2 is picking up blocks. Or whatever. It's not pre-assigned because I don't know when the dishwasher will be waiting to be emptied, or when I will have a load of towels to fold, or when I'll want to cook alone vs have a helper.

I think this is also something that's hard to compare family to family. A family with 7 or 8 kids has different cleaning needs than a family of 1 or 2. Houses are different sizes. Kids at different ages make more/less messes. Not to mention different opinions on what constitutes "clean". I mop my kitchen 2x a week in general. But I have a friend (similar #of kids and ages) that shudders at that, and mops hers every single day. And yet another (again, similar # of kids and ages) that has admitted she thinks regular sweeping is plenty and mops maybe once every 4-6 weeks, generally when something has spilled. We all consider our floors clean.

I don't have outside help, and it's not really an issue, despite having 2 (sometimes 3 or 4) kids 5 and under. A. I have a small house. One bathroom means only one toilet and one shower to scrub. B. I do not have lots and lots of stuff. Some of that is house-size related, my kitchen is small so I do not have a mixer AND a blender AND a food processor, ect and so on. A lot of it is choice, I only have enough dishes for a single day, I only have as many toys as can be easily picked up by my # of children, I only keep books that are actually read, ect. Those are the biggest helps. As far as routines go... C. We have short clean-up bursts before breakfast, before lunch, and before dad comes home in the evening. Everyone in the house is assigned a job. Really, everyone too old to be in a mobywrap has a job. Even toddlers can wipe the chairs (or walls!) down with a sponge. Anyone new to the house or under 4 is with me, helping prep for my job (pick up everything on the floor, so I can sweep, ect). Bigger kids can load the dishes, clean bathrooms, put away laundry, ect. Having those daily tasks done by someone else gives me time to do the harder tasks. 3 jobs a day per person adds up! D. I do a deep clean of sections of rooms on a weekly cycle, hitting heavy use rooms 2x and lighter use rooms 1x. M- living room and office. T. Kitchen and bathroom. W. Bedrooms. Th. Living and office again. F. Kitchen and bathroom again. S. Backyard. Because there isn't any clutter (see a and c) I can get right into the real cleaning and it only takes an hour or maybe two if I've got an infant in a carrier slowing me down. E. We take a week off school every 6 weeks, and this is when I play "catch up" if things have been slipping. Or do seasonal chores like taking down all the mini blinds for a soak or vacuuming the refrigerator coils.

I just can't justify the price. Which is silly, because it's only 5 dollars a month....but hey that's 60 dollars a year. I could buy several books/podcasts that I choose myself for that amount, and is the content going to be comparable to what I'd choose myself? But while I enjoy her blog/podcast, I'll admit that I skim over every third or so post and only listen to half of the podcasts. I do not struggle to read aloud, and while I think Sarah Mckenzie is very enthusiastic and genuine, I see her more as a contemporary than a mentor. Every once in awhile I am reminded of something I've slacked on, or I get a good idea, but she hasn't changed my schooling. If you are a true Read Aloud Revival fan, love all the content, struggle to read aloud, or just plain need the inspiration, go for it. There are worse things to spend your money on. If Cindy Rollins rolled out a membership site I'd be on it in a second flat! Heck if 8 started one I'd be counting pennies.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Boys-King-Arthur-Malorys/dp/0684191113 The Boys King Arthur is truly a classic, but might be a stretch, depending on the 8yo. It includes fairly archaic language.

I bet mines the longest. We do summer school (3 rs and interests) from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

That's basically what we do for summer; a bit of reading, a bit of math, and I'll grant you my kids need a line or two of writing (or else they never pick up a pencil and forget how to form letters). Then we just follow interests and enjoy life for the rest of the day. It's glorious. Do it. You will come out the other side so refreshed.

I'd want to go over, very lightly, the different styles of homeschooling; box kits/online plans (songlight, easy peasy, ect), classical (wtm, cc, ect), CM (ambleside, simply cm, ect) Waldorf (christophorus ect). And I'd have some sort of primer on your states laws and regulations.

Cathy Duffys curricula review website. Though the book is better, IMO. After that it's hard to reccomend without k owing the group, their level of knowledge/exposure to homeschooling, ect.