The Journeyman-absolutely wonderful Justin Morgan Had A Horse The Great Turkey Walk-very funny; my dd loved it Turn Homeward, Hannalee-my dd couldn't put this one down Imprisoned in the Golden City The Story of Eli Whitney Omkastoe-6 yo ds still dresses up like Om! Have fun! Jennifer 10 yo dd; 5th grade 6 yo ds; 1 st grade

Heather, I *love* the photographs, illustrations and text in EOS. However, the text is more difficult than what you'd find in the average 5th grader's science book. Also, within the physics section, there is a lot more introduction of higher level math, definitely above most 5th graders heads. I mean more algebraic kinds of formulas and problems. That's why I said I'd rate it more of a 7th grade level book. Certainly, you can skip over them, for now, and that's what we do. My daughter reads the material herself and we either outline or discuss it together or I give her worksheets from Creative Teaching Press: Physical Science. What I find is that my dd needs more simplistic explanations from me to "get it". Your dd may be able to do fine with EOS. If you're really interested in Noeo, I'd suggest checking the library to see if you can get EOS and any of the books from Chem 1. I was pleasantly surprised to find our interlibrary loan system had almost all of the books available. God bless and I hope you find what works best! Jennifer

Please hear me out on this. I know your dd is 10, which would place her in Noeo II, but the Usborne EOS is not exactly 5th grade level reading. IMHO, I would rate it closer to 7th grade. So, if you want something more independent, you may want to consider Chem 1. The books are very easy to understand with great vocabulary. To stretch the use of it, why not use the books as a springboard for introducing outlining/note taking and making notecards for vocabulary. I taught Chem 1 in a co-op for kids in grades 2-5 and it worked beautifully. Believe me, the 5th grader was not slighted at all. We are currently using EOS for physics, but it is requiring a lot of help from me. HTH, Jennifer

GVA, If you're willing to spend $30, ATA is a tremendous booklist that not only provides literature for countries of the world, but also science and all time periods of history. Within each category, it subdivides into grade levels and genre of literature. I know you said your budget is tight. Mine is too, but I have found that time and time again this has been one of my *best* purchases in my 5 years of homeschooling. I have been using it for 4 years and will be able to use it through high school. HTH, Jennifer

While I attended the Atlanta HS conference this summer, I had an opportunity to ask SWB about vocabulary programs. She said that "she was not a fan of vocabulary programs". Her response surprised me since she recommended Vfcr in TWTM. She thought lots of reading and just looking up words from reading was very effective in building vocabulary. And, she also said that if you're doing Latin, there is really no reason to do a vocab program. She reminded me that she makes recommendations for curriculum for parents who specifically *want* a program/workbook approach. Just thought I'd throw that out there for you to ponder. Jennifer DS age 6; grade 1 DD age 10, grade 5

We're using something new this year called the i-Excel Heuristic and Model Approach available at singaporemath.com. My daughter has struggled with the word problems too, even though we have worked through 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B and now we're in 4A. (DD is in 5th grade.) This guide gives many model problems for various applications: logic thinking and multi-step problems using all math operations. There is one level per grade. Each level has about 20 or so units with about 4 problems per unit. All of the principles of drawing pictures, bar graphs, etc, are covered. The book is only $6.95. This might be a more cost effective and expedient way to help your student with the word problems. We're currently working through parts of Primary 2 of this resource to build confidence. HTH, Jennifer

here are some of my "investments" in finding out what works and what doesn't for my family: Powerglide Spanish--tried twice to use it Instant Immersion Spanish--The people talk too fast; my dh and I just laughed and said "no way this will work for us!" Konos-This approach did not suit my teaching style. Considering God's Creation--hated those student pages (too much on page) and the reading was boring Sonlight-love the books, can't keep up the schedule Jennifer

Step-by-Step Grammar Vol 1 & 2. If you decide to make a switch, check this out at www.summerbookcompany.com. I have been very impressed with its simplicity, yet it is thorough in its explanations. Vol 1 includes review, sentence diagramming, a grammar handbook, quizzes and answer key....all for $15. One thing that is unique is that students not only label every word in the sentence, but they also label the word according to its "job". This has been very helpful for my 5th grade dd. HTH, Jennifer

Ladies, it's Saturday morning EST, and my family and I are headed to the beach for vacation. We hope Hurricane Ike will not run us off from FL! I'll make one last post before I leave and just say a big thank you to all of you for your advice. I would be grateful for more replies. You just won't hear from me for a week or so. Thanks!! To clarify: We've never used CWP. The word problems that have been difficult for dd came from the regular SM textbooks. 2a & b were OK, but I hand held through them. 3B was where dd began to struggle. 3B revealed more about her weaknesses with math facts. This is where I really saw glazed eyes with her not having a clue on how to solve problems related to mult/div, elapsed time, and to some degree fractions. She does know some of her math facts. She can add, subt, mult, & divide straightforward computational problems. It takes a longggggg time as she sits there trying to retrieve math facts. In fact, computation was her weakest area on the ITBS. She didn't finish even 1/2 the problems in the given time. Her other math areas scored on average, so I don't think we're dealing with dyscalculia. OH Elizabeth, thank you for the advice to use + & X charts with flashmaster--great idea. I don't know why I didn't think about it. And yes, we have gone over how to use it, but I think I'll do that again---see there's that need to review! I'm going to be mulling over things this week, but I do have a question about how you guys think we should approach drill. Would you do focused drill on one table at a time (e.g. +3, x7, /6, etc) or mixed drill? OR any other recs. As always, thank you, and I'll check in after vacation!! Jennifer

I want to post something longer and I've tried twice to do that. For some reason, I keep getting booted off! How frustrating. Just when I' m ready to submit reply, I get a message that says I'm not logged in. So I'll check in later.

Thank you ladies. I appreciate all of your input. And if you don't mind, I'd like to get your further thoughts. Several of you seem to think that Horizons might be a better fit. I thought the review of Horizons was very good for her, but she was very slow at answering the questions, even with a reduced number of problems. And I really questioned her ability to apply the knowledge to other types of problems outside of Horizons. (I added word problems because I felt Horizons was weak in this area.) When I gave her problems from Singapore or Daily Word Problems, she froze. As a child I remember being freaked out by word problems even into high school. Am I worrying too much about application? Can I trust that this will come later? As far as drill, we have used flashcards. We own flashmaster, but she hates it because she doesn't know her facts well enough to answer them. Now, I am having her copy math facts with the answers in hopes of solidifying them into memory. I think I will check on the Abeka stuff that Oh Elizabeth mentioned. Dyscalculia....hmmm. I've not considered this. I think I need to do more research on the topic. She may exhibit some of the signs, but I don't know if I'd say she has this. Do any of you think I should look at another program like R&S or TT? She's very visual, which I think made Horizons appealing. I've looked at Saxon (with her) and all the text and black/white just made her cringe. Would I be crazy and adding to our problems to consider another program? Thank you, ladies...your all a blessing! Jennifer

Since K, I have hsed my 10 yo dd. Math has been an uncomfortable zone for me because I've never trusted my choices of math curricula. And, as you're about to see, I've jumped around trying to find what works for my dd. She's a bright kid, but I constantly feel that she is not retaining what she's learning in math. Even now, in 5th grade, though we have drilled math facts, she still can't recall them. I'll ask her what 5+2 is and she'll say 8. So, let me give you a quick look at the past 5 years. K: SM EB, Horizons K (advanced way too quickly for her) 1st: Professor B (OK, but boring, not enough review) 2nd: Horizons 1 (She liked it; review was good; wasn't sure she was retaining) 3rd: Horizons 2, SM 2a & b (Again, she liked Horizons & review was good. Had difficulty with SM word problems. I liked the way SM taught math. However, still not sure concepts being retained.) 4th: Mastering Mathematics (Went back to basics, drilled more math facts; MM lacked enough review for her and not enough application.) This summer, I resolved to go back to SM and so, we worked through SM 3B. I don't know how others feel, but that book had some tough word problems, IMHO. So, she'd cry in frustration at the word problems and just look at me with glazed eyes. I walked her through nearly every problem---don't know if this is good or bad??? What would you do? Stick out the SM and move into 4a & b or switch again. Please, help!!! I'm at a loss and feeling I may have contributed to her challenges. Advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Jennifer

As difficult as it may seem to you right now to introduce letters using the clock, kids pick this up very easily. My 5yo dd had no trouble understanding the clock. I used a clock stamp and stamped it on a notecard. I set it in front of us everytime we had our writing lesson. He learned to write all of his letters much more quickly than my dd who used HWT writing program. I still refer back to this clock (now, 1 yr later) to help him remember or when he gets lazy doing his writing. Trust me, the entire Spalding method works and I can't say enough great things about it!!!! This is the link to the Spalding International website, where you can find valuable info about the Spalding method and an on-line store. The link will take you directly to posters that they sell to use with the clock, line, and combined clock-line letters. FYI, they do sell DVD's of actual teachers presenting the reading, writing, and spelling lessons. You may want to investigate that, too. http://spalding.org/store/posters.php HTH, Jennifer DD: 5th grade WRTR, Singapore, WWE, History/Geog-my own curriculum, Science-Developing Critical Thinking Through Science II, Exploring the World of Physics, Usborne Science Ency, Latin-LFC, Easy Spanish DS: 1st grade WRTR, Singapore, WWE, History/Geog/Science-sits in with Sis and we read lots of books

Marie Fillion recommends the Junior level for kids in K-3. Last year, when I was researching, she told me that kids going into 4th grade would enjoy level 1 more. She said they might find the junior level "babyish". Level 1 can be completed by any age above 3rd grade. On the HS thread, I've seen HS students using it to get credit for foreign language. Marie also told me that older kids should be able to clep foreign language, if they choose to, after this program. Level 2 is to follow level 1, so I guess the earliest that most kids might start that would be around 12 or 13. For my 10 yo dd, we're taking the full 3 years to finish level 1.

My Calling, I haven't used SWR but have only *looked* at it. I hope others who have used it will chime in. Best I remember, there were more structured lesson plans than WRTR. Also, Ms. Sanseri revised the Ayres spelling list in WRTR, which is where the WISE guide came from. I also think she includes not only phonogram cards but also spelling rules cards. Within the WRTR book, all the instructions for lessons in reading, writing, and spelling are included. The 5th edition includes more scripted examples of how to implement these lessons. For example, kids do a daily oral phonogram review and written phonogram review. The script is included in the book. The spelling lesson is conducted differently. Each student has his own notebook and you do daily dictation of spelling words from the Ayres word lists. These lists are divided into sections A-Z. Kindergartners learn section A-G, then 1st graders begin with section H. An appendix shows you how to divide the lists out by grade. The same words that are dictated for spelling using phonograms are then read by the student for the reading lesson. Other appendices in the book include complete language arts goals for K-8; Ayres words listed alphabetically and by section; Ayres words categorized by part of speech. Spalding called this a "complete language arts program". In the fall, Spalding International will be publishing their first ever decodable readers that follow the format of their newly published teacher guides. Check out their website at www.spalding.org. I bought the K & 4th grade guides for this year and they were helpful. I used them religiously the first 3 months or so and then once I found my groove, never looked at them again. And since I'm not using their grammar and writing, I really don't feel that I need them. My dc's have had the most benefit in reading, penmanship, & spelling. I have chosen a different grammar & writing program for my 10.5 yo dd. WRTR is teacher intensive, so I wanted to have some more independent programs for these 2 subjects. I have been **very satisfied** with WRTR. Please let me know if I can answer further questions. God bless, Jennifer

I agree with Karensk about Easy Spanish and Easy French. We have been using ES this year. My dd is 10.5 and, as recommended in the program, will finish in another 1-2 years. Marie Fillion, the author, recommends that younger kids learn the vocabulary of the lessons the first year, then move into the phonics and grammar the 2nd and 3rd year. I think this is a marvelous plan and it is working very well for us. Older kids can complete the program in one year. There is an independent learner section in each lesson. After that, they can transition into level 2. I highly recommend that you check out these language programs. FWIW, they won 2nd place in Practical Homeschooling's Reader Awards this year. HTH, Jennifer

I absolutely love how this program simultaneously teaches writing, phonics, and spelling. The previous poster mentioned STWR and this is an excellent program, too. Wanda Sanseri, the author, studied under Romalda Spalding, so it is based on her philosophy. Many say it is easier to implement than WRTR, but honestly, I haven't found it that difficult to use WRTR. The book costs about $22 and it does require you to read through it several times and take notes. The philosophy is different than other phonics programs. I have a 10 yo dd who had horrible spelling and I'm happy to report she has improved by leaps and bounds in one year. I started her over with the basic phonograms so that she could hear, see, and say the phonograms correctly. Using the phonogram cards daily and the written quiz for them made considerable improvement in hearing the phonograms in dictated words and sentences. I started my ds in K using WRTR and he has learned to read so well. He sounds out everything and is quickly able to identify phonograms in words, therefore his spelling is much better than my dd's was at the same stage of reading and writing. I encourage you to do more research. Even if your step daughter has learning issues, she still would benefit from this approach. Mrs. Spalding worked with many children who had neurological problems. HTH, Jennifer

I'll throw out one more suggestion...Mastering Mathematics by Letz Farmer. HTH, Jennifer

This is one of the spines for the Noeo Physics II curriculum. I purchased and loved Noeo Chem I, but couldn't afford to spend that much on science again. So, I used the Usborne ency. with my 4th gr dd along with Gizmos & Gadgets for experiments. DD loves the ency. Beautiful illustrations, easy to understand (most of the time), great web site recs. I also used Scienceworks for Kids Energy and Simple Machines to include my K ds. We've had a great year. There is so much material in the ency that IMHO, you could use it all the way through 7th or 8th grade. In fact, I think for us it will be our primary text for grades 5,6, 7. HTH, Jennifer Homeschooling 5 years DD 10 yo DS 6 yo

you might want to check out the website I've listed for info on key times that a child's brain actually hears and encodes languages best. This site obviously promotes a spanish and french curriculum, but the author gives some excellent scientific research regarding "when" to optimally begin foreign language. Check it out and then do some other research on your own. I think that will help you out. http://www.theeasyspanish.com/ HTH, Jennifer 4th grade dd & Kindergarten ds

After Singapore, we'll be moving onto Chalkdust Pre-Algebra. In fact, I like the the looks of Chalkdust so much that we'll probably continue with it through HS. Jennifer