These are not ones you can buy, but you can use this site and make your own. Prefixes: http://www.lovetolearnplace.com/Grammar/grammarprefixes.html#anchor2137864 Suffixes: http://www.lovetolearnplace.com/Grammar/grammarsuffixes.html HTH

I am posting a quick reply because I really need to get off of here and get some work done. :) First off, don't be so hard on yourself or your boys. Overall I think their writing is ok, certainly not awful. Does it need some refinement? Yes. Do they have a good base to work from? Yes. It takes time to get this writing stuff down. Also, I wanted to say that I wouldn't revise and revise and revise a paper because that will become torture to a kid who may not care for writing in the first place. One revision is enough for most papers at this point. Choose 1 or 2 things to praise about the paper and 1 thing to focus on in the revision that needs improvement. Let all the other mistakes/issues go (though I would point out misspellings or misuse of a word, etc. unless they are excessive and then I would use one of these issues as the focus of the revision). Don't expect a wonderful paper even after a revision. Writing is a process and they will improve over time. I think we (I am using we to encompass everyone including myself because I need to keep this in mind) need to be careful about our expectations. Set the bar high enough, but not so high they miss because that will cause discouragement. If you want them to get better at writing you need to try and keep the process as enjoyable as possible (giving them a topic they care about or have an interest in is a great way to make writing less painful) otherwise they are not going to want to do it, they are not going to care and their writing won't improve. Just keep plugging along. :)

Our garage is set up like yours. We have a pretty big garage; it will hold 2 cars, but they would have to be one in front of the other as it is longer than it is wide. There is also a nice loft space. We ran electricity out there a few years ago. The garage has dh's motorcycle, bar-style dart board, all his power tools (big saws and drill presses and stuff like that), all the bikes, the lawn mower, and a bunch of stuff that I have cleaned out of the house that needs to be donated or something. We have debated about insulating and finishing the loft area to use for something. We considered a quilting studio, but I am afraid if all my stuff is out there that I wouldn't sew as much. Maybe when the kids are out of the house it might work better for that, but for now I don't think so. We really need to clean it out and at least try to put dh's boat in there over the winter. Somehow I don't see this happening. :glare:

Wow, interesting response! You would think they would come up with some other scenario to use for the question then. :confused: I think that is great that your dd pays attention as she reads word problems and caught that (my dc didn't catch that when we did MUS because they rush and don't really pay attention :glare:). And :thumbup: to you for giving her credit for her answer. :)

You're right that the wording is misleading. :) You can understand what they are trying to convey and have the student do, but they really need to adjust the wording so it comes across how they intended. Have you contacted MUS to let them know? Maybe they can fix it in a future printing.

We talk about cutting down every year and we usually end up not doing a very good job at it. :) This year is a bit lighter than the past few years because of our Disney trip. Ds (14): Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles for the Wii Membership to Adventure Quest Worlds (computer rpg game) Brisingr PJ's and slippers cars from Disney that he started collecting when we were there 2 years ago Dd (12): Drawn to Life for the DS Inkdeath Either Project Runway Dressmaking kit or another dressmaking kit we saw in another catalog Pj's and slippers Owl, Rabbit and a Heffalump stuffie from Disney (she wanted these but ran out of her own money while we were there) We still haven't figured out stockings. I am having a bit of trouble coming up with stuff for ds. For dd we will put in lotion, stickers, a snack, inexpensive jewelry, etc. That is it. :)

Well, I do yoga because I feel so much better as a result. I have done some pilates, but I prefer yoga. I am sure if you talk to someone who likes pilates they would say the opposite. :) You don't have to get into anything spiritual to do yoga. You can and it is out there, but you don't have to. I like how I feel after a yoga practice. My body is more open and flexible and strong and my mind is clearer. I tend to be calmer when I keep up a regular practice. If I get busy and skip a few days everyone notices because I get grouchy. :) Anyway, I will speak to yoga since that is what I know (I have been practicing for almost 20 years and taught yoga for 4 years). You would need a yoga mat, strap, blanket and a block is nice, but not required. Target sells this stuff and when I was at ours the other day they had a strap and block combo on clearance for a really good price. You can use a belt or rolled towel for the strap, but I really think it is better to just get a strap to be used for yoga only. That way you can keep it with your yoga stuff and know it will be there when you need it. Also, it really is easier to use than a rolled towel or belt. Also, the mat is important because it gives you the steady, non-slip foundation necessary to practice the postures. If you can only get one thing I would get the mat. You can always purchase the other items as you can, but you really need a mat. Target also carries some videos. The ones put out by Gaiam are the best ones. Rodney Yee and Patricia Walden are names to look for. I really like their videos. Here is one: http://www.target.com/Yoga-Journals-Beginners-Patricia-Walden/dp/B000067D1C/sr=1-5/qid=1226160581/ref=sr_1_5/176-7081668-5817909?ie=UTF8&pricerange=&index=dvd&rh=k%3Ayoga%20videos&page=4 and another: http://www.target.com/M-P-M-Yoga-Beginners/dp/B00007JME6/sr=1-10/qid=1226160659/ref=sr_1_10/176-7081668-5817909?ie=UTF8&pricerange=&index=dvd&rh=k%3Ayoga%20videos&page=1 I have used both these videos and feel they are very good. If you have classes somewhere near you it would also be helpful to try some because a real instructor can give you feedback on your stance and alignment. I hope that helps. :)

I am working on some type of goal/checklist at least for myself if not all of us because what you mention is a concern for me. I don't want to slack off part way into this, so I am working now to come up with a way for me to keep accountable. I think my dc are ready. :) Or at least I hope they are as ready as I think. We will see what happens as we get into this. I don't think it will take long to find any weaknesses. :) Oh, I didn't think of the college entrance essay. Thanks! I do plan to keep a journal during this adventure. I am debating between a blog and a notebook and pen. I'll keep the publishing idea in mind. :)

Thanks, everyone, for the supportive comments. I needed to make sure that I wasn't being too unrealistic about my ideas as I tend to do that sometimes. I also appreciate questions like this because they help me to think through my idea in a more refined way. The daily journal writing will not be evaluated. I may request a more formal written response to a piece of writing or prompt randomly throughout the year, but that is not firm in my mind yet. Yes, my dc have basic writing skills. Do they need improving? Yes, I am sure they do. But I am hoping that daily writing will help them with getting ideas on paper and finding their voice which is what I want to focus on for a while. I will help them in choosing books by giving suggestions and recommendations. I think at first I want to see what they choose without interfering too much. If it seems they tend towards a certain genre too much or are not challenging themselves a bit, I will step in and help with books choices. We have already talked a bit about this. I want to focus on classics and good books. I have said that they can read a "mind candy" book periodically to rest their brains, but this will not be the norm. I am considering some guidelines, such as choosing 1 biography, 1 science related book, 1 math related book, 1 classic, 1 poetry, 1 historical fiction, etc. per month. I don't know that I want to dictate too much because I want them to own this as much as possible. I am going to continue to ponder these questions and ideas. Thanks for bringing them up!

I received an email a week or so ago and it was talking about a book called Education of a Wandering Man. It is Louis L'Amour's autobiography. After reading the email I was intrigued and asked my dh about the book (he is a L'Amour fan and I figured he would know about the book). Anyway, L'Amour dropped out of school at 15 and traveled around the country and the world. Everywhere he went he would always have good books with him to read. So this got me thinking. I have always struggled a bit with our approach to hs'ing (I have posted about it before and yes, I do flip-flop a lot over this issue). I have always wanted to take a different path than the ps model, but I would always end up back to the ps model because that is what I know. My idea is this: Starting now, we will read this book as a family to (hopefully) be inspired. Then starting in Jan. we will do math and probably spanish because my dc are really enjoying that every day. Then the rest of our time will be spent reading good books, thinking, talking and writing. I will require everyone (dh and myself included) to write something daily. It can be about what we are reading, our day, our dreams, etc. it doesn't matter what we write about as long as we are writing. I am thinking I might find some pictures, questions or quotes to share and ponder and that could maybe be the catalyst for the days writing, things like that. We also will read 1 book a month aloud as a family and use the information I learned from Teaching the Classics as a base for our discussion of the book. We also plan on taking day trips around our state (and possibly other close states) to get out and explore and experience. This is the main idea I have. I am looking for some honest feedback. My thought is that it can't hurt them to spend a year reading good books and it might just give them the spark that lights their fire (especially for my ds). Am I looking at this with rose colored glasses or is it an idea worth persuing? My dc are 14 and 12. Thanks!

Me, too. I thought the age was 12 so when my dc turned 12 we allowed them to sit up front. My dc are both big for their age (my dd is as tall as I am and weighs more, so if she can't sit up front I shouldn't either ;)).

Maybe someday in the future you can watch my ds in a UFC fight. :D Seriously, he is currently taking jiu-jitsu and when he is 18 he can start the MMA class. The place he trains at is one of the best (if not the best) in the state. He loves the class and it will be interesting to see how far he goes with it. As far as confessions go: ~ I am a terrible housekeeper. ~ I won't spend a couple dollars for a nice pair of undies, but think nothing of spending $8-$9/yd for quality, quilting fabric. Priorities, you know. ;) ~ If it wasn't for my dh, we would eat cereal or popcorn pretty much every night for dinner. ~ I procrastinate to the extreme! ~ I like to fill shopping carts at on-line retailers with stuff I would like to buy just to see how much it would be, then empty it. Yes, I am easily amused. :D I can't think of anything else right now, but I am sure there is more.

I, too, have tried both the Keeper and the Diva Cup with the same results. I was hesitant to try the Diva because of my experience with the Keeper, but I found it online on a great sale and decided to give it a try. It took a couple cycles to get used to inserting it, but now that I have the hang of it, I love it! I agree with this, also. I have tried Instead and just cannot get them to work and have a terrible time trying to insert them. But I have a friend who loves them and they work great for her. I think you may need to be willing to spend a little money to try some of these options and see what works for you. You could start with Instead since they are easy to buy locally and probably the least expensive option. If they don't work for you, you could order one of the other options and try it for a few cycles. Just remember that if one doesn't work for you it doesn't mean they all won't.

Thank you for the additional suggestions. I can't say that I am excited about this venture, but I am definitely becoming more intrigued. :D

Hi, My somewhat of a plan is to use what I have learned from Teaching the Classics and apply it to the books we read. This way we can really get into some discussion of plot, setting, character, conflict, etc. I also plan on having my ds do a couple analysis papers. I don't know now what question/prompt I will have him write about at this point, but will figure that out when I decide exactly which books we will read. This is a bit of new territory for me as I have used lit. programs (Literary Lessons from LOTR, Mosdos Press, lit. guides, etc.) in the past and now I am having to pull this together on my own. I hope this helps a little. :)

Thank you all for the suggestions! You have brought up titles that I would not have thought of. I did read Something Wicked This Way Comes about a year ago and I thought it was weird and didn't really care for it. Maybe I just didn't get it? My ds might like it though and watching the movie afterward might be a fun way to finish it off. I like the Sandman idea with the graphic novel as my dc have enjoyed a variety of graphic novels lately. I appreciate the ideas! :)

Thanks! I was also thinking of Poe, but some of the others you listed I would not have thought of so I appreciate the suggestions. I agree with what you said about contemporary/modern horror stories and I don't want to go down the "shock value" road in terms of plot. I would like stories with substance and something to think about in the end not just mind candy (and yucky candy, at that). I may not do the contemporary works if I can't find ones worth reading, but I will check out the classics that you mentioned. Thanks, again! :)

My ds is into horror stories and I want to incorporate his interest in our lit. studies. This is not a genre I have ever had an interest in, so I am not sure what books fall into this category and what ones are good/worth reading. Also, I was thinking of having him read 2 or 3 classic horror stories and 2 or 3 from contemporary authors with which to do some comparisons. Does Frankenstein and Dracula fall into the classic horror story category? Are there other works that would be better? Which contemporary works/authors would be good? Any suggestions? Thanks! :)

babysitter nanny floral designer/flower shop employee blackjack dealer (least favorite job) administrative assistant yoga instructor business manager for yoga association ad set associate quilt shop employee (my favorite of all of them!) forgot that I had a paper route as a kid :)

I watched the DVD's on my own first to get a feel for the program. Then I made copies of the stories/poems for my dc to read through and copies of the story chart to fill in. Then we would watch Mr. Andrews read the story, pause the video and start filling in the chart. I would play the video to a point where he asks a question and then pause so we could discuss and answer it. Then I would play the video so we could listen to their answers. So, the only part I had my dc watch was the actual reading and filling in/discussing of the story. It really doesn't take long and I would break it up over a couple days if it seemed to be taking longer than I wanted. HTH

That's us, too! We just watched a few episodes this morning. I had to say enough or we wouldn't get anything done. :)

I haven't noticed a thread about this and was curious what gas prices are in other places. We are down to $2.79 for regular. That is a drop of about $1.30 from the high just a few months ago. I expected prices to go down some, but never would have guessed they would drop below $3.00! Is the big factor the upcoming election? I know oil prices have dropped, but like I said, I wouldn't have guessed that gas prices would drop this drastically and in such a short time just from that alone. Anyway, just curious.

Our trip to DisneyWorld is counting as Christmas. We did get about $30 worth of stuff from Disney for the kid's stockings and I pre-ordered Beedle the Bard from Amazon as a family gift (I decided to splurge on the replica copy). This is all we are doing for the dc. As far as extended family goes, we have been drawing names on my side with a $15 limit so that will be $60. Dh and his brother and sister agreed a couple years ago not to buy gifts for each other anymore, so we only buy for his dad and a dear family friend. I am working at Kohl's and a local quit shop, so anything I have to buy/make will come from one of those places. We have been trying over the years to scale back and I think we have gone about as far as we can without giving up gift giving completely. I like your idea and we did something very similar to that the past couple years.

Well, I don't really claim any title at this point. For a long time I was following a pagan path, but I think I am at a point of being atheist (though I don't feel the need to claim the title). I do like to read about topics from both a religious vs. secular viewpoint (things like evolution vs. creation, global warming, life after death, etc.) as it is interesting to see the topic from different perspectives. We have always been open with our dc about our beliefs and they have gone to church and have been exposed to a variety of belief systems. My ds is leaning towards being atheist and my dd is not claiming any title and is still open to new thoughts/ideas. I am at a point of letting it all go. I am tired of "covering up" who I am which is why I have pretty much pulled out of all the hs'ing group activities in our area. It is nice that they can be themselves now. I remember when we were part of a co-op and I would have my ds change out of the Harry Potter shirt he put on if it was co-op day because I didn't want to have to deal with the questions/comments that would arise because of it. I never claimed to be religious, but I wouldn't volunteer that I was not. Though, in the past few years I have been more open about the fact that we are secular. We really are not accepted by the homeschoolers in this area, but we are ok with that (though I do have to say there are a couple families that like us :)). We are finding other social outlets and focusing our schooling at home which has worked out soo much better. It is nice to see that there is a "heathen" presence here. It helps to know that we are not alone. :)

((Colleen)), I understand about making polls, which is why I don't do them because what I understand in my head doesn't always come out clearly. Anyway, based on your clarification, I did choose the correct option. We are not outsourcing these activities as part of schooling/p.e. Thanks for the interesting reading!