Thank you. I will check that out. I have a Discovery Education Streaming account too but their videos are not in chronological order so it makes it more difficult to schedule them.

Title says it all. Any suggestions? I'd like a World History overview that could be done in a year. I want online for the multi-media aspect rather than just reading, so I'm hoping for something with videos and other interactive components. Does something like this exist?

Thank you. I would be more inclined to take something if it didn't make me feel so awful. Even the supplement made me super jittery so I can't imagine what a synthetic med would do since we know Armour doesn't help either. Is there a period of time you have to get through (the racing heart, anxiety) before it mellows out? Maybe I didn't wait long enough. It was just such a scary feeling. I was also very foggy-brained on Armour as well which is odd because foggy-brain is a symptom of hypo and I don't have that symptom at all normally.

Yes, had I read reviews first I would have steered clear. But I panicked, ran to the store, and let the Walgreens lady talk me into it. :ohmy:

Don't use Color Oops to try and remove the color. I used that once and lost a lot of hair because of it and it took a good year for the remaining hair to recover from the damage.

I'm on the opposite end where my doc wants me to start on thyroid meds but I'm holding off. My TSH is great but I don't convert T4 to T3 (like a pp mentioned). We tried the smallest dose of Armour last summer and I was miserable with heart racing and major anxiety. After a few weeks I stopped because I couldn't function. She had me take a supplement instead but I had a similar reaction--it had dessicated bovine thyroid and adrenal gland in it--so I stopped that. I am asymptomatic except for hair loss but my tests keep coming back low T3 and she really wants me to take something. It's just not worth feeling like I'm going to have a heart attack. She has also been treating me for adrenal fatigue for a few years which is somewhat better now according to tests, but I still take an adrenal supplement every day. But she thinks my adrenals also won't be fully functional until the thyroid is optimal. Is it really that bad to have low T3 if your TSH is fine?

I was thinking along these lines a little last night. It might be better to use a particular activity to draw people who may have similar interests. For example, setting up a yoga class for kids and inviting folks from a homeschool group to join. Or setting up a field trip to a Buddhist temple. I don't need to only hang around people who believe exactly as we do, but it would be fun to have a few families that we had more in common with to get together with for fun and maybe even educational activities.

I'll look into it. Thanks. This is great advice, thank you. I definitely think secular groups are going to be better places to look as they tend to be more open in general. I appreciate the help!

While I have not lost my faith over it, I have changed my view of God (I still believe in God), the Bible, prayer and other things due to questions like this that I have had as well. It's like, when you get what you want, it was you swaying God in your favor away from a previously planned outcome. But when you don't get what you want, it's God overriding denying your request for your own good. But when that "good" is you and your child starving to death, I'm not sure what "good" can be attributed to that. That's saying, God decided it was better to kill you and put you out of your misery than to provide some food to keep you alive. That's not my God. I agree with those who spoke of prayer being good for the person praying. Mine are more meditative rather than asking for stuff. I'm trying to be more connected to God at the spirit level hoping that connection grows stronger and becomes the place from which I operate vs. letting my brain run amok all the time reacting to every little thing. And I also agree that there is a whole world within quantum physics and energy transfer that we have yet to completely understand which plays into it too. I think there is an intersection of God/energy/matter/creativity that is all working together and still a mystery though people seem to be inching their way toward getting a glimpse. It's rather exciting.

I do but I not sure if she'd want to be so open about her beliefs. It's worth a conversation I though. I think it's hard when you've moved away from a traditional religious system to a more open spiritual belief. People aren't always very happy about your new way of thinking. I think there are probably more people that may feel the same t but don't want to make it known for fear of judgment. I feel that way myself most of the time. I'm still dealing with family on some of this so I think it ends up being sort of a double life for a while. Anyhow, I should at least throw the idea out there. It would just be so much easier to find a group already meeting. Thank you Karen. That's wonderful that you've found a great group! No, it doesn't have to be homeschooling. I just find that homeschoolers tend to be able to cultivate those values in their kids a little more often (not always) than PS'ers. But that doesn't mean they aren't out there. I could check out other possibilities to widen my chances of meeting like-minded people. Good idea! Thanks!

I would love a group that emphasized kindness, compassion, helping others, etc. I'm really hoping to find like-minded friends but I think I'm asking too much. We are a part of both Christian and secular homeschool groups but don't really feel like we fit into either--we're somewhere in the middle. I'd love to find a homeschool group that was spiritual but not religious. Where you could talk about mindfulness and Jesus and what you learned in the book, "Buddhism for Mothers" without getting the "woo-woo" look. Right now we pretty much fly under the radar in all our groups just so we can get along well with everyone. It's hard though when you really want to find people you can share with and discuss deeper topics. Maybe I should start with a message board just to find a place to fit in for a while. Any suggestions? PS: I don't really feel like this topic is totally homeschool related so I thought it fit better here in Chat since it's more about beliefs than homeschooling.

Thank you. I'm hopeful! We've got Asperger's/ASD, Anxiety, and ADHD. It's a lot of "A's" to digest but we're prioritizing for therapy and moving forward. It's like a part-time job though so I'm having to cut a number of things to make room for the extra work as well as some extra fun activities to nurture the areas in which he is exceptionally gifted. :D

Thank you Jennifer132. Sorry for my late response. Things have been crazy busy. The appointment went well and was very similar to Jennifer132's experience. He is on the spectrum but we don't know yet all the specifics. We should find out in the next week or so. Thank you all for your input. Now to the next phase of therapy and skills work at home. Just keep swimming.....

Oh, no, the doctor will not be presenting anything to my son. She's just going to do the standard diagnosing procedures and use that along with the input from dh and me (given to her privately) to put together a detailed diagnosis. She then calls with a summary of the results and sets a second appointment for dh and I go back in and discuss results in detail with her (without my son). At that second appointment we put together a plan for any therapy that is needed and also get help with questions from us about things we can do at home or how we should handle certain behavior. We plan to talk to her about if/when to discuss it with him and get her input, but ultimately it's up to dh and I how/when we talk to him about it. I don't think we can decide that until we go through both meetings. Okay good. I was thinking of having everything written down but I didn't know if that was too much. Thanks!

Thank you all for the support and suggestions. I really like the social stories page and I think laying it out like that will be helpful. Maybe I'll just email the doctor and ask her for just a couple of examples of questions so I know how to frame the conversation she'll have with him. Geodob, I agree that it's a difference not a disorder. In fact, it's a gift that just happens to come with some traits that can make childhood a bit rough. He is brilliant in certain areas and has a nearly photographic memory. Unfortunately the world is not always as kind and open minded. And when some kids (or ignorant extended family members) remind him of the areas he is not as strong in (athletics, humor, conversation, etc.) or when he doesn't want to experience other-wise fun events because of certain aversions/obsessions, or when he has frequent melt-downs anytime anything unexpected or unplanned occurs, he feels isolated because he sees others as not being upset about it. I need to be able to help him learn to navigate life better because just protecting him isn't helping him. So, I'm looking for the tools and education that I need to support and nurture him toward handling life in a way that isn't so overwhelming for him. Anyhow, thanks again. I'm sure I'll have more questions about school stuff and other things. I appreciate the people on this board being open to sharing their thoughts and experience. :001_smile:

Hi all. I have a question about our first appointment with a Ped Development and Behavior specialist to diagnose and suggest help with dealing with what we and our regular doctor believe is some form of High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder in my ds11. Of course I've known for years (most of his life?) that there was something but only recently has finally reached a point that DH agrees we should do something. Anyhow, we have an appointment coming up to do the full diagnosis and the doctor will spend time with just DH and me and then spend about 90 minutes with DS administering the ADOS-G. I think that's the one--she said it quickly on the phone and when I look at the tools used, that one looks the most like what she mentioned. DS knows he has anxiety. We're using this as our lead in for the appointment. He has said he is "different" though he doesn't realize that all the sensory issues, OCD issues, social issues, executive function issues, and such are all wrapped up in something with the word "disorder" in it. And we'd like to protect him as much as possible from feeling poorly about himself. My question is, what was your experience with this diagnostic appointment? Were you in the room with your child? The doctor said we could be in the room as long as our presence didn't interfere with her discussion with our son. Our son has major anxiety with new situations so I told her that if we're not in the room, she may have a hard time getting him to participate. She was fine with that. What types of questions do they ask? Was your child open about answering them? I'm afraid she's going to get these one word answers and not be able to determine anything. Anyhow, any experience you have would be so helpful to hear about. I'm trying not to be nervous about the appointment. I think I'm partially worried that the doctor will not be able to see all/most of the things we deal with in order to make an accurate assessment. Hopefully she'll take our input seriously too. Thanks in advance. PS: I'm new to the Special Needs board--are we supposed to keep it about homeschooling or is it an open discussion about anything? Thanks.

Thanks Lisa. I'm not a fan so far either but I think I need to make it work this year. We did mostly A Beka Science for elementary and I felt like we needed one more general study to cover the basics in more depth before heading into Physical Science next year. What I'm doing with my younger one (and what I'd do with my older one if I could go back) is a deeper study of the different topics individually. I suppose I could just choose the topics that we need more work in and do those modules with supplemental resources to make it more well rounded. Hmmmmm. :huh:

Oh, that's good news. Thank you!

We made it through the first module but it wasn't very fun. We like science but this felt laborious. We're using the student notebook as well. I don't want to get too far in before considering something else, though I don't know what else I would use.

Thanks for the tips. I found a 9th ed. at a reasonable price so I've got both on the way. Oh absolutely. I'm anxious to see them (and get started!). I will definitely report back with my thoughts once I get a chance to check them out with DD. Thanks again for all your help. Thank you RootAnn. I have A Beka's Pre-Algebra here too and I just couldn't get settled on it. I feel like the instruction is not detailed enough for my DD. But I agree, that we probably could move to a Pre-Algebra program because A Beka did a good job on the basics--my concern is that she's young so I want to make sure those basics are second nature before moving on to higher math. So, like you mentioned, we'll do a BCM and then take it from there. I like her having the exposure to different authors too. I'm so thankful for everyone's help! :D

I looked at Lial's BCM and Aufmann's BCM and do like them them both more than A Beka's Basic Math. I found a Lial's BCM used for $17 (8th ed. with the CD) so I went ahead and bought it. As far as Aufmann's BCM...is there a certain edition that I should get or are they fairly similar? I don't mind buying both books as I can teach mainly from one but use the other as a reference if we need additional explanation. There are some deals out there but it depends on whether I need the most recent edition or if I can buy a slightly older one. I think Aufmann's layout is cleaner and easier to read but would honestly prefer to see them both in person to decide which one to make my "main" resource. Thanks again.

Thanks again. I think I'll just order both a BCM and Pre-Algebra and see which makes sense. I think I need to see the different options to really know. I also like your advice about focusing on the present instead of thinking so much about working backward from our long term goal. :)

Thank you! That is a lot of good information to research and consider. I will look at Auffman's BCM and Jousting Armadillos as well. I think she could benefit from another spin through percents, rations and proportions so we won't go straight into Pre-Algebra but as far as who to use to do the review it seems like I have several options.

Hi! I posted this on the regular K-8 board and was advised to also post it here so here goes. I'm just copying and pasting from my original: Hi all, I have not posted much but now as we enter the middle school years I'm finding I have more and more questions. DD (6th grade) just finished A Beka Arithmetic 6 (she did A Beka 1st-5th as well). I'd like to use Lial's Intro to Algebra in 8th (or sooner if she's ready). I own A Beka's Basic Mathematics (7th grade) but I'm wondering if I should have her move to Lial's now. So my question is, according to those who use Lial's, which progression would be most beneficial: Option 1: 6th grade (now): A Beka's Basic Mathematics (7th grade) 7th grade: Lial's Pre-Algebra 8th grade: Lial's Intro to Algebra 9th grade: Jacob's Geometry? Option 2: 6th grade (now): Lial's BCM 7th grade: Lial's Pre-Algebra 8th grade: Lial's Intro to Algebra 9th grade Jacob's Geometry? Option 3: 6th grade (now): Lial's BCM 7th grade: Lial's Intro to Algebra (if she's ready) 8th grade: ? Jacob's Geometry? Is Jacobs doable in 8th for an above average math student or should we wait until 9th? I'd like to cover at least Pre-Calculus in high school as well as a Statistics class at the community college so I want to leave room for that. I think the the options above do that but I'm open to suggestions on the best path. Thanks! Here's the link to the other thread as there were two responses: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/489020-math-progression-question-for-the-lials-path/ Any additional thoughts/advice would be appreciated! I'm open to Jacobs as someone suggested if that might be more appropriate for this age. Thanks.

Thanks so much! I'll take a look at Jacobs Algebra. I'll also post this on the other board as well. I appreciate the advice. :D