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Donna T.

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Everything posted by Donna T.

  1. MathUSee is a very CMish program. Short lessons, manipulatives, with oral narration. Oral narration is a very important component of MUS. Also, Making Math Meaningful would be another good choice. It also uses manipulatives and requires an oral dialogue though it's not exactly narration. Close though. The lessons are more drawn out and teacher driven than MUS.
  2. It's going well here. My first grader is doing great. His reading is really taking off. He loves MUS and Spanish. We are in week 4 of My Father's World Exploring Countries and Cultures with my fourth grader. I am pleased and very surprised to find that he (the fourth grader) loves Writing Strands! He has been a very reluctant writer (as in composition) but he really likes WS. It just sort of clicked with him. He literally laughs while he's doing his work! I think he likes that the manual tells him not to show me his work until a certain point... you know, in two days, show mom. He thinks that is funny and he just understands the way writing is taught with WS. I don't know if it's "the best" but he sure likes it and I am thrilled about that. He doesn't want to do his Spanish lessons. He is really interested in Latin. Was even talking about it at the dinner table tonight but I don't know WHAT to do. We tried Prima Latina but I think he was too young for it when we started. Maybe I should try it again but I'm not sure if it's ok for a fourth grader. Probably fine. I don't know though. I'm thinking about Latin's Not So Tough because it looks easy to use. Maybe get him back on track with that and then use something else later.
  3. Dawn, thank you! That is good to hear. If the books sort of work together to keep the others in check, it sounds like we could work with it just fine. As far as Building a City on a Hill... isn't that one very "Providential" in perspective? You know, I really haven't expressed this very well. It's not so much that we don't think our history is "Providential" - we do believe in a Sovereign Lord (Christ Jesus, that is), but we think that America's Christian heritage is overly embellished in many of the history books that we've looked at for American History. We are very opposed to the ideas and philosophies of De Mar and I don't think we could work with his material to a large degree. But, honestly, I haven't read that book, so maybe it's not the issue that I think it would be. What do you think the point of that book is in the curriculum? I really appreciate your opinions and feedback. I'm glad to hear that your son likes the book and that it is working well for your family. History is an area in which I'm afraid I will always experience some struggle. :blushing:
  4. I haven't used HOD. I have used K, First Grade, Adventures and now First Grade and ECC. I've used MFW for every year of our homeschooling except one in which I sort of did my own thing. I have many local friends who have tried MFW. The ones who are really "devoted users" are the ones who use it pretty much as it's intended to be used. They don't skip alot of assignments, they don't do a lot of tweaking, they try to stick to the schedule fairly closely. They mostly use the resources that MFW schedules or suggests and then they sort of customize it by picking the books that they really love from the book lists in the TM or from some other book lists. They are "doing" MFW. The ones I know that aren't as happy with it are the ones who don't do all the assignments (which, frankly, I've never been able to do. There is ALOT of work in there.), do a lot of substitutions and replacements of resources, leave out the "extras" (which are not supposed to be extras at all) like the nature walks, a foreign language, art and craft activities, and oral narrations, or who are trying to cram the program into a four day week so they can do activities with their homeschooling group or whatever. This year, I'm doing less "adapting" and "tweaking". I've spent considerable time reading Charlotte Mason's own writings and now I can see much more clearly how MFW integrates her ideas into their curriculum. For that reason, I'm sticking to their suggestions for Language Arts and most everything else except math. I use the book lists to add more "meat" if I think we need that but I also pull from other book lists and integrate alot of ideas from Ambleside Online (we love their book suggestions and methods). I guess the only real complaint I have with MfW so far is that some of the books are not as lively or interesting as I'd like. But, really, it's not a big deal. I've made it a bigger deal in the past than it had to be. MFW intends for you to add books to their programs. Those books are not "extras", they are a part of the curriculum. It's just that they don't make all the choices for you. They give you options. The books they actually schedule are a starting point. The content in them is supposed to be used as a catalyst for further reading and you pick your own books for those other readings. I've heard complaints that ECC is not "CM" enough or that there are not enough "real" books as there are a good bit of reproducible pages from workbook sort of books that you give the child to read or complete. We do most of those but we do that PLUS the "real" books. They aren't meant to replace the books... the pages are a starting point and add factual info. that is relevent to the overall curriculum. For example, we are still in North America and my son is reading Tree in the Trail and Paddle to the Sea by Holling C. Holling. He is reading Misty of Chincoteague, Sing Down the Moon, The Burgess Bird Book, Parables from Nature, and books about Daniel Boone and Davy Crocket. He is also reading historical tales about Spanish Americans. These are not considered "not doing MFW". You are supposed to add books to MFW and that's what gives you the meat. MFW scheduled a two page spread reading about the Navajos but they don't necessarily intend that you stop there. If there is an interest, you add content with the extra books that you choose yourself from their book lists or whatever your library has or some other book list. So my son is very interested in early Southwestern American history, so we add meat there. We won't add "meat" to everything that we read about. We couldn't possibly do that because you cover alot of territory in the basic program. As for the science... I hear alot of criticism about MFW's science not being "enough". Again, the science is the same as the history or geography. You add content with books of your own choosing. In the early years, it covers a wide variety of topics. For first grade, I believe there is a new science topic each week. So far this year, we have covered creepy crawlies or other things that live on or under the ground, seasons, and plants/flowers. We don't stop with the book that MFW schedules. That is just an introduction. We then go to the library and nose around the internet for more content. We take nature walks and practice drawing things that we see. Adventures covers many topics and then in ECC the focus begins to narrow. My son happens to know alot about the science subject matter of ECC. Rather than fleshing it out with more on those topics, I am sticking with just MFW's material for those and we are studying Chemistry. It's not that ECC doesn't have "enough" for us. It's just that he already has alot of knowledge in that area due to his love for reading and he reads about those topics on his own. And, we are yet to fit in the ECC science notebook. For us, MFW has too much in this area! And, we love science and spend time everyday on science. I don't know how this compares to HOD. But, I just wanted to share how we add "meat" to it. We don't need more "meat" in every area. We pick where we want to add content and we do that primarily through living books and that's how MFW is intended to be done. I can't think of any potential area of curriculum that MFW does not address. It is very balanced and on most days, we touch on many subjects. We rarely, if ever, do everything for that day because, for us, it's too much work. And, we are not slackers by any means. I like having a schedule to follow and I appreciate that we can customize our basic curriculum to flesh out the areas that matter to us. I like the book lists. I like the balance of hands-on learning, activities, and less active learning (books, oral narrations). I LOVE the way Bible is taught and how our faith is the focus of the program. I really like the phonics and hands-on math in First Grade. For the most part, I like the books and resources that are scheduled. I like that we cover ALOT and still have time to take nature walks, go swimming, and work on habits and character formation. Blessings, Donna T.
  5. Thanks, Kysha! I'm sure you are right. I've been visiting this board for so many years that it's usually the first one that I turn to for information. Blessings!
  6. I'm looking for MFW users who have used or who are using Exploration to 1850. I'd like to know how extensively Story of the World is used in the program. I thought I read somewhere that they do not schedule all of SOTW but that they just use certain portions as it fits into their schedule and that there is some jumping and skipping around. And, another question... how difficult would it be to replace the Christian Liberty Press history book with another? We have used several years of MFW and we really like it *overall*. But, we don't subscribe to a Providential view of American History. Thus, we'd like to see SOTW used extensively and perhaps skip the CLP and some of the other history titles... or atleast, not really focus on them. We really like Joy Hakim's History of US series and want to include those with Exp to 1850 when we get there. I don't want to throw the baby out with the bathwater, so to speak. Without stepping on any toes or starting a debate, I'd like to know if a Christian family (us!) who don't stress America's "Providential" origins would have to change so much in their American History courses that we may as well go ahead and skip the whole thing. Guess I'm trying to say that we are considering the "big picture". I don't want to throw MFW out all together just because it may focus more on that perspective than we would like. But, we'd also like to have an overall structure that would allow us to make substitutions without the whole thing falling apart. We also don't want a very "ethno-centric" view. We don't believe American History starts with the Europeans and we'd like to spend some time really digging into pre-Columbian North America. Again, we really like MFW and we don't mind teaching perspectives that we don't agree with, but if it's just not workable, well, we'd like to know! I hope my questions haven't offended anyone. We would like to stick with MFW from here on out (we've used K, First Grade, Adventures and now ECC with First Grade) but this issue really nags at my husband and I. I hope I've made sense! Blessings!
  7. Handbook of Nature Study http://www.archive.org/details/handbookofnature002506mbp Bible Notebooking Pages from notebooking.com http://www.notebookingpages.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=76&products_id=223&zenid=8aa27600566a8377555bc3631269ff94 Dance Mat Typing http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/ Classical Free Virtual Academy - Latin Course http://www.classicalfree.org/tgc_lai.asp Handwriting Worksheet Generator - this is great for copywork. http://www.worksheetworks.com/english/writing/handwriting.html Greek Course http://www.inthebeginning.org/ World History http://www.smithlifescience.com/SS2005LessonPlans.htm Basics of Electricity http://www.sea.siemens.com/step/templates/lesson.mason?electricity:1:1:1 And, my favorite free resource (not exactly a curriculum but we use it alot): Teacher Tube http://www.teachertube.com/ I have lots of free stuff linked from my blog. I try to post free e-zines and books that I find, also. Blessings, Donna T.
  8. I'm teaching MFW First Grade for the second time. My oldest is an excellent reader and I have always credited MFW Phonics for his early success in reading. By the end of First Grade, he could read just about anything. My current six year old just started but he's doing great! I love love love the phonics in MFW First Grade. The lessons are so simple to teach and yet very effective. The Bible is your history for First Grade. I think you could add SOTW if you really wanted to, but I tried that with my oldest and found it unnecessary. I dropped it and prefer to spend that time doing a lot of reading alouds, fitting in the nature walks, all the activities.
  9. My six year old son is completing My Father's World First Grade. He also uses MathUSee Alpha, selected books from Ambleside Online along with their methods (oral narration, picture studies, etc.) and I Can Do All Things Video Art Course. And, he has taken to Rosetta Stone Spanish and is doing great with it. Not a requirement but he enjoys it.
  10. Praying for you all, Stephanie! Will continue to do so until we hear from you again! Blessings, Donna
  11. I'm a "conservative" and I love the books. They are my favorite for American History. I've read all of the series and have no problems with any of it. I don't think it's so much an issue of liberal or conservative as it is to what degree one holds to the "America is a Christian nation" Providential History point of view. We are Christians and we are conservative, but we don't subscribe to a "Providential" view of American history. So, we like the books.
  12. We just started Spelling Power. I was also tempted to skip the placement test but I'm glad I didn't. My son did much better on it than I thought he would and the author makes the point that it's important not to start them at a level that is below where they really are. There is sufficient review built into the lists so that it may be better to start them just (not alot of course) above their level rather than below it which is what we would be tempted to do..."just in case". For my son, it made a difference in a whole level, so it really is good that we did the placement test. It was very easy to do them and simple to score. As for readiness, be sure to follow the advice she gives in the beginning of the book. She discusses signs of readiness. I think if you child is reading at a 2nd grade level, you would be fine to wait to complete more of ETC before starting SP. There really is no rush and ETC has plenty of spelling practice in it. You may want to do one or the other but not both.
  13. I think there are a few of us on this board who use PLL or ILL. Just wanted to let you all know that the TMs are now ready and shipping. I just ordered the ILL TM. The sample pages look GREAT! I can't wait to get it. http://www.lostclassicsbooks.com
  14. I dropped Writing With Ease and FLL... went to Writing With Ease with R&S instead... and, promptly dropped both. Now, my oldest son is using Intermediate Language Lessons with Writing Strands. It's a much, much better fit for him and he's doing great! Last spring, I made a lot of changes from our "classical" way of doing Language Arts to more of a "Charlotte Mason way". The changes that I made really breathed life into our homeschool. I should have just kept trusting that and not even tried to use the WWE and FLL when the fall rolled around. Long story short... we are doing much better with a different approach to English. I absolutely love ILL and I'm really glad I decided to try it. I needed to pick something and stick with it for the next several years, so that's what I'm going to do... stick with this combo.
  15. Thanks for your concern Robin. You are very sweet and I know you mean well, but frankly, it's my position that they are all corrupt. I'm looking for a city whose Maker and Builder are God and unlike alot of Christians, I'm not expecting Him to set it up on earth through our political system. Actually, I guess I'm especially fired up today as I just posted about this on my blog - earlier today, not as a result of this thread. I do have a video of Ron Paul's statements on homeschooling on my blog. So, maybe I'm a little engaged in the process :tongue_smilie: Many, many warm regards, Donna T.
  16. I agree with you. And, I'd add that alot of the world is slanted to the Right. And, I'd further submit that both are corrupt. I have personally been engaged in spiritual warfare. I'm only bringing that up because you mentioned it in your post. Not... oh, I'm feeling depressed, it must be spiritual warfare... and not, oh, somebody disagrees with me, it must be spiritual warfare... I mean, spiritual warfare where the devil moves into your house. And, it is absolutely my testimony that that was a result of the influence of the so-called "Right" on my life. McCain has illegally received funds from the Rothschilds. http://www.judicialwatch.org/news/2008/apr/judicial-watch-calls-fec-investigate-mccain-presidential-fundraising-luncheon-held-lon http://www.judicialwatch.org/files/2007/0408FECComplaintMcCain.pdf And, no, I don't get my info. from one source, but you can read a bit about the allegations at the above posts. And, McCain has not denied this and much of the info. was taken from his own press releases. If you don't know who the Rothschilds are, then I very respectfully urge you to check them out. Talk about bigger issues... this is a huge issue. Actually, they have given him money for many years. McCain has plenty of skeletons in his closet, so to speak. And, as for the media... I understand you don't want a debate and I don't either because frankly, I'm not smart enough to debate anybody, but the truth from my perspective is that it's the Right who dominate the media. Almost all of the media outlets in this country are owned (and, it's a tangled web that I've spent YEARS researching) by the Rev. Moon. And, you just don't get anymore Right than that. Not only does he have the media in his pocket, he also has many of the conservative Christian ministries in his pocket. Sad, but it's true. Blessings, Donna
  17. :iagree: This is the first presidential election that I will not be voting in. I agree with you totally.
  18. Jill, I may be able to help, if I understand your ? correctly: 1. go to your dashboard 2.go to layout 3.go to add a gadget 4.click 5. pulls up your options 6. go to HTML/JavaScript 7.click that 8.paste code into content area of the box that pops up 9.save That should do it. Blessings, Donna T.
  19. Cindy, your blog is very lovely. It's actually very nice on the eyes after I've spent so much time staring at mine this week-end. I'm afraid mine is beginning to look like the classified ads or something. I use blogger too and I'm fine with the two columns. The more time you spend on the blog, the more it's going to reflect whatever you want to. I have learned everything on my own and that probably comes across on my blog!! I have an unusual amount of time to work on mine because I can work on it while I'm working my real job... I get paid to answer the phone and have ALOT of downtime with permission from my supervisior to do whatever I want on the computer. I'm just sharing that to say that I'm able to put time into mine that some don't have. The coolest thing I just put up was my librarything.com widget. I just discovered that yesterday and already have over a hundred of my books listed. It was easy. You just have to surf around some to find the widgets you like. Have fun! I deleted my whole blog a few weeks ago and completely replaced it with a new blog. For me, it's just an outlet for creativity. I have changed my format lots of times and have finally settled on one... maybe. Blessings!
  20. I just got mine up. Pictures from VBS. Check out pretty little Faith who was born again this week!
  21. I use The Harp & the Laurel Wreath, poems from Favorite Poems Old & New, sentences from the Ambleside Online books that we are reading, Bible verses, and sentences from our spelling curriculum. If you want it all planned out, I think Simply Spelling is the most comprehensive resource available.
  22. We use it. It's easy to use. We have the book and the cards, but we just use the cards. There's not really a "lesson" involved. Well, I guess if you had your child make his or her own cards, there would be. My son just reads through the cards he knows a few times a week. When he is very confident with that stack, we add another. After he spends some time studying the cards, I take the cards away and use them to question him on the vocabulary words. I choose two or three from each card. I mix the words up each time though. That probably makes no sense but if you use the cards, you will know what I mean. I add new roots at his pace rather than a set number each week. He learns some words much more quickly than others. When he's learned all in the stack, he gets another card. My son loves it. I like it. It's effortless and he does retain the words very, very well. My youngest son (6) is learning alot just by listening to his brother and I discuss the vocabulary words.
  23. Our motto is: No Fun Allowed Really, it is. Of course, it's a joke. Sort of. There's a story behind it. The boys love it when I say that. It would sound so much nicer in Latin. I'm wondering if anyone could translate that for me? It certainly would sound more poetic.
  24. We just started RS Spanish this past week-end. I really like it so far. I'm planning for my fourth grader to do short lessons, 15 minutes or so, four days a week. My six year old has taken to it like a duck to the water and has already completed twice as much as the rest of us. I'm not scheduling him at all of course but just sharing that to say that it is very easy to use. I'm going to work through it almost but I'm not following a schedule.
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