Swimmermom3, We just finished Caesar's English II. When I looked at the online sample of WWW, I thought there was a huge jump in terms of the amount of material covered in a year. I am contemplating on using Sadlier for a year or two before doing WWW. Which level of Sadlier do you think is good to start after Caesar's English II?

Are you using it for your main program? Ds used half of their Intro Algebra. While the lectures are good, their exercises are too short and easy. I used it to bridge between ds's pre-algebra and algebra because ds finished pre-algebra early, but then decided to drop it and use a regular US textbook (Foerster). If you don't purchase extra material from them, the online class itself is not enough for students to truly grasp concepts presented in the typical algebra I course. I feel that it's more of a supplement than a main math course.

I don't know about Melissa, but I found the tutor through word of mouth. My sister and her family live in the top school district in our area (their high school is one of the top 100 in the US), and most of my niece's classmates participate in one or more after-school tutoring sessions. Since writing is typically not taught in school, lots of kids go to writing classes after school. This tutor was recommended by the mother of my niece's classmate for my nephew so my sister try him out. She then recommended him to me. If you have a reputable and competitive school in your area, ask some parents who have children in that school where they send their kids for tutoring. They are usually able to recommend something.

You know, I just did the exact same thing this month. After going through 3 years of IEW and 3 levels of MCT's writing curriculum, I was so ready to have an expert do the job for me. I was at a point where I was at a loss of how to continue. We only started last week so apparently don't know the results yet, but it's a huge burden off my shoulders (for now)!

I am another fan of Trader Joe's. Items I love: Avocados, good price, good quality Pistachios and other nuts, very fresh, good price Dried fruit, good selections, good price Marinara sauce, the best I've used, good price Coffee, I think it's the best coffee, drink it black or add just a bit of milk, even my 11-year-old agrees that Trader Joe's coffee is the best (and he takes it with no sugar added)

I have been on the lookout for like-minded kids for a long time but haven't found any in my area. But I do think it's possible to develop some friendship even with people very different from ourselves. My main thing is to help him know how to start a conversation in a social situation instead of being anxious the whole time, and also like some pps mentioned, to turn attention away from himself and focus on others. Thank you for the suggestions, I'll look into each one of them carefully to see which ones might be of help. BTW, I am a geek who married a geek, and our family friends are all geeks. :D

I have an 11-year-old typical introvert who has no friends. He has lots of acquaintances through homeschool group, sports, AWANA, Sunday school, and other classes he takes, but none that he can call friend. He said he doesn't mind being alone which is true because he is perfectly happy, but I worry about his social skills. From my observation, he is just awkward with new people and doesn't know how to talk to kids his age. He said kids his age don't like things he likes (which is news, politics, urban development, and other "strange" topics), and what they like he does not have interest (like sports and pop culture). He asked me last night if there is a book called "Friendship for Dummies" because he needs some help. BTW, he is an only child. Also, he has no trouble playing with younger kids or talking intelligently with friendly adults who initiate conversation with him. So, is there a book that help socially awkward kids learn how to carry themselves in a group, teach them what to say to reach out to others who might not share the same interest, and to develop meaningful friendship?

We are using MCT's Essay Voyage this year. Ds is doing a 5-paragraph paper with bibliography on science or history every 2 weeks.

I completely agree with the boldfaced part. We are using Foerster's Algebra I with DM 2 as supplement. I can tell you that if your child does well with Singapore Primary Math, there will be little or no transition into their DM series. If pre-algebra topics are all you need to cover before going into AoPS book, DM is an excellent choice.

We used to live in Boston, and I was introduced to Mike's Pastries by my then friend (now husband). He likes their tiramisu cakes. We don't have good Italian bakeries where we live.

Floradix is a good brand, I took that for a while when my iron was low, it did not give me any problem. I've also tried TwinLab's iron pills with good results, they are much cheaper:001_smile: In general green leaf veggie has good iron content, but it's poorly absorbed by our body. Since you don't eat meat, you'll have to rely on supplements. If you drink tea, even herbal tea, don't drink it when you take your iron supplement, because it blocks iron absorption. Calcium and grape seed extract do the same so don't take them with iron.

We are using MCT's Caesar's English to learn Latin stems, that's as far as it goes. Ds is learning Mandarin Chinese, and learning to read, write, and speak that language is enough to make his little head spin;).

Ds, who just turned 11 a couple of weeks ago, is doing Foerster Algebra with no problems. He has not shown any sign of slowing down. I expect him to finish his algebra book by the end of Feb. next year. I plan to have him go through AoPS's algebra book or class in the spring to stall him for a bit. He is also taking AoPS's online Mathcounts Basic which is very challenging for him. I do recommend letting her go at her own pace, but I also think for a person who breathes math, branching out is important. AoPS has Counting and Probability, and Number Theory books that you might want to look into. Competition Math for Middle School, which AoPS carries, is also a good book for branching out. Here is the link to Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Competition-Math-Middle-School-Batterson/dp/1441488871/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1291411538&sr=8-1

I don't have anything to add but just want to say what a great thread this is. I have saved it for future reference. Thank you all!

Pizza and pasta are well accepted American food by Chinese people. It's safe to serve them. Baked goods that are not too sweet (with no frosting) are good treats. Clear chicken soup (not the thick kind) in winter will be well appreciated as well. If they are staying for a month, you might want to provide them with slippers to wear around the house. Chinese people don't wear shoes in the house, and most of them feel uncomfortable doing so in other people's house.

These five stood out but not in particular order: Carry On, Mr. Bowditch The Cricket in Time Square By the Great Horn Spoon Anne of Green Gables The Trumpet of the Swan

Thank you!!

I thought I was the only one that thought this was ridiculous. I am glad to know I am "normal", at least here.:001_smile:

CD pre-algebra. Ds finished 6B, went into CD pre-algebra without any problem. A word of caution though, CD and Singapore are two math programs with completely different style. While ds did well with CD, we did not continue after pre-algebra level because that would have killed any motivation to do math in him (and he is not a very motivated student to begin with although very good at math).

I am paying $25 per 1.5 hr lesson.

I found magazines by Carus Publishing very good: http://www.cricketmag.com/ProductList.aspx?type=M Another one we've subscribed in the past is Kids Discover, but this one is for older kids: http://www.kidsdiscover.com/

I am using Voyage level with my 6 grader. After going through Island and Town levels in the past two years, we still enjoy MCT if not more this year. We've always done grammar and vocab as is, but this is the first year that I don't supplement with another writing program, but I think Essay Voyage itself is a good refining program for students who are already familiar with basic essay writing.

We did ChalkDust Pre-algebra after 6B. Neither ds nor I enjoyed it too much. The textbook is geared toward high schoolers which is too mature for my young son. But the book served the purpose of covering pre-algebra topics thoroughly. Looking back, I should have used Singapore DM 1-2 as pre-algebra. Now we are using Foerester Algebra I (in chapter 8, which is more than half way through). We like this textbook much better (than ChalkDust). The explanation, the layout, and number of problems for each exercise are all better. If you research on the high school board, you'll see that people consider this textbook one of the best for algebra. While I like this book and think it will prepare any student to master algebra I, I find it lack depth and challenge compared to Singapore DM. I am still using it though because it follows the traditional US math scopes and sequence, but I have to use Singapore DM to supplement and slow him down. I have Intro to Algebra from AoPS which I will use after ds completes Foerester Algebra I. I have not had much time to look through this book yet so I can't comment on it, but you'll be able to find lots of information on the high school board and from their web site.

I am using EV with my 6th grader who has had 3 years of IEW (we also did MCT's SI and PT, but for reading only). We are in chapter 3 right now and we are enjoying it. I usually use his assignments as my guideline and incorporate them into science or history related reports. It is very easy to make up your own assignments at this level because each chapter is about an important aspect of essay writing, I just ask ds to write an essay and make sure he put what he learns so far to use. I find TM to be enough at this level. MCT emphasizes on giving students feedbacks. Since they put in time and effort to write an essay, we as teachers need to put in time and effort to tell them what they did well and what they did wrong. So I usually writing down what I like and don't like about that essay plus all the editing. If I don't think ds is getting an important concept, I make sure to discuss it with him. That's about all I do for now. I think MCT's material offers more hand-holding when it gets to Advanced Academic Writing, but not the first three levels. However, I learn to trust his material after using it for two years so I am going to trust that waiting for one more year to get more hand-holding isn't going to ruin ds's writing;)

I've been anemic for the past year. I found out recently that tea (even herbal tea) inhibits the absorption of iron. I am a heavy tea drinker, so I have to plan when to take my iron pill. If you take any grape seed extract, it inhibits iron absorption too. Leafy green is good for health, but not necessary the best source of iron. Most iron in the leafy green is poorly absorbed. One last thing, you need to continue to take iron for at least 6 months after your test becomes normal to build up your iron reserve in the body. I took iron for 3 months last year and quit right after I tested normal. I was surprised in May to find that I was even more anemic than last year. So I am still on iron pill now even though my test is normal. I take TwinLab iron pills. They are priced very reasonably at vitacost.com.