I'm sad here!! My Grade 4 son is starting school for the very first time... he's been homeschooled up till now... and he's my only child. I'm going to miss his constant chatter (from sun up to sun down!!).... our school board is poised for a strike and I'm actually hoping for a strike, just so I'll have a few more days/weeks with him!

This has been a great thread for me to read. My son has been homeschooled from K- Gr 3. He's entering a Catholic public school for the first time in a couple of weeks for Grade 4. I'm a little nervous as to how he'll transition. He's very, very bright (for example, he's completed his grade 4 Math Mammoth curriculum already) academically, but it'll be a transition for him socially (he's an only child, but quite extroverted). He's not overly compliant, but has a very strong sense of right and wrong... one of the things that already has him upset, is learning from a friend that he has to ASK to go to the bathroom. In his mind, this is a basic human right that no one should have to ask permission for. :) Soooo, we'll see how that goes! :) I'm a bit nervous on his behalf... he needs to move a lot and gets distracted very easily. We plan on afterschooling using SOTW 3, Beast Academy 4a and 4b, studying chemistry and the periodic table and lots of read alouds and scripture study.

We'll be joining the afterschooling community this coming year. My son is going to school for the very first time in grade 4. Some of the afterschooling plans we have: SOTW 3, covering chemistry and in depth study of the periodic table, Beast Academy 4A and 4B, lots of read alouds and scripture study.

I'm going to try this out.. free is awesome! Thanks for posting!

Wonderful! That looks perfect. Thank you! There's not much else in the way of films for the Tempest, is there?!

I'm in the middle of choosing our 2 Shakespeare plays for our upcoming school year and the Tempest is on my shortlist..... but can't seem to find a dvd for kids (7yo- 9yo range ).... Any recommendations?

Bumping up this thread in order to ask if the dvd "In Search of Shakespeare" has any parts that may be unsuitable for a younger audience (7yo son)..... thanks in advance!

this looks tempting! And it would be a business expense for me, since i would use it to track the progress and attendance of 2 of the children I care for (I do a preschool program with them) in addition to using it for my son's homeschooling progress...... I've signed up for the 30 day free trial! :)

So far my school supply list consists of: - pencils, pencils and more pencils... here's a question for you: Black Warrior Mirado pencils or Yellow Ticonderoga pencil? Which do you prefer? - Composition books - glue sticks - Premier Prismacolor colored pencils - Pencil sharpeners - I've always bought the staedtler graphite tub pencil sharpener - but that link that was posted in this thread has me intrigued - I may have to see if they ship to canada. - 3.5x5.5 lined moleskine notebooks for myself - box of good copy paper for drawing and printing off the computer I feel the need to start a new thread about what people use index cards for.... we never do and yet it seems to be a very popular item! Makes me feel like I'm missing out on something :)

My son, 7yo, and my husband are VERY much wanting to get into metal detecting as a hobby.... a beginner detector is not all that expensive and so we've started a loose change jar which is almost full and we're going shopping for a metal detector... great family hobby and who knows what you will find!!

I've lost 35 pounds since January following a GAPS-like diet. I cut out all grains, potatoes, legumes, soy, sugar (except honey) and dairy. Mainly I'm eating tons of veg, fruits, meat, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, olive oil, coconut oil, butter. I was shocked at how much easier it was than I had anticipated. I've been haunting paleo and GAPS blogs for inspiration... Oh She Glows blog has amazing salad recipes that have left me feeling like I've treated myself. I find that some Paleo blogs focus on grain free baking - and tons of meat recipes - and I've had to be proactive about first seeking out amazing salad and veg recipes and then adding in meat as a side.... grain-free baking I've kept as a very occasional treat...

I'm listening in on this convo for suggestions too! A book that is not very well known that we just finished reading as a read- aloud is Sentinal: City of Destiny (by Landel Bilbrey). I first heard of this book from Cindy Rollin's blog. Its an allegory for the Christian walk from childhood into adulthood, along the same lines of Pilgrim's Progress. My son ADORED it. Its mainly geared towards boys, but honestly girls who love Narnia would probably love it as well. It is not anywhere near being in the same calibre of writing as C.S Lewis and the book has some annoying editing glitches that need to be corrected... BUT even still, it gave my son a very powerful vision for the kind of boy and man he would like to become.

Thoroughly agree... the Mary Pope Osborne's audio version is amazing! My son was riveted...

can someone post a link to the original thread that spawned this one? TIA

thanks for the recommendation - your daughter's art is FANTASTIC!! I've just requested one of these books from my library and there is a huge waiting list for it.... looking forward to trying some of the projects....

Great thanks!

Probably a silly question.... but when the WTM refers to keeping a " notebook" - I am assuming this means "binder" right? Also - this thread has been full of great ideas!

:lurk5:

My library has an amazing hold system that allows you to suspend a hold until you need it... you still advance in the queue (if there are multiple people waiting for the book) - but if I know that I need certain books for 5 weeks from now, then I'll place a hold on them and then suspend it until then. I went ahead online (library website) and "booked" all of the books for the entire curriculum in this way, marking the weeks down in my agenda so that we don't fall behind...its amazing to have all of the books ready and waiting for me at the library WHEN we need them.

:lurk5: Great thread everyone!! Listening in for my 6 1/2yo STEM-crazy kid.... :)

How about this: http://simplesciencestrategies.com/?p=222#axzz2UKUypdDT There are lots of additional blogs mentioned in this link that use One Small Square.

Its on my to-purchase list for this summer.... :)

What about Mathematicians are People Too?

Great thread! I always eat leftovers for breakfast.... I'm grain-free so usually it means leftover roasted veggies and roasted chicken... Sometimes I'll reheat it... :) But I try and always to have a big batch of roasted veggies in the fridge.... As many have already suggested: Sauteed spinach, kale and chard with mushrooms, onions and garlic with a fried egg on top is always a nice treat. I also make egg muffins with any leftover hamburger or sausage meat (or any leftover chopped up meat, really) - crumble in the bottom of greased muffin tins, add some roasted veg (or spinach), then fill the muffin cups with beaten eggs, sprinkle with your fave seasonings and bake till golden and puffed up.... I always try and keep a bunch of these in a freezer bag in the fridge - and I eat them cold too (did I mention I don't have a microwave?! LOL! Lots of things get eaten cold)...

In our morning basket, we're reading aloud from Steven Caney's Ultimate Building Book.. its pretty awesome as a read aloud... :)