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September

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Everything posted by September

  1. That's great to know. Thanks! Was this your 10 yo son? And, where would you say it falls on the continuum between a story and a textbook?
  2. Hello! I'm trying to track down a good "living story" to be read aloud for physics. If any of you have read the following, I'd really appreciate some input on which was most narrative, which was most clear, which best engaged your child, and which was most age-appropriate for grade 4-6. The Romance of Physics by Keith Irwin Secrets of the Universe by Paul Fleisher (and any tips on landing a copy?) Mr. Tompkins OR Gravity by George Gamow (Gravity has more of the same content as the other two, but seems less narrative?) Or, is there something I am missing that is even better? Thanks for your help!
  3. My son loves books about inventors, and we're huge Little House fans for sure! Thanks!
  4. Thanks, Hunter! We read a biography of Benjamin Franklin last year. We're starting around 1850 for this year. I didn't know you could search Gutenberg by category like that, so that opens up a whole wealth of options. Appreciate it!
  5. And thank you, again, Rebecca. Another good call! You should consider adding those two Canadian resources to your site. ? It'll make all of us Canadians, who feel so left out most so much of the time with homeschool resources/curriculums, very very grateful!
  6. Those are some great recommendations, Bluegoat. Thanks for the lead with When the Cherry Blossoms Fell. That's exactly the reading level I'm looking for too. I'm fine with a British history focus as I find that at least has more lead-in to Canadian history. In my dreams there is a resource out there like Young Folk's Plutarch / Tales of the Greeks/Romans for modern history that I just haven't found yet. ! And, thanks for the heads up about SoTW. Shoot! I was banking on that -- mostly just because I loved both CHoW and SoTW and wanted to make them both work somehow. I guess when my son was five it was hard to picture what level he'd need in five years... and I haven't actually re-read any of SoTW since then. The best-laid plans of mice and men...
  7. That's a fabulous list. I've only looked over a few so far, but they are all bang on. I wasn't expecting any one person to present me with such a gold mine. Wow! Thank you, Rebecca! At the risk of being greedy, I'm Canadian, so if anyone has any suggestions to add that have a bit more connection with Canada, that would be appreciated as well. Anyone with thoughts on Robert Lacey? Thanks! PS. Just visited Homeschool Garden. What an exciting discovery. Thank you for putting together such an organized and thorough and aesthetic list of resources. You've made my life so much easier today!
  8. Hello! I'm using A Child's History of the World as a spine for grade 1-4 history (will use Story of the World for grades 5-8). I'm planning out grade 4 history, and there are so few chapters in CHW for me to work with; I'm having a hard time fleshing it out with enough well-written biographies/histories. I am just now looking over Robert Lacey's Great Tales from English History vol 2, but don't have access to vol. 3 from my local library. I'm wondering if It is a worthwhile purchase for me, as I tend to be pretty right-leaning, and understand he's a pretty staunchly not. I don't have a problem reading my children stuff that has opposing perspectives, but I guess I'm wondering whether I would find his angle to be more distorting than it is beneficial (based on a review of his treatment of Churchill, for example). Otherwise, his short biographies are exactly the sort of thing I'd find ideal. Regardless, any other recommendations for fleshing out modern history at the grammar stage? I have Granfield's Flanders Fields and that's pretty much all I've found so far that I am thrilled about. I'm looking for books that cover more of the basic historical bases of that time than, for example, Snow Treasure (eg. am using Lila of Ingleside for read-aloud this year, but not for our history lessons.) But, I would very much like to be using truly excellent literary material. Thanks for your help! September
  9. Seeing this was really helpful. I think I'm convinced. But, I do have this "thing" about not having my daughter have to start into this stuff early -- especially with some of the content of ancient world history (violence in myths etc.). Have any of you started your oldest later to try and balance that out? So, for example, would it work to do a year of non-history school work with my son for grade 1, and then start into the cycles in earnest when he is 7 and she is 5? I still can't really picture a day in our lives once we start into this. My daughter is usually pretty happy to play independently, so I guess I kind of imagined her doing her own thing in another room while I "do" school with her brother.
  10. This is what I am leaning towards doing. How have you made it work? Do you keep them in separate rooms (someone working on math while you read a chapter from the ancients, then the second child to switch to math while you read a chapter of medieval)? Do you use the CDs to save your sanity? (!)
  11. I haven't begun the real work of my homeschooling journey yet, but am dedicated to preparing as much as I can ahead of time -- first, by reading The Well-Trained Mind and, currently, by reading Charlotte Mason's Original Homeschooling Series. I haven't committed to much by way of curriculum yet, but I would like to use Story of the World, and to keep my history cycles really organized (ie. to use The Bible / Black Ships Before Troy / Aesop's Fables for grade 1 read-alouds etc.). The one thing I can't really comprehend at this stage is how to do have my son (5), learn the history of the ancient world in grade 1, but not to have my daughter (3) learn it until she begins grade 1. Two specific questions in regards to that: my children are 21 months apart, but would have only been 1 year apart in school. Should I start her a year or two years behind my son? And, do you recommend getting Story of the World in print, or on CD, in order to facilitate keeping history lessons specific to each child's grade level? Thank you for your advice!
  12. Ah! The way it is listed on the StartWrite site, I thought I would either order a Mac or PC version of the program. Now I see that it was just as you were suggesting... just one disk that works on both. It's interesting that you found version 5.0 didn't end up working all that well on your Mac. Maybe that is why they haven't even bothered to release 6.0 for Macs?
  13. Well... I'll try giving them a call, at least. Basically, in 2008 they were willing to sell New American Cursive as an additional font for $9. However, that was for their PC software. One more question: did you purchase their Mac software, and have troubles with that? or did you try the PC software on your Mac, and have troubles with that?
  14. Yes. I've emailed Iris Hatfield, who designed the New American Cursive font, about whether the NAC-specific StartWrite software (sold on newamericancursive.com) would be available for Macs anytime soon, and she said that she couldn't make any promises. So, then I Googled and came up with that thread in which plain jane said she's purchased the NAC font as an additional font from StartWrite.com. I was hoping, hoping that that might somehow work out. Doesn't it seem like a lot of the people who would be Mac users would also be people who would be really picky about fonts, and love making their own documents/print-outs? I hope they get on it with better options for us. Maybe we could start bombarding them with requests...!
  15. So... Do you mean that you purchased StartWrite FOR your Mac (the Mac version), and it still was just a pain? And, to clarify, when you purchased NAC for $9, that was for your StartWrite PC software? ... I found that old thread just by doing a Google search for NAC StartWrite for Macs. I don't think I noticed how old it was until now!
  16. Thanks. I do know how to download and install fonts... just not how to get my hands on the New American Cursive one. Let me know what you think of StartWrite once you check it out. I assume from the set-up that you can only use it with the fonts they provide. They DO have New American Cursive set-up to work with the software; but, so far, I can't get them to respond to my notes about how I can purchase it from them (for StartWrite 5.0 which works on Macs).
  17. In another theard "plain jane" mentioned that she purchased StartWrite 5.0 from StartWrite.com and then, additionally, the NAC font (for $9). I cannot find a way to do this -- through the StartWrite site, or through emailing them (they haven't responded to my emails). Does anyone have experience with this? I'm kind of stalled-out on some other decisions until I figure this one out. (And, yes, I'm being picky... Ha, ha. The Modern Cursive font that StartWrite offers is close, but I just don't like it as much.)
  18. I would agree that the 'T' and 'F' are not ideal. However, it's the 'N' and 'M' that get me -- flawless!
  19. Do you have a Mac? That's my problem. (See my original question on page 2.) The New American Cursive site sells their own StartWrite software, with the NAC font, but they do not have it available for use on Macs. StartWrite.com sells StartWrite 5.0, which works on Macs, but it does not come with the NAC font. I know that StartWrite 5.0's "Modern Cursive" font is somewhat similar to NAC. However, it isn't nearly as beautiful, and I would be willing to pay the $9 to get NAC with the software if I could. plain jane -- hope you see this so you can advise!
  20. Just giving my question a little 'bump'. Anyone have experience with purchasing the New American Cursive font for StartWrite 5.0? I have emailed StartWrite (startwrite@gmail.com) a couple of times now, and have not heard back from them. Thanks for your suggestions!
  21. "If you want to use StartWrite 5.0 with that font, you can order the New American Cursive font directly from StartWrite.com. It costs $9 and it is available as a download to your computer. The NAC font can then be used with your StartWrite CD. Then you have the best of both worlds. Except for price that is." I think NAC is beautiful, and would like to be able to use it for all my copywork assignments. However, I have a Mac, and so I cannot purchase the NAC StartWrite software, which is only available for PC. I have emailed StartWrite itself about purchasing NAC as an additional font with StartWrite 5.0, and they told me that they could not sell me the font. Has anyone else had success in purchasing NAC for StartWrite 5.0? Is there any other way that I can use this software with NAC on my Mac? plain jane -- if you see this, can you tell me how long ago you purchased NAC for StartWrite 5.0, and how you went about the process? Thank you!
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