The Penny Candy and Blustocking Press guide that accompany it are a great introduction. Then you can add a great textbook like Notgrass. Jennifer

Hey! I am teaching a HS English class and had planned to do only a half semester with Windows to the World, but I have had several requests to change it to a full year and do extra writing. Any thoughts on whether I should use The Elegant Essay or Student Writing Intensive C. They are younger highschoolers. Thanks!! Jennifer

Florida Virtual School offers science as well as every other subject. We have friends outside of Florida that have used the curriculum and liked it.

You might just want to pick up Windows to the World (IEW). She gives a very easy explanation of all the topics you mentioned and more. Although it is written for HS, she is a former home school mom who now teached in a small, Christian high school. Her explanations are very easy to understand and very conversational. It is $50 for the student teacher set, and you could easily match your topics with hers. Plus she uses short stories to teach, so he could begin to practice the concepts without having to read longer works. Hang in there. Aspergers or no, some folks are just hard-wired to call a spade a spade, and not see some deep meaning in everything.

Glad to know about the online component. I bought the workbooks on a recommendation from someone on the forum. They were far easier than I had anticipated. A friend who is a HS math teacher and homeschooler who thought Saxon Algebra I was crazy hard, thought the workbooks were maybe a little too easy to be super helpful. My philosophy~ I paid for them, ds is doing them. The practice will only do him good. And don't forget about Khan Academy for math review.

Total Language Plus workbooks

I put our stuff in Rubbermaid totes in the attic. I label the outside: US History Resources, Science, Ancients, Medieval and then stuff like spelling workbooks, reading, grammar, math etc. in another one. I also keep my cedar chest full of stuff I "might" want for the coming year. Another thing to consider is taking one bin of living books off your shelf, every 6 months, storing it, and then bringing it out again, and storing a different batch of living books. Sort of a rotation. It keeps kids more engaged when something is gone and then comes back. I do that with seasonal and holiday books. I used to do that with books, puzzles, and games when I taught kindergarten and I use the same strategy now.

I would love the free online resources. Also, what about adding Visual Spanish or Rosetta Stone? Do I need something else? My 2 boys will be going to Ecuador in November and I really want them to have a start on the language. They did Latina Chriastiana a few years back, so I am hoping that will help. Also, I was looking to put together a semester course on history, geography, culture of Latin/South America. Any suggestions?

I agree. This year I did a "cottage Coop." After running a coop with 100 kids for 4 years, then moving, starting a new coop for 2 years, and then joining one with older kids and teaching 2 classes, I was done. Tired of dealing with kids who don't show, don't do their homework, etc. Last year I did a cottage coop for 2 other families. Next fall I am teaching a "Windows to the World" IEW class for 8-10 personally invited teens (about 4 other families) who are like-minded in their schooling. BTW, even if you are a conservative Christian family, it can be rough. Esp. if you live in a town where there aren't a lot of homeschoolers. My two oldest boys have the same issues. They are always wishing for the "good old days" when we still lived in Naples and had a huge group friends who were constantly at each others' houses and sleeping over. One thing I tell my guys is that back then we had way more time to hang out. Less school. No traveling sports. No elderly grandparents to take care of. I know they don't believe me, but it really is a huge difference. Hang in there.

I would "think" that if she covered all that material with a good grade, she is covered. You can view a table of contents online. The standard breakdown is Agebra 1 20% Geometry Algebra 2 20 % Geometry Advanced Math 60% Geometry

Shurley English Should have switched years ago.

I have two HORRIBLE spellers who are very intelligent and voracious readers. Sequential Spelling did nothing for us. Neither did Spectrum, Spelling Workout, Andrew Pudewa's program. And so, we are back to Spelling Workout from MCP Press. My two naturally good spellers barely do spelling and they read about 1/4 of the other two. Good Luck!

I think there are better choices out there. I also did not like Ethan Frome or the book whose chapter read a single sentence, "My mother is a..." Can't remember. I think maybe a fish.... So stupid with so many great books out there. And these were honors classes.

Rhonda~ Are there very many downloadable lesson plans available yet for it? I saw that right now they do not have the ability to use the HST+ LP for online. I was literally sitting down to purchase online and decided to look at the forums one more time. What is your best advice for someone not super computer savvy? I esp. want it to manage my soon to be freshman who needs accountability (to put it mildly).

I use it on a Mac and yes, it's a pain to do that. I'm actually considering an inexpensive PC to just run HST on. I've looked at HSTOnline, but it just does not have the functionality yet of the HST+. I know when I looked at the online version recently, it was missing something I use regularly. I believe it was one of the assignment report options. It may be that I eventually switch to the online version, but not yet. Rhonda~ Do you know if there are very many downloadable lesson plans for HSTOnline. I literally was sitting down to order it and thought I would check the forums one last time. So you think the HST+ is better at this point? And after they add more features later, switch to the online version?

Have you used FLVS for anything else? The only folks I know using it use it for all subjects which seems burdensome to me. I was wondering about it for math or keyboarding. And do you know if you can start it in summer?

Here is a link to a thread on your question. HTH http://forum.homeschooltracker.com/Discuss_Show.aspx?threadid=10439

Any additional opinions on Spanish 1?

What credit would you assign for AG? A semester's worth?

Also, keep in mind that as a sophomore or junior, depending on your county, your child can do dual enrollment and get credit for college as well as high school classes (incl. foreign language, upper level math and science, history,etc.) Of course you'll want to determine if the course content fits your world view, but that might be an enticement for your child. Esp. because it is free and means less debt after college. Blessings!

When I went to the HSLDA high school workshop (6-8 hours), they do suggest Apologia Physical Science as a high school science course. They are a GREAT resource for homeschooling high school and they give 2 different college bound tracks (definitely worth looking into.) Also, I went a very competitive HS in the Chicago suburbs with very strong science and math departments. They offered IPS (Intro to Physical Science) as the standard freshman science with Biology as the honors track. I realize times have changed, but when you look at the degree of math difficulty in the Apologia Physical Science curriculum, you'll see it it best suited for 8th grade and above.

Any other insights on this? I was just getting ready to buy homeschool tracker online this afternoon! Now I am not so sure.

I am looking for a recommendation for Spanish 1. I am considering Breaking the Barrier and have just about ruled out SOS Spanish. Any thoughts?

Can anyone give me any add'l info on ALEKS. We are having a similar situation with Algebra 1. My son is getting about an 85%. Another mom the forum said that means they are not mastering 20 % of the material and going on to Saxon II would be a mistake. She suggested getting Keys to algebra as a supplement, but the problems are really too easy. My ds errors are sometimes careless and sometimes a result of not understanding the material. I was wondering about doing a geometry course next year instead. Any thoughts, opinions or ideas?

I have Windows to the World (same author), and a s an IEW user for 4 years, I definitely like the TM for that one. She give a whole forward of instructions, thoughts, and experiences. It is written very anecdotally. However, when I did IEW Writing with Ancients and Medieval, I did not need the TM. Personally, I would go ahead and buy it. Don't know if it helps.