74Heaven
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Posts posted by 74Heaven
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I'm using VT Alg with my third daughter. Two of the three are not math minded but capable. The middle is math-minded. VT is fabulous. I tried TT & Math Relief with firstborn because she said she hated VT. She hated the others and didn't get it. We have been thrilled with VT.
As to your question, I think you should go ahead and start VT if she is with her second go-thru on PreAlg and not finish Chalkdust.
Lisaj, mom to 5
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Thanks, Julie. I didn't mean to summarize that opinion from the thread, but rather from my own browsing of the two currics. (Since that is my dilemma - teach USH or World Hist next year? Sorry if it appeared that way.
I don't want to get the thread off topic, but I was not too interested in MFW's taking 2 years to do U.S. History? (i.e. USH to 1877 & USH 1877 to Present)
Thanks - Lisa J
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I am very interested in this topic and in fact, was searching the forums for help in deciding between Core 100 OR MFW. It seems like Core 100 would be best for U.S. Hist & MFW would be preferable for World Hist.??
So what is the Apr. 2nd deadline for Sonlight? I've already ordered the 3 week sample cores.
And, has anyone ever taught Core 100 (or a high school core) in a co op? I am considering that. What I really want is to offer a high school U.S. History or World Hist course with lots of reading & maps, medium writing and relevant tests that cover the importance of the events and not just the factual recollection of events/people?
There has been lots of good info in this thread. Thanks, OP!! Any more advice that would benefit the OP and my goal as well as the co op angle?
Btw, I'd expect the co op to be for about advanced 7th graders thru 9th-10th graders?
Thanks - Lisaj
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wow, thanks!
Those both sound great! Any more?
lisaj
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HI,
I have been looking at some online classes and they seemed to be priced a bit higher than my budget.
I wondered since there are so many online providers now, does anyone know of some really good deals? i.e. good instruction, teachers, content, etc. for a really good price?
I am not saying that the price above is unreasonable nor am I saying it is expensive or cheap! I just wondered if there are some lower priced great opportunities out there?
Thanks, lisaj mom to 5:lurk5:
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Thanks, Ester Maria.
It sure is hard for me (us) to find the right mix of academics/reality/workload. It is wonderful though, that as homeschoolers, we can adjust as needed. But it is always a challenge to find balance. As an older mom (50yo pretty soon), my own energy mental & physical energy/stamina levels are much different than when I started this journey in 1996.
Lisa j, mom to 5
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We live on 20 acres, all forest land except for the 1/2 acre or so around the house. We love everything about it, except the driving can be tiring and it limits activities as we have to figure in time and gas...
In addition to what everyone else said, I also like that I can go for a hike or a walk just about any time of day and not see more than 1-2 cars - usually 0. No people usually either. We live on a dirt road so that helps keep traffic down.
We just have the rabbits, chickens, cat, dog variety of animals. We mostly are here for the beauty, open space and peace and quiet. We have gardened on and off but we started with unimproved land so most of our money and effort has went into putting in lawn and finishing the basement, outbuildings, etc.
Keep dreaming. It is well worth the hard work and cost.
lisaj, mom to 5
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Just a quick length-of-school-day comment.
We get up at 6am, do 1 hour of get ready/breakfast/chore time. Then we exercise for an hour. Then we have about 20min break (i.e. shower, water break, clothes change?) before starting school at 8:30am-ish. Then we do 6-1/2 hours of school (6 1-hour classes and 30 min reading aloud) and 1/2 hour of lunch and 2 15min breaks. Starting our day at 6 am, school ends at 4pm. (& due to ADHD and "character training" opptys, this daughter will have 1+ to 2+ hours of homework after that.
And we still have dinner prep, dinner and activities 2-3 nights a week. So for us, a 6-subject high school day, plus real life is *10* hours from start to finish :-).
I've tried diff. schedules and I don't know? It seems too much and it is very stressful.
Lisaj
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Thanks for all the thoughts and responses. Very helpful. A few more details...
This is my third high schooler and the least capable of getting thru her academics in a reasonable time frame. I tend towards rigorous academics and it becomes too much! I don't mind a "lighter" schedule because we plan to meet the requirements of (more selective) Christian private colleges. Regentrude, we have problems keeping the length of school day reasonable too.
Re: PE We can "cover" PE outside of school but I thought I'd possibly put her on a year round swim team which would would be 5-8 hours a week and it we do that, I know I need to lighten the academic load. We commute a lot (live out of town) and have activities 2-3 nights a week minimum. Bible Club is one of them.
Re: Health. I skipped "health" with my oldest (we did Anat/Phy, First Aid and a few Christian books) and regretted it. I did a health curric (Teen-Aid) with my second born and it was a great mom/daughter bonding / talking about life thing. This 3rd born is asking lots of related questions, so I think this would be a good time to talk about life and all that stuff.
Re: Lit/Writing - we are considering a Literature/Essay/Research writing year... lots of cross-curric writing & lots of practice (Her grammar is very strong; her writing needs practice)
My daughter wants to do Latin 3 (our Latin pace is not too rigorous, so we are not sure of the curric. (Probably finishing Henle Year 1 next year). I would love for her to do Latin 3. My secondborn daughter is nearly fluent in Spanish and and so thirdborn dtr wants to follow in her footsteps and continue in Spanish as well. As to online Latin and Latin 3 being more rigorous, thanks for the warning. We are considering online and I would have been blindsided.
If I let my rising 9th grader (language arts oriented daughter) choose, it would be:
Span 2
Latin 3
World Geog (I asked her pick of the 3 hist/geog options) (I think we need Lit/Writing here)
Alg. 2 (well if I make her do math LOL)
Physical Science (this is a have-to)
(Swim Team) PE/Health
We may be able to join our local youth Toastmasters Club. I like the idea of doing somethings 3/4th of the year and then 1/4 at the end. That is a nice way to sample some subjects or have our horizons expanded.
I'll be rereading and thinking about all your comments!
THanks, Lisaj, mom to 5
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I see nothing negative about doing Physical Science in 9th grade. Daughter #1 and now dtr #3 will both be doing this and it is perfectly standard. No one blinked at any college - we still did 4 years of high school science.
P9th - Physical - we do labs but I don't think it counts ?? as a lab science?
10th - Biol - lab
11th - Chem -lab
12th - Anat & Physiology - *not a lab*
Lisa j, we did BJU DVDs for Chemistry with Mr. Harmon and it was great other than the time-wasting daily weather discussions....
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What would they be?
For my rising 9th grader, I am considering:
Latin 3
Spanish 2
Alg. 2
World History OR Geography
Writing/Literature (1 sem each)
Physical Science
OR
Spanish 2
Alg 2
U.S. History
Writing/Literature
Physical Science
Physical Education/Health
I feel we always overdo academics by 1 or more classes especially *after* we add in extracurriculars. We usually end up with 7 or 8? So I am trying to limit ourselves to just 6 classes next year?
Wonder how you all would do this?
Lisa j, mom to 5
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Wheelocks has an online Latin pronunciation key that I have used for classical pronunciation help for Henle vocab. I think the one by Seton is Ecclesiastical, fyi.
Also, I have Canon Press's Latin 1 & Latin 2 pronunciation CDs and I have have found pronunciation for just about every word I needed (or was not sure on) after using the given pronunciation guides in Henle 1.
And the different sources are very inconsistent from one Classical curric to another (Not the Wheellocks' website, it is great!)
Lisa J
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I would think it is Spanish 1. It seems relatively similar to A Beka Spanish 1?
However, I am just attending with my children and (barely) assisting the teacher with some correcting.
The only way I could see having it be Span 1 & Span 2 might be if there was a very extensive conversational aspect added?
Lisa j, mom to 5
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THanks ZooRho,
I meant I didn't understand why homeschoolers might not support this. I am not trying to be argumentative, I just can't figure out why a homeschooler wouldn't think this oppty should be for all students, regardless of their schooling option. I know in my district, private school students play on public high school sports teams if a sport is not offered at the private school but is as the public school. So, there are clear precedents.
I figured it was this way everywhere. Apparently not.
Lisa J (who loves the idea of schools dropping sports and making those a community effort). That's just right on so many levels!
Thanks! I'll look up those fb things tomorrow. I do have to log in - at least for the first one.
Lisa J
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I'm confused about why anyone would not be "for" allowing homeschool students if they choose - to play on public school teams? I'm not confused about the school administrators / districts. I can see how they in their narrow view, would see this as more work and administration?
In WA State where I live, this is permissable. I just don't understand why anyone would think it was not appropriate for homeschoolers to be able to play on a local school's sports teams?
Maybe I am missing some information?
Lisaj
haven't decided how I feel about this.but the Anti people make me want to fight for it.
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Personally, this makes me really mad. There's no valid reason for your student not to join in with their private school students. I can see where a private school may prefer *not* to accommodate other children.
But in this case, a Latin national test, where there are fewer AP or SAT II site options, I think they should bend their rules.
If you haven't already, I would move up the ladder of decision-makers, including talking to the private school's board chair if necessary. Of course, you'll have to move very quickly.
Let us know how you solve this dilemma.
Lisa J, mom to 5
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I'd like to help but I am on the fence about BTB SPanish I, which we are taking. Jenny, I have a similar Spanish background to you. However, I also sat thru (2 diff daughters) 3 years of Spanish 1/2 with a co op teacher using A beka Spanish (this is in recent years, so it is fresh).
BTB is weak on explanations, imho. My kids are advanced 6th grade and 8/9th. Both have 3-4 years of Latin. Both are pretty good with languages. The older does pretty well - but still needs more direct instruction than the book offers, the adv. 6th gr boy needs the exact hand-holding your son needs. (which is okay since he is only just turned 12yo).
BTB has 3-4-5-6 words every chapter that are new vocab and not introduced. YOu can usually do the exercises w/o knowing the (new, undefined) words, but that is frustrating to a newbie child & it seems like a poor textbook style for a beginner. I'm guessing that BTB is trying to be more "conversational" based and less just grammar. It does that okay.
Overall, I like it - but we are doing a lot of hand-holding. I think it would be better with more CD-teaching or a DVD component. It is annoyingly secular with frequent references to Ricky Martin and Elvis and who-knows-who else. Annoying because we don't care about pop culture and I find it a ridiculous way of making a curriculum relevant!
Hope that helps. We will not be doing it again for Span. II. I am not sure what we will do next year?
My main problem is I'd like the text to be more self-explanatory. Less hand-holding. Less popular culture references.
Lisaj
Overall, it is okay, but nothing wonderful in my mind.
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I would start. It gives your daughter more freedom to slow down next year if things get tough or speed up and move forward faster. Last year my 8th grader started Alg. in mid March and then we went over the Alg. and took all the tests open book for the first 2 weeks or so (she'd already taken them in the Mar-May ALg. start). She did well so then we just started up where we left off.
OTOH, doing SAT/ACT Prep is fine too :). I like the flexibility of starting early. It is so much easier to do a year's work of math in 10-11months, versus 9-1/2 months if a child hits some rocky spots.
Lisaj, mom to 5
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My secondborn daughter is now driving and she has a debit card with her own checking account. She babysits and earns $20-50 each week approx. which she rarely spends. She's a saver - yay! We pay half the ins. as long as her grades are 3.6 or above. If her gpa for a semester is above 3.75, we will pay all the insurance (about $65ish).
We decided to do gas this way: she buys every fourth tank. We live rurally and the nearest "destination" is about 25 miles. This should be about $30 a month for this car. We both drive this car (it saves me gas over driving my mini-van) but I'm guessing she will soon be driving it much more. IF she ends up driving it more often, then we'll likely have her buy every other tank or something?
Lisa J
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We have a breakfast menu with lots of choices. The "rule" is protein/fruit/milk. (see below on eggs/protein)
Mondays - eggs/ protein or sausage/fruit/milk
Tuesdays - yogurt or smoothie, bagel with pnut butter or cream cheese, fruit/milk
Weds - pancakes / waffles / french toast made by mom w/ fruit/milk
Thurs (Co op Day) - cereal or bagels w/cream cheese or peanut butter
Fri - eggs/sausage/fruit/milk
"Eggs" really means any acceptable protein: i.e. tofu, yogurt, nuts, almonds, cottage cheese, etc.
Breakfast is my most organized meal. If I had the other meals this organized - I'd be superwoman!
Lisa J
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The local grocery outlet is actually a bust. We have one and there really isn't that much "real food". Lots of snacks, convenience items. The one in this area is mostly candy/snacks/crackers, cleaning & paper products, and toiletries. I would say 75-80% of the store (it not that big - maybe the size of a 20yo grocery store) is the above products. I would also say that the other foods, i.e. progresso soups or spaghetti sauce, etc. are not priced much better than the local grocery stores.
I have went in there a few times with the goal of only getting "food" and had to be quite picky. One thing ours is good for is those individually packed children's snacks like cheese/crackers, fruit roll ups, granola bars, etc. Not healthy, but I pack 15 lunches a week (oldest daughter/husband/co op) & host other children, play dates and they are very, very handy to have on hand.
On the OP's original grocery thread, I am fairly careful about family nutrition but I was reminded by the $200/month woman's blog to plan my meals better and make better lists, etc. She also reminded me of when I used to have smaller children and was not homeschooling. i could shop any day of the week, make intricate menus and lists, lots of prepare-ahead mixes, etc. Now, it is much more of a chore to find time (or energy) to plan anything that isn't related to school![/B]
Side Note 1:
Fwiw, I accidentally made a really quick frugal meal last night! Parmesan/noodles/hamburger. I was going to make homemade macaroni & cheese - whole wheat shells, shredded cheddar cheese, seasoning salt/ pepper, butter, milk and organic ground beef.... I had just bought parmesan cheese and so I decided to forego the cheddar cheese and just use that. It was a smashing success. (Nutritionally, it was lower protein because of the cheese switch - prob. lower fat though too.)
I did a quick calculation and I made mac & cheese for 7 with about $1-2 worth of (canned, flaked - not freshly grated) parmesan. That has got to be about the same price as cheddar cheese or less? (not sure - Costco 5 lb. bag is $11-13ish?)
Side Note 2
One interesting side note is that I just bought a whole beef (organic, but not certified) from a friend/neighbor and the cost will exceed $100 a month just for the beef! I buy less than $50 a *year* of store-bought beef tho.
Lisaj, mom to 5
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I work for a nearby home business owner. I work in the warehouse and do light bookkeeping, editing and basically whatever needs to be done. It is less than 5 minutes away and I live in the country, so this is ideal! I work an extra 5-8 hours a month above the 4 hours a week a few times a year for a little extra paycheck boost.
I work all by myself usually and I really enjoy the peace and quiet!
Lisaj, mom to 5
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Mrs. Vick is a phenomenal teacher, as she teaches the material with clarity and enthusiasm. She's very organized with the assignments, and she also teaches study skills (very helpful for middle school). I can't recommend her classes highly enough!
HTH.
In what classes does Mrs. Vick teach study skills? And how much does she do that?
Lisa j, mom to 5
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Can't compete with the OCD cutting board. (A friend recently told me the letters NEED TO BE "CDO" for the real obsessive/compulsive people.
But, these caught my fancy and I am buying them for my boys!
Panther (brand) LED lights on ball caps.
Great for outside play, work, chores, walking, etc. I am getting the camo ones.
Lisaj
Breaking the Spanish Barrier?
in High School and Self-Education Board
Posted
I use it and don't like it. I think it moves too fast and the students need more exercises to practice the new concepts. OTOH, my main gripe is the stupid references to Hispanic and U.S. pop stars and parents' / teens' music choices.