double post

Yes, we have done it with every sentence of every lesson since the beginning (DD is on Lesson 42, btw). I really do think that copying out the Latin before translating it has helped her to process the material thoroughly and get familiar with the nuts and bolts of the language. Obviously that takes a lot longer than just writing the translations, which is also why a half lesson per day is a better pace right now. Also, once we start doing some English-to-Latin translation (which I will probably start soon), it should be a smoother process since she will already be used to writing the Latin.

:iagree: This is great advice. I haven't looked at the Headventureland stuff, but I did make a couple of cheat sheets for DD on index cards (the present tense conjugation and the direct object endings) and that has helped her to not have to look back through the book for things she forgets in the moment. The finger motions for the conjugation chant are genius!! We need to start doing that. And yes, we have to do a lot of verbal reinforcement of the grammar concepts, sometimes over and over and over again. Does your DD write the sentences out in both Latin and English? Familiarity with both is so important, imo, and would probably help with understanding, if you're not already doing that. I am very happy with this program. One thing that has helped us is to have DD do half a lesson at a time, and to do it every day. The consistency is so crucial, and only doing five sentences at a time keeps the lesson short and not overwhelming. Eventually she'll work up to doing one full lesson per day, but right now this pace is working, and she is enjoying it.

I haven't seen a list for OPGTR. We used BOB books as a supplement the first time through, but I couldn't bring myself to use them with DD2 - they are SO boring. Ugh. Instead, I used "real" books with a simple reading level (like Dr. Seuss or PD Eastman) and we would read through them, taking turns. I would prompt DD to read the words she was ready to sound out herself, and I would fill in the rest. As she progressed, she could read more and more of the text, and she loved it. It was a fun and engaging way to practice reading without the mind-numbing tedium of simple readers.

I have the red one and it looks the same as the online photo. It works perfectly for us unmounted, which is a good thing because I wouldn't want a mounted one. We have a small house and do school in our breakfast room, so I don't want any gadgets in there that I have to stare at all the time (I hate clutter!). I keep it in a cabinet when not in use. I should mention that the rubber feet did start wearing out after a while, but I just took them off and don't put it down on our wooden table (it's fine on the countertop). I need to get some new rubber thingies, come to think of it.

Yep, this one is absolutely awesome.

Excellent resource! We only have the first of these so far, and it is well loved by all. The other two are on my wishlist. Note that the text is from the Children's Catechism, though (aka Catechism for Young Children), not the WCF Shorter.

This, exactly. WWE is an excellent program for teaching narration and writing in an incremental and systematic way. It's hard to see the value of that in Level 1 (I didn't at the time), but once you get into Level 2 the effectiveness of the approach becomes clearer. Both DD and I got a bit bored with WWE1, so we only did the first half and then took a break from it for a while. After dabbling in another program that ended up being a poor fit, I went to the end-of-year assessment for WWE1 just to see how DD would do, and she aced it, so I put her into WWE2, where she is thriving. In deciding to continue with WWE after all, I had determined that this is a skill, so even if it's boring sometimes, that's okay. It only takes a few minutes per lesson, and it gets the job done. That said, we have found WWE2 to be much more engaging than WWE1 and we're very happy with it.

I am not at all familiar with the programs you're using, but these two resources from RightStart are wonderful: the cards for place value in particular, and the abacus in general. Familiarity with side 2 of the abacus will really cement place value (among many other things). Place Value Cards AL Abacus Both items are also sold at Rainbow Resource.

I'd keep going with reading, as fast as he wants to go, and do some kind of handwriting instruction, and that's it. All we did in K was read, read, read, plus handwriting, and some light math (RS Level A, which we could have done without, frankly). It was enough.

This, exactly.

The pdf includes the teacher pages and the student workbook pages. You can buy the student pages separately in either pdf or print, but you can't buy JUST the teacher pages in either format (unless you buy the print edition used, which I did for WWE1 and paid only about $10 for it). I have the pdf for WWE2. I printed and proclicked the student pages, and I read the teacher text from my tablet, which works well.

I have both, and despite my intentions to use just the text, I realized that it was just too much. Yes, all the guidelines for choosing appropriate passages are laid out clearly (the above post from hollyhock is great), but it would have taken too much time and effort for me to choose them. I'd rather spend my prep time on something else. So I opted for the workbooks, which I love. They get it done with ZERO prep, which is important to me. I have Levels 1 and 2 so far. I understand the cost issue, so yes, at least levels 1 and 2 could easily be done on separate paper. But you only have to buy each whole workbook once, in any case. The teacher pages are non-consumable, so you just get a copy of the student pages for subsequent children. Or, you buy the pdf version and print as many copies as you want. Not sure how that applies to levels 3 and 4, which MAY be more integrated. Someone else will have to chime in on that, since I'm not there yet.

Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee I second the suggestion for Easter hymns.

I'm a big fan of OPGTR. I've used it with two children so far (starting at 4yo), and am just now starting it again with my current 4yo. It is a simple, no-frills, get-er-done program, which is totally my speed, and I am very happy with its effectiveness and efficiency. It is a bit dry at times, but it never bothered my girls (they actually enjoyed most of the stories), and overall it wasn't a big deal for me, because most of the lessons are relatively short, and I just split up the ones that aren't. Also, I never used any of the supplemental activities which might have added the fun element that some people want. They weren't necessary for my girls to learn the concepts, so we just did the lesson and then we enjoyed reading real books together, which got more and more fun as they were able to read more of the words themselves.

Maybe someone will benefit from my experience with this. I taught my oldest to read via OPGTR, which teaches and practices one sound at a time for each letter. Worked beautifully. By the time I started my second child in OPGTR, I had started using LOE with my oldest for just spelling. We had bought the LOE Doodling Dragons book and my second child was enamored with it, so I decided to go ahead and introduce all the letter sounds to her at once from the beginning. BIG MISTAKE. It caused a lot of unnecessary confusion. She often defaulted to the second (long) vowel sound even in CVC words, and I could tell she was struggling with the choices at times in ways that my oldest never did. I realized, too late, that I didn't want her to have to consider options in order to read a simple CVC word. It really bogged down her reading process, which is exactly what I was trying to avoid by using a program like OPGTR rather than LOE/Spalding/SWR. Anyway, she is reading well now, finally, but it was more of a struggle for her than it needed to be and I regret that. So, my conclusion was that using LOE as designed (doing reading and spelling at the same time) would have been okay, despite my personal preference against it, but teaching all the sounds at once apart from the programs that utilize that methodology is a bad idea. Now I am starting my third child (4yo) in OPGTR and we are sticking with learning one sound at a time. She knows from shadowing her sisters that the vowels make more than one sound, but I am telling her that for now each vowel only says its short sound.

Another vote for the one from Classroom Friendly Supplies. Sharpens perfectly every time and even my just-turned-4yo uses it easily.

When our oldest was only 3, we started thinking about homeschooling because we were enamored with classical education and knew that private school would always be financially out of reach. Attending my first convention when DD was 4 had us hooked, and we've never looked back. Now, even if we had the money for private school, we would still choose to homeschool. A few of the many reasons are: 1. Homeschool is a whole-life learning environment - the lines between school and home life are blurred, and we love that; 2. I can teach my kids individually so that they can learn in their own way; 3. We can study things that we feel are important and/or aren't offered in schools; 4. DH's work week is Tues-Sat, so we do school when he's working and are off when he's off; 5. We have the freedom to choose our family's overall schedule and vacation times; 6. My kids get lots and lots of free time to play and be creative and pursue their own interests; 7. I don't have to get my kids up and out the door by 7:30 every morning (well, that's an advantage, not a reason - LOL!!!) In a nutshell, our reason for homeschooling is that the type of education we want for our kids can only be had at home, and there are a zillion advantages when it comes to our family's overall lifestyle. Also, I do careful research and choose my own curriculum, piece by piece. I get lots of suggestions from different people and places, but what I choose depends entirely on our family's desires and needs. I spend A LOT of time planning and thinking about homeschool, and I absolutely love it.

Yes, please!!

This looks great! Thanks for sharing!

I think weighted digital pianos are fine, especially for beginners (and so does my mom, who is a highly trained professional pianist and teacher). They can be very practical and are good space savers if that's what you need. No, they do not have the same sound and feel as an acoustic piano, but the weighted keys on a digital will develop finger strength, which is a crucial element in learning to play. And, with a digital you can plug in headphones - which is a big plus at times! That said, a decent acoustic piano can often be found for less than the cost of a digital, especially if you consult someone who knows what would constitute a good deal. I'd inquire with some local piano teachers to get ideas. I much prefer an acoustic piano, but if a digital piano meets your needs better, I see no problem with it. Regarding the piano vs. other instrument questions, I can speak from experience with both, having studied both piano and clarinet for many years (I have a master's degree in voice performance, though - I was an opera singer). I really enjoyed playing the clarinet in band, orchestra and small ensembles when I was in school, but I haven't touched my clarinet in over 20 years, because I have no means of playing in a group at this point in my life, and I don't enjoy playing it by itself. By contrast, being able to play the piano has given me so much joy throughout my entire life, in many situations. I play by myself for fun, I accompany singing - both my own and other people's, and I can play pretty much any song with all the parts, instead of just a melody. If your kids have access to situations in which they can play with others, then learning another instrument would make sense. Otherwise, go for the piano. And, there's a good reason why every student who gets a degree in music has to pass some sort of piano proficiency exam. Familiarity with the piano is really important for overall musical education, if that is one of your goals. And, oh my word, DO NOT get a drum set for a 4yo. There is no musical or educational value in just banging a drum set, especially for a child that young, imo. At best, I think it would be a VERY expensive toy that would likely get abandoned after the initial thrill wears off. And it would probably drive you out of your mind, because it would be just really loud noise. Ugh. I would only get a drum set - EVER - for a child who had gained some significant proficiency in another instrument. And even then, I'd probably only do it for a very serious student who intended to master percussion in general on some level, or to play in a band on a regular basis. Just my two cents.

I signed up when it was $5 a month, and even at that price I've decided that it's not worth it for me to continue. Admittedly, I have not taken the time to use much of what's available on the membership site, but that's probably because I don't feel that I need it, and I have bigger fish to fry in my homeschool. Our family culture is already built around books and we love to read aloud, and while there's some valuable content at the RAR site, when I find myself in need of advice or information, I can generally find it elsewhere. That said, I appreciate Sarah's enthusiasm, and she is inspiring to listen to and read (I absolutely loved Teaching from Rest). So if you have the extra money to spend, and feel like you need some ongoing motivation to make reading aloud a significant aspect of your family's life, then you might try it out. It's not risking anything except some of your time, since she will issue a refund if you decide it's not for you. HTH!

That's a good deal! We already get the student rate of $49 per year because DH is a graduate student. Even at full price, Prime is fantastic for people who live in areas in which the only convenient place to buy anything is Walmart. I would pay full price for Prime in a heartbeat if I had to. Totally worth it for us.

Oh wow, what a bummer! :( If you are bound by their no-refunds policy and can't get an exception, then I guess you're stuck. Stuck losing the money, that is. Ugh. I wouldn't throw the time away along with the money, though. If you dislike it that much and don't think it will improve, cut your losses and do something worthwhile with that time. I did that with a co-op (albeit an inexpensive one) and didn't look back. The money was gone either way, and I saw no point in prolonging the misery.

Yes, never mind the people saying morning is the only time! The Bible doesn't say that, so do what works best for your family. We have our morning scripture/catechism/prayer time at the breakfast table, when everyone is finished or almost finished eating. We do scripture memory, a few catechism questions, a short entry from a Psalms for children book, and then pray. It's a great start to our day, and I like that, personally. As inconsistent as I am about a lot of other things (like getting up early, getting school started at a reasonable time - ugh), this gets done primarily because it's anchored to breakfast, which everyone needs every day and which we make it a point to do as a family (regardless of what time breakfast actually happens, which is variable). And because we do it at breakfast, and breakfast happens every day, it's not considered a part of "school". It's part of our daily life. For us, it's not so much doing it in the morning that makes it work, but having it anchored to a daily, fixed-time, non-negotiable activity. Breakfast is pretty much the only thing in our life that fits that description!