If that's what you want, then the approach of BFSU would work really well for you. I am not a science person (and my own science education was abysmal), so I am learning a lot myself, and we have had some wonderful conversations about our science topics, and not just during school time. There are so many opportunities to connect the lessons to everyday life, and I've found the retention to be really good so far. I do need to get into notebooking more. We've pretty much just done everything orally so far, but I think DD would enjoy making a science notebook. I only have a first grader (and two younger ones), so I haven't taught multiple grade levels. The idea of teaching the next volume is rather daunting, but I figure I'll deal with it when I get there. But I love the approach of BFSU and consider the prep time to be worth it. It takes me an average of about 30 minutes to read the material and prep the lesson - I highlight stuff in the book and sometimes just type up some summary points as I go through the chapter and teach from those. I don't stress about preparing a perfect lesson or making sure I get all the nitty gritty in there, because I figure DD is getting enough exposure to the content even if I don't explain it perfectly, and we have lots of opportunity to connect what we're learning to everyday life. I will say that it takes more energy to actually TEACH the lesson compared to my mostly open-and-go other stuff, and that I need a break after teaching science - LOL! The other thing that really helps me is the supplemental books. I find that if I struggle with explaining a concept in my own words, at least one of the books will cover it sufficiently, and then we talk about it further. One advantage I have that many do not, is that I have immediate access to a college library with inter-library loan that only takes two days, so that has been a godsend - I'd have a rough time if I had to buy extra books or were entirely dependent on our lame county library system for them. All in all, I love the approach. I wish it were less work to prep, but this is really what I want for science, so I'm willing to do it. Hope that helps!

Yep, I also love my Proclick. Office Depot carries them in-store for about $55, and I used a $10 coupon so I got mine for $45. Worth every penny. I use it for tons of stuff, not just homeschool.

Ditto, especially the bolded. My DH is 100% supportive of homeschooling and does whatever he needs to in order to make it successful for us. He has a home office, and flexible hours, so he can choose to be with us during the day sometimes. Even in his off hours, he reads to the kids, teaches art, corrals the toddler, whatever. During the day I try to handle everything myself for the most part since he does need to get his work done, but if I NEED him, he's happy to help. Even if I didn't have his help during the day, his willing-to-do-whatever-it-takes attitude is what makes it possible for me to homeschool. In his mind, WE are homeschooling our children, not just Mama. It's a decision we made together and he is completely invested in it. I can't imagine it any other way. I, too, hope your DH will become more supportive as you work these things out together.

DD6 is in first grade. Hits: LOE Essentials (spelling only) Pentime LLTL - just started it a couple of weeks ago, but so far loving it!! RightStart B SOTW1 BFSU Misses: WWE1 workbook - the method is great and I'll continue to use the instructor text for guidance on narration, but reading and narrating random excerpts from different pieces of literature every week just wasn't cutting it for us. FLL1 - effective, but too repetitive for DD, who picked up everything very easily Harmony Fine Arts - not really a miss, since it's a good program in general, but I'm a musician and DH is an artist, so we wanted something meatier

We just use the narration questions, maps and coloring pages in the AG, and we don't do the crafts. We do occasionally read an extra book or two if I can get them at the library. We bought the Usborne but hardly use it.

I highly recommend Logic of English Essentials (similar approach to Spalding and SWR). It's written for her age/grade level, and it has optional games and other fun activities if those things are important to you.

Another vote for just get them reading - whatever works, and deal with spelling later.

Reading and spelling are different. Both require phonics, but reading is decoding, and spelling is encoding. My almost 7yo reads very well - FAR above her ability to spell. We used OPGTR to teach reading, since getting her reading quickly was important to me, and I didn't want to bog down that process with thorough spelling rules, etc. But spelling is a different animal, so I decided to use LOE Essentials to just teach spelling, because I wanted her to learn the phonograms and spelling rules thoroughly, even if she doesn't end up needing them all the time. I figure it's better to teach the rules and then let the child use them if/when they're needed. Of course, if the child can easily memorize word lists and is a natural speller, then maybe another approach would be more efficient and cost effective. But it may take time to figure that out, and I wasn't willing to wait and see. So far we are happy with LOE, and while spelling isn't exactly fun for my whimsical DD, she never complains about it, and definitely understands what she's doing.

One more thing. I posted this article a few months ago when a thread like this came up, and I think it's particularly helpful for Christians who believe the Bible is true and are trying to wrap their heads around the issues with evolution. It's written by Dr. Tim Keller of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan. It's long, but an excellent read. http://biologos.org/uploads/projects/Keller_white_paper.pdf

I'd also like to add that I really appreciate the civil tone of this thread. It's been refreshing and enjoyable to read.

Yes, this is what I was getting at. Thanks for helping me out. :-) This is an important clarification. I agree that it is reasonable to conclude that there is no God if you believe that the physical universe is all there is, and that natural scientific data determines what is true or real. Of course people are going to use all kinds of data - scientific and otherwise - to come to their own personal conclusions about God or religion, and I have no problem with that at all. But the presupposition that the natural/physical is all that exists is itself entering the realm of philosophy (epistemology) and is therefore outside the realm of natural science, and I think that distinction is important. I know there are scientists who are not careful about making that distinction and they have caused a lot of confusion among those whom they influence. Just like Ken Ham has caused a lot of confusion among Christians, many of whom think they have to reject good science in order to believe that the Bible is true. In both cases, a false dichotomy is set up, and that's what bothers me.

We are in SOTW1, and we just do the reading, narration questions, map and coloring page, and occasionally an extra book (if I can easily get my hands on one). We don't do the crafts.The other day DD6 told her grandmother that her favorite school subject is history! Her answer could change with the wind, but the fact that she said that at all was encouraging. I was actually surprised, and delighted.

This is a such a great point. I would clarify that this is an issue of natural science vs. theology, and the two need to be carefully differentiated. I'm a Christian who believes that the universe was created out of nothing by the God of the Bible, but I also believe that He did so over a very long period of time and in such a way that includes evolutionary processes. I believe this because the most credible scientific data indicates that, and I don't believe it contradicts the Bible at all (based on my understanding of Biblical hermeneutics). Evolution vs. creation is a false dichotomy. They are NOT inherently incompatible. My issue with Ken Ham is that the Bible is not a book about natural science, and to look to the Bible to give us scientific answers is to do injustice to both science and the Bible. Whether you believe it's true or not, the Bible is about GOD and His relationship with humankind, and the story of redemption through Jesus Christ. I don't look to the Bible for scientific information, because that's not the point of its message, nor does it conform to current standards of factual accuracy (it doesn't need to - it is an ancient document and should be interpreted as such). I also don't look to natural science to tell me about the meaning of life or how to know God (or whether or not there is one), because that's not what natural science is about. Because of this perspective, I can marvel at the discoveries of all kinds of science and what they tell me about the natural world, without feeling like my faith is being threatened or undermined. The Christian faith does NOT stand on a "literal" interpretation of the creation account in Genesis 1. The Bible is clear about WHO created the universe, but not about how or when. What gets my dander up is when people use natural science to come to theological conclusions ("the physical evidence shows that things happened this way, so therefore there is no God/creator"), and when people use the Bible as a science book ("the universe had to be created in six 24-hour days regardless of whatever scientific data indicates otherwise"). My pastor/theologian husband has this to say to both scientists and theologians: "Stay in your own lane!"

Zaner Bloser is continuous stroke. We used the Z-B version of Delightful Handwriting (from Simply Charlotte Mason) to teach the letter formation, and now we practice with Pentime (which is a VERY similar font). I really like the teacher notes in DH, and also the order in which the strokes and letters are taught. I was really frustrated with trying to teach DD6 from the Z-B student book - I had no idea what I was doing and it was frustrating for both of us. Once we switched to DH it was smooth sailing. DH is also designed for homeschool, not a classroom like the Z-B materials are.

This is what I do for DD4 - just underline the phonograms as needed IF she's struggling. Seems to work well. I combine OPGTR with LOE phonograms/rules, and I don't like to bog down reading with unnecessary analyzing - just the minimum required to get her to sound it out properly.

Here's what I've got figured out so far, though of course it could change between now and July: Language Arts Language Lessons through Literature - Level 2 (incorporating WWE guidelines for narration, etc) Spelling: Logic of English Essentials Handwriting: Pentime cursive Lots of independent reading and read-alouds Math RightStart C History SOTW2 Science BFSU, plus some nature study and trips to the zoo (we will have a family pass to an awesome zoo next year!) Art Art lessons using Drawing with Children (DH is a trained artist, so he does this) SCM Picture Study Portfolios Music Composer Study (I'm planning to do my own thing w/CD's and Mike Venezia biographies) Piano Lessons

Absolutely marvelous. Thanks for sharing!!

I haven't listened to Seeds yet, but my kids LOVE the Hide 'Em in Your Heart CD's (the Praise and Worship one is our favorite) and listen to them all the time. They are fabulous, though DH and I chuckle at the 80's style of music. But of course our kids don't care about that at all (and neither do we, frankly - we were teenagers in the 80's - LOL!). There's nothing better than music for memorizing ANYTHING! Also, you didn't actually ask for help with this directly but I'll chime in on it anyway to hopefully encourage you. We also use the SCM scripture memory system. It's not really "formal", and it's not part of our school day - we just do it at the breakfast table every day of the week (either during the meal or right after), when everyone is together, and it has become part of our family's daily rhythm, without association with school at all. My just-turned-2yo is even learning the verses along with the 6yo and 4yo, though of course she just gets in a few words here and there for now. We memorize bits at a time of each verse or passage (one phrase per day or whatever they can handle) until each passage is sufficiently memorized, and then we move it back in the box and go on to the next one. It usually only takes about 15 minutes, depending on how much I have to explain if there's a word or concept they don't understand, and how many distractions we have with little ones being little ones! We just roll with it and trust that they are indeed hiding God's word in their hearts even if it doesn't seem like it on some days! We don't have a schedule like one per week or anything - just memorize one verse/passage and when that's done go on to the next. We do some short verses, entire Psalms or longer passages, and some in between. I just try to mix it up so they're getting a varied diet of Bible content and passages of different lengths. I've found their retention to be very good - certainly as good as anything else they memorize. And again, we only do it once per day. Hope that helps. :-)

Yikes. I don't know what other people might pay, but that looks crazy high to me. We currently live in a rural area so our doctor charges only $75 for a basic office visit, but our awesome family doctor in metropolitan Charlotte charged $125. It could be a bit higher than that now but that's a far cry from $300. I'd check around if I were you. The cost of living must be very, very high in your area if a family doctor can charge that much. In any case, I'd find out what they charge cash-paying patients. That's really what you need to know if you're considering Samaritan.

I'm a big fan. Samaritan isn't for everyone, but it is an awesome program for many families, and I just love the whole idea of it. It is definitely a huge paradigm shift, but one that we were happy to make once we got our heads around it. We joined a couple of years ago when we discovered that the group insurance available to us would have cost $1200 per month, just for premiums. Several of our friends and family have signed up since then as well and are also very happy with it. One of our friends has chronic asthma, and when his family had insurance his meds cost over $300 per month, which were mostly covered by insurance, but he figured out that they would actually be financially better off by joining Samaritan and paying for the meds out of pocket. Plus, it motivated them to look into cheaper options for the meds and make some diet and lifestyle changes that would help, and now his health is better than ever and he's running a 5K this month! Financially speaking, with the money we save on not paying high premiums, we have enough in the medical budget to pay out of pocket for routine stuff, meds, etc. Fortunately those costs are manageable for us since the only chronic health issue our family has is food allergies, which are easily dealt with from a medical point of view, and we don't go running to the doctor's office for every little thing (which many people do because it's "only" a $20 copay or whatever). Paying out of pocket certainly makes us use discernment about whether or not a doctor visit is needed, and since our doctors know we pay out of pocket, they are more careful and conservative about what they recommend, and discuss options more thoroughly. This is the way medicine is SUPPOSED to work, imo, and I like being a part of that kind of system instead of the totally messed-up insurance system. Also, since we approach healthcare from a mindset of wellness (rather than just treating illness) being part of Samaritan gives us the freedom to invest a lot more of our money in preventive things that are important to us that are not covered by insurance, like alternative practitioners, super-healthy food, vitamins, air filters, etc. We also have found that since we pay cash at the time of service (or within a short amount of time for billed items like labs) we often get discounts from conventional providers - sometimes up to 25%. We are probably going to keep using Samaritan even once we are eligible for a different insurance plan. It just makes so much sense to us. It is a great option for OUR family, in our current situation. It wouldn't work out as well for every family, though. Pre-existing conditions and mental health are definitely big issues for many people, and it's an unfortunate reality that there's not a better way of dealing with that. That said, every month Samaritan makes members aware of needs for pre-existing conditions - it's just that those are done through voluntary donations over and above the required monthly share amount, and I'm not sure what criteria they use to determine which ones they put on the list (unless it happens to be all of them). I'd also like to point out that money is not the only factor to consider. Besides all the personal and spiritual benefits that creekland mentioned, it is comforting to us that if someone in our family gets diagnosed with a serious or complicated disease or something, we can choose whatever doctor we want, wherever we want, without waiting for insurance approval for procedures, etc. and that we will be dealing with an organization that truly wants to help rather than an insurance company that's trying to get away with paying for as little as possible. Don't hesitate to call the Samaritan staff with any specific questions. I have always found them to be kind and helpful.

Yes, yes, yes. :thumbup:

:grouphug: This was my first thought. Ugh. NO COMPARISONS. To anyone. Ever. Your mom is WAY out of line. YES, it is okay to not do it all. I'll go even further and say that it is NEVER OKAY to even attempt to "do it all". Life is full of choices. You have to say no to some things in order to say yes to others, and a lot of times saying yes to certain outside activities turns into saying no to quality family time at home and a peaceful household. By all means, plan your day around the naps. That's not just okay - it's GOOD if your family needs that. Roll with it. What's right for one family is probably not exactly what's right for yours. Figure out with DH what is most important for your family - right now - and say yes to those things and no to whatever gets in the way. Ignore your mother, and/or confront her if she gets under your skin. Your parenting choices are none of her business. Period. If you are in the habit of asking for her opinion, then stop now. Since she had the audacity to compare you to another mom, she is not an emotionally safe person with whom to talk about these things. No one needs that kind of input in their life, from anyone.

We are loving RightStart Level B (which is where you would start him). It's a perfect fit for someone who loves to teach math, wants an open-and-go program, and has a child who is geared toward visual, hands-on learning. And I am amazed at how well DD is "getting" how numbers work. I have no experience with anything else, but we are thrilled with it so far. Level B in particular gets rave reviews on this forum, btw - even people who have switched to other programs later on tend to rave about Level B.

I agree with all of this. Except DD had learned to add 10+7 in Level A. Level B repeats everything from A, but not necessarily right at the beginning. And I have found myself wanting extra worksheets sometimes since DD loves to do worksheets and RS doesn't have very many. In spite of any negatives (which are minor) both DD6 and I are LOVING Level B. The method for teaching place value is just fantastic, and DD is really "getting" numbers. LOL! I have found myself thinking the same thing about Level A. For others (besides the OP) wondering about RS, Level A is totally optional. Everything is done again in B. I can't say I'm sorry we did it, because it gave us something fun for K math (Level B would have been too much for DD at that age) and we were able to skip a bunch of Level B lessons at the beginning. But overall I thought Level A was waaaaaaay to spiral and the scope and sequence made no sense to me at all. Level B is soooo much better in that regard.

Awesome - gorgeous video. Thanks for sharing! This radio show is fun, too: http://www.wgbh.org/programs/episode.cfm?featureid=20374 It has violinist Gil Shaham playing and explaining the musical motifs/themes for each movement (so the kids know what to listen for), and then you hear that movement with orchestra. The whole thing is about 50 minutes long.