How are your iron levels? This can be a huge part of what your feeling. Also, I found that Zyrtec, for me, made me need more sleep. When I take that pill I can sleep 10-12 hours easy. Maybe it is a medication?

Language Arts: Logic of English (this keeps changing- ahhh!) Wordly Wise 3000 level 6 and 7 Caught'ya! Grammar with a Giggle for Middle School: Giggles in the Middle IEW online class using SWI B Math: TT 7 and Prealgebra (finish 7 and move on) Xtramath.com for math facts drilling. Science: Middle School Chemistry (free online) with labs. We will do one lesson each week and supplement with Khan videos, additional experiments, and books. History: CHOLL Middles Ages logic Stage reading list and lessons SOTW 2 with activity guide Geography: Daily Geography Practice Gr. 6 Art: The Drawing Textbook by Bruce McIntyre Logic: The Fallacy Detective PE: Playing Tennis with me at the park Running on treadmill Music/art: Field trips to local events and research online to study the things we here/see further.

Anyone?

My daughter had her jaw wired shut for six weeks and a no chew restriction for 10 weeks. We blended a lot of things. The thing that helped the most was to add cream to the soups and smoothies. The richer taste made it all more pleasant for her and it kept her full. When she could move on to soft foods and not liquified, Mac and cheese with the noodles slightly over cooked and mashed potatoes were her favorites.

This site http://books.atozteacherstuff.com/leveled-books/ let's you search books by Accelerated Reading level. The levels designate year and month. So 2.5 would mean 5 months into second grade. A 3.1 would mean one month into 3rd grade. The system works well for my kids and the levels tend to match well.

I recognize there are tons of reason why a kid is talkative so my advice may only help one. I too was a talkative child. I was insecure and was looking for attention. I thought if I would say something great, I would be loved more. I wanted to make people genuinely laugh and get praise for something smart that I said. I was a middle child who wanted to get noticed. I had no friends outside the home. When I did find good friends, I did so much better. Try praising them when they do quiet things. Discover activities they can excell at that a sibling does not do. Art and dance really helped me express myself without talking. I was better at those things than my sister and I worked hard to earn genuine praise. Help them find genuine friends. Maybe another talker and let them talk on the phone. Channel their talking to someone who appreciates it. Have them call grandma. Talkative types tend to be creative people. Brain teasers, minute mysteries and mind benders were some of my favorite activities. My mom would have me paint my story. As a family, we sometimes have quiet time and that means we must write or sign what we want to say. My kids think it is funny and we save our sanity. No one can talk but usually it starts because one child is being too noisy.

I noticed that LOE has games which automatically makes me think that 2 or more should be involved. For those who have the books, is one kid using Logic of English okay?

I was just wondering if anyone here had used the grammar text The Adventures of Genius Boy and Grammar Girl? I know it is new but I was hoping for some feedback. Thanks!

My friend put a package on her front door step with no tape on the bottom to seal it shut. She placed boucy balls and plastic eggs inside. When the family member picked up the package to bring it it, the balls/eggs fell out every where. She got every single one of her family.

Thank you for this. I do want to make sure that my choices are not based on reacting to the PS situation but matches my personal goals as well as his. Thank you all so very much. We haven't withdrawn him yet as he has requested that he be given some time to get phone numbers and emails, as well as let his friends know what is going on. He is thrilled we are doing this for him.

The responses have been so wonderful! Thank you all so much. I feel so much better about doing this. He is miserable and wants desperately to be homeschooled. I just don't see how waiting 9 more weeks is going to help him. I have an umbrella school lined up. He is in 6th grade and is 11. He has done fine in most subjects but had a math teacher that has been the worst teacher we have ever come across. She has ruined his love of math! That was just the tipping point. He spends 12 hours a day doing PS stuff, not including sports! My other children will stay in PS. I am hoping to use this time to rebuild confidence in himself and the learning process. I also hope and pray he will feel ever so much more loved by me as we focus on him.

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale is our absolute favorite. Cast recording makes the story seem so real.

A situation is coming to a head at my son's PS and I just can't stand the idea of him staying there for another 9 weeks. They do very little work after state testing which leaves almost 4 weeks of busy work and movies. I am very tempted to pull him out tomorrow. The problem is that I am not prepared. I was planning to hs him next year. I have a couple of things like TT Math 7 and Wordly Wise 3000 Book 6. I assume I can add a couple of literature books and call it good for the rest of the year? Has anyone else had to pull their kid out suddenly? Any advice? My biggest fear is that the next 9 weeks will go horribly and I will doubt homeschooling him next year.

Audio books in the car (on the way home from the library, he he). :) Plus I hire out my older kids to read to the younger ones. They love the easier words and they get to practice using animated voices. Win-win for all involved.

Yes, there is one experiment per week and a lesson to go with it which we will spread out for the year. I wanted this to be our one course where my DS just went where his interest led him. We were planning on following rabbit trails with the lessons during the week. I expect we will seek out more experiments, watch documentaries, read library books, and play games you can find here: http://www.ellenjmchenry.com/homeschool-freedownloads/chemistry-games/index.php

I should have made the post more clear. It is the cost that you will actually have to pay after scholarships and grants that I was referring to. More specifically, I meant loans. I realize that tuition can often be much less for higher ranked schools.

I used to be one of those people but now I know how hard it is to pay off debt and the reality of salaries in the work world. It just isn't worth it. Now, I will admit that there are times when it is appropriate to pay for the top-tier school but it is not always appropriate.

I know you didn't mention this but I thought I would share what I posted on another post. I think the inquiry-based method would provoke interest, thought and excitement. We are doing this: http://www.middleschoolchemistry.com/ It is free except for the material to do the experiments. Every lesson starts with an experiment. It is referred to as inquiry-based curriculum. It was created by the American Chemical Society and it looks top notch. Bonus for me is that I can download the large textbook and student guide onto an iPad or my Nook Color. A wonderful member here made a list of all the materials you would need for the eperiments here: http://quarksandquirks.wordpress.com/2011/06/28/review-middle-school-chemistry/

We are doing this: http://www.middleschoolchemistry.com/ It is free except for the material to do the experiments. Every lesson starts with an experiment. It is referred to inquiry-based curriculum. It was created by the American Chemical Society and it looks top notch. Bonus for me is that I can download the large textbook and student guide onto an iPad or my Nook Color. A wonderful member here made a list of all the materials you would need for the eperiments here: http://quarksandquirks.wordpress.com/2011/06/28/review-middle-school-chemistry/

I have lots of thoughts about this. -I do believe in a varied high school experience to give the student many chances to discover their passions but also to develop skills and a work ethic that will be necessary to achieve their dreams. Biology may not be necessary in life but you at learned one thing . . . that your child doesn't want to study biology in the future. That helps students narrow down options for their future. -My daughter is entering 9th grade in PS next year. I have been very conscious about the college-or-bust attitude when helping her select her classes. Her friends parents are making their kids take every AP class available to increase their GPA. My daughter felt pressured to create a schedule that would keep her in the running for the valedictorian spot. I told her to not worry about it so much. You don't need that spot to be successful in life. So instead of taking an AP class in a subject she has no interest in, she is going to take an Honors World Geography class, a subject that she loves. Instead of doing Algebra 2 and Geometry at the same time, she is going to take an art class (which she has never had once in her middle school). I want a happy child. I want her to love learning. Her coursework is still challenging for her but I refuse to buy into the whole "this won't look as good on the college application" mindset. When I was a student in High School I was pushed towards upper level math and sciences to help me get into college. I regret that. I never took art or technical classes because it wouldn't look good on my applications. A lot of my classmates who took those classes have gone on to many of the same colleges as the STEM kids and have had wonderful careers. You couldn't even pick who the valedictorian was from among the group of us. -My Aunt, who has worked with the State Department of Education, told me that it is the kids that have to work hard to get an 'A' and even a 'B' that makes the most difference in society. Those students have a better work ethic and don't expect life to be easy. -If your child wants to grow up to do a trade, be proud of that. We need more qualified, honest workers in those fields. Give them opportunities to discover if that is what they really want. -I think that too much emphasis is placed on top-tier schools in this society. Kids need to go to a school that is economically responsible for the field that they are going into. If you have to fund most of your tuition, you do not go to Yale to become a social worker. You do not need to pay $160,000 in tuition/room and board to become a chef or an elementary educator.

Fever 1793 So Far From the Bamboo Grove On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (I let my 12 year old read this) A Single Shard Crispin True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle Joshua's Song

This is a site done by a librarian who has indexed a ton of books that have won awards. You can search by age range, gender of main character, location the story takes place, the year range it is written in, the time period it took place, as well as select historical fiction only. I loved the list it pulled up for me. http://www.dawcl.com/search.asp You can also choose if you want picture books or chapter books. Love this site!

I didn't have a hysterectomy but I did have ablation to end the heavy periods that left me exhausted and anemic. Best decision I have every made! My insurance wanted me to try an ablation before a hysterectomy.

Thank you for this! The free downloads resource alone is fantastic. We will be using this to supplement our 7th grade chemistry next year.

You have received lots of lovely advice. I wish I had heard it when my son was 5. I put my son in K PS even though he clearly wasn't ready for it. He struggled hard. He developed a negative attitude about school because of this. I should have waited one year.