They were doing this in 3B?!?!! Is Singapore 3B doing that, too? My 8 year old might mutiny, she hates even adding and subtracting two digits mentally. I don't think I was ever taught to multiply like that in my head!

Thank you all for the advice! Just to clarify, by "sitting still" I meant sitting on the floor by the whiteboard, not seated at the table in serious school mode. However, I realized in this last couple days that she fidgets more when she's struggling and not understanding. I took out the Ziggy file folder game that I bought to go with her AAR and she has solidified all the phonograms (5 of them) that were holding her back from that last blending lesson going well. She was so proud, and me too! That game book payed for itself in one day! I do realize now that I need to think more outside the box with her because of her age. My older was always a "happy to sit and work" kid (until she turned 7 and realized she could fuss about it, haha), plus my older went to PS for two years and I need to get "school" out of my head and just help them learn - however that needs to happen for them. I really like the idea of doing Friday as a word problem/math game day for dd8. She might like that, too! Something to work toward and look forward to. And I'm thinking I see a future in doing phonograms on the trampoline, like I did with times tables for my older last year! And seriously, that Ziggy game saved me today! It made her proud and confident and gave me a way to help her have fun. Thanks again for everyone's help! It's nice to have a place to go when I'm feeling defeated (and possibly hormonal, haha!).

Mandy, I love your ideas to integrate her toys into the day! That might make a HUGE difference with her! I decided to take the rest of the morning off and took the kids to the pool with some friends. I'm definitely a little more relaxed now, and I think tomorrow will be a better day. Thanks everyone for your help! :)

I actually did only start last week with math and the States and Capitols book for my third grader, and reading practice and just a little bit of math for my K'er. This week I added cursive and history for my older, but maybe I'm just expecting too much after being in a free for all during the summer! I know I'm over-reacting here a bit, I'm just wanting to do my best and I do criticize myself better than anyone else ever could. :) Thanks for the reminders to relax and take it slow. Last year, we did a very relaxed pre-k year with my little one because I was babysitting my niece four days a week and they kept each other busy (mostly) while I schooled my older daughter. I think I'm also making comparisons subconsciously, even though I know better, because my older daughter was writing at 3 and loved to sit and read and learn from a very early age. My younger daughter is a whole different animal, and nothing like me at all, so I have a bit of a learning curve with her and I don't want to mess up and let her see my frustration. She is going to need things to be fun and hands-on and I'm not like that at all!

I don't know what to do..... This is my first year doing Kindergarten, and my 5 year old is so wanting to learn to read and yet she doesn't want to sit still for even 5 minutes of practicing and acts like she's forgotten every letter sound.....even though she knew them cold even a month ago! :banghead: I feel like I'm not doing something right and I don't know what to do. She can't hold a pencil well (I tried broken crayons with her yesterday, and that helped a lot, so I see progress coming), she's going through this horrible separation anxiety stage (I can't even go to the grocery store or take the dog for a walk without her because she practically hyperventilates and I feel terrible leaving her like that). And to top it all off, I'm 11 weeks pregnant, so I'm exhausted and, for some reason, just now starting to get that lovely morning sickness feeling that I thought I had managed to avoid this time around. My 3rd grader (8), threw a giant fit during cursive practice yesterday....all she cares about is playing with her my little ponies. She whines during all of math, so even though I have the CWP and IP for Singapore, we've hardly ever touched them because it's all I can do to get her through the workbook. I'm afraid I'm not doing her any good by doing just the base math work, and she's sooooo smart, I feel like I should help her like math instead of hating every time I take the book out. I'm probably just hormonal and need to chill out, but I find myself on the verge of tears every single time I think about all the things I want to accomplish and never get done. My husband is so supportive, but he really doesn't "get it" because all of this isn't on his shoulders and he's not here during the day to see how frustrating it gets. I swear I feel like just switching my 3rd grader to all workbooks just so I don't have to try to get her to sit and listen to me all day. Sorry about all this jumbled mess. If you made it through all this, and have some advice, I'd so appreciate it.

My daughter attended PS for 1st grade, and she needed to go quickly through 1B. We did it in about 2 months, then went on to finish 2A and 2B. I think that quick go through 1B was a huge help to get her thinking more mentally, so I think you should totally start in 1B even if you skim it quickly.

Robert Ingpen also illustrated Alice in Wonderland, and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. My kids love his illustrations, and even the 5 year old will sit through chapter after chapter of those books! Oh! He also did Peter Pan!

Here's a couple to try: http://www.musicards.net/ http://www.makingmusicfun.net/ Hope that helps a bit!

Ugh, I meant "grammarland" in my post above! That's what I get for posting after a long day traveling in the car. :)

We are about to finish FLL 2 also, and my husband made the point to me that if she works hard and finishes something early, then she should be rewarded by not having more to do. So I downloaded "Grammaropolis" from google books(free!), and we are going to read that together so she doesn't forget what we've done, but also doesn't feel like she has more work to do.

And don't forget to watch for educator's weeks at Barnes and Noble if you need a lot of books at once. They do 25% off those weeks!

That is how I taught it, too. I did show my daughter both methods, but going up (or down) to the next ten made the most sense.

Okay, thanks! I was wondering if they helped the card placement, but I couldn't get my head wrapped around it for some reason! :) I think I needed more coffee today....or maybe I should stop staying up until midnight watching Downton Abbey.....

I just ordered the AAS box because I was tired of the review cards not fitting right in the index card box I have. When I opened it up, there are four pieces of blue styrofoam inside and I have no idea what they could be for - but I'm afraid to throw them out just in case they are important for something. Anybody use them for anything? :)

I agree. My 7 1/2 year old is just now able to sometimes do her workbook pages alone, but she still sometimes asks me to sit with her. And, especially with a new concept, I have to walk her through the steps just like you described. It can be frustrating, but it will get easier! It's just a maturity thing.