Of course not! Just skip it a move on. She'll get plenty of practice applying prealgebra thinking skills in that book and the next prealgebra (economics).

We're headed to the Cincinnati area this weekend and plan to take in the Creation Museum, the Cincinnati Zoo, and the aquarium. At least, that's what we plan now! Does anyone know of any dicounts or coupons out there for any of these attractions? TIA

:iagree: It's very different to read a book for pleasure (or for content) than it is to read the same book for digging deeper for analysis. If they know the story already, they aren't trying to keep zipping along trying to find out what happens next. They can slow down and focus.

The level 1 writing assignments in TOG are very gentle. Making lots of word cards, one part of speech at a time, leads up to building sentences with the cards. My younger kids love playing with index cards. We've used a different color marker for each part of speech. Then they make up sentences with their cards. The next step is to have them take "dictation" with the cards. What a wonderful way to have them do dictation without having to focus on the physical process of handwriting! There are word game suggestions, too, to encourage playing with words. Last year my (then) 1st grade son spent the last third of the year clustering one paragraph every week. Then he dictated his sentences to me based on his cluster prewriting. I printed out his paragraphs, he illustrated them, and I comb-bound them into a "book" of colonial America for him. He loved it! I did not ask him to do any of the actual handwriting -- I wanted him to learn a very, very basic writing process. He did that with flying colors. Now had I asked him to copy his paragraphs in his own handwriting, it would have killed the joy for him and he would have had a meltdown. This way he is learning writing skills on a track separate from the development of his handwriting skills. They'll merge eventually, but for now I have a child organizing his narration into a cluster diagram, composing original sentences from the cluster, and a wonderful collection of basic, origianl paragraphs.

For what it is worth, here's a sample day. We do not strictly adhere to a fixed schedule but this is the general idea. 8-8:30 - Bible Study and devotions with everyone 8:30-9 - LOF and intro math lesson with 7th grader; she then does her lesson, checks her work, & re-works anything she got wrong; when finished with math, she either works on her writing assignment or reads and takes notes for her science, lit, history, or church history readings. In any event, she works independently until I am finished with 1st/2nd graders 9-9:30 - Phonics and grammar with 1st grader; 2nd grader is doing his handwriting practice and his reading worksheet on his own during this time. 9:30-10:00 - Intro math lesson with 2nd grader and then he does lesson on his own; I am working with 1st grader on her math 10-10:30 - Listen to 2nd grader read aloud to me, do grammar and composition with him 10:30-11:00 - Touch base with 7th grader, answer questions, intro writing assignment on 1st day of week, maybe do spelling or grammar, etc. 11:00 - 12:00 - read aloud to 1st & 2nd graders together (history, science, lit, whatever we have for read alouds that day); when finished, they work on notebook pages for whatever we read. Lunch After lunch -- catch up on whatever is needed with 7th grader (varies wildly depending on the day); or, on weekly discussion days, we have either a 1-on-1 discussion about that week's work or we meet with another family who also uses TOG and have joint discussions with them. Having said all that, I am able to do this because I have an eclectic mix of resources and curriculum. I do pick and choose what we do and don't do. We don't do everything. There are days when I am just happy to have the younger ones do their math and their reading or phonics and that's it. There are other days where all 3 of them work on some sort of project all afternoon long. I don't know if you are combining your 1st & 2nd graders in any of the subjects. I would strongly recommend that you do so where you can if you aren't already. I also know that my 2nd grader is capable of far more independent work than my 1st grader. The 2nd grader really needs only a brief introduction for many of his subjects and then he goes off and does his work. (Not at all true for writing, though!) I have to sit with my 1st grader every step of everything she does except notebook pages. I don't know if this helps or not. I've found that every family is different and that no single schedule really works for anyone else. Blessings,

Mine are 1st, 2nd, & 7th this year. My direct involvement with 1-on-1 teaching time is primarily 8 am to noon. Afternoons I will correct papers, do planning, etc. Once in a while I'll have a few odds and ends to do with the oldest after lunch, but not more than a half hour or so. My oldest works independently most of the time. We spend time together when I introduce her math lesson (not really necessary but she likes it when I do that), we do her LOF chapter together (and giggle a lot), I'll introduce her weekly writing assignment (she schedules it out and emails her drafts to me for feedback), we do grammar together, and then we have weekly discussions on history, church history, and literature. She has a full schedule of independent work and typically works from 8 am to 3 or 4 pm. But my time 1-on-1 with her averages only about an hour a day on non-discussion days (discussions take about an hour each). She's been following this type of schedule since about 4th grade. My younger two need 1-on-1 time for their reading/phonics, math, and grammar. I combine them for science, history, geography, projects, etc. Except for special projects, they are always finished by noon -- easily. I sometimes sit between them while they both work on their own stuff. That way I can answer the 2nd graders questions when he's doing his independent work and still monitor and instruct the 1st grader. I really think the trick is to begin training each child from the very beginning to be able to do some work independently. It's hard with the little ones -- but even a little bit helps. I have a folder for each one with two pockets in it. I've made an index card for each type of assignment (phonics, math, reading, maps, notebook page, grammar, etc.). I put the cards for that day's assignment in the top pocket. As they complete each assignment, they move the card to the lower pocket. When they are waiting for me for something, they can go to their folder and see if there is anything they can do on their own (handwriting practice page, color a map, practice a poem, whatever). I do think the other important key is to NOT have every subject be a teacher-intensive curriculum. I've carefully picked the programs and materials that require a lot of my time and then said that it's OK to have the other subjects be less demanding of my time. Sure, in my dream world I'd be able to keep up with designing and implementing the perfect schedule of assignments in everything -- but I can't. So I'll use a theme-based IEW book for writing one year (all assignments are planned out for me), or use a computer-based math program for one child, or (gasp!) use a workbook for grammar (better yet, just do the grammar exercises orally and get on with the rest of the day), or use books on CD. You'll find the balance that works for you eventually. Best of luck!

Oops! Thanks for catching my error!

How funny -- we just finished that chapter 2 minutes ago! C6H12O6 + O2 -------> CO2 + H2O I had dd make a list showing how many of each element on each side of the equation. LEFT ELEMENT RIGHT 6 C 1 12 H 2 8 O 3 The object is to have the same number of each element on both sides of the equation. So, first, balance for C -- with 6 on the left and 1 on the right, it's clear you need to multiply the molecule on the right containing C by 6. If you do that, you'll get not only 6 C's but also 12 O's from that one molecule. (6 x CO2 = 6C + 6 x O2 = 6-C's + 12-O's). The equation is now: C6H12O6 + O2 -------> 6CO2 + H2O Now we change our chart. LEFT ELEMENT RIGHT 6 C 6 12 H 2 8 O 13 Next. look at the H's. If we want to balance them, we need to multiply the molecule on the right side by 6. Our equation is now: C6H12O6 + O2 -------> 6CO2 + 6H2O And our chart is now: LEFT ELEMENT RIGHT 6 C 6 12 H 12 8 O 18 Now we just need to come up with 10 more O's on the left side and everything balances. So we multiply the O2 times 5 to get 10 of them. C6H12O6 + 5O2 -------> 6CO2 + 6H2O LEFT ELEMENT RIGHT 6 C 6 12 H 12 18 O 18 Does this make it any clearer? It might be easier to see if you used linking cubes or Legos. Make each element a different color and "build" each molecule using the appropriate number of each color. Then you can actually see how many of each element you are adding to each side. For example, you'd start with a glucose molecule made up of 6 red blocks, 12 green blocks, and 6 blue blocks plus an oxygen molecule made up of 2 more blue blocks on the left side. On the right, you'd start with one carbon dioxide molecule (1 red block, 2 blue blocks) and one water molecule (2 green blocks, 1 blue block). When you balance it, you only add more molecule blocks -- but you can only add glucose or oxygen molecules to the left side and only carbon dioxide or water molecules to the right side. If you prebuild some molecules, it will be easy to count the colored blocks to make your chart. Good luck! (I absolutely adored stoichiometry in high school chemistry!!!)

You are allowed to count course work during 7th and 8th grades toward PA graduation requirements in some subjects -- but you are not required to do so and cannot award high school credit for them. For example, you can check off the 1/2 credit health requirement if you complete it in 7th or 8th grade but you won't be accumulating the 1/2 credit itself. The benefit of doing the things you are allowed to count in junior high is that you can fulfill grad requirements without having to pack even more into the 4 high school years. There are some things you cannot count in junior high, too. I think the best sources for what you can do when are the various diploma programs like PA Homeschoolers (http://www.phaa.org/ ) or Mason-Dixon (http://www.mdhsa-pa.org/Program/Diploma-Program.php). But keep in mind that they have their own additional requirements to issue their diploma added to what PA actually requires for graduation. You are allowed to issue your own diploma without going through a diploma program in PA.

Yes, they do recommend that you do two years of Latin instruction during the late dialectic stage to solidify grammar. Here's what they say at Bookshelf Central: We will soon be carrying Latin, but meanwhile, please keep the following under consideration: Latin before the Dialectic level is really more for the mom/teacher than the student because it is at the Dialectic level that connections with the English language are made. If you want to start learning Latin in preparation for teaching your student at the Dialectic level, I recommend Memoria Press's Latina Christiana. A teacher can go through this program in 5-10 minutes a day over the course of a few months and be adequately prepared to teach Latin when the time is right. When you are ready to teach Latin, I currently recommend Latin in the Christian Trivium. Purchasing the activity book is unnecessary; we considered it busy work. http://www.latintrivium.com/

Yeah, I noticed that just plain arguing about everything happened at about 10 here, too. When dd shifted from just challenging me ("But, Mom, why do I have to clean my room? No one goes in there but me anyhow.") to giving me a series of seemingly thought-out reasons ("OK, Mom. I know you want me to clean my room even 'though no one goes in there except me. It may look like a mess to you but I know where everything is. So when you want me to work on science, I know just where my book and notebook are. If I clean it up to your standards, I'll probably have to spend 20 minutes looking for my stuff before I start science. I'd NEVER think to look on the shelf because that's just not where I would put it.") I knew she was ready for D. OK, we're working on the heart issues, too -- she needs to do what I ask her to do simply because I ask. But the signs that her brain can function in that logic stage are there. Another great sign was when the type of questions she asked changed from concrete to more esoterical and abstract. Last night we were reviewing before a science test. Her text has mentioned at during the time of the Roman Empire, people were not trying to scientifically explain WHY things occured since they attributed much to the interference of their many pagan gods. It went on to say that as that changed, and people were more interested in the WHY, true science emerged. So dd asks me, "Mom, how do you explain the ancient Greeks then? The Roman gods were based on the Greek gods so they were basically the same. But the ancient Greeks DID spend time trying to investigate and explain WHY things happened. So didn't true science start then?" A UG would take the text basically at face value unless they didn't under stand it. A D compares what they read to other related/unrelated information -- sometimes they do this on their own, more often they just need a little nudge in the form of socratic quesitoning to get there. Monica

Don't use grade levels as your sole determiner for placement. The biggest difference between LG and UG is how capable the child is of doing work independently. LGs have nearly everything read to them. UGs do nearly all of the reading themselves, can understand/digest what they read and learn from it without a lot of handholding. If a child has a high reading and comprehension level but you don't think they could wade through deeper topics, you might want to consider having a foot in each camp. Maybe UG lit, LG history, and a mix of the two levels for hands on and geography. Go one unit at a time. If you need to go up for the next level, do so. Going from UG to D is based on much more than reading level and grade level. The D readings may not always be at a higher reading level than some UG readings. Sometimes they are, sometimes not. They will address meatier and/or tougher issues. You don't want to rush your child into them. Also, with the D level comes accountability and thinking questions. Many kids can easily read the D selections but would really struggle with the AQ&TQ ... not to mention making the connections during discussion time. This transition from UG to D is based more on the child's development than anything else. Unless they are showing outward signs of puberty, are beginning to question/argue just about anything on a more abstract level, are ready to take notes from what they read (or learn how to do so), they should stay UG. There is absolutely no benefit in rushing the transition. If their brains have not yet reached that developmental stage, they aren't ready. Even if a child can read on a high school (or above) level, that is no indication that they would be D instead of UG. (You may want to give such a child lots of supplemental reading assignments or really focus on nailing their writing skills, but you won't benefit at all from pushing them into D level.) Of course, going up to the R level requires another level of processing and analytical maturity altogether. No matter what age they are when they get here, they need to be able to do the work. If they are in 7th or 8th grade and are really, truely capable of doing high school work, have them do it, get high school credit for it, and graduate accordingly. Check your state requirements, though. Not all states allow high school credit to be given to students not yet in 9th-12th grades. So, as far as kid#1 or kid#2 goes, pick a level for a unit and see how it goes. You can always supplement with the alternate readings if you would like to start in LG. Or start with UG and read the selections aloud to your children at first, then move up to reading round robin style the next week with your children, and then finally have them read everything to you in another week while asking plenty of questions to see what they are actually getting out of them. If they're grasping the material without interpretation from you, turn them loose indepently. Sorry this is so disjointed but my younger kids are playing in the rain and shouting questions through the windows as me as I type. Enjoy.

Yes. You would still be using R level lit analysis skills just on fewer works. D lit has a different standard for the books themselves (some are abridged, tend to be less complex than R selections, etc.) and the lit analysis skills are being presented and used at a lower level than the R assignments. To help ease from one to another, the Lampstand Learning Center developed a couple of Bridge Level Lit classes this year using the D books (except unabridged) but with R lit analysis tools and skills.

My 7th grade dd is doing CLE 700 math this year every day and adds Life of Fred Prealgebra w/ Biology every other day. She, too, cheers on the days she get to do LOF. I thought she'd complain about doing two math lessons every other day -- nope! She sees LOF as the reward for having completed her regular math assignment. BTW, LOF has us rolling on the floor laughing. I never thought I'd say that about ANY math book!

This is our second cycle through TOG and I've only ever met a tiny handful of moms in this area who use Tapestry. There are many, many homeschoolers and homeschool support groups around here but I've never seen or heard anything about other Tapestry families. Any one out there? :-) Monica

Oh, man! Now I have no excuse to give up. Just when I was convincing myself that I've tried everything under the sun except embedding a spell check microchip in my oldest dd ... now all of you say that there is hope if I persist. Rats! :svengo: Seriously, I appreciate the success stories and encouragement!

http://www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/pdf/us_nl.pdf http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/atlas/index.html?Parent=usofam&Rootmap=&Mode=b&SubMode= Will either of these do?

Try TextbookX.com. I bought my DVDs from them for the 4th ed.

Yes, this happens here, too. We've been working through AAS (on level 4 with 12 yo dd now) and will start Megawords soon to apply the phonics review to bigger words. It is funny sometimes when she reads or says a word that I don't immediately recognize because of her creative pronunciation! We have some real giggles when we both figure out what she was saying.

They didn't add read a louds for yr 1 until they updated redesigned. There were none in classic nor in the 1st edition of redesigned. Not to worry, though. They do list them and the reading assignments on the book updates chart linked by a pp. Often the read alouds are just listed on the chart like this: in y1w28 = Peril and Peace, wk 1 of 9; y1w29 = Peril and Peace wk 2 of 9; etc. They assume you can divide it out yourself. You do the same thing in unit 3 for God King. Enjoy.

Most of our writing instruction and assignments for my oldest dd have come from IEW theme-based books. However, there are weeks that a Tapestry assignment looks particularly interesting so we pause our IEW book and use IEW techniques to do the TOG suggested assignment. I'm not trying to interweave the two programs, just provide solid, incremental instruction with interesting, relevant assignments. :001_smile:

Angela, Sorry I didn't respond sooner. I was off on a mini-retreat with a friend. I have never used either SWI or SICC courses. We really enjoy connecting our writing projects to history and I really, really like having the writing lessons planned out for me so we've always just used the theme-based books. (I do enough planning with other subjects!) I do think relating the writing to history makes my kids enjoy it more. Although my son would probably prefer that writing didn't involve any writing at all! :D I'd take whatever approach you thought you and your kids would enjoy most. The IEW units would be covered incrementally either way so you really can't lose.

Ladies, When we did TOG y1, we also did the IEW Ancient History-Based book. I didn't try to force the two to correlate week to week and just did them. Sometimes the topics lined up nicely, other times, not so much. That was our first year with IEW and I decided it was more important to do the book in order so the concepts built on one another. We did TOG y2 last year and I made up my own writing assignments based on the IEW methods for wks 1-about 13 or 14 (I think). Then we started the IEW US History vol 1 book and did about one lesson per week. I had thought we'd get through IEW lesson 24 by the end of the school year but we were a few lesson short. So when we start up again next week, we'll pick up where we left off and finish vol 1. I haven't decided yet if we'll continue with vol 2 or do the TOG writing component assignments. IMHO you could drive yourself insane trying to perfectly line up the two curricula and still not make it fit 100%. We've found both to be a great fit for our family and want to get the most out of each. To do that, we've sacrificed having the same exact history topic in both our TOG week and that week's IEW lesson. My kids don't mind and it's worked well overall. Just my 2c ...

Every child has been a bit different, but we basically did both years as written except for the spelling in 1st grade (we skipped that and did something else). Since the readers with Phonics Museum are pretty long, I broke them up into shorter sessions until each child was clearly sailing along. I made sure they had access to easier, shorter material just for fun (Bob Books, Pathway readers, etc.) but I didn't require more reading. It has been amazing how everything just sort of comes together about mid-1st grade and then they just fly. Not every program is for everyone, but this one has served us quite well.

https://www.forsuchatimeasthis.com/ Although this is a solid classical program, IMHO it doesn't have the cohesiveness of TOG.