Ds 15 is taking Gov now in Challenge 1. He's going to TP as alumni this year and we'll probably be involved in elections coming up.

Legos- always. Even got the 21 yo some. Adult coloring book Sculpey tool kits. Diorama kits Scenorama-plush lots of add on stuff. ds15 has been wanting this for years. nice watch The Gun Digest (the man-lings did not put it down all afternoon!)

I used to when I was younger. Now, I realize that people are really happy with TIME, simple food, thoughtful gifts, good music, time to be together and laugh. We don't blow through the present opening routine. We stop, get more coffee, read each others books, include experiences (one of dh's gifts yesterday was to watch "The Martian" as a family- good times!). Dh made a chart for me this year to keep track of gifts (I'm notorious for losing them and pulling them out after everything is done or finding them in July) and it made a huge difference, esp. as we add son-in-laws and babies to be. I kept track of everything I had bought for everyone and focused on spending about the same on everyone instead of giving the same # of gifts. One ds got less, but he also got a high end watch, which he specifically asked for. My 12 yo organizational maven hounded everyone all fall until they submitted an Xmas list and it was great. My dh LOVED having a list and bought me exactly what I wanted and even went in to a women's clothing store by himself (!). He got the specific book titles that he wanted (in a specific field that needed special ordered). Having more money and older kids helps. My kids love giving gifts and they don't always have $ to give, but, for instance, ds 21 found a like-new leather jacket for dh at a re-sale store. No one cared that he didn't get everyone a present (he's in college)and loved the story of how ds found the coat and that dh has a new coat he'll wear.

Dh got a couple "Word Biblical Commentaries." All 3 boy/men rec'd a snorg t - 1. Alderran weather forecast 2. Mordor fun run 3. The Dork is strong with this one. Dorothy Sayers complete works on DVD (woohoo!) Ds go the Tolkien Encyclopedia.

What are the graduation requirements in your state and how strictly are they enforced? I'd start there.

Here are some of the resources we've used to study Shakespeare.

My kids really enjoyed Notgrass' American History program. They offer a book with original source docs. My kids are history buffs and they still learned a ton from Notgrass.

Donna, this is so lovely. Thank-you for posting this!

Been here for over 15 yrs; homeschooling for 25, blogging about it all for 8. Not around much as I am working and Tutoring along with homeschooling our last 2.

AP and DE are decided upon by individual schools. If your kiddo has sights on a particular school, get connected with an Admissions Counselor and find out which one they'll take and for how many credits? Both are going to cost time and money and if the school won't accept either/ will accept both for college credit, it might change how you make the decision.

I think it depends on your student, your resources and goals. My 4th kid has 4 science credits as a Sophomore -including Bio and Adv Bio + labs but he is also JUST finishing Alg I. He is also doing a pretty rigorous classical program and easily puts in ~ an hour a day on subject areas (Latin, Gov) etc. Lit and Comp are a breeze for him so it's way under an hour a day. He also reads at least a novel a week for fun, goes dancing, will be in a play and TP. You can balance rigor with interests, but being intentional and planning make all the difference. I sit down with ds once a week and go over his schedule, and help him map out the work he needs to get done in a week. I also put limits on his school day. If he is working hard on something and still going after 7 p.m. I usually tell him he needs to be done and remind him that I am actual teacher,regardless of what all we outsource.

We have loved HOAW and also Wes Callihan of Roman Roads Media's Old Western Culture.

We are doing CC Challenge A this year. DD is doing Saxon 8/7, Henle, LTW, along with Rhetoric, memorizing the world and writing weekly Science papers. We also have a 1 Act play scheduled for Jan and TeenPact in Feb. I am going to order an on-line Art Class -probably Mixed Media course for dd12 and dd 25 to do together while older dd is here visiting for Xmas. The only thing we may be changing is TeenPact, which we may not do. Next year I think I'm going to switch dd to MUS for Alg 1/2, but otherwise we're sticking with Challenge. We are loving it.

Hopefully some decent earrings, some of the Dorothy Sayers books turned into movies, some wood cut for Ana White projects I have, and dh just built me a beautiful arbor. I also asked for a ceramic backsplash, and for him to build a farmhouse table from our barnwood, but think I'll have to wait on those two.

My kids have basic student planners. We are doing CC Challenge this year, I work from home, we are involved in church and other activities. The day after CC the kids and I sit down individually and plan the week. We put everything on the planner - school, work, church, chores or big projects, and then break down the week's worth of work by day, including week-ends. This makes doing school on Sat.(if needed) more palatable than if it just "happens." During the week my 15 yo works through his planner- mostly on his own- and crosses off things as he completes them. For bigger projects (he just did a 10 min presentation, based on a timeline he created, on the history of Padua) I help him plan and implement. For my 12 yo I direct her to her planner every day. She loves writing things down but gets bogged down in the work. Some of it she finds very tedious and avoids, so in those areas, I am directing her every day. Also, we do math and Latin together and sometimes geography and flash-cards for any memory work. I also edit her papers for her. We don't do ANY screens during the school day (except occasionally ds 15 with research) and my kids take frequent "green therapy" breaks (outside- even when it's sub-zero). It really re-calibrates them. Once Jan hits, we are all going to the gym together again, too. Like others have said, don't rush. I'm on my last 2 and I literally see how allowing your kids to grow into taking ownership is more fruitful than pushing them.

My list of Educational Influencers Also, sign up for the Circe and Memoria Press magalogs for free. Tons of outstanding articles in every issue. A sub to Biblical Archeology Today, Science News, Artifax

No- we have a library cart that we built from the Ana White site. super love it.

The complete set of the original Planet of the Apes movies.

I don't think Judo is an NCAA sport. That is going to be the first question to get answered. NCAA is capricious. They can change things mid-stream and do. If you are interested in NCAA, it is best to establish a relationship with them early on. Follow their regulations; even if you do, they might change them. You do not have to win an NCAA scholarship to compete in college. https://www.scholarships.com/financial-aid/college-scholarships/sports-scholarships/martial-arts-scholarships/ http://www.ncaa.org/

We have used it and love it. The kids listen to it for fun. I reviewed it here.

The Grammar of Poetry, re-published by Roman Roads Media- you could focus on just Iambic and a trope or two and then do recitations from Verily, A New Hope.

High School. Ds 15 read it last year and is well steeped in history, Bible etc and was still pretty creeped out by some of it.

Wins: History of Ancient World, et al Old Western Culture- Greeks, Romans, etc. Lost Tools of Writing MUS- finally! Henle/ Rosetta Stone (German) TeenPact Apologia and GC science

Last year my 9th grader did MUS Alg, Essentials (CC), The Grammar of Poetry,Myths and Legends on line Adv. Bio, Chem and Bio labs on line, History of the Anc. World, History of the Ren World, American Hx, Old Western Culture -the Greeks (just watched the videos); Middle East studies/ geography One Act Play, Drama Camp, Shakespeare Camp, water-color class RS German, FFL TeenPact State Class

I work with several elite athletes at my job and most of them use get er' done materials like ACE, start DE asap, and hire tutors for accelerated subject areas. Several are looking at NCAA scholarships and Ivy- the req's for NCAA are strict and they don't accept all curriculum- esp on-line. If you are hoping to go that route, I would recommend contacting them.