You can definitely do the history portion in 3 days. We often get it done in two. I can't give a time estimate because I'm terrible with that, but it shouldn't be an issue at all. It is really the lit read alouds that take so much time...those chapters can get long which makes doubling up hard.

I did the 2010 version of A but am doing Core C right now. We haven't had any trouble with the new 5 day schedule. Like Merry said, they pick books that are more like short stories for the 5 day titles. We did exactly what Merry said for Core A using the schedule more horizontally than vertically. Once you get to Core B it is much less jumpy. I've really enjoyed all the cores I've used so far (P3/4-C).

Thank you. I can see the problem with going to a real text with a 7yo. I'm hoping my ds will be okay with it at 9.

Thanks for this! My ds8 will be starting PM5A soon so these threads have been on my radar. I wouldn't say we've been using a discovery approach, but he hasn't needed any direct instruction in SM4. We also take the heavy path and add a lot of supplements. Prior to AOPS PreAlgebra, I was planning to do Russian Math 6 after SM6. After its release, I though AOPS PreAlgebra would be a good bridge between PM and AOPS Algebra instead. Do you think the PreAlgebra book is redundant after PM6? I don't think I can quit Singapore before finishing 6. Something about it doesn't sit right. It might have something to do with how young he is and not wanting to rush or my curriculum finishing OCD. I'm also a high school/college math tutor and have seen what happens to unprepared students. He will also be doing LOF PreAgebra and possibly Algebra during PM5 and 6 as well. He can't get enough of Fred. Hmmm...would it be worth it just to do AOPS PreAlgebra to get familiar with the method? Like others, I'm not even sure if he'll click with AOPS material yet. He likes the samples but that is a far cry from completing a whole book.

Come on down and have a pool day with us! Actually, now that I don't live there anymore, I miss PNW spring/early summer. We don't get any of that down here. I can only wear my cozy henleys and flannel during the (not-so) bitter cold of January. It is just bizarre to talk to my parents in Oregon when we're already into our third month of pool weather here.

We are really enjoying the I Can Do All Things DVDs. I haven't noticed any religious commentary yet, but I might not be as sensitive to it. The biggest thing is that art is getting done and ds is learning quite a bit. He seems like a sweet man and ds is responding well to that.

:iagree: with the others on the price but they helped my oldest love math again. I bought the first four because I knew my language oriented ds (ds#2) would enjoy them and help him get started on the right foot in math. As soon as I opened the box, my oldest who was in Singapore 3B, devoured them and declared that we needed more because he loves math now. He's very mathy, but had gotten bogged down with learning long division. Fred jump started his love of math again and he was off and running. When I bought the next three, I added Fractions and Decimals to the order. He did them all in rapid succession and is asking for PreAlgebra 1. For me, that was worth the cost. I also have two other boys that will use them as well. I can't remember any errors in the books I've read. That doesn't mean they aren't there, but they didn't affect us at all. With that said, I can't imagine using them as a stand-alone math curriculum. The info might all be there, but I wouldn't be as comfortable as I am with Singapore.

Tracy did a great job explaining finger spelling but I just wanted to say that it is 1 finger per letter since there was some confusion about that upthread. You stick fingers representing a multi-letter phonogram together and use separate hands for different syllables. I think finger spelling is fabulous. It has really helped my visual learner see the components of a word in his head. I didn't realize until we started using SWR that I think to spell all of the time when words are spelled differently from their sound. Wednesday is a great example. I wonder if I learned that in school or came up with it myself.

Yes, it is usually P4/5 and A that get the choppiness feedback. I've used P4/5 for K twice now and love it. My 8 yr even declared that I was not allowed to read some of the books without him this last year. I get around the choppiness by using the grid horizontally instead of vertically for some books. However, the more I use SL and the more cores I have going, the more vertical I have become. The key is the use the schedule however it fits you. I think P4/5 is good for wiggly dc. Most of the readings are short and all are entertaining. As my ds closed in on 6yo, he was much better at sitting for the longer stories and usually asking for more. I really think SL has given my 3 older boys a love for reading that I would have had trouble duplicating by myself. Ds8 started taking the read alouds to bed in Core A after I'd declare I was done for the night. That led him to reading more and more as the weeks passed. My 6yo has followed suit and the 3yo is begging to learn how to read so he can read books by himself too. (Unfortunately for him, he isn't quite ready for that.) I can't compare with Oak Meadow, though.

:iagree: Essentials is much better than Earlybird IMHO. I've used P4/5 twice for K now and it made for a great K year. It adds the fun to our lineup.

P4/5 really is just a core. The books are a little bit of everything: history, geography, science, fun stories. It does contain the Developing the Early Learner series which I like. You can add LA K or 1 to it, but I use SWR instead. I do use all of the reader packages. My oldest did the 2nd half of the Grade 1 readers that year (we skip the I Can Read books) and ds6 did the Grade 2 Reader package with it. I round it out with math (we go a little overboard in that are since we are a mathy family :blushing:). SWR covers handwriting, phonics, and spelling for us. That was all that was mandatory for the K'er to get done. Anything after that was gravy.

This is me too...except math. There's no such thing as too many math programs, right? :001_huh: Well, that and literature. I'm finding that I keep adding great stuff with each child. Poor ds #4...

Just wanted to say :iagree:. I've done the same thing for two K'ers now (P4/5 and 3Rs) and it was the perfect amount for momma and dc. We do end up adding some fun stuff like SSL, geography, and art but those are completely optional during the schoolday. I also had newborns (plus toddlers added into the mix) each of those years and the easier the better :D.

I think that is too much. I laminated the cards myself for a lot less than $50. I'd check out here or on the SWR yahoo group for a better deal on it used. Everything except the logbooks and Cursive First is sold in the Core Kit new for $100. The logbooks are cheap ($3-5 depending on which ones) and I bought Cursive First used on this board for $10 ppd (with extra copies).

I wouldn't use Core A for the 4yo alone. She might enjoy the stories, but wouldn't get much out of some of the harder ones like Twenty and Ten, Apple and the Arrow, or Mary on Horseback. They are great books that led to some great discussions with my oldest at 6yo. I'm getting ready to do it again with ds6. Since you have all three of the younger cores, you could go through Core A with both (letting the 4yo go along for the ride) at whatever pace suits your 2nd grader and move on to Core B when finished. When your 4yo gets to be around 6, you can decide if combining is working for you or repeat those cores again solely for her. I'm doing Core C with my oldest now and we have really been enjoying the two years through World History. I've learned A LOT! You could add these packages for more hands-on. They are designed specifically to go with each SL Cores. http://www.handleonthearts.com/cart/handson-activities-c-24.html

We use Noeo too. Their Physics 1 is great for a 7yo. My oldest ds is excited about LOF Physics, but it is comes after LOF Decimals and Percents so I'm guessing it'll be too much for most 7yos. We'll see since he just finished Decimals and Percents and we will buy Physics as soon as it is released.

:iagree: I would recommend Wanda's video (Hidden Secrets) if you aren't confident teaching the program but it isn't required. The yahoo group and this page were enough to get me going since the video wasn't out yet. Don't forget to get an extra logbook for yourself. You'll create a teacher logbook which helps you get familiar with the method (see the 101 page). I would not skip that.

Voscamp's book is what most homeschoolers think of Earth science instead of geography. It is a great book, but doesn't discuss countries or cultures. Chapter topics include the atmosphere, plate tectonics, seasons, and the continents among others. I bought it to cover my idea of geography (study of countries and cultures) but will use it for science instead. I haven't seen vol 2, so I'm not sure about that one. I really like her style so I hope she finds time to write more sooner than later. She's a homeschooling mom with young children so her time is limited.

I like the look of that paper. I might try it with ds6 next year.

We switched toward the end of 1st grade. Ds8's handwriting was naturally getting smaller and he got annoyed with the larger lines (we used the 3rd grade dotted line paper). He had to concentrate more at first to write neatly, but adjusted quickly. I plan on transitioning ds6 at the beginning of 2nd grade if not sooner.

I do. We do vaccinate but I would take them anyway. In fact, ds8 hasn't needed any vaccinations in 4 yrs and we've gone in once a year for his checkups. I take them because I appreciate having another (more qualified in many areas) set of eyes on my dc's health. There were 3 times that ds3 was diagnosed with an ear infection at well visits. He didn't have typical infant symptoms so I was glad they caught it. Also, my dc tend to be on the ultra-slim side and it's nice to have our ped's take on it. She is pretty hands off with the situation since their bloodwork came back good (no anemia) and are growing on their own curves. I was also able to talk with her about being able to protect my milk supply while training for a half marathon. She gave me some great tips and was happy I asked her. Evidently, she sees quite a few failure-to-thrive nursed babies because of the mother's eating and exercising habits. I think it is important that she recognizes that I'm the parent and she is aiding me. She usually asks me if I want something done and will give me a recommendation. I've also got great referrals for a surgeon and pediatric dentist from her. On a funny note, I was shocked when ds8's last hearing test showed he had outstanding hearing. He does not use it very often :glare: Now, he doesn't have any excuse for not hearing me. I have the paperwork to prove it:D.

My 8yo is using Prima Latina after using SSL last year. SSL was a fun introduction to Latin and easy on a learning parent. I'll be getting SSL2 for ds6 when it comes out. PL is good so far, but it is a bit more involved than SSL. I imagine LC would be even more so. PL would be plenty for her if you decide to go the Memoria Press route. It has lots of vocab, discusses derivatives, and introduces declensions. I can sympathize with you on this. My ds8 saw an ad for Song School Greek on the back of SSL and begged to do it. I bought it for him along with a couple of introduction to the Greek alphabet books and told him he was welcome to study Greek on his own. He's having a great time with it. It is strange to have a dc beg to study an ancient language.

I see what you mean. I didn't expect reading skills from the games. For my child who learned to read with SWR (ds8), the learning to read portion was in the spelling lists. The dictation taught him how the words were constructed with the phonograms and then he wrote and read his words everyday. By the time we got to List I, he was able to finish SL Readers 1 (we skipped the I Can Read series) and then blazed through SL Readers 2 in a couple of months. Ds6 was beyond reading instruction by the time we started SWR, but I'll be getting to teach another ds by the same method in about a year and a half.

Besides what Tracy said, Wanda also put out this video recently which is very good. I just bought it and it would have been nice starting out. You can use them with any Spalding type program. I'm not sure beyond that because they are designed to reinforce the phonograms and spelling rules. SWR has you start them on real books when they reach List I. Ds8's first book was Green Eggs and Ham. Ds6 was already reading Flat Stanley at that point. I do own the NE Primer and think it is a nice book, but my dc haven't read much of it. I have used it and one of her other readers for a boy I was tutoring. He wasn't doing the full SWR program. His mother just wanted me to work with him on fluency (he is a ps student) and those were good readers for him. They are not necessary for the program. I am the same way. I am not confident enough to teach LA without a lot of help. For readers, I use SL's reader packages. We use SL so that's a no-brainier for us, but the 2-4/5 packages are really well done. I added FLL and WWE in 1st grade for the reasons you state above. I love the script and they take very little time. I think they compliment SWR well; in fact, I combine my enrichments often with WWE and FLL. Now that I'm starting my 4th year of teaching LA, I am confident enough to use SWR solo for the younger years (K-2), but will still use FLL and WWE because I like them so much and already own them. I am also starting MCT vocab this year with my 3rd grader. You really don't need vocab with SWR, but I think ds8 and I will like it a lot and it will reinforce the affix work done in SWR. My love of supplementing is one reason I couldn't use PR. I can completely see how it would appeal to someone who wants an AIO, though. Like Tracy, my dc don't work well with that kind of program. I have early and voracious readers coupled with average fine motor skills and a reluctance to write. It seems like #3 will be the opposite of his two older brothers as he loves to write :001_huh:. Flexibility is key for me ATM. The bolded has not been my experience with the games. We use the phonogram games to learn the phonograms (and the spelling rules). Each child can have their own pile of phonograms they are working with so it makes it easy to use with different levels at the same time. My dc would only have the phonograms that they had mastered or are learning in their pile. Right now, my two oldest have to use the pile with all of the phonograms and rules in it, but my 3.5yo only has the first 26 phonograms in his.

Yup...I need a bit more coverage up top and don't mind it on the bottom either. I really like http://www.limericki.com. I used to dread swim suit shopping but I now have four new suits in my closet that I want to wear to the pool. Each swimsuit page tells what cup size it is best suited for. The bottoms are great too. The boy shorts are longer and more flattering and the skirts are really great.