We love the Activity guide, but stopped using the tests after 6 weeks. I'm not worried about my kids learning to take tests. We test in other subjects and take an annual standardized test starting in 3rd grade.

You're not asking too much. My son, 9, is in 4th grade. He has an April birthday, so he won't be 10 until next year, FWIW. In the A.M. he covers: Silent Reading (history) Bible Spelling Math Latin Then we break for an hour (or more when he finishes early). In the P.M. he covers: History Science Grammar Writing Silent Reading (literature) He finishes each day between 3-4pm. :iagree: This is what we do in our house, too.

Now that my logic stage history plans ala TWTM are firmed up for next year, I'm starting to plan for science. Is anyone currently working through the new recs for biology? How is it going? If you made a tentative schedule, would you share it? Have you enjoyed the Creepy Crawlies and the Scientific Method book? How about the Usborne Internet Lined Science Encyclopedia and the Dorling Kindersley Visual Encyclopedia of Science books? Other books, projects, or experiments that may not be listed in TWTM that you have found particularly helpful or enjoyable?

This is my oldest! We have to remind him EVERY day to change his socks and underwear EVERY day. Ewww! I had three brothers (I was the only girl) and now have three sons. My list is similar to everyone else's list, it seems. :-) I wasn't prepared for how much they eat. They can eat an entire meal and be opening the fridge for a snack 20 minutes later. AND, they're not teenagers yet! :blink: I wasn't prepared for their stinkiness! Thank goodness for the new Dial for Men 3-D Odor Defense body wash. AND, they're not teenagers yet! :eek: My boys LOVE to read ... and will read for hours on end by their own choice ... but they also need plenty of fresh air and running around. If they don't get exercise, they start to drive me and each other crazy. Everything is a weapon. Most games devolve into wrestling matches. They don't know their own strength. I have had to explain to all three boys that it isn't necessary to hug mom as hard as they can. We've had to explain that play fighting is play fighting and therefore you shouldn't be trying to hit your brother with your lightsaber/sword/fists as hard as you can. It's just supposed to be for pretend. We've had to explain repeatedly that jokes that involve body parts and or noises are not appropriate at dinner. Boys have the most difficult time consistently keeping all of their urine IN the potty and NOT all over the exterior of the potty/floor/wall/garbage can next to the potty. Boys need to be reminded to GO POTTY instead of standing there talking to me while holding themselves. And then told to FLUSH the toilet and WASH YOUR HANDS. WITH SOAP.

If you can find it used somewhere (I found ours at Halfprice books and there are currently multiple copies on Amazon), I highly recommend "The Human Story" subtitled "Facts on Birth, Growth, and Reproduction" by Sadie Hofstein. I think it is the best sex ed book I have ever seen! It is a small (48 pages) paperback book that was used as a textbook in the 70s. My copy is from 1977. It takes a scientific, no nonsense approach. It does not contain references to specific sexual acts beyond heterosexual intercourse. Table of contents is: A Time of Change Growing toward maturity The stages of growth Signs of the times: physical changes Not-so-obvious changes Moving Toward Womanhood Female sex organs Female sex cells The menstrual cycle Menstrual hygiene Moving Toward Manhood Male sex organs Male sex cells Only one aspect of maturity How a Baby Begins Fertilization Will it be a boy or a girl? More than one? How the Unborn Baby Grows Pregnancy Cells Multiply and "specialize" How the baby is nourished The baby is ready for the outside world How the Baby is Born Breast feeding The newborn baby Heredity: The Matter of Life Predetermined characteristics Stronger and weaker genes Heredity and environment - plus Don't Be Afraid to Ask Glossary Reading List

We received it this week and love it. It is absolutely gorgeous! It is the Atlas of the World: by Oxford University Press. List price is $80 and it is on sale for $27! Publication date is Oct. 1, 2009, so it is still current. :)

But .... in the new electronic one, you get recon planes, sub sonar, missiles, and torpedoes. What can be more fun than that?!?!?! :lol: I totally kick my kids' butts in Battleship. Hee-hee!

:iagree: My 2nd and 4th grader know the continents and oceans! How on earth can you appreciate history, literature, current events, politics, etc. if you have no idea where the place is, what it is like, what is around it, etc. :confused:

I ordered last month from Singapore Math -- my subtotal was $73 and shipping (UPS Ground) was $9.62. I don't think that's bad.

Oh my! Those look amazing!! Thank you! :-)

I don't know of any, but wanted to say congratulations on your exam! Great job! :-)

You're kidding, right? My husband was a chef for a restaurant for 8 years. He had 0 paid vacation, but could take 1 week off a year. Then he was a union carpenter. He had 0 paid vacation, but could take 2 weeks off. Now we own our own business (construction). The way the economy is, we had to cancel our vacation this year (which is spending a week at my grandparent's house in North Carolina). We were able to get away for two weekends (not in a row) to go tent camping in August. That's it.

Great idea Laura! I found a neat website with a fried rice recipe that looks perfect.

Thank you, Helena! That recipe looks delicious! I'll start looking for the pancakes, too.

Hi! We're covering Chapter 19 in SOTW IV this week and I would love to have a Chinese meal Monday night and a Vietnamese meal Wednesday night. Can anyone share their recipes and/or menu ideas for a family of 5 for either or both nights?

Here in WI, the starting salary for teachers holding only a bachelor's degree in 2008 was $32,078 and the average salary was $52,171. That doesn't account for the value of their benefits, which averaged another $35,800.

:iagree::iagree::iagree: Mine would be: 1. Get rid of the teacher's union. 2. Get rid of schools of education and require teachers to have a degree in a content area. 3. Require teachers to pass a general knowledge test ala Anne of Green Gables. {grin} Pay is not the answer, at least here in WI, as our teachers are highly paid and have amazing benefits and retirement packages. Interesting article in the City Journal recently: Who Needs Mathematicians for Math, Anyway? The ed schools' pedagogy adds up to trouble. A distinct lack of interest in allowing mathematicians a major voice in determining the content of the high school mathematics curriculum isn’t confined to educational research publications or presentations. A new effort is under way to develop national math standards for K–12. The two organizations running the effort—the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, with support from both the Department of Education and the National Education Association—have not yet invited a single mathematical or science society to ensure that the high school mathematics standards and “college-readiness” standards they propose in fact prepare American high school students for the freshman calculus courses that serve as the basis for undergraduate majors in engineering, science, and mathematics (as well as other mathematics-dependent majors and technical/occupational programs). The effort, which is being pushed very quickly, seems determined to do an end run around the country’s mathematical and scientific organizations and the panel’s recommendations on the major topics for school algebra.

I don't believe the correlation between education majors and low IQ/SAT/GRE scores is new. I read The Conspiracy of Ignorance: The Failure of American Public Schools by Martin L. Gross awhile back where he demonstrated the same thing. I certainly don't argue this! Although, I do hear this from time to time in homeschooling circles. I think it's a shame. I fall into the "The quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers" camp." (link to Mmv blog)

Snap Circuits have been a huge huge huge hit at our house! It will not be overkill. He should be able to do most of it independently. They're pretty tough and survived a lot of wear and tear at our house. :-)

Yes, they explain as they go along. I don't know if it would be enough for a child with *zero* English grammar, but if he's on grade level for grammar, he should be fine. :-)

I'll take these separately.

:lurk5: We're heading into the logic stage next year and would like to know more about what others have done, too.

I wish they had used a better video clip on the LfC website. It really isn't boring. We are on our third year of the program and my ds has thrived with it.

:lol: Welcome to the board!

{snort} Yeah. I knew that about myself. The first time I saw a hottie Marine in his dress blues .... heavens to Betsy! But, of course, dress whites work just as well. {grin} And the new Army Combat shirt? Be still my beating heart.... Give me a man in uniform over any effeminate Hollywood 'it' boy any day.... LOL!