:iagree:with the whole post. Just wanted to 2nd that I don't feel like a failure as a parent or have the 'less than' feeling for choosing TT math for three of my dc.

Analytical Grammar with the DVDs.

I'm excited about Bigger, I took time to look through it a little. I need to purchase the rest of the books because now I want to read them. I see the lessons talking about this person or that person. Maybe next month I can get this book and . I have many of the other :hurray:. I need to hurry and clean the house, so I can cuddle up with my Bigger guide and some hot coffee .

Now, if only they had one with a nerf gun :)

I would have chosen WP :001_smile:. In fact I was going to use it in the fall (not sure now that we are using HOD). I have used some of their programs in the past and have enjoyed them. I really want to use AW again, but I just can't fit it in :tongue_smilie:.

Very true, amen to that:001_smile: that is the key to happy homeschooling. I also wanted to add that I had three HOD guides in my possession four years ago but I didn't use HOD. At the time (and I know you've heard my story) I was exhausted from having 6 babies in 6 years, even though Lance was already two. I just couldn't use something like HOD at that time. I truly believe it wasn't my season. I needed the textbooks for my two older children to get school done. I had three boys learning how to read and lots of young boys. Think this. :D Now I feel I'm ready and up to it for this year (and hopefully next year as well) and I think that is why I'm really enjoying it, even though it's exhausting. I can say that the last four years I have really grown as a homeschooling mom. I have learned to let go, move on, use textbooks, and just say it's okay. And along the line of what you said, I know God is for us, it will be okay. I know at the end of the day, God is in control .

I see them in emails, blogs, forums and such. I copy and paste them to word . I like using smileys and would love for this forum to have more of a selection . Katrina, your'e too kind . You know what really helps with using two guides and getting it done? I write down what I want to accomplish (which is my block schedule). If we don't finish everything in the guide that day, I'm okay with it. Really. I use to stress and let the TM/Guides run my day but I no longer let that happen. Instead it's my check list of school subjects tha need to get done, if that makes sense. If we only do 1 narration a week, then it's one more narration done. Better than not doing them at all. Same with other subjects. It had been a few years since I had the children do narrations and copywork because I kept saying 'I'll add it in'. Finally I told myself, 'just do it' if only once a week. Again, I'm okay if my block schedule gets intrurrupted. For instance if I have to go over WWS with Annette, I'll maybe not do AAR with Lance or do a shorter lesson with Lance or do it at night but just have him read from his frequency chart. With HOD if it takes two days to completed a day, then so be it or if I have to double up on reading or Bible because I couldn't get to it one day, I'm fine with it. With HOD I skip and rotate. Meaning, I skip something every week with my Beyond boys (sometimes Preparing) but I don't skip the same box (thus skip and rotate . And you can't forget the daily coffee . Oh, and one more thing, homeschooling is exhausting and does take a lot of mama time.

I was a drop out a few years ago but am now back . I started this year using it with three of my children. Level 1 has 24 lessons. Level 2 has 25. Level 3 has 28. Each lesson can take one day or more. Sometimes I'll park one of my children on a lesson for a few day. Other times, I'll review a few and yet at times I'll do one lesson a day. Caleb and Brent, who used Phonics Road in the past and know many of the phonograms and rules have completed levels 1 and level 2 (or will be done with level 2 this coming week) and will start level 3 in about a week. Ethan, who has not used any other OG spelling program is going at a slower pace. He is using level *one. Our lessons take between 20-30 minutes, just depending on how much time I have. Usually I set a timer for 15 minutes. Once it goes off we finish up and will continue where we left off the next day.

With my oldest, he reads the lesson and does it on his own using only the workbook (he doesn't like the cds). I correct it in the evening and sit with him the next day to go over the missed problems (this is my child that struggles with math). I look at the next lesson and sometimes we go over the instructions together, than I let him loose. With my two other boys (who don't struggle), I check to see what they missed and if needed go over the work. When double digit add. and sub. is introduced I'll pull out my MM and 'show' them. We don't use the MM worksheets, I just go over how to teach it using MM and we work on problems from TT. Then there are weeks, when I just let them pop in the cd (like now) and do it on their own, but I do keep track of their progress. I like that TT doesn't have 180 days worth of math, because I can add to it, linger or combine another program without feeling 'behind' or overwhelmed.

I've used the LA and math for my dd one year and phonics for two of my ds when things were pretty hectic around here. Dd really like the LA:). Here are some reviews from another message board.

I agree, here is another one that should be a standard ;)

Thank you

Bigger arrived . Now to brew a cup of coffee and read .

Thanks for the link. The book looks pretty :)

I haven't seen it, so not sure if this is the one https://store.afa.net/pc-10000663-65-nature-drawing-and-journaling-with-barry-stebbing-dvd.aspx

How fun to be going though Beyond a second time:001_smile:. I will go through Beyond and Bigger once. If we contiue with HOD I'll get to go through Preparing on up two or more times:001_wub:

with regards to using Barry Stebbing's new Nature Study art. Also pondering your ideas about science.

Thanks for a heads up on this. I'll most likely read these before we start as I'm slowly collecting the books. Still waiting for my Bigger guide to arrive It's out for delivery.

Thanks ladies, I don't plan on switching. We are enjoying it way too much to do that:001_smile:. I was just wondering................ Glad to hear many are liking it as well. Today my Bigger guide comes. I'm so excited to see the 'future' :D

I am currently using Preparing with two of my boys. We do both study dictation and AAS. We were doing both before we started using HOD. I was using Simply Spelling for our studied dictation. Ethan, who is using Beyond is doing both as well. I do two or three days of AAS and use the HOD spelling list. I may not do all the spelling excercises with him but we use it. Usually with the Beyond spelling list I have him copy the words. Another day I'll ask him to spell them orally and other days have him write the words. The words he spelled correctly I put in a 'spelling jar' and the words that were he misspelled I paperclip them to my Beyond Guide and just go over them through the week informally. Once mastered I put the word in the spelling jar. With the 'spelling jar' which is in the kitchen, I pull out a word every so often and ask him to spell it orally. I do this to keep him on his toes ;). With my two Preparing boys who will start level 3 next week or the week after, I plan to either stop at level three or four but that's not set in stone yet:tongue_smilie:. I would like to continue with Ethan all the way through but again, I'm not sure. Lance is using All About Reading and I haven't had the time or energy to fit in AAS as well. I should start him on the HOD spelling list :blush:.

I might switch Annette to HOD next year using Res. to Ref. but she is really enjoying Queen's Homeschool A Nature Walk with Aunt Bessie. I had hoped to continue with Queen's science. Now that I'm thinking of switching her to HOD next school year and HOD's science looks good as well I'm not sure which way to go. This will be her first year using HOD so my thoughts are, maybe a lighter science program will be a good thing, since the program looks to be pretty full. From looking at the HOD samples, I like the narration and copywork. I guess I should print sample week:D. Would like to hear what others think about HOD science. I guess doing both science programs is out, aack:tongue_smilie: Thank you,

My 13 year old is using a combination of TT6 and Systematic Math. My son has struggled with math for years now but I'm happy to say he is finally getting it. In the past he used a combo of R&S/MUS but when he had to do both Beta and Gamma over again and still was missing many problems I switched him to Math Mammoth. With MM he was still struggling. He completed 3A/3B. Fast forward to this year. I pulled out the TT6 workbook only (I don't have the cds) and also purchased Systematic Math and he goes back and forth with the two. My 11. yr. old is using TT5 and he doesn't struggle with math. My 9 year old is using TT3 he doesn't struggl with math either.

Sorry, I know people are probably tired of the HOD threads, but I couldn't get this to post on the Social Group:glare:. Ethan and Lance are using Beyond and as of today we are on Unit 6. I see lots of threads where people do not like this guide or Bigger and am wondering why. So far we are loving it. The children look forward to our reading together for history and storytime. They beg for more reading with Stories of the Pilgrims and Boys and Girls of Colonial Days. One thing that I love about Beyond is I'm reading aloud to my children again. At times we put the guide away and I will read for the hour that we were suppose to do Beyond stuff. I know the science is light but it works for me. I love the Bible verses. I don't have the children memorize them because of AWANA but I do read and discuss them. My boys are 7.5 and just turned 9. Blessings,

With one ds he uses only the textbook and I use the answer key :D. My ds had issues with the yellow notebook paper on the screen :tongue_smilie:. My two other dc use mainly the cds only. They have worked in their workbooks but it's few and far between. I do like owning the workbooks though because it's easier to look up a answer that was wrong and when I'm getting my lessons in order I can look through the workbook to see what's ahead.