Thanks Sandra, I'm always looking for more options in my quest for the perfect program :D! Thanks!

Thanks again Heather! I'm not sure what my son's reading level is (he is 6 yo) but he can really read pretty much anything. I will say that Tom Sawyer gave him problems, not because of the actual words, but more the understanding of what some of the sayings meant, and the written accents. We dropped that one. Some recent reads have been The Mysterious Benedict Society, Chronicles of Narnia, YWAM Heroes in History biographies, just to give an idea of level. A potential problem I see is matching his reading level (both ability and interest) with the output required from an LA program. My thought is that I can adapt by having him do copywork instead of a dictation and breaking it up into smaller chunks. I think grammar wise he can understand the concepts okay so I think we would be okay there. I'm definitely going to take a look at Sonlight and see if it might fit the bill. If you have used this, do you have any recommendations on level or just how the program has worked for you? Thanks!

Thank you all for your suggestions. I'm going to check them out. Heather in VA, Is it possible to use the Sonlight LA without using a core? Is it a stand alone program? Thanks!

I would love to find an LA curriculum that has the student reading real books, pulls passages from the books for copywork/dictation, highlights and teaches grammar concepts based on these passages, schedules comprehension/narration questions about the books, and highlights literery terms etc. Does an LA program like this exist? Please tell me it does and I just haven't found it yet:D! Oh, and if it included some writing instruction that would be icing on the cake:D. Thanks!

I meant to hit four years but accidently hit 5. Sorry for messing up the poll, I guess I need to go back and work on my reading LOL!:rolleyes:

Here is our favorite recipe for meatballs. MEATBALLS 1 lb ground beef, pork or sausage (any combination of) 1 egg 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1/2 cup bread crumbs salt and pepper to taste Mix together well and form into balls. Bown in electric skillet and then put in spaghetti sauce to simmer for at least an hour to finish cooking. I usually bake them in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes then stick them in my sauce. I also usually triple the recipe and use 1lb each of the gr. beef, gr. pork, and ital. sausage. Then I freeze the extras for next time. HTH!

I'd also check into the peanut allergy connection. My son is highly allergic to peanuts and tree nuts. The first few times I gave him split pea soup he complained he really didn't like it but I didn't pay much attention. I think the 3rd or 4th time he had an immediate allergic reaction and then I knew. It is common for allergies to show up later in life, even if they have never been a problem before.

Wow, thanks to everyone who has continued to weigh in on this. You are all making me feel better and better about my plans to switch, and I love it when you all make me feel good about myself :D! Also, thanks for clearning up the confusion about the letters starting at the top-vs-bottom. I was kind of confused when the OP posted that but I just figured I wasn't understanding quite right. Thanks!

Nitascool, Thanks for chiming in on this as well. It sounds like transitioning from traditional print to Italic style is possible with good results. I bought the TM (still waiting to receive it) and I'm thinking I might go ahead and start my ds in book B and start my younger son in book A in the fall if all is going well. Thanks!

Dangermom, Thanks for letting me know the switch for you in 1st grade went ok. LRb_0754. Thanks for your post. So you changed just for cursive? I was wondering if that was something that would work and it is encouraging to hear that it did for you. Since my son is asking to learn "fancy" writing he might be more motivated if we started with book C rather than from the beginning. Does anyone else have any thoughts on switching and starting with book "C"? Thanks!

Thank you everyone for their replies. What first drew me to the idea of trying Italics is just because I like the way it looks. But what has kept me coming back to considering it is the people who have said it might be easier for boys and the transition is easier. My ds does not have very good handwriting and doesn't form many of his letters "correctly". He is in first grade and keeps asking to do "fancy" writing which is what he calls cursive. Today I showed him samples of traditional cursive and italic cursive and he preferred the italic. I'm worried about the transition but since he doesn't form his letters correctly anyway, maybe it won't really be a problem. I'll have to keep thinking about it. Thanks!

If you use Italic Handwriting, why did you decide to use this instead of traditional cursive? Also, did you start your child with this style from the very beginning or did you switch somewhere down the road. If you switched, how was the transition? Thanks!

I have tried several in the recent months trying to find a natural deodorant that was aluminum free, paraben free, and propylene glycol free. I also need one that really works because I get smelly! :o The only one that I have found that works for me is the Home Health Herbal Magic deodorant. I have the Herbal Scent (which I don't really like but is better than body odor) but it also comes in unscented and Jasmine and I plan to try one of those next. I have only been using it in the winter months (but I am the kind of person who needs one even in the winter) so I can't comment how well it will work in hot summer months. A comment on something someone else mentioned.... I have also started only to rinse with water and not use soap under my arms. I read that soap and regular deodorants can clog pores and inhibit them from doing their job of cleaning you out. Don't know if this is true but since I switched to the Herbal Magic and stopped using soap, I haven't been smelly at all (except for the first couple of days). I've tried the baking soda before but it didn't work for me. However, I've heard good things about it and will probably try it again now that my pores might be cleaned out. HTH!

Okay, my family and I are totally talentless when it comes to art and we've never used this so feel free to completely ignore my post :D However, I thought I throw it out there as another idea for you in case it might work. I always like people to give me options I hadn't thought of so I figured I let you know about this. http://www.timberdoodle.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1851 HTH!

Thanks everyone for their thoughts on this issue. I'm still trying to figure everything out for sure but everyone's input has been helpful! Thanks!

Oh, I'm going to have to check my library. I didn't even think of that. Thanks! I just checked, our library has these. Yeah! Now I can check them out with out spending anything. Thanks for the tip.

Thanks Mindy and Josie. I'm glad to hear they are enjoyed in your homes. I might go ahead and buy a back issue since they are pretty inexpensive. Then I can get a feel for how much information is included and how hard I'd have to work to fill it out. Thanks!

Does anyone subscribe to this? How do you use it? I just happened across this today and it seems like it could make for a good resource for science or history. I'm actually wondering if it could be comprehensive enough, if used with the Teacher's Guides, to make up my own science or history curriculum for early elmentary. However, I can't tell enough from what I can see on the website(the samples of the actual magazine are too small to really get a good feel for them) so I was looking for feedback from anyone who has seen these. Thasks! http://www.kidsdiscover.com/default.aspx

Thanks for the clarification Rhonda.

Thank you all for your thoughts and opinions! You all made me feel better about SOTW. It really is exactly what I'm looking for in format. From your comments, it seems like it wouldn't be that hard to work around any material I don't want to cover. Either that, or I could just start with Middle Ages and "be done with it" like Oh Elizabeth said. That would take advantage of my son's interest and give me the program format I'm looking for. Thank you all!

I am having a hard time figuring out what to use for history next year. My ds will be 7 and in 2nd grade. This year we've been doing a light year of Am. History. I'm not really set on a time period (although see my other question about this at the bottom), I'd be willing to do Am His. again or start into the chronological 4yr (or 3-yr) cycle. What is more important to me, is finding a curriculum that I can work with and that will be interesting. My ideal history curriculum.... 1. Even though I love the idea of using real books, I don't have very good access to a library. So, realistically, I need a text/storybook format that contains most of the needed information. I want to be able to sit down on the couch and read an interesting account of history. I would love it if it also included suggested supplemental reading for those times I can get to a library or when I decide to splurge and buy a book to own. 2. Discussion/narration questions 3. Map and timeline activities 4. Optional activities for those extra ambitious times I feel like cooking an authentic dish, building a model of a pyramid, etc. but that could be skipped whenever I didn't want to do them:rolleyes: SOTW looks like it would be about perfect, format wise, but I'm skeptical about using it with my son. From some of the things I've read, I think some of the content may not fit what I'm looking for. I don't think we are ready to get into the specifics of ancients gods/goddesses, Greek mythology, etc. I don't mind talking about the fact that there are other gods that people believed in, I just don't really want to study the specifics of them. Any suggestions on a curriculum that might fit the bill? My other question pertains to the time period we will study next year. My son has expressed an interest in studying knights, castles, etc. In my mind, I can rationalize studying Am His. or doing a chronological (4-yr rotation) study, but starting in the middle :eek: This just seems crazy to me, but then I'm not 6 :D So, what are your thoughts on starting somewhere in the middle of the 4-yr rotation. The positive I see is that it is interest led and might make it more enjoyable (for the both of us). Thanks!

Thank you all! I knew you guys would have all the answers for me:D RhondaM, Thanks for the tip about the Truthquest guides. I was hoping some other curriculum out there used these books and had expanded on how to use them. Thanks!

Am I right in thinking that these books don't include any type of discussion questions with them? Is it made up solely of the stories and suggested supplemental reading list? Does any publisher offer a discussion guide/activity book for this series? Thanks!

Wow, thanks to everyone for responding to this. Based on the mixed opinions, I think I definitely need to listen to the sample of the audio myself. I was also thinking of using this with my ds next year for 2nd grade along with the Elementary Activity book. However, from the posts, it seems the heart of the program might be better suited to olders. I'll have to continue to think about this. Thanks!

Colleen, Thanks for the reply. I think I am leaning towards doing just as you said, getting the 2A text and IP as well as the CWP. It is good to know that you are doing it that way and it is working well for you. I also appreciate the info you gave me on how you schedule the program, it is very helpful. Oh, and thanks for the book recommendation. I'm going to check it out. Thanks!