The schedule looks fairly typical for 3rd grade. 2 hours per month equals 30 minutes per week. The state tests focus on math and reading skill and everything else is gravy. I was surprised there is only 2 hours of PE monthly as our state requires dailyPE beginning in K. beginning in 4th, more emphasis on science and social studies is given.

I'm guessing this is overnight camp where you take her one day and then pick her up the next afternoon? How well do you know the adults who are going to be staffing the camp during that time period? Are there other children/adults from your church who will be going? Will it be a small group or large group of campers? If there are lots of other people from your church going that she knows and that know her, it will probably be OK. You might want to check with your daughter's Sunday School teacher or someone else who has worked with her at church to inquire about her behavior in those settings. If you know the other adults who will be there (both from your church and others), it will probably be fine. I've found that my dd will do things around me that she would never dream of doing around others. People will say how well behaved she was at church or a community event, and I'm wondering if they're talking about the same kid. I'm a firm believer in the importance of church camp. Last summer my dd (who was going into 3rd grade) went to three different overnight church camps because I knew well the adults who were in charge at each location even though my dd did not. I found it to be a great experience for her and she loved it. Because your dd wants to go badly, you could use it as a teaching experience that she has to complete certain things or behave in a certain manner to earn the privilege of going or that she has to earn the money to pay her way.

I'd recommend taking one issue at a time. Start with the placement and what they think will be best. Keep in mind that as a charter school, she may fit right in with the other 1st graders and it won't be an issue. Another possibility as a charter school is they may be more willing to bump your daughter for specific subjects where she is advanced but keep her with her age mates the remainder of the day. When you get the opportunity to meet with the administrators/teachers, I wouldn't mention the attention issues. See what they find and notice. If it's an issue, they will notice and take appropriate actions. If not, you don't want to draw attention to your daughter. At home, keep doing whatever you want. Read aloud great books. Have her write about her day. Do practical math. Fill in with whatever is important to you and don't worry about it. Best of luck to you and your daughter!

Thank you for sharing this fun idea!

Goodness! I didn't catch from your original post that this was the case throughout high school. For 6th grade, I wouldn't be happy but could "suck it up." For 7th and 8th, I'd be wondering what they are doing, and for high school I would be throwing a hissy fit. I would want to see the scope and sequence for the English curriculum and probably be seriously considering pulling my kids from school too. I'm not expecting great literary analysis at the high school level, but at least two classic novels a year and a play (preferably Shakespeare) are fairly common for high school English and more for college prep and AP type classes. Best of luck as you switch to full time home schooling.

Check what writing method/model your school is using. Our school uses the Four Square model of writing which dovetails quite nicely with what your teacher described. The Four Square model encourages students to come up with their topic and then list details to help them flesh out the topic. Last year our teacher expressed some frustration that the four square block they were using for the primary grades didn't emphasize having a good topic sentence and concluding sentence. I helped her create a new block where there was a line for topic sentence a four block so they could write four details and the a line for their concluding sentence. It worked really well. An example would be: Topic Sentence: I like cats. Four Detail: Soft and cuddly, purr, small, make me happy (imagine these in squares) Conclusion: Cats are great pets. I like to remind my children even at the younger grades to use who, what, when, why, where, and how for their writing.

I would also hope that schools would teak more "real literature," but a couple of quick comments: Not just this public school but college English departments are reconsidering what is considered a classic. Not saying this is a good or bad thing, but it's definitely not limited to this school. Keep in mind these are 6th graders. What classics do have in mind for them to read? I recall in 6th grade (way back in 1983) we read Tom Sawyer, but we were also close enough to do a field trip to Hannibal, MO. I could see Across Five Aprils and some of the classic animal stories working but depending on the ethnic composition of the school they may feel some items are left untouched to avoid sue-happy parents. Keep in mind that reading a classic novel also requires a copy of the book for each student. I know that on this board we tend to be book purchasers but after buying the standard reading curriculum textbook many schools don't have funds for individual copies of other books--particularly if you want the students to be able to take them home for studying. Just how many 6th graders are in your middle school? Keep in mind I would prefer they toss the reading textbooks and have real books but that takes time to accomplish. Just some friendly thoughts from your friendly neighborhood school board member. :001_smile:

Check your state's rules on sex offenders. As others have pointed out, schools (at least in my state) do not have the responsibility to inform parents of sex offenders. And in my state it is untrue that sex offenders cannot ever be on school property. If they are parents (and it is legal for their own children to reside in the same home), they can be on school property for parent teacher conferences, IEPs, and other meetings regarding their child. I figure it's my responsibility to know with whom my children are playing.

I'm chiming in from the Afterschooling board, and my children go to public school. I have found that they are having the opportunity to internalize the morals and values we are teaching at home through the situations they encounter. We make it a point to discuss what they are reading, see on television, and experience so that they can process it. There have been several situations that have been eye-opening to us and our daughter recently. At her school for P.E. they have recently been traveling to nearby college to use the pool for swimming lessons. She reported that while they were changing into their school clothes one of her classmates reported that the most important thing in life was to look "hot and sexy" (they are 3rd graders). DD was aghast at that and apparently a heated discussion followed. In sharing with us, DD indicated that's not right because Jesus and God are the most important thing. Although I hate she had to encounter this topic at a young age, I'm proud she stood up for her beliefs. At other times, she has reported that so and so watched x movie or listens to this music and then states "that's really not appropriate for our age." We remind her that each family has to make their own decisions on what is appropriate but do have to wonder what their parents are thinking. We have found that our extracurricular activities are more in the bubble, but that is due to our choices. Outside of school, our dd takes piano lessons (with a lady from church), takes horseback riding lessons (at a stable that happens to cater to a home-schooling/faith-based crowd), and is in 4-H (with leaders from our church and mostly faith-based kids). Our son is doing soccer with the Y right now. We are pleased his coach happens to be a lady from church and he has both church friends and school friends on the team. So long story short, yes public schools are definitely out of the bubble, but it is still possible to shield your children in any circumstances.

Wow! Thank you for sharing your schedule. It gives me much to think about as I try to squeeze more into our day.

It seems your focus is on great figures in world missions vs. the theory and why of missions. I would call it something like "Portraits from World Missions." I would definitely include some writing and geography. I see your daughter is 16. You may wish to see if a Perspectives course is being offered in your area. This is a 15 week class that covers the Biblical and historical concepts of missions and then ends with what still needs to be done. The class can be audited or can be taken for college credit and is widely accepted at many colleges. Many missions organizations require this course of all their recruits. Full Disclosure: I have previously coordinated a Perspectives course and hope to do so again in the future. It is a simply wonderful, life changing experience.

You amaze me at what you are accomplishing in the morning. Just because I'm curious, if the kids get up at 6 what time does school start both currently and for the gifted program next year? At what time do your children go to bed? And what time do you get up to get all of this done? I'd love any tips you have on how you are getting all of this done as my kids are bears to get out of bed at 7-ish, often still aren't dressed by 7:45 a.m., and we have got to leave at 8:00 a.m. so we can all get to our respective locations on time. Stressed out working mom trying to squeeze in afterschooling among other extracurricular activities ;)

MMM, did everyone miss the carrots and fruit in the picture as well? And what's the beef about chocolate milk? Have you tasted the white milk in a carton? It's really nasty. Research has shown that when students were offered only white milk they chose not to drink it and obtain more calcium and nutrients from the chocolate. As far as requiring school lunches being a cash cow for the school, in this instance most of the kids are on free/reduced lunch. But schools barely break even on lunches; it's not about making a profit. I would have to work very hard to spend less money on a sack lunch than I spend on their school lunch which is $1.30 per day. Don't compare today's school lunch to what you remember from your school days as they have much improved.

How people feel about AR varies depending on how their particular school uses it. I can speak about AR from both the viewpoint as a former school librarian who administered the program and now as a parent whose children use AR. As a school librarian (Jr-Sr. High) I really liked the program because it encouraged students to read a variety of books they might not normally read. Granted, they sometime chose books simply because this book has a lot of points and I want to reach my goal quickly or this book is easy and I just need a few more points to reach my goal. I recall one young lady who struggled with school who read Jane Eyre, passed the test, and told me how much she loved the book. Without AR she never would have cracked a book open period. I recall another young man who also struggled with school who struggled to finish a book and we were able to celebrate when he finished the book and received 100% on the test. However, I also knew excellent honor students (and their parents) who absolutely hated AR and complained it took too much time away from work, sports, other classes, etc. After leaving that position, I did have a young lady who had graduated and went on to college tell me she appreciated AR because it prepared her for the reading load in college. At our school, the teachers had a number of points each student needed to earn each quarter as part of their grade and students were not restricted to a specific reading level. Of course, being a Jr.-Sr. High school we had books ranging from The Firm (5th grade reading level) to Pride and Prejudice (12th grade) and everything in between. At the elementary school in our district however, students were required to read books at a certain level. This was frustrating because a student who was a good reader wasn't able to select good books they would enjoy reading because they were not hard enough. Frequently, entering 7th graders breathed a sigh of relief because they could read and take a test on a book that had previously been forbidden to them but that was "age level" appropriate. Now, I am a parent of children who attend a public school that uses AR. My oldest is a good reader. When she first began taking AR tests, her teacher required they had to read 1st grade level books until they reached a certain number of points. This was devastating to my daughter as these books were quite insipid and below her. After she met that criteria, she happily moved on to reading other books and now has free reign to pick whatever she'd like to read. My younger is in K and hasn't started AR yet. It will be interesting to see what happens. At the younger grades, it doesn't seem that AR tests are tied to student grades. They also do not have required reading levels as far as I can tell. I am concerned as I have been told that a teacher of a later grade bases their entire reading class grade on AR. This is bothersome and I am glad to say that as a school board member that is something we are encouraging to have changed. I would say my current other "beef" with the AR program is that our particular school doesn't have as many books and tests as I would like them to, but they are working on building their collection each year. AR does have the option where schools can purchase access to all of the AR tests ever written but that access is currently beyond the price range of our small district. Sorry to be so long-winded.

The AR list is based on Fry's Readability Graph which is described here. Reading level is based on how many sentences and how many syllables are in a 100 word passage. More sentences and fewer syllables equals easier books while fewer sentences and more syllables equal higher reading levels. I also like this list because it identifies interest level and also notes any awards or other interesting information about the book.

Is Connected Mathematics used for all three grades of middle school or just 6 and 7? My children aren't to that age yet but if SM is working well, to continue NEM until your son can take algebra in 8th grade sounds pretty good. You might even check if algebra in 7th grade is considered if he is ready for it. Would the Life of Fred series be an interesting diversion to cover some interesting topics?

I prefer RR if I'm ordering numerous things. For the one at a time items, I prefer Amazon although ebay beats both if I can get something for half of RR's price. You may want to keep in mind that RR is located literally in the middle of nowhere. I think it is great how they are able to hire individuals in what would be an otherwise economically depressed area as the only other large business in the area is a furniture store. I also enjoy being able to order in state. What they are able to do is amazing!

I just finished reading this book. I'm still processing exactly how I'm going to apply these ideas, but overall I thought it was a good book. Practical without being prescriptive in how to apply the information. Several weeks ago I had the kids go through their toys and they selected quite a bit they had outgrown. I need to do a second pass through to eliminate or place in the toy library. The problem is figuring out where to put the toy library though. Then the week after Christmas, the kids and I can tackle their rooms.

Given the experiences you have had, don't worry about it. However, if the kids are starting to rummage around the decorations, let them decorate. We have an artificial tree. We put the tree in the corner and put the box of ornaments next to it and our kids (9 and 5) decorated it. They did a nice job; not exactly like I would but it looks fine.

I cry when I hear this song. It was on the radio as I was driving home from my dying MIL's bedside in the middle of a snowstorm. The song isn't particularly great, but I always associate it with the last time I saw her and that she was getting ready to see Jesus.

My son (5) thinks there should be an American Boy store that sells boy dolls.

It sounds like the district assessments function like regular chapter or end of unit tests. In a large district this would help to ensure that all the schools and teachers are on target to reach their goals. If you think of the assessments as regular chapter/unit tests, it's not unusual to have a test in at least some subject each week. If my kids don't have chapter tests at least every couple of weeks, I start to wonder what's going on. There is also a line of thought that the more often kids take tests that are set up like the standardized tests that test anxiety decreases and it's not so much of a "big deal."

You have to keep in mind that state assessments and other standardized tests are kept under lock and key in order to keep the assessments standardized. Are the scores broken down into sub-scores or areas by any chance. Getting to view the actual tests at all is very rare. In our state to even view the tests you might see the test booklet but you would not see your child's answer sheet because they are scantron sheets. The reason for this is so that a parent who has a child who takes the test in 3rd grade and views the results when that child is in 4th grade and their younger sibling is in 2nd could use the test information to prep the younger sibling. Then that child would have an advantage. It's just like when you take the ACT or SAT you don't get to see your actual tests just the scores and sub-scores.

I buy things in the school fundraisers, but I don't have the kids sell to anyone else. The teachers sponsor a magazine sales drive at the beginning of the school year. The booster club has a fall wrapping paper and gifts sale and then a spring frozen pizza sale. Their funds go to purchase supplies for the teachers.

We called ours a swap. We had everyone bring their stuff and allowed those who brought things to come and pick out items first. The next day we allowed the community to come in and take whatever they wanted. We've done it three times now and have been very successful. We always had people who would ask if they could give something so we told everyone to make a donation to their favorite charity. We did find that having lots of volunteers to help people with their shopping was really important.