My ds10 is like this. I was happy when he wanted to read more about the stock market crash of 1929, so I got him Six Days In October, which he's finishing up now. He wants to build a robot to protect the world from bad guys. However, he has a Physics Pro set you have to twist his arm to build with. He says he already knows how to build the robot when he's an adult.. I was going to look into Lego robotics classes again, but we have none that are near us. He has Minecraft but doesn't play with it often.

IMO Charlotte's Web is more simply written and understood in Year One. We listened to Trumpet of the Swan in Second, but even then I think the beauty and meaning was somewhat lost on my ds (then 7). I love Trumpet of the Swan, especially as read by Mr. E. B. White himself, so I'm going to save it for third as well. My dd6 (she'll be 7 soon) loves animals as well, and she enjoyed Charlotte's Web. We watched the movie afterwards as well (the one with Dakota Fanning). Dd6 cried at the end, but she learned a valuable lesson. Death is reality, but special people's spirits live on in our hearts. She also learned how far friendship and kindness can go.

I also love the research idea! We had touched upon volcanoes with BFSU 2, and it sparked his interest. I will let you know if I have any more questions :)

Thanks, lewelma! I ran these suggestions by my oldest and he would still prefer to do volcanoes (BTW we live nowhere near one). I like your idea of building different volcanoes with different materials and measuring the distance of spewing and such. Ketchup for thickness? Would have never thought of that. Wonder if molasses would be too thick ha. I'm excited and nervous at the same time, but thrilled that we are doing this.

We have finished our science curriculum for the year (BFSU - yay!) and now each one of my children are getting ready to work on their month-long science investigations, lewelma-style. Thing is, this is my first time doing this and I'm not sure how to proceed from their ideas. If lewelma will be reading this, I would appreciate it if she chimed in :) My youngest (6) wants to bake chocolate chip cookies with different types of flours (cheap, mainstream, fancier). This is fairly straightforward - I think - and I need to keep everything else the same and only change the flour. interview more than 4 test subjects, take copious notes. My oldest (10) wants to somehow collect all the data on volcanoes and using this data (somehow) to predict volcano eruptions. I'm like :huh: and need help with this. Is this feasable? How do we go about this? Any ideas?

Getting ready to help dc do their science investigations and need lots of help - remembered your posts, lewelma. Thanks for linking them all here!

RootAnn, my dd6 sounds just like your dd#2. She's artistic. I am starting to see an even greater interest in animals and nature. She wants to become a vet when she grows up. In school science is her favorite subject.

Dh and I are watching the parent videos. Good stuff! I really, really like the teacher. Ds is only going into 6th grade this fall, and I'm debating on whether to use it as part of school since we are finishing off our year (end of July) or as a kickstart to the new school year.

Here's a great list by level. The first one is preschool. http://charlottemasonhome.com/books-and-audiotapes/twaddle-free-books/twaddle-free-literature-by-grade-level/

That's just awful. And rude :( I am teaching my kids Spanish, and we live close to an area with a lot of Spanish speakers. People in our area are generally supportive and encourage learning two languages, and Spanish speakers think it's awesome. I speak Spanish. Learned starting in 5th grade, and TV was all in Spanish. Ds10 is finishing fifth now and we are both starting Latin in the fall. I'm also learning Italian as an aside. Thanks so much for this thread. I needed the kick in the pants.

My dh is involved in the following ways: - he pays the bills - he works so I can stay home - he organizes us to clean the house as a family - he fixes stuff around the house - he prepares probably 1/3 of the meals during the week - he prepares most meals all weekend - he fully supports me in hsing efforts - he teaches art to the kids - he reads aloud to the little ones sometimes - he helps older ds with projects - he's the enforcer - he listens to me and if I'm stuck on a hsing problem or curricula, he'll offer great advice but knows I ultimately decide - he encourages me and tells me I do a good job - he watches kids whenever I need to and once a week when I go to the library and grocery shopping alone - he makes sure I go over the Rainbow Resource cart one more time before I order :) - with my system in place, he's able to teach if I need to be at a doctor's appointment (very few times) Next year he's in charge of art appreciation focusing on ancient art, and all SOTW projects. Oh yeah, he's a gemologist so in the past he has taught ds geology with rocks and minerals (I bring him in as needed) and taught ds how to use his microscope.

It is fascinating to me how so many young kids have such amazing interests they are willing to work for! Keep 'em coming!

I'm curious on what your dc's academic interests are, how you are accommodating them, and how they are pursuing those interests themselves. In short, how are they working towards their own academic goals (if they do)?

These look cool! I wonder if my self-professed goofball/buffoon will like the middle school planner, though (no cartoons). Do you think he, who will be in sixth grade next year, could still benefit from an elementary school planner?

We are going to be doing Ancients with my sixth grader and second grader, using Dorothy Mills' ancient history books and SOTW 1 respectively. My sixth grader is doing the maps in Kfamily's Mind in the Light and both children are doing the map activities in A Child's Geography: The Holy Land and The Classical World. http://amindinthelight.blogspot.com/p/time-period-ancients_8.html (scroll down for links) http://www.rainbowresource.com/product/sku/023928/ (Explore The Holy Land) http://www.knowledgequestmaps.com/A-Childs-Geography-Explore-the-Classical-World.html

I voted less than 30 min, because I read to DS10 too, but I may have to change that to 30-60 min come to think of it.

I was going to mention Tarbuck's Earth Science. Then I did. I agree about the documentaries as well.

I would do Nature Study combined with reading lots of living science books.

Relatives visiting all weekend! Two adults and 2 kids, meaning a cacophony in my all tiled house with vaulted ceilings! :) Tasks tomorrow: Run dishwasher Make a giant pot of chili Washing pots and pats in sink Reload dishwasher, run again Put away said pots and pans Play hostess and chat for an entire (possibly long) weekend

Ds10 really enjoyed listening to Heidi this year, it is our favorite so far. I also recommend Treasure Island, Peter Pan, The Secret Garden, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and now DS is reading The Moffats, which he finds pretty funny. He liked Swallows & Amazons, but wasn't crazy about it. An easier book which he loved a year or two ago was Dragon Rider read by Brendan Frasier (sigh :)).

Yay! Something else to barrage my kid with! Thanks :D

We're going through BFSU 3 (Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding - Middle School Science Education) which covers all the topics. We are focusing more on certain topics, studying textbooks as well so DS can learn to take notes. 6th: BFSU 3 and The Way Life Works, Usborne Science Encyclopedia with Internet Links with supplementary books such as Behold and See 5 and 6, and sites NeoK12, Bill Nye The Science Guy videos, documentaries 7th: BFSU 3 and Hewitt's Conceptual Integrated Science Explorations, Behold and See 5 and 6, same encyclopedia and sites as above 8th: BFSU 3 and Hewitt's Conceptual Integrated Science Explorations, Behold and See 6, A Really Short History of Nearly Everything, same encyclopedia and sites as above

I don't know how old your ds is, but my ds10 started reading comics at 8 - he loves the Tintin series (he owns all the hardcover editions). He doesn't care for Bone, and now can't get enough of Calvin & Hobbes. He carries them everywhere lol.

Yes! I asked him if he would like to write a girl, and he said, "Sure!" He was excited to be writing to someone who lived in Italy. Thank you! I will PM you shortly.

We're working on Book 1 in 5th and will finish in 6th. Ds10 is also using Duolingo and Rosetta Stone. I need to practice conversational Spanish more with him. If your dc has never had Spanish, it's a good program to work on a foreign language, even in high school. You can always add more time spent on for the high school years. Here we do 30 min, you can spend 1 hour on Spanish a day.