We are considering trying an online math program for Algebra. Looking for reviews of TWTM Academy program. Thanks!

My 6th grade son has finished LFC A&B. I think that it is an excellent program, but that LFC B was much more difficult than A because of all of the translating and parsing. He liked Dr. Perrin and that's what kept him going when it got hard--plus the fun videos. We have SS Greek, and my younger son has used it to teach himself the Greek alphabet because he's a GT kid and is like that :-) But, I would not want to teach it to him! It isn't anything like English, so part of why you may not have liked the looks of SS Greek is because it's Greek! I just bought SS Latin 2 for my younger son. It will actually be his first exposure to Latin. SS 1 looked too easy and LFC A is too grammar heavy for him just yet. I think the focus of learning Latin for us is to build vocabulary and to master grammar skills.

I appreciate all of the input and am now going to rethink this whole thing. I want my son to love to read, so I think moving towards the classics is a better way to do that. We are studying American History this year because it ties to what we'll be doing in CC and then will pick up on the history cycle next year. So I will have him read about Ben Franklin and some modern scientists because he already enjoys that type of reading. Now I feel I can move away from history reading and towards classics! I don't know why this didn't occur to me sooner.

I am just a little confused as to what to use for our reading time now that I've revisited my copy of TWTM. Should we be using books that tie to history or using classic literature? I realize that some books cover both categories, but what should I be using overarchingly? I am used to TOG that almost always uses history for the literature and I know Sonlight is the same, but then when I look at VP or MP and TWTM, it is based more on classics. I am not using TOG this year and have to schedule reading for my 3rd grade reader (who reads above grade level, but isn't convinced he likes to read).

Yes, we will use the Classic Starts for the literature! We also like the D'Aulaire books and the "you wouldn't want to..." books!

Most of the books can be read in a week. A few will take 2. I will assign a certain number of chapters per day to be finished in a week. I just looked at the ADV reading list, Sonlight's reading list, and TOG's reading list for that part of history and mushed it all together according to what we are talking about that week. Some things won't correspond week by week, but fit historically.

These are the books I am planning on having my son read to himself this fall. We also have others scheduled for reading aloud. I would love input from those either familiar with the books or curriculum. My son is 8 and reads at about the beginning of 5th grade reading level, but does not yet love to read--so I've stuck to shorter stories that he can finish in a week (mostly). MFW Adventures covers highlights of American history. They do not schedule daily reading for the students to do alone, so I've come up with things that seem to tie to the lessons and a few that I'd like him to read at the end. Any glaring omissions? We are reading the Courage of Sarah Noble, Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims, Sarah Whitcher's Story, In Grandma's Attic, Mountain Born and Little House books as read alouds. Leif the Lucky-D'Aulaire Pedro's Journal Pocahontus-D'Aulaire 3 Young Pilgrims Sea Clocks Sam the Minuteman George the Drummer Boy What's the Big Idea Ben Franklin? And then What Happened Paul Revere? Paul Revere's Ride The Matchlock Gun Meet Thomas Jefferson Meet George Washington George Washington-D'Aulaire Chocolate by Hershey Dear Benjamin Banneker The Amazing Impossible Erie Canal Finding Providence Who Was Daniel Boone Casey Jones (On My Own book) American Tall Tales by Mary Pope Osborne You Wouldn't Want to Explore with Lewis & Clark The Story of Ruby Bridges A Pocket Full of Goobers The Bears on Hemlock Mountain Paddle to the Sea Aesop in California Favorite Poems for Children (coloring book) Abraham Lincoln-D'Aulaire Escape North: The Story of Harriet Tubman Tornado Sarah, Plain & Tall Gulliver's Travels So You Want to be an Inventor The Little Prince Peter Pan

Mine followed the revised 3rd edition. Hope that helps.

We used them with TOG year 2. My son is in 5th grade and we both enjoyed the books. I have to say I feel like she has a good way of bringing US history to life. She gives quite of bit of depth to the people and the times--so that history doesn't feel like fact learning, but understanding who these people were. Yes, there are a few opinions (we only used book 2 and 3), but I never felt that they were totally off kilter, and I am a conservative. And they were usually hidden as questions for the students to think about. I don't know my history well enough to know if the books contain mistakes or not. I love the book series and would highly recommend it. I think that it is perfect for middle school and would be way too detailed for younger children. Sonlight uses the series for late middle school and high school in their Core 100, so that should tell you something. We also had the book from Audible along with the paperback to look at--lots of great artwork and details.

Alright, I just received MFW Adventures through the mail. I know that no curriculum is perfect (at least I'd want to tweak almost everything because that's how I am). But looking it over, I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I love that everything from Bible to science to music and of course history is scheduled in. I love how many hands on things that there are to do. The Bible portion also looks great. My disappointment comes in the part where about 10 weeks are dedicated to state studies and hardly anything else. With so much rich American history available, I don't get that. It looks like the state study is really based on the book basket and a worksheet with hardly anything else to do. There doesn't seem to be a spine to that portion of the curriculum. It just seems kind of weak to be 1/3 of the year. I am debating on whether to keep it or not. I do love the schedule, and after having used TOG for two years, it looks like a breath of fresh air from that perspective. Just trying to figure out if I should send it back. Am I wanting to do too much with a 3rd grader because I have been working with an advanced almost 6th grader and TOG? We will be doing CC too, so will this be enough? I'll only have my rising 3rd grader home next year.

I also like the hands on activities and the Thinking Cap section. IMO it is just a more complete curriculum overall because it is designed for PS. I did add a daily review of previously learned concepts--I think it is vital especially for 4th and 5th. You can accomplish that with any math review workbook that is grade level appropriate. There are so many new concepts in those years and it's pretty easy to forget something when you've moved on to something totally new.

I think that it is a challenging program, and the WWS 1 could be used for 9th grade...no problem. So, I agree, I think 2 is a good choice for a reluctant writer.

2 it is! We don't need hard.

I think you are right. Why do we get so caught up in "3" must be for 3rd and if you do 2, you are behind :-)

Didn't see the assessments. I'll have to go look.

I have used MIF's 3rd, 4th and am finishing up 5th grade. I have also used SM Standards 1A for summer work for a different child. I only have one home right now. I like MIF the best, think it is easier to follow and that there is much more to it than SM overall. It is more expensive if you need all of the components and about the same if you don't need the TG. I like the TG because I want the break down of the lessons and the answers, but buy it used from Amazon. We have friends using SM and have compared notes, and the S&S are very similar. One thing we did this year was to get MIF through Calvert. It was a little more costly, but totally worth it to me. I love how they have daily practice online and links to BrainPop (membership is included) and other great sites tied to the lessons for new concepts. I received a pretty hefty discount bc my dh is in the military, and we'll use it again next year. We did not use their ATS.

I would love some advice. I am bringing my younger son home for school next year who is 8 and will be in 3rd grade. He is a gifted student, but a reluctant writer. I have used WWE 4 and WWS 1 for my older son for 4th and 5th and found them quite challenging even for a gifted writer. I really don't want my younger son to hate writing. Should I start him in WWE 2 or WWE 3? Even though I have looked at the samples, I am still at a quandary since I haven't used either.

I've used R&S for my son for his 4th and 5th grade years--he's going back to ps for 6th. I never used FLL, but did look at it to compare and I didn't like how scripted it was--for him (he would have hated it). My younger son would probably do fine with either program, but since I've already blazed that trail, we are starting R&S for 3rd grade this fall. We used WWE 4 and WWS 1 for writing, so we did not do the writing lessons in R&S. We also do almost all of the program orally and then he does the corresponding worksheet.

I think Latin Alive is the right fit for a 6th grader who has already had exposure to Latin. We've done LFC A & B for 4th and 5th, and I would start my son in Latin Alive for 6th. Just my 2 cents! LFC A would probably be too easy for her.

Thanks for your detailed review of the programs you've used. You are right, they will memorize states this year in CC. I think I am leaning towards MFW Adv, and we can just add the book basket books to our day. We'll also beef up the science.

I love the Hakim series of books too. TOG uses them and I did use them with my older son and have them on Audible, so we can listen to anything that interests us. I am just afraid that although he's an advanced reader, it may be too much for an 8 year old. It seemed just right for my 11 year old. We've also used Time Travelers with TOG year 2 for Medieval. Loved it too. I do really like the literature to go along with history and don't want to have to put it together myself.

I think HOD is more than I need or want. I am looking for something that gives us mainly history, literature and Bible. I wouldn't use quite a bit of the program. I wouldn't use someone else's LA because I already love R&S and WWE.

I think I'd like something that is more preplanned, but I have used the Exploration & Conquest book in that series.

I have been homeschooling my older 5th grader for the past 2 years using TOG and consider myself a classical homeschooler. He's now going back to school and my younger son, who will be in 3rd grade, is coming home. We are joining Classical Conversations this fall, which I've never done before. I am hesitant to start TOG with my younger son because although I loved TOG, it's a lot of work by itself. I thought I might pick another history program and just cover American history this year since CC is doing cycle 3, and then pick up on ancient history next year. A little about my son. He's gifted in math, science, and is an advanced reader. He has a harder time with writing. He is very curious and loves detailed explanations about things and hands-on projects. I have looked at MFW's Adventures and SL's Core D. I've also thought about using SOTW 3, but I think I'd like to just cover American history. Part of me wonders if Adventures is too easy, but then SL D looks like it may be too much for an 8 year old. My older son has just finished many of the books in TOG year 2 that are read aloud books for SL D. They seem topically a little too heavy. I would love some input. I have also tried to find a sample of the MFW book basket list so that I understand how comprehensive the program is, but can't find one. The online samples seem like they are just an overview and are missing much of the lesson?