Which of these books are you referring to for Art of Teaching? http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+art+of+teaching

Are there any free e-versions of this?

For those who use BA as a supplement, do you let your child do it independently, or do you teach the lessons to him?

OP, if I'm hijacking let me know, and I'll start a new thread... I was just wondering for those who use BA as a supplement, if both the guide and practice books are needed? or just one of them?

Do most people use Beast Academy as a supplement? I'm trying to find the perfect supplement to MUS for my math-inclined child and was considering BA. Currently we review with SM, but it seems a bit much. I thought maybe BA's cartoony presentation would make a nice change and review.

:) bump

Thank you! Thank you very very much! I've been wanting this, and was so disappointed to miss it the first time!

Yes, the big orange book recommended in TWTM.

I'd like to hear what you like about it and if you've switched to it from something else. Can it be used independently, or does it need Mom every day? Thanks!

I think it sounds like an excellent idea to combine them.

For anyone interested in Alpha-Phonics, my sister is giving away a set on her blog here.

I wondered why you acted like you had no summer break. I am also following SA's calendar; we are missionaries in Limpopo (Elim). Where are you? If you were close enough, I would gladly share books for this season with you. But I'm guessing you are in Gauteng or the Cape. Your situation is much harder than what it would be in the States...I agree about the libraries and health care. But still, be careful about the previa, and don't worry about being "behind." You know you are probably already way "ahead" of what the kids in the schools here, whether private or government, are doing. Right now the schools are having winter break for at least 4-5 weeks. You already took 3. So take a few more! So what? You don't have to report anywhere. (Do you?) If you have to catch up in December and January, you can. Let it go for a while. Or if that doesn't work, go back to reading it all in bed--unless that's more stressful. Like I said before, drop the AAS and even FLL, the science and history projects or whatever is stressing you. Do you have a maid to take care of your housework? Do you have someone you trust that you could hire to come in and help watch your kids for a while? Labor is so cheap here, but I don't know if you have anyone you could trust for that. It might be more stressful to have to teach someone your expectations from the bed than to just handle it yourself. I hope you can get some help! I know how it feels, though; I have no help either, being across the ocean from my family.

Thank you! :)

I have only used BP's schedule (their "plan"), not the companion or other extras. For the ages of your children, I suggest simply using SOTW's activity guide. Did you use that with your ancients years? It helps with the narrations, activity ideas, maps, coloring sheets, and extra history and literature book suggestions. It has everything you want listed above. I am not sure that BP has "questions" that you could use for narrations--perhaps in the older kids' cool histories? So the only reasons that I'd go with BP for the grammar stage would be if I wanted their help adding in church history (which you could do yourself with Veritas Press Middle Ages timeline cards--that's what we're doing this year with SOTW2--or Trial and Triumph or some added church history book) or if I had older students using different resources such as MOH or Streams and wanted a guide to tie it all together. Here's my review of BiblioPlan. And here's why I ultimately chose My Father's World instead of BP.

I am still in the overwhelmed-but-trying-to-understand-this-stuff category. I have added many of the CM "extras" (I'll call them) to our classical education, and sometimes feel that we are stuffing our day with arguably good things that are just too much altogether. I don't always feel like I'm teaching from a state of rest trying to get it all done. (But perhaps no mom with 2 toddlers and lots of littles with teacher-intensive subjects feels restful in this position!?) So with the disclaimers that I am inexperienced in these discussions and that I'm not sure if this exactly pertains to the particular debate of multum non multa vs. spreading-a-feast, I wanted to add a thought. CM talks about educating the whole person, and CiRCE about the good, true, and beautiful, and both focus on the inner person rather than preparing a person for collegiate or vocational life. So when I think about how to add the good, true, and especially beautiful to our homeschool, it seems to me that the best ways to do that would be to implement CM's art and music appreciation ideas, as well as nature study. And poetry and good literature. The good and true are implemented in the other skills and contents subjects and Bible. So in the end, I don't see much of a contradiction between these philosophies, unless we get down to specific subject debates and how to implement them. I agree that the examples given above of how people let children pursue their own interests outside of school-time can fit both philosophies, CM and classical. I'm struggling to get the distinctions in the debate or how they have to be inconsistent with one another. Couldn't you spread the feast in a multum non multa way? Go deep on a historical topic, for example, by spreading a feast of books on the subject? Maybe I'm displaying my lack of understanding of the philosophies here...

I think you've made the best decision. ADV history would be fine for a 4th grader, if you add other reading and writing. You're already adding CC history, extra science and Bible. So it should be fine, if not more than enough. A couple of extra considerations though... I like vonfirmath's suggestions above for how to possible rearrange the schedule. Don't be afraid to rearrange MFW's course if you need to for your family. I am potentially going to put ECC at the end of the cycle instead of at the beginning for a few reasons. CC is another issue. Are you going to stick with that? Because if you're going to keep trying to match your history to CC, they're on a different cycle than most other curricula, so eventually you may have to just study different time periods and let the kids "make the connections" between their CC memory work and their (unrelated) history studies. Therefore, if you resign yourself to that possibility, you may feel more freedom this year to do ECC. I also wouldn't want to wait until 7th grade for US history. So one final option if you did want to do the full MFW cycle starting with ECC this year would be to just have her read a basic US history book for book basket time or in the summer or as a read-aloud. You'll have to decide which curriculum to start with in your considerations--MFW or CC?

For me, as I look ahead, I begin to feel a little panicked at how to fit everything in for all of my children. The K and 1st years are so teacher-intensive. So that means when my oldest is in 5th grade, I will also have a 3rd grader, 1st grader, and K-er (or 2 K-ers, if I combine them). I feel that much of the K and 1st grade work needs to be done at elbow, including handwriting. If all of my curriculum is teacher-intensive, our school day will never end. So I'm thinking about which subjects can be done more independently by the olders while I work with the youngers, so that no time is wasted. I also want to streamline wherever possible. I will still use AAS for the lower levels. And I'm contemplating continuing with it. But when I'm thinking practically, I just don't see how I could continue with it in addition to my other goals. I'm not willing to switch other subjects over to independent--history, science, and Bible I want to do all together, and plan to be involved. Math needs me for much of it, and I'm not willing to turn that over to be completely independent either. For grammar I will use R&S, which will be somewhat independent I hope, but not completely. Art and music are not independent. Writing is certainly not. So... it comes down to spelling being perhaps the easiest subject to turn into "seatwork" with minimal Mom needed.

I had to go on bedrest for #4 as well, but my oldest was in K, so no big stress. I am sorry for you! And I hope your pregnancy remains safe. That's the important thing, so don't jeopardize that for schooling. My first thought is that you are up-to-date in LA and math, so it doesn't matter if you're behind in history and science. I would immediately drop science. I would drop any projects in SOTW. I would do school in bed. All the books right there, or student brings them back and forth for you. I would also drop AAS1, just for this time. Can't do that in bed! So it seems obviously cut. OPGTR is enough phonics for now, and when you pick up spelling again after baby is born, they will master the lessons sooner. So that'll be enough phonics, and spelling will be caught up. MUS, just watch the videos, and put the blocks you need in a bag, just enough to get you through. Hopefully you don't have to do any lessons on place value/decimal street?! Those always take the most manipulative work. Maybe move a children's table into your room? All worksheets are done nearby you at a little table or right there on the bed with a hard surface underneath. Of course, you're more understanding about handwriting sloppiness. :) French is out. Since you wing art and music, that's out too. You need to triage right now, and baby's health is more important. Perhaps even take 4 weeks completely off school to get this baby further along in pregnancy and catch up afterwards. Do NOT put stress on yourself because of history and science in 1st and 2nd grade!

I'm in the same position. After we do AAS level 4, I need to move to more independent. I wanted something explicit on the rules, like AAS. Which would be both independent, yet explicit for rules? Is How to Teach Spelling independent? Is R&S as good at explaining the rules as AAS? What about Sequential Sp and phonetic Zoo? Thanks!

Anyone?

My husband and I had an idea for our new homeschool room. We want to print a nice world map on canvas or vinyl and use that as our "curtain" or blind on our window. I've looked on the internet and am struggling to find one. I need a digital image, high resolution since it will be printed so large, preferably up-to-date (I look for South Sudan), and we'd prefer classic earthy colors, or a vintage look, rather than primary colors. I don't mind paying for the download if it's high quality. I'm also looking for a USA version if possible for the other window which is slightly smaller. I'd like both maps to have country (or state for the USA) and capital city names if possible; major rivers would be nice, but not highways. Can you help me find this? TIA!

I would not consider BP's Bible to be enough. It's scheduled 3 days a week, and I usually want to do at least 4, if not 5. In year 1, you have to whiz through the Bible to keep up with the history, even if doing Bible every day in the week. Then in the other years, Bible seems more like church history. If I were using BP, I would be supplementing the Bible portion. Re: CAP's program, I've never looked at it, but we would call ourselves Reformed Baptist, and we've taught our children The Westminsters Shorter catechism for children and there were only a few questions in the catechism itself that we changed the wording to or cut. I believe the one had to do with baptism.

Yes, at least once before/at the beginning of HS, and re-read parts of it repeatedly since then. I read the parts pertaining to our age level every year. I've underlined and taken copious notes. Life-changing!

Is anyone still doing this, or are y'all on break? If you all would rather not be reminded of the grind, I'll quit posting weekly reports until mid-August or so. We school according to the calendar year. Here's our week: https://itavitaafrican.wordpress.com/2014/05/30/watery-wonderings-weekly-report/

Following, as I'm having similar struggles.