Cool site! I'm actually reading the original CM series now. So interesting.

We didn't use it for long. I found it difficult to teach but I did not have the teacher's guide (I was told it wasn't really necessary). I thought the instructions lacked clarity. I'm not discounting the very real possibility that my wee brain is the real problem here but we're actually finding CW to be a better fit and that wasn't exactly easy to figure out either. It might be a good fit for you but I'd urge you to get your hands on a copy first, if at all possible, to peruse before you buy.

No matter which direction our education takes I will forever have a debt of gratitude to TWTM for allowing me to get beyond my early confusion over what home education could be. I think it will always serve as the bones of our school. Even with the adjustments that I continue to make I stick fairly closely to the overall guidelines. The adaptability was one of the things I really loved about it. Of course, we're in our freshman year so there's a lot of evolution to still take place.

I use CW strictly for the writing and mostly ignore the grammar lesson. Its a nice adaptable program in that way.

For times when you may need her to sit you could try having her sit on an exercise ball. Some kids need a lot of feedback and stimulation when they are sitting and they get that from a ball (there are also some inflatable cushions available that do the same thing). The ball also forces them to work on core strengthening where that might be an issue. Its helped a lot here.

Tee hee. I like that its used and the list price is $4.20.

We have a room (that used to be a dining room) where I do the lessons and where the school materials live. Its centrally located so its not separate from the rest of the house. We read together on the couch sometimes but sometimes we stay in the schoolroom and they color when I read. My dd does her independent work at her desk in her room. When lessons are over they play games and do projects and play computer in the schoolroom. You could no more prevent children from learning by having a schoolroom in your home than you could prevent them from growing taller by putting a brick on their head. Even at schools, outside of the classroom kids are learning whether they think they are or not.

Yes...get both. We love this program, btw.

Any chance its ovarian pain? Sometimes mittelschmerz can be a dull ache and sometimes a sharp pain. Or a harmless ovarian cyst can cause pain. The not so harmless can will also but it won't abate.

We're up!

I think it can be daunting if you are challenged by simple math concepts (not naming names but...me). Saxon is so handy with the whole dang thing scripted and all the hand holding is very comforting. But even while I was happy to stick with Saxon I could see all that was appealing in Singapore and *had* to add it in. But my children don't have my limitations. They love Singapore and not so much Saxon. So, I've recently switched over to Singapore and I think they *get* it even without all the drill.

We're up!

...but they make me want to cry sometimes. I'm not mathy. My kids, thanks to my husband, are. Sometimes I want to hand them the teacher's guide and say, "Well, here you go...this is how its done." I don't know if you *need* it but I think it would enhance the learning experience greatly.

Brilliant idea. Those Kumon scissor books have made a huge difference for my son. He does love those pictures though...and I'm such a terrible artist.

Or do I just want it to have it?

...more closely than not. I stay true to the message of the book and follow a lot of the curriculum recommendations. I find the science recommendations invaluable. I am starting to read Charlotte Mason's series as well. I don't feel this one quite as much but I think there's a lot of value in it.

I'm not a craft-lovin' lady. I mean, I love the crafting but I really dislike the cleaning up and sometimes all the prep. That weighs heavily into our lack of crafts. But it hasn't stopped us from enjoying the AG.

I think the distinction is between the mechanics of the physical act of writing and the mental process of taking thoughts and putting them to paper in a proper format. FLL deals with the former while a writing program would address the latter. I don't think there would be any overkill. Of course, copywork/dictation/narration lay a groundwork for later taking thoughts and putting them down in writing but only as models and suggestions for "good" writing. It doesn't teach the rest of the process. At least, this has been my understanding.

We are using it. It is similar to FLL in its tone but instead of just touching on concepts they are really getting familiar with them. There is poem memorization and copywork and dictation but we do our own copywork/dictation on a different schedule. There is quite a bit of sentence diagramming. I allot 15 to 20 minutes per lesson though some run far shorter and I have to tack on a lot of time because this child is insanely chatty. I will use the program again and look forward to FLL4.

The pictures have actually inspired some of our loudest laughs in this first year of homeschool. "Al put mom in a sock" nearly derailed our entire day, but in a good way.

SWO A FLL SOTW 2 w/AG Singapore 2A/2B WTM guidelines for earth science/space Hopefully I'll have him doing some independent reading of chapter books along with read alouds. Possibly Minimus

My son taught himself how to read phonetically at a very early age so I hadn't bothered with any phonics or reading instruction and then thought that might be a mistake. I added ETC a few months ago and love it. It really is an excellent supplement or pre-spelling program.

Wow! Excellent stuff. I'm a big fan of the planning aspect of homeschooling too. Its addictive. But I can see that there are also other very compelling reasons (besides just liking it) to start planning for next year before the summer starts. Thanks for your great responses!

I notice that many people are doing curriculum/lesson planning for fall. Is this because you really, really like planning or does this mean that I shouldn't expect to have time to do it over the summer? This is our first year and I was thinking I could wait and work on it over the summer, no prob, but now I'm wondering. Help a girl out?

I'm not really sure, but my instinct says that it couldn't hurt to test and it could hurt to wait so in the absence of a compelling reason not to then I'd probably do it. Testing doesn't automatically imply that you think something is wrong. Just that you don't know.