Basically when they need to be done. My son has a few chores. For example he needs to take the recycling out. Sometimes I have to remind him but I am trying to train him to notice it for himself and get to it. Likewise with laundry and cleaning up after himself. Setting and clearing the table get done as needed around meal time.

This thread list the number rhymes from CLE. My son loves those. I wish they has such great letter rhymes. Someone mentions alphabet island having some letter rhymes that are cute too http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/230229-rhymes-to-learn-letters/

Rhymes like this can help with troublesome letters. http://ortunosocean.edublogs.org/parents/abc-letter-formation-rhymes/

Everytime I have seen one of those "horrors of common core" post all over Facebook and the web I realize how it is often just Singapore or MUS method revamped. This issue is that the parents had such an abysmal math education that they don't understand why the kids are doing what they are doing. One example had a child drawn 70 little x inside 10 circles. It seemed odd until one realized it was just a pictorial method of teaching to divide; 70/10. I use the same method with my son using Cheerios and post it notes. Some terms have changed. Things like "number sentence" is a relatively new term. But the thing is with the right teacher the child knows what a number sentence is. Often the kids aren't confused. They are more bewildered by their parents bafflement. Their parents tell them that they are doing it all wrong is just as damaging. I am not saying there are poorly written curricula. There certainly are. But that is not what common core is. And the curriculum choice is at the discretion of the school district in most cases. So they should be the ones under fire.

My son was solidly doing second grade Maths. He did spectrum, Singapore, go math. But we found that going back to grade one with CLE was pertinent. There are so many things that are more advanced. Congruent was introduced in the first 30 or so lessons. I think within 40-60 lessons he will be doing the same 3 number addition problems that he was covering in 2nd grade. Each lesson is short and simple, but there is this amazing degree of rigour. Today in lesson 40 something my son was doing a basic multiplication problem hidden behind a fun story problem. It isn't the first time he has encountered this. He always struggled with currency, but CLE covers that so well. I never could believe that there could be a program that was gentle and rigorous at the same time. But so far this is. Will we love it forever? I don't know. But we love it now.

I can't speak of higher levels but the 1st grade level presents spelling in a way that my spelling resistant son is learning from. It does teach rules. Thus far he has learnt that k is followed by i and e, c is followed by a, o and u. S,z,l,f are doubled at the end of words. And e at the end of words makes vowels say their long sound. There has been more but I can't think what else off the top of my head. But essential it is all introduced gently with the rest of the LA. There has been no set spelling list. And there need not be as the words we are learning now are just sounded out and the simple rules are applied.

I know Dorothy was super popular after the Wizard of Oz was published. The decline in the last few years has been rapid.Copied from Wiki. Dorothy was a less common variant of Dorothea, until Eve became one of the most popular girl's names in the United States between 1904 and 1940. It was ranked among the top 10 most popular names given to American newborn girls. The name remained among the top 100 most popular names for American girls until 1961. It then declined in popularity and was last ranked among the top 1,000 most popular names for American newborn girls in 2006, when it was ranked in 986th position. There were 235 newborn American girls given the name in 2010. Just 20 American girls were given the variant name Dorothea in 2010.[3]

They are blank on one page and lined on the opposite side. Super useful. We alway used the blank side to glue things in. They were very useful for geography. The blanks page was good for maps or flags and the lined pages were good to write facts.

My son also has a pretty common name. The most popular boys name of the 1940s. I don't know many with his name but the ones I do are always named after their grandfather.

My aunt Gertrude is 100 this year. :)

My son spells words like pin as pen. He isn't wrong due to this region (and his father's) accent.We also have issues with words like butter. I distinctly say but-ter. My husband and son say Budduh.

I fived you both. And some random other that I clicked on also.

Sean is another one tough to use in the US. And yes Lach = Lock. Locky is a common nickname. And I certainly prefer Rhys spelling.

Aww Shucks! Thanks. Back at ya!

Yes! Those crack me up. I also see the opposite. 5 stars and a bad review.

I never knew you could. This is my first rating and I gave it 5! I didn't know about stars on profiles either. I am a compete 0. Not a single star.

Australian names are different to American names. I wanted to name my son Lachlan (most popular Aussie name that year) but none of my American friends could figure out how to pronounce it. Some family names that seem icky to me. Enid, Stewart, Spencer, Cornelius. I am fond of Gertrude, good of' auntie Gert is pushing 100 soon. Just waiting out for her letter from the queen.

Adolf Alfredo D!ck Fanny/Fannie (although I have heard Francis being used recently) Cockburn (I feel dirty writing that) Gay/Gaye/Gaylord Les Many names that were male that became female. Meredith Maddison/Addison Marion Jennifer (there was a spike of male Jennifers. I think 1940) My boy's name is James I saw it hit that top hundred list for girls. I wonder if his is doomed. Kermit Elmo Bert Oscar Ernie Eh may as well say Cookie Monster too. Snufflupafus? Then the icky names Bertha Ralph Blanche Dorcas Ermengarde (think that meme) Millie is not unheard of in the south. But it is often a nickname for Amelia, Millicent, or whatever Theo has become common Clara and Claire are pretty common too. As is Henry. Archimedes isn't making a come back I think, but I do know one. He goes by Archie.

Beverly Cleary books are great. Especially Stockard Channing's reading of the Ramona books.

Exercise books. The real ones. Not the composition books they use in the US. Botany and quad ruled books too. I will have to load my parents up with stationary next time they visit the states. It is so silly really. But to much cheaper. When we used to cover our books we used brown paper or wrapping paper and then used plastic or contact paper over top of them. You could also use all the pretty colored contact paper. But I preferred the brown paper as it allowed us to use stickers and pictures from magazines to decorate our books. I love back to school time.

The beauty of intergrated vs side by side courses is that what is being learnt in one math stream will be applied and built upon by another. This is a first grade example from my sons maths work... He learnt to count by 5s then a few lessons later he learns to count nickels, then a few lessons later he is doing time, and lessons after that he is doing fractions. Now he is constantly reviewing counting by 5s, nickels, time, and fractions. But you can see how it builds upon each other. He has quite a few curricula and workbooks that don't work like this. They would have a chapter based upon number sense, which would cover skip counting, then a chapter on addition, then a chapter on subtraction, a chapter on measurement, a chapter on time and money, a chapter on geometry with fractions. Many would consider this spiral, and due to the constant review it is. But every single lesson covers all these elements of Maths. Not all spiral does that.

I second the above suggestions of critical thinking books.

My son learnt to read via sight words when he was 2. But he wasn't fond of phonics until he was three. Not sure he was ever fond of them. He intuited most of it. But I am reinforcing phonics via spelling now. You could certainly do a balanced approach. There is no right or wrong way to teach reading. And I don't think there is a time that is too early as long as it is enjoyable and you have a willing student.

We have considered this year from January to December as my sons unofficial Kinder year. Though technically he would be in Pre-K this fall. He loves number also. He cries to do math if we ever skip a day. And he suggested to a friend who has an unruly 4 year old that she should just makes her son do math when he is acting out. And even though we are calling this Kinder year we are covering material from pre-k to 3rd or even 4th grade.

I never limit my son's reading time. But he does have some daily requirements to be met. He needs adequate sleep. He needs to eat his meals and snacks. He needs to take care of person hygiene. He needs to be active, outside time preferable. And he needs to do his chores around the house. Then he is free to do whatever he wants. Even if it means reading for 5 hours. Oh I do require him to take breaks to relieve his eyes.