I'm thrilled with being able to watch videos without having to wait for them to buffer. But after researching, it seems that people quickly use 5 gigs if they are watching videos/gaming... It looks like comcast/xfinity doesn't cap it until 250 Gigs. That's huge difference. Anyone have any experience with Xfinity?

As of yesterday, we FINALLY have a fast enough internet connection that will enable us to watch videos on Netflix instant cue. I have a Verizon mobile hotspot and am allowed 5 gigabytes a month. I have no idea what that translated in to. For those of you who use instant Netflix, are you able to watch movies/shows frequently, or do you really have to be on top of what you are using? Also, is 5 gigabytes a typical/fair amount. I previously had unlimited usage with a Sprint card, but just couldn't get a fast enough speed to watch videos.

Ironically, I just posted a review of these last night on the logic/middle grades board. I'd link you if I knew how. The thread is called "science...someone shoot me now"... My son used two of these this past year and loved them.

Something that I have never seen mentioned on these boards (maybe I just missed it), but that we had success with this year, is Academy of Science for Kids. I found them last year at FPEA, and while I was there two of the most 'sciencey' moms I know raved highly about them. They sell kits. In the kits are 12 expirements, each with everything you need for each expirement separated out into little zip lock bags. And when I say everything, I mean everything. We just did one on electricity, and they even included salt and pepper packets needed for an expirement, a little set of screwdrivers needed for another. Really everything, but maybe something like water. There is a science journal/notebook included that gives instructions and asks them questions as they are conducting the expirement. Often they'll have you diagram what you have done. My only negative is that while they guide the child to make their own conclusions, this non science mom would like a little bit more explanation on each topic.(ie. a few paragraphs to read on the topic). They do however, include a Discovery Science website subscription with each kit(I really don't know if this would cost anything by itself) and they are encouraged to watch videos etc. from the site to learn more info. I did not take advantage of that as much as I would have liked because I found that site to be a little difficult to navigate. We did one kit in the fall, and one in the spring. And while we didn't spend as much time on science as I would have liked, at least I feel that I did something this year and could cross it off my list. And my son (10) did it on his own as much as possible. With your girls' ages they could probably easily do these independently. Oh, and one more thing. After they finish each kit they can go online and take a test and earn credits for prizes in their prize store. (the negative--you still have to pay shipping)

Thanks. I feel I have some direction now. Now, just to narrow it down because all that sounds great!

I am trying to find a science that my 11yo ds can do (mostly) independently next year. We have yet to do any study of chemistry, so that is the direction I am leaning towards. I took a look at the Elemental Science website, and it looks good, but I'm concerned that their chemistry is geared toward 3rd/4th graders. OTOH, that might be it be a little bit more independent for him. I'd like something he can pick up and read, and he is dyslexic, so his reading level is a bit behind. I'd also like to try to count this science reading as his 'reading comprehension', since I really can't find any other books that interest him (other than Diary of a Wimpy Kid). I'm trying to gear next school year towards his strengths/interests, so I'm hoping if we are more science based (vs. history) that he will put in more effort, and maybe actually enjoy school. I've also looked a little at The Story of Science. And I think that might work, but I'm not sure of the reading level. Does anyone have any suggestions of something that might fit the bill for us? Thanks, Ginger

I started with the first light unit a few months ago (then decided to put it on hold until fall), but I did use the teacher's guide every day, and I'm generally one to try to get by without using a TE. It could probably be done, but you wouldn't get the 'richness' out of the program.

I check her work daily and we go over the problems that she misses and do them together. So I've gotten a feel for the types she is missing. But it just seem that no matter how many times we work through them....(for ex...to change a fraction to a percent, you divide and multiply by 100), it doesn't seem to sink in. What's most frustrating is that she used to be able to do these and understand why. I even bought posters from the school supply store and put them around our school room as cues for her. My short term game plan is to not mover any farther in 8/7 and go back and work on the drill sheets. I ordered the first few LoFred books and I'll have her do those over the summer, then I think I'll have her do Lial's pre-algebra next year if things start to click, and if not, I guess she can do the BCM.

You're right. She doesn't seem to understand the concepts, which is frustrating because we used RightStart all the way through E. So at that time she had good conceptual understanding, but with the limited practice with RightStart, she wasn't able to solidify what she was learning.

I am on the Pearson website and there are several different pre algebras on there: Prealgebra (basic math with very early algebra) Beginning Algebra Basic Math and Introductory Algebra Pre Algebra and Introductory Algebra I'm a little confused....which is the pre algebra that everyone gets? And where do you usually order it from? Thanks!!

Thank you for your thoughts. I'm the same way. I really 'get' Saxon. It makes sense to me, but on the other hand, I do not remember doing the stuff she is learning now until high school. I've been looking at Lial's today. (well, first off, do they have an actual website--looks like the sites I've found are just copies of the books). I found a used 2nd edition Pre Algebra on Abe Books for $1. It is from 2002. Has it changed that much over the years? At this point, do you know if Pre-Alg would work, or should she just do the BCM. This late in the year I hate to start something new, so I'd probably wait until next year, and since I would like her to start Algebra in 9th grade (the following year, I feel like she'd need to do the Pre-Alg next year. What do I need to order the Lial's--I saw some solution manuals listed and I assume they'd be needed. Anything else?

The past several days, I feel like I have read just about every thread on this board related to Algebra/Pre-Algrebra, but none seem to have mentioned Saxon. My dd is 13 in Saxon 8/7 and is failing miserably. She is about 3/4 of the way through and misses at least half of the problems in her daily work, and has done that for quiet a while. I guess I should have put the brakes on months ago, but I just figured that with the spiral approach, that she'd eventually 'get it'. She seems to do well with the new lesson material each day, but must break down when it comes up in subsequent lessons. Math is taking her hours to do each day and we are just both miserable. The concepts that she seems to be struggling most with are ones that she has been doing for years: Perimeter/Area (she forgets which one uses 'square' cm vs. cm), finding area of a circle (mixes up radius/diameter, multiplies the radius by 2 instead of squaring it), adding/subtracting/multiplying/dividing negative numbers, converting decimals to percents and vice versa. She recently asked me 'aren't there 100cm in a yard?!' She also recently took the high school ACT as a 7th grader because she is in the Duke TIP program. When asked about how she did, she said she had to find the area of a rectangle and she had forgotten how to do it. This is smart girl. She was a Classical Converstion Memory Master 2 years in a row. She had all that committed to memory. What happened?? It's like everything she has ever learned in math has gone out the window. I don't know if it is Saxon or something else? Last year in 7/6 she has similar problems with missing many many problems on her work. I just thought things would click. Now I'm in that conundrum of what to do next year for Pre Algebra. I'm going to try to spend the next few weeks having her do games online that have to do with negative numbers, area etc... And I also just bought Life of Fred Fractions, Decimals and Percents to do over the summer. But in my mind I was planning to just prepare her to go into either Saxon Algebra 1, or now more likely Algebra 1/2. But I'm wondering if I should stay far far away from Saxon. If it hasn't clicked with her these past few years, perhaps it won't in high school either. I do have the teaching CD's and we've been using them for about the past month. I thought that was helping, but she says she doesn't understand what the lady is saying.... So as I've perused the boards reading about different programs, I have not seen Saxon recommended, and I'm just wondering why that is. And if maybe I should not feel so guilty about leaving Saxon (if we do).

That convention looks so cool! My 13 yo dd would LOVE that. If I had heard about it sooner, I think I would have had to have planned to take her. Looks like it is full, now. I'll have to mark the link for next year!

Turns out I have Calico Bush, not Calico Captive. I browsed through the book, and while their is a lot of talk of scalping, and some references to red hair, the girl in the story isn't raised by indians. She is an indentured servant.

That sounds really familiar. I think I have Calico Captive here. If I do, I'll look through it and see if that is it.

I'd like to know, too. We gave our kitty shots when we first got her (over 2 years ago), but I haven't taken her back to the vet since. She's also an indoor, only cat. I don't know that all those shots are necessary.

Am I the only one who uses none of those? If I have to wash something by hand, or wipe the counters down, I use paper towels. That way I can just toss it and not have to worry about all the yucky stuff. I don't really consider myself a germiphobe, but dish cloths/sponges are one thing that creep me out. Occasionally I'll use one to wipe the counters, but they end up with a funky smell I can't rid of. Is there anything wrong with using paper towels that I should know about?

I LOVE my Nook Color. However, after the first day of using it, I had the worst eye strain and had like a car sickness feeling. So I adjusted the brightness --and you can even change the background color, which I did change to black with white text,-- and dimmed it, and I was fine after that. A few weeks ago I was reading in the store and after about an hour, I got that same sickish feeling back. I realized later that I had turned the brightness back up, so I think that was the problem. I am considering buying the regular Nook for my son, who does have eye issues. A benefit I have discovered of these electronic readers is that you can adjust the font size and spacing, making books that my son would have never have attempted to read, readable for him.

Not sure how much you are wanting to spend...but how about a nook/kindle?

With my older two children I used HWT and followed the typical sequence of teaching print, then cursive in later 2nd or 3rd grade. When my youngest daughter was preschool age, she easily learned to write her letters--but mostly the uppercase ones. So I decided to start Abeka Cursive with her in kindergarten. We've been working on it slowly over the past year (only about half way through now). I've been concerned with her lack of ability to correctly write lower case print letters, although I've tried to tell myself not to worry about it since our focus is cursive. She can copy them, but doesn't 'do' them the HWT way, nor are they appropriate size in comparison to her capital letters. Usually when she is just writing something, she'll use capital print letters, and I've let her do that since she hasn't really got that far into cursive--as far as connecting letters, etc. Another concern came up this week. I started her with the CLE Language Arts 1 and the lessons have been dealing with capital/lower case letters. She can easily match the capital with its lower case but she doesn't really get the concept of a capital letter. So now I'm thinking maybe I should just ditch the cursive and stick with print. Neither of my older two write in cursive anymore, and I have chosen to pick other battles rather than choosing the one to have them write their papers in cursive. But I was hoping that if my younger learned it from the beginning that that is what she'd stick with. How likely is that? If you've taught cursive from kindergarten, do your kids also eventually learn to write print correctly?

I broke down yesterday and pooled my Christmas money and bought a Nook Color. This morning I downloaded a few free ebooks. One of them was Ben Hur, but I can't read it. Most of the font is gibberish. Is there a way to fix this? Thanks!!

Can you have the same books on each, or do you have to buy them twice? My daughter and I would like to each get one, but I don't know that there is any point in having two in the house.

Yes!! The kids are getting a trampoline--can't wait to jump ;-) Still haven't figured out the logistics of how it will be already put together tomorrow morning.

Thanks for your opinions on both! So do you have to make separate purchases for each? Like if you wanted a book, you'd have to buy it from both places if you wanted it on each device? Have you tried using the Nook outside? I heard that was an issue since it is an LCD screen. Ginger

I played with the Nook Color at B&N a few weeks ago and fell in love with it. Granted, this was my first time really playing with any e reader, but I was just never drawn to them before. I like the fact that there was color on the pages, especially for childrens picture books, and the fact that it can read the books to my children (although I think that option is only available on some books). Since then I researched the kindle online. I see it has a 'read to me' feature. Would that be the same thing as what I was saying the Nook does. Is it a 'pleasant' voice? From what I understood, I thought you could get ebooks from anywhere, not just B&N. But with the Kindle, you have to use Amazon. Is this correct? I would think if you had any ereader, you could get books from anywhere. What would be the difference (as far as e reading goes) in the Nook Color and the I Pad? For the record, I'm not very techie and I don't even get good use out of my ipod because it just seems like so much work to put songs on it.