Looking for a good Marine Biology course for the younger child who knows a lot but isn't ready for high school marine biology. Anyone know of any courses or curriculum for younger kids? With living in the islands, we do a lot of our own stuff but I want her to really get into it with info about plate tectonics, continental drift, sea life, etc. Any ideas are appreciated.

I posted this elsewhere and it was suggested that I post it here. I have a 9 yr old who we homeschool and 3 yr old who plays. I have been toying with the idea of playing school with him. NOT worksheets or anything but learning through play. My issues right now are that he tends to watch too much TV. He does play really well by himself, but once he gets bored he goes and switches on the TV. What sort of non messy learning activities can I get him to do without breaking the bank? I like messy activities later on in the day once we have finished school and i can devote myself entirely to them. How do you entertain your younger set while your olders do their work? Thanks!

Thanks!

We use an app called Deletreador magico for learning to sound out words in Spanish - I THINK IT'S FREE or really cheap.

Thanks for the link :)

We used Pre Level 1 this past year - chem and biology. I LOVE the fact that my 8 yr old could pick up the books and read them on her own. (She LOVED the section on atoms and molecules.) The Biology book was basically a waste for us because we had already done the last 4 chapters before starting these books and there wasn't any new info. We did take breaks form Science and do our own units, so we didn't finish the 3 books we bought(bio, chem, and physics). We could probably finish all 3 books in a year. I didn't find the experiments to be great, but with some net searching and tweaking you can fix that. We didn't use her lab books in biology as it was too much, but all in all I liked the series. In previewing the level 1 set, I was disappointed that the experiments and chapters all seem to be the same, no different topics, etc. I KNOW the themes will be more in depth, but as a family we need more or rather different topics in biology. I will probably look at a different program for next year because of this.

HAHAHAHA! I LOVE that. I am the same way too. Actually my 9 year ld likes to be alone to play, but my 3 year old doesn't like to let her breather without him so it can create issues. Tell that to DH. He'd go crazy and his eyes would bug out of his head! GREAT idea. I am off in search of a timer now that isn't attached to my Iphone! Also another fantastic idea. Am going to work on that one too. I am going to work on these suggestions. In our homeschooling group I am the only one with an age spread like this and who has not been homeschooling since the beginning of my kid's lives, so I get plenty of blank stares when I ask about this issue. Keep the suggestions coming! I'm all :bigear:

We do our school stuff in the living room/kitchen area and out side on the deck. So there isn't a TV for her to watch, but the little one does know how to turn on the TV by himself, so he wanders into my room(where the TV is located) and turns it on. I like the idea of having him sit on my lap to correct her work. I will try that. We just started homeschooling about a year ago, so I feel like I am still trying to figure things out. Figuring out how much work to do in a day, what is really important to know, how many breaks, etc. Plus throw in toddler aged 3 to the mix, gets interesting to say the least!

Well, it's done. The vet was great and DH stayed until our pet was well tranquilized. The vet gave him a sedative and then once that took effect came back to administer the final dosage. I know it was hard for DH, but I am glad he stayed with our Lab for at least that long. It was much better than when I had to put my horse to sleep. Thanks for all the input, both supportive of my thoughts and not. If anyone else feels the need to continue this discussion then please do. I however am signing off on this one. Again, thanks for your words.

I must say that I shouldn't have probably said heated discussion in the original post. We have been going back and forth with the subject for weeks now and I just don't understand DH's stance on not wanting to be there. For me, I have PTS many animals including my first horse who was only 5, it is a no brainer - you stay. BUT I will say DH has never had any other animals and never had to PTS an animal before. Theoretically I understand that this is REALLY hard for him, but mentally I don't understand why he can't seem to grasp that the dog is miserable and we shouldn't prolong his life or not be there for him when we are PTS the dog. He also has no concept of how peaceful it can be, so he is envisioning a bad tie rather than an easy peaceful time. I have decided that I WILL be there and we are telling our DD today and i will give her the option of being there as well. She's 9 and can handle it. I am thinking of calling our vet and finding out if he can do it here at the house - I had never thought of that. It would be nice for our pet if we could go to sleep quietly on the lawn hearing the birds and the trees than in a vets office ... although he loves our vet and loves going to the vets because he gets treats..... he's a Lab; food = good place and people. :001_huh: As for the discussion of compassion for humans and not allowing euthanasia - we should totally allow humans to be PTS. Especially if they are in pain or miserable and there is no cure. ANYWAY, thanks all for the input. It was good to hear the opinions.

DH and I are having a heated discussion about this. We need to put our dog down and I say one of us should be there. He says no. I will be there no matter what. What would you do?

Anyone?

My DH likes the house spotless... I just laugh. Our home is pretty open to the elements, so it can get messy, but I do vacuum at least 3x a week and the kitchen is cleaned a LOT during each day. The bathrooms, mopping, dusting, that gets done maybe 1x a week. We ahem, I , do clutter, and I KNOW I need to be better about that, but I have a hard time putting things away when I still using them..... It's taken me a long time to realize that myDH and I just have different styles and if he wants it neater, he needs to do it himself.

Our house is on the market too. we have had it on the market since Feb. I wanted to list is in September, but neither DH nor I wanted to move when there was a possibility of selling and moving during the winter. Since then, our market has collapsed and we are wondering if we will EVER sell it :( Our local economy tanked in the end of Feb and we NEED to move for work now rather than just wanting to move like before - oh well, goes to show you should just do it when you first think about it. I didn't mind the fixing up, it's the cleaning for a showing that I hate. We spend all day cleaning and the potentials only spend 15 mins of their time in the house. Sigh... we just had a showing today and supposedly the people love it so we will see. Still though, I hate waiting. Our house is beautiful, all updated, HUGE yard(.6 acres), pool, stainless appliances, 3 bed 3 bath plus a detached guest house, GREAT HOA, and still no takers. Ideally when we sell we want more acreage and a fixer upper. No idea where yet, but we at least know what we want :)

Hi All, I have a 3 and 9 year old. I don't really teach the 3 year old - we play, sing, build with legos, play in the sand, and read. The 9 year old I teach LA, Span, French, Hist, Science, SS, and Math to(not everything everyday). I find myself either ignoring the 3 year old to teach the 9 year old, or ignoring the 9 year old to play with the 3 year old. I really mainly ignore the 3 year old and he watches too much tv... which I HATE. How do you divide up your day if you have a big age spread like I do? My 9 year old is pretty self sufficient, but I just feel like I should be doing more with her in terms of sitting near her and checking her work, or explaining concepts. Plus I also feel like 3 year old just gets the short end of the stick..... HELP! Any suggestions as to how to divide my time, or what I could do to give my 3 yr old the attention he needs or the time to do more reading/playing? Thanks.

AWSOME!This is exciting.

I read about a great French Program called Matou le Tatou. I think we will use that next year.

Thanks all. I think come fall we will start French. I just need to get a game plan going. I am sure she will pick up quickly. If not, I will b back! Lol.

1. Do you understand the reference about sleeping (or waking up) next to a pod? No idea whatsoever 2. If yes, do you think it is a culturally important reference (ie. pretty widely known/common knowledge) or not? Maybe 3. What country do you live in? Grew up in the caribbean to US Parents, still live int eh caribbean. Traveled all over the US and Europe 4. How old are you?34 5. And just for fun 1956, 1978, 1993, or 2007? 1978

Hi All, My dd wants to look at stars, planets, the ISS better. She has a pair of binoculars but I don't think they are powerful enough to really see anything. Any suggestions as to what to get her. I really don't want to break the bank on a telescope as things just do not tend to last here what with the salt air and corrosion being issues, but I also don't want a cheapo set that won't work. Thanks!

Hi All, My dd is 9 and already understands, reads some, and speaks Spanish as well as English. My question is when should I introduce French? She has heard French and I sing to her in French, but I want to start formal instruction. Any ideas if I could do that now, or would I just confuse her?

I remember learning to read Spanish as a child and we had a simple read that taught us vowel and consanent letter combinations, then we moved on to combos like what an earlier poster said. I have suffered from the same problem though as I no longer have my childhood texts and I want something concrete for my dd.