Actually, you can do K12 just one course at a time. If you want to do it month-to-month, and sign a one year contract (you have 30 days to cancel without penalty), it's something like $29.95 auto-draft. We have done this for the past three years. Since you can switch courses anytime within that year, we actually were able to get History and Science. We did History for the main part of the year, usually 8 months, and then have them load Science, and do that during our light-school work months, Summer. Actually, Florida is not doing away with FLVS or even reducing it. I think you have that confused with the Virtual Academies.....their not the same thing...although they kind of are....if that makes sense. If you look up FLVS and then look up FLVA/Connections Academy, you will see what I mean...don't have time to type it all now. You can do FLVS part-time, but you are right, they currently do not offer classes until 6th grade. Some counties do already have their Virtual Academies up and running (state mandated all counties are to have one by 09-10 fall year), but I haven't checked if you can do those part-time or not as not something I would be doing.

Yeah, it's called Conniker or something. Apparently it could already be on your computer, but not set to "activate" until April 1st. They said not even shutting down your computer tomorrow will help, as soon as you re-boot, the thing will kick in. They also said that it's possible with all of the hype, that whoever created it might change it so that it will kick in at a later date once the hubbub has died down. I am running a scan on my computer right now.

I don't see why you would purchase a curriculum for children that age to do what is natural for them to do anyway? They want to run and play....let them...take them to the park...go at it. No curriculum needed. So you want a curriculum that teaches group games, specifically for outdoors? First, I would think that it would be hard to implement with only two very small children, only one of which would really be interested in even following the game rules. Second, what game do you want to play, probably could find the instructions online for free. Let's assume you were able to get a group of children together on a weekly basis for a PE class. Teach the game the first week, and then spend the next few weeks playing and reinforcing the rules. Again, no curriculum needed. I would not worry to much about it at this age. A few years down the road, ask your city/count Rec dept to start a HS P.E. Many already offer this, and others probably would if they knew there was a need. If that doesn't work, start your own PE class, inviting other HSers of like age. A curriculum to teach health, okay, I see that, but a curriculum for PE, especially at that young age, I don't see that at all.

Chores are done everyday by my children, DS10 and DS6. DS10 has been doing two a day for a few years now, and DS6 just graduated from one a day to two when he turned six. The chores are required as part of getting their "free time". Schoolwork first, and then you do your two chores. After that, you can do what you want. If you refuse to do chores (DS6 used to do this alot, but he is getting used to the routine now), then anything you enjoy to doing is not allowed (ie tv, video games, playing with friends, etc). The refusal doesn't usually last long. DS10 is used to the routine and never gives me a problem. The chores are not difficult, and they are geared towards the age, but they do help me out. I do not use a chore chart, but just decide what needs to be done that day. DH helps wherever I ask him to help. On a daily basis, he unloads the dishwasher, and I load it. He does his own laundry, while I do every else's, although I am teaching DS10 to do his own. I can't stand clutter, so my house isn't too bad, although some of the nitty-gritty time-consuming jobs don't get done as often just cause I really hate to clean. I like it clean, I just don't want to clean :)

The only thing you typed that made me stop is "then they fill up on applesauce and fruits"...or something like that. To me that says they know they don't have to worry about the other food cuz they will end up with what they want. Did I take it wrong? We did the same thing a few years ago, and it is still a work in progress for DS10 who was used to eating a very different way (ie easy, not really healthy meals and unlimited amounts). Now we eat similiar to what you have mentioned, but we also do portion control. Ie, here is your serving size of applesause, along with the other food. Try it all once, eat what you like, but there will not be seconds (except in a few rare occasions). The thing is, although fruit are wonderful healthy alternatives to candy, chips, other junk, they are still loaded with natural sugars. To be eating TOO much fruit and not enough of the veggies/protien is not a balanced diet either. If it were my house, I would be limiting their fruit intake until they start balancing with the other choices on the plate, ie half a banana instead of a whole banana. At first our policy was you could eat as many fruits as you wanted. Want a snack, okay, help yourself to a fruit. Still hungry after dinner, okay, help yourself to another fruit (one was already served with dinner)......but the problem came in that DS10 was basically eating fruit non-stop and then wasn't hungry for dinner OR would refuse the main course of dinner, eat the fruit that came with dinner, and then 20 minutes later, want another fruit. Ugh, okay, that's not really what we had in mind with that rule. I heard a holistic pediatriacian speak once, and she said some things that I really took to heart. Children will not let themselves starve to death (provided they are given food). They might not eat at every meal, but if they choose to skip dinner (cuz they didn't "like" what was made), breakfast is a long way off. Bet they eat like champs at breakfast and probably realize they don't want to have to skip dinner again. It takes effort for everyone in the house, and there are many nights I am slightly frustrated with DS10 who will choose not to eat what I cooked based on the "look" (what's that Green thing? Why is that shaped like that?) of it. UGH!! Thankfully DS6 and DS3 were young when we changed our habits, so they don't really know any different.

WTM does seem to be an almost impossible program to implement 100% completely and stay sane, especially if you have many children. The best thing for you to remember is that you control the curriculum, so take what you can from WTM and leave the rest for later to gradually add in. It looks like 3 out the five children won't really be doing much schoolwork, except maybe the 5 year old is just getting into it. The 9 year old should be on his/her way to starting to do somethings indepenedently in the next year, with Mom in the background, versus doing the actual teaching. Here's my thoughts if I had your brood: 1. Enlist the older children to take turns entertaining the younger children while you school the others. IE, 9 year old plays with littles for 30 minutes while you work with 7 year old. Then 7 year old does the same while you work with 9 year old. 2. Consider schooling year round, as this gives your brain a much larger window to have the work completed in...you won't feel as much stress if you get behind. 3. Schoolwork doesn't just have to be on Mon-Friday...Sat and Sun work too...unless religious reasons prevent Sunday work. But I like to take advantage of when DH is home entertaining my littles so we often do work on Sat a.m. when we have nothing else going on. Not a full load like Mon-Fri, but we might do one or two of the subjects that I really need uninterrupted, quiet time with the older child. I am talking maybe an hour or so. But that is so much better for us then trying to stress if we didn't get something done because of the littles creating havoc for us. 4. Take days off whenever YOU need it. You have alot going on with the littles, and you should either schedule a regular "play day", ie park day, or just make sure you do it often enough that both you and the children don't get burnt out trying to keep on the WTM schedule. 5. Stagger when you start subjects. Since we school year round, we start some new subjects in the fall, when we officially start our new grade level, but then we start new things in January.....by then we are usually almost done with a few subjects, so the load balances out, but we do complete EVERYTHING I have chosen for that grade level.

That depends on why you took them out. No need to disclose here if you don't want to, but ask yourself the questions. Did you take them out because they were struggling, and what did they struggle with? Did you take them out because they needed more fast-moving advancement? Or was it not related to academics at all? Ya know, it doesn't have to be ALL 4th OR 5th...you can do a mixture of whatever level suits them....hey, it might even be 6th or 3rd for certain subjects, depending on their strengths and what curriculum you choose. I would HIGHLY recommend that you take these next few months and read some HSing books for yourself before buying anything. Boost your own confidence. In the meantime, there are plenty of free websites where they can do some basic schooling skills to keep them learning. Start getting your family into a school routine, so your children know what to expect from HSing (so they know it's not about sleeping in, watching TV all day, etc that children might be dreaming about :). Take these next few months to learn as much as you can about your options as a HSer, and THEN, ONLY THEN, start looking at different curriculum choices.

we love the Apologia Zoo II here...been doing it since August. Each chapter is a different marine animal/type, so it's not exactly the "same" thing each lesson. We will do Apologia Astronomy next year....8 or 9 planets, all totally different...will take a year to do that...love it. My son is coming away from the Swimming creatures book knowing SO much, it's amazing. We have done other sciences, and they are just to "all over the place" for my tastes. I don't know that my son has really retained anything from those past 4 years of science, including using R.E.A.L science and K12.

It's 12 weeks, for 2 semesters. Hmm, a big CORE of CC is memorization....memorizing history cards, science facs, presidents, etc etc. It might be hard to keep up missing that much in a row. On the other hand, if you buy the guide, which is what the Tutors in CC are following, and you were diligent, you could do the work at home to ensure they are keeping pace for when they return.

"If you want a curriculum that is at least comparable to a mediocre public school, TT would not be it." I don't get this statement....are you saying it is better or worse than PS math?? From the previous statements, I would say you not for TT, but this statement is confusing. If you were to follow TT from early middle school and finish all the way through, you will have covered EVERYTHING your child needs to go to colleg emath. If you start with this math and then change to that math, and then change to another math, yes, you will have gaps that will need to be made up. I think too many parents get "worried" if the math is easy for the child, like it is not hard enough or teaching them enough.....could it be that they are actually learning it in a such a way that makes math easy? Is that a bad thing???? Okay, so say it is a year behind...move your child up a grade level and boost their self-esteem. What's the harm? Please, when you give a review of the program, how about stating if you actually used the program? I am using it with my son, who is mathematically inclined, and we love it so far. We plan on using it all the way through. Check the High school boards....talk to people who used it through high school and see what their outcome has been.

Although my DH has a job, he is VASTLY underemployed, and took the job to survive until he could find something in his field. It pays the bills. Prior to that, he was out of work for four months. I look in the Sunday paper every week. It used to be 4-6 pages long for the unemployment section. Now, it is 1/2-1 page. It is just despairing.

Hmm, I am wondering if it has to do with the religion aspect....people say the South is friendly....the South is called the "Bible belt".....wonder if there is any correlation. I am from the Midwest, and know certainly that church is important to families there, BUT that being said, it wasn't until I moved to the South (first SC, now FL) that I saw these families who literally go to church several times a week, the churches are just HUGE, and they offer alot of "extras" ie, sports, socials, small group meeting, children programs, etc to bring the families in. Although the South is not so "South" anymore, as I meet more people who are transplants than natives.

Thankfully, I have been DS6 karate school offers classes six days a week for his age, although we only attend three. The beauty is that I can pick which three based around the rest of our week schedule. Now that DS10 baseball is in full swing, I decided that I will do Karate on the same days as baseball, so we do as much as we can on those days, which makes it a long day, BUT on the other hand, that gives us two days a week where we have NOTHING to do. I try to even avoid errands on those days, so we can literally just stay home and relax.

I would highly recommend Growing with Grammar. Assuming you will go the FLL series, the child will come out with a wealth of grammar knowledge, and easily go into GWG. It is directed to the student, very little teaching on your part, which is perfect for a student with a strong background in grammar.

We have it, intending to start using it in the next few months for our U.S. History studies. So far, I have read several lessons, the TM and the student workbook, and am very impressed with it. I am looking forward to using it with my child. I picked it over Joy Hakims Story of the U.S. due to the TM and workbook that comes with it, versus having to buy one for each book with Hakim's books. You really wouldn't have to use anything else if you have this program. I might add in some historical movies for fun, as will definately add in historical fiction and non-fiction (the TM comes with a book list otherwise I will use Sonlight as a general guide)

You can give it away...you CAN'T sell it. Pretty sure there isn't anywhere on the paperwork that says you can't give it away. And let's just say there is.....pretty sure WIC isn't going to come after you if you did....how would they know?? It's not doing anything "wrong". In this economy, there are probably lots of people who could use it but haven't thought to sign up for WIC. I would put it on Craigslist (the FREE category), if you don't know someone personally to give it to. Or to a foodbank.

Just got a TM yesterday, although for Explorers-1815. Each unit is based off of the Memory Cards. Each unit has a worksheet, with 8 or so questions. Then there are projects, anywhere from 2-4 per unit. The projects are things like draw a map, make a salt map of the Explorers routes, artsy-crafty projects based on the time, make your own game ideas. etc. Then each unit has a test, again 8 or so questions, fill in the blank...most questions are similiar to what was on the worksheet. There is also a few literature units based on books that correlate with the cards. I will probably use these for my DS10. See it now, I would not buy it again. Actually I only got it because it was part of a good deal with the cards, I was looking for the cards. I might use the TM as a very basis starting point for DS6, but most of it will be way over his head. I already bought All American History for DS10, so this stuff will just be time-fillers if we use any of it. I can see using this Manual if you just want a very brief glimpse if this is your only History curriculum, along with the other spines listed on the cards. Not for us, though.

...my day is about to follow a similiar path... It started at 730a.m., I walk into the computer/class room.. DS10 is in front of the computer, and the first thing he says to me is "I THOUGHT you said today would be a LIGHT day, YEAH RIGHT!!!!" (read this with a very nasty rude tone)........I literally had just walked out of bed, slightly groggy, and replied "Uh good morning to you too and I am don't think I will be talking to you about this right now" ...and left the room. He has golf class today, so apparently he thought his school load would be lighter, but I know I never told him that, cuz I don't think his school load is that heavy to begin with. Rest of the a.m. goes without incident. DH and DS10 leave to go to golf at 1030a.m.....I come upstairs to do some work on the computer, and that's when I see it: In INK, on my flat panel 19'inch HP monitor..the words "You suck" and some random scribbling. WHAT WHAT WHAT!?!?!?!??!? I am so livid. First that is not even a word that is anywhere near OK in our house, and second, to deface property....WHAT!??! He is so lucky that he is not home right now...I will be much more calm with a couple of hours to slowly fume. But he has altered his life for the next several months by this poor choice. It's not going to be a good day around here. :(((.

My son got a Ant Farm for his birthday....the kind that lights up..he (and the rest of us too!) loves it! We check to see what the ants have done everyday. Plus since it lights up in this cool blue glow, he uses it as a nightlight (I unplug once he is asleep). We had to order the ants seperately, but only cost a few dollars, so you could do that too. Fat Brain toys had the best price.

...better check into it before you pay. Technically it IS your money, but the concept of pre-tax expenses is set up by the Federal government, and they, in the end, determine what it can be used for and what it can't be used for. WW by itself is not a allowable expense, but with a Dr's RX, not sure. I am thinking that it has to be a medical Weight loss plan, ie with a Dr overseeing it (actually running it, not just prescribing it), and WW would not qualify. Something to check into. I know my FSA does not pay for WW, and I have had a few different ones via different employers, and everything that was covered didn't change much from employer to employer.

I just got the VP Memory Cards (Explorers)....I was thinking I could use these for Memory work for both a 1st grade/6th grade, both of whom will be studying U.S. History, although diff levels. I wasn't going to use the cards so much as part of History, but more like Memory info that correlates with our History...does that make sense? So now that I see the actual cards, I see that it is just more than one statement on the back that I was thinking, but rather 8-9 facts. Do you have your child just memorize the one main fact, ie Name and date,or do you have them memorize all the facts on the card? I also got the TM for the cards, just came as part of a used deal...thinking I might use that as a basic springboard for the 1st grade History. Ugh:001_huh:, I think I have over bought for our U.S. History studying...planning for next year, buying pieces along the way...now I have so many pieces I am trying to figure out how to get them to fit all together !!

I would highly suggest to any new homeschooling to read lots and lots of books, any you can find, about homeschooling. Obviously, read TWTM, since you are at this website, which stems from that book. Then read any other HSing books you can find at the library. Then re-read TWTM. That should be your first step in HSing, educating yourself on what your goals for HSing are, what kind of student you think your child might be and what kind of student you want her to be in the future, the different types of philosophies of HSing, ala classical, Charlotte Mason, unschooling, etc. There are literally 100's of curriculums. As a matter of fact, there is a thread that is not too old, probably back on the 2nd or 3rd page by now, with lots of responses, regardign what people will be using for 1st grade next year. If you read that, you can literally see there are SO many choices. Don't buy anything now. Read books for yourself for the first month at least. After you have done that, and have a general idea what your goals are, then start looking at buying things and for recommendations. If you are a true WTM wanna-be, like many of us here are, that book will give you lots of recommendations to start with.

I am so sorry, that is just a horrible thing to have happened. A thought is that she did not die in vain, but instead possibly saved your own lives notifying you that the power line was down. Just think if it had been your children running ahead instead of her. It's almost like she was protecting you. Comforting thoughts for the times of sadness.

We are pretty much not relaxed, in the sense that he must get his work done, and he has quite a bit of it. But we don't go by times, or the clock, too much. He wakes up earlier than the rest of us, by nature, around 7a. I tried to tell him to go ahead and start his independent work, instead of wasting his time, but that has not been successful all year. I usually wake up around 8a-9a...we eat breakfast, etc, and we try to be at school work by 10a. The subjects he does every day: Math: Teaching Textbooks Grammar: GWG Vocab: Worldy Wis Writing: Jump in Apologia Science: Marine Biology with Apologia Swimming Creatures Prima Latina: although done for the year U.S. Geography Daily Reading (usually picked by me and correlating with history History It seems like alot, but in reality, some of the subjects might only take him 15 minutes or so, while a few others might take 30-45. He is usually done by 1p-2p, with a lunch break in there.

CB does have a bit of white film when you put it on, but NOT TOO much though. I kind of like that, so I can see where I have put it and where I missed. It definately DOES come off when in the water after a while or if washed in a shower/bath. It's not like it would be there the next day if you, even if you didn't wash it off. By the time we get home from the beach/pool, even with secondary applications done while there, you do not see a white film on us. hth