I have the video tapes and books of Latin Primer I and II from years ago. One daughter went through the course several years ago, but I'm not sure how much she learned (or how much she's retained). I've been seeing good things about First Form and have wondered if I should spend the $ or just stick with the old that I have for my 7th grader (different child than above). I have no background in Latin, and probably need something that child can do without me (given other responsibilities right now), but I would like something rigorous that will give 7th grader a real sense of accomplishment and lead to a desire to continue into later levels. Any suggestions appreciated.

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How do these courses work? What are your experiences? Is it a virtual classroom a few times a week? How does the interaction with the instructor work--live questions or email or what? Any comments re your experience would be helpful--we've got to make a decision, but I just don't know anything about this company/course provider.:confused:

I have determined that two of my children (ages 13 and 15) need a structured writing class/experience this summer taught and graded by someone other than me. :rolleyes: They are bright girls and very solid in grammar. (They are just finishing the Rod & Staff grammar series.) Although they are not bad writers, they need more help, experience, motivation, and feedback than I am able to give them right now. And I also think that--for their personalities and what they are currently experiencing in life--they will work better under some pressure to meet the expectations and deadlines of someone other than Mom. I know that there have got to be a lot of online resources for writing tutors/teachers/graders/classes, and I am hoping to find something that is good but not too expensive. What are all of your recommendations?

We have the dvds but have not gotten very far through them yet. From what I can tell, it is a basic high school level class and just has the lectures-no labs.

For those of you that give grades, what format/forms do you use for recording the daily readings, assignments, weekly quizes, tests, etc.? I am "organizationally challenged" :ack2: and need some help in this area. Until now (oldest in 9th grade) we have not recorded a score for everything, but I'm thinking it is very important (for her and for me) that we do so now. I've considered making up our own forms, but I'm hoping that there is something out there that I can just start plugging into. Thanks for any advice.

I am very confused about the various editions out there. :confused:Looking up used copies by ISBN brings up all kinds of years; some say 1981, some say 1981-2000; some say 1998, some say 2000. (And I think that there were some others.) How do I tell if there is any substantive difference? Also, specifically, does the 1998 ed. of Critical Thinking work with the 2000 ed teacher guide?

Do you know the difference between the two TI-84 calculators they have in the ad?

Thank you for all the great suggestions--I have hope now! For my future purchases--do most of you always contact the seller first to ask if a used book has a smoke odor, or do you assume that it doesn't if the seller hasn't indicated?

I bought a book online from an Amazon used book seller, and it smells so strongly of cigarette smoke that we cannot use it. (Should I have expected this problem to be disclosed, or is this something you always have to ask about when buying used?:confused: ) Is there any way to eliminate the odor? TIA!

For some reason, I'm having trouble locating the Algebra 2 ISBNs on Pongo's thread. Also, is the progression for Chalkdust go in this order: Algebra 1 Geometry Precalculus Calculus? We're celebrating with you!:hurray:

I second (or third) Oriental Trading. You may be able to find cheaper from a local store, but it's a great option. (Plus, they have so many fun party decorations, etc.)

Just some ideas of things my family likes: (1) Salad bar--everybody makes their own? e.g., lettuce, spinach; chopped eggs, ham, turkey, bacon; thawed frozen peas, corn; mandarin oranges, pineapple tidbits, raisins, craisins, grapes, cherry tomatoes; chopped onions, celery; croutons, sesame seeds; grated cheese(s); various salad dressings (creamy and vinagarette) (2) Baked potato bar and have fresh fruit platter for dessert (same basic idea as salad bar, just leave the potatoes in the oven to stay warm and get them out as needed--alternatively, put them in a big cooler, and they'll still stay pretty warm) e.g., potatoes; butter, sour cream, ranch dressing; steamed broccoli; shredded cheddar, melted cheddar soup/dip; chopped tomatoes; bacon bits (3) Taco salad (again, let'em build their own) e.g. chips; refried beans, cooked hamburger with taco seasoning (I like to mix a couple of drained cans of black beans in with the meat to make it go further); shredded cheese; sour cream; guacamole; chopped tomatoes; lettuce or spinach; ranch dressing (4) Crockpot chicken with brown rice and broccoli (one of our family favorites for group gatherings) big pot of cooked rice big pot of steamed broccoli crockpot chicken (recipe below)--I have a 6 qt crockpot 1 large (26 oz) can cream of chicken soup 2 cups water with 2 teaspoons chicken boullion 2 packages dry zesty Italian salad dressing mix chicken tenders to fill the crockpot *put it all in and cook about 6 hours on low (depending on your crockpot); when chicken is cooked through, shred the chicken *add 1 or 2 8 oz packages cream cheese; heat until cream cheese is melted(it melts faster if cut into chunks first)

No experience in Kaplan or Princeton, but we did recently enroll in a free online SAT prep course through Number2.com. http://number2.com/ It seems to be a great resource so far; the student receives regular emails prompting them what to study next, and you can also receive emails about what they are doing. It might be worth looking into for you and saving the $$$. From their website: About Number2 Number2.com is the only website that offers students access to comprehensive free online test preparation courses for the SAT, ACT, and GRE. How do we do it? Number2.com earns revenue from sponsorships and licensing. The company was founded by professors and graduate students who wanted to make high quality test preparation universally accessible. In 1999 Eric Loken and Josh Millet were graduate students studying for their PhDs at Harvard University when they began teaching free SAT prep classes in the Boston area. Seeking to expand their services to the Internet, they teamed up with Vincent Crespi, a professor of physics at Pennsylvania State University, who had created a test prep website called Number2.com in 1995. With the help of a great technologist, Filip Radlinski, they launched a new version of the site in September, 2000. Eric and Josh now also run an employee testing company.

Okay, confession time, I dropped the ball, too, and have been scratching my head over where to begin with my soon-to-be 9th grader. Thanks all for the input.

We get a permit and go cut down our own Christmas tree on the weekend following Thanksgiving. Some years we've pulled our mattresses off of our beds and slept under the Christmas tree. When I was young, we made gingerbread boys and girls, wrapped them in plastic wrap, tied a ribbon around them, and hung them on a small tree outside our front door. Whenever somebody came to the door, they could take a cookie from the tree. I've yet to follow this tradition as a grown up, but plan to someday. The kids save a lot of their Halloween candy, and use it to decorate the gingerbread house we make every year. We get a new Christmas storybook each year to add to our collection. Advent wreath with 4 white candles: we light one the first Sunday in December, 2 the second, 3 the third, and 4 on Christmas Eve (and the 4th Sunday if it comes before Christmas) and spend time reading Christmas stories before blowing out candles. Christmas Eve we have various kinds of soup in bread bowls and then a musical program with relatives. We read the nativity story from the Bible Christmas morning before going to look under the tree for what Santa brought. Crepes with whip cream and strawberries for brunch.

The kids made caramels for friends and mentor/teacher types. (My 9yo made a batch by herself, and even my youngest 5yo absolutely loved getting to help wrap the caramels.) As a family, we're handing out multigrain cinnamon pancake mix and letting our neighbors do their own cooking. :001_smile: (Some are also getting a jar of apricot syrup, too, but I don't have enough for everyone.) Here's the (very easy) mix in case you're interested: 2 1/2 cups flour (various: wheat, corn, oat, barley, white bean, brown rice--I just put the grains in our grinder) 1/2 c dry powdered milk 1 t cinnamon 2 t baking powder 1/2 t salt I put it in a sandwich-sized ziplock with a label that says what it is and to add 2 eggs, 2 c water, and 4 T oil (chopped apples and nuts optional). Then it goes in a cello gift bag.

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We have this at least weekly--often for dinner. Beating the egg whites is what makes it so light and yummy. 8 c flour (We like to use whole wheat pastry flour--healthier and noone can tell the difference. Pastry flour is just very finely ground flour. If you can't grind your own, you can buy this at most grocery stores.) 3 T baking powder pinch of salt 8 egg yolks 10 egg whites Beat egg whites until stiff. Mix dry ingredients in separate bowl. Add egg yolks to dry ingredients and mix a little bit by hand. Add enough milk to flour and egg mixture until it is a little runnier than cake batter. Then gently fold in your beaten egg whites. (You'll have chunks of fluffy egg white.) Cook on heated and oiled waffle iron. Enjoy!

is just flour that has baking powder (leavening agent) and salt added to it during packaging. This ensures that the baking powder and salt are evenly distributed throughout the flour, as opposed to when you mix it yourself (or your kids mix it) and it may--or may not--be evenly distributed. You can make your own "self rising flour" by mixing 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt with every cup of flour. And I treat my freshly ground flour as all purpose (which is generally made from a blend of high gluten and low gluten wheats). Bread flour, on the other hand, has extra gluten and additives (barley flour and vitamin C) to help the yeast work and increse the gluten's elasticity. You wouldn't, for instance, want to use it for a cake. I live in an area of low humidity, and I've never had trouble with grinding a bunch of flour at a time and storing it in the pantry for use for the next weeks. (We've used tupperware, old peanut butter jars, ziplock bags.) Although, it usually turns out that we end up needing more than we think, and so we grind it more often. And I do think that freshly ground is the best.

I second the recommendation for Typing Instructor. All of my children have used it, beginning at different ages. Currently, my 5yo loves it--she has been working on the first two lessons. Her favorite part is choosing different music for the background. (In full disclosure, we don't do a lot with video and computer games, so this is quite exciting for her.)