I'm in the same boat as others. We have used Singapore all the way through and are finishing 5B Standards now. I had no reason to think we would not just finish up through 6A/6B. This is still my plan as dd could use the extra practice but I am keeping a close watch on this thread.

We have the same problem. We pack snacks then have a light dinner as a family later in the evening. Often this is right before bed for dd so I try to make it something compatible with sleeping. I rely heavily on my crockpot and automatic oven. That way dinner is ready when we come in the door. Because dd is working hard all evening, the snacks I pack for her are high protein but not terribly filling. Hard boiled eggs, nuts, nut butters, hummus, smoothies, etc.....

I'll repeat what others have said. Check the shelves in the library! We check out about 30 books a week and have never lost one (shockingly) but have had them show up as "overdue" many times. Each time, I have found it on the shelf. I would say this has happened at least 20 times over 10 years. One would think they would check the shelves before scolding.

I have regretted every stay at a Red Roof. Unless it is between that or sleeping outside in the snow, I am unlikely to ever stay in another one ever. And I am not very picky about hotels.

I could do it and it would not even be a really big deal. The Febreeze however? That would be a deal breaker. I have stayed in a lot of hotels and many times I have had a smoking room. The only times I have had to change rooms due to smell has always been chemical from cleaners or new furniture or whatever. Once I had a cancelled flight and had to stay at a high end hotel because the cheaper places were all booked. They had just remodeled. I made it about 45 minutes before I had to leave the building. The carpet glue smell was unbearable. And I am not even chemically sensitive in general. I'm not sure how anyone was able to stay (or work) there. Smoke smell is gross but I usually get used to it after an hour or two and am fine.

A 14 yo is not likely to spill Koolaid, have a tantrum, or get into the record collection. I do not know how old the OP's children are and I am sure they are very well-behaved but no child is perfect. If her kids are under the age of 10, I think there is a difference between them and the 14yo....who happens to also be a direct sibling of the birthday boy.

It sounds like the issues run far deeper than this one dinner. That said, it is perfectly fine to host a kid-free family event. It is also perfectly fine to decline an invitation to the event if you cannot or do not want to get a sitter.

I'll chime in and agree with MJ. We are finishing up LFC C right now. I had my doubts from the beginning. But now finishing up the third year, the way things were memorized has been a huge benefit. My dd is registered for Lukeion I next fall and I feel she is very well prepared. I checked out Wheelock's from our library (which will be used for her class next year) and the content lines up so well that the transition should be smooth. That said, I do not have any experience with other programs so I cannot say for certain that other would not be a good or even better fit.

I always seem to come to this stuff behind the curve! Just as a data point, my 5th grader is finishing up WWS1 (she is on week 33 right now). She did all but the very last few weeks of WWE4. We only stopped because the dictations were driving us both crazy. Had I known the whole year was somewhat "optional" we probably would have stopped halfway through and spread it out over the full year. Dd is not what I would consider accelerated or "gifted." She struggles sometimes and excels sometimes in typical 5th grade work. We have had some rough spots in WWS1 but I would consider it appropriate for a 5th grader who had the benefit of the WWE series. We did have to spread some single days into two days. But there were other times we were able to cover two days in one. The whole book took us a "school year." It sounds like there will only be three books in the WWS series? I would like to know that now so I can plan ahead!

Not to dispute, but we have two Kelty tents. One about 20 years old and the other 5 years old. The older one has been set up 200-300 times over the course of its life. The newer one only about 60 times. Both are awesome and we have had zero problem with them. We have weathered very heavy rain and wind in both. Once even a flood. I recommend this particular brand to newbies because I think you get a "pretty good" tent for a good price. Spend any less and you will get wet. Spend more and you might get some nicer features but dry is dry. I will say (and this might be where the difference comes in), the bigger the tent, the more the quality matters. Our two tents are small. When you start hitting the 6+ persons range, a cheap tent, perhaps even a Kelty, might not do as well. I will also say that the OP is on the right track. STAY AWAY FROM WALMART TENTS. Even "respected" names like Coleman are pure junk. I am not sure how they have gotten away with selling these tenet for so long. Most will not hold up after 20 set-ups and none can handle more than a drizzle. REI will take back and/or fix any tent you buy from them and they do not sell much that would be considered junk. So, once you find the set up and price you can live with, I think you will be happy.

First, one cannot possibly know the full knowledge base of the people participating in an online forum. Second, plenty of very intelligent people have self-educated themselves. Third, you are right. Many people are mislead by questionable information. Not to mention anecdotal experiences and human emotion. Fourth, there are ways to have an exchange of opinions, resources, and experiences without resorting to slinging insults. I know I have changed my mind about many things after having thoughtful discussion with people who hold different opinions from me. That has never happened when I engage with someone who does not also share an open mind and some decent manners. Fifth, the above applies to both sides on the debate. Sixth, there is no "right" opinion about vaccines because we simply can never know anything. We are just people making decisions based on what we do know. There is no point in getting our knickers in a knot. The knottier your knickers, the less likely thoughtful discussion can happen.

That is just the tip of the concerns I have and I appreciate that you had the patience to spell some of them out. There are so many unknowns in almost any new medical technology. Old too, really. No amount of trials, even if done 100% correctly, can answer some of these very real questions. We simply do not understand enough about the human body OR the diseases in question. We have to decide if the known risks as well as what we do not know are worth the benefit. I personally believe that the risk is worth it for some diseases. But I cannot fault someone who does not agree with me. And at this point, it is just an opinion. We do know that over and over and over, we have discovered previously unknown long term consequences of almost every new medical technology ever invented. The human body is far more complex than we have hope of ever completely understanding. Vaccinations are one of the very few "new" medical technologies that is being "tested" on the entire human population (at least that is what the goal is). That makes it unique. If we find out that certain cancer medications or allergy shots had some negative consequences in the future, that only involves a small percentage of the population. Anything we do to the entire population has the potential to cause across-the-board suffering and/or problems. So when people ask "how cautious do we need to be?" I would argue, extremely cautious. My line in somewhere between tetanus and chicken pox. Others will have a different line. When the argument resorts to slinging insults (ignorant, taking advantage, you don't understand how the immune system works, etc....) the productive discussion is over. You don't know those things to be true. Shocking or bullying people into compliance rarely works in the long run. Some people who question vaccinations are not Jenny McCarty disciples that are only worried about their own kid.

This, I can agree with 100%.

One cannot choose whether or not they are "taking advantage" of herd immunity. It is not like one can "opt out." We do not "mess" with every single person in the same way with any other medical intervention. It is not the new diseases or mutations that concern me. It is the changing of our immune systems (both as individuals and as a group) that makes me wary. It is no secret that autoimmune disorders are on the rise. Is that related to vaccines? Who knows? We probably will not know for many years. But I do find it to be an interesting coincidence. Does all of that make me reject vaccines entirely? Certainly not. But I think there are far too many questions to just blindly accept the full course of vaccinations. There are ignorant people on both sides of this debate. The questioning and ultimately choosing to not participate is not necessarily ignorant.

I have been reading this thread with great interest. I will not disclose my dc's vaccination status because I do not believe it is anyone's business. However, I do have concerns about vaccines for reasons that have not been discussed in this thread. I am concerned that "tinkering" with the human immune system on a large scale is likely to have long-term effects that science cannot predict, both as a population and as individuals. Our bodies are meant to face illness, both getting ill and fighting off illnesses. I also feel like we have crossed a line as far as how many and for what illnesses we are trying to prevent. Yes, a small number of people will have a bad case of chicken pox that could even result in death. But what really happens when we take that disease away from the whole world? We do not actually know. No one does. Maybe all would be fine or even better. Or maybe not. Whatever the case, we have unnaturally changed the relationship between humans and this particular disease. And often, when we humans start tinkering like this, bad things happen that we do now see until generations later. I believe vaccines are a great invention. And I believe it might be worth the risk of "tinkering" to prevent very serious diseases. But I do also think far more caution should be used. As long as someone is making (a lot) of money by creating and manufacturing vaccines, I will never feel like I can fully trust the scientific process to be carried out 100% correctly. I do not believe these concerns make me ignorant.

"Can" and "want to" are two different things. :laugh:

Thanks for the resource. This will be helpful for sure! I am seriously contemplating the Rainbow Science and trying to "secularize" it. I just cannot find anything else within my budget that meets my other requirements. I keep going back and forth between that and trying to make Elemental Science continue to work for us. But then we do another week of Biology and I remember why this program is just too dry for us. Someone could really make it rich by coming up with logic stage secular science. I am starting to think high school science might be a real problem.

Find out what your personal car insurance and/or credit card cover as far as rental car insurance. The insurance you buy from the rental company is very expensive and is often unnecessary and most people are already covered by (first) the credit card they rent the car with and (second) their own car insurance. This is not the case for everyone, but the vast majority, so check ahead of time.

Thanks all! They are only reading the first book in the club, but my I am sure dd will want to read all three. I will have a chance to read them before the club gets to it, but I didn't even want to allow her to sign up if I was told it is for sure no good for a 10yo.

My 10.5yo has been begging to read this series. At what age has others been comfortable allowing it? I know I should just read it myself but this is on a list for a book club my dd would like to participate in and I have to give an answer before I have a chance to get to the library. We are not conservative.

Thank you very much!

The Rainbow Science is exactly what I want....except for the religious part. It does not look like it is "adaptable" for someone who needs a secular program. If anyone knows of something very similar but secular, I am all ears! This is so frustrating!

Thanks for the suggestion! Off to read the website..... OK, I am reading and see this is not a secular program. How "not secular" is it?

This is a very important point. I am one of those people. The very thought of driving a car full of kids that are not mine gives me a panic attack. My dd is involved in three major activities. All require parent "volunteers." One has blessedly clear guidelines about what is required. I really appreciate that we knew what we were getting into beforehand and could decide whether we were prepared to participate. In this case, there are jobs that do not require interacting with kids. I signed up for those types of jobs and am happy to participate. All good. The other two have zero guidelines. Volunteers are required and usually people are guilted into doing it. Some parents do a lot and others do nothing. It does not make for good relations between parents. I put in my time in both organizations but am irritated by it. I am irritated that some people do not contribute. I am irritated that I allowed myself to be guilted into volunteering in ways that I would prefer not do. And most of all, I am irritated that there was no plan and we did not know what we were getting into beforehand. We live in a very isolated area so I am not irritated enough to pull dd out of these activities. So, forward we go. But my experience tells me that mandatory volunteer guidelines are far more fair to each family and allows people to NOT be put in a position where they have to say no when asked to help because they did not know what was expected before agreeing to participate. Even with required hours, I think it is perfectly acceptable to make exceptions for families that need it for whatever reason. I am also fine with paying more for an activity if I am unwilling or unable to participate, thus giving a financial break to people who can put in more time OR pay staff to fill those roles. This might drive the price up past my budget but that is better than driving my "time-price" up past my "budget" AFTER signing my kid up.

I am back on this plan so this is good to know. As much as I love the idea of the whiz-bang of Supercharged Science, I see too many issues that would prevent it from being a success in my home. I would rather suck it up and just learn to get materials together to use a program that I know works in our house rather than do the bigger job of trying to make the Supercharged program into a coherent "curriculum" that properly prepares for high school science. Not to mention, I have nowhere to put that many boxes of supplies in my tiny house.