It's hard to do, but don't be afraid to drop curriculum if it's not working. It took me a long time to drop FLL and WWE because i *wanted* him to love it. He likes Winning with Writing, Soaring with Spelling, and Growing with Grammar a lot, and even though there's a lot of repetition, it's quick and easy, and super easy to move ahead if needed. We also use KISS grammar, which is pretty advanced, but he's moving along nicely with it. Singapore math has less review sections, and we love it. We have the Intensive practice and challenging word problems books which we use as review. A good suggestion i got last year (K) was to start foreign language and cursive. Both provided something different for him to do and was challenging. For science, BFSU is good, but requires quite a bit of prep. He's our only, so it's hard for me to do the lessons. We're waiting on RSO biology level one, which i'm hoping with actually get done around here lol. Have fun, and don't be afraid to move ahead in books or lessons if necessary. Also, if writing is very difficult, you will run into the problem of higher level books requiring more writing, but don't be afraid to do the pages together and have your kid dictate the answers. We do this only rarely now, but when we first started this year i was doing about half of the writing for him, mostly for the sake of my own sanity.

ooo i like the look of thunderbolt kids, I especially like how everything is interconnected, and you learn about all aspects of science together. Has anyone used it with a younger kid?

I had looked into msnucleus a while back and totally forgot about it!! I will look into it again, esp. because it's free!! Thank you all for your feedback I think i am going to skip MPH, as i want a somewhat in depth science curriculum, and it seems like it's anything but in depth. I will look into msnucleus again :)

I've seen and downloaded Mr. Q, which is used with Easy Peasy Biology. I love the format and everything, but there's no "concrete" book, so my son doesn't retain as much as if he were working through a workbook, if that makes sense. I do have him notebook/journal some things to get him to remember it better, and have him explain it back to me, etc. etc. MPH seems like it WOULD be a good fit, if the material is challenging enough/isn't too simple. I'm even willing to find experiments to go with whatever is being taught, but I don't want him bored to tears with the content.

So we've hardly done any science up until now. My son is 6 and we're currently working through Easy Peasy Biology (L level), which has been good so far, but we do at least 2-3 "days" worth at a time since the activities are so short. This means that we will finish science far sooner than the end of the year. (Even so, we school year-round). I was looking into doing Easy Peasy's Zoology next just to do SOMETHING through the end of the year. I was also looking into My Pals are Here from Singapore Math. I see that they have re-vamped the series; has anyone used it??? Do i NEED the instructor's guide? (it's more than both books put together). My son is a workbook kid. BFSU was a total fail as he needs to read/see what he's learning. He zones out during "conversations" meant to teach him, regardless of the topic. I'm thinking this might be a really good fit, but I don't want to spend the money on it if its TOO easy, or if it's just not worth it. The samples look okay, a bit simple, but like i said we have very little science stuff done so maybe we need the basics?

the pre-tests are to see what he needs to work on (this is a spelling book) and we had to skip several "weeks" worth of words because he got them all right on the pre-test, and so why spend the time "learning" these words when he clearly knows them? That's where the trouble began, with him getting to skip stuff because he already knew it. With the pre-tests, he has to correct the ones he got wrong (for example, today he spelled dew as dow, and had to correct it. He cried because he got it wrong.) -sigh- We have just been telling him that he is trying his best, and it doesn't mean anything if he gets them all right versus not getting them all right, because he's LEARNING, and if it was too easy then he would never learn anything. It's good to "stretch" your brain. It's a long a frustrating process, especially because i don't grade ANYTHING else that he does. He just wants to do REALLY WELL in everything, which in a way is good, but also a bit detrimental to the whole it's-okay-to-fail mentality.

Okay, full disclosure, i have not read The Well Trained Mind, though it is at my library awaiting pickup (finally! it's taken months for me to get it lol.) I have a 5 yo, who does pretty much zero writing that is not copywork-dictation-style (he dictates, i write, he copies). I think that's what it's called, anyway. We do a journal most days, and he is working through WWE. His spelling is awful, as can be expected of a 5 yo. My question is, when/how do you switch from having him copy his own dictation to writing on his own? And how do you handle spelling errors? If i push him he will try to spell things out on his own, but he wants me to tell him even for the simplest words (e.g. the, and, etc.). He knows those kinds of words, and when he really thinks he'll get it right, but i'm at a loss as to where to go from here. I know it is important to not let them get into the habit of spelling incorrectly, but I don't understand how copying what I write for him will lead to him being a fluent writer, kwim?

100ez is supposed to end at a 2nd grade level. We are going to use OPGTR next to keep up with formal lessons, and that will take him through a 4th grade level. As far as I know, aar 2 will be far too easy if you've finished 100ez. I could be wrong though, I haven't personally used it. Check their website for a table of contents to see what's coveted in that level.

Thank you for all of the support :) We're in the process of "skimming" through his books to find where he is at for a challenge (i've just found that in SM Challenging word problems, he FINALLY asks for help with it, and says "OHHHH" when i suggest a different way of looking at it). So i know a lot of it is too easy at this point, and hopefully we'll get there soon, though probably by the time i get him all set in everything, he'll be complaining his math is too easy again. *sigh* such is life, right? I like the sticker idea, getting a sticker as long as he tries. I make him fix any errors anyways on math or if his handwriting is sloppy. We are also in another transition: He just got glasses for the first time with a strong farsighted prescription, so EVERYTHING is affected. Thank you again, i'm going to push further ahead in his work and i'll just keep explaining to him that he is working his brain with stuff that he doesn't already know (just like his eyes) lol. Maybe this will all work together nicely.

I'm at my wits end here. My son literally starts crying every time i don't write 100% on his paper, whether it be math, or handwriting, or whatever. This all started because we are using Soaring with Spelling, and we skipped several weeks worth of words because he got "100%" on the pretests. (no use in doing the work to "learn" words he already knew, right?) So now whenever he doesn't get 100% on a pretest he cries, and negotiates that maybe if he fixes how they are spelled he can get 100% then, right mommy? I didn't make a HUGE deal about him getting 100% on the pretests, and i praise him for getting them all right on the final tests (which he does every time) after he's learned the new words, but it's never been THAT big of a deal, but it is for him. I really REALLY don't want my kid basing his successes on whether or not he gets "them all right" or not, and i don't want to arbitrarily give him the 100% just to avoid crying. My other problem is, he generally gets "100%" on most things he does, so I can't even just start grading his work and that way he gets a % for each page, and then he can just aim for 100, you know? I know other accelerated kids are like this, so how do you deal with it?????

ooo thank you SarahW, i think i'm going to go with that, i like the look of it :)

I'm posting this here in hopes that maybe some of you have experience doing cursive with a younger student (he'll be 6 in the fall). He is BEGGING to learn cursive, writing all day long with long scribbles and calling it cursive. His printing is very good, he writes every letter easily, so i'm figuring why not teach him cursive now, right???? I was going to wait another year or so, but i think i would rather teach him now than have him keep scribbling all day long, right? (looking for validation here lol) Anyhow, i'm looking into either Zaner Bloser or Cursive First. We're using ZB gr. 1 book right now, should we stick with the same program? I know Cursive First is kind of geared towards the younger crowd, but since he's already printing well, would ZB be okay? (i'm thinking the gr. 2C book, where it's an intro to cursive for the 2nd grade crowd) I'm going to have him continue formal handwriting practice for several more years, so i'm leaning towards ZB, BUT, i don't want to scare him away from it with something that is just too much for a kid so young, KWIM? Maybe i'm over thinking this, too, and could just pull out a white board and teach him to write his name in cursive, and call it a day for a little while. I hate when they force you to change your very well laid out plans!!

anyone using something like the student logbook with a younger more independent child? My son will be in 1st next year, and he is always asking what else he will have to do, and what we have going on for the day (activity-wise like sports or library activities). I've been looking for something for HIM to be able to answer these questions, mostly because i can only answer the same 3 questions so. many. times. a day, know what i mean? If anyone has, how has it worked? Do the kids LOVE IT? Does it keep them on track? Have they been too obsessed with it? or does it end up with just another thing for mom to do?

Okay i'm not even sure this is where to post this question, but here goes: We are a homeschooling family living in California, and we did Kindergarten this last year. I did not have to legally "declare" us as being a homeschool until this year (when he turns 6). Now that i have to do it this year, i'm super nervous, lol. I know the official form i need to file, so that isn't the issue. My question is about grades and keeping a record of our schoolwork. I know some people keep EVERYTHING, which i'm not against, but mostly i'm not sure how to approach the grades aspect. How do I do this? The only "tests" my son does is spelling tests. Everything else is just do the next thing type of thing. Do i even worry about it at this level? If not now, when? He's also working ahead of "grade level" in most subjects, so there's that to be taken into consideration too. It feels like so much to keep track of!

Minniewannabe, what do you suggest to get from the BetterChinese.com site? I have a 5 yo who i'd like to start (very slowly) teaching Mandarin. Not sure where to start, and if there is a way to make the options from that site to be more affordable. most of the "homeschool sets" are really pricey. Is there a bare-bones something to order? (we MAY not continue with mandarin long term. i want to, but you know how these things go lol). Maybe someone else as a suggestion? I keep hearing about BetterChinese, but i haven't really seen any other options. Thanks in advance for any help!

a co-op that we were a part of did this. its very basic and allows for a lot of extension activities, or not. i think it really depends on your child. there is some writing and such for the state pages, but again you can always alter that. id say give it a shot! worst case you put it aside and start again in a few months, right?

i agree that GWG and WWW are kind of lame and basically busywork. we probably won't continue with them, unless i really need some "educational" busywork for him to do while i work, though i'll probably come up with something better for him. I plan on doing MCT island next year (or once we finish out the first grade stuff), probably in the fall (we school year round). Do you think he'll be too young? he'll be 6 in Sept., but would have finished WWE 1 and FLL 1, as well as GWG 1 and WWW 1. With FLL, would you recommend continuing with level 3 in the fall and skipping 2 altogether? Would MCT Island, FLL 2 or 3 & WWE 2 be complete? nothing lacking? I am having trouble with the enriching vs. adding more because my son is sooooo workbook-y. He doesn't do well with discussions about things, or thinking through things to find the answer vs. being told the facts (for science/history) or told HOW to find the answer (for grammar/math). He wants things spelled out for him, and I'm working on teaching him the more critical thinking skills, but I'm having trouble actually doing that, lol. Eventually I am hoping that this "need" can be filled by his reading books, but his reading level isn't advanced enough yet. I have been mostly just reading aloud to him about whatever he wants (nonfiction-wise), and getting him easy readers whenever possible on science/history topics (as well as fun readers), but i still have to sit next to him helping him through even the easy readers. We're working on his confidence that he CAN read these books by himself, even though he totally can. Can i get some suggestions for things other than GWG and WWW that is similar in concept, but a bit less...busywork? i've heard of killagalon (sp?) and KISS, though i haven't looked into them, and understand that they're generally for older elem. level.

thank you thank you everyone!! ive taken a lot of the advice given, and settled with doing fll everyday, 2x sometimes if he asks for it later (he often does) but not skipping anything right out. with wwe for the most part were doing two lessons a day, copywork and the narration, and now we have a long list of to-read-next books because of the passages :) so far its going great, and hes actually sitting down for longer periods of time and seems a bit more engaged because he's thinking a bit more, instaed of just doing the copywork and moving to another subject. again, thankyou so so much :)

Okay, this might seem a little obvious in a lot of ways, but I am a little stuck in exactly HOW to accelerate through programs that my son is able to move more quickly through. a little background: my son is 5, working 99% at a first grade level (we're still using Wordly wise K, only because he LOVES the stories, lol, and I plan on skipping gr 1 altogether to save money as it would probably be just as easy for him). my questions are mostly for language arts. math, i've kind of figured out, though i can't help but being paranoid about "skipping" certain parts of how to learn things (we're using SM), but i've learned to let it go and worry about that later, if it ever comes up. If i worry, no math gets done, KWIM? Anyhow, we are using FLL and WWE, and we can only handle about a lesson a day for each (attention issues, he's still 5 lol). BUT, he is just about ready to do the assessments at the end of WWE (and we're only a few weeks in). He just needs to work on the stamina with copywork as he gets tired easily, tho he does quite well with the narration and comprehension in general. FLL he loves, he memorizes the poems in 1-2 lessons max, and the most interesting part for him is learning our address, months, days, etc, since those are a bit more challenging. So should i skip further into the book for WWE? push to do more than one lesson a day with FLL? i feel like it's busy work for him because it's so easy, but I don't want to overwhelm him. My other option is to drop the programs and go with something else??? We have GWG, SWS, and WWW which he does as a fun filler while i work (I find it to be mostly busy work, tho he is picking up stuff from it, so it's not a complete waste i guess). It doesn't help that with his short attention span (breaks for snacks, play, water, etc.) we do school about 50 times a day for 10-15 minute bursts, so it's hard to keep track of things. i also wonder that if he were more challenged he would want to sit for longer, and if he's just bored with the material...he sits through a good chunk of science if it's caught his attention, and he'll do PAGES of math in one sitting (after i let my OCD about it go lol). ANY advice would be greatly appreciated. I've done so much stalking on this board i feel i know everything, but then nothing at all because it's our first real year, and i get lost sometimes lol.

also, at which point do you suggest really starting nonfiction? ds is only 5 and just finding his footing with reading, but i find myself pushing fiction for him as that has always been what i have been interested in, tho i know nonfiction is an excellent way to interact with history and science in the elem years. any suggestions for one so young?

oh my goodness, this has 100% caught my interest, i looove these types of conversations!! thank you so much for this information, im glad to have found it when my son is so young and i hope to implement this as he grows. definately good reading for me :)

i switched to mr q., because i couldnt get bfsu done regularly. we arent far into life science (free!), but so far were actuallydoing science. i work from home and my hubby is gone a lot. i find it open and go enough. this is for my 5yo working at a 1st grade level.

i don't have any experience with AAR2, but with AAR1, the workbook was easy cut and paste activities/games with the words learned in each lesson, along with fluency reading sheets. ETC has a lot more writing (as AAR1 had NO writing), and they don't have the same scope and sequence, if that makes sense. AAR1 went well beyond ETC1 (tho i haven't gotten ETC2/3 yet, and i'm not sure what is included in those). Bottom line, ETC and AAR are VERY different. ETC is practice with phonics, a lot of writing and simple activities in a workbook format, where AAR is focused on repetition of certain types of words and more cut and paste activities. here is the sample of the workbook, to give you a better idea. hope that helps :) http://allaboutlearningpress.com/content/samples/AAR-L2-Activity-Book-Sample.pdf

cant figure out how to quote, but thank you to whoever posted the link to lesson plans for the salsa episodes! we really want gsws, but its just not in the budget quite yet. anyhow, thanks!!

my suggestion is to go ahead with aar1. there are some free books for pre reading on the website i got when my son first started and i was nervous he wasnt quite ready, if you want aomething for a little review. we LOVED AAR1 and would have continued with 2 if not for money issues. my son still reads the readers on his own for fun, and ive also seriously cinsidered buying the otherreaders since he loved them so much. we are just about done with 100Ez, which we started at lesson 35 or so after completing aar1. anyhow, personally i wouldnt spend the money on prelevel1 if my child was that close to being ready for level 1. also sorry about typos. yay for a new tablet tho! :) a side note: iwould start AAS1 about halfway thru aar1. we waited until after finishing the whole level and my son was painfully bored for the first several lessons because it was too easy after knowing those words for so long. also, dont be afraid of taking your time or moving ahead when necessary. my son would do 2 lessins a day sometimes, doing both a "learning" lesson and reading a story in one sitting, while on other days we barely got thru half a lesson because he just wouldnt focus or wasnt into it that day.