Thanks for confirming my thoughts! My initial thought was that it would be great fine, but it's been decades since I read the book. And, yeah, I honestly feel kind of guilty letting him watch Downtown Abbey, but we were a few episodes in and he was enraptured before I realized it was TV 14. The rule is either he watches it with me or I watch it first and talk through anything particularly mature with him. He'd never been exposed to the concepts of either s*xual assault or prostitution before, and I actually think Downtown Abbey wasn't a bad way to see those portrayed on screen for the first time. They're much less "in your face" than in many shows that take place today.

I really want to see the Murder on the Orient Express movie when it comes out in November, and I'd kind of like to take my 12 year old and read the book with him first, but I can't decide whether it would be appropriate for him. I know I was reading Agatha Christie at his age, but I was also reading Flowers in the Attic, which I would never in a million years let my child read, so it's not as if my parents were carefully guiding my literature choices. I have generally been much more conservative with what I let him read and watch than my parents were with me. We've opened it up a bit more this year. He's now allowed to watch most PG 13 movies, and DH even watched Braveheart with him, skipping over a few objectionable scenes. He's making his way through Downtown Abbey with me, which is TV 14. So, what does the hive mind say, is he ready for Murder on the Orient Express or should I reread it and then go see it by myself?

I hardly ever post or read here anymore, not due to any ill feelings but simply because a) ironically, now that I'm actually homeschooling I don't have nearly so much time to post on a homeschool board :) and b) since my daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes almost 8 months ago I have been spending way too much time on Facebook groups for parents of type 1 diabetics. Anyway, when I heard the news from BSA I was sure I could come to the WTM chat board for a nice meaty discussion of the pros and cons and I have not been disappointed. I think BSA has made a great decision. I'm not anti Girl Scouts. I think BSA has a stronger and more consistent program nationally, but my daughter has had a wonderful experience so far as a Daisy Scout. You personally may not like the glamping type outings that many troops do, but there are girls who love such things and would have no interest in camping in the woods. Those experiences still have value. However, there are also girls who would prefer the kind of experiences that BSA offers and families who want their kids in a program together and I'm glad BSA is going to offer that. Personally I'm not sure which way we'll go next year if there's a girl friendly pack available. I think the Cub Scout program suits her personality better overall, but Girl Scouts is right after school and some of her very best friends are in the troop. I guess I'll just wait and see what happens. It's almost a year away. My husband, who is an Eagle Scout and a long time Scout leader has pointed out that opt in may be slow. In order to have girl dens at every level packs will need double the leadership. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens over the next few years.

I forgot about Megawords and Pictures in Cursive. The jury is still out on the former. Some days I love it, other days I wish we'd stuck with AAS. The latter is a big hit and I feel good that I'm at least getting a little bit of art appreciation on since actual art instruction was a total bust last year.

I'm schooling just one, 7th grade Hits: Notgrass America the Beautiful - DS loves it. I don't like the often irrelevant Bible verse and application shoehorned in at the end of every lesson, but otherwise it is really impressing me. I've added in extra books to make it more lit heavy, but I like having the textbook as our base. Sassafras Science (We did Zoology and Anatomy last year and now we're 2/3 of the way through Botany). Yes, this program is intended for elementary school and I've seen it get a bad rap here, but we're loving it. The story really engages my reluctant learner and the scidat logbook requires him to look deeper and take notes from an encyclopedia, which I consider very age appropriate. Some of the activities are little kiddish, but we just skip those. Visual Latin: The videos are corny, but the content is good and he's learning a lot and working mostly independently. WWS 1: DS doesn't love this, but the step by step instructions are really good for him. He has produced some really good paragraphs already. I tried two other programs last year and they were both disasters in practice despite being good in theory. We've finally found the right fit with WWS. Okay: Mosdos Literature: The textbook is a hit, the workbook is okay, and the teacher guide is useless to me. Next year I think I'll just buy the textbook. Dad as Math teacher: When this happens it's great, but finding a consistent time has been difficult. We haven't had any misses, but I had more than my fair share last year.

So I'm two weeks into teaching two classes at our homeschool coop. I'm really enjoying the teaching, but, wow, the planning is really stressing me out. There just aren't enough hours in the day. Planning my beginning Spanish class isn't too bad because I used to teach Spanish for pay and I'm pretty good at winging it, but History of WWI class, wow, I feel like the planning for that one is hanging over my head all the time. I spent a large portion of the summer reading books about WWI, but I didn't do any actual planning of lessons and now I feel like there aren't enough hours in the day. I don't know how people who are homeschooling multiple kids every teach coop classes. I'm only homeschooling one and I'm just hanging by a thread.

I took my kids, then 5 and 11, to Legoland last fall and they both really loved it. The 11 year old was on the edge of being too old and he thought the rides were tame, but he loved the theme and enjoyed the rides, despite thinking they were tame. I really think a Lego lover of any age could enjoy Legoland. Plus, you can get cheap homeschool tickets most weekdays in the fall. You have to call (I think) 48 hours in advance and show some kind of proof of homeschooling when you pick up the tickets. You might also consider the Clearwater Aquarium. It's home to the famous dolphins from the Dolphin Tale movies plus lots of other cool animals. Both of my kids had a blast. As for the first day, if you want something low-key that keeps your active kid moving you might to just walk around Disney Springs. There's free parking and you could even catch a bus to AKL from there.

Thanks for the encouragement! My brain was telling me that staying the course with WWS is best for him, but it pains me that he groans whenever I pull out the book. I'll try not to take it personally :). I may also work in one or two papers this year about something he's passionate about.

My son is 12 and we just started 7th grade a week ago. It's my second year homeschooling him. Homeschooling has been a better fit for him than public school overall, but I'm struggling with writing, which is something I never thought I'd struggle teaching since it's something I love and am very good at. Science, which I'm pretty weak in, has gone swimmingly since we found the right curriculum. However, we can't seem to settle on the right thing for writing, or maybe we have and I just can't accept it since he still hates writing with the burning passion of a thousand suns. We started out last year with Cottage Press Fable and Song. I though it was perfect at first, but he pretty quickly grew tired of rewriting fables. They actually spent a lot of time studying fables in 5th grade in public school so I couldn't really blame him. I put Cottage Press away and just had him do copywork for awhile. Then we tried to go the Bravewriter route. The poetry teas have been a big hit, but freewriting was a wash (he wrote as little as possible and hated it every minute of it). In desperation I bought WWS I in April. We did the first few lessons in the spring and we've now restarted it. All I can say is that it's okay. I know he's learning things from it and the logical part of me says I should just push on with it because at least it will teach him good skills. However, it pains me that my child hates writing and I'm wondering if there's a new curriculum I can use or a new method I can try that might change that. I recently looked at Cover Story and it looked exciting to me, but shiny, new expensive things always look exciting to me and that doesn't necessarily mean they'll work *cough cough four math programs last year cough cough*. Should I have him look at it and see if it looks exciting to him, should I just buck up and keep pushing through WWS, or should I do something else altogether? In case this figures into your decision, I should note that he has dyslexia but he's been through Barton 1-8 and reads competently, though he still struggles with spelling and doesn't especially like reading unless it's a book he's fallen in love with (these are really few and far between). He also has ADHD and we're in the midst of trying to figure out how we're going to treat that. We're working on executive functioning skills and he's about to try his third medication.

I tried to to my own thing for 6th, and though a lot of reading of good books got done a lot of discussing and learning of academic skills did not. For 7th grade I've ordered Mosdos Press Jade. Since I haven't yet used it I can't speak to its effectiveness but I'm really hoping it's good in practice. I know it has gotten a lot of good reviews on here.

Wow! Thanks for the suggestions and especially for the long list and link to other threads, Lori D. I think my only problem with this class is going to be narrowing down what I want to cover in just 12 one hour sessions. I do actually own the entire Young Indiana Jones series on DVD so I should definitely consider pulling some of those episodes in.

I'll be teaching a class at our Co-op in the fall about the history of WWI. It's for ages 12+, basically 7th grade through high school. I'm starting to plan out the class and one of my ideas is to have the students choose a WWI related historical fiction (or creative nonfiction if they're not into fiction) book to read or listen to on their own and make some kind of presentation about at the end of the class. I'd like to give our a list of suggestions the first or second week of class. I've thought of a handful, but I'm sure you all can think of many others. Help me out! The ones I've come up with: Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery (story of the Canadian homefront during WWI) Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood by Nathan Hale (creative nonfiction graphic novel gives an outline of the major events of WWI) War Horse by Michael Morpurgo (cavalry horse during WWI) All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (perspective of young German soldiers) - I'd only recommend this one to older students As you can see, my list is pretty sparse but I'm sure there are many more. They can feature any aspect of WWI including the homefront.

Thanks for sharing your stories! I'm glad to hear I'm not wrong in thinking that there's no point in continuing Adderall if there's no clear effect. We have permission to up it to 25 mg so I think I'll pick a day when he has something he needs to concentrate on and see if that makes any difference. My gut says it's just the wrong med, however. I've never been on a stimulant medicine, but caffeine had no effect on me whatsoever until I was 40, and now all it does is keep me awake if I drink it after noon. It never helped me concentrate better. It could be that there's something in our genes that causes us to resist a reaction to stimulants. He was tested by a psychologist at the same practice whose primary job is testing for ADHD and other disorders. We also filled out some surveys. He spent two full mornings testing and we were presented with a lot of data when we went in for the post-testing meeting so I don't have any doubts that the testing was thorough. Also, nothing that was said surprised us, but it was nice (sort of, it's never actually nice to have it confirmed that your kid has a problem) to have a name for the things we were noticing and to hear more details.

We've suspected for years that our 12 year old might have ADHD, but this spring, after a very challenging first year of homeschool (he was previously in public elementary school, where the teachers repeatedly told me he didn't need to be evaluated because he was a strong B student and never disruptive in class) we had him evaluated and he'd been officially diagnosed with ADHD, moderate combined type. Where we see it manifest the most is any schoolwork or other task involving details and any instructions involving multiple steps. I know there are mixed opinions about medication, but we already tried modifying his schoolwork a whole lot and also did a lot of research and talked a lot of other ADHD parents before making the decision. And, yes, we're simultaneously doing practical work to teach executive function skills. Anyway, he's currently on increasing doses of Adderall and the only good thing is that he has not experienced any side effects. There's no indication that it's making any difference at all. He was just upped to 20mg a day and he still says he feels no different and he isn't acting differently. That said, it's summer and he's not doing any formal schoolwork. Should I make him do some schoolwork to test out the meds, or should it make a difference even in other things? Yesterday I was discussing our experience with the mother of my daughter's friend who is a professor of child psychology and spent quite a few years in practice. She said that when one of her clients found a medication that worked it was a night and day difference. We're definitely not experiencing a night and day difference, or any different at all. Due to a combination of the psychiatric nurse practictioner handling the meds going on vacation next week and my son going to scout camp the following week we won't have another medication adjust appointment until the end of July. I do have the ability to up the does to 25mg for a short while because we have a few 5mg pills left, but I don't think we have more than six. Any experience with adjustment to meds and whether it took awhile for a stimulant to make a difference for your child? If adderall didn't work for your child, what did you try next? Thanks for any help you can give me!

My son is 12, and until just the last couple of scout campouts he has brought a large stuffed dog as his pillow. He also brought him to 2 different summer camps. Since he'll start backpacking soon he decided he should get used to a smaller pillow and made himself a tiny pillow at coop sewing class that he now takes along. No one made fun of him once.

So my son has talked me into teaching a class about WWI at co-op in the fall. It will be for ages 12 and up, probably mostly 14-16 since there are a lot of kids in that age range at our Co-op. The class will be twelve one hour sessions. I love history and I'm excited about the class, but I'm trying to figure out where to get started with my planning. If you have any resources to recommend or know of a unit study I could use as an outline I'd appreciate it.

I have no scientific explanation for it, but I used to get debilitating cramps during my period, and I have only occasional light cramping since switching to cloth pads. However, I also switched to cloth pads after my son was born, so it's possible that pregnancy and childbirth were what changed my cycle. I've used disposable pads a handful of times since due to being a trip during my period and it seems to last slightly longer than when I'm home and be slightly more crampy, but not like before my son was born.

I tried to watch an episode, but then I remembered that Bill Nye is an arrogant jerk. Mind you, Bill Nye the Science Guy was a pretty good show, but he should have stuck to teaching kids basic science instead of getting involved in political science-y things he really doesn't know much about. There was a video going around FB a couple years back in which he said some things about abortion that were just scientifically untrue. I don't remember the details right now, but his lack of basic knowledge of the science he was talking about blew me away. Now, I'm pro-life, but I'm open to having a philosophical discussion with someone about whether the rights of a grown woman are more important than the rights of a fetus. If you say that, I will respectfully disagree with you. If you try to argue that scientifically a fetus isn't human, I'll just walk away. That's essentially what Bill Nye did in the Facebook video. I also heard part of the debate about creation vs. evolution that he had with Ken Ham a few years ago. Even though I'm a Christian, I am not a scientific creationist. In fact, people like Ken Ham really embarrass and frustrate me. I expected to like Bill Nye's argument more, but, yet again, he wasn't knowledgeable about the science and tried to make up for it with arrogance. Ken Ham was way off base both scientifically and theologically, but at least he was polite and gracious. Bill Nye just can't seem to be anything other than arrogant.

DD and I went to one AHG meeting and enjoyed it, but ended up settling on Girl Scouts because there's a troop that meets at her school. The AHG troop we visited meets at the local Catholic cathedral and I can tell you both from the one meeting we attended and from the email about their activities that I continued to get for several months, that the religion is a huge part of what the group does. They'd probably be friendly and welcoming, but they'd also be out to convert you. You might want to visit a troop and see what you think, but it's very possible it will make you uncomfortable.

You're right. Some people really do overblow their problems and need some perspective.

This is sort of JAWM, but feel free to chime in. So, as you might remember, my six year old was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes just over a month ago. It totally sucks and it has meant a major adjustment to our lives, but the sacrifices are worth it to keep our little girl healthy and we're pretty much used to it. In the past month I've spent way too much time on Facebook groups for Type 1 diabetics and parents of type 1 diabetics. There's lots of encouragement and advice to be had plus the occasional downer about a child or adult with diabetes who has serious complications and/or died from high or low blood sugar. What's bothered me lately, though, is multiple people posting about how their friends whose kids have other special needs, such as life threatening allergies, are comparing this to diabetes and saying their life is just as hard as just as stressful. So many parents in these groups totally dismiss this claim saying derisively that such parents just don't understand and clearly diabetes is the worst thing ever to have to deal with. This just annoys me. I have a good friend whose daughter has multiple life threatening allergies and, you know, in some ways she has it worse than I do. Once she took her daughter into a Starbucks to use the bathroom and the little girl somehow encountered enough of one of her allergens that her throat started to close up and they had to rush to the emergency room. You know what I think? There are lots of things that are hard to deal with. My son has no life threatening medical conditions, and I pray that he never gets one, because, with his hyperanxiety, it would be an absolute nightmare. Yes, I have to worry about controlling my daughter's blood sugar and that I'll do it wrong and there will be horribly consequences, but I also have the example of lots of type 1 diabetics who have managed the disease successfully for decades. I also have hope that there's some good research going on that might lead to a cure within my daughter's childhood. I also know that my daughter is confident and capable and smart and she's already doing a great job at helping manage her disease. I worry every day, though, that my son will never learn to write well enough to land a job, that his anxiety and inattention will stop him from succeeding, and that he'll be living with us when he's in his 30's, which would at least be better than him committing suicide because of some tiny offense that would bother no one else (no, he's never actually exhibited any suicidal tendencies, I just have a gift for imagining the worst possible outcome). I know so many people who are going through hard things. My cousin lost her husband to an undiagnosed heart condition six years ago. Last year she fought a successful battle with breast cancer. Now her daughter is suffering lingering effects from a concussion she suffered a month ago and is on a limited school schedule. She was already behind in school due to ADHD compounded by continuing grief over her dad's death six years ago. I could go on, but you get my point. Sure, there are a handful of people who actually lead the charmed lives they seem to lead, but most people have some kind of struggle going on. Maybe your neighbors are on the edge of divorce. Maybe your friend has been distracted lately because her mother is sliding deeper into dementia but is refusing to be moved into full time care. We just tear each other down by saying our battle is worse than theirs. Ours is different, but that doesn't make us more noble. It just makes us different.

I saw it this afternoon and I was blown away. As I said upthread, I loved the cartoon so much I saw it in the theater multiple times, and I want to see this one multiple times too, but I probably won't because now I'm all grown up and responsible and can't justify spending the money to see it multiple times. I thought the casting of all the roles was spot on, and I loved the extra things they threw in, like the backstory on Belle's mother. If you haven't seen it yet or didn't see it in 3D and want to see it again, do yourself a favor and splurge on the 3D if it's within your budget. I felt like I was practically inside the movie. Plus, the 3D was worth it just to see my six year old and her friend reaching for stuff that seemed like it was coming out of the screen. My daughter also made a very astute observation on the way home that Gaston is the real beast in story. FTR, my 12 year old boy really wants to see the movie too. He and DH were hiking with Boy Scouts today and I decided to take DD and meet a friend of hers from Girl Scouts and her family. The guys were okay with it because they love hiking, but they both want to see it sometime.

I'm taking my daughter tomorrow afternoon and I'm SO excited. I'm even more excited about this than I was about The Force Awakens, and that's saying a lot. I saw the cartoon in the theater multiple times. I wanted to BE Belle.

Thanks for the suggestion! Based on the syllabi that might be a good fit. I'll show it to Squirrelboy next week.

We're in the homestretch of our first year homeschooling. My son recently turned 12 and is in 6th grade. He has a 6 year old sister, but she goes to public school, so he's an only child when it comes to homeschooling. This year we're using From Adam to Us for history. It's a one year world history survey for grades 5-8 from Notgrass. He loves it. I've learned some interesting things and don't regret using it, but I don't like it nearly as much as I thought it would. I'd kind of like to switch programs, though Squirrelboy would probably happily move into Notgrass America the Beautiful next year. Though the curriculum could be very independent for some kids, it isn't in our case. He's dyslexic and, while he can read and write at grade level thanks to lots of intervention, he still doesn't really like to. I'm trying to slowly build up his tolerance, but history is his favorite subject and I don't want to spoil it by forcing him to do a lot of history work in his weak area. I find that he retains more when I read aloud than when he reads himself, so I read all the lessons aloud. We then go through the questions in the review workbook orally and I write his answers. If he doesn't know something I point out the section it's in and have him reread that section himself to find the answer. We don't use any of the vocab, bible, or creative writing sections. We've only done three of the family activities. We've loved all the accompanying literature and have added in extra literature. I'm looking most seriously at Bookshark, probably 5th grade history and reading (Eastern Hemisphere) or possibly 8th (History of Science). 6th and 7th are out because we're doing a world history survey right now and I don't want to just do that again, even using different books and a different approach. The problem I run into with Bookshark is that I really want some output with history. I guess Reading with History 5 has that, but the other levels seem to be just reading and discussion. Is there some great program I'm missing? I'm open to either Christian or secular. I've found this year that I feel the need to tone down the preachiness in most Christian material and I'd want to add some faith discussion into secular material. Neither would be a perfect fit.