For c & k here's the jingle I learned as a kid, and it's for when you're making the /k/ sound before a short vowel sound: "K goes with I and E, C goes with the other 3: A, O, and U". If you have that memorized, you can figure out that if C is before a vowel sound not made by A, O, or U, it must say /s/. Don't know if that will help at all, but it still helps me this many years later. :)

My (subject to change) plans for my boys who will also be 1st and 3rd grade next year look like this: 3rd grade, subjects in random order: Grammar: FLL 3 Writing Composition: WWE 3 & maybe add some Writing Tales; OR CW Aesop A Math: Horizons 3 OR Saxon 5/4, supplement either w/ Singapore Spelling/Phonics/"word work": AAS OR Abeka Language Arts program minus the readers and minus most of the creative writing Phonics/Vocab/Reading supplements: Webster's Speller website, ETC online, use this if not doing Abeka LA & if AAS has gaps to be filled with these Reading: my own list formed from rec's by AO, WP, Sonlight, WTM, VP, aligned w/ history period. (note: add vocab. and short reports? Use CW or WWE to write about what we're reading about?) History: SOTW 2 + AG, additionally maybe some Sonlight readers & VP stuff Earth and Space science: R.E.A.L. Science, Apologia, God's Design, etc. Still exploring curriculum on this. Spanish - Rosetta Stone + Muzzy (only b/c we already have them), random free online or library supplements Logic - keeping it fun with games, puzzles, etc. Latin? PE - Homeschool Family Fitness, Tae Kwon Do lessons, soccer, and playing outside Art - Atelier 2 w/ artist and picture study Music - our own composer/classical music studies, and guitar lessons? or continue drums? Nature Walks + journaling 1st grade: Grammar: FLL 1 Writing Composition: WWE 1 Math: Horizons 1 or Saxon 2, supplement either w/ Singapore Spelling/phonics: finish OPGTTR and begin either AAS or Abeka LA 1. Supplement as needed w/ Webster's Speller website and ETC online (determine need ahead of time by looking through programs) Reading: my own list I made w/ rec's from WTM, VP, Sonlight, WP, AO, etc. (integrate vocab & writing?) History: SOTW 2 + AG + Sonlight readers + some VP stuff Earth & Space Science: Apologia, God's Design, R.E.A.L. Science, etc. ? (still choosing) Spanish - Rosetta Stone + Muzzy (only because we already have them), random free online or library supp.'s Latin?? PE - Homeschool Family Fitness, Tae Kwon Do lessons, soccer, lots of horsing around Music - Drum lessons or Calvert Discoveries in Music, plus our own composer studies Art - Atelier 2 w/ artist and picture study Nature Walks + Journaling Oh dear, I wanted to do church history w/ Trials and Triumphs and my plate is already brimming... It's all still in the works. The thing I want to do most next year is streamline and simplify. My list includes alot of things to research, look through, and decide. Once all the decisions are final the list will shrink. :) I have no idea if this helps anyone at all, but thought I'd just put it out there fwiw.

My homeschoolers are both still grammar age, but this gives me heaps to chew on. Thank you all so much for the wealth of combined wisdom here! I hope the moderators never, ever, ever delete this! At least not until after 2020, lol.

Infuriating! But good to know... I'll pass it on. My mom & dad are avid olive oil consumers but get it in bulk quantities at a warehouse membership club store. I'm telling them first thing.

If you want your garden box to last more than 1 or 2 seaons (and not leech chemicals into your edibles), use natural untreated cedar wood. Make sure to use rust-proof screws/nails. Take it from someone who learned those lessons the looooooong hard way. Sugar snap peas did the best for us last year in a very low sunlight area. You can also easily pop a potatoe that has sprouted some good 'eyes' into a wide, deep container and dig up many new ones 2-3 months later. You can plant a clove of garlic if it hasn't been refridgerated as well, I did this successfully last year - yields a whole new bulb for each clove planted.

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: Hugs to you a million times over from a "BTDT"-mom about the stressing and yelling. Years ago when my dd was little I was much the same. It can be overcome, but things don't change overnight so don't be too hard on yourself. I'd work on reducing your stress level 1st - sounds like there are things seemingly caving in from all directions on you. I totally agree w/ Peela's comments above. It's not a pretty lesson to learn the hard way. Love on them, enjoy them, and remember why you set out to homeschool in the 1st place. Inspire them to love learning. A child's brain cannot physically think the same way, or learn effectively, when they are stressed or fearful. I don't say that to inflict guilt on you - but rather in the hopes that it will help. If you have to give the kids a break and call up dh or a friend in tears in the middle of the school day - do it. Step outside and scream (so long as you're in a rural area and only you know if your kids are sensitive to this scaring them or not). I wish so much that I could convey what's in my heart after reading all of this - I'm sitting here crying! :grouphug: As for stressing about a huge to-do list of curriculum, you all hit the nail on the head for me too! I recently made up a huge (it's like 3 or 4 feet long) checklist to make sure we do X number of lessons in ea. subject per day or week to make sure we're done by the target date. It's not working. I can't make such young children double up on so many things all at once, with curriculum crowding out natural enjoyment and fun. I will just go at it with commitment and do my best, but I can't ask of them what I have been. Thanks for the reality check.

I hope you guys don't mind but I just copied and pasted all those references into my "curriculum to look into" list. :) Thanks!

I'd try Land's End first, and maybe, just maybe, Old Navy might have something. Sometimes they have matching or coordinating outfits. hth

I can go around and around in circles trying to choose math curriclulums. I've used Horizons (and am currently as well) and have also used Saxon. I'm trying to choose between the two for my sons again now, not because one curric. is better than the other, but to see if Saxon might be a better fit (esp for my older). Saxon might be a step back because Horizons does move quickly. Veritas' Press recommends Saxon and in their catalog they state that when they spoke w/ John Saxon himself he recommended starting it a year ahead (Saxon 1 for kg, 2 for 1st grade, etc). The Saxon website's placement chart goes by age - 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 for Sax. K, 5 1/2 - 6 1/2 for Sax. 1, etc. All this to make the point that although it moves slower, it covers a broader range of concepts earlier. In Saxon 2 division is introduced, but both mult. & div. are only taught for certain number families. The meeting book that I've seen (only level 2) was not just for the calander, but for making a weather graph, and the patterns become increasingly challenging and are something that I like about the program. Saxon does teach a few little neat mental math tricks, not the same type of mental math as Singapore or others referred to as such, but for ex.: when learning addition, first you learn all your doubles (1+1, 2+2, 3+3, etc.) so that then you can learn your "doubles plus one" (2+3 = 2+2+1), "doubles plus 2", and so on. They also teach kids when adding 3 or more numbers, to look for the 10's or other helpful ways of rearranging things. So instead of tackling 18+9+21, you'd rearrange the one's column to be 10+8 (18), and then do the same if possible w/ the ten's column. Horizons has very loose, unscripted TM's and I wish they would change it. Even if they don't tell us exactly what to say, if they just gave bullet-point hints for multiple ways to explain things or neat jingles to help the kids remember things - that would be better than what it is now. I do alot more than just what the Horizons TM says though - for my K'er we sing the days of the week and months of the year, he practices telling time, counting money (and making change), etc. I just keep a running list on notebook paper of "extra" skills I'm teaching him, as well as things listed in the TM to continue reviewing (as needed per my kids - not for concepts they have down solid) for those times in the Horizons spiral when the TM doesn't say to review those things. We do hands-on things to demonstrate concepts (measuring, etc.) on our own- it doesn't have to say to in the TM. We add living math books in regularly as well - not as many as I'd like but we get at least one into our schedule per week. Today my perception of Horizons as too unscripted may have changed though. In the waiting area of my sons' drum lessons, I saw another homeschooler working in a higher grade elementary Horizons math book. It had a large blocked off area where it explained the "how-to" of the problems and gave examples as well. When his mom came in he asked her a question about something in it, and she pulled out her TM and was pointing to things in it to help him better understand. He seemed to get it after that and finished the page on his own. This was an eye-opener because my main worry with Horizons was that while it's easier to fly by the seat of our pants and just make up reviews, calander time, patterns, hands-on activities, etc. in the younger years, it would become increasingly hard (and a big challenge for me) as the math gets harder. I need to look at some later elementary Horizons books before straying away. So my vote, if you are set on leaving Horizons and going w/ something else, is for Saxon. Sorry for being so longwinded! I hope it helps.

If I ran into that situation w/ my 2nd grader, I'd get out the cassette recorder (found it for cheap at Walmart) and have him read it onto tape. In case of argument, I'd get out his recording and show him that it is indeed what he said and then read onto tape previously. I could see that as being a time-consuming step though, and then there's the discipline aspect (you shouldn't have to "prove" to your kid that you wrote it down right). You know, you could use the child's recording for the dictation instead of you reading it.

Hmmm... okay, sounds like it might be OK for us yet then. I am not using it to teach reading, I'm using OPGTTR for that w/ my Kg'er and my 2nd grader reads pretty well. I'd be using it as a phonics/spelling program alongside FLL, WWE, Bob books and other beginnning readers, and tons of read-alouds. I should just do like I said I was going to and order it already! :) They allow returns no questions asked if I decide against it. I was just stalling b/c I don't want to have to pay the return shipping in that case - but I think looking at it may be the only way for me to really know.

Any soda taken regularly is too much, IMO. I don't drink or buy it either though. Too much sugar, and if not sugar, then artificial sweeteners which are a whole separate set of illnesses. Too much caffiene to harden the arteries and raise blood pressure. It's just such an artificial, chemical concoction, so it seems gross to consume it so much. I don't even buy it for birthday parties. My SIL won't let her dd near any of it until she's over age 8 b/c she says it ruins the stomach lining in children - I haven't researched that but don't doubt it. I enjoy a good organic brand or homemade (a friend makes it herself) rootbeer once in a blue moon, like 4-5 times a year. Good luck w/ your dh. :D

Hi, So I've finally decided what I'm doing next year for math, sort of. I'll be using a more traditional approach (Saxon or Horizons) as our 'main', and I'd like to supplement with Singapore for another perspective. I don't want to do 2 programs at once, that would be too much. I want to add minimal work and my hope is that the Singapore supplement will be something fun and different, not time-consuming and labourous. What should I choose from Singapore math to achieve this? Their site has me thoroughly confused, especially all the editions options (standards, U.S., CA std - or is that the same as standards?). My main concern is this: will kids be able to use just the CWP workbook or the IP or EP as the supplement to something else and 'get it'? How will they grasp this different way of thinking about math if I don't get the teacher's manual or textbook to explain it to them? (In which case, we'd be doing what I don't want to do; 2 full math programs). How will they know what to do with such a foriegn take on math without the instruction for it? Here's a better question: How will they benefit from SM using only a supplemental thing (CWP, IP, or EP) w/o the main instruction for it? Please share your thoughts or experiences. I've read how one person here uses SM a level down from Saxon so that it's supplemental review, but do the kids need separate instruction on how to do that kind of math? Thanks for being patient w/ me as I keep asking more and more math questions. :tongue_smilie:

I've seen others post that they move from Horizons to TT also, fwiw. :)

AHHHHHhhh! I'm pulling my hair out up here you guys! I thought AAS *was* a phonics program as well as a spelling program! I was going to use it to replace the Abeka LA we're doing, all but reading/vocab of course. I thought the phonogram stuff would replace all the phonics charts, "circle the special sounds and mark the vowels" stuff Abeka does. Help?

Unfortuneatly I've got that OCD gene (unofficially, lol) that was mentioned. I'm not using a curriculum this year but plan to next year. I tend to go way too in depth and want to cover things very thoroughly, exploring and exposing everything. I am very curious and love learning about any kind of science, and I find that I really overdo it if I'm not careful. My plans start out elaborate and full, then get more full after going to the library and finding related links/games/videos online, etc. I could take what was meant to be 20 weeks long (animal studies, in our case) and take 2 years on it. I'm going to get something as a planned-out spine for next year to keep me on track. Whether we skim over some and linger on other parts per my dc's interest is fine, and we'll likely add books, experiements, field trips and make connections to real life experience. I just need something to help *me* stay focused and give me schedule & direction. We'll see what I have to say about it this time next year! :)

:iagree:I was thinking the same thing. Maybe you need to introduce just "blends" before actual words. You know, the idea of blending one letter sound (consonant) with a vowel. The ideas above are really great, and then you wouldn't have to find a whole separate curriculum to supplement with. This concept is one Abeka uses for the leap from single letters to words, so it's fine to back off the words and do this for awhile if you choose.

Kristina, I too feel your indecisive pain, lol. I've been thinking that no matter what I end up choosing (for good this time!) I'd like a more traditional math (Saxon or Horizons in my case) for the spine and then supplement with something else. I have a question about supplementing - how do you do it without ending up doing 2 math programs? We don't have the time nor do my children want to do that. Can someone describe how you tweak a program that is meant to be a full main program while still getting the 'meat' out of it, although not using the full thing?

Hopefully he'll be OK as it warms up and he gets used to me being more consistent, though like I said I don't want to overload him. Thanks for letting me vent though and for the kind words, all of you. :001_smile:

That's just it though, we do a lot of our subjects on the couch b/c mine is still a snuggle-bunny too :001_smile:. History, Grammar, even Writing w/ Ease, practicing spelling, we do all those on the couch. I just bring the little prop-up over-the-lap desk thingie over for any writing he may have to do after readings. We play alot of family games in the evenings as well, but come to think of it, we've spent the last week trying to get vehicles running (frozen up and batteries lost charge due to cold). Hopefully as I find our way through the curriculum and method maze and find our niche (something condusive to cuddling and lots of family fun time), and it warms up, he'll come around.

Well I'm glad I'm not in Barrow! (No offense at all to those who like it - I'd do poorly w/ less sunlight and more cold.) I am right by Ft. WW though. Our new schedule isn't something I can really change if we actually want to make it to the next grade by the time the next grade starts, whether Saxon or Horizons for math. I do have one of those lights but it was put away during the summer and I forgot all about it (duh)! I'll get that out for tomorrow - thanks! The thing about the Saxon 2 is that he already knows all of it inside and out, except the oddball or advanced things they teach like linear, congruent, oblique, etc. He's already done with all the other concepts in it except division and adding fractions. Saxon 3 continues w/ those, which he doesn't know, so I can't really put him there... from the limited scope and sequence info I read on their site anyhow. Anyhoooo... I think you're right about the balking at all the work. I think I've been expecting him to do a pretty heavy load lately. It's no fun for anyone. :( He does have to get used to consistency, but I don't need to overload him unnecessarily.

I can't figure out what's up with him. My 7 year-old son has been so teary and moody in the last week to week and a half that he's almost got me worried. We live in an area that gets nearly 0 daylight, and lately, when we do it's coming through heavy clouds and icefog. It's been extremely cold, so cold that he can't go out and play, and extra-curriculars have been cancelled. It's easy to attribute it to not seeing peers much in quite awhile, and darkness & being stuck indoors. All of those things are easily remedied, as it's just warmed up a bit and extra-curriculars & outdoor play are resuming. I would love to think that's all it is. On the other hand, I also recently made up an official scedule for us to follow so that we could actually get done with this school year and have 3-4 weeks before starting another. So we've been really hitting the books and I've become very serious about getting done what needs to get done. No more putting off until tomorrow, because at this point we cannot do that any longer. He's also presented some 'attitude' along with his pouting, and a bit of defiance. At separate times though he's been very sad about other things, random things that seem to be pulled out of the blue. For instance he cried tonight about wanting to 'have fun with his family'. Yet everything I offered he shot down as boring, etc. He wanted to go play laser-tag (which costs big $$ here). In my head I was like "What?! Since when do you actually CRY for laser-tag?". When I told him about our Risk board game & offered him to be on Daddy's team or mine when we play, he straightened up. Lots of cuddles helped too. Yesterday his lament was that he wanted to switch to Saxon math. I had our old Saxon 2 books out, looking through them, and he saw them and asked to switch back. My thoughts: "ya, that would be way easier for you since you were doing this when you were 6". We didn't finish the books, because he complained it was too easy then, & now he wants to go back and do it. It was something I was considering anyhow (switching math, possibly Saxon or others), which is why I had them out, but the answer was ultimately "no" and he went crying and pouting to his bed for over an hour. Could it be an adjustment period to the new schedule? He's not usually like this; this is abnormal behavior for him. I remain patient and loving, while still being firm (though my heart breaks for him and I just want to make him feel better sometimes). I don't know what else to do. I'm at a loss for finding an effective tool to help him articulate what's really wrong. Also, him just sitting there pouting over things like doing flashcards is getting really old fast. I don't know what to do because I feel frustrated and don't want to take that out on him. It's making our school-days take f.o.r.e.v.e.r though. He didn't even do 2 subjects he was supposed to today b/c of it - dinner and bedtime rolled around. Help!

I am curious to find out the answer to this from those of you with kids now in higher level maths: What in your experience (and that includes that 20/20 hindsight ;)) is the best math curriculum for preparing kids for higher maths? My sons are very bright when it comes to math, not officially gifted, but I want them to have the option to do Algebra 1 in Jr. High and higher maths in later hs years. What do you suggest is the best way to prepare for this?

Math has been on my mind lately as well (as if you all couldn't tell by my other posts). Something I remembered today that my teacher for grades 2-4 (same one for 3 yrs.) had us all do, apart from the curriculum, was to copy from the chalkboard math fact families (tables). We did it daily, and sometimes the answers were there to copy, sometimes not. I suspect that she gave the answers for more recently introduced ones and let us solve the ones we knew well. We did this for all 4 number operations. It really did help us see another side of the relationship between numbers, because when you have the entire fact family written in list form, you can see how one column increases and the other decreases; you can see "doubles" and "twins", you can point out cool things like for ex. the numbers that make up answers to the 9's multiplication table all add up to equal 9 (9x3=27, 2+7=9). That teacher pointed out a lot of ways of thinking about things that weren't in the curriculum using that simple method. ETA: Copying down a couple math families can be done in 5-10 min. dep. on the child's age. Doesn't have to be time consuming.

After all the math discussion around here, hopefully this will be helpful to anyone trying to pick something to stick with throughout the elementary years at least. Which one, in your experience and/or opinion, prepares a child best for higher maths? Please elaborate on why you voted for your choice. :D Thank you!