Yes, this is named after the similar thread of making chemistry alluring. I am looking for books to go alongside physics for high school. Many of the books in the chemistry thread have gotten my attention such as the Poisoner's Handbook and The Disappearing Spoon. I would love some similar suggestions in the realm of physics. i "think" I know how to teach physics from a textbook. My boys will be ready for any of the math of physics. I have an idea of what I would like to do lab-wise. However, I would like to add some related literature that isn't too "heavy" to read. What do you suggest?

I don't grade. My son must master the proof in a logical stepwise fashion. He usually does this orally. Oftentimes, he sounds just like the AoPS solution guide; other times he approaches a problem from a completely different perspective but is just as correct.

GSWL can certainly be done in a few months. We did it orally. We did three lessons per day and I think there are 130 lessons in the book.

Perfect varies a lot based on both the child and the teacher. At this house the default is Singapore math plus Miquon early on, then AoPS. Beast in now supplementmenting SM for my third child, but she will move faster than Beast Academy is being published. Beast Academy might become the primary math program for my youngest and I'll have to wait and see if it needs to be supplemented. (It would not have to be supplemented with my oldest if he had done it.) Anytime something gets frustrating I back off and work on a different area of math for awhile. Some kids need more drill in a certain area and might need the "ideal" math program supplemented. Some teachers don't know enough math to be able to teach certain programs.

I love Getting Started with Latin for starting out. From there, we went to Cambridge Latin and are enjoying it.

Yes, mathcounts allows homeschoolers as a team or individual. Two years ago they didn't allow teams for that one year.

FYI - While AoPS is great for competition math, you don't at all need to be interested in competing for AoPS to be a good fit. I think it is great prep for anyone going into a STEM field, as well as beneficial for many others.

We limit time to 1 hour or less - including weekends. Internet use must be preapproved and not just random. When my kids start thinking about the computer too much, we just ban it. We always have a ban as soon as the weather is nice enough in the spring - it is often a ban of weeks. Computers are all in main rooms and easily available for me to see what is going on - though I tend to ignore it. AoPS and chess are usually not limited.

I have both the TM and the cd. I would definately recommend the TM despite the price. I just wish it was cheaper. "I" could do without the cd - it is a reading of the latin passages. My daughter, however, loves the cd and it truely is an improvement over me reading the latin passages.

For my middle school boys: Winners: Art of Problem Solving - loved this for years Getting Started in Latin Cambridge Latin Losers: Latin Road to English Grammer

I haven't looked at Horizens specifically, but AoPS challenges and goes deeper than anything else I've seen. AoPS, however, takes a different kind of maturity than other math programs. For some kids, AoPS may be "extra work", but my kids don't find it to be more work. It tends to have fewer problems overall, but much more challenging problems. Some of the problems I think are more complicated than need be for pre-algebra, but only some of the extra challenging ones. My oldest started AoPS before the prealgebra book had come out, but I am now doing prealgebra with my second son. When he wants a "break" from the prealgebra book, he finds Forester's Algebra easier than AoPS prealgebra.

We went through Singapore math 5b. Readiness for AoPS is more than just skill level, but willingness to wrestle with new and unusual problems.

We've been using EIL this year, however we use it mostly for the books, discussion, and the links to learn more. We've been using Windows to the World for literary analysis with some WTM and Adam Andrews questions for discussion. I do a mix of things for the writing side of things - sometimes related to EIL, othertimes not. I've been happy with EIL e en though we've not used it with all the assignments.

I don't think it is a matter of how hard the problem is or if it is enrichment. I look at the frustration level and if the child is making progress. If they are totally lost or frustrated it only makes sense to step in. If "I" think it is taking too long, I will ask if it is going okay, do they need help? My daughter is slow and puzzles over problems way longer than my boys ever did, but it doesn't frustratrate her. Eventually she gets to the correct answer usually and then can tell me how she did it.

Singapore with Miquon - on my fourth child with this combination.

I agree with the above comments.I twould add that the end of the chapter review problems may take more days/time than you initially expect. There are a lot of hard problems at the end of the chapter! We do a lot of alcumus on days that the end of the chapter problems are being worked on. It helps break it up. Try it out and find what works for you, but keep in mind it is better to schedule a time limit rather than number of days on a chapter.

We are using Chemistry Matters (Singapore). I'm not sure it's still available for saile however.

In response to you husband being resistant... I found it very helpful to have my kids tested by an educational psychologist. I wasn't looking for labels, but it really helped me understand HOW my kids brains worked, and therefore I am better able to teach them. I understand WHY they struggle and have better been able to accomodate.

Your son sounds a lot like my daughter. She LOVES Beast Academy. She struggles with facts and any memorization. She absolutely understands the harder math concepts beyond the facts. I have to read her the book and any word problems, but she loves the challenge of Beast Academy. We started when they put out 3A last year. While waiting for the next book to be published we've done Zacarro's Primary Math Challenge, worked on facts and gone back to Singapore math. I'm just sad that I think she might progress faster than the books are being published.

I was also going to suggest AoPS Prealgebra.

I liked Getting started with Latin also. You can do this quickly before moving on to another program.

2.5-3 hours sounds too long to me as well. I would look hard and long about why it is taking so long. Is the math too hard? Does she know all the fundamentals? Is she daydreaming? Does she spend way too long writing meticulously. I would sit next to my child and watch what they are doing and the process she is going through. Maybe she needs to do math for a short time and then come back and do some more.

I feel your pain - my 13 yo is severely dysgraphic. I've scribed for him for years. Both his gifts and his weaknesses are marked. It has been helpful for us to have neuropsych testing to better understand how he processes language and better address his needs. Ultimately, you have to figure out how to best accomodate him and do your best to move him to typing. Typing can also be very difficult for some dysgraphic kids. As far as Sonlight, we just do as much as possible orally. I pick and choose what I make him write and try to have a purpose rather than just filling in blanks. I've also moved away from Sonlight's LA portion as it doesn't fit our needs from a language disability. I've taken some worksheets and scanned them into pdf files on my computer. I then load them onto my ipad and use notability to "write" on the worksheets. I don't know how to do this for just my computer.

Interesting replies. I always hear that the geometry book is so much harder, but in this household the algebra book has been the tougher book. I think it is because I have a very gifted visual spacial learner and he just sees the geometry. He can easily prove any of it and even the analytical geometry and trig sections were easier than the algebra book. I think some of what slowed him down in algebra is that is very dsygraphic and resists any writing. He is able to see the geometry and tell me elegant proofs orally, but sometimes it just takes some writing to not mix up the algebra numbers. (My son started the geometry book early in his course of algebra and had only gone through chp.14 in the algebra book when he had completed the geometry book.) Good luck and have fun with the geometry course.

As long as he's started quadratics, I'm not sure why he can't do AoPS Geometry without having completed the Algebra text. My son did fine completing the geometry text before finishing algebra.