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hsmamainva

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Posts posted by hsmamainva

    Reading & phonics question...BJU and others...

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I'm trying to find something for my youngest to teach reading and phonics - 1st grade level

     

    First, for my BJU questions -- Under BJU for 1st grade, they have "Phonics and English 1" and "Reading 1" -- do I need both in order to teach her how to read with BJU? Has anyone used BJU? How quickly do they begin blending? The sample pages look really good for the Reading 1 set...but, by page 8, it looks like they have her reading 4-5 word sentences. That seems awfully fast for my daughter! (Which is why I'm wondering if I should be looking at the Phonics and English 1 set -- or if I need both)

     

    My dd knows all of her letters, and the sounds they make, but she needs help with blending and learning how to read, if that makes sense.

     

    Also --- if anyone has another phonics / reading suggestion, I would appreciate it!! My daughter has special needs -- she is VERY visual and loves color and pictures and it takes her time to understand new concepts.

     

    I'm trying AlphaPhonics (which is used with my oldest son), but a list of unrelated words, all in a row, isn't working for her. I also have Sing, Spell, Read & Write (which I used for my 3rd child), but she doesn't like to listen to the CD's -- she has sensory issues as well.

     

    She LOVES the Explode the Code books...and she can do them independently. She's using Abeka for math, and I own Abeka's 1st grade reading and phonics, as my oldest daughter used it, but, if my memory serves, it moves very quickly...and I'm not sure that would work for her, but I haven't tried it yet!

     

    (I'm also considering the I See Sam program, btw!)

     

    Does anyone have any other suggestions??

     

    Thanks !!!

    How is the housing market in your area?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I'm not considered "Northern Virginia", but close enough! I'm outside Fredericksburg (about an hour south of our nation's capital) and things are grim here!!!

     

    If you live near one of the military bases, you're not doing too bad, because folks are always looking for homes that were just transferred in. Otherwise! Ack!

     

    We moved into our home 3 years ago and it's assessed value has dropped by $150,000. They estimated in the paper the other day that it would take 24 months to sell all of the houses we currently have on the market in our area.

     

    We're seeing homes that were in the $500-$600K price range a year ago, sitting on the market for years in the $300K price range.

     

    Our builder's model has been sitting vacant, across the street from our house for 3 years. No one's ever lived in it.

     

    If you're a buyer, the market is *fantastic*!! We would LOVE to move. Our oldest takes classes at the community college and she's driving 45 minutes each way to get there -- would love to be closer to Fredericksburg proper -- but we can't sell our house!! At least not for what we want to get for it, which is to at least break even, after we pay off our current mortgage, pay the realtor fees, and closing costs on the new house. To put it in simple terms, we need to sell our current home for $450-$460K to do that. A year and a half / two years ago -- cake! Could've sold it for that or even more! They were selling in the $500's in our neighborhood. Now? We really don't think we could expect to even reach $400K.

     

    So...for now, we're sitting and riding it out!

    For those interested in the I See Sam books

    in The Learning Challenges Board

    Posted

    Thank you sooo much for this link! I just joined!

     

    Are you using this program?

     

    I'm considering it for my youngest, who has autism. The online samples look wonderful!!

     

    (I love the comprehension questions at the bottom, as they'll help her with her language delays!)

     

    Wondering what is essential for the program, so I know what to order? (I'll be asking the group this question also, once I've been 'approved')

    Have you bought your child a Nintendo DS?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I bought a Nintendo DS Lite for my 3rd child last year, on his 8th birthday.

     

    We haven't had a problem with 'screen time'. He usually plays it in the car (we live in the country, so a trip to Wal-Mart takes 45 minutes each way -- the DS comes in handy!!)

     

    He also takes it to Tae Kwon Do (he takes the children's class and then he has to wait for his older sister to finish the adult class, which ends an hour after his, so he plays his DS in the waiting room)

     

    I bought one for our oldest son for Christmas two years ago. He's not a big fan of it. Like our younger son, he primarily plays it in the car.

     

    They have a Wii, which we bought for them last Christmas and they play that every day .. but we have a rule during the school year that video games are only played after schoolwork and chores are finished. It helps to encourage them to finish on time!!

    Math dilemma

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I'm singing the praises of Life of Fred here!!!

     

    My kids LOVE these books!! (I do, too!)

     

    The Fractions and Percents & Decimals books are considered PreAlgebra, then there's Beginning Algebra, Geometry, Advanced Algebra, Trigonometry, and then Calculus and/or Statistics.

     

    Most books have a Home Companion book that you can order as well, which has daily lesson plans and all the books are self-teaching for the student. They're fun and interesting and contain plenty of math instruction.

     

    And, at around $30 to $45 a course, they're very affordable!!

     

    Here's a link

     

    http://www.stanleyschmidt.com/FredGauss/index2.html

    Dual enrollment - what type of classes did your students do or will do?

    in High School and Self-Education Board

    Posted

    My oldest is also considering a major in Criminal Justice!

     

    She's about to start her second year at the community college. The first year, she took College Composition I & II, United States History I & II, and College Success Skills (a how-to-study course). This year, she's taking British Literature, Psychology, Sociology, and Public Speaking.

     

    She's trying to decide now if she wants to continue after high school and get her associate's degree and then transfer to a 4 year college, or if she wants to go straight to the 4 year college. She's really on the fence, as she's suddenly nervous about leaving home. We told her that the choice is up to her and we'll support either decision.

    Need advice about a diet for a child with food alergies...

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I would also suggest rice milk. My children love it! It's very sweet.

     

    In our house we have egg allergies (oldest dd, 8 yr old ds, and my dh), wheat allergies (8yr old ds and 6 yr old dd), soy allergies (me, my 8 yr old ds, and 6 yr old dd), and dairy allergies (8 yr old ds, 6 yr old dd).

     

    Get to know your local Ukrops / Trader Joe's / Harris Teeter / Whole Foods (whatever natural food store you have in your area) very well!!!

     

    Try to find a support group (check your local hospital or look in the newspaper). Even in our small town (18,000 people), we have a celiac / food allergy support group, so they're out there. They're great sources for support, recipes, venting, etc.

     

    I'd get the allergies under control before I would ever attempt to eat out. Eating out is our biggest challenge (as you can see from our list of allergies!)

     

    My poor 8 yr old has the most allergies (eggs, wheat, soy, and dairy), and he's turned out to be my best eater! He'll eat anything. So I've found that, once they start to feel better, they're willing to try new foods, so their diet won't seem so limiting, if that makes sense.

     

    Learn to cook -- take a cooking class. I will admit, I do NOT like to cook. I'd rather vacuum than cook. But I've had to learn how to do it (and sometimes enjoy it) so my family doesn't starve.

     

    Buy some food allergy cookbooks -- I've found a great selection at Borders, and of course, there's always amazon.com -- esp. for the wheat allergy. Wheat is a hard food to substitute (because the bread alternatives can be tricky to make and to cook -- it takes practice and a good recipe).

     

    Also, try visiting some speciality food sites online -- Ms. Robens is a HUGE favorite here! The kids wait on the porch for the UPS man when he's delivering a box from Ms. Robens! Here's a link:

     

    http://allergygrocer.com/

     

    I hope this helps a little bit!

    What does your

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I have an 8 year old boy!!

     

    He loves to draw -- loves nothing more than a 'how to draw' book and a new pack of drawing paper and colored pencils!

     

    He loves Legos and any other construction sets (K'nex / Tinkertoys / blocks)

     

    He loves to play outside -- riding bikes, playing basketball, climbing trees, wading through the creek and exploring the woods (we live in the country)

     

    He loves video games, computer games, and board games (especially Monopoly and Chess)

    Problem subject?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I hear good things about Life of Fred (just ordered mine) and http://www.livingmath.net is good.

     

    My oldest two LOVE Life of Fred!!! My 8 year old is begging to try Fred, too, because he wants to see what all the fuss is about!

     

    My oldest even wants to try the Calculus book, just to see how the story ends! This is a child who has never liked math....ever. And she's considering a CALCULUS text?? Now THAT is motivation!! LOL! :D

    Problem subject?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Teaching my little one how to read!! She has autism and I'm trying to go slowly. She knows all of her letters, and the sounds they make. Blending them into words will be the problem! So I'm hoping Alpha Phonics and Sonlight Core 1 will do the trick (along with the Explode the Code books).

     

    I just keep reminding myself that I've done this for years now..and my other three children DID learn to read eventually!

    What do you use with your special needs kids in LA?

    in The Learning Challenges Board

    Posted

    Rod & Staff English (Grades 2-8). We do the lessons in the book orally and then he would fill in the appropriate worksheet (if there was one for that lesson)

     

    Handwriting Without Tears (PreK through 5th Grade). I love this program!!!

     

    Natural Speller (Grades 2-8). One book covers grades 2-8, with small lists for each grade, broken down by spelling rules / phonetic rules. Another great program!!!

    RANT! I thought I would love the country, but

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    We live in the country, too, and we have all sorts of wildlife here! Deer, snakes, spiders, skunks, foxes, coyotes, raccoons, possum. At least once a week, a car hits a skunk and the children affectionately call the aroma "Virginia cologne". :D

     

    What drives me absolutely crazy are the field mice!!! Thankfully, we've never had them inside the house, but they come into the garage every fall and multiply like crazy.

     

    The kids catch them and set them free in the woods...where I'm sure they find their way back!

     

    And the new thing is bears! We have black bears about 5 miles from our house -- which isn't far at all, since there's nothing but woods for those 5 miles. Just a swim across the creek and they'll be in my back yard.

    Remedial math program?

    in The Learning Challenges Board

    Posted

    I would also recommend Developmental Math. (I haven't used them, but I've seen them up close at our local homeschool convention and they look really good!)

     

    After finishing the series, your student would then be ready for PreAlgebra / Beginning Algebra and I highly recommend the Life of Fred books. My 14 year old son has been enjoying them thoroughly!!!!

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