Will she listen to audio books? As long as she is doing some reading on a regular basis, I don't think she needs massive amounts. Audio books can provide some of the same benefits in terms of language and vocabulary development.

I used to play games with my kids, this has reminded me we need to do it again. I used large dice, some with numbers and done with +/- signs. We drew a long number line on the sidewalk with both positive and negative numbers. With small children we started at zero and rolled one or two number dice plus the +/- die, then we moved up or down the number line as indicated. With bigger kids I can think of ways to make the game more complex, subtracting positive or negative numbers, multiplying, etc. Good thing we have a long sidewalk to use...

For book choices, has your child read/listened to The Hobbit yet?

I think likes on her posts are disabled because everyone on the forum would like them, thus using up the collective "like" quota for an entire week and leaving us all likeless and depressed. :sad:

It will transform you WTM board experience :D :P

Hear Hear! (and I'm out of likes :( )

As far as I can tell there hasn't really been much moderation within social groups, a problem arose when a glitch caused a private group to go public and moderators responded to posts as public posts. I don't see a need for significant moderation in social groups, I think it's fine for like-minded people to discuss things in private. I do think if there are really groups on this board that engage in targeted snark at the expense of non-group members that should not be permitted. Negative gossip, no matter how private, is poisonous to a community. I haven't personally seen anyone engage in such discussions however. ETA sorry SWB we cross-posted.

Did you find the post? I just learned about this on here: when you click on "view new content" and your new content list comes up, there is an options bar on the left side of the page. On the very bottom is a button that says "filter by forum"; if you click on it, you get a pop-up that lets you select which forums you want ("Configure forum filters for new content"). All you have to do is check mark the forums/social groups you want to be included in your new content, hit save, and voila--personalized new content.

Also consider the other military academies if interested :)

Yes, they need to apply to other colleges as academy admittance is very selective. Have your ds look into AFROTC scholarships at other schools. Two of my brothers applied to the USAFA. One did not receive an appointment on his first try but was offered a scholarship to a prep program--he attended summer at another university, fall at the prep school, spring at the first university and entered the USAFA the next summer. My other brother was accepted but had a back up school or two just in case. I never applied to USAFA but went through AFROTC in college and had a great experience there.

As for the chat board being a distraction, I know there are many posters who simply choose to ignore it. ETA the tip upthread about how to remove a board from the new content feed is very useful!

I think people would have to volunteer, or if nominated must at least have a choice whether or not to accept the nomination. I don't know the best way to hold a vote for assistant moderators though, I would not like it to be a popularity contest.

I would not send photos. There is no relationship. He was not a father to you and is not a grandfather to them.

And yet the chat board also contributes significantly to the sense of community and provides a venue not only for learning about the experiences and viewpoints of others (I think many of us find the "Ask a ..." threads both interesting and enlightening) but also for asking Dr. Hive questions, seeking and finding support in difficult situations, and generally just shooting the breeze. Maybe there could be some junior-moderators of sorts voted on by the community, people known to be level-headed, who while maybe not given actual moderator powers to lock threads etc. could be accepted as community moderators who could step in when a thread gets heated and remind everyone from a position of authority to follow the guidelines. I bet that would take care of a lot of issues. People would know who they are and could alert them via PM of developing situations, and the "real" moderators would not need to be brought in unless people refuse to settle down when instructed.

It is a real challenge. I would hate to see controversial topics in general forbidden as political topics now are. I sincerely believe a board made up of people devoted to education should be able to differentiate between politely disagreeing and sharing different points of view, and doing so in an inflammatory and provocative or disrespectful manner. And really, most of the time we make it work

Like. Clear guidelines, with reminders when things start to get out of hand.

I had to re-read your post a couple of times because at first it sounded to me as well as if you were saying religious views shouldn't be allowed on the main board. I think you just meant there should not be a bias in moderation as you currently perceive it. (I do hope however that you don't mean calling religious views delusional should be acceptable on the public boards? Coming back to the whole "try to post in less offensive ways" idea...

Without a behind the scenes view, I can't know for sure but I doubt most people jump to report every little post they dislike. If there are people who frequently make unhelpful reports perhaps they could have reporting privileges suspended for a time? Don't know if that's possible or not.

I guess my point is that disagreements can be handled politely, and when multiple posters start reporting the discussion has probably moved past that point and moderators need to step in.

In general, I think that if a point is worth making it is worth taking the time to try to formulate my posts in as inoffensive a manner as possible. If I say: "Atheists are bigots who hate Christians" I am making a personal attack that is very likely to offend even if I believe it to be true (I don't). If I say instead "I know some atheists who are very vocal in condemning Christianity" then hopefully discussion of different viewpoints can continue in an interesting and productive manner. I think such discussion is the aim of this board, whatever topic is being addressed.

Eek, I really wish people would stop telling me about the teen years being harder. Can't you let me live in a state of blissful ignorance a little longer?!? :D :D :D

I enjoy the mostly polite discussions that happen around potentially controversial issues here. I think most people do a good job of moderating themselves, but I also think the presence of official moderation helps to keep things civil.

I don't think pushing him to quit cigarettes and coffee when in the midst of a stressful situation is going to turn out well. I'm sorry things are not working out well, there is such a big difference between a good boss and a bad one.

I see this at pools all the time, but I've only ever seen women at ours showering with their suits on. People do sometimes change out in the open though there are a few closed stalls available as well. There is room for individual modesty for those who want it.

Five was actually surprisingly overwhelming for me. I've heard so many people say that after three it is all the same, but I really didn't find that to be true. The biggest help within the home was that my oldest DD really took over in taking care of the then four year old, who is a particularly intense child. Then about a year after #5 came along I was able to get a mother's helper to come in once or twice a week. I know if the money isn't there it isn't there, but if there is a little wiggle room in the budget you might be able to hire a teen girl fairly inexpensively.