DS is doing MIF and Miquon and he's doing really well. He's starting to naturally remember some facts as he's working with Miquon on multiplication and division. Should we be doing more to learn math facts? If so, how?

DS is 7 and finishing up 1st grade. He is writing really well and I was thinking about starting to teach him cursive this summer or fall. I am wondering when he would be ready for copywork in cursive? Like for ELTL I love having the student book for him to write in for his copywork and I could order it in manuscript or cursive. I have no idea when he would be ready to start doing his copywork in cursive once he gets started.

I love AAR. Super easy to use since you just follow the script. I am amazed at how quickly and well it taught DS to read. You don't have to use the tiles if you don't need them. DS was always trying to read the Teacher's Manual so eventually instead of trying to stop him I just taught him from that so we didn't use the tiles. We don't use them for AAS either. The great thing about AAR is how easy it is to speed up or slow down depending on the child. Have you looked at the samples? You could always try it out and see if it would work for you.

That sounds great! What's the name of it?

I don't understand Nancy Larson, it seems crazy expensive for what it is. Is it really worth the price? Thanks BWDiaz! You helped push me toward ES. After comparing the ToC for both it does seem like a lot more time on rocks with RSO! Neither of us are budding geologists so that could be torturous for us too!

I was very anxious about teaching DS math since I am not at all mathy. After a lot of research I went with Math In Focus, which is supposed to be like Singapore but with more explicit instructions. I am very happy with it. The instructions are very clear and all of the steps are well illustrated. The books are brightly colored which might be appealing to your DD. It also will have some coloring for the workbook problems which DS likes and could appeal to your dreamer. It has lots of hands on descriptions as well for using manipulatives. Consider Miquon as well. I was very intimidated by it since it's so different but it's an excellent program. It's something I think you just have to start using to understand. DS really likes it. We use it alongside MIF but I don't try to match them up a all. It uses the rods which might be appealing since she likes hands on manipulatives. It has fun things randomly too, DS loved fraction math with snowmen.

I'm in the same position so I know what you mean. My charter lets us keep everything until we decide to be done with it so if yours is the same you could stock up for the future. What about an art program like Artistic Pursuits and the supplies. Science program and its supplies. The supply kits are pricy and great to have so programs are more open and go. Is he reading? If not AAR. Does your charter let you receive subscription kits at home and go through the summer? Mine requires they go to our ES so we can't get them over the summer. If you can then we've really enjoyed Raddish and Kiwi Crate. Raddish is something I'd never buy myself but it's been great for DS to practice cooking.

Bumping...anyone? The good, the bad or ugly of either? I cannot seem to find a reason to choose one over the other. Thanks!

Looking at earth and space science for 2nd grade and I have narrowed or down to ES or RSO. We did ES Intro to Sci and I wasn't very impressed with it so we switched to RSO for Life Sci and I'm unimpressed with it too. I've looked at the samples for both and cannot decide between them. Any advice? I am going to be ordering through our virtual charter so it must be a secular approved publisher which is how I came to be undecided between them. I know there will be many who don't think young children need a science curriculum but I like to have one to use and a starting point and to keep me on a schedule and again it's free through the charter.

http://www.rainbowresource.com/product/sku/056815 Here's a link and they have some sample pages, not sure if the publisher has more on their website. It really is a great program that slowly ramps up to reading paragraphs and answering questions. For DS the writing with the blending really helped it click for him.

Check out MP First Start Reading (FSR). My DS at 5 was very resistant to blending even after doing AAR Pre Level but loved FSR. It's very very gentle but worked for him. How does he feel about writing? FSR starts with tracing letters and forming simple words. You can tell your DD that she only needs the workbook if she wants to try it. I bought the teacher's guide but it's totally unnecessary.

I think you can definitely drop HWOT. DS did pre-k - 1st HWOT books and I wasn't impressed. ELTL will have better practice with their copywork. Every lesson has a sentence from the assigned reading and sometimes adds a line from a poem to memorize. Their is an Aesop's fable to read in every lesson from level 1 and occasionally the student draws a picture related to it. Every few lessons is an art piece to look at as well. The grammar is very gentle and introduces things like punctuation then points it at in the copywork. I know in another post you said you were having a baby soon so this might be a great snuggle curriculum since you can read together and then assign the copywork. You could even get the workbook like I did if you want to make it super easy for yourself. I LOVE AAR so I think you should definitely stick to it. From what I saw of RLTL it would be a completely different style of teaching phonics. You definitely don't need to use it to use ELTL. We did AAR and ELTL. I can't speak to the BraveWriter program. It intrigues me but they don't seem to explain it very well so we haven't used it.

Another vote for All About Reading ((AAR). It's super easy to teach, fun for the student and effective. I agree that I prefer each subject to be separate so the child can move at their own pace. English Language Through Litetature (ELTL) is a fun but gentle introduction to grammar and writing. We loved using Memoria Press (MP) Enrichment for K. It has a book, music, art and science topics that vary by week and follow the seasons. For math consider Miquon and start with Orange. I resisted it for a really long time because it is so different but it really is amazing. It's the kind of thing I think you have to use because, at least to me, it made no sense just looking at samples online. With DS we did Singapore Essentials and it was too easy so I don't think it was worth it. For K definitely try to find your style and what works for you. It doesn't matter how many rave reviews something gets if it doesn't actually get used! Good luck!

I'm not science inclined so for me I knew I wasn't going to throw together something for science. I knew I needed a program to ensure it would get done. I chose Elemental Science so I could have a framework for science. It's not very in depth so I cannot say it's amazing but it does serve my purpose. Every week has a topic, an experiment and a reading list. Our library doesn't always have the recommended books but I can get something else on the topic. I had science experiment books but they sat on the shelf but when it's assigned I manage to pull it out reliably.

Have you looked at the AAR placement test? It should help you decide on which level. It might also depend on how many books you did. I know they have added to it but I think they had about four books when DS did it and he was using it along side AAR1. I think the last book only had a couple of pages on Silent E. He had started AAR1at about 5 and was not getting blending at all so I paused it and we used FSR which really helped it click for him. The FSR books were definitely not enough for him to skip AAR1. I'm not sure if there is a placement test for AAS but I think they recommend using it after completing AAR1 so the AAR placement test could help you decide. AAS starts off very gently and like AAR it's easy to speed up or slow down depending on where the child is. AAR has no writing so if your child liked the writing in FSR or if you want to continue that type of exercise definitely start ETC. I like it as extra practice on concepts and for writing practice. If your child places at a level for AAR I can't recommend it enough! He went from not being able to read cat to reading chapter books crazy quick thanks to AAR. He now asks for AAS everyday and I get in trouble if I'm rushing and try to skip it. It's also a great program.

MIF is great. Super easy to teach and does the lessons incrementally. It has lots of hands on manipulatives recommended. If you have a hands on learner also consider Miquon on its own or as a supplement. Personally it was a very weird curriculum and it took actually doing it for me to get it but now I am very amazed by it. My DS isn't a hands on learner but he is starting to enjoy the c-rods so I would think it would be great for a hands on learner.

Just a heads up if it looks worthwhile to you, the teacher's manual is completely unnecessary so you only need the workbook.

Kbutton I have wondered if it was a gender bias. I know she is a boy mom and she can't stop talking to DS but never engages with DD which drives me crazy. If she isn't talking to her how can she evaluate her speech? Plus when she did ask DD some questions she understood her without a problem. But I know I'm biased because of course I think my DD is perfect and I know I'm anti-speech therapy because of my personal experience so I did want to hear other experiences. I do feel better hearing positive experiences about it.

Check out Memoria Press First Start Reading. My DS struggled with blending and couldn't even read cat at 5 even though he could say all the sounds of all the letters by themselves but he couldn't put them together. He struggled at the beginning of AAR1 so I added in First Start Reading and it helped it click and he took off with AAR. I would at least take a break from AAR until he has the basic CVC blrnd down.

I have always been a fast talker. Like my brain and my mouth move faster than a lot of people can process. It's a sore point with me because people can be very rude about it when it's just how I am and people wouldn't be rude to someone with another speech issue like stuttering. Our pediatrician is great but she always ALWAYS makes some comment about how fast I talk, which I find rude and unnecessary (like she doesn't tell me to slow down like she isn't following me but just always mentions I talk fast), but I've never brought up with her. Last year at DD's well check for 3 that pediatrician asked if we want a referral to speech services for her speech. DH and I were shocked. DD was talking better (more words, more articulate, etc.) than DS was at 3 and she had never commented on any problems with his speech. DS had noticeable speech things we thought were cute like "doom" when he meant door that we never even corrected and assumed he'd grow out of which he did. DD just had her check up for 4 and the pediatrician commented that her speech was better but did we want a referral? DH thinks she's saying it because DD can talk fast. I hated speech therapy as a kid and clearly despite early services for most of elementary school it really didn't change how fast I talk so I'm biased against it. I don't want her to think anything is wrong with her or to become self conscious about it like I did. The pediatrician said it was fine to hold off now, I asked if she would lose any ground by not doing it, but that it would probably be necessary at 5. I would love to hear any experiences from anyone who has a fast talking child. Thank you!!

I couldn't find much already done for prehistory so even though I didn't want to I winged it. I used the Usborne Encyclopedia and just added on to the different sections as best I could. Get books on dinosaurs, mammoths, cave bears, etc. there are a lot of great books you can read. There are some fun things you can buy like those digging out of clay ones where you put the skeleton together which DS loved. Add in the great documentary series Walking With Dinosaurs. We spent a good chunk of time on it but I don't know if you can really stretch it to a year. Maybe he'll be interested in what comes next after you've done it? Or try to push it into science to keep him engaged? Maybe a bio/nature study? Then move forward with human history? Sorry I love ancients too!

I also think continuing to read here will help give you ideas as to what is popular which can help you find the right curriculum. Of course just because it's popular doesn't always mean it will be popular with you or your kids! Some curriculum have great online samples you can check out or google for blogs that do reviews to get a better idea of it. Try to decide what you think your style will be. After reading WTM does classical appeal to you? If so it gives you an idea where to start but if not you could look into other styles. I think Cathy Duffy's reviews are great because you can see so much on one site where she has reviews of almost everything. I started researching early too and it was confusing! It really makes a lot more sense when you've gotten an idea of the acronyms and what everything actually is. I know when I started out I didn't want anything I had to figure out or piece together myself so I wanted scripted curriculum like All About Reading. Other people know they are crafty and want to do it themselves so they could take something and make it fun. I think it's helpful to know in that sense what you want to do and go with that style. If you'd hate reading a script than try to avoid that type of program.

Kumon is great for practice because there is a lot of practice! Just keep reminding her to start at the top.

Everything you need is in the TM. The workbook has the copywork for each lesson on separate pages so it's very easy for the child to copy. Plus the workbook has the blank spaces for the illustrations. I think there are lots of options for the type of font you could get to copy. I think Lulu has the sample pages so you can see it. I opted for the workbook so it was all ready to go but you definitely wouldn't need it. My only complaint would be that in the TM the font is pretty small for the part that has the copywork but I bought the print version. Maybe in the PDF the font is bigger or you could make it bigger? I think ultimately it depends on whether or not you want it all done for you or if it's worth the extra effort to save the money and get it ready.

All About Reading. Super easy to teach, scripted lessons so you just read aloud. Each lesson has at least one activity, like feeding a monster, flipping words, etc., DS is almost done with the last level and he still enjoys the activities. I'm amazed that they are still different and interesting. He's reading really well and could just do the activity quickly but he always enjoys playing with it, yesterday it was hot air balloons that he was racing. Before that he was playing with donuts. The activity book has the pages and he cuts them out. They can also be colored in because they're just b/w. For the most part there is a lesson that teaches a phonogram and the next lesson is reading a story that adds in the phonogram. The stories are silly and very well done, not at all like the boring stilted phonics readers. Check out their samples and see if it appeals to you both. I am so amazed at how well DS is reading, and so is everyone who is around him, and it's all because of AAR. He wasn't even sounding out CVC words when he started AAR1. I'm starting it all over again with DD.