I have used SL history in the past but I have never looked into their science programs. Have you used any of them before? Thanks for the suggestion.

I will look into Apologia General Science. I am not sure but I think one of my older boys may have used that, it sounds familiar anyway. Thanks for the suggestion, it's good to know your daughter likes it.

I am trying to decide what to use for science this year for my 12 year old boy. We have mostly used Apologia in the past. He says he would prefer learning about a lot of different topics (as opposed to just one subject in Apologia) and doing experiments. Any suggestions?

We haven't started school yet (next week) and I am wondering how this is working for everyone. Has anyone done this with teaching textbooks? I would love to hear how you did that. Did you take that huge book apart? I think I am going to do that today, maybe. Also, my boys skip the video if I don't remind them to watch it before their lesson. I would like them to do this without me verbally reminding them. Should I put a checklist in the workbox drawer? One more question, how do you handle checking and corrections? I am thinking maybe they should bring it to me immediately to be checked so we don't end up with days and days to check. (not that that has ever happened) :blush: Usually I don't check until after the end of the day and then we have to start the next day with corrections. I usually have them correct anything they got wrong but I was remembering back to "real school" and they don't correct wrong problems. Am I being too hard on them? Thanks to everyone who has participated in this thread! You have helped me so much!!

This ledger system sounds like a great idea. I especially like that the child keeps track of everything in the ledger. Is this working for anyone else?

This is what I did last year and unfortunately it didn't work at all. It was painful for everyone. I feel like I need to find something else that would work for them. I am hoping that since the idea was their inspiration they will be more motivated.

Last year was so difficult that for the first time I am dreading starting school. My boys, 12 and 9, dragged out everything I asked them to do every day and we ended up not finishing a lot of what we could have completed, as well as missed a lot of fun. We have been discussing what might help to make things better and they suggested a point system for their chores, completing school work, points tied to doing well on assignments, finishing on time, etc. I am happy to do that but I am also concerned after listening to them that it might get too complicated. I need to figure out how this might work, both the earning of the points and the spending of points. I would like to have everything spelled out in a very clear way before we begin. Does anyone have suggestions on how to implement a system like this? Thanks!

Wow, thanks for all of your suggestions! Everything I searched for seemed to be programs that looked good but hadn't been tried yet. I will be checking them out today! Thanks

I am looking for a Spanish and a Latin program for my two boys, 12 and 9 1/2. I have searched everywhere and I have been unable to find a program that has actually worked well for anyone with children this age. :confused1: If you have found a Spanish or Latin program that you have used successfully with boys around 9 and 12, please let me know. Thanks!

I was wondering how other people organize their timeline figures. I have a few different kinds and would like to organize them so I can find a character when we get to that time period. Some seem like they should be organized by a particular date of an event, some more by their birthdate or death. I don't want to miss figures because I looked in the wrong place. And do you store them in envelopes for a time period? Do you have a list of figures? Can anyone tell me what works for them? :confused: Thanks!

We are planning a snack for a book club for Half Magic. My son suggested chocolate coins and "half snacks" since the magic coin only gives you half of your wish. Does anyone have any ideas for half snacks? Thanks!

I am wondering if anyone uses a mix of printed timeline figures and pictures drawn by the children? We are finally starting a timeline and although my boys, 11 and 8, would not want to draw all of their figures I would like them to do some illustrations so it looks more like they made it and not like HITW made it. Also, as far as cutting out the figures does anyone cut them out with rounded corners (similar to scrapbooking) or do anything else to make them appear more attractive? They will be coloring them, probably with colored pencils. When drawing pictures for the timeline do the children draw on paper first and paste in the book or draw directly on the page? Do you have any pictures of a timeline using printed and hand drawn figures? Thanks, Barb

Amber, He is almost 8, and he has done Explode the Code. We really have not done much copywork and I am not sure how this works exactly. Do I write it first on the whiteboard? Pretty much anything he writes he asks how to spell each word. Hope this is enough information. I have been wondering if I should just back off on the spelling and it may come later, or try one of the recommendations here, but they look intensive. I bought writing road to reading and we all gave up after a very short time, mostly because it was confusing to implement and I didn't give it enough time. I looked at Spelling Mastery and the computer part looks fun but I could not see all the parts of an actual lesson. Has anyone used this who can tell me more about it? Thanks for everyone's responses!

My son is using a second grade spelling workbook and is having a very difficult time. He can easily get half of the words wrong, over and over again. He is reading really well, reading all kinds of books, well past chapter books. I am not sure what to do, but torturing him with the workbook doesn't seem to be the answer. Does anyone have any advice? I don't know how someone can read so well and have no idea how to spell. I would appreciate any advice. Thanks