Momof3
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Posts posted by Momof3
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So, the mom and I were chatting today and she casually mentioned that this child sleeps in her bed every night (single mom, so it's just two of them in bed). She was laughing about how "touchy-feely" he is and how he always wants her to be shirtless so that they can snuggle skin-to-skin (he sleeps naked too). I am not sure if they are completely nude or not -- maybe it's just shirtless. I might be a total prude, but does it strike you as odd that a 6-year-old boy would sleep (partly) naked with his (partly) naked mom?
She also shared that he doesn't wear underwear because he gets er*ctions frequently and the fabric bothers him.
I just wanted to add these two pieces of information to my previous inquiry to see if it changes anyone's impression of this situation.
Okay. I just read this. Yes, I do think that is very odd.
I don't want to tell you what to do. You know the situation & the family (and your own ds)...
I would be *very* cautious about my son being in that home w/o me. It seems like at the very least she is setting her ds up for issues by catering to (encouraging?) his maybe innocent curiosities. It's also possible he has had some really bad experiences (maybe at school?) already - in which case she's definitely not helping him... I would be very concerned about what my son might be exposed to.
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It sounds like molestation to me too. Behavior like that it typical of victims. Kids trying to make sense of what happened/is happening to them. I wouldn't feel comfortable allowing my child back in that home, especially since this boy might be providing a gateway to your son.
This. Absolutely.
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This is great! Thanks for all the feedback so far. Curious to check out TWG at the library & see what I think of it (so many opinions in both directions). :)
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Raspberry cheesecake. :drool5:
I mix them into pancake & muffin batter. Dh & the kids like to toss some in cereal or yogurt.
We grow our own... The kids usually eat them b4 I can get to them. :)
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Just popping in here... Haven't read all the conversation to date, but - I have used Alphaphonics with my oldest two. I love how it worked for both of them - and will continue using it with my up-and-coming pupils. :) We didn't use the How to Tutor. I don't remember why...
I liked that Alphaphonics had just word lists & sentences. I didn't want a combined reading *and* writing program (ds & dd were 3yo when they started). :) It worked really well for us. We did a 2-page spread or a lesson every day.
Sometimes they hated it. But I figured I was teaching them to tackle something challenging, to sit & concentrate, and to read! :) It was so rewarding to both of them to be able to read sentences after just a few lessons! :) After finishing the book, we started in with easy readers. I did find that both of them needed to review phonics to solidify some things, so we did a quick rerun through the word lists/families. They probably would have had a firmer grasp the first time through if I had slowed the pace down a bit. They are both strong readers now.
It does have some annoying typos here & there. B)
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I was hs'ed from K to 12, except that in 3rd grade my sister & I went one day a week (Wednesdays) to a Christian school. I was curious about 'going to school' before that, and when we found out we were going, I was excited... The most exciting parts: having a lunch box with a snack & lunch (getting to drink from a juice box or eat the kinds of snack foods we never ate at home!), having an official 'recess' time... Pretty much everything else was *boring.* I hated that school by the end of the 1st month. I dreaded having to get up & go... I'm still not completely sure why Mom & Dad sent us. I'll have to ask one of these days. :) Not sure if it was to give us the experience or to see if we were caught up with the school academically or if Mom just needed a break (5 of us in all)!
You might talk with him sometime about the things that *are* fun about school (snacks, recess, friends)... And maybe pick one day a week (or one week out of the semester) that you make a "real" school day by packing a sack lunch, having an 'official' recess (play an organized game & then blow a whistle to end the time), and maybe even invite a friend over to do homework together. Also talk about the things that aren't so fun about school. Sitting in a chair w/ no talking, having to raise your hand to speak, standing in line for bathroom breaks, learning about *boring* topics, etc. ;)
Ultimately, you are the mom. As much as we want our kids to like every decision we make, they just aren't going to. :P Sooo many things I never appreciated about my parents until I had kids myself! Someday he'll understand.
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Is your signature up to date? If you are planning on covering what SL includes in both Cores A and B in the coming year, your 4 & 5 year olds would probably not like much of the Core B books. But if they are a year or two older, it might be a different story.
We've used Sonlight since my now 6th grader was in K. We've used it all sorts of ways, from following the schedule very rigidly, to not following the schedule at all and just reading the books as we got to them, to following the schedule PLUS a bunch of extra books. There's no "wrong" way to do it, as long as your kids are learning.
It's almost up to date. Ds1 is 2 now. :)
We've read Charlotte's Web, Homer Price, The Wheel on the School, and Mr. Popper's Penguins from Core B...the kids liked those ones. Granted, dd4 didn't get as much out of Charlotte's Web or The Wheel on the School. We'll have to read those again sometime. She's matured a lot since we read them. She *loved* Mr. Popper's Penguins. I had to explain Homer Price to both of them, but they enjoyed it. :)
I'm taking it one book at a time. I'm trying to line our Ancient History year up with Core B read-alouds...and then do Core C read-alouds when we cover Medieval History. (I know Sonlight doesn't exactly work with a 4-year history rotation, but I'm trying to make that fit at least. :)) Then we'll do Core D along with Early Modern/American History. Both dd4 & ds5 are strong readers... Since I'm not using the LA, I figure maybe I can make it work?
Thanks for the heads up. I'll be mulling this over. :)
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So... I keep seeing that there are Sonlight books you don't like. :scared:
I have vacillated from the "Ooh, I *love* this catalog!!! I want-want-WANT Sonlight!" fantasy to the "too much $, can't do the scripted schedule thing, schedule looks disjointed" reality. The way I'm thinking right now we'll just read through the Sonlight books (readers & read-alouds), discussing them as we go. I'm currently collecting Sonlight books I find for cheap. We'll supplement with other books (I think we'll probably read way more than what Sonlight has in their schedule. My kids are always begging for more chapters...)
What book(s) *didn't* you like - and why? If you were doing like me - collecting Sonlight books w/o buying the whole curriculum - which books would you just get from the library, or not read at all?
Any books you would add to Sarita's list that aren't there?
My kids are young... I'm not doing this in any particular order. We'll probably read books for Cores A & B this year...and then do C next year... But I'm collecting books for any of the cores. (I can't resist. I *love* books. :001_tt1: ) I'd like to hear your opinions about books in any of the cores.
Thanks!
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I have been really struggling with this, too. My kids are young - all still napping after lunch. So even when we finish school stuff in the mornings, they are already missing the whole afternoon (yes, they do need the naps). Ds5 sometimes sleeps 3+ hours! I've tried waking him sooner, but he just gets grumpy & emotionally off. *Sigh.* I'm all ears in this thread!
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So...those who've started Latin early... How much time do you spend on it? (daily/weekly) I'm in this wretched tug-o'-war between all of the *many* things I want us to study & learn...and reality. My kids do want *some* play time. :tongue_smilie: Not wanting to derail the thread here...but how do you find that balance with all of this educating? :huh: Did Greek & Roman kids have play time? Or did they spend all of their waking time stretching their little minds? :001_cool:
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So...those who've started Latin early... How much time do you spend on it? (daily/weekly) I'm in this wretched tug-o'-war between all of the *many* things I want us to study & learn...and reality. My kids do want *some* play time. :tongue_smilie: Not wanting to derail the thread here...but how do you find that balance with all of this educating? :huh: Did Greek & Roman kids have play time? Or did they spend all of their waking time stretching their little minds? :001_cool:
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I read WTM through several times - before I knew about the boards. I think I have parts of it memorized. :) When I first read it, I thought, 'Wow! This is so awesomely exactly what I have been looking for! This is exactly what I am wanting for my kids - and their hs'ing experience!'
I get overwhelmed and a bit guilty-feeling whenever I skim through it again (the library copy)... In between readings I settle into my own version of what I'd like to accomplish with my kids & how I plan to get there. This includes borrowing from elements of WTM, other articles I've read, pp I've talked to, my own experience as a hs'ed kid, etc. Then I pick the book up again & start to browse... And I start to get nervous. I worry that on the one hand I'm going to miss out on something really important bc I'm just not doing things the way SWB says (I know she says most pp don't follow everything)... OTOH, I'm *really* reluctant to base my child's whole future & education on her (SWB's) experience & ideas. KWIM?
Anyway, I have a great appreciation for WTM, I'll continue to browse it from time to time - and I have learned a *lot* on the boards! :)
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I read an abridged version aloud to the kids maybe a year or two ago. I usually avoid abridged classics, but this one retained the literary style of the original (I thought) and ds liked it okay. He's a sweet & sensitive child, though. He liked Mole. :) Dh *loved* the story as a kid. I never cared for it. I liked the Disney version. :)
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My daughters have been going to sleep away camp for years, amazingly my youngest wanted to go when she was 6. She did a short camp and loved it.
But that's neither here nor there. What jumps out to me is that your kids' first response was fear. Sleep away camp is totally optional, so I would NOT send any kids who are afraid to go. Why force it if it doesn't sound fun to them? My nearly-15yo DS hates the idea of sleep away camp and has never been.
They are telling you they aren't ready.
You have to know what's best for your kids... I agree with NorthwestMom, though. I went to camp for a week when I was 7yo. It was my first time away from home for that long. I didn't have any friends or siblings with me. I was extremely shy. I so did *not* want to go. The week really was fine. Nothing terribly traumatic happened. I did have fun. But I still remember the incredible *fear* I had going into that week... Even though I have fun memories from that week, I have memories of the fear, too. I don't think my parents should have made me go (no, I'm not bitter :)) and I won't make my kids do something they are afraid of unless it's a situation or an environment that *I* (or dh) can control.
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What made me start Latin with my older son was reading Climbing Parnassus. The brain training, vocab, etc. He ended up really having a passion for it and is studying both Latin and Greek at high levels now. Before we started, I thought we would be dabbling, but I am so glad we did and it has been great!
That said, my second ds who is 9 just started twice a week Mandarin classes, soon going to three times a week. We will dabble a bit in Latin on the side, but he loves Mandarin and also loves doing something different than his brother. I am hoping he will also do Lukeion Latin at least in seventh or eighth grade, but I won't force it if he really doesn't want to.
I do wish I had started a modern language with my older sooner - right now he is going to start some German, which will help with his classical studies. Unfortunately neither has an interest in Portuguese, Spanish or French which are the languages I have a background in! I will insist we do some Spanish, hopefully starting relatively soon, and I expect my son's Latin background will make it very easy for him.
Eta - now that ds is able to read classical authors in the original it shows how worth it this study was! He read the first book of the Illiad in its original Greek, one of the highlights of his summer. So the Latin and Greek have merged with literature and history.
Just popped over to Goodreads to look up Climbing Parnassus. I think I'll be checking my library for this one! Thanks for bringing it into the discussion. When did you start your oldest on Latin & Greek?
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Our newest addition is going on 5 weeks. I'm only afterschooling ds5 right now...but doing some K work with dd4, and then there's ds1... Baby's *just* started sleeping thru (hooray!), so I'll hopefully *slowly* catch up on my sleep...but I'm falling asleep trying to do math with dd4 in the mornings... We end up putting the abacus aside while Mommy goes to nap on the couch. :) Everybody naps after lunch - but that only works some of the time - and I don't always get a nap. :(
I totally agree with what everyone else has said about independent work (ds5 does most of his afterschooling work by himself) and easy/freezer meals. :) We also do 'school' work year round, so I don't feel guilty if I have to put everything aside for a couple weeks (like last week when the kids all came down with the flu...). ;) Something else that's helpful is to have a stash of certain books, toys, puzzles, etc. for your little ones that only come out during 'school' time. Sticker books work well!
In the end, you have to know. If you really want to hs (and it sounds like you do), go for it! :) Just plan to be flexible - and prep your older dc for flexibility, too. If you're feeling really uneasy about juggling that many balls, don't feel guilty about exploring other options as well.
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Great idea! Thanks for starting this!
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Those are all great selections, but honestly I would be fearful of overwhelming the poor boy. If he is reading the texts in full that is extremely ambitious on top of the aforementioned list and may burn him out. (Assuming a one year, one credit course) I think if you are doing a survey of the whole of British Literature there are by necessity some phenomenal titles that are going to have to be left off the list. If you are limiting yourself to, say, "19th Century British Literature" then you might better be able to better explore multiple titles by the same author or from the same time periods. And OP, that's why I suggested one title from Dickens. I do love most of the other titles on your list and would have a hard time limiting it further.
Absolutely! I apologize for not being clear. :/ I was only adding titles that *I* like - because I couldn't resist. :) I love book lists!
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Your list is a good one. :) I haven't read "The Importance of Being Earnest," so I guess I can't vouch for that. I didn't particularly like Wuthering Heights, either.
I would add:
Pride & Prejudice
Jane Eyre
Oliver Twist
Great Expectations
Little Dorrit
The Hobbit/Lord of the Rings (do these count?) :)
Also, for Shakespeare, I would want to include Macbeth and Hamlet. Maybe more. :)
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Some way to speed-iron clothing. Ugh! My least favorite chore!
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We've used materials from Classical Academic Press. I like their Bible Program, though it may be a little above where your kids are.
Wow! I'm am showing this to dh tonight! I love that it teaches so much... Glad I peeked at this conversation. :) Thanks for the link! :)
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What rules are you talking about? different phonics programs have different lists of "rules".
I think learning phonics is excellent, but memorizing things just happens via learning. For example, when the silent e at the end makes the vowel on the other side of the consonant say its name, the kid learns that rule. You probably won't have to sit there and drill it.
Fwiw, it's hard to tell what kind of speller a kid will be at age 5, unless they happen to spell everything correctly. :)
Since you are teaching phonics, you'll probably be ok for now. I wouldn't fret. Your dd has a while before you need to start worrying about teaching her to spell. I'm not doing spelling with my 4 year old yet (he reads around a 2nd grade level and likes to write). We may start in first grade. We'll see. He spells surprisingly well, so I suspect he'll be somewhat of a natural speller. But again, it's hard to tell this young.
Okay... I revealed my ignorance on this topic. :) I'm not sure which list of rules the school uses...or which list I saw referenced in college. ;) The K5 uses Abeka for most of their language work - but I'm not sure they use Abeka's phonics. They do drill. A lot. I think that's what I dread. The idea of drilling 50+ (or however many there are) rules is cringe worthy. And I'm not opposed to drilling. I just have sooo many other things I'd rather spend time memorizing...
Thanks for the encouragement, boscopup. :) The main reason I'm thinking about this now... I am trying to sort through what curricula I'm wanting/needing ;) for this summer/fall... I *think* I know what I'm doing with ds5...but it just occurred to me that I haven't given any thought to language arts for dd4...
Anna's Mom, That is exactly how I have been feeling! There are so many other things I'd love to fill dd4's mind with right now - and I'm afraid to overload her with a bunch of facts she can't process at this point. Also frustrating is that all of the rules have sooo many exceptions...
Thanks to you all for your help on this!
I will probably reference AlphaPhonics as needed to review different patterns/word families but keep it at that for now. As dd4 gets older, I can see whether she needs more formal instruction with a program that moves through a list of rules.
One more thing - I see 'the Spalding method' mentioned a lot in LA discussions... What exactly is that?
Thanks again!
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I'm a very visual learner. I never memorized all of the phonics rules (I didn't even know there was an official 'list' of phonics rules until college. :)) I couldn't tell you what the rules are...
Still, I've never had trouble with spelling. I don't spell words because I know the rules that demand they be spelled a certain way...but because I've seen the words before - and I think I've probably internalized a lot of the phonics patterns (if that makes any sense).
To me, memorizing all of the phonics rules seems like a whole lot of wasted time & energy. I can spell just fine without learning them all...so shouldn't my kids be the same way?
Then ds5 went off to kindergarten... (I was really wanting to hs him, but it just didn't work out for this year. Hopefully next...) He has been learning all of the phonics rules. (And Mom's like "Wow! I didn't know that was an actual rule... But I guess it makes sense...") I suppose it has helped him with spelling? Not really sure. He was reading very well before he started K5 (probably 2nd grade level) and I think he's a visual learner like his mom. So...he does very well with spelling. Is that because he learned the phonics rules - or because he's visual and a reader...?
Now to my real question: I'm starting to second guess myself. Dd4 is reading now... I taught her (and ds5) using Alphaphonics - which teaches the rules by inference (hope that makes sense - I have a headache & kind of hard to think here :)) but not by actually having the child *memorize* them. I don't want to cause problems for dd4 by *not* having her memorize the rules, but... Is it really worth all that time & energy? Sooo many other things to work on/learn/explore...
What have you done? Have your kids memorized all of the rules? Was it a pain? Any tips on how to speed it up/make it fun? If you didn't have them learn all the rules, how have they done? Any non-visualizers out there who *didn't* learn the phonics rules and do or don't struggle with spelling?
Thanks!
Sensitive topic: just a curious kid? UPDATE: Follow-up question in post 27
in The Chat Board
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I guess I hesitate to say this is something you should report b/c you said you are still probably fine with your son going over there. Honestly, if someone told me the things she told you, I would talk it over with Dh (just to make sure I wasn't overreacting) and report it as possible abuse.
Abuse is a pretty hefty charge. I would hate to falsely accuse someone... And yet there are so many *horrible* things happening to children these days!!!
So...just knowing what you've said that she told you, I would say it's abuse & should be reported. OTOH, you are apparently still comfortable to some extent with the situation... Hard to read.