Wow - great ideas, everyone! Thanks! :) (My favorite has got to be the cabin/library. Can't wait to see dh's face when I mention that one! :)) We have pretty limited space right now, but looking at a possible housing move this spring... Some things I will work on for now...and other ideas I will tuck away for whenever we settle into our next locale. :) I LOVE shopping used books... We've gotten most of ours at Goodwill. :) Dh knows I can't ever go there without coming away with several great finds!

Thanks, sunnyday! I looked at the sample pages. BA definitely looks mind-stretching! But still hard to tell... I've only done MM1A/B - and BA3A is much tougher than that! :) Don't know how it compares to MM3A... Any help from those that have done both BA3 and MM3?

So...have any MM users switched to BA as their main math curriculum? Or do you just use it to supplement? I've read a lot about the similarities and (mostly) differences between SM and BA...but not a whole lot of comparison of MM and BA. Is BA3A that much more challenging than MM3A? For those of you using BA to supplement MM, do you find it helpful? In what way(s)? Looking for a math program to supplement MM in the future (currently using MM2A with ds) - just to see if he's really catching things. LoF doesn't look like the right thing. Not enough order - too much skipping around. Is BA mastery or spiral? I've seen mentioned that it goes deeper than SM. I've not used SM... Is BA deeper than MM? Thanks for any help you can give! :) Sorry if this is a big disjointed. It's late...I'm tired. Going to put the baby (3 wks) to bed & then try to catch a few hours b4 he wakes me up again. ;)

I should add that I'm planning to use MM as our sole curriculum this summer/fall when we (fingers crossed) start homeschooling. ;) I agree that it doesn't need to be supplemented (IMHO). I probably will try BA(?) when ds is ready for it. Or something else... Just to make sure he's really 'getting' it all. :) There are plenty of problems IMO. I haven't needed (yet) to find extra. Anytime I have tried to skip a few I always regret it later. Ds just needs the practice.

What do you mean by "math applications?" I've used MM for afterschooling. Ds5 enjoys math & he's pretty good at it. I like that MM is inexpensive, simple to teach (no prep work), and gives ds5 the "why" behind math that he's always wanting to know. :) He especially enjoys (and is good at) mental math, and I think he feels like MM challenges him in this area (in a way that he's not really being challenged in K). I am curious to see how dd4 does with MM when I start her on it... She is very visual/spatial. The books (at least in 1st grade) do say to use an abacus - and that's been all the supplement ds5 has needed for help with visualizing. The geometry is not very complicated for 1st grade. We did a lot with pattern blocks & geoboards before starting MM though.

Thanks for the replies! :) I'm thinking I need to maybe pull some of the read-alouds (longer chapter books than my kids are going to pull off the shelf to peruse themselves) from the shelf & store those elsewhere... The kids don't really need to access those. I just like to see them out. :) That will free up some space... Craftyerin, thanks for the pictures! The baskets-on-the-shelves looks like a great way to separate the books... And I can probably - no, I can - do a better job of training the kids to pick up after themselves. Ds1 is the hardest to deal with... He'll pull every book off the shelves in his hunt for the one he wants to read... And he doesn't try to rip books, but they do get ripped. Even the hardcovers. Little Golden books are the worst. :( I have taped & retaped those books so many times... If anyone else has further advice, I'd love to hear it!

We've got sooo many books around this house (and I mean around) - it's driving me crazy! I love love LOVE books (especially children's books :)), and we've accumulated quite the library over the last 6 years (since I was pregnant with ds5)... Now things are starting to get out of control. Issue #1 We have most of the books on shelves in the living room. During the course of a day (or few days, or week) they get strewn all over the place or stacked every which-way and all over the shelves... (Guess who gets to do all the book straightening when the mess finally gets too big to ignore anymore?) I've tried to teach the 'one book at a time' rule...but ds-almost-2 doesn't get it right unless I'm in the room paying attention to what he's doing...and the other kids get lazy about the rule, too. (Ds5 and dd4 aren't really old enough to do proper book shelving without help...and so I usually end up doing it all by myself when I just can't take the mess anymore.) Do you just keep books off-limits in your house? I really like the kids being able to access books whenever they want. I think it lends to a love for books/reading... But I'm also looking for a way out of this chaos. Issue #2 I've collected all of the paperback picture books & kept them in baskets in the kids' rooms by their beds...just because they don't really work on the shelves, and I sooo don't like to see picture books all ripped up!!! But then they don't get read as much... Any suggestions for how you keep paperback books from being shredded (with toddlers in the house)? Issue #3 The books just don't fit on the shelves anymore! Between the board books, picture books (HC), easy readers, and read-alouds... We've accumulated more than I can fit in our living room. I'm planning to homeschool for the first time this coming fall (probably will unofficially start before then) and I've got a long list of books I'm on the lookout for... Does anyone do a rotation of books (boxing some away for a time)? We have limited space in the kids' rooms for actual bookshelves... I have a little bookcase in the basement/playroom, but that's full of other picture/board books. *Sigh* Just don't tell me I need to cut back on books. :( (Yes, we do utilize the library - we usually come home with a laundry basket full!) Looking for sympathy - and ideas. :) Any literary-loving, book-hoarding moms-with-tots out there with suggestions? Thanks!

Definitely Little House books, E.B.White, and Narnia. James Herriot and A.A.Milne are excellent as well. Otherwise... Treasure Island (a little beyond elementary level) :) A Little Princess The Secret Garden Pilgrim's Progress (abridged & illustrated) The Book of Virtues & The Moral Compass set (excellent collection!)

Hi! Does anyone understand the ins and outs of the compulsory school attendance laws? My son turned 5 in June. Wisconsin law requires kids to start school by 6. Does that mean I can hold him out of school for another year (until he's 6 next June)? Pardon my ignorance... As for my motives, I (and my husband) are really wrestling with putting DS in school this fall. It would be wonderful if we could have him home one more year. He's very bright, and we've done quite a bit of 'unofficial' schooling already. Homeschooling is not an option for us this year, but it might be possible next year... I'm wondering if I can (legally) hold him out of 'official' kindergarten this fall, and then begin homeschooling full force next year. Thanks for your help!

I guess my biggest concern is with so "standardizing" our educational system that nothing else is acceptable. So...say I want to teach my kids creationism as opposed to evolution. If evolution is a part of the Common Core for Science, am I going to be allowed to teach my kids something different? Maybe for right now...but for how long? If the federal govt decides what is the "standard" for education, can they then decide what is not "standard?" Is this the camel getting its nose under the tent flap? Not at all wanting to be sensational or "conspiracy theorist" here...but I have seldom seen our federal govt content with just one step in any direction.

What do you think about the new common core standards? I've read a few articles on this recently (mostly from an anti-common core viewpoint)... The argument is that we are dumbing down our standards, and this will prove to be one more failed goverment education program (think NCLB). Curious to hear some discussion. Do you use common core to determine how your child is doing? (I confess I have...but it does leave me wondering if we're really achieving as much as we could or should. But then I tend to be an overachiever...) If you don't use common core, what do you use?

I'm looking for a ready-made, kid-friendly, HS-friendly ASL curriculum. Does such a thing exist? To date, we've used mostly library books and free online resources. I'm looking for something more systematic than library books - and more visually appealing and hands-on than what I've seen online. My kids are pretty young (think, preschool and early elem). We have a fairly large deaf community at church, so we'll be able to practice what we're learning as we go. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Bobbey, Thanks for the advice. To further clarify... Our church has a fairly large deaf community as well. My son attends a weekly "class" that involves learning some (very) basic sign language. The class has quite a few kids, and he's at the younger end of the spectrum. I would like to do more with him (and my other kids) in a small-group setting where I think they'd benefit more (and potentially get more out of the larger setting as well). And we will definitely use the signs we learn to communicate with the deaf we know. I'm really looking for a ready-made, kid-friendly (preferably for young kids) curriculum. Just wondering if anyone knows of anything like that?

Anybody teaching your kids to sign? Have a great curriculum you like? We've dabbled with ASL, using mostly library books and free online resources. I'd like to do more of a systematic approach (with practice sentences, etc.), but I just don't have the $ to experiment with three or four different books... I know very little ASL myself (I'm basically learning along with the kids.) My kids are preschool/early elementary age. What would you recommend?

On second thought, maybe it's not so much the ages of my kids as it is their personality... Ds is super-logical, loves systems & putting the pieces together... Maybe that's why I tend to lean that way in my teaching approach.

I think it all depends on your history goals (and maybe the ages of your children?). I'm not a big advocate of "classical" education... I like the general idea of building knowledge on knowledge, and recognizing that children have different cognitive capabilities at different ages (wow, I'm tired...hope this is coming out okay)...but I think there is a lot of overlap between a "learning the facts" stage and "putting the pieces together" stage - especially when it comes to history. We're working through SOTW1 for the first time (just finished Alexander the Great), and loving it! My kids are pretty young, and they definitely won't remember every detail (or *sigh* most details), but they are getting an idea for the general flow of history...and learning some great principles of history along the way. I want them to get the "gist" of history at this stage: (1) How do we know what happened back then? (2) What makes a leader good or bad? etc. To me (for my tots) these concepts are more important than what date the nomads starting roaming Mesopotamia, or even which Roman emperor was most hated. :) I do want them to become familiar with a lot of names and places... But I try to focus on how we would have any idea what time the nomads were "roaming" and what made Nero or Caligula hated emperors... So, again...you have to consider what you're aiming for. I think SOTW works great for the more 'general flow & principles' approach to history. Hope that makes sense. (It's late. I'm tired.) :)

Mystie, You're making me jealous with that huge supply of history stuff! :) All the bios and reference books... Did you take the plunge & purchase that all at once, or is it stuff you've acquired "over the years?"

Wow. Thanks for that! I agree. As an on-my-way-to-a-large-family mom ;), I'm definitely interested in a laid back, "spark interest" history (and science) approach...something we can do all together in one (short) sitting - with minimal teacher prep. Ds4 loves stories, so we're reading SOTW together, and he loves doing the maps & coloring pages. Dictating is not so fun...but we try to write down some things we learned each week ("for Dad to see"). :) We end up doing abt 15 min/day, 4 days/wk - (Mon - read lesson, Tues - read lesson, Wed - review questions & color map, Thurs - dictate notebook pages & coloring page). Oh, and sometimes we "act out" the history stories for dd3 (a definite VSL). It's fun to hear them playing "Alexander the Great" or the "Trojan Horse" while I'm cooking supper! :) It's not so much that I think he'll remember everything we learn...but I do try to get him thinking about the overall flow and general principles of history (how history repeats itself, how ignorance of the masses leads to tyranny of a few, how power corrupts, etc). Personally, I like having a text to work off of (and I especially like having the maps and coloring pages in SOTW). It cuts down on prep work for me. Thanks again for the post!

(Sorry, long post...) Curious to hear what you have to say... 1) Why don't you like Saxon Math? 2) Anything you do appreciate abt Saxon? 3) What are you currently using and how is your current math curriculum better? FYI, I'm using Saxon right now (we did K, and are doing 1), and have several issues with it myself, but I just don't have the $ to keep trying out new math systems until we find what we like... So I'm just modifying the lessons to fit our needs/goals. I picked Saxon b/c I wanted something that would give plenty of teaching help (I'm not great at math, but if I have a good teacher book I'm fine), and I wanted to be sure the kids get a solid grasp of math... I have one that's verbal/logical, and another that's visual/spatial. Saxon seemed like maybe a happy medium? 1) I don't like the lesson flow. Seems like some topics get too much time (four lessons dedicated to the seasons, a whole lesson about the properties of a triangle...in first grade???) while others are learned - and then totally 'forgotten' until months later when it's reintroduced as though we never learned it at all! We end up moving thru the lessons at our own pace, mostly just using the book as a guideline & 'borrowing' the activities, complicated-topic-explanations, & occasional workbook page I like. 2) I do like the Meeting idea - we've had lots of fun with the calendar, numbers charts, counting coins, etc. The manipulatives activities have been lots of fun, too. So...what do you think? :)

How many of you are afterschooling...but you really wish you could be hs yr dc? *sigh* We're most likely putting ds (5 in June) in k5 this fall... He's very bright (I'd say verbally 'gifted', mathematically bright). He reads at a 3rd to 4th grade level (devours books), and we're forging our way through the middle of Saxon Math 1. We do SOTW (mostly for fun b/c he loves history stories), and some very at-our-own-pace science... He just really enjoys learning (okay, most days). :) The school is excellent all around... I'm just really going to miss teaching him - and I am concerned that he's going to be bored to tears sitting through the alphabet sounds, shapes & colors, etc. His class is small, so the teacher will most likely be able to give him plenty of attention. My plan is to afterschool as much as I can/should to keep him learning... We'll definitely do reading (I usually have him read to me 15 min/day), and some math? Would you do anything else? Do you ever send stuff for yr dc to work on at school? Yes, I know he needs plenty of time for play... I'm really clueless abt how this afterschooling stuff works. And...maybe I'm just looking for some sympathy. :/

My brother was the same way. Here are some books he enjoyed: 1) Narnia series (C.S.Lewis) 2) Swiss Family Robinson - if he likes Robinson Crusoe, these might be right up his alley... And some I've enjoyed reading with my son: 1) The Apple and the Arrow - adventure, suspense, historical fiction, an air of mystery 2) The Wright Brothers - Scholastic Biography 3) The Whipping Boy - dry humor, short chapters 4) Geronimo Stilton (series) - humor, action, suspense, short chapters, lots of pix/color, fast-paced 5) Thorton Burgess series (Reddy Fox, Johnny Chuck, etc.) 6) Captain's Courageous (more advanced than 2nd grade, but a great adventure/survival/coming-of-age story for boys) 7) Treasure Island (also more advanced, but maybe an abridged version...?)

Anyone know of any (preferably free) resources with math songs put to traditional tunes (you know, Row, Row, Row Your Boat and Mary Had a Little Lamb)? I'm thinking songs that teach skip counting, addition & subtraction facts, fact families, etc. Any suggestions would be great!

I'm looking for some helpful math dittys (you know, to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" and "Mary Had a Little Lamb") to aid with skip counting, addition & subtraction facts, etc. My kids learn super fast with anything put to music. I've made up a bunch of little songs myself, but... Does anyone know of any resources (preferably free stuff) available already? (I'm not looking to reinvent the wheel.) We're pretty conservative in our music choices (classical, traditional tunes - not looking for rock, pop, jazz, etc). Any suggestions? Thanks!

I'm looking for some helpful math dittys (you know, to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" and "Mary Had a Little Lamb") to aid with skip counting, addition & subtraction facts, etc. My kids learn super fast with anything put to music. I've made up a bunch of little songs myself, but... Does anyone know of any resources (preferably free stuff) available already? (I'm not looking to reinvent the wheel.) We're pretty conservative in our music choices (classical, traditional tunes - not looking for rock, pop, jazz, etc). Any suggestions? Thanks!

Sounds just like ds4. I've wondered the same thing. Thanks for the post! I'm curious to hear what others have to say!