We also do a mix of MUS and Singapore. I think of MUS as giving you the tools and Singapore makes you figure out how to use the tools. MUS teaches the concepts solidly and my kids can rewatch any lesson if they don't get it. He presents it much more clearly than I do. Singapore didn't work for us for teaching, but it is fantastic for applying what we've learned and stretching our boundaries some. Both are very cheap, so I'm content using them together.

I feel like I just asked this question, too. Multiply your problem by two and throw in a rampaging two year and you have my house exactly. I concur with the advice of no electronics on school days. I also got great advice that has worked - a homeschool conduct contract. Basically it's a set of rules that you write. Your kids read and sign it. None of the rules are necessarily difficult, just good attitude, do best work, do not rush through, etc. I started this last week adn it has helped. Lastly, I'm trying to combine more of our schoolwork. Writing bible verses and grammar exercises are our dictation and handwriting work. My kids think it's a perk because they "get out of" doing the dictation and handwriting official work. I can correct and nitpick and they are ok with it because they still think they are getting a good deal. It has worked wonders on their attitudes - and handwriting. Good luck. I'm also excited to read other posts and learn some more!!

Methinks Bill is missing out on a business opp here. Perhaps you should become a Cuisenaire sales consultant. With just one post you made at least three sales. FYI - I second MEP. We heard about it a few month ago and love it. :)

:iagree: I could have written this post (though not as well). We also come from a very military family. My kids go up to veterans and soldiers, shake their hands and thank them for their service. I can't tell you how many times I've had one of the veterans tell me that it was the first time they've been thanked. :( To all veterans, soldiers and their families - thank you for your service and sacrifices. I agree with the poster who said that she says the pledge in honor of the ideals of this country - not some of the realities. The USA isn't perfect, but no country is. I do believe that it was founded on some pretty incredible ideals and principles, though. I respect and treasure those.

Ever have one of those moments when you feel like the least productive homeschool mom in the world? Can y'all come homeschool me?!!! :) We do Latin and Spanish. I think your proposed schedule sounds good. I would suggest one language a day though. That helps us. If I do two in one day they start to get a little confused.

We have used Art Basics for Children. Very good for learning about art skills. I recommend it highly. We also use Mark Kistler online. My kids love it. He teaches how to draw all sorts of different things in a very fun way.

I just wanted to say that I think this is a difficult topic, but one that is obviously quite interesting to many of us. These are difficult questions and anwers. I appreciate everyone taking the time and thought to respond in thoughtful ways. Please remember that electronic communication is imperfect. It is easy to misread people's motives. Let's all try to assume the best about the other posters' intentions. That way we can keep the discussion and learning open - and isn't that what we all want? Thank you again to everyone for sharing their thoughts and knowledge.

I've been following WTM for three years. In the beginning, I was fairly flexible with it. We didn't do everything that was suggested. When it came time to evaluate the year, I found some holes. Wouldn't you know, when I reread WTM, I found that had I followed it more closely, the holes mightn't be there. For example, when my kids were younger, I didn't have them keep a reading notebook. They loved reading and did it just fine, so why bother? Then one night my husband asked one to tell him about the book he was reading. My son was all over the place trying to recount even just a brief summary. He just couldn't organize his thoughts. After that, I started paying a lot more attention to the recs in the book. It has helped keep our school work more balanced. I still wouldn't classify it as "rigorous" though. My kids spend a lot of time reading, being read to, exploring, etc. Except for spelling, they love it. (can't blame that on SWB or WTM) :) I'm not saying that you have to be a slave to the book. However, take time to think about what each suggested activity is trying to accomplish. Then you can make a more informed decision about whether to do it, ignore it or put it off til later. I sure hope some of that made sense. Must find caffeine...

The kids learn the names and then we learn selective dates. Basically, if it's someone they'll run into a lot - Eliz I, Henry VIII, etc. I made them learn the dates.

Thank you for the very informative and thoughtful post. I enjoyed reading it and learning more. I would like to ask a question that I hope will be taken as just that - a question, not an accusation. You stated :In particular, the abject falsehood being propagated, that Muslims somehow worship a different God in 'Allah', than that of the God worshiped by Jews and Christians. If all three groups worship the same God, then why do Muslims perceive Jews and Christians to be infidels? I don't mean that in any pointed way. I'd really like to understand what is the critical part in worshipping the same God that moves you from the infidel category to the faithful. Also, I have never heard that Muslims were awaiting a Messiah and certainly not in the form of Jesus. I am intrigued. Can you direct me to any resource where I can learn more about this? I have to quickly share that I am so excited about this post. We had a guest speaker at our church just a couple of weeks ago. He was from Syria and worked for the Crescent Project. He shared stories about the people he knew and how beneath all the differences we see, we're all God's creations - looking for hope, love, answers to life's big questions, etc. He then challenged us to go out a invite Muslims to our homes, playgroups, whatever, just to get to know them. Hopefully, if more people are willing to take the time to learn more about people than what we see on CNN we can break thru the animosity that seems to be growing. (sadly, that animosity seems to be growing between all sorts of different groups. Boo.)

You are not at all the worst mother. FYI - have you ever noticed that when you feel that way, you are probably doing something right? Teaching your kids to be giving is incredibly good. It's also hard. A few ideas - try getting him excited about what he could get his grandparents and friend, rather than just the concept in general. Also, you can discuss how happy it would make them, how much they mean to him, etc. Get him thinking beyond himself. Moving beyond that - is there a charity or non-profit that he might be interested in? Research it, get him researching it and seeing what sorts of tangible things can be done with his donation. The more he realizes that he is doing something good, the more likely he may be to part with some of his cold hard cash. Hang in there. You are doing the right thing trying to grow a giving heart in your son.

I'm noticing lately the my children's work is getting sloppier and that they are needing a little (or big) push. I'm also realizing that I need to reign in the old homeschool. I'm getting way to lax in what I am accepting and expecting from my kids. What are the rules of your homeschool? To what standards do you hold your children? How do you enforce these? On a related note, what do you do to inspire your kids to achieve, explore, learn and work harder? TIA!

moved to general board. Sorry. :) I'm noticing lately the my children's work is getting sloppier and that they are needing a little (or big) push. I'm also realizing that I need to reign in the old homeschool. I'm getting way to lax in what I am accepting and expecting from my kids. What are the rules of your homeschool? To what standards do you hold your children? How do you enforce these? On a related note, what do you do to inspire your kids to achieve, explore, learn and work harder? TIA!

I haven't used AIG so I can't answer that part. We are creationists, but I started teaching my kids about evolution around 1st-2nd grade. Their friends were learning about it and I wanted them to be knowledgable. I tried to teach them Darwinism the same way I teach other subjects. We went back to original docs - Darwin himself - and read what the man himself said. Darwin mentions some problems with his own theory - primarily the lack of transitional fossils when there should be millions. We then investigated that to see if any had been found, etc. I focused on the fact that reasonable people can disagree on this and that they can debate respectfully. (Seems to be working. Overheard them discussing with evolutionist buddy and they were all very calm and sharing) :)

We like Pioneer times. My kids and I devour any book about pioneers. Fun to imagine what life was like then. We also like Colonial times. It is amazing to think of what the colonists risked to get here.

Love all the advice above. I only have a few other ideas to add. Mini trampoline - my friend has a one and sends her child to jump on it for a few minutes between lessons. Works great. My son couldn't work on the pilates ball. We tried. It was bad. Destructive and bad - but funny in retrospect. :) We went the opposite way. Had to keep changing where we did school until we found a place where he was well positioned - feet down, writing surface at right level, etc. This cut down on a lot of his squirming. Short lessons - I have one mover and shaker. I try to use short lessons and if possible, let him work orally so he can fidget as he needs. We are working on stretching him so he doesn't have to fidget all the time. He is in a public speaking class which gives him an opportunity to present a speech without wandering all over the place (mentally and physically) As he gets older, he's able to control himself much better. :)

Mine do. We try to cultivate it by praising them when they notice. I also try to direct their attention to beautiful things in nature by saying things like "Isn't God so creative? He gives us such beautiful flowers, sunsets, animals, patterns, fill in the blank." That way they not only appreciate beauty, but they also appreciate the Creator. (Not that appreciating beauty is only a Christian thing. I'm not trying to get into any of that. Just sharing how we try to get our boys to stop long enough to notice anything.) The boys surprise my a lot, too. Yesterday we started studying poetry (not just reading it for fun) My most aggressive, run around, roll in the mud boy was so excited. "I love poetry and I'm good at it!" he exclaimed. Last thing I expected out of his mouth. So glad I have him at home. Can you only imagine the ribbing he might have taken at school? Interesting question. Looking forward to reading the other responses :)

First off, I think you need all of us to come visit and help you out! A few days on the beach and I bet we could solve any problem in the world (or just not care about them anymore) Second, at a homeschool conference here, a speaker told us that he always asks his audience who thinks they are doing a great job. No one ever does. We all feel like we are doing a rotten job sometimes. When I feel like this, I go back to my main goals for homeschooling: raising my kids to be strong in their faith, having time together as a family so we can be close, allowing them the freedom to learn at their pace, etc. Ok, on to your actually questions - my kids hate spelling (I just posted about it) They aren't bad spellers, just bored spellers. Most people I have asked who have kids who aren't "natural" spellers love, love, love All About Spelling. We love R&S grammar. Lots of oral work which my kids like. There are lots of good grammar resources out there. Looking forward to reading the recs that you get. Just remember - you haven't failed. It sounds like your girls just need a little extra practice in spelling and grammar and they'll be just fine. :)

For math - MUS. It's not even that expensive, but we love it. I'd also buy all of the Singapore math books to go with it. Science - a started chemistry set in its own case, a rock hound/geology set, microscope, and lots of boxed kits that have everything you need in them. History - TOG and all the books that go with it. All the books recommended in WTM. All the MindBenders and Critical Thinking Co books and cds. Art - a real art set with high quality supplies and perhaps someone with a smidge of artistic talent to teach my kids. :) Maid service -definitely!

I would def. suggest that you start small. Have him read a paragraph and then narrate that back to you. Once he gets good at that, move on to a page and so on. If that isn't working for him, you can read together and then have him narrate to you. This may help you pinpoint if the issue is a reading issue, a focusing issue or something else all together. You may want to start with a book that you can both read and enjoy even if it isn't necessarily a school book. Something that may capture his attention. That again could help you figure out what exactly is going on. Good luck!! :)

My kids dreaded grammar until we switched to R&S. Now we do most of the grammar orally. They have some written drill exercises which we selectively do. My kids race thru this and actually enjoy it. It has short and directed writing exercises which both my boys like. Plus there are some easy copywork options if you are into that sort of thing. We also have used the Royal Fireworks Press books. Wonderful. My kids adored reading them and learned a lot. The are expensive, so we share them with other families. I wanted something more structured so I added the R&S, but I guess some people just use the RFP books.

The boys are 3rd/4th grade. Ahhh, talk to the kids. Sadly, this is fantastic advice that I ought to have done. Yikes. Same with the idea of combining spelling and handwriting. Two of my kids least fav. subjects. Y'all are smart. :) As far as what they like - they love anything that involves reading - history, literature, geography, etc. Spelling just seems so dry to them. It also seems random. I guess I'm looking for spelling that is either connected to their reading or history or something that is very organized so at least they feel like they are learning something, not just memorizing random words.

I am looking for some help. I have searched the forums and couldn't find a thread that dealth with this, but I'm sure there is one out there. If you know of one, I'd love the link. My kids have been using A Beka spelling for 3 years. They fight me every single time I pull out the book. So, here are my questions: 1. For those of you who have switched spelling midway thru - what advice can you give me? What problems did you run into? 2. Do any of your kids love spelling (or at least not cringe and cry when it comes out)? If so, what do you use and why do you like it? TIA! Jackie

We use and love SOTW for my elementary kids. However, I don't think it will work for us for logic stage. I'm sure it could for very energetic and organized hsers who will take the time to do all the prep. I am not that person, so I am looking at other resources that are geared specifically for logic stage. (TOG, MFW... there is an alphabet soup of choices out there)

Here are a few sites I use: http://www.bhg.com/gardening/plans/vegetable/ and http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/designapotagergarden.html If you search on "potager" you should get a lot of good results. Good luck!!