I don't think I've ever bought two copies of a book. The redundancy would pain me. DD and I are both fast readers, and I can usually manage to read a book before or after her, or when she's doing other work. Occasionally, if it's not working to read the same physical copy of a book, I buy a kindle version for me.

The World Book CD was my least favorite part of that Core. It was way above my 5th grader's head and hard to navigate. I'm glad they've replaced it!

Yes. I think that's exactly what she wants. We will have to look into what DE classes are available.

Lori, you always the best advice. Right now, dd's plan is to go to BYU, but I didn't even think of back up options! Yes, she probably would have a better chance of VA colleges if she continues to homeschool, since she already has done some of the things for the advanced diploma that she wouldn't have time to do at school full time.

I think we were both thinking post-civil war era. We have a copy of Human Odyssey vol 3 somewhere (1914-present). I may use that if I don't find anything more promising.

DD15 is currently studying American History using American Odyssey. She has been asking to study Modern history next year (because we've never gotten that far before). What have you used? Bonus points for an online class. WTMA is my first choice, but it doesn't look like they offer a modern world history.

I'm only going to include it because dd took it through our state's virtual school and got a grade and a semester credit from them. It took her about a month complete. I would not give credit for what you're describing.

I have a bunch of iDevices, and one of the kids got a Kindle Fire for Christmas. I'm not at all happy with it. It's less intuitive than the iPad and isn't as easy for me to configure. If I'd never had an iPad, maybe I wouldn't mind? But iCloud would be huge draw. I love that my parents got an iPad, and I can just share photos easily with them. And they get an alert when I share pics! Bonus points for easiness.

Executive function skills are a real issue! My oldest definitely has troubles there. I used to worry that she could never survive adulthood, but as she has matured, I have hope that she will. :lol: Are you still in Silicon Valley? I lived there years ago, and we just moved to Northern VA, which has some cultural similarities. Lots of Indian and Asian families, a heavy emphasis on academics, plus a ridiculously expensive housing market, which means lots of money for the schools. My experience at the elementary school suggests that they start with assumption that parents care about their kids' education and are on the same team as the school, which is a welcome change.

That is great to hear! Crocodiles and Coconuts is a beginning algebra program (it follows Jousting Armadillos, which you might have seen on these boards), so he should be well-prepared to do algebra in 8th. Writing is my huge stressor. Maybe I should find a quick essay workbook to do over the summer, and then relax.

He does have math--Beast Academy. I just didn't label it well. I haven't talked with middle school counselors yet--just the high school and elementary school. I've seen exactly one school that might have cared what we were using. :laugh: It was a classical charter school, and they used a lot of the same things I like (like Singapore Math). Since they had such a non-traditional curriculum, they tested everyone's placement at the beginning of the year. I figured test scores would be the only thing the schools here would care about, since mom-grades don't count...

I haven't done standardized testing for a couple years, but I'm glad you brought it up. That's something I wanted to do this spring to help transition. My older two always do great on standardized tests. DS11 is usually slightly below average. But...I think he'd still fit in (academically and socially) with other boys his age. Private school is not on the table. We're already dealing with sticker shock from housing prices in NoVA. I can't add tuition on to that.

Overall, yes. Ds11 struggles with retention, or at least he struggles to narrate back anything he's read. We are not super consistent, and he's behind where I'd like him to be. For instance, he's just finishing book 3 of W&R, which is listed for 4th/5th grade. He doesn't have too much anxiety over writing, though. DS13 does have anxiety with writing. He kinda melts down at a multi-paragraph essay. Honestly, I always did too. It takes all my self-control to buckle down and walk him through a short essay.

And if it makes any difference here is the curriculum they are currently using: DS13 (7th grade) Crocodiles and Coconuts (math) WTMA Expository Writing 1 MCT grammar and vocab literature of his choice Conceptual Chemistry American Odyssey (history) DS11 (6th grade) Beast Academy 5 Writing and Rhetoric Practice Town (grammar) First Form Latin BF Early American History Homemade astronomy course

Any helpful advice to get kids ready for school? We've moved to area with great schools, and I'm more than ready to move on to a new phase of life. But I'm all over the place with putting my kids back into school. My youngest is already enrolled in 2nd grade, and she's thriving. Some days, I think I should sign up the boys (6th and 7th grade) for middle school, starting last week. But then I panic that they will be so far behind, and not on a standard scope and sequence, and I feel like I need to work all spring and summer to get them ready for school. They have been homeschooled since Kindy, and it will be a big transition for them. Writing is a difficult, stressful thing (for all of us). I think they will both be ok in math, and I'm sure ds13 will do well in any content subject, as long as teachers don't give him too much busy work. DS11 lives with his head in the clouds (or in a video game). I have no idea how the transition to school will be for him, but DD15 insists that I can't send our sweet, innocent boy into middle school. I may continue to homeschool dd15, depending on how flexible the school will be with her. The school counselor was talking about making her double up on all the core subjects and graduate a year late to get a diploma (since she has very few "verified" credits). I could care less if she gets a diploma. I want her to continue to have some flexibility to study subjects that interest her, and to develop as a person, not get a piece of paper. DH insists she must go to high school to get ready for college. But part-time high school (two classes) is an option for homeschoolers here, so I may just enroll her in English and drama and let her keep studying Japanese, animation, and modern history at home (plus the obligatory math class). I think I'm rambling. My biggest concern is getting ds11 and ds13 ready for school. I don't have the energy to push them anymore, and they aren't cooperating with me anymore (par for the course at this age). Does the Hive have any experience to share?

Another option might be one of MCT's grammar books. They are designed to be read in about a month. For a 12yo Grammar Voyage would probably be about the right level.

My teens are enjoying K12's American Odyssey.

From what I understand you're "supposed" to have the child remember the whole passage. But that's awfully hard. When I do dictation, I read out the whole passage, then reread it to them in manageable chunks while they write.

I never thought of adding a map in the timeline book! I think that sounds like a great idea. I'd keep it as is for my leftie, but put the timeline on the right side of the page to make it easier for them to write events.

I've managed to collect all the Sonlight readers for grades 1-4, so that's what I used for my boys until they were ready to choose any books that appealed to them. Beverly Cleary and Andrew Clements books stand out in my memory. They still don't love reading the way their sister does. Sigh... But at least I know they can read most anything they are interested in.

I think I'd also separate it into two sentences. "He will have found you" is the future perfect tense (something that is completed in the future) while the rest of it is future tense (if you change "he's so happy" to "he will be so happy"). It makes sense to me to have the sentence about something that will be complete separate from future actions and feelings. I'd also be tempted to add a comma and the word because... "because he will be so happy"

I agree, the verb tenses don't match. Cleaning up the tenses will make the sentence less awkward.

When we have had a open invite weddings at our church, members of the congregation pitched in and helped prepare the food. For instance, one young woman who was recently married had soups and salads and bread. Many of the women that her mom was friends with brought soup, etc, helped serve, and then took home leftovers. Spreading out the burden of food prep and leftovers helps considerably. But that's also how we do funerals and other church activities.

Sure. Find the Constellations by HA Rey Exploring Our Solar System by Sally Ride and Tam O'Shaughnessy To Space and Back by Sally Ride Destination: Space by Seymour Simon Along Came Galileo by Jeanne Bendick One Small Square: The Night Sky by Donald Silver I have a few others on my shelf that we probably won't get to: A Child's Introduction to The Night Sky The Stars by HA Rey Lots of Seymour Simon books I got from the library, but decided I could check them out again if I want them. I also bought Astronomy for All Ages by Harrington and Paswcuzzi. It has 51 activities related to astronomy, but I'm lazy about doing it, and we are living in a part of the country with high humidity and a lot of light pollution, so I can't just schedule clear nights to go outside every week. So far ds11 is enjoying it. He's reading more slowly than I expected, but every time he sits down to read he peppers me with interesting facts he's picked up.

:bigear: