there's also this thread/idea... http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31881

You could always set up some group sports with some other parents! I teach tennis in June, other moms run softball and volleyball, and in the winter-hockey. There are also the hiking, biking, etc. that are done all the time and at Scouts. You could have them read about health benefits of exercise/types-strength, aerobic, etc, and have them set up a program for themselves that includes so much time per week. Have them see/measure where they are physically, and strive to improve their scores over a certain amount of time. Setting them up to be active adults is the goal at my house.

I was planning on having gardening and such be an offshoot of our biology class, since ds doesn't care that much for the study of the human body. I was also thinking it would be a great background for ds' future. You could probably do that and a botany class if you take several years. SharonTennessee shared a great site that you could use to see syllabi from various college courses: http://chnm.gmu.edu/tools/syllabi/ Just plug in botany or environment or whatever topic you like, and you can get syllabus/topic ideas for classes, along with some spine books to consider. I also plugged in landscaping; think that's what I'd like to do later in life. :) But, I could start learning now. lol

Sloppy joes with canned beans and chips on the side; spaghetti cooked with the sauce; sandwich fixings for sub-sandwiches; frozen pizza; soup. You might want to have some snack stuff there, too. Maybe some veggies and dip, fruit, popcorn/trail mix, hard-boiled eggs, graham or other crackers.

You ladies are getting me excited about teaching this next year, and I wasn't even thinking about it til this thread!! I would love your games and book list, Lisa! I'm thinking it would be easier to do at home than in a weekly co-op class tho. Too much info for once a week... Thank you all for sharing!!

I haven't been able to use mine either! Glad someone here asked. Please share about the patch, if you can. Thanks!

I have a placemat in the middle with a metal openwork fruit 'basket' and a paper mache bowl dd made that matches the placemat that holds our napkins. The boys don't think it's necessary. :)

That’s My Son how moms can influence boys to become men of character by Rick Johnson ISBN 0800730771 is a wonderful book discussing this topic. Some of the movie titles below are from there, but most are my top picks. Hoosiers with Gene Hackman Lonesome Dove with Robert Duvall Old Yeller with Fess Parker The Patriot with Mel Gibson Pay It Forward with Haley Joel Osment Remember the Titans with Denzel Washington Radio Remember the Titans Captains Courageous Rudy Gunther and the Paper Brigade Summer of the Monkeys Secondhand Lions with Robert Duvall To Kill a Mockingbird

It looks like the some of the schools here in MN are doing what they call physical science in 9th grade--a combo physics/chemistry/earth science-astronomy. I picked up Hewitt's Conceptual Physical Science for this. It has just the basics, without the math. Then they move on to the biology, and then the physics or chemistry with the higher math the next few years.

Could someone tell me what United Streaming is used for/why I would want it? (Yes, I know... very behind the times here.

Just thought I'd share a new forum for gluten intolerant people. Taste of Home (magazines) started a new forum for this March 31st. Hope this will be helpful. http://community.tasteofhome.com/groups/ Look for the Gluten-Free Zone

I get Countryside and small farm journal, Mother Earth News, Cooking Light and Health (they were a 2 for 1 deal). Also, several devotionals. We all read World magazine and Guideposts. We had National Geographic last year, but no one looked at it. :( The boys get the Boy Scout magazine, and dd gets Your Big Backyard. I'd like the boys to start reading more, so I picked up Popular Science and Discover, which they did read!

I haven't seen what Timberdoodle has, but I'm seeing that high schools (at least in our state) are going with a combined physics/chemistry/and maybe earth science class in 9th grade. This class does NOT include the math that would be in the physics or chemistry classes they'd take as a junior or senior. It's more of an overview of the basics of the topics.

Easter service at church, and sometimes the Wednesday night Lenten services, tho they haven't worked out for us this year. The best year was when I read Vinegar Boy out loud to the kids. Put you right with Christ in the last days, and really moved us. Just thought of this again today, but the book never got returned when I loaned it out. Time to get another copy. :)

http://www.ebioinfogen.com/cat.htm http://www.whitman.edu/biology/vpd/ http://bio.bd.psu.edu/cat/ are some I have bookmarked.

Another LCMS Lutheran, here.

So sorry you and Stacey are having these challenges in your lives. I'll be praying for both of you and your families.

I don't belong here because we are more unschoolers, and academics are not that strong here. We won't be doing anymore latin than learning latin and greek roots, and boy are we short the hours and dedication many others put in! Also, I hate to say it, but I feel very un-educated in comparison to many of you, even tho I did get through college! Thank you for sharing all your knowledge!!

Cottonelle and Northern Quilted. When the cost difference is a dollar, like it sometimes is, I go for the Northern. My favorite is the Cottonelle.

We're using the Teaching Company high school history video classes with our readings. Linwood Thompson dresses the part of someone in that day's lectures. He does a nice job getting you to see different characters viewpoints,too.

Wow! these look like gems! Thanks.

We eat rice and beans, or lots of refried (fat free) beans and a bit of cheese in tortillas. Lots of leftovers, Annie's mac and cheese, grilled cheese... sometimes a fried egg sandwich, tuna salad sandwich, salmon salad or egg salad. Sometimes on crackers for a change of pace.

I could have written your post, Rhonda, about my son who's 16. We're working on the same classes, supposedly as a 10th grader. Only my son's not into the computer except for that Nemesis of the Roman Empire game, and he wants to go into refrigeration, heating and cooling like his dad. He gets some time in OTJ training anyway. :) I can see he's realizing the work's gonna have to be done. He is pointedly sitting down to do his Algebra daily (since Christmas). He's working on Apple Spelling , and doing Vocabulary Vine cards. We do need to work on the writing. We're doing SL 100 history (finishing bk 3) along with the Teaching Company US history and SOTW/TOG for world history at the same time. I figure the videos help set the facts he's reading or vice versa. I had a big biology text, but he was overwhelmed. I got the Self-Teaching Biology book SWB recommends. It looks much more doable, and is the bare bones he'll need to know for college. I also got the digitalfrog.com virtual dissection and the Cell Structure and Function software. It's interactive, so I figure he may get into that. (If not, I have two younger kids. :) ) BTW, I was online looking for course descriptions this weekend, and I see that the MN high schools are having a combination physics and chemistry course for 9th grade now, and biology is 10th. Just a thought. He's struggling through Ben Franklin's Autobiography, with Lightning Literature which has comprehension questions to answer. We also do some lit out loud, and a bit on CD. I'm looking for exposure here, I guess. We're also reading How to Read a Book to help develop thinking?logic? :) I'm thinking we just have to trust God here. He's put us home for a reason, and he knows what our kids need. Sounds like he'll be just fine, especially with a goal!!

You've gotten some great advice I agree with. Just taking some time to think about your husband. Sometimes it's just watching the way he moves, working outside or something, and remembering all the reasons I love him. All the little things he does for me that show me he loves me. The Marriage Bed link above also has a link to a daily message from The Generous Wife that's helpful in thinking about your dh in various ways, and getting closer to him in all ways.

I'd stick with buying from the person I committed to, also.