Oh, I'm so excited to hear that there is a 4th edition in the works!!! WTM is my "bible" when it comes to homeschooling and I so appreciate all the hard work you have put into it! My children are very young (6, 4, 4), so I can only speak to that age group. There is only one resource I would recommend replacing, and that is Slow and Steady, Get Me Ready. It drove me nuts. Kids mature and grow at such different rates that I found some activities frustrated my kids and others bored them. The black and white format also made it tough to get excited about the activities and some of the materials they suggested using are not so easy to get a hold of anymore. Some resources I have used for preschool that I love: What Your Preschooler Needs to Know Activity Books 1 and 2 - These are consumable workbooks that use stickers and cutouts to introduce letters, numbers, colors, etc. My kids really enjoyed them! Horizons Preschool KIt - This is a great kit for someone that is home all day with their first child. Tons of great ideas that revolve around the days of creation, and it makes it easy to pick and choose what you want to do. Totally too much for a mom with limited time or lots of other children to teach. Horizons Math K, 1, and 2. We love this math program. Spiral approach, lots of review, but you don't feel like you've been beaten over the head (*cough* referring to early years of Saxon). All About Spelling - a must add. Goes great if introduced after (or in the second half of) OPGTR. Wile's Science in the Beginning, Ancient World, etc. - a great way to study science along with the 4 year history cycle! Some topics I would love to see discussed in the new edition: How to prepare students headed for engineering and science majors that need the upper level math and sciences before college (what to do when Saxon and Apologia just aren't rigorous enough for your student) Advice on choosing (or not) a "classical" co-op Would also love to see more suggestions on readers to go along with OPGTR once you get to blends and beyond (Bob books don't do a good job with this - we used an some online reader (Progressive Phonics)). Can't wait to see the new edition! Blessings! Missy

Hi :) I am going to be helping a friend's son this year with his Chalkdust Calculus. I know it comes with great videos, but this particular student usually needs a little extra help with video based math courses. I was thinking it might nice to have a copy of the text, but the 9th edition that CD uses costs a little more than I hoped to spend. I see some earlier editions for less money. Can I get away with an earlier edition if I am using it mostly to review the concepts for myself before I sit down with him? Thanks!

I have had students who do very well with Saxon, so I totally agree that it can work. However, I've run across a few it does not work for, so I am hoping that I can have a few other things on hand to supplement with or suggest to parents who want to try something else. :)

Thank you so much for your responses; they are very helpful! My concern over books not being available down the line comes from the fact that I am tutoring students now but I have children that are 3 and 5. :) I think I am just going to slowly start collecting a few of these titles. Also, MarkT, I used a poor choice of words when I said the spiral method may not work at higher levels. I should have specified that I meant Saxon's spiral format in the upper level books. For example, when trinomial factoring is covered, the kids maybe get 2 or 3 problems to work on factoring that day. They need to work several that day in order to get the hang of it and then lots of review thereafter. I have seen better results with algebra students when they get a good 10 or so problems to practice the skill of the day and then another 10 to 15 review problems. So, I what I mean is that Saxon's spiral doesn't give enough practice on the skill being taught that day (I like the review component just fine). :)

Hi :) I am looking for recommendations for Algebra I through pre-Calculus for students who are interested in STEM majors (I plan to use one of the college board AP recommended texts for Calc). I have tutored students through most of the Saxon levels and I am finding that the spiral method doesn't work as well on upper level math for some students (particularly in Advanced Math - material is so spread out and there just isn't enough practice of the skills at the time they are taught). I haven't really fallen in love with other homeschool curriculum so I have been thinking of going with textbooks used at better high schools. However, most high school texts seem to have aligned with Common Core. Did much change in those? Should I avoid them and find older texts like Foerster? And what are we going to do when those can no longer be found? Other suggestions? Thanks in advance!

Thanks for all the great suggestions! I really appreciate it!

Thanks for the ideas! I'll take a look at Explode the Code and Primary Phonics. I do have the Bob books, and they are great for reinforcement; they just stop matching up so easily once you hit blends. I know nothing will match up perfectly to OPG; I was just hoping someone had found something close. :)

Hi there :) I am working through the Ordinary Parents Guide to Reading with my son, and we are starting to get into blends. I would really like to provide him with some extra practice passages as we learn these. We are going at a relaxed pace, a lesson every other day. I typically do a lesson (and often the suggested activity) and then the following day, do some sort of practice. For short vowels, it was easy to find phonetic readers (BOB books, etc), but now that I am planning for blends next week, I am having a tough time finding material the practices the specific blends covered (without introducing a lot of unfamiliar words). Does anyone have ideas for practice reading material? Thanks!

Hi :) Can anyone tell me if a Saxon Algebra 2, second edition text book is close enough to 3rd edition to be used for a co-op class where the third edition is used? Thanks!

Thanks for all the great posts ladies. I think it's one of those things that I needed to talk through and figure out where the feelings were coming from and how to deal with them. I try to never speak complaining words about my husband to my friends and family - I usually make it my policy to work it out with him. This was one situation where I wasn't getting anywhere by talking with him, so I just needed to tell someone :) You know how sometimes when all the words swirl in your head and you can't make sense of it? But magically, when you type it out, you start to see things from different angles? Anyway, all that to say that I somehow feel much better just by getting it out. Thank you for listening! I am thinking over birthdays and other holidays and realizing that planning this stuff truly isn't his thing. I am always the one to enthusiastically do it and I get really really excited about it (I love to surprise him or the kids on holidays/birthdays). But he is not that way at all. I do need to tell him specifically what I need him to do and plan the rest myself. :)

Thanks for the advice yall :) Very helpful and encouraging :)

I'm just curious if any one else out there has a situation similar to mine regarding Mother's Day. I lost my mother 10 years ago and becoming a mother was a huge struggle for me (thankfully we were able to finally have 3 beautiful boys via IVF). So, now that I am a mom, Mother's Day is a big deal to me... maybe because there were a lot of not so happy Mother's Days in my past. But, for some reason, my wonderful husband (he truly is wonderful) does not understand this. I have tried explaining it to him, but he still doesn't seem to get it. Each of the four Mother's Days I've had so far since the birth of our oldest has been pretty much like a regular day. When he does think to get me a gift, it's usually very inexpensive and last minute. He doesn't plan anything; he just asks what I want to do. I have explained to him that what I want most is for him to plan the day for me and to be excited about whatever he has planned. Each year he just apologizes and says he couldn't think of anything. I end up feeling hurt and angry. It's truly not a lack of communication thing - he just does not see himself as capable of doing something like that. And I really don't mean to complain; he is an amazing husband and father. I feel like I need to adjust my expectations or just tell him I want to plan my own Mother's Day. It's just that I feel angry that I have to do that. Last night at dinner he asked me yet again what I wanted to do and confessed that he hasn't planned anything and forgot to order my gift in time, so whatever it is probably won't be here. I felt so upset. Does this make sense? Any advice?

Rainy today!

Awesome! Thanks!

If you do go the transcription route, beware of M*Modal. My sister worked for them and they were horrible!!!

I want to wake up earlier than they do, but if I so much as stick my big toe out of bed, they somehow know and all wake up! ack! :)

That is so encouraging! Thanks for sharing!

Love the idea of this post! Kind of like doing life together :) I'm new here - I have 3 boys :) My oldest is 4 and my twins are 20 months. This morning was hectic! I had an 8am dental appointment to have an old filling replaced that was crumbling and then I had my last MOPS meeting, ever. Kind of made me sad :( But, we have joined a CC group that meets the same day as MOPS, and in my heart I know it is time to turn my attention to homeschooling. With such a busy morning, I didn't get much done around here. I did sew buttons back onto two pairs of dh's pants - I'd been putting that off, so I'm happy to cross that off my list. I am thinking about trying Flylady to help me develop a home routine - any one else tried that? ~Missy

I received my MS/PhD from Tulane in Biomedical Engineering. I graduated in 2001, so it's been a while. It is an academically rigorous school; I found the coursework very challenging. The campus is beautiful. The culture there is very, very liberal. If you have any specific questions, I'd be glad to try to answer them :)

I really dislike my kitchen floor! The previous owners put down really cheap tile and dirt just grinds into it - it's impossible to get it clean looking - I am looking forward to someday putting in new flooring! :)

Hey there! I'm in the Cincinnati area :)

Hi! I just joined the board, and I wanted to introduce myself. I have 3 boys (age 4 and 20 month old twins). I'm starting to work with my 4 year old a little more formally now and am super excited about using the classical approach!