Well, *I* was public schooled and didn't start FL until 8th grade and it was one of my biggest regrets academically, so I've made it a priority in elementary for my kids. Research indicates younger kids just have a great capacity for learning language. But that may not be what is best for your family.

Also, I was able to sub the math level for another and that was no problem. :)

It's huge. I'm very excited to see what it's like for this year. Got it for my 4th Grader. :) Anyone else using it this year?

Charlotte's Rose is a great book, but it's a four hanky tearjerker. I wouldn't recommend it to a sensitive child (I was one myself). The baby's mother dies, but so does the main character's mother and all of her siblings in infancy (prior to the beginning of the story but mentioned throughout).

Not secular. I avoid a lot of popular curricula because of religious content.

Bookshark is new for this upcoming school year, so no one has used it yet under that title. I ordered their 4th grade program and I'm excited to get it. It was beta tested by a school district homeschool support program under the name Brightflash, so maybe someone here has used it as that? I'm not sure if the content is different or if it was strictly a name change.

Pretty sure I got one of those when I was in HS, back in the stone age. Scam for sure.

Another book I read around the same time as I read Number the Stars was The Endless Steppe. I liked them both. It's also about WWII, though from a different vantage point (a girl and her family being exiled to Siberia).

My 11 year old is loving Harry Potter right now. He also really enjoyed The Hobbit, so we will probably move on to LOTR when he has finished HP.

We've had a stressful year, so I've gone from piecing together to buying "school in a box" for the upcoming year. I'm going to try really, really, hard not to tweak because I need the break. I like your mantra "perfect is the enemy of done". I'm going to remind myself of that. Hang in there, it will get better. :)

I make it a point to not think during the summer. Beach reads only. I just finished The Sugar Queen and am now starting on the Outlander series at the recommendation of a friend.

Also, my younger son really enjoyed reading The Hobbit, but you may want to be careful about that one. The reading level is more 6th-7th grade. My 3rd grader loved it, but he loves the movies so already related well to the characters. A kid who doesn't already love Tolkien's stuff may find it hard to slog through.

Roald Dahl, Mr. Popper's Penguins, the Mrs. Piggle Wiggle series, and the Ramona books helped my younger break through from reluctant reader to one who doesn't complain too loudly anymore. Series are often great for kids because they are familiar with the characters so they feel comfortable reading the books.

I know there's a cartoon adaptation, I watched it as a kid. One of my favorite book/movie combos is Princess Bride. One of the few that I enjoyed the movie (almost) as much as the book.

I attended *someone's* presentation of "Writing Across the Curriculum" from IEW and while the workshop wasn't especially sales-pitchy, it was bone dry. I can't say for sure that it was Laura House's presentation, though she does look familiar. I've since seen it offered at other conventions and I've steered clear.