I think it's important for the parents to be on the same page with things. Does he REALLY feel it's important that they are tested? If it's really important to him, I would have him look up the testing options and get it set up (since you feel it's not needed.) Or, you could always meet in the middle and pick the testing option that you are most comfortable with. I just did the DORA and the ADAM assessments for my 6 year old daughter (it told me exactly what I knew it would in reading- but in math I was actually blown away.) I liked how those specific tests give suggestions on what to do to help them in areas they might be struggling in, etc (even the ADAM test gives specific Khan Academy links- which I thought was great.) Anyways, it was easy and done online at home and the results are instant.

Crimson Wife- You are right about that. I guess I should have stated there is no giftedness in the typical sense, and acceleration of work, etc. I have heard of 2E (I'm still in the process of reading about all of this, trying to learn what I can.) He is definitely a sensitive kid that has his quirks as well. We are in the process of getting him a full social/emotional/educational evaluations. There is a lot going on and we all want to figure it out so we can know exactly how we can help and different ways we can encourage him to flourish on his level for exactly what he needs.

That's disappointing to hear! I haven't read the reviews yet, only have heard about the kits. ETA: I think the dunk tank one looks pretty fun.

I don't know that I would want to be tied down, but I do think that kids need exercise everyday, and this sounds like a fun opportunity for them. For me PERSONALLY, if this was offered only 1/4 mile away, I would probably do it and bring my running stroller and go for a short run while they were in class. Two birds with one stone since I workout every morning anyways, it's only fair that the kids can too, right? :) I think it's early enough to where you aren't tied down for the whole day, and it's free. If it doesn't work then just don't do it anymore.

For a young age, I also recommend the violin as well. My older two children play the piano, and my youngest will play the violin when she is ready.

Thanks for sharing! I completely forgot about these as well. Guess what my girls will be getting in the near future.. ;)

This is such an interesting thread to me. I have 3 kids that are so completely different. My son has always struggled in school, is doing weekly language/educational therapy for comprehension/inference issues, and has a great memory and is amazing with facts. There is no giftedness or acceleration with him (it's also our first year homeschooling, and I won't say working with him isn't a struggle.) My middle child has sensory processing disorder and she is thriving with homeschooling. Any acceleration with her (which there will be in specific areas, and not in others- I can already see that) will be purely because of homeschooling. She would not do well in a typical school environment at all, and would probably struggle because of frustration etc. Then there is my youngest. She has been noticeably "different" since birth. Literally since birth. There have been things that she has done so incredibly early, and literally everywhere we go someone comments on her. I didn't think much of it until several people asked me if she was gifted. I always say she is just trying to keep up with her older siblings. She does school work with my 6 year old, and also has her own (although what I have her doing on her own is a bit too "easy" for her, I mainly have it because I can have my son or daughter do that with her while I am working with the other individually with their schooling etc.) I think that I will be homeschooling my youngest because of her need for acceleration, whether it be giftedness or not. She does not like being around kids her age AT ALL (she thinks they are too babyish and gets frustrated that they can't discuss things with her) and she has some quirkiness about her that I can't really explain. She does things that one would consider "strange" for her age, but the way she processes things and really understands concepts that even my older children don't really understand..Really, there is too much to really get into in a post, but I don't think that giftedness is because of being homeschooled. I think that will happen whether you are encouraging it or not. I was "gifted" and always bored in my extremely rigorous private school. I remember distinctly waiting to turn in tests/work to the teacher until other kids in my class finished because I didn't want her to think I was rushing and I felt I must be doing something wrong since it was taking everyone else *so* long to do the "easy" work that we were doing. I never studied or had any issues other than always wondering what was wrong with ME. There is so much more to it, and I am enjoying reading everyone's perspectives. Whether a child is just bright or gifted..well, I think homeschooling gives the child an opportunity to really flourish and gives them opportunities that they wouldn't otherwise have in a typical public school (or even private school) environment. But I don't think giftedness is BECAUSE of homeschooling.

We will be doing SOTW 1 for the first time this year. I plan on following along with some suggestions from the WTM, and also the activity guide has some nice suggestions. I ordered a few of the books for us to have that I thought the kids would enjoy owning, but other than that we will just go with what's available at the library. I'm curious to see suggestions as well!

I can see the appeal of Easy Grammar, but I must say that my son (5th) can't stand it. I thought he would like it because it's simple and to the point. It's like pulling teeth to get him to do it, let alone get him to do it without me. I'm sure this isn't typical, as he requires a lot of "hand holding" and really is only focused when he is doing the work WITH me or out loud. I decided to order Saxon (Hake) Grammar and Writing for him to do this summer. I'm hoping that works well for us. We will see. I'll be following this thread.

This first thing that comes to mind is K12. I know there is Calvert- I believe they are planning on offering high school soon also, but that can be pretty pricey. There is also Oak Meadow.

It has been a great year. I didn't get to everything I had planned because we ended up moving across the country, and also my 5th grader has not been as independent as I had hoped, so I spent a lot of one on one time with him also (plus the 2 year old :) .) BUT, we got to all the "important" stuff, and had fun with McRuffy language arts and math, along with doing fun enrichment programs, occupational therapy, and things like that. I have our 1st grade stuff planned out, and we are going to start the basic stuff + FIAR for summer, and then transition into the rest of the curriculum I have chosen in the fall. Someone asked about spelling- we are going to be using All About Spelling. I had considered Spelling Workout, but I really like the hands on aspect of AAS, and I think my daughter will get the most out of it that way.

Also, not sure if you want to spend this much, but All About Reading Pre-level is pretty neat- and it satisfies the need for specific laid out lessons.

I totally recommend doing FIAR (or Before Five In a Row- it depends on what you think she is ready for..all kids are different..)- there is SO much you can do with FIAR. It can be as relaxed as you want or as extreme as you want (I only say extreme because I have seen some people completely go all out- it looks like their kids are enjoying it, but I guess it's hard for me to imagine doing it since I have 3 kids of all different ages :) Maybe with one kid though!) Also, if you want more "school" stuff, there are those books from Explode the Code..Getting Ready For The Code. My youngest is doing it now and it totally into it. Also I believe it's the Mathematical Reasoning from the Critical Thinking Company. My little one is doing the book A right now and it's fun. Other than that, I really think all the hands on stuff is great- tracing letters and words in sand or paint, etc. Building their name with magnet letters, stamps, wiki stix, etc. So many different hands on things you can do at that age that is great. Nature walks- collecting different things, examining them, painting, etc. There is always library and book store story times, parks, museums, etc.

Thanks for the suggestions. I will look them up! I can get addicted to pinterest very daily, and then I get overwhelmed with all the possibilities on there! I have so much pinned on my boards but never really follow through with it all. :)

Just a little update- I just received our Singapore Primary Math, Standards Ed. 1A in the mail (I got the workbook, textbook, and HIG)- and I must say I am excited to get started. There is stuff in the beginning that will totally be easy for her (we went through McRuffy K this year), but I think this way of math will work well for us. I didn't order 1B because I figured we needed to try this before I order any more. Anyways, I hope Singapore works out for us, and it looks like a great program. I like how in the HIG it is separated into weeks and kind of into days but not SPECIFICALLY days. I like seeing the "whole picture" right there and we can easily adjust the "days" to what we need. I guess when things are set up specifically into days it stresses me out more if we miss something because I feel we are "behind." Totally MY issue, but I am a little obsessive like that. ;)

That is my son's issue right there. He is ALWAYS in a hurry and makes careless mistakes. He does this with more than just math, and this isn't a TT issue.

He does the work once (in the book and on paper) and then after he does the problems and corrects any mistakes (he gets as many "chances" as it takes to do this- it's just when you do it only on the computer you get a few tries and my son gets "lazy" if that makes sense) and the he enters the answers on the computer. I don't make him do the actual work twice. Sorry for the misunderstanding there!

Well, you get a couple of different tries on the computer, so technically they could try guessing etc. Not every problem has to be written out in order to do it or get it right on the computer. Also, it's good practice to be able to write the problem out on paper (neatly.) I'm not sure what TT3 is like, as we have only used 5 and beginning of 6 so far. I just make sure he does all the work on paper before entering it on the computer if it is a problem that can be written out. And yes, a white board is perfect for that also, doesn't have to be paper unless you are wanting to check their work at the end instead of during.

Nwmama- how do you incorporate both Saxon and Singapore? Do you alternate days, weeks, or..? I'm very curious. These are the two main programs I see suggested everywhere. I have decided to use Singapore for my 1st grader, and Saxon for my 5th almost 6th grader. I wouldn't be interested in combining anything for my old child at this point, but possibly with my younger one. I just didn't know if it would be overkill. I guess if you did certain days of each it wouldn't be so bad?

I was actually about to suggest using it as a summer math supplement- it's *perfect* for that. If you use it s a full curriculum, just make sure to add in extra review and don't just let the child do it all on the computer. Really make sure they are understanding the concepts and doing the work for the problems (which is why I had him do the work on paper first and then on the computer. I could see where he was getting something wrong, and then on the computer he could see an explanation for it as well if he got something wrong.)

Yes. In the workbook it has the lecture that is also done on the computer. It's good in theory. They can read the lecture and then watch it. My son, however, was not a fan of doing both because he felt it was overkill (he rushes through EVERYTHING though, so getting him to do something once can be difficult enough..) But I didn't feel that he was getting enough just by watching it, I wanted him to actually do the work also. It's not a bad program at all, and I HAVE heard good stories about kids doing well with it. It is definitely good for my son to have some of the teaching on the computer vs ALL me doing it. I just think that being placed in the right level is important, and then also doing additional review/supplementing would even out the program and make sure the child isn't just getting by. I guess that could go for almost any program though. Again this is our first year homeschooling, so take that for what it's worth :)

I do think more drilling and review needs to be done with TT. UNLESS of course, the kid is really good at math and grasps new concepts etc very easily, then what is there might be enough. It wasn't enough for us, but I still DO like the program. The problem I had with my son, is that he got so frustrated that I would make him do the work in the book AND answer on the computer. He wanted to do one or the other and got frustrated doing both. But it really made this year of homeschooling easier for me, and he did learn a lot using the program. We will finish out TT6, along with the Saxon 5/4 that I ordered- and from there I am not sure. I really would like to continue with TT but like you, I am worried about being ready for high school math, tests, etc.

This is our first year homeschooling. I decided to go with Teaching Textbooks 5 for my 5th grade son. BUT he has been "behind" and struggling in school. I thought it would be perfect for him since everyone said it typically runs "behind." And it worked great this year. He has done 5 and a little bit of 6. He is testing into Saxon 5/4 right now (with getting most of them right- if he didn't have inference/comprehension issues, I do believe he would be testing into 6/5..) So I will say Teaching Textbooks has served it's purpose and worked well for us this year. I definitely suggest taking the placement test, since it might be "behind" whatever you are currently using.

We are in a similar situation. I just ordered Saxon (Hake) Grammar and Writing 5 for my 5th grader. From what I have seen, it seems like it will serve this purpose. We need something that is easy to use, straight forward, and if there is any teaching by me, I would like it to be right there open and go. My son isn't a very independent worker at this point, but we are hoping to get there.

I love the experience gift ideas. Especially for 11-12 and up.