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Aras

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Everything posted by Aras

  1. That must be what teen spirit smells like.
  2. I don't have a recipe to share, but I love those breakfast soufflés! My local Panera would be sold out if you got there later than 8:30, and I am not an early riser so they were a rare treat!
  3. I'm pretty sure that Lightning Lit 7 and 8 is secular. I have level 7 and I am looking over it now, if I see anything to the contrary I will let you know.
  4. Thank you everyone who replied. It really helped me to think this through. I talked to him about it, we looked through all the components of both programs together, and he decided he want to do Descubre this year and Destinos next year. Having a willing kid will make language learning more fun ;)
  5. I am aware of both Rosetta Stone and Duolingo, but I have serious reservations about the programs. Rosetta Stone is very expensive, Duolingo is a much better price- free! But I have not heard any success stories from people who have only used those programs, and by success, I mean fluency. I have tried these programs out myself and while they are helpful in vocabulary retention, there is no grammar instruction. To use a baseball analogy, I compare these programs to using batting cages. They are helpful for learning to swing at a ball, but there are many other skills a player needs. I think only using Rosetta Stone or Duolingo gives a learner a false sense of accomplishment. They don't cover writing in Spanish, reading comprehension, Spanish grammar, and conversational skills. I don't want to buy anything else for Spanish this year, because I feel I already have two good, solid programs. And I paid a ridiculous amount of money for the Descubre Español set a few years ago- it was just so new and shiny. One is easier and more cartoony, and meant for a classroom. The other is meant for independent learners at a high school or college and it's strength is listening comprehension. I really go back and forth about whether to give him an easier year or just start him on what we will be using for high school. eta: Heartlikealion, I know you meant Rosetta Stone and Duolingo as a supplement not as a core program. I hear about it all the time and it is just not for us.
  6. I have a son who is starting 8th grade, and he wants to learn Spanish. I have the Destinos book and a workbook which is meant for high school and I also have Descubre Español F which is meant for 5th graders. He says likes the cartoonish look to Descubre, but I'm afraid it might be too easy. I speak Spanish so either program won't be difficult for me to teach. Should I let him use Descubre and have an easy Spanish year before things "count" for high school. Or, since I'm planning on using Destinos for his high school language requirement, should we just start on that but go slowly? Does anyone have any insights that will help me make a decision?
  7. If you can handle some swearing, Thug Kitchen: The Official Cookbook. You can check out their blog to see if you like some of their recipes http://www.thugkitchen.com I have also bought the Veganomincon and had some success with those recipes. But usually I just go with vegan blogs
  8. The Crunchy Betty blog has a book for sale called Put Food on Your Face http://www.crunchybetty.com
  9. I purchased them, but after looking at them in person I decided they were not for us at all. It assumes a worldview very different from our s and I thought it had loaded discussion questions. But I am very liberal and very secular so YMMV. I posted about it in this thread. I still can't get over the "small hands" comment http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/521141-critical-thinking-co-critical-thinking-books-1-2-substitute/
  10. Happy Birthday SparklyUnicorn. I love to see the dancing bacon :)
  11. MCT has a study about Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address Speech and another study on Martin Luther King's I have a Dream speech, http://www.rfwp.com/series/self-evident-truths-series-statements-of-equality That might be a place to start :)
  12. I have sen the Study Guides corresponding to volume 1 and 2 and there are no answers in the back. But the questions are not that challenging, so I haven't felt the need for the answers.
  13. While driving through the Florida panhandle I saw a school whose mascot was the Hobos. As in homeless person of the twenties with a stick holding a bag of his belongings.
  14. I will have a 7th grader and an 8th grader using them at the same time, so there is possibility for discussion. I looked at the list of stories and excerpts, and I just not enthused about it. This charter school has so many restrictions on what we can use and we are jumping through so many hoops. Who knew literature would be line in the sand??
  15. Has anyone had any experience using the Junior Great Books curriculum for middle schoolers? Our charter school has that, or BW Boomerangs as literature choices. Lightning Lit, which I was planning on using, is not an approved resource. Any input is appreciated, thanks!
  16. We actually did some hands on science today. Thank you TOPS!

  17. There are a lot of homeschoolers in the geographic area. I'm not sure about this neighborhood. Probably not because our neighborhood is a ghost town during school hours. I know kids so things through a different lens than we do. The conclusion surprised me and made me laugh. I know my kids weren't bothered by it, after the initial "huh??" my kids just continued to play with them.
  18. This kid definitely goes to public school. I think we would have more money if we didn't homeschool. About six years ago I was friendly with a family that was really into video games. They had multiple consoles, always the newest thing. But they were frequently short of money and having "ramen weeks." They came to my house once and their son was flabbergasted that we didn't have an Xbox, or Playstation. He said, "You must be really poor!" I think his mom was pretty embarrassed.
  19. We just made a cross country move, and we are settling in to the area. My kids are middle school age but they still love to play outside. However most of the kids in the neighborhood that play outside are younger. My kids, not being picky, take it in stride and get down to the business of play. Today ds told the neighbor kid that he was homeschooled. The kid asked if we homeschool because we were poor. What?? My son replied, "You do realize that public school is free, right?" Lol. It was just such a strange comment.
  20. Thanks for listening to me vent. Dh agreed to take his parents off the account, so we don't have to worry if this happens again. My in-laws are in their mid-sixties and they are generally pretty healthy so I doubt they would agree to a financial power of attorney. I know my FiL is pretty upset that my MiL fell for this. They will have to work that out themselves. I will suggest that she attend a computers for seniors class. Maybe she will listen if they talk about internet safety. I have heard more of the story from my husband. The scammers offered to refund her the money, but they said since it was an international transaction they had to deposit $1,000 into her account and she had to send $750 back via Western Union. She did see a deposit, but she didn't realize it was from her son's account. She actually drove down to the local Western Union counter to send the money, but she couldn't use her bank card because she didn't have the PIN number and could only use it as a credit card, not a debit card. When she didn't send the money, I guess they found another way to transfer the money. I still can't imagine what was going through her mind. There was a fraud investigator sent to the house, I don't know if it was from the bank or the local police department. I don't think they will ever catch the scammers or get their money back. I hope she learns a little more caution from this.
  21. My MIL and FIL keep falling for computer/phone scams. The first time happened a few years ago. They clicked on a compromised web site that locks their computer. Then they called the flashing number on the screen and handed over their credit card number. Next, they gave router and registry information so "the nice foreign man on the phone" could remotely log into their computer and fix things. They continued to pay every month and periodically they would get a call from someone who needed to remotely log in again and check things over. My FIL is worried about computer security so he refuses to set up wifi on the router when we come to visit, even though their nearest neighbor is 2 miles away. I really don't know who would be stealing their wifi. So there is only one computer in the house they we all have to wait our turn to use. And it has viruses and key logging software. My husband later found out about this situation and told them it was a scam. They refused to listen. A friend of the family, who "knows about computers," told them the same thing and they allowed him to wipe their computer. Well two years later, my MIL keeps getting calls from someone claiming to be from Microsoft. She believes them still. They keep calling her because they know she is an easy mark. She gave them enough information to remotely log in again!! Somehow they convinced her if she lets them do this she would get some of her money back from all those months that she paid. They asked to log into her bank while they had control of her computer. And she agreed! My in-laws created linked bank accounts for all their children years ago. So my poor BiL who actually uses his account lost a couple of thousand dollars. We use our account for small transactions, we checked it and we weren't targeted. My DH called the bank and they are changing the account number to protect ourselves. I want him to take his parents off the account, or we need to stop using that account. I just can't believe she fell for it again.
  22. I just moved and I only have 20 boxes of books to unpack. I think I should set new goals :laugh:
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