Part of it is simply inertia, I'm sure. My other guess would be that many 3rd graders would have trouble neatly inserting the remainder and then keeping track of the 'new' problem. That could cause a lot of wrong answers. Many kids at this age are still writing fairly big and not so neat - - their short division is not going to look nearly as neat as the ones on the computer, lol! I can see that causing problems. The example I looked at did not have the student crossing out numbers that had already been used; they are just adding in the remainder. I can definitely see some kids having trouble with that. In long division, you are moving to a new line for each part of the problem, so each time, you are only looking at the 'active' part of the problem. The latter problem can be solved by having the student cross out the part of the dividend that has been 'used' already. I would also consider having them write out the problems with extra space between the numbers; I know many 3rd graders who would have trouble neatly inserting a remainder between the numbers of their problem.

It has never bothered mine; they've been reading on the kindle since about 8. I always take notes in a notebook, not in my poor defenseless book ;), so that isn't an issue for me. And as far as finding a selection from fifty pages, I don't find that any more difficult either - - you can 'flip' pages on a Kindle just like a book, you can search for specific words, go to certain locations in the book, etc. "Quick scribbles in the margin" can be accomplished with bookmarks/notes/highlights. It depends on your study style, I suppose. For me, studying from a Kindle is no different than studying from a book. Yep, these are all excellent features for more serious reading. The dictionary is great for any reading; we are all more likely to do this than to actually stop and look up in the dictionary. I don't see anything like this on the Kindle. I'm thinking that this isn't possible on any device with a reflective screen, Kindle, Nook, etc.

Dr. Robinson says that his children are not gifted. They are hard workers. While there is no doubt they are hard workers, they are almost certainly gifted as well. Precious few 'merely' bright students would get those results with the same amount of work. No average student would. With his job and environment, Robinson is surrounded by people who are, if not gifted, certainly much brighter than the average. He has those same attributes himself. He is a scientist who was married to another scientist; since his college days, he has been surrounded by people who are generally either highly educated or aspiring to be. To his eyes, his children don't appear extraordinary or gifted, but he really has no basis for comparison. His life does not expose him to many 'average' people. That doesn't mean the curriculum won't work for bright or average students as well, but certainly I wouldn't expect most students to get those same results, even if they follow every recommendation to the letter.

The MCT vocab books are root based, and my dd10 is LOVING Ceasar's English. As in, no, no more, honey, that's enough vocab for today, lol. English From the Roots Up was a bust for us, couldn't sustain any interest on my part or theirs. My dd12 likes the Vocabulary from Classical Roots books pretty well.

Yes, I think so. You have to know enough to at least be able to sit down with them and figure something out together. My dd12 has surpassed me for sure, lol, but my scanty knowledge is more helpful than none ;)

Thank you! It seems very handy to be able to print it out that way. Am I correct in assuming that they give room for the student to write their answers on the same page? in other words, no separate notebook is needed?

omigosh, you just made me flash back to dd when she was around that age. one time, we had put her in our room till the fit wore off, and she cried so loud and so dang long that we finally went in to check on her, worried that she had somehow hurt herself. we found her in front of the full-length mirror, howling and sobbing for a very appreciative audience :lol: :lol: ah, good times. she's ten now, still very dramatic. thanks for the reminder that it used to be oh-so-much worse, heh.

I think that there is such a mixed response to this because the original post wasn't all that clear. As I read the follow up/clarifying posts, the dh's response seemed more appropriate (altho' I hate the term myself), b/c it became clearer that the issue was more about the boy complaining about the unfairness of the call, not the fact that he cried. But the original post seemed centered on, "can you believe A BOY WAS CRYING? AND HIS FRIENDS WEREN'T LAUGHING??" and I think that it what people responded to so strongly.

ooh, that sounds very intriguing! If you have time, would you mind seeing what some of the questions are for a high school level literature unit? tia, kat

I hate the idea of punishing and shaming a child for being afraid, and, while the OP isn't very detailed, this sounds like a kid who is fearful and anxious at night. Not an uncommon occurrence at all, and actually very common to pop up suddenly in this age group. If an 10-yr-old were to complain about their chores or schoolwork being harder than their younger siblings, I'd have no issue saying, "Six-year-old chores get six-year-old priviliges. Are you sure you want that?" But if that same 10-yr-old is scared to stay alone at night, the idea of telling them they aren't acting their age makes my heart hurt on their behalf. It serves no purpose but to shame them.

You didn't say why she's refusing to go to bed, but I'm assuming it's because she's afraid? (because she wants to sleep with you, or failing that, her brothers). Nine/ten/eleven is a very common age for fear and anxiety. I can't remember the last time my 10-yr-old slept by herself; she's either with her big sis or, yep, in with us. She has a very difficult time falling asleep, and she's in a really, really long phase of night time anxiety and fear. She won't walk down our very short hallway from the living room to her room to get something if the lights aren't on! I don't know; can you give us more info? Why does she say she is getting up, what does she do? It doesn't sound like she's sneaking around to get on the computer, etc, and as frustrating as it is, you can't discipline away fear or an inability to fall asleep. Changing the locks is not safe and is almost certain to ratchet up her fear and anxiety; I can almost guarantee even less sleep for everyone concerned if you go that route. This is the type of frustrating situation that you have to be very careful with, because it's so easy to get into a cycle of escalating reactions. I would definitely adress any possible factors. Make sure she gets enough vigourous exercise and healthy food, and try melatonin if you're comfortable with that. Things to eliminate: caffeine at any time of day, eating near bedtime, potentially scary tv shows (and not just the obvious stuff; nature shows upset a lot of children), any screens within a few hours of bedtime (and should be very limited at all times). Don't verbally connect any changes you make to her sleep habits; simply implement them. Oh, and make sure your sleep expectations are realistic; if you are sending her to bed hours before she is likely to fall asleep, that will only compound any sleep issues. Is she alone in her room? Can she try sleeping in her brothers' room? Can she stay downstairs near you, either reading or resting quietly? Honestly, sometimes time and patience are the only solutions for this. At our house, we have rules to try and minimize the 'fun factor' of not staying in bed (she can come to our bed, but can't chat with us, etc), but beyond that, what can you do? I can force her to stay in her room, but I can't force her not to be afraid. Eventually, this too shall pass, and when she's grown we can tell embarrassing stories about how she crawled into bed with us until she was a teenager :D

:lol: :lol:

Huckleberry Finn.

But, see, I never did understand the "don't leave mayo" out thing, b/c anyone who has ever worked food service of any kind knows that the mayo gets left out. For hours and hours and hours, and then put in the fridge, and then left out again the next day for hours and hours and hours. :confused:

We did vending for a few years; it's hard work but can be good money. I'm blanking on name suggestions, but I honestly wouldn't spend too much time on that if I were you. Whatever your official name, you are going to be known as The Coke Lady, lol. Maybe just go with the flow and be The Silly Snack Lady, :).

Exciting books for this age: The City of Ember series Cushman's historical fiction Percy Jackson The Hunger Games, although you will want to preview A really fun one for girls is Baby Island; two sisters are shipwrecked on an island and have to care not only for themselves, but the four babies who are shipwrecked with them. The Royal Diaries anything by Gale Carson Levine

Another vote for First Form being fine for a 6th grader, but much too hard for a 3rd grader. If the 6th grader is a strong student, and especially if he has had some Latin, he will probably find it pretty easy. Mine are only 2 grades apart, and I found I had to separate them in Latin when the oldest entered logic stage - - the speed and level of her work shot up quickly, and trying to keep them together only proved frustrating for them both. The oldest felt like she was being held back; she likes Latin and was impatient to keep moving, something I certainly don't want to discourage. The youngest, who is quite good in Latin, felt slow and incapable when faced with that head-to-head comparison with her sister. I should have done it a year earlier than I did; it was by no means easier to keep them together than it would have been to just use two programs! Remember, students using different programs at different levels can still do their chants together, so there is SOME crossover. But I wouldn't attempt the same program with 3rd and 6th grades.

We are currently on round 2 of volume 3! Just make sure that students on the older side get some additional reading/writing assignments at their level, not necessarily what is in the activity guide.

Upon re-reading this thread, I think that regression due to stress is quite plausible. I mean, "Mommy is so broke she can't afford diapers" sounds like a pretty big stressor to me, no?

Oh, I wish you did. The people who actually live next door to me suck.

Have you talked to your mom at all? I would definitely be urging her to get him to the doctor, pronto. It sounds like some of the snarky remarks to your husband go back for years, but the extreme stuff is more recent. The bit about not blaming your son for leaving sounds particulary odd?? Whether the root cause is medical or not, this has to be so, so hard for you. :grouphug: You cannot control whether or not he goes to the doctor, so make the suggestion, back it up with some information, and your part is done. Whatever is causing the behavior (and it could just be him being a jerk!), I would take steps to protect myself and my family. When he makes an ugly remark, don't ignore it; call him on it. If you can get someone like your brother to agree to back you up, and vice-versa, that's ideal. So when you call him on being mean, and he claims that you are just being sensitive, your brother backs you up, "No, dad, she's not being overly sensitive. That was a mean thing for you to say." I would tell him that my family would not stay if he persisted, and then I would follow you. No dramatics, just "We won't stay and be treated this way" and a quick exit. I would consider writing a letter detailing some of your thoughts and feelings. A letter won't put him on the spot as much as a personal conversation/confrontation, and it will be easier for you to keep a grip on your emotions. Oh, and your dh? ((hugs)) for him, too.

Wonderful idea. I mean, the man has specifically mentioned not having enough time to cook; he's going to appreciate it! Of course, that's assuming you're a decent cook ;) I'm with the crew that says give it to him from you, and let your dh find another gift if he so chooses. My dh used to be kinda weird about that stuff also, very discouraging about any gifts I picked out for his family (who are affluent and refined and all those things that I'm not, lol, he was really worried about me giving cheesy gifts, I guess, and/or 'weird' ones). It was a viewpoint that hurt my feelings, and truthfully it still does. I might be poor and southern, but it's not like I'm going to gift wrap a freakin' possum or something. Still, I deferred to him as knowing them better at first, but finally I said, y'know what? I put a lot of thought into my gifts, I give them with love, and, just because it's your family, you don't get to decide on what gifts I give them. If I have something I want to give them, b/c I think they'll love it, I'm going to do that, and you can get the high-class, proof-that-we're-not-rednecks gift :rolleyes: Of course, he's a typical enough guy that he very rarely bought another gift, because even mindless giving requires SOME shopping.

Hmmm, unexplained weight loss is really one of those "get thee to a doctor, NOW" things, y'know? I'd hate to speculate, and time is of great importance for a lot of the potential reasons. He really needs to go.

I don't think hours per day has much meaning, b/c different kids can take vastly different amounts of time to do the same work! My 5th grader does: Matin Latin 2 SOTW 3 Singapore 5 Plato Science Caesar's English (vocab) Growing with Grammar Memory work (poetry, subject facts) and then of course various writing assignments, art, etc etc She's usually done pretty quickly, 2-3 hours, but both my kids are fast workers.

That's correct in my state to the extent that home schoolers and other non-approved private schools are welcome to issue diplomas based on their own criteria all day long, but if you don't follow the state requirements, you automatically lose what can be VERY significant state funding. So, while hs'ers do not HAVE to comply with our state's requirements, they are put over a financial barrel in order to encourage them to do so. In addition to the state financial aid, the only public university in my part of the state will not accept non-approved diplomas, a big problem for those who financially need to stay home while attending college. I know that the A Beka issued diploma is also considered 'approved,' and thus you can get the financial aid, but again, you have to spend a lot of money to go this route.