I am using Writing and Rhetoric at 2 different levels for 2 different kids right now but also had great success with WWE at the younger ages.

There is some writing in CLE LA but in my judgment, not nearly enough. There are many who disagree with me but I'm picky when it comes to writing. I've taught at the college level and haven't been impressed with my students' writing skills as a whole. I want my children to avoid the same fate so I supplement. Yes, W&R Fable would be great for a 9 yo. :) We also used WWE with great success prior to W&R.

I started with the Reading Lesson but my daughter burned out on it after we'd gone through about half of the text. We used a few things afterwards (CLE LTR and AAR 2) and are now back to OPGTR because I don't have the budget to buy another level of AAR this year. I really like how OPGTR is laid out. It's so no-nonsense and straightforward. My daughter's reading has taken off to the point where she can almost test out of AAR3, so I may just finish up OPGTR and go to AAR 4 next year.

We use their math. Tried to switch this year because I was getting some outside pressure about needing a more conceptual approach and both other options I tried fell flat. We're back to CLE now and I'm happy about it. The kids are learning and retaining. We also use their language arts. Also tried to switch to a less grammar-intensive approach but that also fell flat. The kids wanted their CLE LA back. So we're back doing LA, too. It is so straightforward and the kids like the format. It gets harder in the older grades but is still good. I tried CLE Learning to Read with my kindergartner last year and we finished half of it before switching to something else. I didn't like how it tied writing and reading together. My daughter was more than ready to read but her fine motor skills weren't developed enough to handle all of the writing. We switched to AAR and her reading took off. She's completed AAR 2 and is now doing CLE LA 2 in 1st grade. We also tried reading for grades 4-5 but it was too much workbook work for my boys. The content is fantastic -- but it just didn't go over well with those particular kids. I dropped it in favor of just reading and discussing at this point. I am considering 2nd grade reading for my daughter, thinking she might like it better. I've not heard good things about most of the history or science except for the 8th grade US history. We just did US history this year but I'm hoping to use it in a few years with one of my younger kids.

Home Science Tools sells a kit. :)

I have boys in 4th and 6th grade this year and I've tried most writing programs out there -- including all of those you mentioned -- in a vain attempt to find something THEY liked. It turns out they just don't like to write. WWE was tolerated when they were younger but now that they're older, we've moved on to Writing and Rhetoric (book 3 for the 6th grader, book 1 for the 4th grader.) They don't love it, but they haven't loved anything I've tried. I'm using W & R because I like it and it's easy to teach.

Congratulations!!!

I'm on the treadmill at the gym, laughing out loud at these! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thinking and praying for you today.

You can get a trial membership to https://www.readinga-z.com/ and have them read the benchmark readers, going up a level until it gets too hard. https://www.readinga-z.com/assessments/benchmark-passages/

We saw it today and even my 10 yo boy liked it.

My husband would eat it, even if it contained meat. He's never gotten sick. I'm more cautious and would chuck it.

We don't use most of CLE's spelling and we supplement the writing. I don't necessarily think the spelling is bad. My two older kids are just natural spellers and it's busywork for them so we do spelling by dictation to check the spelling box instead. I use Spelling Wisdom for them. I do use the spelling for my 1st grader. For writing, we do the CLE assignments + another program. We've done science and history narrations, WWE and Writing and Rhetoric depending on the child and the time.

My 6th grader has asked for a graphic design class. He's already taught himself a lot by watching YouTube videos and playing around with Photoshop but he's looking for something more formal. Is anyone aware of something that might fit the bill?

I'm really, really hoping that it is not ALS -- but if it is, I want to echo MedicMom in saying that interventions like trachs and feeding tubes don't have to be scary or something to be avoided at all costs. My 4 yo son had a trach for 3 years and still has a feeding tube. Now his issues are vastly different, but our experience with him has shown that these things can definitely be compatible with a good quality of life. He gets amazing nutrition (much better than everyone else in the family!) through his feeding tube -- the food we give through his feeding tube (Nourish) is a pediatric version of something called Liquid Hope. It's all-organic, whole-foods and is used by many people with ALS, including Steve Gleason (former NFL football player.) From what I understand, nutrition can be an important strategy in slowing down the process and extending quality of life. Our insurance pays for it, 100%. Regardless, I'm thinking and praying for you and praying for a Lyme diagnosis.

Weights - BUT I find diet makes the biggest difference. I can easily drop 5-7 pounds in a month on Whole 30. Even my DH who has no weight to lose lost about that amount of weight in a month.

Her reviews are one factor I consider when looking at a program. I also look for reviews here and within the Well Trained Mind book. I also look for reviews from bloggers who have used the program in its entirety, rather than just for a couple of weeks as some seem to do.

We have done the paper Stanford and it was a real slog ... because it was untimed, it seemed to take FOREVER. I liked how detailed the score report was, though. We most recently did the online CAT which was less time-consuming but the data report fairly broad and not as useful as the Stanford. I'm thinking of doing the online Stanford this year to get the best of both worlds. :)

These are the days when I'm tempted to enroll the kids in school.

I think that most second graders would be bored with any one thing all day -- if she's bored with DVDs all day, she'll probably be bored with an online program all day as well. When one of my kids was in 1st grade, he used all K12 curriculum and while some of it was good, it was a lot of seatwork (and busy work) for an active kid. It also required a great deal of my attention so if you're hoping to find something that will allow your second grader to be relatively independent, I'm not sure you'll find it. We prefer to piecemeal things now to keep things different and more engaging. For example, we use an online Spanish program (Middlebury) and supplement math with Prodigy (an online math game.) We also use Mystery Science (online videos and experiments) but everything else is print-based. For our core subjects we use lots of living books and some workbooks.

I think it's always good to do a placement test. I'd try MM if you already have it. We tried to switch from CLE --> MM this year and it ended up being a poor fit for my boys. They're back with CLE now. Every kid is different!

Oh my yes.

We just bought some leather couches from Costco and they look great! I don't know yet how well they'll hold up, but we've always had good luck with Costco purchases.

This is an option although I understand that the Behold and See Life Science is quite rigorous and I'm not sure my 5th grader would be prepared for it.

I've settled on Behold and See Life Science for my 7th grader next year. I'd like to have my 2nd and 5th graders study similar topics, although obviously at different levels. Is there a one-year elementary life science program that would work for both a 2nd and a 5th grader? A few parameters: - I've looked at Elemental Science but am not a fan of the encyclopedia approach. We tried their physics but it didn't go over well. - We've already done most of Mystery Science. - Noeo is a possibility, but the 2nd and 5th graders would fall into different levels, making my life more complicated. - We are not fans of lapbooking or coloring sheets. - We've already done two of the three Answers in Genesis books that cover this topic and weren't terribly impressed. - I can't stand Comic Sans. - Open to Christian or secular. - Open to textbook or living book approach. - Bonus points for quality graphic design, colorful materials and videos. :) Thanks!