Golf pencils, very short chalk and lots of crayons (for strength). I spend lots of time on this, and remind them when the thumb slips. They play violin, so we use lots of metaphors related to their bow holds. HWOT teachers manual has many ideas for fixing a pencil grip.

Loving this list. May I add Click Clack Moo and all the amazing sequels. I'd forgotten, my oldest dd loved the Little House books at that age, until we got to On the Shores of Silver Lake, and I cried like a baby at the beginning. She was so worried about me that she thought we should move on to the next book.

I just recycled three bankers boxes. We are moving, and just don't have room. Hopefully no one will ever want it. Thenkids have a binder of stories and music they wrote and such.

I want to add that I think teaching from rest is as much attitude as scheduling. It means accepting each day as God gives it. Doing your work and then enjoying your rest. Not freaking out when your day goes off the rails, because God may just be changing your agenda. Don't try to do more than is possible in the time you have. Curriculum publishers are not the boss of me (it's okay if you don't finish or do everything). I also find block scheduling (school, work, housework) much more restful than trying to multitask. I focus on today only...sufficient unto the day is the evil therof.

Better than my kids currently (except S who has beautiful handwriting) never mind at 6. Since you are doing HWOT which I love, you could try their double lined paper. It makes things much easier, especially once the kids are used to it. If you have specific concerns, the teachers manuals are great. You only need one, since they at very similar. I have used the chalk boards too for my kids. With the slipping pencil, is she using her "helper hand" to hold the paper? M has trouble with the sliding pencil, and it's usually a helper hand problem.

What about doing a library day with the littles on Thursday pm (once the beach is done) or see if you can schedule any extracurriculars for your 5 yo during this time. Or maybe Swimming if there is a pool nearby?

Lots of great advice! One thing we do is when we start back in the fall we start with one or two things, usually math and reading or English, then gradually add something else every few days as they get into the routine. It helps with the transition. It also helps me to see where I have over planned, misjudged level, etc. We follow a pretty consistent rhythm to the week, with lots of transitional warnings. It took a year or two to get a good rhythm for us. Also, I find do the next thing really reduces stress because I don't have too many preconceived notions about being "behind"

Great list. We loved Do unto Otters too. When he is older R&S English has excellent lessons on answering the phone, making introductions, and being a good conversationalist. A bit preachy but very clear. Also Social Rules for Kids.

I would call it setting priorities, and I think that's very reasonable. I really do this with my youngers, and add in content as they can read. Living books wherever possible. Also, I think kids are much more into school if they have more choice and follow their interests.

I would drop spelling and maybe get him to write around the books he reads. BW boomerang would have some age appropriate books/assignments if you needed some ideas/written material for him,

Burnout is a constant threat in my life, with multiple High needs kids and a job I can't quit, and it gets close a few times a year. My first rule is put the oxygen mask on myself first. If I make myself sick, it does no one any good. Sleep is a huge priority for me. Also social time. If I don't spend time with my friends, I get very down. When the darkness starts to creep in, I set priorities ( typically either school or violin or both go on the back-burner) and take some time for fun, restful activities then go back at it when we are ready. I also priorize taking a day of rest every week. I'm not rigid, but in general only fun on Sunday. I let go of the things that can't get done in the hours I have, which is always hard because I could fill a hundred hour day with all the things I want to get done. This is always a bad time of year, and I hope everyone is feeling great again soon. Take care of yourselves!

Congrats to all! This is fun to get to brag! S (11) won the RCM regional gold medal for his grade 4 violin exam with a 95 (technically did the exam last year but got the medal in November so that counts, right :-))and won the medal for his local music school for grade 6 with a grade of 94 last month. He also won a big auditioned scholarship at our local music school. He also did a theory exam (no results yet) and got first class honours on his first piano exam(grade 4). He wrote some lovely compositions this year (including 5 violin sonatas) though he is not ready to share them with his teacher. He is learning to love math. Most impressive, though, is he learned to jump off the diving board. Swimming has been a huge struggle, but he is making progress. I never thought he would be able to do that! T (9) won the regional gold medal for grade 2 violin (92)and completed her grade 3 in January. She will do grade 4 next week. She also got a big scholarship. She has made amazing strides in school and is now reading very, very well and doing amazing in math. She loves math now, and wants to be a mathematician when she grows up. I honestly dispaired with her in math around 18 months ago when we had to go back to the beginning and start again. Soooo worth it! D(8) played his book 2 concert (whole of Suzuki violin book 2 by memory in a single solo concert) tonight. It went great! He did his first violin exam last month (grade 2) and got the medal for our local music school. He is finally starting to read fluently, which is very exciting! M (6) finished Suzuki book 1 on her violin and started book 2. I'm delaying her concert partly because of my sanity, and partly because of her confidence. But she will do it in the fall. She learned to read music this year, and is starting to read and do math. She learned to hold a pencil correctly (which was actually the hardest thing she did this year!) J (3) has learned to talk, and boy does he! Little M (3 mos) found her hands and feet. So cute. I'm so proud of all my babies.

Oh, and we do to 10.

Depends on the kid. 2 of mine have ADD and slower processing speeds so even 3 secs is never going to happen. I watch for functional fluency- so they can add or whatever doing longer problems (multi digit) quickly enough that they don't lose their place, with good accuracy (very few errors), and no finger counting or skip counting.

Maybe see if you can do everyday math with her this summer. Not a book, just the real math you do. Doubling recipes, breaking down fractions for measuring, running totals for groceries, figuring out the taxes, working out discounts, per unit prices, that kind of thing. It might make it all a bit more real for her. I guess I'm wondering if she needs it to be a bit more concrete in order to grasp the concepts?

I just skimmed some of the PP (gotta run, baby waking) but MUS does have lots of review. Each lesson has 6 work-sheets-the first 3 are new material and the last 3 are new material plus comprehensive review of old material. It's a perfect amount of review. And we love, love, love the wide open worksheets. Minus-it can get dull, so some fun supplements can help. I found that Alpha did not solidify addition/subtraction facts for my dd 9, so I had to reteach that with lots of practice but beta on has been great. We have moved on at pre algebra for my oldest. For whatever reason (possibly ritalin) dD grasped her multiplication from gamma, as did my oldest. ds 8 is going to need some extra drill, though. Your plan sounds great.

Tough one. I would wait I til I calmed down (which would take some time) then have a heart to heart with dd. I would talk about why honesty was important. I would acknowledge that she didn't like the book and discuss the reasons she needed to finish. Then we would go on, checking daily. I would try to show some grace on this. Kids can be so exhausting some days.

Cool, I quoted myself! Not sure how I did that!

So I have 4 in school, and we must be done by lunch (my work schedule.) This year I would work with dd 9 first, do her mom required subjects, go over her seat work and corrections and make sure she understood her next lessons. Then she goes and works on her own, and does her oral narrations for me while I'm making lunch. While this is happening, ds 11 is doing math with dad around to help while he cleans up breakfast. Then ds 11 does the same with me as his sister (he is very independent and quicker). He also narrates at lunch. Then I work with ds8. I divide his time into 2 lessons because of his ADD and dd6 gets her time in the middle. Dd6 and ds8 have not done much science or history this year as a result of time constraints. In the past, I would incorporate that into circle time which started the day, and combined multiple read allouds and such. Next year, ds 8 will be ready to read independently and I expect dd6 will as well, so I'm not too stressed about that. I really think that skills rather than content are more critical for younger kids, and they really benefit more from play and the natural learning that comes from life and their own interests. We also have done poetry teatime over the years, but this year has been crazy (new baby, illness, work) but I am hoping to fit it in again next year.

MUS is a big hit here for math (ASD with one, ADD with 2 kids). Big, wide open, reassuring worksheets. Nothing cluttered or scary looking. Repetitive lesson structure. They are dull and the word problems are not too challenging, but they have worked great for us. I am supplementing with BA now and with MM in the past. Also, it is easy to speed up or slow down as necessary. I teach the lesson rather than Steve because he was too chatty for us. Alpha was not my favourite book, so I'm not using it with my current 6 yo, but I like the rest of the elementary series. My 11yo has moved on to AOPS with little trouble.

Wow, you have a lot on your plate! You won't get everything you want done next year, but then no one does. Set your priorities, and be okay with letting go of the rest. Realistically, I do think your kids will have to do a fair bit independently just given the time in offices and cars, but that doesn't mean you can't make the most of your time together. Some kind of morning time or circle time may be your friend. Anyway, best wishes with all of it.

Sounds like a 3yo to me. Kids that age are either bold and embarrassing or shy and embarrassing. And they do the weirdest things, and get very odd ideas in their heads. Be patient, and keep doing what you are doing. See your ped if you are concerned.

My current 11 yo at 8 loved history. We were supposed to do a year in ancient history as per WTM and we totally went nuts, first reading about jobs in Ancient China (really interesting), then about the French Revolution, and then Henry the 8th. Ds totally messed up my plans, but he loved history, and still loves it. And guillotined a fair-few barbies. It's amazing what he remembers from then, and how much history he knows now. And he still knows more than me about the ancient world even if we skipped it. Have fun with your American Girls, and just be glad they aren't starting a Reign of Terror in your playroom :-}.

I typically work with my 9 yo first, doing the things she needs me for, then making and teaching the next lesson in her books, then she does her work and readings and comes back and discusses them with me. My 11 is the same, though he is of the read the lesson and do it without me type for most subjects. Then I work with the other two. I'm gently transitioning my 8 yo to more independence, though he is just starting to get ready. If I can't start school with the big kids right away then they know to start on the next lesson and ask for help if they get stuck.

Lots of books, talk about them, let him pick. Is he ready for adult-level books? The booklist in Norms and Nobility is both very boy friendly and challenging. The Churchill history book (history of the English Speaking Peoples) is a great read, and gory enough to appeal to that age. I haven't read all the others yet, but they look like fun.