We are using Logic Stage Earth Science and Astronomy. It keeps us on track, keeps my logic stage kid outlining and writing, and keeps him working mostly independently. I feel like science is getting done, so it works for us.

Me too!

For most books, we just read and discuss, but I do add in lit guides sometimes. My 13yo only did one lit guide this year, and I have 2 planned for him for next year, but mostly it's just read and discuss.

The Boys in the Boat (YR edition) Also, not sure if you want to tie the biographies to your history or not, but maybe something on a person from that time period?

I didn't get to read all of the responses, but I wanted to say that you are so wonderful to help her! My dad is 69 and was dx in Dec. with dementia and Alzheimer's. My mom was incredibly overwhelmed. She was able to find support and help for herself through the local senior center that has workshops and support groups. For my dad, getting help and medication has improved his behavior and memory dramatically! It warms my heart to know that wonderful people like you are out there! I hope your neighbor can get the help she needs.

I am really liking WriteShop right now, but that is not really "low prep." Honestly, I'm not good at prepping, but I do need to "teach," so I need some prep! As far as the WWS is concerned, I think that if you sign up for one of the classes at TWTM Academy, you can submit a paper for their teachers to review to tell you where to place a child. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ooq1MkiXIe5C_8JloT9CaAmc85U66f0-QT_lVYr0rQU/edit

My son loved Getting Started with Spanish. It's very gentle and builds slowly. I have absolutely no idea what to use after that, but it was a great start for my son.

Thanks! The Science Center in Richmond looks fun, too, but we'll be there on a Monday, and they are closed!

My husband occasionally travels for work and we have decided that we just don't take advantage of that often enough. He has to be in Richmond, VA for a meeting soon. We live in MD, so we are going to drive down together for a short visit. We only have 1.5 days in the area... We are currently covering Thomas Jefferson in history, so this seemed like the perfect time to visit Monticello. What else?? Are there other "must see's" in the area? He actually travels to Richmond often, so if we can't fit it all in during this trip, I can make a list for future visits. My kids are 13 and 9 if that makes a difference.

There is not space in the workbook for the writing. It is just mentioned in the teacher guide. I had my son use a separate notebook. We did not use the Famous Men of Rome. There are questions about it on the tests, so we just skipped those. (or at least there are Roman history questions that I assumed came from that book!) For the Latin only, we spent 15-30 minutes daily depending on the day. Monday would take us longer than other days because that is when I taught the lesson. The rest of the week took less time because it was primarily the writing and recitation and some bookwork spread that we spread out over the week. Also, I have a sllllooooowww worker! He lives in his own little world without clocks. :)

I did LC with my 3rd grader last year. The lessons were perfect for him. They are supposed to write the vocabulary and charts 3x each week, so they get a lot of practice. They also have recitations with each lesson, so my son retained a LOT. He is doing FFL this year as a 4th grader. It repeats a ton of what he learned last year, which started him off with a lot of confidence to move forward.

I will have to go look at the Poetry TM to see what you're talking about...I don't remember that info, but I likely tweaked the book since I've only used a few poems from it. As far as the lit guides are concerned, I've used a few, so I can answer that question. There are comprehension questions and discussion questions. The discussion questions are more Socratic in nature and the answers are not provided for all of them. I read the book before my kids do, so I'm usually able to answer those questions just fine. I have not seen "literary analysis" that I recall...I don't use all of the guides, though. Only one or two each year, and I'm only up to 8th grade. In the front of the TM, it does say to "periodically review the concepts of character, setting, and plot."

I don't think that CLE needs supplementing, but I feel like my child needs supplementing. My oldest is very gifted in math, but this younger one needs more support. He does really, really well with CLE, but sometimes he forgets a topic and gets frustrated. We started supplementing with Beast Academy just one day/week. He loves the change of pace/routine and I think he's being challenged in a good way and is managing his frustration better.

Thanks everyone...I was just curious if it was normal or not. I appreciate your input.

I didn't say it should be free. I asked if $25 was reasonable and I stated that I understood it was extra time. I feel like you think I'm asking for something that I'm not.

I called our vet because they offer grooming there, too. They said they do not charge for "accidents." My dog has been going there for 3 years and I've never been charged this before, so I was a bit surprised.

I have a shih-Tzu that needs to be groomed every 5-6 weeks. It usually runs me $60, plus tip. Today, just after the groomer gave her a bath and dried her, she pooped in the crate and apparently laid down in it. Soooo, the groomer had to start over, which put her 1/2 hour behind. She called to tell me and to let me know that I will need to pay a $25 re-bathing fee, so her cost will be $85 today. Now, I don't have any problem with her charging extra for the extra time. I understand that the dog required additional work, but $25 just seems steep to me on top of the $60 I already pay. Do any of you have experience with this? What do you think is reasonable? FWIW, I did take the dog outside before I took her to the groomer...she pee'd 3 times, no poop! grrrr...

We used GSWS (Getting Started with Spanish) along with Duolingo this year. It worked well, but we're also looking for more for next year.

The problem with doing that is that the books are generally spread out in such a way that you would need it longer than the library would allow...or you'd have to continue to renew it often. Also, I think Chemistry uses TOPS (edited to say they are Young Scientist Kits I'm thinking of) kits. I'm thinking of Chemistry II, so I don't know what their level 1 is like, but see if there are any other extras. (FWIW, my only NOEO experience was with Bio II, so other levels may work differently.)

Yes, I saw the kit, which is helpful, but then there are 3 pages of other things...heat resistant gloves, multimeter, Bunsen burner, clamps...oy!! I have emailed the teacher from MP, but she hasn't responded about the supplies yet. She got back to me quickly about the grade level, but she's silent on supplies. (On their website, they list the grade as 6-8 and 8-10 in two different places, which is confusing.)

:hurray: :hurray: :hurray: Thank you!

I would do a World Geo and Cultures year. BYL has one for 7th grade that we've enjoyed. Some of the books are "easy" for him, but it's very easy to tweak to your needs.

oh, and I just found a youtube video of their first experiment, and there is NO WAY we're building all of that!

I think I'm starting to realize that, but it sure was shocking when I first saw it! When my son was in 3rd grade, they did one long-term science test (safe racer) where they built something to protect an "egg." Other than that, science was dismal in ES. In 4th grade, he did a group science experiment with very little instruction. I remember seeing the boys go to water their plants (it was a plant experiment and I was substitute), and all they did was flood them and giggle. Not sure they learned much beyond the actual steps in the process. But really, science and social studies were afterthoughts at the school, so not sure why I'm so impressed with their website!

I know...another science post from me...LOL! If you've used Novare's Physical Science book, did you buy all of the supplies needed to do the experiments? Or did you improvise in some way? 4 pages of supplies including things from several different websites just sounds like it will cost a fortune!