I am super interested in this one too! I am thinking of using it as is for my K and grade3, and adding in some harder lit for my grade 6 girl. I am thinking I will be able to find enough good recs in "Give Your Child the World." I would love to hear some reviews if anyone has used it!

We used 3 this year. We were happy with it. It has lots of hands on learning which is really important for young ones I think. We skipped a few that were really similar to demonstrations we had done with NOEO the year before. I will be using 1 this year with my first grader. It look so cute! It is not a lot to read, but the activities are great. I am planning to do some extra science reading to go along with it- Burgess books, Pagoo, etc. I am not going to use it for my 4th grader, though. I do not like the look of level 4 (black and white, almost all research projects, and making a felt model of the human body... kinda boring), but the grade five looks excellent! I bought 5 and thinking I would use it this year, but the writing portion looks like it might be overwhelming for a 4th grader. By the next year, I think my girl will be ready for it. I imagine we will add some other science reading to it as well.

Olivia books by Ian Falconer The book with No Pictures Miss Rumphius Fancy Nancy Ramona books Tumtum and Nutmeg Little House Books The Moffats These have been some favorites with my just turned 6dd Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm curious too! Anybody used it? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Artistic Pursuits is so easy to use! You just buy all the supplies and the book at the beginning. Each week gives you a picture study and some basic instruction for an art technique. Then it has an open ended art project. (Like arrange 3 objects and use watercolor crayons to paint a still life.) I am using book 1 of the k-3 books and it has been great for both my kinder and 3rd grader. I know of a family using it with older kids as well. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What app are you using for tiles? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Check out the free online Gattegno textbooks. (I'm on my phone so not easy to post the link). It gives lesson plans via verbal instructions instead of "intuitive worksheets". It makes much more sense to me, and seems easier to see how to implement it! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I think there are a few things you could do whether you do science and history together or not to give you a sense of connectedness as a homeschooling family. Here are some things that lend themselves easily to that: Read aloud time- I just pick a book I really want to share with my kids and we read that, no schedules and not part of "school" Poetry tea time- we do this weekly. Sometimes I buy snacks or sometimes we bake something. We just get out our pile of poetry books and all pick out poems to read. :) easy! Art- we use artistic pursuits, but also sometimes just a Pinterest project. We do this weekly and all draw or paint together. It's great! Some other things that we have loved but don't always make it into our week are: nature walks and then journaling, classical music exposure- sometimes watching an orchestra, ballet, or opera on YouTube,; or sometimes just dancing around to whatever music we want. All that to say, if you end up not finding history or science curriculum for everybody, you can still have some great shared learning experiences! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Funny series that hasn't been mentioned yet- Ivy and Bean. (Even I laughed reading these, and Bean is exactly the opposite of a girly girl.) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Brave Writer Arrow or Boomerang also does a great job pointing out literary devices in each copy work passage. You could also have a look around the website or blog and read anything on "big juicy conversations". I think she recommends discussing plot, setting, foreshadowing, etc. through discussing movies as well. I also second Deconstructing Penguins. It is a great read and really gives a feel for what is like having deeper discussions about books with kids. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Timberdoodle has some cool looking beginners robotic sets called robotis. I am thinking of getting a set for the next school year. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Rhythm of handwriting from Logic of English is pretty simple and straightforward. We are enjoying it and dd8 is mastering it quickly. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I second Artistic Pursuits. I love art, but it is so nice to have a curriculum that does a picture study and introduces some art techniques without me having to plan that out. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yes, I will use it again! It is so fun, and my dd is learning the phonograms and spelling rules quite easily with it. She is also loved the variety in the lessons. For me a break after B to do more practice does not turn me off of the program- we enjoy it to much for that. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I am loving this thread. I have been a CM enthusiast for a long time, but many of these blogs and podcasts are new to me. Thanks to everyone who posted!!! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I am a fan of all those mentioned, especially Thriftbooks, but I have to give a warning about Better World Books. I like their prices and that they fund literacy programs, but on three separate occasions they have sent me the wrong book or missed a book from my order. 2 of those times they sorted it out (once refunded me, and once sent me the correct one.) However, the third time they sent me a replacement book which was also the wrong one, and then would not respond. I hate to be a downer about a company doing good stuff, but they have officially lost me as a customer. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The Moffats The Saturdays Half Magic Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Just so you know, this was definitely my oldest too! She could not memorize the facts. She knew how to get them, but she would get so tired of counting it out or using manipulatives that she would just take a guess. She needed a break from the pressure of a worksheet full of problems or anything that was demanding an answer quickly. A year later she had everything down. I didn't use a magic curriculum or anything, just gave her time and worked with her in less pressured ways (games, jumping on a giant side walk chalk number line, c rods, etc.) Then in second grade she was ready for traditional curriculum again. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So, it seems like this is not an uncommon problem, which helps me relax about it. It also seems like both of the options I mentioned (stopping for a break and reading a lot, or switching to a new curriculum at this point) have worked for several of you. I have already had her doing extra reading practice with Nora Gaydos books and the Sonlight I Can Read books. I think she needs some more practice just reading individual words though. I am thinking we may give RLTL a go when we finish B. It isn't a real high investment, and we can always switch back to LOE for level C if we need/want to. Seems like RLTL is kind of built around fluency practice in reading and spelling. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hello hive. I am in need of a little advice. My dd, who just turned 6, has been really enjoying LOE. We are just over half way through B. We love the games. She is able to memorize the phonograms and spelling rules with ease. She does really well at all the activities- spelling, phonograms, etc. BUT, she struggles with the actual reading. She can decode things, but it is slow (expected since it is a new skill) and she has trouble telling when to sound out each letter or when is is a two or more letters phonogram. To put is shortly, she is not gaining fluency. I am afraid if we continue on with Foundations she will get more and more overwhelmed. What I don't know is what to do now. Should we continue on just hoping that eventually fluency will catch up with decoding and spelling skills? Should we just take a break from LOE and read lots of Bob books, Nora Gaydos, and other easily decodable books? Should I use something else... AAR... RLTL? This is feeling super sad for me, because we have both been enjoying the LOE lessons so much. However, reading well is the goal, and I am willing to try something different if that is what will help us meet that goal.

I have no sharpener recommendations. I need some recs myself! Colored pencils we love: bic(made in France), Lyra Ferby (Fat triangular pencils made in Germany) or staedler (made in Germany). These all have lead that doesn't break so easily. With pencils like crayola, sometimes the lead is already broken inside the pencil, so sharpening is a pain in the neck. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

If fantasy with talking animals is a big draw: Guardians of Gahoole Redwall Warrior Cats (My daughter is devouring all the books in these series!) If you want some creative questioning ideas, you could have a look at "Suppose the Wolf were an Octopus" books from Royal fireworks press. They give really fantastic discussion questions, plus a long list of books to choose from. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

American Girls, Disney Fairies, Ivy and Bean,Animal Ark books, Beverly Cleary Ramona books, Box Car children, E B White's books . If she is a big horse fan- Marguerite Henry's books! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sentence Island expands on things taught in grammar island. It does start with a review of subject predicate, but it moves on to other things. It also covers subject verb agreement, word order matters, and keeping your main idea clear (among others things). Grammar island gives you a good start in looking at someone else's writing. Sentence Island gives you things to think about in your own writing. We LOVE music of the hemispheres. It covers a several different parts of poetry, but the part we really love is the writing assignments. My daughter has loved these poetry assignments more than any other writing assignment I've ever given her. As far as time goes, we just work through one book at a time. (Except practice island, which we keep doing a few sentences from each week). I found each one takes about 6-8 weeks to get through. MCT has been a delight this year. It has been my daughter's favorite by far. I hope you enjoy the journey! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I don't have good book recommendations for you. The only one I have read was published in South Africa, and it isn't even available on Amazon.[emoji52] Just look up child temperaments on Amazon and go into you library with a list of titles. Maybe I can find some good articles to post tomorrow. I also had a thought when you described the situation with going to dad's house.. Of course diet can have an impact on behavior, but so can feeling unsettled. Transitions can be tough, especially for a phlegmatic kid. Maybe it isn't even about the transitions, but about feeling busier on those weekends and just having a hard time getting going on Monday morning. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk