Hi OP, I'll just start off by saying that no one in our family plays Minecraft and I am pretty ambiivalent about it - so I have no horse in this race! OP, I think you can agree on two things about your post 1. You didn't mean to be offensive 2. Many people are taking offense Why? Well, what if we switched knitting and mine craft around? Ok, here goes "Are your kids addicted to KNITTING? I am so glad mine isn't…I babysit for a girl who is very hooked on KNITTING. The last time we were there my daughter was sitting quietly busy playing MINECRAFT…the girl sitting next to her was KNITTING. She asked my daughter if she wanted to move her chair over and watch her KNIT (yeah…like that's really what she would want to do)…JB didn't want to, but just politely said, "Well it's kind of hard to play and watch you at the same time." So you see that even without the emoticons, "I am so glad mine isn't" and "yeah…like that's really what she would want to do" shows disdain. And if that was your intent, then I think that's totally fine and I'm sure there are many who would agree with you! But if you were genuinely just curious about Minecraft and did not mean to insinuate that it was an inferior activity to knitting, just leave out the emoticons and ask the question that you really want to know - what is the appeal of Minecraft? If you don't see what I am talking about then you need to resign yourself to the fact that your words will often be interpreted as snarky and disdainful. As I said, I don't have an opinion about Minecraft one way or the other, but I also thought your post was condescending and self celebratory.

All the Roald Dahl books! James and the Giant Peach, the BFG, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, George's Marvellous Medicine Also Babe the Gallant Pig Mrs. Piggle Wiggle Ramona the Pest Charlotte's Web Catwings The Magic Faraway Tree My Father's Dragon Just So Stories All of a Kind Family We are in the middle of Mary Pope Osborne's Tales from the Odyssey which is going down very well. I am following advice I have read on this board to save the easy to read and formulaic chapter books (such as the Magic Treehouse series) for kids to read on their own when they are able. There are so many great lists on this board, just search for "read aloud kindergarten"!

reported.

Since your DC will be in private school, it really depends on what curriculum it uses. Please correct me if needed but I believe that private schools that don't have federal funding are not bound to the common core. DD's private school uses MIF and division by 2,3,4,5,10 is introduced in second grade and explored in more depth in third grade.

Another vote for proclick. You can buy reams of drawing paper http://www.dickblick.com/products/blick-white-sulphite-drawing-paper/ and make your own books. Use cardstock for the covers or chipboard as others have suggested. You can make them landscape as well.

DD6 and DS3, after schooling both. DS3 gets 10-15 min during each meal, various times in the afternoons and 20 min at night. DD6 gets 10-15 min at breakfast and dinner alongside DS3 and 30 min at night. The nighttime readings are one on one and are chapter books of my choosing. The mealtime books are a hodgepodge - nonfiction, picture books, magazines, etc and we all take turns choosing them. I would love to continue to read aloud at least until they reach 10-13.

I am a huge Joan Aiken fan too!

I don't see where the problems state that 11=21 and 0=37. "≤" indicates less than OR equal which is the same as NOT GREATER THAN In the first problem, the equation reduces to 11≤ 21, which is true. In the second problem, the book seems to be showing that if you add a constant to each side of an inequality equation the relationship remains the same 4x ≤ 37 + 4x 0 ≤ 37

I would back off. The whole point of learning to read and write is to enjoy reading stories and to communicate and create your own. I would be afraid of creating negative feelings toward both. I would continue to read aloud and have him do activities that will continue to prepare him for writing such as Hama beads, drawing, clay work, coloring. If you are homeschooling you have the luxury of waiting until your child is ready to write with enthusiasm.

Thank you, I have added Tumtum and Nutmeg and Whangdoodles to my cart. I am also adding The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark by Jill Tomlinson to this list. She has a series of gentle animal tales with occasional B&W illustrations.

Hello all, I am curious to hear which read alouds you have loved that isn't a usual suspect on other read aloud lists. Maybe they are out of print or popular in other countries. Mine is Fantastic Flying Journey by Gerald Durrell. It's out of print but you can find used copies. It is a chapter book about siblings that go on a round the world hot air balloon ride with their uncle. They have an unfortunate last name (Dollybutt) which caused no end of giggles over here. Since they travel around the world, the book tied in well with geography. Also, the book is picture book sized with color illustrations on every page so it is a great transition for children starting to graduate from picture books. What is your hidden gem? And why do you love it?

To go deeper in mathematical concepts and explore the fun side of math and to encourage creativity and tenacity in solving complex problems To increase exposure to quality literature and develop critical reading and listening skills To teach a language that is not taught at elementary or high school in the U.S.

I'll also add Dixie O'Day series by Shirley Hughes (Dogger, Alphie) and illustrated by her daughter, Clara Vulliamy.

I'm going to add two series that I think are unknown to US readers. The Claude series by Alex Smith has illustrations on every page in 2-3 colors. It's quirky and printed on heavy, glossy paper. Johnny Duddle has a Jolly Rogers series (only 2 so far) that is a follow up to his picture book The Pirates Next Door. Every page has beautiful black and white illustrations and it is also printed on heavy, glossy paper. Both of these are English, so there are some Britishisms. It is a real pleasure to handle the books as they are not cheap reprints! They are like the mercy Watson books. You can always find British books on thebookdepository.com with free shipping!

Kareni, you were spot on- this is what I was looking for! It came with a set of manipulatives as described. Unfortunately, I can't find a set anywhere! I found an old Amazon forum posting with one poster offering a set for sale and multiple posters offering to purchase. If I find anything similar I will repost to this thread. Thanks again.

Thank you, that very well could be. I remember using SRA materials for reading at that age - a big box with color coded passages and comprehension questions. I will take a look!

Have you looked at Cold River by William Judson? It has a scene where a convict threatens the kids and they retaliate- can't remember if they hurt him or kill him, so check before you give it to your 12 year old!

When I was in elementary school (early 80's), our classroom had a big boxed set of cards, each with a different logic puzzle. They ranged from toothpick puzzles to word problems to block problems and were meant for elementary school, so not overly difficult. Does anyone remember theses? I would love to find them again. They are sort of like these http://www.amazon.com/Logic-Puzzles-Simon-Tudhope/dp/0794532462/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1432175877&sr=8-3&keywords=Logic+puzzle+card But a larger set and very simply designed.

There are so many posts on children's books and so many of us that are obsessed with book lists. Can you consider breaking out books into a separate subforum? Members could post lists, read aloud recommendations and search for long forgotten favorites.

The Slap by Christos Tsolkias It was for a book club, so I had to finish it. Most books I dislike are forgettable, but this was just egregious.

Hi Susan, I have a 6 year old in a private bilingual school - half of the time is spent in an English classroom and half in a Chinese classroom. My DD has been in a full time classroom setting since she was 3.5. We after school in math, reading/writing, and logic, usually 40 minutes 4-5 times a week. I haven't chosen to homeschool because I send my child to school for many benefits besides academic education. If I wanted DD to only have an academic experience, it would be far more efficient and less expensive to teach her myself. The school integrates arts, music, a language that I can't speak, and specialized physical education and provides it in a group, inquiry based learning style that I can't replicate at home. In particular, I think it is crucially important for math to be experienced in groups so that children can see that math is a subject of relationships and that many approaches can be correct. I afterschool because 1) I do feel that I can provide better and more individualized instruction in certain areas, 2) I see an opportunity to go deeper into subject matter, particularly math and science, 3) having my child sit down and focus for 30-40 min provides discipline and a good work ethic, 4) I enjoy watching my child learn and discovering her learning style and her strengths and weaknesses. My goals for her kindergarten year were to cement her love of books by reading aloud like a madwoman, develop her listening and comprehension skills both from my read alouds and her own reading, develop a strong number sense and instinct that numbers are flexible and meant to be composed and decomposed, practice the art of good penmanship, and above all, look for patterns in everything. Were you able to use any resources/techniques/ideas from home schooling to help you customize your child's situation? - Yes, emphatically, yes! The home schooling community has been a huge help to me in deciding what topics to teach, how to teach, and where to find resources. For example, DD is using MIF at school and we supplement with miquon and Singapore IP/CWP at home because i love the way they complement each other. I wouldn't have known about miquon without the forum. I try not to replicate anything that is done at school, but instead to supplement and enrich that experience. For example, at school, DD has number talks where the children as a group find all the ways to make 12. At home, we play muggins or discover how many ways you can make 24 using groups of 3 or 4. The forum has really been invaluable in getting ideas and it has been easy to fit the ideas to an after schooling curriculum. In what ways did the idea of a parent-directed education make you able to take charge of the classroom setting? - it is inspiring to read about parents who are taking charge of all aspects of education. I am fairly certain that I would have pursued after schooling without knowing about homeschooling because I was afterschooled as a child myself. I first heard the phrase on this forum after I had been doing it for about a year- it was nice to put a name to it! Although I would have done it anyway, having the resources from the homeschooling community have greatly improved my efficiency and passion, as well as the quality of the content. I have learned new ways to present ideas and have been inspired to do more. For example, the idea of living books for math and science were not on my radar and now are incorporated. We were doing copy work before, but now it is more disciplined and regular. Homeschooling is really wonderful but not the right fit for our family. After schooling, however, strikes the perfect balance for us in taking advantage of existing constructs and personalizing them to our taste.

Has anyone had experience with this? http://www.russianschool.com/about-us/our-approach After reading the website and a quick google search, I am still not sure what this approach entails. I am curious because it is spreading in popularity in the northeast and I don't know if it is a trendy thing or whether there is real substance there. I must know! TIA!

Some more suggestions for you Ottoline books by Chris Riddell The Worst Witch series by Jill Murphy Madame Pamplemousse by Rupert kingfisher Humphrey series by Betty Birney The worst witch will be dated but the others were written more recently. Also, arabel's raven by Joan Aiken is a classic.

Thank you - I will take a look! The socks we have bunch around the toes and she got a blister last practice.

DD5 has small feet and ankles and the smallest soccer socks I can find get all bunched up in her cleats. Can anyone recommend a source for small socks? I have heard of parents using girls knee socks- has anyone done that?