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mountains27

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Everything posted by mountains27

  1. I have been using BA for a few years now and have never noticed sales but haven't been on the look out for them either, I just always buy the next section as I need it at no particular time of the year.
  2. The only math we have ever used is Math Mammoth and Beast Academy together and apart. Now both kids use it together and it's been great. My daughter who is doing MM5 and BA4 is mathy-ish but doesn't always love math...loves BA. she has used it since 2nd grade and it is by far her favorite thing about homeschooling. My son struggles with math but these 2 programs together seem to work for him, we take it slow and go at his pace. He too loves BA and can't wait to read the chapters when it is time! I think MM has lots of review in it and makes sure kids are caught up before moving on, that's why I like it. But you can also skip problems if it gets too review-y. My daughter complains sometimes about repetition in this program so as soon as I see she understands something we move on. For my son it is a great feature and he usually does all the problems because he needs the extra practice.
  3. Thinking of getting this program for my kids, probably just my oldest for now, and wondering which book to start with. She already did most of WWE 1 and 2 and is doing ELTL 3 this year (half way through it). Could we skip the fables and go right to book 2: Narratives part 1? I'm also looking at writing strands book 3 as an option but can't decide, should I just get both?! :) also if I get W&R do I need the teacher manual or is the workbook sufficient?
  4. My 3rd grader hasn't even touched multiplying yet. He is working in MM3 and BA3A but needed a slower pace so we are just finishing up borrowing with subtraction and carrying in addition and waiting to finish the last chapter in BA3A so that we can start 3B which introduces multiplying. He is starting to ask to work on multiplying now and demonstrating that he understands the concept already so I'm hoping it's a sign that he is ready to learn and it will be easy for him to grasp...he has a hard time with math in general so he might not be considered on point for the average 3rd grader but learning well at his pace. I should note we live in a state with virtually no homeschool requirements so we don't have testing to do and don't have to demonstrate that he is at "grade level" Also my oldest is in MM5 and BA4A and multiplying 3 digits by 3 digits with carrying now. Last year she would have been a 3rd grader by PS standards and started multiplying work then. I think she got to multiplying 3 digits by 1 towards the end of the year...maybe? She is a bit of a math wiz though so she moved along quicker then her brother anyway.
  5. Thanks for all the replies. I will start reading it aloud to her instead and look into getting the Usbourne Encyclopedia for cross reference. We have the science version and really like that book. I started reading The Grapes of Wrath out loud to her and she is really enjoying that. I have tied it into her english work by making her copy a passage after we read a chapter. I would say it counts as history too even if it doesn't exactly match up with the time period of SOTW 1 :)
  6. Thank you for all the tips! I know it is still going to be a little chilly but we are OK with that. I work in hospitality so I always have to plan my vacations when no one else is! April is a slow month for our hotel so it's really the only time I can get in a good week-long vacation. I looked at a couple vacation rental sites and like the looks of places on Island Getaways. Checked out Captain Dan also and that looks like a good tour, lots of positive reviews! seeing the ponies would definitely make our trip! How is the trip from Chincoteague over to the Norfolk area? I noticed there is a zoo there.
  7. I'm planning a little vacation with my kids and my mom for the middle of April. I'm thinking of renting a cottage and just hanging around the area checking it out. I am not a traveler and have never been to Virginia at all. I live 10 hours north and around this time of year I get the urge to drive south and find a little sunshine and maybe some greenery! I settled on Virginia as a destination because it's far from here but not too far so that travel by car isn't totally crazy (I don't do airplanes!) Also I want to see it, I've heard it's nice. Anyone from this area or been to the area and can recommend some things I should see while visiting? Also any ideas on what I can expect for weather down there in about a month? I know it won't be summer yet but also think it will be a little warmer and more spring-like then northern New England?
  8. I'm trying SOTW this year with my 10 year old, someone gave me the first book so I thought I'd give it a whirl. I like it but she is not real impressed. She says she thinks it's "kind of" interesting but I'd like to try and make the activities and workbook fit more into her age range and make it more exciting and useful for her. Right now she is just reading a chapter now and not doing any of the workbook stuff, she kind grumbles at me when I tell her it's time to read some history (she grumbles about a lot lately anyway but one less grumble in my day would be nice!) Any thoughts on making SOTW 1 fun for a tween! I do like this book and want to at least give it a good try. Thanks! :)
  9. I checked out these suggestions and like most of them! Anyone have experience using a certain writing program alongside ELTL? I would keep using this program along with whatever writing program I choose.
  10. Sorry I forgot to add the ages and current english program. The youngest is almost 9 and in about 3rd grade and the oldest is 10 and in about 4th/5th grade. Last year we used WWE and this year are giving ELTL a try. They both do copy work almost daily at this point and get some grammar lessons from ELTL. Just thinking i'd like to supplement especially for my oldest.
  11. I think I'd like to introduce a writing specific program into or homeschool but am not sure where to start. I don't want anything to intense just an add on to our current english program. Not too expensive but willing to spend some money. Any recommendations?
  12. Thank you for all the help! I have one more question for this thread, how many GB of storage does everyone find sufficient? I am looking now at getting a device that is between 16 and 32. When the kids had their Kindles working they were at 8GB and often found they had to uninstall apps to install new ones and could never store pictures or any music. I'm not very tech savvy so it could be I was doing something wrong or not using the SD card properly but 8 GB just seemed way too small for doing anything. If they want to store some music, pictures, stream movies/TV and run a fair amount of apps (10-15?) Is 16 GB enough?
  13. I'm leaning towards the iPad mini for them. I also have a friend who gave her two kids refurbished iPhones that don't have a phone plan so essential they are little tablets that they can text with and do all other tablet things with. Seems like a cool idea too but I'm not sure if that would be much cheaper then just getting the little tablets? Anyone know of any good deals on tablets right now? :)
  14. Is it possible Amazon has improved their Kindle since 2015 to fix the charging problem? Seems like some people like them and some hate them, i'm wondering if the newer models are improved?
  15. thank you for the suggestions so far. I am looking for something that will last and do everything they want them to do so I guess I am willing to spend some money for that but probably not more then 250$ a piece. The Kindle price is tempting but they got those for Xmas back in 2015 and within 6 months one stopped working completely (wouldn't charge past 1%) and the other one that is still alive now is just barely hanging on and won't work properly all the time much to the frustration of the kids, and then myself! A couple people I have asked in person said iPad mini 2 because they are cheaper and really not too different from 4 when it comes to kids using them. I am thinking of buying some of those either used or refurbished but am wary about how reliable that will be.
  16. I'm looking to get some sort of devices for my two kids. If your kids have them what do you use? We want to be able to listen to music, take pictures/video, watch youtube and of course... Minecraft. Any recommendations?
  17. I just noticed your kids are the exact same age as my oldest (she was born Oct.27, 2006) anyway I thought I'd weigh in. I too get caught up with sticking to schedules and need to remind myself I get to make the rules (well sort of!) in this school :) I remember when I was in PS not even doing grammar in middle school because our school didn't think it was necessary....not sure I totally agree there... So I'm learning grammar with my kids at this point! Anyway we have been switching around with English curriculum since we started HSing 3 years ago but my daughter has been exposed to grammar with everything we used and this year we landed on ELTL book 3 and there is plenty of it in those lessons. She likes grammar and I like learning what I missed out on in my middle school grade years :) with that said I wouldn't feel guilty at all about skipping a year knowing I skipped many years and could still graduate high school and then earn a 4 year BS degree :)
  18. My kids both max out on about 2 pages of BA and a page of MM or vice versa. Although my son did enjoy the gumball counting problems in the skip counting section of BA3a so much that he was begging to do more that day!
  19. I think I can help here. My son is almost 9 and has ADHD, he now takes meds for it which has helped him this year a lot. He couldn't read well at all last year and this year reads better then ever and loves it. Math wise it has helped also but he still struggles with it. Last year and into this year we were going slow using a 2nd grade Rod and Staff math book that focused on easy addition and subtracting just so he could get a grasp on basic math concepts. He didn't seem to understand numbers really at all and the idea that some group plus another group could be combined seemed lost on him. I heard about dyscalculia and that was him. So anyway, we went slow and tried the meds and at the start of the year it was slow going. His sister is a math wiz and took to BA so well that we now own all the books up to 3D so I decided to start him with 3A a couple months ago. He LOVES the books and looks forward to reading the guide when it is time for a new lesson. The practice problems have been challenging to him but I always do it with him and gently guide him in the right direction to solving the problems. We also use MM so both my kids are in MM and BA. My son is finishing up MM2b and BA 3a at the moment and my daughter is in MM5a and BA 3d. They don't follow along exactly but I find it works to do both at the same time. I have also used BA by itself with my daughter but wouldn't do that with my son, he needs more practice with certain concepts and I find using both programs together helps him get that. Not sure if that helps answer any questions but that has been our experience with the programs :)
  20. My daughter is left handed and used Handwriting W/out Tears from 1st grade on. I think it worked really well and also use it with my right handed son. Right now she is 10 and in school would be using the 4th grade book but she finished it last year so now she just practices handwriting in her copywork and writing. She has really nice handwriting (both print and cursive) and the only problem she has is the bindings on books sometimes get in her way and she always has a smudge on her hand from dragging it across her words as she writes :)
  21. Sounds like 4 would be stuff she has already done before, I think I'd go with 5. I don't want to just cover fractions more in depth, that's just where we are at now in the BA books so that's why I mentioned it. I want to cover everything she is learning now and has learned in the past few months with BA a little more in depth Thank you for the advice :)
  22. I was just looking at that online :) I have used MM before, I have grades 1-3 and my daughter did grades 1 and 2 and then moved on to just using BA because she was getting burnt out on it last year. I think that's my front runner though because I know it and like how she explains things. I'm wondering if I need to start her with the 4th grade workbook or jump up to the 5th grade. Looking at the samples I think she could get into the 5th grade stuff easily but I don't know if there are methods explained in the 4th books that are assumed when you get into the 5th book?
  23. Looking for some ideas on math to use along with Beast Academy. My 10 year old is on the 3D book right now and has loved BA right on through. She does great with it and up until now I've been fine using it as her primary math. Now I'd like to add in another math program to complement BA. She is working on finishing up the fractions chapter and seems to have a good grasp but I'd like to get into that subject a bit more. Any recommendations?
  24. wow so many helpful and thought out replies! thank you thank you! I should clarify I do really try and not use PS as a threat. I more or less remind her it is the alternative when she screams how much she hates homeschool work at me multiply times a day :) I know it is a really unhealthy thing to put that stress and negativity towards her and I try to keep my cool during outbursts and remind myself not to argue with a hormonal 10 year old! The idea of a learning disability has been creeping into my mind lately. I have noticed she mixes up sight words and leaves them out altogether when reading, the, and, a, its etc. My son has struggled with ADHD so maybe that has shifted my focus away and I haven't thought to think of a LD in my daughter. Maybe worth talking with her doctor and see what she thinks. I have thought there might be some underlying issue to her rage and outbursts (it isn't just schoolwork that can set her off although that's the biggest culprit) I'm afraid it might have something to do with her relationship with her dad which I can't really help. I have been separated from her dad for 6 years now and honestly he doesn't show much interest in the kids (even when we were still together) they only see him 2 times a month, his choice, and it's hard to get him to come to any activities the kids are involved in. Example- My daughter has been horseback riding for 3 years now and she LOVES it, it is her passion, she rides all year round once a week at least and does 2-3 horse shows each summer. but he has only seen her ride 2 times total and has never seen a horse show. I do try and get him involved but it's on him to show up and be the dad at the end of the day :/ Maybe counseling would help her? I try to ask her what is bothering her but I don't think she really knows or can't express it to me in words, perhaps a professional could make some sense of what the real issue is and help us fix any troubles she has. Thank you again for the helpful remarks, it is just good to get this out and "talk" about it with other home schooling folks!
  25. Might be worth adding I'm a single parent who works full time and maybe that makes me a little more touchy when my kids seem to appreciate so very little that I'm trying to do this homeschool thing for them while also providing 100% of all their needs.
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