If a particular mastery approach curriculum is poorly designed in such a way that previously mastered concepts are not applied when using new concepts, and are not reviewed at all for long stretches of time, then the approach will only work for the type of child who rarely forgets anything they have thoroughly learned. Well designed mastery approach programs usually include some sort of review--either by ensuring that previous skills are required to solve problems focusing on new skills, or by including occasional review sections on older skills, or most commonly by combining both approaches. [Well designed spiral programs also usually include teaching new skills until they are fairly well learned alongside reviewing older skills. Thus, it is sometimes difficult to tell if a program is spiral or mastery in approach.] Some mastery based programs do not provide enough practice sets for some children to truly master a skill before moving on to the next skill. This leaves the parent/teacher to come up with more practice problems on their own. If a child regularly needs more practice problems than the program provides, the program will not be successful for that child unless the parent doesn't mind regularly having to come up with more worksheets for the child on their own. (If the child only needs extra work on occasional topics, the parent is less likely to get frustrated and look for a new program.) These are the parents who are likely to prefer a spiral program for their child, for two reasons. First, a spiral program will have more practice problems on a given topic, since work on that topic is revisited regularly. Second, if a child needs a long time on a topic and many problems to master it, he/she is likely to become very bored of that topic, and would probably enjoy the variety of having a new topic introduced while still working on mastering the previous topic.

My two oldest used just Miquon until they finished all 6 books. (When I say "just Miquon", I mean not only the workbooks, but lots of math games and word problems we made up, etc--as suggested in the First Grade Diary and Lab Sheet Annotations.) After finishing Miquon, they moved on to Singapore. One did very well. Singapore was a poor fit for the other, and it took me a long time to find a program that did fit him as well as Miquon had. For my younger two I added Singapore because I really liked it from using the upper levels with the older two. However, we had loved Miquon so much when the older two did it that I didn't want the little ones to miss it, either.

We will be starting our new school year on June 13 (I like to take a long break in the spring instead of the summer, for various reasons.) I will have only a 4th and 6th grader--my two oldest will have both graduated. Our currently planned schedule: 1. Together Classes (~8AM-9:30AM) Bible memory: 10-15 minutes. A longish (4-6 verse) passage in one language and a verse in the other. (Alternating monthly between long English/short Spanish and long Spanish/short English) Poetry: A poem a day read aloud, 3 days a week. MCT Music of the Hemispheres one day a week. ~15 minutes Literature: ~20 minutes. Different book each day. Shakespeare on Fridays, various other books (mostly from AO 4-6) on the other days. The 3 of us will mostly take turns reading aloud--a paragraph or page or so each. Math facts: 15-20 minutes. various games Music: ~15-20 minutes. hymn, folk song, Spanish song--same ones for a month Vocabulary: 20 minutes (MCT Caesar's English I) Spanish grammar & writing: about 20 minutes. Recite some basic verb conjugations. Mad Libs or sentence analysis (MCT style) or dictation or copywork. Spanish read aloud: ~20 minutes. Usborne Encyclopedia of Planet Earth/Big Book of Astronomy (in Spanish) 2-3 times a week. Bible passages with a picture to color or draw 1-2 times a week. Oral narration after listening. 2. Alternate one child with me, other child independent (~9:30AM-1:30PM, including 20 minute lunch) Classes with me: Grammar: ~20 minutes. Rod and Staff 4 & 6. mix of oral and written Math: ~20 minutes. Singapore Primary Math workbook and/or textbook. listen to composer during this time Spanish reading: ~20 minutes. Read aloud from Rod and Staff Spanish reader (or other books in Spanish toward the end of the year when they have finished a year's worth of readers). oral narration. Spelling: ~20 minutes. Dictation sentences from AO Copywork group. some are from books we are reading, others are just sentences I liked. Independent classes: Bible: ~20 minutes. Read assigned section. Narrate orally to me. 4th grader will read from Genesis 3x a week, Acts 2x week. 6th grader will do the same, but read longer sections so that she will also read Exodus and Joshua. Reading: ~20 minutes. Read assigned chapter(s). Narrate orally to me. Free choice reading on Mondays. Drawing: ~20 minutes. Draw picture narrating something we have read, or from nature, or of topic of choice--assignment will vary. Science: ~20 minutes. Read assigned section. Do experiment sometimes. Draw diagram sometimes. Narrate orally to me. 4th grader will be using Apologia Zoology 1 & 2. 6th grader will be reading The Way Life Works, DK Amphibians, and DK Reptiles and will do occasional reports and projects. Writing: ~20 minutes. Usually a written narration from one of the assigned books from another class (~1 paragraph for 4th grader, ~3/4 page for 6th grader. hand written). This is in addition to the outlines, reports, and stories assigned in Rod and Staff. Once every 6 weeks they will also spend a week doing other writing assignments instead of written narrations. History: ~20 minutes. Read assigned section. Narrate orally to me. Some map work. 4th grader will be using Kingfisher History Encyclopedia along with SOTW 3. 6th grader will be using a slightly modified AO 6, terms 2 & 3 along with Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt and a few other books I added/substituted. Intensive Practice (technically math again, and not 100% independent, since they sometimes need help): ~20 minutes. from Singapore Math. This schedule will probably be disrupted by taking my second son to the bus stop for college classes (the bus stop is about 4 blocks away). If I end up also starting nurse's training (as I have considered), it might be disrupted by that also. We may also end up starting at 9AM instead of 8. This seems to happen every year, even though I keep planning to start at 8.

This only give evidence supporting the thesis that Saxon math cannot be learned by spending shorter time periods. It does not address users of other materials. It also cannot confirm your thesis, because there could be other factors in play--perhaps the Saxon instruction did not fit well with the child's learning style, or perhaps the parent overestimated how thoroughly the child had learned the material. My oldest son IS a child who needed many problems of the same sort and lots of practice in order to learn math. He really couldn't learn with only 20 minutes a day. My second son, on the other hand, learned math easily and well with only 15-30 minutes per day, all the way from kindergarten math through pre-calculus. My two younger students are somewhere in the middle.

NEM 1 covers all of pre-algebra, part of Algebra 1, and part of Geometry. If he finished all of NEM 1, he probably should have started at least Algebra 1 from Saxon, not Algebra 1/2. (And part of Algebra 1 will be review). My second son had this problem. He finished all of NEM 1 and part of NEM 2, and I had a very hard time placing him in other programs. Nearly all of Algebra 1 and Geometry from any other publisher was a review, but there were a handful of topics he hadn't covered since he didn't finish NEM 2. He ended up moving quickly through Algebra 1 and Geometry from one publisher before moving to their Algebra 2 the next year.

We finish Singapore in 20 minutes--sort of. We have a 20 minute Primary Math class (textbook and workbook for the day). Then we have grammar or reading or Spanish. Then, we have a 20 minute Intensive Practice (or Challenging Word Problems) class. Then we have history or science or dictation. Then, we have a 15-20 minute math facts drill class. So, if you add up all the math for the day, we spend about an hour on it. However, since we divide it up into 3 separate classes, we think of Singapore as only taking 20-30 minutes.

I don't like Apologia General Science or Physical Science. Biology is just okay. I do like the Chemistry and Physics books. My oldest used about a third of Physical Science, and about a third of Biology. My second son used all of General Science, and thought it was okay, but I do remember disliking the author's argument that second-hand smoke isn't actually more dangerous than smoking. The main problem I have with Biology and General Science (which covers a fair bit of biology, along with some geology and history of science) is that the author is actually a chemist (with a minor in physics, if I remember correctly), not a biologist or geologist or astronomer. He doesn't really have the background in those areas to write a good textbook, in my opinion. (Physical Science is mostly about areas he did study--introductory physics and chemistry--but also has a longish section on astronomy. However, my main complaint about that book is that it is boring.) I will be looking for other textbooks for my younger two for 7th/8th grade science and for biology--something written by someone who has actually studied in depth the area he/she is writing about. I will probably still use the chemistry and physics texts we have, since Dr. Wile is actually qualified in those areas.

I can understand the intense dislike for Saxon. I (and 3 of my children) cannot learn or understand math the way Saxon teaches. We HAVE to see the big picture of the whole concept in order to understand and use the pieces. When I tried to use Saxon Calculus this year with my second son (who is like me in this respect), we were both VERY frustrated. Saxon teaches one tiny piece at a time, then moves on to a tiny piece of a different skill, and eventually moves to another tiny piece of a skill or concept. I felt like a little kid being teased by a big kid who is holding something I want just out of my reach--showing it to me, then jerking it away before I can get it. Saxon feels like it is doing the same thing with the big picture view I need in order to learn and understand math (or anything else). I had the same problem the year and a half that I used Saxon 65 and 76 with my oldest (who could have learned that way if I could have stood to continue teaching it--in retrospect, I should have used Rod and Staff or something similar with him--it is a good compromise between his learning style and my teaching style). I couldn't stand jumping from a piece of information about fractions to a bit of information about long division to a piece of information about decimals and finally to the next fragment of information about fractions and so on. I know this approach is effective and enjoyable for those who learn by putting together the small pieces to build the big picture. However, it is torture for those who learn by breaking apart the big picture to learn the small pieces. (I suspect it can also be frustrating for those who build up to an idea if they need less review before getting the next piece of information.) For my 3 big picture learners Singapore has been very successful. (It did not work at all for my oldest, who is a big picture learner in other areas, but needs a step by step scaffold for math.)

Time is probably the major factor. Depending on the level being used, a Saxon lesson can take 1-2 hours per day to finish. A Singapore lesson (just textbook and workbook, not including Intensive Practice, etc) usually takes 20-30 minutes to finish. So most students/parents just don't feel up to doing even more math after a Saxon lesson, while math-loving families using Singapore would have more time to add either the supplemental Singapore books or another program, or even both. Also, Saxon seems to appeal to parents who just want a solid math education--and are thus satisfied with a single good program. Singapore seems to appeal to parents who are interested in playing with numbers and finding many different ways to work with them--which would lead to using multiple approaches.

For my older two, I used Alphaphonics, and loved it. We did have to occasionally read across the page instead of down to prevent guessing. I also supplemented with 20-30 minutes per day of free reading from a wide selection of easy readers, and with reading simple sentences and stories I wrote on the dry erase board. My 3rd child has mild dsylexia, and needed more than Alphaphonics. With her, I also used Alphabet Island and Abeka readers and Reading Reflex and various other things. My youngest used a mixture of Reading Reflex and Alphaphonics (used with the supplemental activities mentioned above). If I had another child to teach, I would again use Alphaphonics mixed with Reading Reflex, dry erase board work, and lots of easy readers.

I haven't used that one, but I have used Whatever Happened to Penny Candy, in the same series by the same author. If it is like Penny Candy, it doesn't assume any prior knowledge, and is a good first book on the topic. Ambleside recommends the Justice book for around 8th grade as a first formal book on government.

{Note: We finished this school year April 1, and will be starting our next school year on June 13.} My daughter used most of CE 1 last year and loved it. She also learned a lot. I will be using CE 1 again with her younger brother this year, and she has agreed to listen in with him, since I won't be getting CE 2 until the following year. (For both financial and time reasons it wouldn't work out.) Caesar's English works just fine without any of the other MCT materials, and is lots of fun, at least for us. My daughter loves the analogies and the quotes from lots of books she will be reading in upcoming years (plus a few she has already read). She also notices these words when she comes across them in read alouds and in her personal reading. She remembers the roots, and seems to be applying them. (The lessons alternate--one week will be Latin/Greek roots, the next week selected words. The root lessons take just under a week for us, while the vocabulary word lessons tend to take just over a week--done 4x a week.) The MCT materials that need to be used together are the grammar/writing trio--the grammar text, grammar practice workbook, and writing text for each level. The grammar instruction is spread between those three. However, the poetry and vocabulary books can be used as stand-alone materials. (The grammar practice workbook does include words from the matching vocabulary book, but the vocabulary does not include content from grammar beyond parts of speech.) I don't know whether we will use Word Within a Word or not, but I don't want to miss either of the CE books.

My soon to be 6th and 4th grader will be reading (and watching on DVD) Midsummer Night's Dream, Taming of the Shrew, and King Lear next year. They have watched (but not read) Othello, Hamlet, and MacBeth. Their favorite so far seems to be Othello, but they haven't seen any comedies yet. (Their older brothers have been choosing our yearly Shakespeare for the past two years, and they only like the tragedies and histories. The older two have also watched Henry V and Antony & Cleopatra, but those movies weren't good for the younger two.)

There are some descriptions of brutal beatings that Douglass suffered. Children are very different. For some children, reading about those would be traumatic, for some it would desensitize them to the cruelty, and for others if might create sympathy and a strong sense of injustice. Only you know your son well enough to know (or at least guess with some accuracy) how he would react. I save this book for high school, mostly because it is scheduled in AO 10 (along with several essays by Douglass) and I don't want to have to find a substitute for it.

Lassie Come Home Dog of Flanders (in length somewhere between a novel and a short story) Where the Red Fern Grows Incredible Journey (the movie Homeward Bound was loosely based on this) Old Yeller Lad, a Dog Big Red

This audio is simply the Apologia high school biology textbook read aloud. The early chapters are quite detailed studies of bacteria and other microscopic life forms. The later chapters get into things more likely to interest elementary children, like plants and animals. The audio was intended primarily for students with a learning disability, although many families use it as a supplement for high school auditory learners. Unless your child is very interested in biology (and advanced), I wouldn't use it for an elementary student.

If you lived here, the almost 10yo would be starting 5th grade in the fall. The 8.5yo would be starting 3rd grade in the fall.

12th Grader: History of the Ancient World, How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Once and Future King, Brief History of Time, Universe in a Nutshell 5th Grader: Singapore Math 5, Intensive Practice 5, various literature books from AO 3-5, regular dictation and written narration. library book science supplementing (and eventually replacing) BJU 5. Daily multiplication facts practice finally made a difference, too. 3rd Grader: Charlotte's Web, A Single Shard, Singapore Math 3. Cursive copywork on a regular basis.

I wouldn't say Joy Hakim is anti-Christian. She is politically liberal, though, and her opinions wouldn't agree with those of political/social conservatives. I suspect it is her interpretation of events that is considered inaccurate, rather than any actual reporting of events. We didn't use the books long enough for me to know for sure, though. My older boys used the first two books when they were in 5th and 7th grades. We didn't like them much. The sidebars are somewhat distracting, and we just didn't like the writing style. Both boys thought the books were boring. (However, many families really enjoy these books, and I keep looking at them in the library to see if they would work for my younger two.)

Saxon Calculus for my 12th grader. He doesn't learn well with little bits of information at a time. He needs to see the big picture and understand the underlying principle first, and then learn the detailed processes. MEP for my 3rd and 5th grader. My 3rd grader got very frustrated with the symbolic nature of this, and I dropped it for him within 2 weeks of starting. My 5th grader liked it okay, but didn't want to spend 45+ minutes on her math lesson every day (not including time spent on math facts and on Challenging Word Problems). She stuck it out longer, but eventually they both went back to Singapore. I did like the content of the program, and pulled out the worksheets as supplements every now and then. (I am deciding between Singapore Intensive Practice and just the worksheets of MEP to supplement Singapore for them next year.) MCT Island for my 3rd grader. He loved the books, and I think he did learn something, but he needs specific instruction in capitalization/punctuation and other topics that were not included. He also never really mastered being verbs, linking verbs, and prepositions. I'm not sorry we used this (and Town for his sister), but we will be returning to Rod and Staff and using it from now on for both of them. Advanced Academic Writing 2 for my 12th grader (also MCT). He read this, as well as Essay Voyage. However, while he didn't learn much that he didn't already know, it didn't really address his primary writing problems. He has excellent grammar, spelling, etc. His problem is that he condenses all ideas into their most concise and direct form, with no consideration for artistry, persuasion,etc. He also assumes that his reader is as familiar with his topic as he is. Therefore, he has trouble writing longer papers. Library book based geography (with a touch of history) for my 3rd and 5th grader. It turns out that our public library doesn't have a whole lot of interesting books on other countries and cultures. However, the first 6 weeks or so on Native Americans went well. There actually were a lot of good books on various tribes, including both history and current cultures/lifestyles on each tribe. For the rest of the year I experimented with several different books and topics. [i have always had trouble with history for the lower grades. For 6th grade and up I like AO, with only a few alterations.]

Usborne has a few history books in Spanish. I also bought Enciclopedia Mega (Junior?) from Scholastic several years ago. It has an Usborne-style world history section, as well as sections on science, grammar (Spanish), geography, math, etc. Scholastic also has some US history books in Spanish. I think ACE also has Spanish workbooks on history. I have an idea that they focus on the history of Mexico and Spain, though I don't know that for certain. These are designed to be school-type worktexts for 1st-6th grades, though.

If we had unlimited funds: get an official ADHD diagnosis and some medications for my youngest buy all the science books I like instead of using the library buy more science experiment kits membership to the local science museum, and take weekly visits there possibly supplement with Life of Fred, if time permitted more DVD supplements for science and history more Shakespeare DVDs buy music for composer study instead of borrowing from the library a Kindle for each child new bike for my daughter (hers got left in our driveway by a neighbor child who thought he was being helpful by moving it from the front yard last summer, and I ran over it when backing out of the driveway) tutoring/teaching for upper level math classes (trig and calculus--my second son did trig completely on his own, and had to drop calculus after 3 months this year because Saxon teaching made no sense to him and we couldn't afford anything else) music lessons

I have a 10yo and a 9yo. The 9yo has ADHD. Sometimes I let them draw pictures of what I am reading while I read--no free drawing, or they will tune out the reading--especially my ADHD son, who tends to have weak listening skills to begin with. I also stop periodically to ask them to give a quick oral narration--retell the most recent part of the story. This is usually very effective. In addition, I sometimes have all 3 of us take turns reading aloud.

I just tried this out with my 9yo and 10yo. My 9yo reversed two numbers near the end. My 10yo scrambled several numbers and omitted one. Though my 10yo is mildly dyslexic (perhaps explaining the scrambling), both she and her younger brother read fluently. So, this is not an infallible test for reading readiness.

I'm not familiar with the song, but Roxanne does remind me of a character from Ultimate Muscle (American version of a Japanese anime from a Japanese manga--all 3 of my boys have liked this show and the Japanese shows it is based on). My cousin also had a dog named Roxanne. So, I wouldn't have chosen the name for those reasons.