Love this idea!! So much simpler than the workbox system which is all the rave right now. Thanks...I might give this a try!

No advice. Just wanted to say congratulations!! How exciting!!

To be fair, I only got through a few of the chapters of AAH before throwing in the towel, so I cannot honestly say what the author's Christian worldview was like throughout the book. What I *can* say is that from what I read, there was absolutely nothing preachy at all and I think, perhaps, a Christian from any denomination would be comfortable with the book. Some Christian texts also over do it with weaving the whole Christian thing in just about every single paragraph of the text. AAH is not like that. I hope someone else who has used the entire book will chime in with their two cents. I suggest that you visit the "AllAmericanHistory" yahoogroup, which is public (so you don't have to join to access the posts). Search around there and you'll find a wealth of info about AAH. Again, it didn't work for us, but it is very good. HTH!

We couldn't make it work for us. It's an excellent program that is put together very nicely, but the main text is not very engaging. I much prefer Hakim. The big differences: Hakim doesn't have a schedule and covers Am History in depth with 10 volumes. It also not from a Christian worldview. AAH is from a Christian worldview and is more of a condensed coverage of Am. history. It is also broken down into lessons to keep you on track. Does this help?

Mosdos Press is secular and it's very good.

Knowledge Quest sells a great set of timeline stickers. Scroll down to the bottom of the page I've linked to and check them out. Use the stickers with any timeline notebook you want. HTH!

We don't have a dedicated homeschool room, but I sure wish we did. We do most of our work at the kitchen table or in the living room sprawled out on the floor or on the couch. It works out fine, but I'd sure LOVE a homeschool room...Then again, even if we *did* have our own dedicated space, we'd probably still wind up at the kitchen table ;-)

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When did you place your order? I spoke to someone at WP earlier this month and she said they were hoping to have this program ready by the end of June. One of the books went out of print and they were searching for a replacement and then needed to fix the IG to reflect the changes. Like someone else mentioned, this program wasn't initially meant to be ready until after the WP retreat in April. I do think they should mention something about this on their web site so potential customers know this in advance. Their web site, while nice, can definitely stand some improvements, more samples, and regular updating.

I tried sooooo hard to like AAH, but it was terribly dry and the organization of the student textbook was annoying to me. Some still like it, though. I must say that the Teacher's Guide was EXCELLENT and so were the For Further Study questions included in the Student Activity book. Last year I had hoped to somehow use Hakim and the parts of AAH that I liked, but that would have been too time consuming so I chucked the idea. Hakim is wonderful! Very engaging and it reads like a good novel. Highly recommended. Winter Promise schedules Hakim for High School American history, but you have to buy the guides to get the schedule. You can use it with their American Crossing and American Culture programs for your middler or high schooler, but it's not cheap. Hewitt Homeschooling also has a syllabus for reading through all 10 volumes in one year---along with some projects and tests. I'm not familiar with this, though. LoveToLearn.net and TheDowSchoolRoom.com both sell the Hakim teacher guides, which are pricey if you don't buy them used. Many don't find them necessary. Others, like the PP mentioned, like to use Hakim with the SL Core 100 guide. Right now we're just reading and discussing. HTH!

Mosdos Literature...We only use the student textbook b/c it has lots of gold nuggets in it without overkill. You cover literary analysis, vocabulary, writing, comprehension, and more!! The short stories and poems are engaging and a wonderful mixed variety. We've used it loosely this year and had a difficult time scheduling it in, but I'm really looking forward to digging into it again over the summer. This is something you can even read and discuss orally. We love it here!

I, too, have noticed lots of writing with CLE Lang Arts (we're wrapping up the 500 series). Surprised to learn that there is writing included in their reading curriculum. Really?? I'll have to pull out my scope and sequence to check this out for myself. Glad you mentioned this! Excellent thread, Michelle!!

With this program I can choose from the following: Text & Solutions Manual Textbook only Companion CD CD Complete Course Audio CD What do you folks recommend? I'm a non-sciencey mom and we've only covered the basics in science. My ds is quite visual. Anyone?

Actually, it was my fasting glucose that went down. It registered in the pre-diabetic range a couple of weeks ago. My doctor, however, was not overly concerned at all. A few years ago, that glucose test would have been normal too, but apparently they've lowered the range for what's considered "normal" glucose levels. Anyway, my doctor ordered another fasting glucose and the A1C (which was the first and only A1C I've ever had) just to make sure I wasn't pre-diabetic. He's very pleased with my numbers and didn't even recommend that I buy one of those glucose readers for testing blood sugar at home. Why? B/C I'm not pre-diabetic. Nevertheless, I *do* have a family history and if my fasting glucose was on the high end once, it could easily happen again. And since I know that the A1C can go as low as 4, my goal is to improve my diet and improve my A1C. Clearly, I'm one of those people who has a better chance of not getting this disease since I'm already aware of my numbers and since I'm making the necessary lifestyle changes to improve my health. I recommend that everyone have these tests. Apparently half of the people with pre-diabetes don't even know it. Scary!

Well I had my physical this morning and found out that I'm actually NOT pre-diabetic. My doctor ordered another fasting glucose and the A1C test which is a better indicator of blood glucose levels. My fasting glucose was totally normal and My A1C was 5.3 which is also totally normal. Yippee!!!! (My first fasting glucose must have been in the higher range due to skipping dinner and eating a bowl of strawberry ice-cream the night before.) I'm still sticking to my healthier way of eating and my daily exercise with my Wii Fit b/c this incident has scared me into changing my poor eating/exercise habits. Today was the first day I had dessert in almost two weeks. I no longer crave sugar and instead of eating chips, I eat nuts, berries, and fruit. I honestly never knew how sweet raisins and pears are until I stopped consuming so much refined sugar. I no longer slather butter on my toast and I'm eating whole foods too. I'm also not having seconds or eating the kids' stuff that they leave on their plates. I've lost 5 lbs in less than two weeks. Just wanted to update all of you on my good news. If you're a sugar junkie, beware!!!! Diabetes is lurking even if you don't realize it. Start changing your poor eating habits today!!

Wanted to thank all of you for taking the time to respond. I have calmed down somewhat and feel that this diagnosis is a good wake up call for me to take better care of myself. I loaded up with a few books from the library and will be spending the weekend reading through all of them. I read that half of the people with diabetes don't even know they have it. That would have been me, b/c my Dr. hadn't requested a glucose test for me. I requested it myself b/c I wanted to be sure it wasn't elevated. Diabetes runs in my family and I also was borderline as a young adult. While the news was shocking, I'm very glad to know so that I can make the necessary lifestyle changes to reverse this. And since I'm the cook, my family is about to see some drastic changes in their diet as well. Thanks again and blessings to all of you.

Still trying to pick myself up from the floor here. I have a physical in two weeks and had to have some blood work done beforehand, which is how I found out I'm pre-diabetic. I crave sugar and had been feeling the urge to pee a lot, so I'm not totally surprised here b/c these are signs of diabetes. As someone who could always eat whatever she wanted b/c she was a skinny minnie, I've been freaked out over the past year that my weight has escalated so much. I also barely exercise. Anyway, I'm wondering how I can manage this health issue and get myself in shape so I can avoid full-on diabetes. And as a carboholic, what the heck CAN I eat? I love pasta, homebaked goodies, smoothies, and bread. I can no longer eat these things, right? I also need some good books to read up on. Any advice would be appreciated.

How about blowing bubbles? Bubbles are so much fun! Also, do you have a baby mat with activities that your babe can swat at and grasp while on the floor. These are wonderful! Baby mats also allow baby a chance to practice propping up on his arms and eventually rolling over. I remember reading that this is an important thing babies need to spend time doing daily in order to develop their motor skills. You can use a quilt or blankie if you don't have a baby mat. Have fun!

I haven't used HOD or MOH, but Biblioplan schedules MOH in some of their guides. Biblioplan is inexpensive and has a doable schedule. Don't get overwhelmed by everything they suggest. Just pick what works for your student and forget the rest. I'm using year 3 with my 6th grader and we don't use Streams of Civilization, the encyclopedia spines, or the readers. We're using SOTW 3, History of US, and A Child's Story of America. We will also add in read-alouds. I'm using BP's "Cool History" and map add-ons which are wonderful. My ds will also do the writing prompts and perhaps some timelining. This is PLENTY for us. BP is easy to tweak, which I love. We're not into hands-on history so we love this program. That said, one could easily add in some hands-on stuff of their own choosing if they like it. I wish I had used BP from the beginning, but better late than never.

It reminds me of a workbooky, more modern version of R&S with a bit of Evan-Moore thrown in. We love it here. We've tried R&S and BJ English, but CLE has been the best fit of all. My 6th grader is nearing the end of the 500 series. Two thumbs up!!:thumbup:

MommyJo, I'd love to read that SAHM/Internet addiction article. Do you remember where you read it and what issue date it was? Limiting online time is definitely a challenge for many of us, isn't it? Unsinkable, I'm using Pioneer Pocket Photo Albums which hold 4x6 photos. It's style # MP-46 and you can find them at Longs, Walgreens, etc. They are inexpensive, archival, and often on sale. Love them!! For simple scrapbook photo albums just use one of the pockets to insert a piece of cardstock (which you can decorate easily with cute stickers) and journal on it. Wham! Bam! Done! Love it! Very doable. Snickelfritz, light bulb moments are wonderful, aren't they? I'm not getting rid of ALL of the scrapbooking stuff, just most of it. I'm finding that my stash falls into the "clutter" category. {{Shiver}}. When I was young I clipped pics of teen heart throbs and stuff like that and kept them in a simple scrapbook. No major thought process...No paper punches...No stencils...No fancy scrapbook paper. It worked well and back then I wasn't considered a scrapbooker. That's what I'm trying to get back to. Just a simplified way of containing my photos without all of the drama (aka "stuff"). Photo preservation has just gotten ridiculous and far too expensive, IMO. Again, I LOVE Becky Higgins Project 365 style. That's how I define my style now. I've enjoyed all of the responses to this thread.

I think BP would be the perfect schedule to follow if you want to do SOTW 3 and Hakim. You can simply stick to those two spines ONLY and then do the BP Cool History (which is based on SOTW) along with the map work. Add in timelines and writing exercises if it suits you. Also add in a read-aloud now and then for fun. This would be PLENTY!! Use BP to suit YOU. Remember pick and choose. Don't try to do it all!! BP really helps us stay on track and stay focused. It's also very library friendly. So far we love it!!

Cool History does include an answer key. The maps do not. Students are to use the SOTW book, Kingfisher or Usborne books, a globe, or reference book to complete map work. Suggestions are also given as to how to approach each map exercise based on your child's grade level. Many maps also include review questions to discuss. Parents are encouraged to do the maps along with their students. HTH! P.S. I don't frequent the forums as often as I used to, but feel free to PM me if you have more questions. I usually pop in at least once a week for a quick peek.

We're using BP maps and BP Cool History, which I highly recommend!

I haven't been on the computer much lately because I am on a roll decluttering my home like crazy. I simply cannot stand all of the stuff anymore. (My home isn't a total pig sty, but it *is* cluttered and it is not the way I envision my home sweet home looking.) I have finally realized some things about myself, which I thought I'd share here with the hive: 1) I am a packrat because I am hopelessly sentimental. I find that a large portion of my "stuff" is memorbilia. Nevertheless, I am determined to purge most of this "stuff". Not sure what in the world to do with all of the greeting cards I've saved over the years OR all of the Christmas photo pics I've saved from friends and family over the years. Do I chuck these? Do I save some? I'm not sure? 2) I am not really a scrapbooker. I thought I was, but I'm not. I have all of the scrapbooking "stuff", but I rarely make time to organize my scrapbooking "stuff" or pursue the hobby. (Homeschooling and parenting have trumped scrapbooking.) With this in mind, I'm ready to let most of my scrapbooking stuff go. Sigh. I am reading a book called Find More Time by Laura Stack and she recommends photo boxes for photo organization. I also have found simple photo album scrapbooking quite doable. All I need is a bit of cardstock, some stickers, an archival marker for simple journaling, as well as a pocket photo album. Very doable. (Think Becky Higgins Project 365 style. Love it!) One more thing...I'm considering not taking so many pictures. Sounds crazy, but all of the photos are overwhelming!! 3) I have been overwhelmed by the thought of having to sort through so much stuff, so I've been avoiding it big time. I closed my blog almost two months ago and I drastically cut back on visiting forums gradually over the past couple of weeks. This hasn't been easy, BUT I have accomplished so very much in my home that it has been worth it. I now realize just how much this online stuff cuts into my time. 4) The more I declutter, the better I feel. I hope this post helps another sentimental packrat who is trying to find more time and live with less clutter.