If you homeschooled through high school, tell me about your child's awesome accomplishments. I'm looking for some success stories today. :)

I am wondering if any of you have placed your children in a competitive private school beginning in 7th or 9th grade, after hs-ing exclusively. Was admission a challenge? Was the education level everything you hoped? Were there any negative aspects to your child's experience?

I'm tempted to say that reading the same picture books over and over to kids as old as 8 (who should at least be LISTENING to more complex literature by that age), combined with random educational activities that bounce from topic to topic and don't provide a structured method of building academic skills from year to year, is not really homeschooling. Kudos to those of you who have obviously made FIAR work for you and have children who are academically successful. I guess that proves that the teacher is more important than the curriculum after all. I realize this sounds more like a bash FIAR post. I don't hate the curriculum, even though it totally didn't work for us. But if the authors of the program are going to be that condescending to homeschool parents, then the temptation to offer a counter-critique is more than I can resist.

Wow, thanks for all the suggestions! Interesting that so many of you mentioned 100 EZ Lessons, because that's what I used with my oldest. However, she had already reached that magical ready-to-blend point by the time we started (at barely 3, now that I have 2 more kids, I realize how weird that is!). I have been using The Reading Lesson, because it seemed more cheerful and preschool-friendly. All is fine until the blending starts, then she's stuck. She's very attached to her book, though, and I don't know how she would react to a total curriculum switch. Since I already have Talking Word Factory, I'm going to start woth a daily dose of that and teach her to use Starfall. Mergath, just keep asking your dd every month or so if she'd like to learn. My dd always said no until the last few weeks. I felt like I had to ask because I wanted to give her the same opportunity her sister had.

12-piece wooden puzzles from Melissa & Doug --a great transition from toddler puzzles into regular puzzles Bambino Luk (Timberdoodle sells these) -- wonderful mental exercises that the child can do independently and don't involve reading Mighty Mind -- sort of like Tangrams, but it starts very simply using just 2 pieces, then increases in complexity Dot to dot workbooks

My almost 4-year-old wants to be able to read. She's doing great with letters and sounds, but she's just not ready to blend. I think we'd probably be better off waiting six months and trying again, but she's not going to be happy with that. This child is very driven. She has worked her way through about half of the HWT K book with minimal help from me, she sometimes sits for an hour working on letters. She falls asleep at night with a book open on her chest. Is there anything I can do to help her? Let me stress that I'm okay with her not learning to read yet. When she was stuck today on her reading lesson, I offered to read her a book instead, and she wanted to keep trying.

My oldest dd is starting to clamor for a little more freedom than playing with her siblings on our sidewalk under my watchful eye. What have you allowed your 6-year-olds to do? We're in a safe neighborhood in a low-crime smallish town, but I don't know our neighbors super well (the curse of automatic garage door openers).

What about Song School Greek?

I am having my daughter tested so I can find out if her constant overreactions are caused by gifted-related overexcitabilities, sensory processing disorder, anxiety, or something else.

Anxiety. Perfectionism. Being focused on grades without caring whether learning takes place. Obsessing on stupid things like certain TV shows or celebrities. The complete absence of whatever gene combination that makes someone a "self-starter" or "go-getter." Being boy-crazy. Attention deficit disorder that's masked by an extraordinary ability to absorb information easily. Unhealthy preoccupation with social status. Daydreaming. Procrastination. Old-fashioned laziness. Irrational sensitivity to any sort of correction or rebuke. An addictive personality that latches onto whatever is available, whether Rex Stout novels or internet forums. Indecision. Instability of purpose -- passionate about something for a short time, only to fizzle out. All of the above describe myself as a teenager, most still describe me today.

I thought it was normal for kids to freak out at the sound of a car alarm, or to be terrified and cry all through a cleaning at the dentist, or to scream at the least pull while having their hair brushed. However, as my two younger children are getting older, I notice that they pretty much take all these things in stride. Only my oldest reacts this way. She had an ultrasound yesterday, and you would have thought it was surgery without anesthesia. Does this sound like a sensory issue?

Asynchronous development mainly, followed by the $5k price tag.

Dd wants to learn French. I need something structured or it won't get done. She's in R&S 3 grammar, so she can handle something designed for slightly older kids. A pronunciation CD would be essential. Any ideas?

I'm convinced that the fashion industry is to blame for the poor self-image of so many women. At least in previous generations, the clothing trends were flattering even to less-than-perfect women! I mean, no pantyhose, really? Where does that leave a gal whose legs are pasty-white without perfect skin or great muscle tone? And why is there so little fabric in sleeves? I tried on long-sleeved tops, and they looked baggy everywhere except the sleeves, where my arms looked like sausages. I know I need to lose weight, but I'm still what I would call average- 5'5" and size 12-14 depending on the brand. But I can't find clothes that make me happy to spend money on them. It's pathetic.

We're about 2 months into the school year. What I wish I had done differently: -- Substituted BFSU for the HOD science, which is really weak in the guide we're using. -- Skipped straight to R&S 3 for grammar -- Used Ambleside Year 1 selections for read-alouds and DITHOR I've started making changes to fix these things, but it's hard to change gears in the middle of the semester. So, is anyone else smacking themselves upside the head about curriculum choices?

Thanks for posting, I was wondering the same thing just today.

The movie is called "The Way Back" and it is excellent.

After two Clomid babies followed by a surprise, we are practicing NFP.

I need an accelerated grammar/composition program that is fun. Is MCT my best bet? Do I need the whole LA program if my concern is just grammar and writing skills? This is for a 6-year-old who's doing second-grade work easily, and could probably accelerate to third grade work if I could figure out how to cover the second grade material more efficiently without overwhelming her with extra work.

Last year, nearly every other thread on this forum seemed to be about MCT. I haven't seen a lot about it this year. Are people still using it? How is it working? Are you happy with your students' progress in grammar and writing skills?

Someone posted an article here a few weeks ago about overexcitabilities and gifted kids. It described my dd very well, but I'm still at a loss as to how to parent through all these issues. How would I go about finding a professional who has actually heard about this theory and has experience with gifted kids?

My first-grader has the following seat-work: math -- Singapore 2A workbook, usually 2 pages. copywork -- between 2 and 4 lines of the poem of the week cursive -- we use Cheerfully Cursive, she finishes 1 page about every 2-3 days grammar -- 2 pages of R&S, done mostly orally, though I have her write one sentence spelling -- studied dictation, 2 sentences Then there's circle time: singing the hymn of the week practicing the Bible verse of the week (usually with a song) a brief related devotional catechism Song School Latin history read-aloud literature read-aloud followed by some form of narration Then there is either a science experiment, history activity, geography activity, or art project. All of the above typically takes 1 1/2 hours. We are also using Drawn into the Heart of Reading, which takes about 15 minutes a day.

I could have written the original post, except I'm at that same place with 3. I want more, but I'm afraid of my own incompetence. :(

"Delish" instead of delicious. "Like" when used as anything other than a simile or a verb.

Last year my oldest dd began using "like" inappropriately, as in "I was like...." I always correct her and make her restate it with proper language, such as "I thought" or "I said." She will often catch herself now, but it still happens a lot. Now I just caught my 3-year-old saying it! Is it possible in this modern age to raise children to adulthood without the obnoxious "like" habit? Or am I fighting a losing battle? (By the way, when my daughter asks what's wrong with using "like," I tell her that it will make her sound really stupid when she's running for President someday.)