Yes, it's a bit more work, but I really like doing it this way. I actually bought the workbooks and then resold them:rolleyes: because I wanted to use the books we are/were reading (instead of excerpts from ones we might not have yet) and because I didn't want to add the workbooks on top of her history narrations and other writing. I did like the extra hand holding of the workbooks...hopefully I'll be able to figure out dictations this year...:001_smile:

My dd got the Roman ship for her birthday, and she also has the chariot (horse lover that she is:)) and several assorted soldiers and Vikings (though we haven't actually studied Vikings yet). Oh, and a Roman family that she likes to pretend is one from Detectives in Togas which we read in SL Core 1. She makes up all sorts of stories and battles with them, and she says the Romans are her favorite culture/civilization. :D

I delayed starting FLL/WWE last year with my dd because I wanted to focus on phonics/reading. We "caught up" over the summer and it worked out fine. :)

:lurk5:

Hmmm...so why does Jessie Wise say you need a dictionary and thesaurus at the beginning of FLL2?

We'll be starting FLL 2 soon, and I was looking at the recommendations for a dictionary and thesaurus to use with it. The Merriam-Webster Elementary Dictionary gets good reveiws on Amazon, but the Roget's Children's Thesaurus has quite a few negative ones - seems like some people think it's not quite what a thesaurus should be. I was thinking of getting the The American Heritage Children's Thesaurus instead. Anyone have any experience with these or other recommendations? :)

My dd wasn't up to lesson 140 in OPGTR last year when starting first grade, and it actually worked well for us to concentrate on phonics and delay starting WWE and FLL until she got to lesson 140. After that, our schedule was FLL on M,W,F and OPGTR on Tues and Thurs with WWE usually Mon-Thurs. Jessie Wise actually advises not to have a long break between FLL Level 1 and Level 2, so you can start late and continue it over the summer (with time for shorter breaks when needed:)) and be ready for FLL 2 the next fall.

Another vote for Aritistic Pursuits. I got the bag with all the necessary items in it from Sonlight. It's pricey but it makes it so easy to use, even for someone like me who dreads doing arts/crafts things with my kids. :D

Well, I think what you're doing now is homeschooling, reading to your child, helping her develop a love for books and learning, increasing her vocabulary and attention span. It's great prep for starting "formal" learning in a year or two. I also love a pp suggestion of educating yourself now...wish I'd done more of that when my dd was younger. :)

I get their newsletter, but haven't bought anything yet. Maybe when my dc are a little older and we do more in-depth music appreciation, etc.

I would also wait on SOTW or MOH, and I second the recommedation for Sonlight. Even if you don't get a whole Core, there's some great books to introduce the concept of history to a young child in the P4/5 and K cores, as well as lots of great picture and chapter books. There are truly so many great books out there - Little House, Charlotte's Web, Winne the Pooh... Ambleside Online also has a list of books for their "Year 0" (preschool and K) here: http://www.amblesideonline.org/00.shtml HTH!:)

Here it is: http://smoothstonesacademy.blogspot.com/2008/08/books-to-compliment-sotw-2.html Thanks for all the links - I'm in planning mode too. :)

I figured out (using the timeline in the back of SOTW) that The Apple and the Arrow happened during the time period covered by Chap. 20 "The Diaspora", so you could do it then. Although it's not the same topic, it's kind of a similar theme (the struggle of a people, etc.).

:lurk5: Bumping - I'm interested, too! I recently got the Handbook of Nature Study and would love something to help me acutally use it.:D

:iagree: Agreeing heartily with Janice's post - what a great analogy! And thank you, Susan, for all your hard work - it has been a great blessing here! :)

I voted Spanish, but we might start some Greek first, using the Greek Alphabet Code Cracker when we've got a good start in French and I think we can add one more thing to our schedule. :D DH is more interested in them learning Greek than Latin (as an aide to Bible study), though Latin still a possiblity further on...maybe.:lol:

I'll be starting French with my dd7 and my ds4 this year using The Easy French Jr. I learned some French as a child - I'm a Canadian and some French was required or at least greatly encouraged. :) I'm looking forward to reveiwing it and learning more with my kids. I was going to start with Spanish, as we are now living in the US, but was intrigued by this article: http://www.theeasyfrench.com/cm9.htm and decided to try French first, and then add Spanish later (God-willing:001_smile:).

Glad I'm not the only one.:lol:

I own both. I originally just bought the guide last year and used it to pull copywork and narrations from our history and literature. But I started feeling unsure I was doing it "right" and decided to purchase the workbooks to finish out Level 1 and continue into Level 2. But I'm not sure I like the workbooks - the lines are way too big, as others have mentioned, and I really liked using selections from the books we were actually reading. It just seems weird, for example, to have my dd copy a sentence from A Christmas Carol and then narrate from an excerpt of it, when she has no idea of the context. It is more "open and go" though. Anyway, all that to say that I guess you have to decide whether you want to coordinate WWE to your other studies, or if you would rather have the extra convenience and guidance of the workbook.

I didn't think they were necessary through book 3, except for the tests (we had the Sonlight LA 1&2 guides which had the test helps included). But in level 4 when they start learning about 2 syllable words, I would sometimes get confused trying to figure out which rule applied to a particular word, and wished I had the teacher's guide. :tongue_smilie:

This link: http://www.peacehillpress.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=72 is what helped me in deciding when to start FLL with my dd (scroll down to about the middle of the page). HTH :)

I used it quite a bit this year. DD started learning italic, so it was great to be able to type the copywork in the italic font (I don't write in italic myself!).

:lurk5: I was just looking at this yesterday and wondering how they used SOTW too, especially as I've seen several times that SOTW 4 shouldn't be used for kids below 4th grade! Interested to know...:bigear:

Yeah! I'd forgotten about this. It is a good book! I've recently begun (again:D) to try to read Charlotte Mason's original series. I'm only on the first one, but it seems to be coming easier this time...not sure why. I'll probably read Volume 6 afterward, as that seems to be the most recommended one. I've had them sitting on my shelf for several years, making me feel guilty every time I look at them.:lol: I'm still trying to figure out my "homeschooling style", which currently seems to be a crazy mixture of CM, WTM and Sonlight.:tongue_smilie:

Great article - thanks! :)