I like what I have read about Spelling Workout A, but have been trying to mostly use reproducible and reusable curricula. Is Spelling Workout A reproducible legally? If not, do you have a similar workbook-based spelling curriculum that you love for 1st grade that has a reusable component? Or is there a website that has a 1st grade spelling curriculum with activities included? I want something I can pay for once then reuse for 1st grade for all my kiddos. Thanks!

I don't know about you, but I completely nerd out at back to school sales. Which means I am trying to make a list before I go so I don't lose my mind and buy everything. What is on your back to school supply list? Do you buy for the year? We are planning on following WTM for a lot this year, so I am buying binders, dividers, paper, pencils, a good family pencil sharpener {after a couple years of me sharpening ten million colored pencils for my DS(4) who breaks them with his mind}, erasers, coloring utensils (We have so many loose, but I like to get a fresh box when they are on sale as a special treat to start the school year), glue sticks and better scissors {also for DS(4)}. Am I missing anything important or obvious?

Love this thread! I have found primary composition books with drawing space at our local dollar store, so check yours before paying more than $1 :)

Thank you so much, Lori! If I could use you as a sounding-board for another minute, my DS5 easily does addition and subtraction problems up to 10 with pictures on the pages or counters. BJU K5 didn't do ANY mental math, so I appreciate that MM has that component. But I love the concrete visual aid of a color equaling a number. Do c-rods do that the same way that MUS does? I only have 1 math curriculum chosen at this point, but for my advanced DS3 we are doing K-1 level math games and activities instead of a curriculum, and my DS5 will play those with us. So he will be exposed to more than just MM. One more question, if it's okay? :) Ideas for teaching "what number comes before __"? This is DS5's greatest struggle and I can't seem to help him over it. Thanks so much!

Thanks, Bill!

Thanks for the advice, Lori! I guess my real question is: what addition/subtraction manipulatives should I buy to supplement the workbook approach of MM? And along with that, *can* I buy and use the blocks with a different curriculum, or are they completely dependent on MUS or Miquon? I have heard the math-u-see blocks are amazing. Do you think miquon cuisenaire rods are better? Does miquon just use generic rods?

We got Math Mammoth 1A/1B for next year for DS5 who loves math and has learned all but 1 concept extremely quickly. To the point where all the review in BJU K5 drove him a little nuts. I was interested in MUS but the cost and the scope/sequence turned me off. I like that MM is more broad. Especially because my sons get bored with too much repetition. My question is, are the MUS colored manipulative rods just cuisenaire rods? Could I implement the hands-on aspect of MUS by using c-rods for the addition/subtraction portion of MM? We have been using base 10 blocks with BJU K5 as well...I'm just wondering if it's possible to create a MUS- type environment, but only for certain topics/skills. Thanks!

My son asked to write stories for school next year. I know I can just let him think of his own topics, and some weeks I will, but does anyone have a resource they love for creative writing at this age? I am obviously not going to expect him to do the writing! He will narrate and I will probably type it up because he is very loquacious once he gets going :) Thanks!

My boys love it so much I'm considering continuing to use it! We bought the whole homeschool kit when it went on sale in the summer several years ago. We also bought one extra. Either coloring pages or verse tunes. Whichever one isn't included in the homeschool kit. Mainly what we use is the 5x7 cards and the verse tunes. I make up copywork from it each week. They do the coloring pages from time to time. Hope that helps!

I have only heard good things about them, too. Thanks for the advice :)

Do you feel like the book and cards are worth $60? That seems like a lot for a supplement to me. When you break it down per kid per year up to 4th, it isn't bad, depending on how often you use it.

Thanks for your thoughts! Thanks for the suggestion! My kids are asking to spell things, which is the only reason I am considering doing something gentle with them. This sounds interesting! Thank you! Thanks for your thoughts! I appreciate you telling me how you break it down daily! Thanks! I hear so many things on both sides about AAS. Cost and complicated are always the negatives people mention. I just don't think I will be able to keep up with it right now, and I worry about the small pieces with my destructive toddler. We don't have a separate school room. And it drives me stinking crazy when a piece of something is missing. But people keep saying I could skip the tiles, so I will look into doing it that way. Thanks :)

TheseIrishHills- Thanks for your thought! Wabi Sabi- Thanks for the idea! I haven't tried language arts puzzles yet. My mathy boys might like that! SilverMoon- Thank you for the suggestions! I will look into them! Thanks for your opinion about AAS. I don't think this is the right time for it for us. Maybe 2nd or 3rd grade when the baby is older. I hadn't heard of Spelling Plus. Thanks for the suggestion. I will look into it. Short, simple, and tot he point is exactly what I am looking for.

Thanks, DoubleAMom! That looks cute and free is always good :)

ElizabethB- Thanks! The math portion is interesting, too. peaceful isle- I don't disagree with you! It is a solid program in K5, too! I am a rule-follower, though, and tried too hard for too long to follow the teacher books and I am just so burnt out that I don't think I could look at another BJU book right now. My kids are burnt out, too. They learned a ton. My DS3 is definitely on a K level after following along with his brother all year, by choice. But we all need something with fewer worksheets, less writing, and less prep. And DS5 HATES the BJU readers. He wants something with more interesting content or more pages. He loves ABEKA readers because it is like holding a chapter book. So, for the purpose of learning to read and learning early math skills, BJU absolutely got the job done and gave them a great foundation. But it just is not a good fit for our family. Calming Tea- I don't mind teacher intensive. I am not expecting them to work independently. And even with BJU, after the lesson, my DS5 could do the worksheets on his own. The worksheets were actually really easy for him. It was all the pieces of every lesson in every subject. Even when I cut things out, we were both still frustrated with how long everything was. review is important, and I know that is partly why they are retaining things. But seriously, this just is not working for us. We are not going to be curriculum hoppers by any means. I just want to find one that we enjoy, and not suffer through 4 more years of frustration and tears before it gets better. Might as well put him in school then if neither of us enjoys it, you know? I think we are going to use OPG and just skip lessons we have already learned with BJU. Thanks for all the suggestions! Do you think a workbook is necessary to learn how to read? Can kids just read to learn how to read or do they have to do a workbook, too?

Pegs- Thanks for all the ideas! I appreciate them! Didn't seem terse at all :) I think maybe curriculum isn't quite the right word. For me, not necessarily for him, but for *me*, I need a plan. I need to be able to look at a lesson plan and remind myself what I wanted to do for the week. Heigh Ho- Thanks! another vote for lots of games and play :) I have heard a lot of good things about Right Start games. It says "all grades" on the site. How true is that? Do the cards come with the book? I am really intrigued by the plan laid out for math that follows SOTW on livingmath.net. No way could I really stick with it and follow it with that number of books, but I do hope to incorporate a few into our ancient studies readings. It's such a cool idea. Thank you for the author suggestions! I hope our library has some of them!

Thanks, Kate! Now, with all your down time, I need you to write this unicorn curriculum and make it available by September :P Seriously, though, your preschool ebook looks great! The Math Madness books look really cute! Thanks for the suggestion. I looked at the Critical Thinking site, too. I love the logic component. I think if we do an addition/subtraction refresher, maybe even over the summer, that he could do 1st grade math with his brother in the fall. Does the Right Start Math Card Games book come with the cards, or do I have to buy them separately? Could I make them if I just buy the book? How many grades will I really be able to use them for? If I have to buy both the book and the cards, I want to justify the cost. I saw that the link you provided was just the addition ones, but if they will love them and use them for awhile in their math lessons, I wonder if it is worth it to buy the whole thing. Slache- Thanks! I have to think about it because Book 1 is a ton of review, and if I start partway, we will lose the story aspect, which I think he will really enjoy. Not sure he is ready for Book 2 because of the weakness in general addition/subtraction. But, like I mentioned above, I could work at that over the summer. What are your thoughts on my questions about Right Start (above)?

I posted this over on the K-8 Board today, but the more I look around, the more I think this is the right place to ask. My DS3 (he will be 4 in a couple weeks) has kept pace with his brother and basically done kindergarten already. The only academic area he really shows his age is handwriting. Next year I will do the shorter sentences in WWE for copywork/handwriting practice with him. We are going to do OPG to continue learning phonics. Math is where I am struggling. I don't want to redo the K curriculum with him again, but I don't think he is fluent enough in addition/subtraction yet to move to 1st grade math with his brother. So, I'm thinking about doing a year of living math/math games to reinforce concepts in a fun way for both of them while DS5 also does 1st grade math. I don't want to have regrets about pushing DS3 too hard too young but I want to take advantage of his interest and ability. He will do a worksheet or 2 if his brother is doing them, and he loves art supplies and stickers. Maturity-wise, he is definitely a preschooler. I don't want to stifle his enjoyment for learning or cause him to hate school time. I have been doing a lot of searching but don't really see what I'm looking for already put together. I think what I would love is a clear 36 weeks of lessons with some kind of coherent storybook spine (like Life of Fred but more logical) for Monday, and then games/activities for 3 days, then maybe a worksheet or oral questions or math journal page to demonstrate he has learned the concept on Friday. I know there are soooo many wonderful math living books but I can't buy them all and I am not sure we will get to the library every week. I have seen the one about twins on a farm. The story aspect of that might be lost, though, because it would mostly be review. I don't really want to review. I want to challenge him with bite-sized lessons. Anyone know anything like this? Or have other suggestions?

I get my ink refilled at Costco. My kids like color :)

My DS3 (he will be 4 in a couple weeks) has kept pace with his brother and basically done kindergarten already. The only academic area he really shows his age is handwriting. Next year I will do the shorter sentences in WWE for copywork/handwriting practice with him. We are going to do OPG to continue learning phonics. Math is where I am struggling. I don't want to redo the K curriculum with him again, but I don't think he is fluent enough in addition/subtraction yet to move to 1st grade math with his brother. So, I'm thinking about doing a year of living math/math games to reinforce concepts in a fun way for both of them while DS5 also does 1st grade math. I don't want to have regrets about pushing DS3 too hard too young but I want to take advantage of his interest and ability. I have been doing a lot of searching but don't really see what I'm looking for already put together. I think what I would love is a clear 36 weeks of lessons with some kind of coherent storybook spine (like Life of Fred but more logical) for Monday, and then games/activities for 3 days, then maybe a worksheet or oral questions or math journal page to demonstrate he has learned the concept on Friday. I know there are soooo many wonderful math living books but I can't buy them all and I am not sure we will get to the library every week. Anyone know anything like this?

Great advice! Thanks! :)

Sorry it took me so long to respond! Thanks for the conversation :) We are going to do Math Mammoth for DS5 and let DS3 follow along again, and maybe let DS3 him do a K Star Wars workbook if he doesn't want to do MM.

Thanks, everyone! I am sorry it took me awhile to respond! I appreciate all the suggestions! I think we are actually going to use Ordinary Parent's Guide because it is so open and go and I can use it with both kids at the same time, just doing different lessons. I like that I can sit on the couch with them to do it, rather than at the table.

Kiara.l- Sorry I disappeared! I appreciate your thoughts! I think I am going to do Ordinary Parent's Guide for phonics instruction because I can snuggle on the couch with them while we do it and I can have 2 different post-its in it and use it for both kids. Pretty simple, leaving lots of time for reading and playing. mamakelly- Thanks for your response! I haven't seen the ETC books in person, except the workbooks. I am pretty sure I do NOT want workbooks for phonics. What are the readers like? (Are there readers?)

arliemaria- Sorry I disappeared there! We are doing it next year, so I haven't started using it yet. Like I said, we are going to do Old Testament passages next year to correlate with studying the ancients in SOTW. We are reading a passage a day, they are narrating what they remember back to me, and then illustrating or doing a coloring page. That's pretty much what we have been doing this year, except we have been doing it weekly (or biweekly) and they have been getting bored with the same story all week. What have you been doing?