:bigear: :lurk5: Jackie

I'm interested in using the lesson plans that you inked, can you tell me if it's a 29 week plan or 11 month plan? The description on Lulu says it includes both, but someone posted complaining that it only included one -- but she didn't say which one! Thanks, Jackie

Exactly! I live in New Mexico, so I plan to cover state history in depth when we do the "Westward Expansion" component of US History, but we're always doing little field trips and pointing out historical sites. I *hated* state history when I was a kid (in NJ); it seemed like a whole year of memorizing lists of names and dates and battles with no connection to real life. I'm determined to do a much more hands-on, you-are-there, "living history" sort of approach with my own kids. Jackie

I'm not Laura, but my 11 year old DS also manages his own week. In terms of a "crash course," here's what I did: I cut up some strip magnets and wrote subjects on them with a sharpie. Each magnet represented either one lesson (e.g. math) or 30-40 minutes of work (writing, reading, etc), and I made the number of magnets for each subject represent the amount of work I expected in a week (e.g. 5 math lesson magnets, 2 history chapter magnets, 1 vocabulary lesson, etc). I mounted 2 small magnetic white boards above his desk and he moves the magnets from the left board to the right board as he finishes them. He decides what days and in what order to do things. He usually decides to get his least favorite subjects out of the way first, and on several occasions he's chosen to work really hard for 3-4 days and have a day or two that's totally free. Other weeks he gets a slow start and then has to slog through the last day or two, or even work on Saturday, so he learns the consequence of procrastination and the value of good time management. He has attention issues and is by nature very disorganized, so I hope that by the time he gets to college, this will be second-nature to him. Jackie

I'd like to know this as well...

This is exactly what we did -- we rented for the first six months to make sure DD6 (who was then 5) would stick with it, then at the end of 6 months we applied the rental money ($90) towards purchase (~$400). A year later she has moved up in size, so we traded the old one in for full value and got a larger one for about $30 more. I think most good music shops let you do that. Both of her violins have been excellent quality, with a beautiful tone. My DH bought a really cheap violin in England a few years ago and there is a huge difference in the quality of sound. Jackie

K12 is the publisher. There are some used copies available through Amazon Marketplace, and the ISBN is there in the listing if you want to check for it on other used books sites: http://www.amazon.com/Human-Odyssey-Prehistory-Through-Middle/dp/1931728534

K12 Human Odyssey is a very straightforward 7th-8th grade survey of world history. I'm using volume 1 at the moment, in conjunction with an Oxford University Press series on the ancient world, but the textbook alone would be fine if you wanted to get through the material quickly. Volume 2 covers 1400-1914, and Volume 3 covers 1914 to the present (I think this one is 9th grade level?). You can often pick them up used for $25-30. Jackie

I also use cuisenaire rods, but I mix and match Singapore & Miquon with DD6. She'd probably be fine without them, she's a very verbal/logical learner, but I feel like the rods help *me* explain things. I used base 10 blocks a lot with DS11, not just to demonstrate concepts but for him to actually work the problems. He's a visual/spatial learner, and doing math by writing abstract symbols on paper was really frustrating for him. I honestly don't think he could learn math without manipulatives. Jackie

RS4K Chemistry 2 is very good at explaining real chemistry concepts in terms that younger kids can understand. IMHO it is by far the best of all the RS4K books, so if your daughter is not big on science and has never had chemistry, that might be a good introduction. The RS4K books are VERY short, though, they are not even close to a whole year's curriculum, so you would need to supplement quite a lot. The author also does not provide any lab suggestions for Chem II (she says students should design their own labs) so you would have to supply that component on your own. I think Noeo Chemistry II would be an excellent program for a "non-sciencey" 7th grader. It would cover all the basics in terms she would understand, and would be a lot more fun than just a standard textbook. I've been really impressed so far with the Noeo recommended books. (We're just starting biology using the Noeo Bio I & II books, but not the Noeo schedule. I'm using CPO Life Science as a spine, but that's very textbooky, which you probably don't want.) Jackie

I second the K12 Human Odyssey suggestion. Volume 1 is a very good survey course from prehistory through the Middle Ages. I bought a used copy on ebay for about $25. I also highly recommend two series published by Oxford University Press: The World in Ancient Times (9 volumes) and The Medieval and Early Modern World (7 volumes). Each set includes volumes on specific topics (Greece, Rome, Medieval Europe, etc) as well as a volume of primary sources that goes with the set. The Medieval set also includes volumes on Exploration and Science & Revolution. The sets are expensive to buy new, but you can pick up most of the volumes used on Amazon. Amazon also carries the student guide and teachers guide for many of the volumes. The TGs are excellent and include chapter summaries, topics for discussion, assignments, etc. Both series are aimed at grades 6-8, and they are very well done. I especially like the emphasis on primary sources, daily life, etc., not just dates & battles. Jackie PS: I like Gombrich's A Little History of the World (we have the audiobook), but IMHO it's too basic for a 6th grader and would not constitute a year-long history course without a LOT of additional reading.

Although I think the RS4K books are pretty good (I bought most of them), I think the grade levels she puts on the books are way off. The Level 1 books are supposed to be grades 4-6, but they are very very basic, I would say they're appropriate for a 2nd-3rd grader. I'm using Biology 1 with my 1st grader now. RS4K also does not cover a full year, there is maybe a semester's worth of material there -- and that's if you took it slow and supplemented a lot. Have you looked at Noeo Biology II? http://www.noeoscience.com/bioII.html I'm just starting to use some of the Noeo books along with CPO Life Science with my DS11. (CPO is secular, though, I'm not sure if that's what you're looking for.) Jackie

If what your son really wants to do is drop out and go to work, and what you want is for him to keep homeschooling, then getting a GED seems like a reasonable compromise to me. He will still need additional "schooling" to study for the GED, and the test at least assures you that he has a certain level of education, plus it gives him a qualification he may need later. The one thing I would insist on besides the usual GED studies would be some sort of financial skills course, to make sure he can handle those aspects of his life independently. I think the success of any child's education should be judged by whether it got the child to where the child wanted/needed to be. It sounds like you've done an excellent job with your son -- much better than the school system would have -- and at 17 he's pretty close to where he wants to be: working for a living. Good for him, and good for you, for getting him there! Jackie

What a fantastic list of resources, thank you so much Lori! :hurray: Jackie

They do publish teacher's manuals, but I don't have them. I don't do much formal testing, we usually just discuss things so I have a good idea if they understand the material or not. If I wanted to use the online tests, I would probably just print it out and fill in the answers as I read through the chapter, to make my own answer key. The books are also VERY well laid out, with one topic per page, so if you happen to forget the difference between diffusion and osmosis and need to check your child's work, you can flip to the pages that say "Diffusion" and "Osmosis" at the top and quickly find the answer. :) I like the more open-ended activities at the end of each chapter, for example: "Write a letter to a friend from the perspective of an amoeba, paramecium, or euglena. Tell your friend what you've been up to lately. Be creative!" Or "Your friend thinks the world would be better off without bacteria. Convince him that bacteria are vital to life on Earth using at least three specific examples." Jackie

I just looked at their website again, because I know the prices were on there about 2 months ago, but I don't see them now. I think it was around $60 for the text & workbook set. I got all of mine on ebay for under $20 though. Jackie

:iagree: Singapore Early Bird supplemented with Miquon and cuisinaire rods would provide an excellent (and fun) foundation in math concepts. I wish DS11 had learned math this way, I'm now trying to backtrack a bit and give him a better conceptual understanding instead of just a rote/mechanical one. He loved math in 1st grade, but public school textbooks fixed that! DD6 is getting the benefit of hindsight; I am starting her in Miquon and Singapore while she still thinks math is fun! Jackie

FWIW I live in a university town and people sell their used textbooks on Craigslist all the time. The prices are definitely not "yard sale level," they are quite comparable to ebay prices. People might expect to pay $1 for a 20 year old chemistry text at a yard sale, but surely no one thinks they'd get a $120 current edition for $1! Maybe you could include the retail price on your price tags? If the tag said something like "New $85, my price $40" (or whatever) maybe you wouldn't get so much haggling. And if you advertise to the local homeschool groups, then they should (theoretically) know what the stuff is worth. As someone else said, I'd be absolutely thrilled to find good used curriculum at a yard sale! Jackie

Boy did I need need to hear this today! For someone who has only recently started homeschooling, and who has been obsessed with researching and reviewing and trying so many different curricula trying to find the "perfect fit" for my kids, this was a welcome voice of sanity! I think I will print out your post and hang it over my desk, as a reminder that the most important component of my children's curriculum is..... me. :) Thanks you! Jackie

That was me. :-) http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95511 I *love* the CPO books, they are by far the best secular middle-school level science books I've ever found. They make a great spine, too, if you want to supplement with other "living" books. I plan to use several of the Noeo-recommended books as supplements. Jackie

Thanks so much for this! The weather forecast looks good here, I may even try to drag the kiddoes out of bed for this one! Jackie

If anyone is looking for a secular textbook-based middle school science program, I highly recommend CPO Science. It's completely secular, the company that publishes it is owned by a physicist from MIT. I have all three sets (Life Science, Physical Science, Earth Science) and I've been really impressed with them. I also bought several standard middle school & high school science texts (Pearson, Prentice Hall, Holt, etc.), and the thing that drives me nuts about them is they're so busy and distracting, with 47 colors and sidebars and bulleted lists and every fourth word highlighted, that it's incredibly difficult to sort through it and find the actual information. IMHO the CPO books have a much cleaner design, the illustrations are excellent, and the material is presented in a clearer and more straightforward way. Each chapter summary also includes some math problems and interesting writing prompts. You can check out sample chapters and table of contents on the website: http://dev.cpo.com/home/Default.aspx?alias=dev.cpo.com/home/2 There is a TON of free resources on the website, including Powerpoint slides, graphic organizers, student worksheets, tests & quizzes, mini-videos, and science simulations, as well as correlations to state standards for several states, if that's important to someone. Click on "For Educators" then click on the subject (e.g. "Middle School Life Science"). You will find the resources in three sections, under Presentation Slides, Media (videos & simulations), and Ancillaries (quizzes, organizers, etc). Even if you're not interested in the books, check out the Ancillaries subsection called "Teaching Illustrations" for excellent free poster-type graphics (e.g. cell structure, human anatomy, geologic processes). And best of all, the 2007 editions are available on ebay, brand new, for under $20 for the set of hardcover textbook plus softcover workbook -- just search for "CPO science" and you'll have plenty of choices. The only disadvantage is that the lab workbooks were written with the assumption that the student would be using the CPO lab materials, so for some of the suggested experiments you would need to cobble together your own equipment or skip that particular experiment. But for me the lab workbooks are basically a free bonus anyway, so that doesn't bother me. (I don't have any connection to this company, these were recommended to me on another list and I was amazed to find them because I'd never heard of them before, so I'm just passing it on, since I know a good secular middle school science text is hard to find.) Jackie

AAS = All About Spelling