My son was similar. Two things that have helped were series with LOTS of books, written at a level he found interesting (Magic School Bus, I Survived, Animorphs) & getting him hooked on a series of graphic novels that were also produced as standard novels (Warriors). He has loved getting a deeper experience of Warrior adventures / characters that are already familiar by reading the novels! ETA: Also, reserving a block of “school time” for reading. Despite my willingness to define words, explain concepts, & answer questions outside of lessons DS for whatever reason is willing to tackle much more challenging reading during his “school reading” time than when he is independently pleasure-reading.

Along this same vein, I would recommend the Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children series. There are currently 5 books in the series. No mature themes that I’ve come across, though they are violent (primarily in a fantastical way).

I have had good luck with Project Gutenberg on both my phone & tablet. We’re currently in the 3rd book of the Anne of Green Gables series, Anne of the Island, & the PG site both keeps my place & has hyperlinks at the beginning that shortcut to each chapter - which makes it easier to refer back to something you read previously, then return to your spot.

This is fabulous. Is it frustrating that the fact that female authors have much to say, in ways unique to how male authors treat similar subject matter, necessitates explicit spelling-out in this day & age (Which I assume is the basis of the mansplaining complaints)? Absolutely. I would still prefer the observation be made & the topic be broached. Like it or not, there are still many men in the world who place greater value on the words of other men than those of women purely by virtue of their gender. Those men will pay far greater attention to a man recommending these titles than a woman & anything that helps to disseminate women's thoughts among those closed-off populations is valuable. With any luck, women’s lit will indeed “open their universe a little wider,” - ideally to include the thoughts of the women in their everyday lives.

I agree; intimate knowledge of a skillset enables you to break rules strategically in ways that can be far more impactful than being ignorant of them or disregarding them entirely. There are individuals who are naturally gifted in the arts, who are driven to create in their own way & can skip large swaths of skill development just as others might in mathematics or science or languages. If you find yourself presented with one then by all means get out of their way & allow them to develop - but most children will need the sequential scaffolding to develop.

This is definitely a concern I have for my DS, who is very mathy, but young with relatively slow processing speed. I think if we do end up enrolling in classes we’ll do the WTM offerings or, if we can swing it, in-person at the Academy.

Are you attempting to edit as he goes, or letting him complete an assignment & then returning all edits at once? Correcting him as he works may be frustrating and distracting, whereas making revisions their own assignment may go over better - especially if he can see over time that he is making fewer & fewer errors. Also, be sure to discuss with him before you move to a new level of revising so he doesn’t freak out when suddenly there are more mistakes again. It’s a good thing, he’s “leveled up” (& you know he can handle it)!

As we wrap up our year, I’m beginning to look back & assess how things have gone. I’m pretty content overall, but one area in which I feel we struggle is literature. I feel as if we just don’t get through all that much. This school year (3rd grade) I’ve read aloud 5 novels, DH has read aloud 5 novels, & we’ve listened to 4 as a family on audiobook. DS really only enjoys literature at bedtime & because we trade off (DH works 4 on / 4 off & reads on whichever nights he’s home) each novel takes quite a while to complete. For history we’ve read half of HQ Middle Times, excerpts from Usborne Encyclopedias, DK The Elements, & a smattering of topical picture books. I feel like curriculum book lists are always a mile long. Is this a decent amount, or should I be pushing to include more? At what point do you typically begin additional literature-related work beyond discussion such as writing assignments? (FWIW, I feel like DS reads plenty - he’s read >50 novelettes, novellas, & novels this year.)

I would definitely nip this sort of snark in the bud. You have a responsibility, as his parent and his teacher, to assist him in developing key skills. One aspect of that is acting as his editor - which is a critical relationship writers of all levels rely upon. You will not tolerate him degrading your role or taking offense to you doing your job. Period. For editing, I would set the expectation going forward that writing seldom has only one draft. Each composition will be turned in, edited, & then revised. At first focus only spelling, grammar, & mechanics. Once he is making few errors in those areas you can expand revisions to include rephrasing, adding additional information, etc. Do not accept final drafts without every error addressed. If he can type well, that will help ensure final drafts are error-free without requiring numerous laborious revisions.

Honestly, this sounds mostly like the end-of-year blahs. It’s your first homeschooling year. You’ve dealt with the pandemic, big changes, the major illness of a loved one - it’s a lot. Congratulate yourselves for getting through several big changes more-or-less unscathed, shelve the leftovers, & be done. Once you’ve had a break, take some time to look back over the year; often you’ve completed more than you think. Then begin to make a plan for increased success next year, focusing on having concrete consequences for know trouble areas & incorporating more of things that went well.

What was your response when he was “careless” on quizzes, or turned in a final draft that was “a mess”? Did you accept the work? Were there any consequences for not completing the work to your standards? Why have you chosen to homeschool him & what reasons do you have for wanting to continue? What does he dislike about homeschooling? Is he sharing his opinion (reasonably) respectfully? Do you agree that his complaints are areas for improvement? If the two of you could open a dialogue about how things have gone - perhaps once the year is completed & both of you have had a short break - that may lead to some solutions. At the very least it would give him an opportunity to feel heard & you an opportunity to hear him out without the distraction of what else should be getting done at that moment.

Yep. Right now DS still needs me to “body double” nearly 100% of the time, even when he is doing completely independent work. I’m able to accommodate because he is a singleton, but will have to very intentionally pull back as he gets older. His ADHD means he’s likely to always crave / benefit from that more than is typical, but we can also find ways for him to access the focusing presence of others more independently - such as by studying at a tea shop or in the library.

I would vastly prefer not to, as well, & appreciate your recommendations. The Crash Course video is great & Abina and the Important Men looks promising, as well. Things Fall Apart is wonderful, I read it years ago but a refresher for my own reference wouldn’t hurt. I’ll take at the rest later. Looking forward to them! Thank you.

I plan to sign DS9 up for MOEMS next year. It seems the easiest one to get started with & gauge DS’ interest in competitive mathematics. If he enjoys it, I’ll reach out to a nearby school district & see if they’d be willing to allow him to join their MathCounts team. Never mind, this isn’t allowed. Independent or bust, apparently. 🤷🏻‍♀️ In other news, I’ve found another family that might join DS to form a MOEMS team as part of a local tournament!! Now I just need to find two others…🤞🏼

Oh, perfect! We’re reading that as our first book for the Early Modern era. I may stick with the original, then, as opposed to the Junior Classic I had planned. I wouldn’t be surprised if they edited out much of what would be objectionable for a children’s adaptation.

Thank you all! I’ll look through these later this week. ☺️

We’ll be covering sugarcane & it’s impacts earlier in our “journey”. In fact, I believe I have that exact book earmarked to pre-read! 🙂

Yes, these two are well-known titles that at least allude to or (arguably) allegorically represent the idea. I plan to use this pair to spur discussions, but I’d love something that tackles the topic more explicitly. Ideally something set in India, or the countries of Southeast Asia & Africa - especially if there’s anything out there from the point of view of those being colonized.

I have the makings of (I hope) a pretty thorough coverage of imperialism in the Americas during the 16th-18th centuries & I’d like to continue exploring that theme as we move forward through time, so I’m looking for literature recommendations that depict European Imperialism in Africa & Asia during the late 19th & early 20th centuries. ETA: Aside from The Secret Garden & The Jungle Book

Something people tend to overlook… Library Purchase Requests. 📚 Most homeschoolers I know frequent the library, but when a particular resource isn’t available they shrug their shoulders & move on. Submit a purchase request! If you’re searching for it, chances are others are, too - or at the very least would pick it up if they saw it. Tailoring the catalogue to those who make frequent use of their services is a huge part of how libraries work & keeping materials circulating is critical to keeping them well-funded. Now is a great time to begin submitting requests for materials you’ll need in the upcoming school year; the process takes some time.

For the purpose of clarification - high school level, or only the high school calendar years? Do materials from all high school level courses completed during prior school years need to be kept, only those from 8th grade, or none (assuming further coursework in the subject will make completion of prior material obvious)?

I was; mea culpa. That sounds like an excellent idea. Perhaps give her the choice - take a year of review / tutoring + Personal Finance to prepare for Algebra 2 the following year, or go ahead & tackle Algebra 2 this year knowing it’ll be more of a stretch. That way she can weigh the difficulty against her other planned courses (this year & next) to make an informed decision. It’d be good practice for balancing course loads at the community college.

It is in her best interest, as well as the best interest of her future students, for her to take Algebra 2. That said, she does not need to take it this year. She could take Algebra 1B alongside Personal Finance this year as preparation for Algebra 2 her senior year. I know, I know - two math classes - but with her previous Algebra I grade being high & personal finance being recommended it sounds like they will be two relatively easy, confidence-boosting math classes. It would also refresh her knowledge of algebra so that she’ll be better-prepared for Algebra 2 while still taking an elective math course with other students.

Our approach is pretty similar to Lori’s. The books DS has access to during lessons are at or just above his reading level, since I’m there to help him tackle unfamiliar words. I was planning to drop the reading requirement as part of lessons next year, but he just explicitly requested that we keep it, so keep it we shall. Until recently his bedtime free reading was at a lower level, but he’s now getting confident enough to wrestle with those independently. Series that gradually become more challenging are excellent for this! The literature we read aloud to him is of a higher level than he would choose to read himself; generally by at least one full grade level.

DS9 is 2E with ADHD; a careful balance of routine & novelty really helps our days run smoothly. We start our days at 9am in a dedicated “classroom” space & begin with a tabletop game (routine). Games are highly motivating to him & give him time to wake up / transition into an academic mindset. He has a multi-drawer shelf that his work is filed into workbox-style, which allows him to change the order of subjects from day to day (novelty). We begin a composition curriculum in Aug-Sept, stop to participate in NaNoWriMo from Oct-Dec, then return to a curriculum* from Jan-May (novelty). NaNoWriMo has become a beloved tradition he looks forward to each year (routine). We also rotate other LA strands - grammar, poetics, vocabulary, spelling, typing - spending a month or two on one before moving to another (novelty)… but we continue using the same curriculum for each topic - AAS for spelling, MCT for the rest (routine). He reads 30min from a book of his choice every day & DH or I read 30min of literature each night before bed (routine). We use the same highly-engaging mathematics program all year (routine), which works for him largely because it’s mastery-based & changes topics every 2-3wks (novelty). History & science are rotated weekly (novelty) using curricula that take a chronological approach to history & focus on a single area of science for the year (routine). *the composition curriculum we return to is not necessarily the one we started with. We have used multiple levels of MCT, CAP W&R, IEW, & Killgallon.