Hmm, I'll look into those. Thank you!

I love both books but they were published in 2007 and 1995. I'm guessing things have changed a bit for some people around the globe in the last 16 and 28 years. Does anyone know of something similar but up-to-date within in the last decade? Children Just Like Me is already on my list.

Hi, DS has enjoyed LTofW 1. He's doing it in a small co-op setting with another mom as the instructor. The class is a blend of middle and high school students. They use their literature books as source material. He submits Essay 5 on Monday. Before this year I was not familiar with this style of writing instruction. The early lessons seemed ridiculously easy and pointless. But I trusted the process and am seeing solid results. I appreciate both the incremental approach and how it teaches tools for formulating an essay. My DS is a natural creative writing but essays and academic writing are another story. Now he's able to do both. I find the instructional videos very helpful as I try to learn the curriculum's vocabulary and pedagogy. Familiarity with The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe seems essential to understanding in the instructional videos and text. A familiarity with that story is assumed and it's used throughout to model. An unexpected benefit has been the change in how he processes the books he reads. He now reads more critically. I just asked him if he would recommend LTofW to another student. He replied, "Yes! It's really helped me. It was hard at first but I no longer feel freaked out about having to write an essay. I'm even starting to feel pretty confident." 😂

I've taken four students through 100EZ. We move on to the student reading various readers aloud for additional reading and pronunciation practice and add AAS. AAS fills in the phonogram gaps and helps a lot with not just teaching spelling but teaching how to figure out word pronunciation. I'm very happy with the results of this sequence.

I didn't see an option for legacy editions. Did you see that in their online store?

It's my first time to parent/teach 8th grade. I'm excited! Our oldest is academic and generally enthusiastic about learning lots of things. Here's my current plan. It's always subject to change. 😆 Math: MUS Algebra 1 Science: maybe Friendly Physical Science Writing: Lost Tools of Writing 2 Grammar: He's taken this year off grammar but I think I'm going to make him work through Analytical Grammar as a reminder/refresher. Latin: no sure. Maybe Cambridge. He's completed Getting Started and MP FF. We would continue with MP but he found it very tedious. Spanish: He's doing Getting Started with Spanish this year. I'm not sure where to go from here. He really wants to learn the Spanish. I wish I had the resources for outside tutoring/classes. History/Lit: TOG Yr 4 Geography: I'm fine with TOG's geography but he wants to do Guest Hollow's High School Geography. He LOVES geography and reading. We might spread it over two years. Music: continuing with Hoffman Academy. He's doing really well. PE: BJJ several times a week. I also hope to get him some coaching in proper running form so he can build up endurance without injuring himself. I can't believe next year is high school!! 😱🫣🥹

I just discovered the same thing and am surprised and in sticker shock, too. The price increase feels astronomical especially if you want hard copies of the teacher materials - which I do. Our oldest is currently in pre-algebra. I've always planned on doing MUS all the way through because it's worked for every one of our kids. Mr Demmes is the Math Guy here. I was looking forward to relearning algebra from him. There were so many other things I was wrestling with as we head towards high school. I'm so discouraged to add math curriculum to the list.

Our DS9 recently told me he would like to study birds. This is an exciting development. School is really hard for him and him asking to add a subject is a huge surprise. He's only recently become a proficient reader and is reading leaps and bounds beyond were he was this time last year. I'm so proud of him (and me 😆) for not giving up. Today, he read the first chapter of The Burgess Bird Book for Children then explored the House Wren entries in a Peterson Field Guide, National Geographic Field Guide, and DK Bird Visual Guide (all borrowed from the library). We then found samples of the songs and sounds of House Wrens on YouTube. I'm thinking to add a How To Draw a Wren and some basic bird identification printables. We're going to try and continue this process through each chapter of The Burgess Bird Book plus give him lots of outside time with his binoculars and a notebook. Is there anything else that's super low cost or free you would suggest? I can think of and find lots of $$$ fun things to add but I'm struggling to think of possibilities that fit in my no budget budget. 😜

I've learned both fixed and moveable and personally prefer movable. To me, the beauty of solfege is being able to sing/hear the whole and half steps between notes and sound out any scale. Fixed feels like just another name for the notes - C/do - whereas moveable feels like a tool to sound out a scale.

I'm not very familiar with Jules Verne. What Jules Verne book is both a great into to Verne and a fun read? Students are good readers, 10-11 years old. Thanks!

My boy is rapidly turning into a teen! Here's our current plan. Analytical Grammar Lost Tools of Writing (Co-op) Tapesty of Grace Yr 3 (history, geography, literature, worldview) Fallacy Detective Latin (Second Form, Cambridge, or something else. This is my only ??? in the plan. He's finishing FFL) Finishing MUS Zeta. Doing all of MUS Pre-Algebra Guest Hollow Botany (Labs in Co-op) Hoffman Acadamy Piano Weekly art class Jiu-Jitsu 3-4x a week Family Study (Bible, Catechism, devotions, art studies, poetry reading, memory work, etc) This is our first time through 7th grade so feedback is welcome. I want him to be challenged, learn a lot, and really enjoy the year. I don't want him to be bored either with dry content or too much or too little of a load. School isn't a struggle for him.

We've been looking at Guest Hollow's geography, too! Our oldest keeps asking for more geography but he doesn't just want a workbook. He solidly knows the world map. This looks perfect. After lots of looking, thinking, and chatting I think we'll to half the highschool course next year (8th gr) and the second half in 9th.

Our oldest is finishing 6th. He has almost completed FFL. My original plan was to work our way through the Form series. He's done really well with FF but I think if we stick with it, and go into SFL, he will burn out. He's currently ready to be finished. I'm looking at Cambridge. I think he'll engage with the storyline and history. He LOVES history and geography/culture studies. It doesn't look as rigorous (or maybe it just doesn't look as academic?) as the Form series but is it as solid? I've also thought about doing a run through GSWL to reinforce what he's learned in the last year and a half. It might be nice for him to have some "easy" practice/review. I think if we did 30 min a day, 3-4 days a week he could get through it pretty quickly then move on to something else. He's currently struggling with umderstanding why he is putting in all this effort for a language no one speaks. We've talked about it a fair amount but he still doesn't yet see the practical point. He also doesn't realize how much he's learned. I'm wondering if GSWL would be a moral boost. My goals for latin study are for him to have a functional understanding of the language, a deeper understanding of grammer, a foundation to learn other Romance languages, and to work his brain in a different way than the rest of our humanities-focuses coursework. I'd love anyone's feedback.

This is an intriguing idea. I've appreciated the assistance of vendors during the conferences I've attended. I have missed conferences and exhibition halls these last few years. They haven't been readily available in my area due to Covid. What qualifications do you want consultants to have?

We're very happy with MUS. I starting my fourth student this year. Oldest student is almost finished with Epsilon. We use the DVDs. I also really appreciate their customer service and teacher support.

As a student, I used a couple modules of VideoText Algebra 20 years ago. It really helped me wrap my brain around basic algebra and that it could have a useful purpose. I'm interested in starting the course with my oldest, next year. I have one objection - the videos were dated vhs quality when I used them. Have the instructional videos been updated since then? I found what appears to be some samples online but they are all the same, old lessons I saw 20 years ago. If they haven't been updated, is it now old and grainy enough to be vintage cool to your students? 😛

Has anyone been able to compare the quality of MP Art Posters and SCM Picture Study prints in person? I know I can find a lot of art online but I'd like some physical prints for my children. Is there another source for quality prints that you would recommend? Historically, we'll be studying from the fall of Rome to the John Adams' Administration this school year (TOG Yr2).

Thank you for sharing! I've looked at those diagramming books online but am unsure what level would be best after FLL3. Did your dd start with the first book?

My 9DS has completed FLL 1-3. I know I want to move him to Fix It 1 but I think I want to wait until next year. What would you recommend for a one year bridge? I'd like to keep building on his sentence diagramming skills as well as retain all the parts of speech, etc that he's worked so hard to learn. He's a bright dude but has to put effort into learning language arts.

Not_a_Number, our first is just easy. He has grasped every concept without much struggle. He learned to read without drama, is a natural speller, understands math concepts, is grasping Latin with ease, etc. His biggest hurdle is he's a perfectionist and if learning something new requires a bit of effort, or he makes a careless mistake, he is sure he's stupid and falls apart. Academics are easy for him. His battle is with his emotions and self talk. Our second has to work for language arts. He's a fabulous reader but he has to put effort into spelling and has to actually learn and apply spelling rules. We sometimes have to go over spelling and grammar concepts a couple times before the concept and application sticks. He grasps math concepts well. He is confident and keeps his emotions bottled up. Our third struggles. He is 8 and just beginning to read. We did 100EL together and it was a bust. I tried two other programs; those also failed. We returned to 100EL and went slowly with added readers to give additional practice and keep things interesting. It's finally clicking. He also struggles to retain math concepts. He is also a perfectionist but shuts down when he's having a hard time. Progress is slow. He is an extremely kinesthetic kid. He likes to tinker and try to figure out how things work but doesn't give a hoot about academics. When he was six he told me he was, "perfectly fine growing up and being an adult who doesn't know how to read like the factory workers in the industrial revolution." That's when I realized that while it was pulling teeth to get him through his language arts and math, he was hearing, retaining, and processing all the history and science I was reading aloud to his older brothers. He still remembers their history and science better than they do and can orally describe science experiments and demonstrations with great detail. He's also finally accepted that illiteracy is not an option. I think his desire to read Nathan Hales Hazardous Tales, TinTin, and Calvin & Hobbes books have helped give him the needed motivation. 🙂 Our daughter is rearing to go. She's five but I'm intentionally holding her back. I know it won't harm her long term. Once we put her on the track and let go she'll take off. I felt, rather strongly, that her brother needed some space to get his academic feet under him, and development some confidence in his personal strengths, before she goes flying past him. I'm pretty confident she'll be reading fluently by Christmas. We'll see how she does with the spelling, grammar, and math. At this point she's known to give phonics, grammar, history, and science answers for them when they're slow to respond to my questions. 😛 That's a pretty long winded response to your question. Hopefully it makes sense and you can see what I mean by different academic strengths.

I've gone from 100EL to All About Spelling with our three sons. Each has very different academic strengths and learning styles but that progression has been successful each time. I'm now doing 100EL with our daughter and plan to start AAS once she's reading. I hope you find a progression that works for you and your son!

I mostly lurk on this forum and glean from y'all's experience and wisdom but I thought I'd hop in on this thread. Feel free to give feedback. Our oldest is in 5th this school year. I always feel unsure of my plans for him vs his younger siblings because he's our first. DS is a loquacious, artistic, passionate human. Academics have never been hard for him. Therefore, whenever he has to put in basic extra effort for something new, he feels defeated. It's a thing but we're learning ways to help him navigate his self-defeat while also giving him appropriate and needed affirmation. As someone who had significant learning hurdles during elementary and middle school, it's eye opening to see we can all feel inadequate, even when we're doing great. Anyway, here's the current plan and what he's (we've 😁) accomplished thus far in his education. Tapestry of Grace Yr 1 (History, Literature, Bible, Geography, Fine arts) - We're starting our second cycle through TOG and the kids are super excited to do ancients again. For additional geography we'll be doing Geography Songs as part of our family learning time and DS will be doing Map Asia 1. He has already memorized several songs from Geography Songs and is completing Draw Europe. Catechism & Scripture Memory W&R Bks 3&4 - We started this mid year and he's completed Bk 1 and we're working on Bk 2. I really love the writing in this curriculum! It's enjoyable for us both and not remotely dry. It's his first formal writing instruction and he's already showing growth. In the future I might switch us to TOG's Writing Aids but for now, W&R is serving us well. R&S Spelling 5 - He's completed AAS 1-4. He's pretty much a natural speller (unlike his mama). I'm not sure how much longer we'll do formal spelling vs pulling spelling words from his writing assignments. Fix It Bk 2 - He's completed FLL 1-3 and Fix It Bk 1. He's enjoying the format of Fix-It so we're sticking with it. Handwriting - still deciding. It 's bizarre that this is the subject that always gives me angst. Primarily, I find the cost of most handwriting books outrageous. He can already write well in script and cursive and, when he so chooses, it looks good too. MUS Epsilon - He's completed Primer - Gamma and is wrapping up Delta. Multiplication Facts That Stick & Division Facts That Stick as fun review and reinforcement. Finish Science in the Beginning and do Science in the Ancient World with note booking. He's completed Evan-Moor Daily Science Gr 1-4 (I don't love this series). I really love Dr Wile's approach in his elementary science curriculum. We had a lot of fun doing some last year. I hope to prioritize it this year. Nature Reader bk 4 - He's just working his way through the series. Art classes with private teacher and brothers - pencils and watercolor. We've been able to do this a couple of years. If Covid prevents it this fall I think we'll attempt Draw Squad and maybe monthly Let's Make Art videos on YT. Hoffman Academy + mom for piano and music theory. Water polo and swimming if the pool is allowed to reopen and the team is allowed practice. If not, we may have to set up some kind of home workout routine. I'm beginning to wonder if it's time to start MP First Form Latin. Does anyone have feedback on this? I've read a few threads here and it seems to be highly regarded as a solid, well-paced, program for parents who aren't confident in the subject. DS's been introduced to Latin via SSL 1 years ago and they still listen to the CD occasionally or watch the DVD. I know long term, Latin in is our education plan I'm just not sure when or how to start. I have no background in Latin. DH took Latin in college. If we do MP First Form Latin I'll probably go with the companion cursive handwriting for him. It's more than I prefer to spend but I think he would really enjoy the content.

My son has completed FLL 1 and 2 and has done very well. We started Level 3 this year. I'm trying to decide if we should move to Level 4 when finished or transition to something new like IEW Fit-It. Will we miss important instruction if we move away from FLL before completing the entire series? Is completing Levels 1-3 a solid foundation? While FLL has served us well, I think we'll both be ready for something different by the end of this year. Thanks!

I think this is my plan :p Reading: lots of books (BOB, various Readers and easy reader books) He will have completed 100EZ by Fall. Spelling: AAS Level 1 Math: MUS Alpha Bible/Science/Character: MFW-K (skipping their reading and math) PE: Swimming lessons, walks, wrestling with daddy, livin' life. Arts: Classical Kids cds, lots of classical music, Come Look With Me books, general exposure.

Thank you for your feedback! I really appreciate it!! We'll keep on with 100EZ and wrap that up before moving into AAR. We do read a lot of books together. Last week I had him read a BOB book on his own. He was delighted! We were then at the store and he was sounding out words he saw. At one point he started to giggle, "Mom, this is incredible! Everywhere I turn letters are turning into words!" I confess I teared up with delight. He was so happy! Thank you again!