I'm trying to plan out our next school year and am having a bit of an indecisive moment. My ds 6 is finishing up FLL 1 and doing really well with it. He looks forward to grammar and is retaining everything he learns. I am loathe to change things since FLL is working, but I already own R&S English which I used with my eldest. Dd has done very well with R&S though I can't say that grammar is her favorite subject. My original plan was to transition him into R&S 2 after he completed this school year. I'm starting to think I shouldn't change a horse in midstream. So, question: If I continue FLL through FLL 2 with ds, will he be ready for R&S 3 when he is done? Does FLL 1 & 2 cover basically the same material as R&S 2? TIA :bigear:

:iagree: Actually when you said, "What a black day!" My mind immediately conjured up big black storm clouds. I think of a darkened, gloomy sky, not of race at all.

I did this our first year....Google and photocopying pictures from Kingfisher. Never again. :tongue_smilie:

Working Title Dayschool

I second the Homeschool in the Woods suggestion. I think Sonlight's timeline figures are made by Homeschool in the Woods anyway. I bought the CD of Homeschool in the Woods figures to print out on my own since I figured out it would be cheaper across 4 kids' timeline books.

I voted based on what my eldest answered. The answer is different though for my two kids currently doing full-time school (I don't count my 4 year old since she's still in phonics/worksheet phase.). My dd would consider grammar her least favorite subject though she says she doesn't hate it or anything. She tells me she kind of likes diagramming sometimes (shhh!). My ds dislikes history. I hope this changes in the future, but for now he dislikes it. My dd's favorite subject is reading. My ds's favorite is math.

I'm no expert on spelling curriculums. I've only ever tried 3: Spelling Workout, Spelling Power, and Rod & Staff's Spelling by Sound and Structure. But my dd, likes yours was reading at a much higher grade level, while her spelling was lagging way behind her reading/writing ability. Spelling Workout just flat didn't work for her. Spelling Power caused frustration and tears because of the pre-test method used and I felt it was too teacher intensive to implement well. R&S Spelling has been amazing. Her spelling is much improved, she's learning spelling rules/patterns, and it requires very little from me so I can focus on other subjects more. I don't have any idea why it clicked and the others didn't, but that has been my experience.

:lurk5: I'm doing a modified Year 2 next year as well. I felt it was rushing through the Middle Ages/Reformation/Renaissance period. I've already altered our "Year Two" schedule to take it more slowly. I'll have to keep all this in mind as we head into Years 3 and 4. This is a very helpful thread :001_smile:.

Good stuff.

Yup, the 2-inchers are just the right size. The pages aren't squished, but they're not swimming in there either. In case this makes a difference for you... I also have the Redesign Print Package from TOG. I know they offer a service where they print out the DE packages for an added fee and I'm not sure if the paper weight is the same. I hate to keep qualifying my answer, but I don't want to lead you astray :001_smile:.

I have my units in 2 inch binders. (no page protectors) :001_smile: To clarify: One 2-inch binder for EACH unit. So, four 2-inch binders per year.

I didn't know R&S went into that much detail. I did learn all of that in elementary school. I've gone over it a bit with my kids, but I haven't focused on it. I'll be interested to see what responses you get. :lurk5:

:iagree:Yup, what she said. I used to use Sonlight. I wish I had started with TOG from the beginning. I would have saved some money actually. TOG has made it amazingly easy to combine my two oldest kids in history.

Have you tried Rod and Staff's Spelling by Sound and Structure? It's not terribly pricey.

Cuisenaire Rods Base 10 set Geared clock Pattern Blocks Letter/Letter Blends Phonics "Puzzle" pieces from the Veritas Press Phonics Museum set...I don't know if they are sold separately or not. They are letters that hook together like puzzle pieces for making words.

Go into a Barnes and Noble, tell them you are a homeschooler and fill out a form. I think I showed them my HSLDA member card to prove I was a homeschooler. I live in a state with no reporting and such, so I assume if one lives in a state with some type of registration, "proof" could be acquired in other ways.

I've used this with two of my kids. They really liked it. There are some hands on activities mixed throughout. We had some activities with magnets and electrical circuits. There was also some seed sprouting as I recall though we didn't do that one. However, personally I DON'T like lots of hands on activities which may account for my opinion of the series : ). We skipped the ones I didn't feel we had time for. I used it for K.

I used this book with my eldest dd and eldest ds when they were preschool aged. They both enjoyed it. As for the binding...I've heard lots of people complain about the binding but we haven't had an issue with ours. I've probably just jinxed myself now that I am getting ready to haul it out for my third child....

Excellent post :001_smile:

Is the Art of Problem Solving Algebra text a complete Algebra program? And if so, could it be taught from the text/solution manual alone without the online component? Is it very instructor-dependent, or student-driven in the introduction of concepts? My dd generally prefers to read/learn on her own...I only step in when she needs clarification. When I've seen this program mentioned it sounded as though people were using it to go deeper into a topic, so I was mainly wondering if this should be used AFTER a child is fluent in Algebra or if it can be used alone to introduce Algebra. TIA :001_smile:

Great link! Thank you :001_smile:

:iagree:This is what I remember from my Psych. Assessment class in college, too.

I need to get this. I love Michael Horton's work. Although The White Horse Inn can get depressing in large doses.

It sounds like it might be helpful for you to find a good systematic theology text and work your way through it. Even if you are not in agreement with the author the ones I've seen usually describe different beliefs about the different theological topics/categories and you would get a feel for where you fit in and what the "labels" are for each one. I'm at a loss for recommendations though. I used one by Millard Erickson in college called Christian Theology but I've heard lots of folks recommend Wayne Grudem's.

I was a long time lurker on the old boards (I think I posted once or twice.). I didn't start posting on the new boards until a year or so ago.