I've used CLE for math and LA for 2nd and 3rd grade. I didn't really want anything "preachy" either, and CLE doesn't bother me - in fact, I think it's a great, thorough program. There are some scriptures quoted and used in both (more in LA than in Math) but I don't feel that it's teaching doctrine at all. Personally, I haven't tried FLL but for us, CLE is enough without going too overboard. Maybe someone else can answer that who is familiar with FLL.

Thank you!!

My daughter actually does NOT like the cd at all. She does the worksheets from the book (I make copies instead of having her write in the book) and has played the game online but she felt the cd was too young for her. I took latin and remember pronunciations, so we work on that a little, but we don't focus too much on it. I'm going to hang on to it for next year, though (my son will start K). BTW, what is GSWL? I couldn't find it on the abbreviations list.

My cousin, who is a director of a local church childcare, has said that studies show that in classrooms where classical music is played, the children are calmer than in other classrooms. Needless to say, I have it on when I can when we're home. It is a bit calming and relaxing and it does seem that the kids aren't at each other's throats as much.

I'm back again with more questions :) I'm currently researching a local co-op and the curriculum they're using and knew I could come here for answers. I've been able to find reviews and viewpoints for several of these (Saxon math, Shurley Grammer) but I'm not finding what I want to know with Abeka science (Understanding God's World) and I haven't yet made it to research BJU reading. First, with Abeka, what is it's viewpoint? Is it teaching the young earth/creationist views? I prefer a more secular view in my science curriculum, not so preachy or doctrine-heavy (right now, we're using MPAH) and while I know Abeka is Christian based, just how heavy is it? Second, my daughter is an advanced reader for her age. She is a voracious reader and will finish, as an example, a Magic Tree House book within an hour. Her current faves are Harry Potter, Artemis Fowl, The Warriors, Percy Jackson and the like. Would she be bored with the 4th grade BJU reading? Right now, I'm letting her free-read but also I'm using comprehension studies on individual books (we're getting ready to start Kidnapped) and that's about it for reading. If you have an opinion (good or bad) on Saxon math or Shurley Grammer, I'd love to hear those, too. Oh yeah, and my daughter will be in 4th next year.

This is exactly why I really like CLE and am hesitant to change but personally, I think third grade is waaay too soon to get into the "I hate math" mentality. I'd almost be willing to sacrifice a little of that if it means she's back to enjoying the learning process. Thanks for the input, everyone!

:lol: I have not looked at Math Mammoth yet. I'll be checking it out..

I've been using CLE math for my DD for two years now and I'm thinking she's "over it". She used to enjoy math but now it's become her least favorite. It's not difficult for her; she still works independently and does well, but she just doesn't like it. I know this sounds a little frilly, but Horizons seems to be so bright and colorful, I'm thinking it might be more fun for her next year. My questions surround the levels and how they compare. She's done CLE 200 and we're 1/2 way through 300. If we started in grade 4 of Horizons next year, would she still be on track, behind or ahead of Horizons? If not Horizons, should I look at something else? I do want to stick with the spiral approach because I like how it reviews a little every time. Thoughts? Thank you!

I'm posting this here not necessarily because I have a "special needs" child, but because I suspect he might be. Our son is only 4 years old, so I know getting him to focus and to listen will be a challenge anyway, but between the conferences I've had with his preschool teachers and my own personal experience, it seems to be more difficult than your "normal" child. I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for DH and I to try at home to help him to focus and transition between activities, helping him to be a better listener and "owning up" when he's done things wrong. Like I said before, I know that four-year-olds struggle with these things already (I've worked taking care of children at a gym for years so I have a lot of interaction with kids all ages), but DS seems to have even more difficulty with these things than I would expect. I welcome all suggestions of activities, books, etc, so thank you in advance. Shannon

I'm doing both this year, too. SOTW 2 and WP American Story 1. My DD loves history and reading, so for us, it works out nicely. I'm also treating them as two separate subjects, not just "history".

Keep in mind that as she's getting older, her other body systems are getting old, too, like her heart and eyes. She's not going to be able to control her bowels or bladder like she used to. Remember the dog years factor - she's 91 years old in human years. You probably need to change your pattern of how often you let her outside. If she's also arthritic, like ktgrok suggested, you might try carrying her since she's a small dog. Dogs can also get a little senile. She may just be forgetting she has to let you know to she needs to go. If she starts having bladder issues (which is very common in older females) your vet can prescribe a hormonal drug to help her bladder sphincter stay strong (sorry if that's TMI :) ). The best thing you can do is talk to your vet. He/she can give you better ideas and possible medical suggestions to help your little pup. I worked at an animal hospital for years and it's very common to see older pets having accidents in the house. It's not a matter of them being a bad dog, they're just slowly losing control of their bodies ~ just like we do as we get older. HTHs

Giving you another bump because I just found Wordsmith Apprentice and almost bought it used because I liked what I saw as I was flipping through. I didn't buy it though because I wasn't familiar with it or remembered any reviews. Anyone? Anyone?? :bigear:

I like tests and quizzes but I don't do anything really outside of what comes with CLE math/LA. I have the test book for SOTW but I use that more as worksheets than as tests. I like them because it's a good evaluation of where she is with different topics and concepts but also because she may not always be homeschooled and I want her to be comfortable with different test formats.

I was wondering if there is a spelling program/game that's available on a CD-rom format? I remember seeing something about Calvert having one when I was googling it but I couldn't find it on their website. I'm looking for something that DD can do on her own as a "fun" activity on the computer to supplement what we're doing in CLE. She already has several workbooks that we'll use in other subjects so I'm hoping something like this won't seem like work. I looked at AAS, SS and other suggestions from a previous thread about supplementing with spelling and decided she is young and may not really *need* an entire spelling curriculum at this point but something fun might help just enough. We don't have her computer hooked up to the internet so I hesitate to do anything "online". I also thought about something like Reading Rabbit or Jump Start but I wasn't sure if those were more "gamey" and less "learny" - if that makes sense... Anyway, thanks for your advice!

Thank you for all the suggestions! She is doing very well on her CLE tests; most of the time she doesn't miss any words at all. It's usually with her "fun writing" (we don't do a formal writing program right now). Looks like I have some researching to do :)! Thanks again.

I used to think my daughter was a natural speller but either she's getting lazy or just learning the tests. When she's writing things on her own, she's constantly misspelling words. I know she's only 7 but would anyone recommend adding a separate spelling? She'll be in CLE 300 next year. I've seen people talk about Spelling Work Out and AAS but I'm not really familiar with any of them. What would you suggest or not suggest and why/why not? Thanks!!

My DD has read most of those for 2nd grade along with fun reading of her choice like Magic Tree House, Nancy Drew, Black Stallion, the Percy Jackson books... Have you looked at Ambelside Online? (I think that's how it's spelled). They have a great book list and they even break it down into categories like Tall Tales, Fairy, Lit, and a few others I can't think of this early in the morning. That's where I found most of my lit books and several that you listed were on there.

We plan on going with Singapore's My Pals are Here 3/4. I've looked over one of the text books and corresponding activity book and like the way it's set up. I'll have to get used to some of the spelling "errors" because it's printed in Singapore and the spelling for some words is different than here (ex: "learnt" instead of learned and "tyre" instead of "tire") but other than that, looks good to me and it covers many different science topics, not just chemistry or biology.

Could you expand on what you mean by side stepping? Thanks! :)

I was wondering what you all do for writing out your lesson plans? I saw the well planned day planner and it's very pretty but I also noticed that it's limited to the subjects they've printed, plus one or two to fill in on my own. I used R&S's planner this year but I really only used it for about 6 months. I'd like something to break down the lesson plans by week and by subject but still have room for "extras" like project and supplies, field trips, things like that. If you make your own, which program do you use? If you get something from online, where do you go? I've looked at Donna Young's website, but they still aren't *quite* what I'm looking for. Thanks!! Shannon

which level CLE reading are you using?

testing, testing, one two three :)

:bigear:

We've used both CLE math and LA and love it. My dd picks up new concepts fairly easily, though. The thing I like about CLE math is that they continually review previous material. Each lesson gives a new concept (although sometimes it's just more of another concept they've already done. ie: last lesson we multiplied by 2's, now we're multiplying by 3's) and after a few problems with that, they do the "now we remember" concepts when they review what they've been doing so far. I love that spiral approach. Another thing I like is that there's no "textbook". We have the teacher's guide for me, which I use mainly for grading, and she has 10 different Light Units or workbooks. Each lesson is only about 5 pages long and it takes her about 15 minutes if she's not goofing around. There are 15 or so lessons per workbook with 2 quizzes and an end of the light unit test in each book. I like the quizzes and tests because it gives me a way to gauge how she's doing. All in all, I think CLE is excellent for teaching fundamental concepts. Oh, and Andrea is correct in that the levels are a little more ahead of the typical grade levels. I found out not too long ago that here, in the public schools, students don't start working on multiplication until 3rd grade. We're in 2nd grade (CLE level 200) and we've been doing multiplication since Christmas or so (the "easy" ones, though, like 0,1,2,3,5). HTH Shannon

Thanks for the link! I tried a search but didn't find that thread. Off to read it now.