Those of you who use this curriculum, do you have/need the teacher's guide? I saw it on the Rainbow Resources site and wondered if it's really needed? I looked through one of the text books today (and corresponding activity book) and it seems at first glance, I could get by without the guide. Thanks!!

How long are you planning the school day to take for 3rd grade? Here's what I have so far: Decided CLE math 300 CLE LA 300 SOTW 2 with activity book Winter Promise's American Story 1 (although I think I might be a little "loose" with following this - sticking mostly to the reading and maybe a few activities) Gymnastics for PE Undecided Science Latin songbook Geography Music Writing As you can see, I'm still trying to figure out half of my year, so any suggestions are welcome :)

On average, how long is/will be everyone's school day? It seems on paper that there is a lot of work going on for 3rd grade.

Wow, so many choices! Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm leaning more towards secular/neutral but I'm not closed to anything in particular. Can't wait to check out all the links and suggestions - thanks!!

I was wondering if there was a favorite curriculum for science 3rd grade? Thanks!

:lurk5:

bump (I'd love to see some responses to this. I'm curious, too)

I agree, absolutely, but the things I like about SL are the questions they have lined up for the reader as well as mapwork. I've been able to "test" her comprehension and work on geography and a little bit of history. I'd like to be able to continue that.

DD is in 2nd grade and I'm using SL 3rd grade advanced reading curriculum fort her. We're already about 8 books in and we've only been reading about 4 weeks. At this rate, I'm sure we'll be done by Christmas if not by Thanksgiving. Can anyone suggest a stronger curriculum or should I just go ahead and move up to 4th grade once we're done with this one. Thanks in advance!

:grouphug: I worked at an animal hospital for several years and I can tell you honestly, it's never something that will get easier. I was the one who took our last two dogs to the vet to be euthanized and it's a horrible thing, but I'm so thankful I was there with them as their "friendly face" when they were with the vet and vet techs. I held their heads and petted them and talked to them and I feel that it made it easier for them as they go to sleep. Our son is too young to "get it" (he's only 3) but I explained to our daughter (age 4 for our first dog to euthanize and 6 for our second) what happened and why. It took some time for her to understand the difference between the vet killing our dog and putting her down (is there really a difference or is it semantics?) but she understands that Cheyenne was suffering and not living a good quality of life and that this was a peaceful and painless way for her to go. DD even made the connection that both our dogs are together in heaven now. As for letting your children go with you, I think that's a decision only your family can make together. At the clinic, I would see the whole family come in almost as often as just the one adult. It can be a learning tool for your children in many ways, including that people deal with grief differently which is a reason that one child wants to be there while the other doesn't. Best of luck to you. I think your decision to end your kitty's suffering is a noble one and a difficult one. Focus on the many years you've had with her. Oh, one thing I forgot to mention (and I wish I hadn't forgotten this when I took our second dog a few months ago) is to get her pawprint done in clay. It's a great keepsake for the family. We've done that for other pets we've had but I was too sad to remember it for my dog. :grouphug: (Also, you can have your pets cremated and the ashes returned to you. Just another suggestion.)

You know, watching the video gave me an idea to make my own that I can either fold or hang and it was based on using that old dot-matrix printer paper that's already folded in a box like an accordion. We have some at work for the kids to use as scrap paper so I may just grab a small stack and try it at home. It won't be as sturdy as the Add A Century but with being on a budget, I just can't shell out $60 for a timeline. Maybe if I could laminate it....:001_unsure:

What a fantastic thread! Thanks! I decided against it because, as others have said, it seems too much work for me. I'm not organized as it is and I don't need the added pressure of trying to keep up with the system every night. However, I still don't know HOW I'm going to organize my day/week of school. I have a R&S planner that I'm using to organize my lessons and such, but as for the books/workbooks/activity sheets/etc, I have no idea what to do with them. I bought an over-the-door book organizer for dd for her to keep her current workbooks and readers in, but as for the other stuff - not sure yet - so I'm loving all these organizational tips!

yeah, that's me, too...

What is a pro-click?

:lol:

What is on your list of must-haves in school supplies for 2nd grade? I have what I call the basics listed (crayons, markers, paper, paints, glue, scissors, etc) but is there something else that you use that you cannot live without? Thanks in advance! Shannon

Thanks, Laura! :D

You know, I didn't realize there were no activities in the SL curriculum until you said something. Financially speaking, I was looking at the SL because a friend loaned me her SL curriculum from last year to look through and I saw that she had the history I was looking at online. While choosing "free" isn't always the best option, I didn't want to dismiss it completely. Thanks for the input! Anyone else have thoughts?

anyone?

Since everyone here has been so good at helping me out, I have another question. Or rather, a discussion topic. Talk to me about SL's Intro to world history part 1 and compare it, if you can, to SOTW. Thank so much!!

I've been piecing together next year's curriculum for my 2nd grader (and this forum has been so helpful!) but I have to say, I'm scared of SOTW. I've looked at it. A friend let me borrow the Ancients and the curriculum guide and activity book to look though, but it seems just overwhelming. I've gone back and forth about teaching history or social studies and while everyone made good points on a previous thread about teaching social studies (or rather, why not to), I still don't know which way I want to go. Part of me just wants to pick up a work book and let that be it but another part wants to dive right into the Ancients. I'm just worried I'm biting off more than I can chew with SOTW. Is there something else that isn't so... big.... that can be suggested for history? Something that would be fun for both of us? What's been decided so far: CLE math and LA 200, SL reading intermediate 2, Spectrum Spelling, Abeka health, Singapore Early bird science. Thanks in advance!

I know I saw one somewhere, but could someone recommend a good dictionary for a 2nd/3rd grader? Thanks!!

:lol:

Ok, so if you're not going to teach "social studies," then at what point do you teach the things like civics, communities and their structure, governmental structures, that sort of thing? Are you including that in your history lessons? One concern of mine is that since this fall will be my first time hs'ing, if the decision is made to put her back in public school for third grade and all she didin 2nd is SOTW Ancient History (which is something I'm also considering), then will it put her behind her classmates that did learn the "traditional social studies" that is taught in public school 2nd grade?

OIC, that makes sense. Thanks for clarifying!