Skip counting, or patterns would be my idea. ETA: if the cans are the same size, you can create fraction puzzles, too.

At that age, no. Nearly ten years later, yes. We moved to an area where the homeschool community....paled in comparison to what we left. My son was floundering, trying to make friends with teens who were academically far behind or had narrow focus. He didn't find idea-mates, and after a year we threw in the towel and sent him to a very small public school. It has been the best decision for him. He has friends. He has people to discuss things with. He didn't lose focus on academics (straddling public and virtual school). At age six? No. Every bad trait would be magnified.

Learning should be engaging, not fun. There's a difference between those two words. It should be able to immerse you, interest you, but not be there for your amusement. Fun can stem from a lesson, but it is not the objective. And it's okay to have off days or struggle. You can find a lesson or subject you don't particularly enjoy, but are still able to have your full attention on and be interested in either the whole, the parts, or the future objective.

We bailed. We got through half of 5/4, and in the process lost my son's love of math. I figured any program that did that wasn't worth it no matter how popular and rigorous it was. I switched, went the other direction with a softer program (MUS) where he felt like he mastered the material again. Over the years we added in other ways of looking at math (Hands on Equations, TOPS, AOPS, Jacobs, Patty Paper) going slowly. He's a pretty mathy kid overall, and elected to take 5 courses during high school instead of 4. I think if we had stayed with Saxon it would have been misery for both of us and he wouldn't feel nearly as confident in his abilities.

Call and ask. It will help them be more prepared to show you around or have extra materials for your son (or find a better time, if this week's meeting is a field trip instead) Packs and troops are sponsored by various organizations. It can get complicated, but usually the sponsoring organization has little to do with the group other than providing a place. LDS is different - their pack/troop requirements pair with church teachings. One thing I look for is a definite order. Boys should be active, but there should be a leader or co-leaders who are in control. The boys should give respect, it shouldn't be overtly demanded or whined about. A scout leader raising two fingers should quiet the group rather quickly with that action. The boys should know the routine of the meeting and the expectations had. Granted, this will be much easier in Oct/Nov than the summer or September, but since the last two years of Cubs are a long continued program* you should be able to see it in your 10yo's den. *each year is a "cub": tiger, wolf, bear, and then the Webelos, or what used to be the jr. Scouts. They do two years together to prepare for the final transition of going to a boy led troop in the Boy Scouts.

Try them out. We've been to some very poorly run ones, everything from unprepared/bad hours to "just because it's a regulation doesn't mean we have to follow it." folks <-direct statement, too. Ideally, you will have well-run meetings with an opener, activity, wind-down (signing books, going over what was done), and things to do during the week at home. Every leader should be able to answer questions for you, and should be able to show you, not just tell you, a progression from family-based to more boy-led meetings/responsibilities through the years.

How do you feel about the material? Does your enthusiasm and love of what you're doing that day shine through? When the teacher is engaged, it stems to follow that the students will be as well.

There is The Forgotten Daughter (ancient Rome/Greece). Written in the 1960's but still on Amazon. And the Royal Diaries' Cleopatra.

Yeah, I wouldn't discuss it further for another two years. During those two years, I'd make sure he had exposure to various careers and had volunteer opportunities to serve the community. At age 13, that's when the real discussions would begin. "What do you want to do with your life? What kind of careers are you interested in right now?" These, and the paths to get there from college on, would be researched. Then the conversation gets to turn to high school and creating a plan to maximize his efforts for those 4 years to affect his life paths later: dual credit, completion of hs in 3 years, online courses that stress the skills needed for those careers... For a teen, my job is not to simply say yes or no anymore. My job is to provide information and guide him through the checklist of steps needing to get there. If he can honestly look at the public high school and make a persuasive argument as to that being the best way, I wouldn't stop him.

Banned Book week isn't for another two months, but here's a list of challenged high school level books that show it's not a new thing, you're just more aware. http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/censorship/bannedbooksthatshapedamerica ETA: I think my favorite statement on those is this: "a degrading, profane and racist work that “promotes white supremacy". To Kill A Mockingbird will always be a treasured volume here, no matter how degrading, profane, and racist some might think it is.

They're like regular hardback book covers, like what you would find under a slip jacket. We have a few of the totally blank ones that we've bought from there and they're pretty sturdily bound. If you look at the general 'books' category, there are some photos there of what they look like in the Gift Packs instead of just the drawings. Hard to see, but at least you get a better idea.

Maybe one of these? The covers are totally blank, so you can fill with doodles or sketches, but they come in a variety of styles for the inside. http://www.barebooks.com/product-category/books/lined-books/

Care of self (in order of progression): get dressed brush teeth pick up toys make bed clear dishes from table vacuum room dust room laundry Care for others/common areas: wipe bathroom counters set the table vacuum/sweep common area dishes mow the lawn weedwhack & lawn care cook dinner clean a bathroom We break it down into two groups and teach that once you learn to care for yourself, you will be expected to help care for others and/or the places we all enjoy.

I don't have a favorite place online. I have found good ones at Rainbow Resource (I think I found one of California mining towns there), but field trips have provided most of ours.

Buffalo Wild Wings is horrible here. Never fails, we get extremely poor service (once we waited for 45 minutes with a handful of servers looking at us in the mostly empty restaurant), or the food tastes like it sat under a warmer for 20 minutes, or both. Not to mention they try to pack it more full of tvs than people, so you can't enjoy either conversation or the game. We prefer not to eat out at all here. Finding a decent restaurant can be a challenge.

Topic books for various ages. If you add a long book about Mexico, for example, a short, brightly colored picture book in the same area would be appreciated - not having the only ones for young children available in fiction. On that, keep the non-fiction out of the Easy Readers. Yes, I know they *are* easy readers, but put them in with the non-fiction! Supplemental resources too pricy for using only a little while at home would be nice to see: LOF, Oxford's Ancients & Middle Ages, Disney Imagineering, Letters of Note... Cataloguing audio books with reader's name available on the screen (seriously peeves me at our library).

I plan by year, by month, by week, by day, in that order. I decide on an overview for the year: what do we want to cover? Are there any special things to take note of this year (moon landing anniversary, special events coming to our town..) Do we have any scheduled holidays/vacations? Then the month: what do we want to get done by the end of each month? What supplies do I need for each month (lists are done for library, science supplies, and websites) I number those by week. Then the week: I schedule a 4 day week at the most. This gives us a day for catch up, rest, co-ops..match the month's lists to the week one at a time. And finally breaking it down by day. I use an online planner to schedule out the amount of work each day. If something takes longer, we just don't check it off until it's done. At the end of the week/month I have a better idea how to adjust that subject for the following month.

I think sometimes we lose sight of the end goal. The end goal is competent adults with various qualities and virtues, right? Intentional parenting keeps those goals in mind. I do not see Prince George growing up a brat because he has many things and opportunities. His parents seem to be intentionally focusing on teaching, guiding, and expecting. It's when we lose sight and start focusing in the right now "how can I make this happen RIGHT NOW?" we give in to our own weaknesses and desire for instant gratification, and forget that good things take time. That lack of discipline of a parent will never benefit a child. I'd agree it doesn't mean "spoiled", but it does mean a loss of values being transferred over from teacher to student...er, parent to child. ;)

He has kids, they are grown. He went through bankruptcy and a lot of bad decisions before writing down the same common sense Gail Vaz Oxlade and many others recommend. He just did it in an easy to follow plan, which makes him so popular.

Yes. Except we go more for the Fudge series here. ;) They're funny, and a good way for kids to see they're not alone in their feelings. The love is shown along with the everyday annoyances and things to deal with. There are very few books I discourage/ban here: Junie B Jones (she annoys me), Lolita, any terrorism how-to manual...LOL For the most part we treat books as having something to offer.

There is a very slim chance dh and I will die at the same time. To me, it means prioritize the fact that you most likely will have a future, and if you don't, that your spouse will. I don't want to be a 65yo widow and saddled with 40 years' worth of debt when my husband passes away. I want us to live NOW with the confidence that should something happen, we'll be stable later. And you also have to remember - that saying, it applies to an overall attitude about finances, but for the intense portion (debt repayment) it's at 2 years. After that, the baby steps build vacations back in, and saving becomes more goal centered: 3-6 months of expenses (good to have even if you die early), paying for college, paying off the house. Prioritizing these doesn't mean you're a slave for years or that you can't balance fun with saving.

I treat seatwork and academics as two different things. Yes, it's important to learn how to focus. No, it doesn't have to be on the "3Rs". Those can be accomplished anytime, anywhere. Seat work opportunities abound in self correcting games, legos, clay, science tools (microscope, eye droppers, etc), paint...you can make a goal to sit quietly and work on something every day at the same time. Slowly introduce other subjects to that period and rotate through. Does he like to paint? Great, go fro free paint, to learning about an artist/technique, to painting strokes needed for writing, to copying something you paint. Microscope - gather items to look at, keep a basket there for free period, add a crayon and paper to draw a picture of what he sees, have him trace what you write as a caption. Legos - free play, copy what you build, copy from a picture, sort the legos into lengths/colors/style. He can act out a story you read to him. All of these are one step at a time: getting used to quietly working and focusing, then building on those skills and morphing them into eventual K or 1st grade work.

We are okay. Okay means we are prepared for various bumps down the road (seen and unseen), we have a plan that keeps us steady, we save money and we can afford to have a few pleasures in our life. We still have debt in the form of a house and a car, and many items on our to-do list will probably be undone. But we have a plan we are working and are on the same page, and I really can't ask for more than that. :)

It's because we all go through the Age of Not Believing. The cynycism creeps in, the dreaming flutters out.

Yes. Positive Parenting was a no-go here. Seriously, nobody is that laid back and happy all the time. Nobody. Swung to the other side and was really freaked out by To Train Up A Child and the dementedness there. My favorite to date has been Kids Are Worth It. The author straight up admits she loses it, but it's not a 'how to' book, more of a relationship book.