Another big Right Start fan here. I would definitely try it.

I would say "Go for it" too. I'm not much of a houseguest kind of person, but every time we've had a sleepover, whether large or small, we've made great memories that made it all worth it. I agree with the one who say that the kids can entertain themselves. You just need to make sure that you have a space to be alone.

All About Spelling is teacher intensive but totally worth every minute of it. I highly recommend it.

TOG uses it for the Dialectic level, so my 11yr. old read it a couple of weeks ago. I also read it because I'm teaching one of the Dialectic classes. I didn't love it, but I didn't read anything that I was uncomfortable with my dd reading.

When I first learned about IEW, I bought the TWSS videotapes used from the sale/swap board for $50. Then I developed lesson plans from that and taught a class--made the $50 back in one week. It doesn't have to be expensive if you have time to wait for a good deal. (I eventually replaced my VHS tapes with the DVDs. I think I spend $75 for them.) You also don't need everything they sell. Once a teacher understands the underpinnings of the program as described on the TWSS, she can apply the IEW approach to many forms of writing and develop personal lesson plans.

My dd(15) has dyscalculia. She is now finally starting to do a few calculations in her head. MUS did not work for her. In 5th grade, she was 2 years behind in math, and Right Start math was the one that finally got her moving forward again. You might want to check it out, if you haven't already. I REALLY wish I had discovered it when my dd was only 8!

My ds does this! I didn't know there was a name for it. He's always called it his "sun allergy."

I love lapbooks, maybe even more than my kids, lol! The ones we've used always involve research and writing what has been learned. Sometimes they even write it as a paragraph for the lapbook. We've made lapbooks for all the grandparents on Grandparent's Day, and one of the activities was to interview the grandparent and then write an essay about what was learned. In the past, I've loved that I could include all 3 kids in the process, even though they are so far apart in age. Oldest dd hasn't done lapbooks since she hit high school. <sigh> The two younger kids are working on theirs this afternoon! :-) Sometimes each child has had their own lapbook, and then other times they've all 3 worked on the same one. The Grandparent's Day lapbook was a great example of that. My middle dd conducted the interviews and oldest dd wrote the essay. Ds completed charts and graphs.

If you want to switch to Lial's, you would start with Introductory Algebra. The edition really isn't important, but the one I linked is inexpensive and easy to find a matching solutions manual. The warning I would give with Lial's is that it is a large book with small print and a lot on each page. It is a bit visually overwhelming. Ds does use it as a workbook and write in it, although there isn't always enough space and a notebook is still necessary. It has slick pages that dd hates to write on and so she prefers to always use a notebook. You can pick up an inexpensive copy and see what your dd thinks. The teaching is clear and it is easy to use, but I don't know how she will do with the format. Ah, yes. This is very helpful information. I've never actually seen inside a Lial book, and I wondered about that. I'm afraid being overwhelmed is going to be a problem with most of our options. Teaching Textbooks does have a workbook and has updated Algebra to be a more standard scope and sequence. For a child who struggles with math, I think it is an excellent option and worth considering. We used MUS for a long time, but I was not impressed at all with their Algebra courses and don't recommend them, in spite of their workbook which offers clear uncluttered pages that aren't visually distracting. I'll have to ask her tutor about TT. He teaches at a community college, so he should be able to tell if it covers enough information for her to be able to pass the test.

I've seen them, but it's been awhile. Thank you for reminding me that they were out there. Last night I was stuck on Lial as my main search term. Definitely not broad enough!

I don't know. We tried MUS when she was younger, and it didn't work well at all. However, the problems weren't with the videos. She had two major issues with it: 1) She could not memorize her facts, and we didn't know she had dyscalculia, so it took FOREVER to work through those early books with the focus on addition and subtraction. 2) She also has ADHD, and the manipulatives were very distracting for her. She's changed a lot since those younger days, though, so it may be worth looking at again.

My 2E dd is gifted and has dyscalculia. This summer she has worked with a tutor to push through CLE's 800 series. He has helped us pick out the pre-algebra components so she could finished at an accelerated rate. In another month or so she will be ready to begin Algebra I. At first, I had planned to use CLE's Algebra I, but since I realized that it's a textbook format instead of a workbook, I'm having 2nd thoughts. The tutor has also commented that he thinks she's "bored" with the CLE formatting. I'm not sure that anything else would be better, though. She has never liked any math curriculum we've tried! So...should we stick with CLE switch to something else? I've seen folks mention Lial's for kids who struggle, but I'm confused about where she would start with this. She's beginning the 10th grade and will be eligible for dual enrollment once she can pass the math exam. I'm sure she would excel in the non-mathy classes offered, so we're all eager for her to get to that point. The tutor seems a little stumped. I think he's used to everyone using Saxon, but I'm not crazy about that idea. Saxon is visually overwhelming.\ What do you think?

I am an OG tutor. It's worth every last dime. If you decide to tutor privately, you can make back the money you spend in just a few months. OG is an approach, not a program. This is a significant difference because learning the approach gives you the tools you need to individualize for the student. While Barton, Wilson, AAS, etc. are all wonderful OG-based programs, there will always be students who don't quite fit the mold, and they will hit a roadblock that the program authors didn't foresee. If you're trained in the OG approach, you'll have many more ways to help the student around that roadblock. At this point, you would only need to be trained at the basic level. The advanced training is for those who are working with older students. To receive truly worthwhile OG training, make sure that the trainer is a Fellow of the Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practioners and Educators. Anyone who has made it to that level in the Academy should have the experience and expertise to successfully teach a training course. The Academy has tough standards for its instructors to meet.

I'm so glad you brought this up! There is a little girl who comes to our house for help with math twice a week, and they've been dealing with lice. She hasn't been back since they found it, but she should be coming next week. I understand that they could think she's clear but then find more a few days later, so I'm thinking about prevention.

OP: No reason to report. However, absolutely do not buy it. TOG knows all about copyright laws, and they have figured out a way to make it very difficult for customers who buy DE + Print to resell. The Loom is digital. Although technically it is not part of the curriculum, you REALLY need it to implement TOG successfully.

Dollywood has homeschool days. I don't know if they're discounted or if they're just special programs. Also, someone mentioned that Ripley's Aquarium is discounted. That's true, but ALL of Ripley's attractions in Pigeon Forge were discounted for homeschool last time we checked into it a couple of years ago. It was something like $7/person for each attraction.

We skipped the drawing stuff, too. :D I am still glad we worked through everything else.

When we hit checked numbers, I called my dh at work to as him if we really needed to teach dd(now 14) this. He has taken higher level maths, but he had never heard of them either. We skipped them, worked all the way through Level E, and dd did not have any troubles transitioning to CLE math. I definitely wouldn't drop RS over this, but it's okay to skip that part of the program.

I am an Orton-Gillingham tutor. I charge $25/hour, and my children are present. I know of two math tutors that charge $20/hour. We serve the mountains of northern NC and East TN.

Yesterday, I let my ds and one of my students write words on metal chairs with dry erase markers. They thought that was something else, lol!

Bwahaha! That's hilarious!

My family wouldn't use TOG if we were not part of a co-op. It's not because of the books, though. It's because I know we wouldn't complete the discussions! For the books, I put Book Shelf Central's list into a spreadsheet. In the summer, I work through the list and indicate where they can be found--home, library, Amazon, etc. My girls both read unabridged versions of the literature books, and those are usually at the library. For history books, I only purchase those that are used at least 3 weeks, and if they're expensive, I sub for them or use the Internet. I have found that the required reading does not always answer the questions in the curriculum, so I have told my dds that they do not have to read the textbooks if they can find the answers to the questions. My oldest dd has become quite the researcher! However, she will have rhetoric level history this year, so she may really need to read more of the history books. For the library: Every Tuesday, I go through our book list and make sure we have the books needed for the next two weeks and request books through Interlibrary loan. I also order books for the Kindle or through Amazon Prime on Tuesdays. The library pulls the books, and all I have to do is bring them home. (Actually my dh brings them home because he works at the library. ;)) Since I've done the legwork over the summer, this usually only takes about 15 minutes each week.

I'm sorry you had such a rough day with your own health. My ds had similar symptoms when he was younger. As someone else mentioned, it was abdominal migraines. They were triggered by dairy. He is lactose intolerant. Once we took him off dairy, the nausea and vomiting ended, and he began gaining weight. (Not a lot, though. He's still thin!) He also became much more energetic.

Yes, auto-duplex!

Another vote for both!