I'll be using All About Spelling with my 9-year-old this year. Haven't started yet.

Ugh. I've been there, and I only have two. This year (we started last week of July) I told them if they get through the week w/o tantrums or fighting, we'll order pizza and a movie Friday night. (The neighbor kids have pizza delivered every Friday, and my kids are mesmerized by this.) They haven't made it yet, but there has been a big improvement. Perhaps there is some reward that would motivate them? (Of course, it would need to be more immediate for the younger ones.) Hang in there. These are the hardest years.

I would recommend reading (re-reading) Walden by Thoreau. I recently re-read it since we've become homeschoolers, and it was very affirming.

We started homeschooling because it was what my son needed. The longer we do it, the more I realize how enmeshed in contemporary culture (and materialism, where I live) we were. The pulling away has helped us to watch t.v. and value our time more. I knew I had crossed the line into "Homeschool Wierdo" just this month! My son, after many years of piano, started taking organ lessons. His teacher, a young man earning his PhD in organ, was homeschooled so that he could pursue his music. He had an organ in his basement as a child. So, via craigslist, we found a 50 yo full size church organ for $150, it took my dh and his friend about 8 hours to retrieve it from a small town up north, and 6 friends to get it down the stairs. This was the moment I knew we were serious homeschoolers.

Yum! I'm making that tonight.......

Thank you, Heather. Great suggestions.

Thanks everyone. I guess I have felt the need to do some American History because we haven't studied it formally. ds 5th Romans (Angelicum) 6th Egyptians (MODG) 7th MOH II dd 2nd Romans (K12) 3rd American (MODG), in a really boring workbook.:tongue_smilie: 4th MOH II (Mom breaking out of "boxed" curricula) I think I'll take the reading/narrating suggestion given, sticking with the US History by Hakim, and just get rid of the projects and papers. The History Pockets Explorers is pretty light, and my daughter is a very hands on/visual child. This Forum is a God-send!

I guess I'm asking those who use MOH, how quickly they cover it. (We're doing MOH II), and if doing American History at the same time is too much. There is a MOH history yahoo group, which isn't nearly as active as this great place.

:iagree: I used K12 with my daughter our first year.

We are doing Mystery of History/Quest for the Middle Ages for history, Classical Writing for Language. Both of these are parent intensive. Both are new for us this year. MOH/Quest is scheduled for 4-5 days per week. So, with reading the lessons to the children, doing the Read-aloud portion, and then having to read the assigned Bible passages to my 4th grade daughter whose reading level is just a smidge too low to read scripture on her own, that's A LOT of reading time every day for me. I slink off to another room when it's time for the Activity...haven't done it yet this week .:confused1: I'm also having my son do History of US/Hakim two days a week. Too much???

I was born in Arizona, where I still live. We've had the hottest July on record (lots of 114, 115 degree days.) My husband, from Chicago, likens it to Midwest winters. During the hot months, we just don't go out. We have cabin fever, and no pool : (. Because of this I started school last week so that we can take extra time off when our lovely winter arrives. I'm overweight, but my skinny friends are also miserable. I hope your Fall starts soon!

I live in AZ, and have been to the Grand Canyon often, only once with my children. Falls/deaths are not uncommon. I read the book, Death at the Canyon, which surmised that people fall so often because they approach the park as a sort of touristy amusement park, and not the real, treacherous, natural wonder that it is. My kids were about 4 & 7 when we went, one per parent, and I was still nervous. There was a mother and grandmother near us (south rim) who were letting a young girl (about 5) scurry around near the edge. At one point the little girl starting running right towards the edge, at which point my husband grabbed her. They looked at him with that sort of "how dare you/stranger danger" look. People just don't get it. I wouldn't go. I definately wouldn't camp near the south rim. It's still very hot here, too! I would wait a few years and come in the winter.

So sorry. Although my dh is still employed, we are facing some big consequences this "Great Recession," and while the lessons are painful, I can truly say I am grateful. I've had several weeks where I enter the grocery store with maybe $7.00, or on a rich day $14, and have to leave with enough food for a week. It makes me ashamed for how careless I have been with money in the past. God is good. You will be fine. Worry is normal. Peace.

I was raised without religion, and grew up very worldly. I became a Catholic at 20, after a slow conversion, led by the Holy Spirit. Before marriage the Catholic Church requires that couples take classes on Natural Family Planning. That class was stupendous....I couldn't believe what I was learning, and that I had to be 25 years old before I knew how my body worked. Maybe I'm off topic, but learning about condoms and "the pill", the mechanics of sex, didn't hold a candle to learning how gloriously God designed my body. I think if girls learn NFP (i.e. how their fertility works) they will cherish themselves and better understand the awesome power of sexuality. As Catholics, we will explain our beliefs about birth control, and the dangers of STD's, but we certainly won't present birth control as a viable option. I'm not sure when, as our son, turning 13, is very supervised, as other parents have described.

IMO, if you tend to follow a more CM style, love having everything planned for you, and your children enjoy reading/being read to, then Sonlight is the way to go......So, what I would do is: keep the Sonlight Core you already have; sell the MFW's books you bought as a 'supplement' and the SOTW, and use the money you get for those to get the rest of your materials for science, handwriting and art. IHTH, Aileen :iagree: You've been doing this longer than I have, but I would agree with Aileen. Stay with what works; depth is better than breadth, and relax about "getting it all done". Your children are young...if you are too worried, have them tested, if outside reinforcement would give you peace. I have not used Sonlight or MFW, but we are switching to Mystery of History ($$$) this year for a more hands on, organized approach.

Have you tried Homeschool Tracker? It takes patience to learn, but I LOVE it!

My son had an optic neuropathy starting in February until the present, with intermittent blindness in each eye. Many people recommended audio books. Also, I've joined Netflix, where you can find just about ANY movie about ANY subject. This was helpful for my son's hospitalizations, since he did have some vision, but schooling wasn't realistic.

I didn't start homeschooling until my kids were in 2nd and 5th grade, but here was my experience: 1st year: Am I out of my mind? How is this legal? General disorganization and worrying. 2nd year: This is going pretty well. What a nice idea. I can't imagine sending my children away all day! (Great increase in patience.) 3rd year (currently preparing): Foregoing boxed curricula...confidence...I have curious, happy children who love to read and learn. Patience is no longer an issue. If you can get past the first year, with all of it's doubts and struggles, I promise you will enter into an amazing phase!

2006-2008 I was teaching for the homebound program in our public school system, i.e. one on one tutoring, and received $40/hour, before taxes. We pay our piano teacher $20/half hour, and organ teacher $25/half hour, so I think your Spanish tutor, if she's good, is right on target.

I think about this question a lot. It helps me to think about what I knew when I graduated from college at 22, from a very good, private college on the east coast. Not so much! And I was a good student, who studied broadly, graduating with a degree in Liberal Arts. I agree with others who have stated that my job is to instill a love of learning, a curiosity about the world and logic and reason, so my children can spot bad reasoning when they see it (while learning about the love of our good God as witnessed by my husband and me). My learning didn't stop at high school or college. I am still filling in gaps in my learning in history and science, and enjoying it so much. Perhaps our concerns about gaps come from the artificiality of public school objectives?

I am beginning my third year of homeschooling in the fall, and only now have the confidence to create my own curriculum. The first year (my son was also in 5th grade), I used a "boxed" curriculum that had very little guidance. We all suffered for that. I would say a boxed curriculum (I only know the Catholic ones, such as Mother of Divine Grace or Kolbe...others in the group could suggest Protestant and secular) with a lot of detailed schedules are a great way to start until you hit your stride and gain some confidence. The first year is so much about establishing habits and figuring out this new lifestyle, and your new relationship with your child.

I just checked these out online...have you used either one? How did you schedule or plan for them? Are they supplements to another curriculum/booklist, or do they stand alone? Thanks

I looked up the Hakim history; very nice! Do you use the lesson plans that are published to go along with it? I don't know what "HO" is. How do you cover World History and American History at the same time? Is there time for that?

We have lizards (ghekos, really) in our basement, too! We're in Arizona. I've decided to leave them be, although the sudden movement can scare one to death. Glad I'm not the only one. Misty