seemesew
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Posts posted by seemesew
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20 minutes ago, Brittany1116 said:
If you need it just to check a box, go with MB. It is best for the 4th, will be light for 7th (require the challenge questions at that age), and largely over the head of the 1st. Apologia will probably make you dread science unless it's a topic everyone is obsessed with, which is unlikely.
That's what I'm afraid of with Apologia 🥴 I guess I'm down to MB or nothing since everything else looks way too hard for me right now.
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36 minutes ago, Nm. said:
it’s okay to just do interest led books for science through grade 8. My DH is a teacher and recommends that over curriculum any day for history and science. I have similar ages and that is what we’re doing for 7th. His science and history are pretty light this year and it’s perfect because we are working on harder math and English. He spends his free time drawing, juggling, playing complicated board games and building intricate Lego buildings.
So if I had to choose between those two options… it’d be “nothing” is better than something. Since you described how stressed you are- I’d simplify things down to the absolute basics until that stress is gone. There’s only so much time in a day. A lot of what we try to formally teach them is unnecessary & could just be time spent doing life. Also I like to remember the 10,000 hour rule (though it’s not perfect). What skill do they want to master and take with them?
Very good points! I'm so ready to do nothing 😩 I feel torn though because my 7th grader is a foster child and I do feel like I need something to show that she's doing science. And my 4th grader is begging to do science "experiments", Maybe I could just do an experiment a week or something 🤔 but having a book and reading is a nice idea so I dont have to come up with stuff on my own.
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I am trying to decide what to do for science with my 1st, 4th, and 7th graders. We've been using the good and the beautiful but we are ready for a change after a few years of it, plus we've done some of their units 2x. I'm looking at Apologia Chemistry and Gods Design for Life currently since I found them cheap used.
I like that Apologia has a lot of experiments and my kids would enjoy that part immensely, but it also looks really overwhelming and I'm not sure I want to read the text because it is SO long! We are also used to unit studies so a year of 1 topic looks kind of... boring? I like that there are quizzes for each lesson for my 7th grader as well and there are lots of fun components.
For Gods design it looks so much easier to navigate and is more like unit studies with 3 units in each year. The text is also shorter to read, and it looks like most lessons have something hands on to do but not quite as much as Apologia. there are also quizzes and a younger book I could get for my little one that looks cute and easy to use with it. I do wonder if its "enough" but at the same time something is better than nothing...right?
A few other things is that I am super busy and stressed with 7 kids; one is graduated, one is 11th grade, two are in public school, I'm homeschooling four of the 7, and two are foster kids. I'm going about 5 or 6 different directions each day, so I need something simple that I will actually do and my kids will enjoy. Out of those two which do you think would fit my situation better?
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Oh another free resource is Easy Peasy online Learn to read program! It has lots of reading and spelling based off of the Phonics pathways book and is really helpful 😊
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Abeka has a handbook for reading that is pretty good. Also phonics Pathways is basically everything you need too.
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My husband is a highschool teacher and my homeschooled son is now attending public highschool as well. the most important thing you can do is to teach your child to talk to their teachers! we have ours ask about assignments. what he can do to fix his grades, help him remember his homework and just be responsible. that is the biggest thing actually caring that your child does the work.
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Noeo science and Berean builders are good choices too,
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Have you looked at the good and the beautiful? My kids are doing well with it and by level 5 (possibly 4) my kids are basically independent with me spending about 5-10 minutes with them checking in and doing a few short things like dictation or reading an assigned passage out loud to me.
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12 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:
I am glad things are going better.
I just wanted to give you a heads up that historically the 6th or so week of school has been a low point for us. The newness of school has worn off, the grind is starting to hit, real assignments are starting to happen, and there are usually some behaviors that pop up. If you are new to public school, plan a very low key week and weekend around that point if you can (freezer meals/takeout plans, therapy appointments or an evening out for me, etc.). Hopefully it won't pop up for you, but since you mentioned SN parenting and fostering specifically, I wanted to give you a heads up that it's a common enough phenomena that it's talked about in these circles.
I hadn't thought about that! It makes sense though. I'm going to add that to my calendar now so I remember, lol!
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I do want to add that having my ASD kiddo gone has greatly reduced my stress I love that boy but him answering to someone else is taking a huge burden off me. As a bonus my husband is more on top of this childs education since his teachers email him about things and he can check things via PowerSchool. So I don't even worry about grades because he's on top of that now.
As for the fostering...I'm really torn on this. It would be so easy to let go of the kids on one hand but they are becoming apart of our family and adoption is likely, so I feel like I need to take some serious thought but I also need to be in a better spot for that to happen.
We've made a few other changes that have truly helped me. One is I told my husband that I can't homeschool my youngest foster son, we were approved to do it but he is extremely difficult for me so I had a heart to heart with my husband and said I simply couldn't do it anymore. Having him gone for school the last week has given me a much needed break. I am starting to feel a bit better. Having all the kids here this summer was just a lot and having the typical foster child behavior on top of that was breaking me. But now that they are in school I feel like I am getting a break and starting to feel like some life is coming back.
My oldest at home (16) has dropped back on his work schedule and he is able to also do more of the driving now, especially the early morning seminary and sports for him and my asd kiddo since they play the same sport. That has also been a huge burden off my shoulders!
My husband is taking care oft the public school drop offs and any communication that he can, which has been good because that stresses me out a ton! Thank you al for your kind words and for giving me the support I needed ❤️ I am hopeful things will smooth out but I am definitly going to save this to remind me of things to think about and change if I don't see a remarkable improvement in the next week or two.
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On 8/16/2023 at 1:47 PM, prairiewindmomma said:
Something that other posters may not be aware of: her Dh is serving as a lay pastor ON TOP OF holding a full time job. He is expected to be gone Sunday mornings, most Sunday afternoons and evenings, at least one weeknight, and often at Saturday activities. In addition to her own weeknight obligations, her high school aged kids will have a religious class every weekday morning, as well as their own weekly activities, and often things on Saturdays as well. It is so very, very, very much to take on. Add on kid activities and appointments outside of church and homeschooling and housekeeping obligations and it is easily pushing 80 hours a week of things to coordinate.
Don’t list your priorities. List your essentials. Get a sense of that. Then add priorities.
Wow, I hadn't really laid it all out like that and it IS a lot 😳 You are so on point for reminding me to stick to essentials. Thank you!
On 8/18/2023 at 3:35 PM, cintinative said:This really changes the picture for me. The OP said her husband is supportive but I wonder how much he is really available. Even just emotionally as he carries the cares of a job plus his flock.
OP, gently I will tell you:Remember if the ship is sinking, the solution is often to throw things overboard. Sometimes those things are valuable but you have to triage what is most important.
I will also say this in case the op needs to hear it: You are important too. You are not a commodity to be spent and used up like a box of tissues. You are an image bearer and you have inherent value. Choosing self care like drawing up boundaries and saying no sometimes is not selfishness. God can raise up others to fill gaps if needed. Hugs and prayers to you
😭 Thank you, I really needed this ❤️
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1 hour ago, prairiewindmomma said:
I hit a similar point several years ago when Dh had a stake calling, was traveling nearly full time, and I was just exhausted by life. I was waking at 5 to do a 6 am seminary dropoff for oldest and then had this work box thing with schedule trying to be all things to all people. I came dang near a mental breakdown.
You can’t be all things to all people. It’s ok to have needs and have those be met.
Sit and make a list of what is absolutely essential. It is not essential to homeschool your kids. It is not essential to foster. That’s hard to type, but it is true. It is not essential to do so very many things.
I ended up putting my challenging child in school and it was so very, very good for all of us. He needed a team of people around him and I could finally just be mom. I needed to just be mom and be fully emotionally available to do the parenting. School did the schooling. He has absolutely thrived.
Hugs!
Wow, this was so helpful ❤️ Thank you! I do need to sit and make a list of priorities for sure. It's just so hard to say not to do something. I fully understand the 6am seminary drop off 😬
21 hours ago, stripe said:I am glad you are posting on here. Pls ask people in real life to help you. With cleaning, cooking, educational matters, and giving you a break. If you can find more ways to take the load off, it might help. I hope things continue to improve.
Thank you for this reminder! I do need to ask for help more, I really don't.
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21 hours ago, ieta_cassiopeia said:
If you are in the process of trying meds, it may be worthwhile to delay the start of formal homeschool until 4-5 weeks after you start the meds. Until then, it's OK to focus on relationships and being a parent rather than also being a teacher. It can take that long for the full effect to kick in, and however you decide to handle this situation, it will be easier with the meds fully active. (The time lost can be regained by you and potentially some/all of your children being more prepared for the year ahead).
This is very sound advice! I actually started them in the middle of June and so its given me some time to adjust. I may to get a stronger dose but I'm feeling like they have helped a ton already! Just need some new motivation.
I wanted to add that just having my ASD kiddo gone has already lifted a huge burden off my shoulders! I didn't realize how much of my mental and emotional energy was going towards him and his needs.
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22 hours ago, cintinative said:
This just sounds so hard.
Is respite care for the two foster children for a couple weeks possible? That's a lot of appointments, getting them to school (I assume they are in public), plus just the brokenness they are dealing with because of their situation, etc.
Is counseling possible for you? Maybe the church would be willing to help with the cost?
You didn't mention this, but I am really hoping your husband knows just how overwhelmed you feel. It's super easy for a pastor to get caught up in his flock's emotional and spiritual health and think everything is fine at home. If you haven't shared this, it's time to tell him. My husband can be quite dense about how I am doing and I need to be very vocal about it.
Really, what you are carrying is a lot. And some of us carrying far less have struggled with motivation at times. Try not to beat yourself up. As Elizabeth Elliot said, "just do the next thing."
Thank you for this reply! Respite is really hard in this area as there are only a few families who foster and they are full.
My husband is very aware of my mental state and has been amazing at support! I am getting counseling 2x a month and that is so helpful! Just still need some time I guess.
Just you validating I'm carrying a lot is incredibly helpful ❤️
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This has been a rough year for me, possibly the roughest I've had in many years, though it's not even homeschool related my love of homeschool is suffering because of it. I have 5 bio kids plus 2 extras ages 6,6,9,12,14,16,18.
My husband is a Bishop which is basically the same thing as a pastor. We also started fostering and have 2 extra children which is super difficult in ways I couldn't even comprehend beforehand. They are physically, emotionally, and mentally draining me.
My 9th grader has autism and is very, very difficult. I know he tries but isn't capable of stopping his mouth from being rude and impulsive but it's so hard on me! I broke today while trying to help him with how hos new science would work and his now going to be going to highschool. I think it's probably good but I feel bad for the way it happened and how long he'll be gone. He's awkward and hates people so it will be hard on him but there are no other options here.
My oldest just graduated and that was the saddest and proudest day of my life as a mom so far.
Yes I'm depressed and trying meds but in the meantime my younger kids are suffering from me barely being able to function. I'm not even sure how I would homeschool at this point. But somehow I'm supposed to start in the next week or two. I'm not even sure what to do at this point. Just pray for me!
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On 2/22/2022 at 6:02 PM, AnneGG said:
Take this with a grain of salt because I’ve only been homeschooling a couple of years and mine are little….
I think any all in one language arts is going to have weak areas. It’s the whole Jack of all trades, master of none. It’s just going to be really hard to give the moms what they want (short lessons, independent, hands on, no prep, etc,) without some area of LA taking a back seat. All in ones are just tricky for kids that aren’t a straight line in LA achievement.
We have used TGTB on and off for years and I’ve tutored other kids with it. I do not think it is a rigorous LA. It is comprehensive but simple. There is a lot content that appears to be in place purely for the child’s engagement. (Fluff.) That is perfectly fine for us, but for some of the kids I’ve tutored it has been a distraction. They liked it, but the concepts were not being internalized. Overall I like it, recommend it, and use it. I definitely add in more phonics and phonological awareness with my younger tutees. I add extra spelling and writing with my upper elem tutees. The price point is excellent for what you get. I go into it knowing I will need to supplement. We do geography and art elsewhere in our curric so that’s no biggie.
As for the pk-2 revamp, I doubt it’s anything completely different. Just like the math and science. They add some new graphics and change a few things, but the core is still the same. They may have more phonics built in. I def think it’s lacking in the current version.
Having now graduated my oldest and his main curriculum being tgab I can say he did well with it and it is thorough! He scored excellent on his SAT and tgab was his only grammar and writing courses he took.
I agree the older editions prk-3 were hard for kids and not my favorite. The current new editions are amazing and have filled any worries I once had about how our what was taught.
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29 minutes ago, Dianna_ said:
Sorry, I forgot to mention that Fundamentals of Math is also from BJU Press. He has been using BJU Press since 3rd grade. So he's done 3rd-6th grade with BJU, and now he's done their Fundamentals of Math for 7th grade. The 8th grade math is scheduled as Pre-algebra, but I hear that people tend to have their child take algebra in 8th grade instead. Is this common?
Ah, well if it's the same program but different grades I wouldn't skip pre-algebra. Likely they didn't teach the full concept and he will need that course to be fully ready for Algebra. Here 9th graders take Algebra and advanced kids sometimes take algebra in 8th. If you feel he is able is just move quicker through the pre-algebra course instead of skipping it.
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Just now, 8filltheheart said:
I agree that it is the right choice if you believe he needs the additional skills.
FWIW, from my hindsight perspective, nothing academic matters compared to the ability to function. So I would even go so far as to say to make academics less priority than life skills. When my ds was that age I got furious with his therapist who told me that all the education in the world wouldn't matter if ds couldn't hold a job. Our ds has a very high IQ and never had a single problem with academics. Life skills and healthy functioning, otoh, are still struggles and he is now 31. Academics are truly just not as important.
This is great advice and something I think about often. He is doing better with life skills this year but it is definitely something he needs more practice with than your average child, which is another reason I think another year of PreAlgebra would be good for him that way he can focus on some other things he needs to this year.
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I am not familiar with that program but some programs introduce topics in 7th but don't teach it deeper till prealgbra so I'd definitely take that into consideration. Does the new program have a placement test?
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9 minutes ago, Jean in Newcastle said:
You’re doing the right thing. Btw- my extremely gifted son on the spectrum did five years of high school because he needed some extra time for social skills and the finish up two subjects to my standards . Only four years showed on his transcript and he transitioned very easily to college.
That is reassuring to hear!
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My 3rd kid has been doing Saxon 8/7 this year and has done Saxon for years. This year has been a struggle and I feel like because of his autism there are some gaps because of the way he understands things. Anyways, he has been offered to do a pilot program for a math company that I truly LOVE and feel like it will greatly benefit him. The problem and only con I'm trying to let go of, is doing a Prealgebra program in 9th and due to the nature of the program he won't be able to speed through and "catch up". The Pro's are I really think this program will help him more than any other we have used for him and I really think even if he does prealgebra again he will have a better foundation for Algebra in 10th.
Tell me I'm doing the right thing by "holding him back". Well, I guess not really because he would need to redo the 8/7 or go to Algebra 1/2 anyways.
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On 5/29/2023 at 6:55 AM, Nm. said:
Are you using their newer LA? I’m debating levels 4&5 and 6 (which is older).
I've used the new preschool, K ,1, and 2 we will be using the new 3 this fall 😊 I haven't used anything newer for 4 and up though. The current level 6 is my favorite level! It's so streamlined and i love the content!
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On 5/25/2023 at 5:31 AM, Nm. said:
I’m really liking the math 2,4,5,6 and the LA 2. We are at a stand still in aar4 so I’m pausing that and trying out tgtb. It is so much better than their older ones.
I agree!!! When i hear people say it's boring I'm like, have you tried the newer ones? They are a lot better!
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1 hour ago, Lori D. said:
I'm wondering how useful it will be for you to buy a Sonlight...
It sounds like all you're really looking for is a box of books matched to your history time period so you don't have to research to find books. 😉 Perhaps just buy the SL package of readers (example: readers book package for SL D+E), decide on what 4-5 read-alouds you want to do and put those on your library list, or buy used online, and schedule the books in a way that works for you, since you wouldn't be using the pre-planned SL schedule in the teacher guide.
Because from your initial post, it looks like you would not be using much from a SL package:
- you only want the history/literature part -- not the whole core, and not the Bible part that comes with the history/lit package
- you would tweak SL's laid-out schedule (parts of several books daily) to make your own schedule (finish a book before moving to the next)
- you would not use all of the read-alouds
- you want a few crafts/activities -- but it it looks like those come in the supplemental history kits (not available for each SL core) for $68
Did you request the downloads of samples, or just see the single page sample on the website?
The student pages (purchased as a separate add-on unless you buy a complete package) focus on grammar, writing, and dictation from the readers. If you already have LA programs that are working well for you, I would NOT recommend switching to the SL LA. Unless SL has radically revised their LA programs, from when I last looked at their guides a few years back -- It is not incremental, it is rather random in what is presented and when, and there is very little assistance in teaching the writing or in how to grade the writing assignments.
The teacher guide gives you:
- a schedule
- some teaching history and geography info and a few questions to go with the nonfiction history books
- info and a few questions for each of the literature readers/read-alouds
- definitions of some vocabulary words
- info on filling out the timeline
Do you need/want additional background info/explanations about the history/geography? Or guided questions about the readers/read-alouds? That seems like the only part of the SL teacher guide that you would potentially find useful...
Just musing out loud here, to help with thinking it through. 😉I think you pegged my intent about right, lol! I would like some direction on the history but I'm not sure if its worth the money after reading what you shared, (thank you for that, its exactly the type of advice I was hoping for) so maybe the readers IS really all I'd want. 🤔
I only did the samples of the guides on the site. I had to give my email to get them but they didn't really have much in them so I really couldn't tell what was in them. I mean they had 4 days worth of plans but it seemed like stuff was missing and didn't seem like much.
Masterbooks God design science or Apologia?
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
Thank you! I'll look at your list! That's probably the way I should do it and it is the way I'd enjoy doing science at this point. I'm so ready for something different!