We're going to use Visits to North America from Simply Charlotte Mason this year, and it looks so good. (They also have Visits to Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.) The two spine books that go with it, Material World and Hungry Planet, about how real families live and eat all around the world, are two of the coolest books I think I've ever purchased. I love that my kids will get a sense of not just the geography, but the cultures also. https://simplycharlottemason.com/store/visits-to-geography-series/

I've never bought it, but am always tempted- I think it looks really good. I've "heard" that the writing is not as "rigorous" as some.

I am so excited to try this in the fall. It made me nervous at first, because it doesn't just jump in to copious amounts of composition like many other curricula, so I was wondering if they would be "behind." However, I sent the samples to my cousin, who has a masters' in rhetoric and composition, is teaching those at the college level, and is getting his Ph.D in rhetoric and composition. He was really excited by the samples, and said that if the college freshman he teaches had been trained this way, they would have a MUCH easier time of it.

Bumpity bump

We do EMDS, but we do a week's worth in a day, and only do it twice a week. I found if we did just the daily assignment they were bored and it had less cohesiveness- if we really dig in and do M-F in a day, it still doesn't take overly long (20 min?) and they retain more.

I LOVE this one. http://www.primarylanguagelessons.com/

I think Nashville itself is GREAT. Very diverse, lots to do, lots of homeschoolers. The further out suburbs is where you get more of the negative elements of the South. And yes, the bugs here are science-fiction worthy. Ooo, a WTM Middle TN get together, sounds promising! :)

If I can answer any specific Nashville area questions, I'd be glad to! :)

What Andrea Lowry said is SPOT ON. Lots of "oh my, we just love you, we MUST get together!" and ZERO follow through. We moved to the Nashville suburbs from Colorado 6 years ago. We've had a difficult time fitting in and making GOOD friends. People are very friendly, but I find it very surface. And I think there's more racism than you might expect in 2013. Most people know that racism isn't cool, so it's not an in-your-face thing, but post about Martin Luther King Day on Facebook, and you get crickets. We live about 35 minutes outside of Nashville. I think the more outlying suburban/rural you get, the more traditionally Southern. Where we live, everyone went to high school together, the accents are thicker, the thinking a little more country, and people actually use the word Yankee. A lot. We have been attending a church IN Nashville, and Nashville itself is very diverse, with lots of people from different cities and different countries. We are pursuing a move out of state, but if that doesn't happen, we will move into Nashville proper. For me personally, it's the only way I can continue to raise my kids here in good conscience.

Thanks for all the great info so far ladies! For those who asked, we are looking to live IN the city- we like to do urban outreach work. I'm encouraged to hear all the people saying it's a great area!

Ladies, we have just begun full-on pursuing a move to Grand Rapids, MI. I would LOVE any leads you can pass on to me about good neighborhoods (in the city), homeschool groups/stores/co-ops, or companies that do engineering/computers (for a job for DH.) Plus any other area tips you have for me! Thank you in advance for any help you can offer! This board is such a blessing! :)

We have been pursuing a move away from where we are in Tennessee for about 7 months.....we've been wanting to move to Michigan, which is where our best friends live and is a state we love. After 7 months of absolutely nothing on the job hunt front, we're also adding Colorado to the mix as a possibility....that's where we're from. I would LOVE any thoughts from people from/living in MI or CO.....raising a family there, especially HOMESCHOOLING there. I haven't lived in either place as a hs'ing mom (we moved to TN from CO before our kids were school age.) (In MI, we're open to anywhere between Holland and Detroit, basically the whole lower half of the state- in CO, we'd want to be within less than an hour of Denver.) Thanks in advance for any advice you have.

Thanks so much! Sounds promising so far!

We are looking at possibly relocating to the Grand Rapids/Holland, Michigan area.....anyone from there/lived there? I'd love to know what it's like to live there, particularly if there's an active homeschool community.

Giving this a bump- is anyone using this? Would love to hear feedback.