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I agree. TOG is wonderful, but it is best used when the oldest is at 5th grade level or beyond and the younger students are pulled in at a lower level so that the family is all studying the same era of history at the same time. This is what Marcia Sommerville, the author of TOG, had in mind when she created the curriculum. Until your family reaches that point, why not consider SOTW with the companion workbooks and activity guides, combined with LG lit. choices from the TOG book lists? I believe that is exactly what I would do if I had young children to homeschool. Blessings, Lucinda

In considering this thread during my morning, I thought I'd share some thoughts I've had since my last post. Every single era of history has been filled with war, violence and brutality. From the ancient world to America's 9/11, we've had to deal with the same themes and subjects as we teach our children about history. To be honest, I think there have been eras in world history that were even more brutal than the modern world, but we present it to our children in a way that we feel is best - (i.e. Attilla the hun, the Vikings, fierce Sumarai soldiers, etc.). With this in mind, I'd like to encourage you not to gloss over this whole era completely. Like every other period of history that you teach, present it at a level that is appropriate to their age. The whole idea is to present history in chronological order with the four cycles being given and repeated at different age levels. With each repeat, they get more information and time to discuss, learn and digest. I hope this give you food for thought. Blessings, Lucinda

:iagree::iagree: This is exactly what I would do if I were in your shoes. Modern history has a lot of really great things for kids to learn about, it's not just about the horrors of war and terrorism. I'd keep it light and focus primarily on things that were developing and changing during this era. Blessings, Lucinda

Thanks for that recommendation, kalanamak! As an art teacher, I use Staedtler erasers pretty much exclusively because they are the best, but I totally forgot that they also make pencils! I used their drawing pencils way back while I was in art school and I liked them. As I just followed your link and read about their pencils on the website this morning I got all inspired to get them again, not just for drawing, but for school too. Blessings, Lucinda

Have you heard anything about Phonics Pathways? Jesse Wise has highly recommended the program, which strengthens reading and spelling skills for students at any level. I'm using it for my logic stage dd as a review this year to help her improve spelling, but if it is implemented at an earlier age like your dc it lays a very solid foundation. If I could go back and start all over again, I would have combined FLL, WWE and PP together with a strong spelling program like Spelling Power or Spelling Workout instead of hopping around to various LA curricula like we did. An alternative to WWE and a good spelling program would be Spell to Write and Read by Wanda Sanseri. I heard her lecture at a hs conference this summer and was very impressed by her methods of teaching spelling and phonics. I would have been very tempted to try that one for a younger student as well. I'm sure there are a lot of other recommendations out there, but here is my 2¢ worth. Blessings, Lucinda

I'm going to spend at least a few months with my 12 yo (7th grade) dd on FFL4 before I make a final decision on this exact thing. One good reason to use FLL4, for us, is because we are new to TWTM methods and LA program through PHP. Also, there are good things in FLL4 that I think are a great review and foundation for when we move on to ALL. Yet another good reason for this is that SWB has announced that the levels of ALL may not be coming out each school year in succession. When I read this news I thought, you know it would be okay to take a whole year of review and building the foundation with FLL4 if we have to. That way we'd start ALL in 8th grade and hopefully by then we would be able to move up the progression of the series because we'd be tagging along a year behind each release. I think that a year of review in grammar, dictation and poetry memorization while also doing WWS wouldn't hurt anything. Dd will still get all she needs in time for rhetoric studies. Blessings, Lucinda

I'm sorry for your loss and the hurt that goes along with the grief. :grouphug: My daddy died 19 years ago and I still miss him terribly. You learn to live with it, but the missing part doesn't ever go away. Blessings, Lucinda

I just thought I'd post this link to the NAMI website page that features the Family to Family education courses. I can't recommend this highly enough to anyone who has a loved one suffering from mental illness. Blessings, Lucinda

No, it isn't. They do review on previous concepts, but not as repetitively as Saxon does. And that's the point for me taking dd back to Saxon. The spiral approach just may be what she needs in order to retain those very important concepts. Not all kids are the same though, and TT may have enough review to help your own students. Blessings, Lucinda

Funny you should post this. My dd just completed TT7 last year and averaged a high B all through the year. After a couple of months off, she all of a sudden can't demonstrate to me that she's retained what she learned though. As a 12 year old with LOTS going on in her mind and body, I think the matter of math retention is becoming much more challenging. I am seeing this as her individual need for more reinforcement rather than a fault of TT. Because of this new discovery, I've decided not to go on with PreAlgebra as I had planned to. I'm going to put dd back in Saxon math with DIVE videos for at least a year. We'll either stick with it, or go back to TT with some added supplements. I have been a huge fan of TT for the past three years and am not dissing or ditching their program, I just see my dd's need for a way to hold on better to what she has been taught. Blessings, Lucinda

We have a desktop for dd to use. She shares it with dh, and I have a laptop for everything - school, job and the works. Dd will most likely get her own laptop when she is in high school. We have friends that have six kids that are all hs'ed. In that family every child has their own laptop once they begin school. I have been amazed whenever I've gone there and seen them sitting together with their laptops all propped up and ready. Just amazes the heck out of me! Blessings, Lucinda

Well, hopefully your dc's enthusiasm will rub off on you. :D Why not start out with a light week just to get your feet wet? Can you maybe take an afternoon off all to yourself to do last minute planning and get a pedicure or something to spoil yourself a little? Actually, I haven't had my heart in it all the way yet either because I didn't have the greatest summer. I feel cheated a bit by that, and when school gets going that means I have to accept the fact that it's over and done. We didn't get to do anything fun at all this summer due to some trying circumstances - but as I write this it occurs to me that if I go ahead and jump in whole-heartedly with school and work, then I can start plannng ahead for next summer. Like it or not, fall is here and we all know what that means. Blessings, Lucinda

Amen! Blessings, Lucinda

Like you said, we're on the same page here. People struggling like this do need support and love. That doesn't mean it has to be the entire family, but at the same time I wish families of people with mental illness would take classes through NAMI. There are some great resources available to help people understand better. Education is key here. The more we are able to understand about the illness, the less we will be fearful. Most of the time, after all, fear is based on the unknown. Well, I wish I could say something to encourage you because you sound very fearful and anxious. But I don't know your situation or your relative so I don't want to jump to any conclusions. My experience and understanding, based on classes I've taken and people that I have known over the years, has led me to believe that the majority of mentally ill people are not harmful to others, and when patients are on their medication, OCD can be controlled. You know what's best for your dc though, so follow your instincts. I would just encourage you to learn more about this illness as much as possible. Like I mentioned above, NAMI (National Alliance for the Mentally Ill) is a wonderful resource. I highly, highly recommend their Family to Family classes to anyone that has a mentally ill person in their lives. It made all the difference in the world to me when I took it. Blessings, Lucinda

My son suffers from Bipolar Disorder, and his father (my former husband) had the same disease, so I have had to deal with this for many years. First of all, there is no blanket answer for all situations because people are all different. Some mentally ill people are high functioning and are on meds. Some are able to maintain a majority of the time, but have seasons, bouts or episodes where they aren't doing so well. Yet others choose to self treat, go off meds permanently, etc. and are unbalanced all the time. So it all depends on how the person is, or is not, managing their illness. If my first husband was in a bad place mentally, I shielded our kids from him. The same goes for my son who is now and adult. If he is going through an episode, we keep some space between him and other members of the family, especially the youngest ones. When things improve and get back at baseline, then it's safe to resume contact. If I had a person in my life that refused to be on meds or made bad choices that contributed to acting out in their illness, I would stay away from them and I would let them know why. It's really important to keep boundaries for your own mental health and the well being of other family members and friends. I have a great deal of compassion for people that struggle with mental illness. Life can be utterly lonely and cruel for them. There is such a prevailing stigma against mental illness that often exhibits itself in our culture by ignorant jokes and humor, misused language and vocabulary, and even segregation that causes cruel isolation to those that need family and friends tremendously. The best thing we can do is become better informed and educated about it. It's wise to know how to set healthy boundaries, while not completely writing people off unnecessarily. Blessings, Lucinda

I had an allergy specialist tell me several years ago that allergies often coincide with hormonal changes. If this is correct, then a female would be very succeptable to allergy issues during puberty, pregnancy, post childbearing years and then menopause. I began having allergies during my first pregnancy and then finally had some relief just before menopause, so I'm inclined to agree with the theory. Blessings, Lucinda

Yes, I believe this is absolutely correct. The seller should only show proof that they followed through with their end of the transaction and shouldn't be held responsible for handling by USPS or another shipper. And I might add that sellers that include postage with the price of the items, pay for delivery confirmation, and the PP fees that come from the buyer's processing also have so many fees to pay already that they often times end up recouping very little on the books sold. I try to adjust my prices to cover these things, but selling the books is getting harder all the time. I might as well go to our local hs bookstore and sell them for 30% of their retail value and be done with it. Blessings, Lucinda

Thank you for your prayers, transientChris. Despite how it all seems, I know that God is still good and is on the throne. "You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You." Isaiah 26:3 Thank you for your prayers, dsmith. We'll have to see about it with dh still working, but his difficulty on the job may also in the end prove he's having a hard time. Only time will tell though...we're trusting God to lead the way. "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" Jeremiah 29:11 Thank you, unsinkable, and everyone else that is praying. Whenever we have news, I will post an update. In the meantime, I'd appreciate continued prayers. Blessings, Lucinda

You are so right,kalanamak. Unless you've personally struggled with depression, it is a hard thing to relate to for most people. ~ Lucinda

Yes, praying with you for God's will, for freedom from pain, peace and comfort to your uncle and also for you and your cousin. Blessings, Lucinda

Thank you, Kristine. And I love your scripture reference under your name. Romans 8:28 is one of my life verses too. It causes me to hold on to hope during the most difficult times. Blessings, Lucinda

Bumping because those that asked may not see this otherwise. Blessings, Lucinda

This is one very good example of how the teaching of good manners and etiquette to our children is SOOOOO lacking in our society! We need to counter this type of thing by training the youth within our own circles to behave politely and with consideration to others. A few years ago I was approached by a relative about an upcoming shower for their expected baby, and it was presented to me in a way that it was MANDATORY that I attend. I was really taken back because of the way it was presented to me....so presumptuous and rude. My reaction was to not attend, so I sent my regrets and didn't go. I did pay a price for it though. Instead of going to the shower, I chose instead to deliver a gift in person when the baby was born. Everything turned out all right in the end, but I had to find a gracious way to deal with the whole thing because it was in such poor taste and I didn't want to encourage that kind of bad behavior. Blessings, Lucinda

Thank you so much for your comments and your prayers, jjhat7. Dh's speech therapist told him that utter fatigue, especially in the evening, is normal after a stroke, and that depression goes along with it. I think he is discouraged in so many ways about his work life, our financial stresses and frustration over not being able to speak normally, etc. All of it combined is holding up a lot of his progress. Applying for disability may be what we have to do too. I have a disabled son (bipolar disorder), and I know there can be a lot of hoops to jump through to get it though. There sure aren't any easy solutions. Thanks so much, Sheryl. Your prayers and your concern mean the world to me. Blessings, Lucinda