This looks promising for my reluctant writer too. For the price, it's certainly worth a try! I really appreciate hearing people's experiences-thanks Merry!

How about the Teaching Company High School American History DVD? Many have used it for middle school ages too. Your library might even have it.

Thanks!

Anyone??

Other than the text, what else do I need for this course? I picked up the text for $8 at Half Price books since I knew it was a popular course for homeschoolers. I see there is a teacher's manual and student workbooks. Just checking to see what else I really need so I know what to watch for. Thanks, Ann

I found some programs through the community college that laid out all the course work for a 2 yr degree that my son is interested in (even though it's early yet I know). I called an acquaintance with this same job and asked her about the degree and if it was enough for similar jobs. Her son went through the same program and enjoyed it very much. She was able to give me lots of feedback and told me which 4 yr colleges this 2 yr degree would transfer to (1 private and 1 state college that she knew of). I feel like this really helps me focus on how to plan his science and math for the next 5 years. Even if he doesn't do this exact program I'm sure he'll do something similar. Now if I can just get his writing skills up to par......

This is has been helpful to me since I've been trying to plan out 8th - high school since this last summer. My son is in 7th this year but I'm trying to lay a firm foundation this year to build on as far as some study habits and routines-it's a work in progress :glare: We are not aiming for AP classes or elite schools. Likely path with be tech school or community college to start then state college. I could see him owning a karate school or doing construction-how's that for diversity? ;) Does anyone know where I can get one of the free on-line career/aptitude assessments? I don't want to use one without a reference/review because I'm afraid of spyware and tons of junkmail if I use one from a google search!

Yep-it's free! The WTM is set to private so you have to get an invite from the team leader I think-not sure who that is though....

People often form "teams" for like minded people or similar interests. There is a private WTM team. It's just a place to support other WTM members and share your goals with others. It's a great way to get support and encouragement from people you get to know. For example, I'm on a Breastfeeding Moms team and an Iowa Moms team. These teams often sponsor challenges and do fun things for it's members to keep interest up. The WTM team has been quiet for a while, so maybe this will perk it up again.

I love SP! I've been active on/off for about 6 yrs but consistently active this last year and 1/2 or so and lost a lot of weight after baby #4. My user name is Walkfit. I'm back down to my pre-preg weight but need to get toned up so I'm adding weights to my cardio this month. I'm the team leader for the breastfeeding mamas team in case anyone is still in that boat ;) I think SP is the best free resource out there for fitness/health tracking and motivation!

My son (age 13) did 2 "Science Jim" classes this fall and really liked them a lot. They were just a supplement for physics, not a total course by any means, but he really liked them and asked for more. The main course was 1 hr for 6 weeks I think. He did a combo of lecture and visual aids.

Yes, I know Science Jim does whole classes because that's what we took. I don't see anything else like that scheduled though. Maybe there will be more in Jan. I'll check out the other one too.

Thanks, I will look into those and Khan has been on my list for a long time but wasn't sure if it was too advanced for him. Any complete semester courses out there?

My 7th grader watched a series on Newton's Toybox with Science Jim and really enjoyed it. He wants to do more science like this. Any suggestions? It could be a live class we sign up for or a DVD/download that he watched. I'd still have him read a text or other books to go with it. I'd prefer biology right now but will take any suggestions! Whatever gets him excited about learning I want to take advantage of!

I just can't leave these threads without agreeing with those that said it puts you at risk for infection. IMO most medical inductions are unnecessary and puts mom and baby at risk. I had it done at 10 days post due with #3 and it was uncomfortable and unsuccessful. I didn't want to do anything but my midwife's insurance wouldn't technically allow her to deliver 10 days post due so it was a last resort. She was going to have to refer me to an MD otherwise and that was not happening in my book. I did lots of walking and other natural inducers that I could think of and baby finally came at 11 days post due with no problems. It was actually unassisted because of the speed of the birth but she still checked us out afterwards ;) Baby #4 came 14 days post due and while I was SO READY for her to be out-I knew she would come when ready. She was born at home with no problems as well. So trust your body and give it a little more time :)

So we've used GWG 3,4,5. He just finished book 5 this summer and I'm debating if I should get book 6 or try something different. It's not that I'm not happy with GWG, I think it's a good program. But he's in 7th grade and I wonder if we should try another program to be "well rounded?" Sometimes I think certain programs get stuck teaching with a certain method or routine and maybe things need to be shaken up a little? Maybe something like Editor in Chief as a good alternative? Or maybe just stick with "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." ;) I DO think he still needs grammar so he does need something. Thanks for any ideas.

I know there are "averages" for development but all kids are different. I'm sure many moms here with more than 1 child will tell you that each developed at different rates. My 3rd child was not talking "at age level" when he was 2 or even 3! But he WAS developing, just slower so we never got any assistance. He was totally "normal" with his speech by the time he was 5. A friend of mine got the same assessment for her son at about the same age you did of 18 mos. I encouraged her to wait awhile but she went ahead with the same therapy you're getting. After 3 mos she saw no improvement and felt like her son was just needing his own time. She quit therapy and now at age 5 he's also "normal." If you were seeing lots of improvement then I might think it was an area needing help but without any results it sounds like he's fine. So while I think there is a time and place for therapy, I don't think many children at age 18 mos need it. I would need to see some big delays in many areas to deem it a problem needing therapy rather than just slower than "normal" development. Just my .02

Yes, do tell! :bigear:

on the amazon Gold Box deal... http://www.amazon.com/gp/goldbox/ref=cs_top_nav_gb27 For $10 (free ship if you have Prime) I'm going to give it a try.

My kids love this too! When my DD was 5-6yrs she never played with toys that much except for Little Pet shop. Her main thing was art. She would draw and paint and craft for hours each day-still does at almost 10yrs. Gifts for her have always included at least one of these since age 5-6: some type of nice large drawing pad, fun blank page journals, stamp sets, stickers, colored pencils, bead sets, and/or some type of caddy or organizer bins for supplies. She loved the "Bedazzler" she got when she was 8yrs old! LOL She also liked books on CD and has a few she still listens to such as Cam Jansen mysteries, Farmer Boy, and Boxcar children stories.

ABSOLUTELY THE BEST HS STORE EVER! I moved away from WA but still buy via phone from them. HUGE selection of hs books and materials at great prices. I could spend hours in there browsing-oh how I miss thee ;)

Whatever you do- JUST DO IT! I say this from your brother's experience. I finished all classwork, passed comps, and got 2 extensions but never finished the thesis. I had big excuses, mainly that we moved across country and was pregnant with #3. It would have been hard to complete after the move because my research was supposed to be regional, but I could have adapted somehow. Instead, I just dropped it because I got busy and it was last on the priority list. DH is still mad I didn't finish. He's an over achiever and it just drives him nuts I was so close and never finished. I don't lose sleep over it but it would have been nice to have something to show for all that work.

I homeschool my oldest 2 but my 1st grader is in school. I just wrote a check for $130 for books, afternoon milk (for their snack time), and registration. This also included his milk for his lunch that I pack. I also spent approx $20 on school supplies and supplies requested for the class. $150 total I spend about that on each of my homeschool kids per year. I buy most things used but next year will need Teaching Textbooks Algebra and want the new version so will spend more than normal. And I agree that teaching younger ones is cheaper than the older kids. Once you hit 5th or 6th grade you're buying more science materials and perhaps foreign language. Then you hit high school and whoohoo-lots more money can be spent it seems on CD programs, lab equipment, etc. Yes, I know people can just use the library, use free resources on the internet, and buy very few consumables and spend very little on homeschooling. I've even given a class on frugal homeschooling. But in reality, I've known very few homeschoolers that do that ;)

Yep, that's what I figured. I knew it had to be a mistake because that was just too big of a freebie ;) But this will get a lot of people to visit their FB page now for the drawings :lurk5:

Actually, they may have MADE money if people tried out the basic planner and liked it. Then they would be more likely to buy one of the many other versions like the high school one or the print version. I would never buy this as a download but really wanted to try it out to see if it was something I would buy in print version, esp the high school planner. So they probably LOST money from me because I won't buy the print version without a lot more to sample. And they certainly knew it would get downloaded by possibly thousands of people if they knew anything about how currclick worked and the homeschool networking system ;) . I think it was a mistake on someone's part from the beginning and it was never intended as a complete download.