Hey Alana, First of all, everything Cadam said, lol. That paralyzed feeling is so very demoralizing, I know. We had trouble getting on grade level with Singapore, too. Though it looks thinner and simpler than other curriculum, we actually had better luck getting all our math done each year with other curriculum. (I remain a big Singapore fan, it just didn't work out for us.) If it's important to get caught up with History, then I would just read SOTW. Period. If you're having a good day with spare time, throw in the maps, activities, extra read-alouds. But if that doesn't happen, just keep going. I would imagine your ideal plan is to get through the history cycle at least twice; they will get more out of it next time around, truly.

Miquon can be very good, but is not simple for the parent in the beginning. I used KinderMath for one child - it was okay, but lacking in the colourful and fun departments. DD *loved* DK Math Made Easy K this year. I picked it up at Chapters for under $20. Maybe cruise your local bookstore and see what you can uncover? Spectrum might be nice, too.

You're doing a great job, keeping on top of your Kindergartner. If 4th grade Latin and Math are being done consistently, that's a solid foundation. As long as she listens to 2 chapters of SOTW a week, she will get it done this year. If it were me, I would evaluate grammar and spelling. Do you need to do both Latin and grammar in the same year? Is she a poor speller? Is spelling vital? Of Latin, grammar and spelling, perhaps just two of those each day might be a good fit... at least for now. Science once a week can work. It might not get you through the curriculum, but remember you are using the curriculum to accomplish your goals, not allowing the curriculum to be the boss, right? Another way to do science is to work on other stuff for six weeks, then take a break and just do science every day for a week or two, like science camp. As you can tell, I fall into the 'less is more' camp, so if none of the above would work for you, feel free to disregard. :) You have my respect for all you are doing, and it seems too early to declare that you are failing your dd - keep reevaluating, keep working, Mama!

Your plan sounds just fine. I did R.E.A.L. Science Human Body with a 5th and 1st grader a couple years ago and it was a lot of fun. For physics at that age we were still messing around with kits and some reading from The Way Things Work, so I'm not much help to you for curriculum there. Good luck as you simplify this year!

Just thought I would mention that arrows can actually travel farther than BBs. BB guns are relatively safe. Our kids shoot both, but we're in a rural area. BB guns are pretty quiet; but they *look* like guns, which could be more of an issue.

I love Elizabeth George mysteries, too. Sue Grafton titles are entertaining. Like other posters, I think there's a difference between light reading and twaddle. The majority of recently-published book-club books are painful; many mysteries are engaging! Sandwiched between Eats, Shoots & Leaves (Truss) and a Sunday at the pool in Kigali (Courtemanche), I just finished a YA title, Princess Academy - it was so FUN!! What twaddle can I admit to? Well, Janet Evanovitch definitely counts, lol.

Wait... how about inventing option #4: IEW for oldest, Wordsmith Apprentice for younger dd? Or option #5: Wordsmith Apprentice for both girls? Hee hee hee... sorry, not helpful at all, just couldn't help myself since that's how my brain often works when making curriculum decisions... making it more complicated rather than narrowing things down. I'll stop talking now, lol.

~ R.E.A.L. Science. ~ I have heard favourable things about TOPS and the Sonlight Discover and Do DVDs. I loved your idea of using RS4K and Usborne, actually.

Not formally, no. Just as when they were learning to speak, if they are narrating something, I will repeat it back to them using correct grammar as I'm writing it down. When they do copywork, I will point out things like sentences and names beginning with a capital, question marks at the end of questions, etc. But I don't explain that sentences have two parts, subjects and predicates, or name anything specifically. Sometimes words being a noun or a verb might come up in daily life, so we'll talk about it, but nothing planned. Things evolve and change over time around here, though. We've been listening to School House Rock quite a bit lately, so my 5 yo can sing all the grammar songs. I'm not sure she entirely comprehends what she's singing ;) , but that's fine for now. This is just what we do; I see plenty of value going at it the other way. This is what fits our family right now.

Our library system has the Can You Find It? series, using works from the collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The books for younger kids are written by Jessica Schulte; for slightly older kids by Judith Cressey.

LANGUAGE ARTS: HWT - Cursive Scaredy Cat Reading System with little sister Explode the Code Primary Language Lessons *Copywork 5x week *Narration 1-2x week *Will evaluate readiness for Dictation as we go *Reading aloud from various genres - history, science, math, poetry, literature, yada yada MATH: MathQuest 3 Have MUS Foundations kicking around to flesh things out SCIENCE: Life: Plant Growth & Change - R.E.A.L. Science (also have Considering God's Creation to mix things up), still thinking about TOPS Physical: Materials & Structures - K'Nex Education Bridges kit, Arty-Facts Art Activities Earth: Stars & Planets - R.E.A.L. Science SOCIAL STUDIES: SOTW 1 Canada, My Country ART: Artistic Pursuits Maybe one of Mark Kistler's books BIBLE: Child's Story Bible by Vos P.E.: Hockey Outdoor activities - the kids spend their lives shooting hoops, playing catch, walking the dogs, etc.

Exactly. I believe PLL's 164 lessons are intended for the last half of 2nd and for 3rd grade, while ILL is for 4th through 6th. I have used and am using PLL with both my boys in the way you described: oral lessons and copywork, one sentence in 2nd, two sentences in 3rd. Love it! With my younger, I'm a bit more on the ball about narrating and am scribing his narrations, which are often a couple of paragraphs. After ILL, our older boy went on to Winston Grammar and is really enjoying the formal grammar, much to my surprise. I can now breathe about not teaching the names for all those parts of speech when he was younger, lol. phew

R.E.A.L. Science Life is wonderful and worth looking at.

Thanks, Sue!

bump

I enjoyed SWB's review, which is why I thought we'd give Wordsmith a miss, and come back to Wordsmith Craftsman during High School. I liked SWB's combinations - just wondering what other great combinations are out there! :-) I believe someone on here has followed Wordsmith Apprentice with Writeshop?

I'd love to hear what users of Wordsmith Apprentice followed it with, for writing instruction. I'm planning on IEW (Ancient History), but would love to hear any other ideas.

We're using 'classic' MUS, and I'm wondering at what level would we need the decimal inserts? We're 2/3 through Intermediate right now. Thanks for any insight!!

While none of these are hot off the presses, I was pleasantly surprised by how much my oldest has liked Winston Grammar. The younger two insist that the Scaredy Cat Reading System is not school. (Expensive, but has been hugely helpful to me.) A couple others we've just started that are working very well: Right Start Math Games and Donna Ward's Africa: A Land of Hope study. The kids still love the Story of the World series and R.E.A.L. Science, too.

We *much* prefer Schoolhouse Rock. :D

My kids like Jack Prelutsky and Douglas Florian. They might be accessible authors to try.

Learning to read with Scaredy Cat Reading System; phonics with Explode the Code 3; writing from Primary Language Lessons and other copywork. Reading aloud across the spectrum: history, science, Canadian picture books, literature, poetry, etc.

Ah, gotcha! It looked great to me, so I was a bit confused. :)

Marisa, do I understand correctly - you believe the first sample to be illegible?

My in-laws do this and call it 'jabbin' eggs' - it's lots of fun with the kids! I'd never heard of it before, either. They are of English descent, so the next time I visit my dh's maternal grandma, I'll have to ask a few more questions about where this tradition started.