It would really depend. On a ten question quiz, they could only miss two to get an 80%. If they made a silly mistake and caught it while I was checking it, I'd probably let the 80% pass. But on 100 question or more test where they could miss 20 or more questions and still get 80%, I would not let that pass. Definitely no matter what though anything less than 80% makes me think that we need to go over it again. Anything less than 90% that wasn't just silly mistakes but actual lack of understanding or lack of applying what they learned would cause me to re-teach. When I was in school, I wasn't allowed to bring home anything less than 80%.

We also LOVE FIAR but just never could get into Beyond FIAR. I've seen some very talented moms do amazing things with BYFIAR but I just never could make it work for us. So rather than beat our heads against the wall we changed gears in middle school. As for comprehension/discussion, I do that with all books we read for school. We read literature as a part of history and science and typically have a read aloud going. We have many discussions about them and I have no doubt they comprehending. Usually if a part of the story catches their interest, they naturally do more research on their own. I suppose you could call that extension. This somewhat relaxed approach has worked quite well for us. The only books we don't discuss or do more with are ones they read in their free time

Therein lies the problem though. I am from one of those strange houses you've heard of where mom did all the housework. I was actually punished once for trying to clean the bathroom floor. My job was to go to school, learn and get good grades so I could go to college, get a good job and hire someone to do the housework. My mom even cleaned our rooms for us. When you have no childhood memories of helping around the house, it's hard to know how to teach that...it's even hard to figure it out for yourself when your parents' plans for your future didn't pan out exactly as they expected. We are in the midst of trying to teach our children how to help around the house but I can't say that any of my children could run the house or even do half the things you mentioned. I wish they could, I wish I knew how to teach them those things. My 9 year old can cook dinner and likes to on a regular basis. I'm sure my boys could make food for everyone if they needed to but the kitchen would be a mess. We are working on trying to teach them but I don't have hours to spend everyday making sure they do it correctly (and yes it does take hours around here). Chances are pretty good we aren't doing it right because we have no idea how to teach them because we barely know how to do these things ourselves but that is our reality. Just wanted to say when you did grow up in a household where mom did it all, it's hard to know how to teach your own unless you are lucky enough to have a mentor in adulthood. To the OP, I agree with everyone else. You have to decide on your priorities. As I type this, all but two of the scheduled lessons for today are done, there is a pile of laundry (3 loads worth) next to me waiting to be folded (will probably have the kids do it), both bathrooms still need cleaning, kids' bedrooms are in desperate need of a good clean out, dinner is in the oven, my 4yo dressed herself and her 2yo brother (tutus are involved, use your imagination ;) ), there is way more clutter in this room than I would like but it's basically clean, just a little lived in looking and my kids are happily playing together. ;) Since we crossed the line from average to large family, some days it's all I can do not to pull my hair out but today was a good day, most of my goals were met and everyone is fed and happy. ;) Some day I will have all the laundry done, immaculate floors and have time to dust on a regular basis (not just when I notice the dust bunny armies are on the verge of battle) but right now is not that time. ;) And I'm ok with that. ;)

My oldest two were 8 and 10 when our youngest was born. They love their little brother and regularly play with him and include him and take care of him. Sure, they have days where they are at each others throats and the youngest and my second oldest know how to push each others buttons like no one else (ever seen a two year old beat up a 10yo? :P :lol: ) I will say that parenting both older kids and younger kids at the same time as opposed to all the kids being close in age has been quite an experience. It definitely has it's perks to have so many sets of willing and able hands to help care for the baby. and btw, congrats on the new addition

I think that sounds like a lot of reading in one day and a race to the finish rather than an enjoyable school year. Personally, I would rather do core 1/2 which condenses cores 1 and 2 into one year for you and the books from cores 1 and 2 that weren't included in core 1/2, I would use those as free reading books.

:lol: It makes me feel better because we have a marble run that my 2 and 4yo play with independently while I work with the big kids. They can put it together no problem and even experiment with it trying to find new ways to put it together and still make it work. They even experiment with different kinds of balls and marbles to see which ones go faster and slower....

It does have a few lessons on spelling but not enough to say spelling was included though. A 5th grader with average to strong spelling skills might be fine but a struggling speller will need more than what is there. It's not included in every lesson, just a few of the daily lessons focus on a particular spelling rule. Check out the TOC on the Saxon site or Rainbow Resource. The lessons you see on there that say "spelling" are pretty much all you get. ETA: We've always done spelling separate from Saxon LA with a different program. We either skip the spelling lessons in the Saxon book or use them to reinforce what we learn in our spelling curriculum.

At 3.5yo they should be working on counting however I wouldn't expect it to be mastered (to the point I would worry if they did not) until they were around 5 or 5.5yo. Sure, some kids can count by rote at 3.5yo from 1 - 10 and even fewer can count with one to one correspondence up to 10 but they are the exception, not the rule. In short this is a skill she should be working on just with in her environment not something she should already have mastered. Just count with her every chance you get. Count socks while folding laundry, count red cars in traffic, count forks while setting the table, count birds on the page in a picture book....it's so easy at this age to do living math. You shouldn't need a separate lesson time for it, you should easily be able to weave it into your day.

We take it lighter in the winter months and school some in the summer. We started doing it when we lived in Okinawa and the middle of summer was too humid to spend all day outside playing so we'd do school and then spend winter months enjoying the temperate weather. Now that we live where it's fairly mild but can still be quite hot for a few weeks in August and it's cold and dreary in the winter, we still keep the same schedule but we use the time off the clean house and do fun projects. Rather than spring clean when the weather is lovely outside, we spring clean the house when it's too cold to go outside so we can enjoy spring when it gets here. ;) We even do school outside in the nice weather sometimes. Also I don't have to worry about school in addition to other holiday commitments. We can take December off and enjoy the season or just do holiday projects. We have been starting our school years in February for a few years now and it really works very well for us. We school 6 weeks on 1 week off and take 2 weeks off at the end of the summer when my MIL comes from the UK to visit us every year then we continue 6 weeks on, 1 week off until Thanksgiving when our "school year" ends. I'm originally from AZ. I think this schedule would work very well in N AZ or NV. You could school (inside where the AC is) while it's 105 in the shade in the summer and schedule your time off during the spring, fall and winter when the weather is generally pleasant and enjoyable.

Rainbow Resource was a god send when we lived overseas. They ship almost anywhere in the world and you can pretty much one stop shop (very important when you are going to be paying exorbitant shipping no matter where you buy from...although I always thought even overseas shipping from Rainbow Resource was reasonable.) I"m actually expecting a package from them tomorrow (provided the snow doesn't slow the UPS man...again...sigh) We are getting new math books, some logic books to try out, Saxon Grammar and Writing 7, a bunch of miscellaneous books for our science program that I didn't want to bother with getting from the library each time we needed them and some replacement books for some in our collection that have seen a lot of wear and tear over the years. Oh and some centimeter cubes for the 4yo's math program because it was the only manipulative needed that we didn't already have. ETA: Yes we generally make a purchase from Rainbow Resource every year, sometimes more than once in a year. As for the overwhelming volume of the catalog, I always warn people that RR is like the Walmart of homeschool suppliers. It's not like the little boutique homeschool stores with the magazine like catalogs. It helps to have an idea of what you want to look for and then just look over that section of the catalog. Or go online and do a search (though I do find their search engine to be a little quirky) The index and table of contents in the RR catalog should be your best friend.

We've done it differently at different times but our current schedule (and it has been similar for a couple of years now) is 6 weeks on, one week off. We take 2 weeks off at the end of August because that is when my MIL usually comes to visit us from England. We also run our years from February to November. We start our "new school year" next week and we will finish the week after Thanksgiving. We take off the months of December and January with no formal lessons but plenty of unschooly informal lessons.

Yup, main living area tv has all of the above but the little tv in the family room only has the yellow video and white sound RCA connections. HDMI, the outlet, if it's not labeled, looks sorta like a large USB port. You need an HDMI outlet on both your TV and your computer. If you have an outlet on both, then you just need an HDMI cable to connect them. If you don't have one, I just picked one up at Walmart a couple weeks ago for $28. They go up to almost $60 but the $28 one has done fine connecting my husband's computer to the TV. VGA, the typical computer monitor connection, has the port with pins in it and two places that the cable can screw into (a vga cable has two thumb screws on either side of the plug, if you tv has this then you can just disconnect the VGA cable from the back of your monitor and connect it to the TV. Make sure the TV is set to "VGA" display output (there is probably a menu setting on screen or possibly a button somewhere on the tv). Newer TVs that advertise they can double as computer monitors typically have this connection; older tvs and ones that don't advertise they can double as monitors usually do not have a VGA port. S-video connections aren't used a lot any more and don't support HD very well. If you just so happen to have an s-video cable lying around, you should have an s-video connection on the computer. HDMI is replacing s-video in most applications. Almost all TVs nowadays have RCA connections, many times even multiple RCA connections. These are the color coded yellow video and red and white audio connections. Some computers have RCA connections but it's not a typically included feature. You can get special cables with RCA connectors to connect to the TV and a VGA or HDMI connector to connect to the computer. Basically it's just a matter of matching your connections. Easiest connection would be if you have HDMI connections and a cable. Next easiest would be if your TV has a VGA port. If neither of these options are available, I would recommend connecting with a RCA to VGA or HDMI cable. I wouldn't recommend the s-video connection unless you just happen to have a s-video cable lying around and none of the other options are available. HTH Editing to add: Forgot to mention, HDMI will route the video and sound through your TV. If you use the VGA cable, it only does video. The sound will still come through your computer (speakers or headphones) unless you also connect the red and white RCA cables to your TV and your computer. Even then sometimes the computer and TV don't like to "play nice together" and it takes some finagling to get them to communicate effectively. :lol: When we had the TV connected with the VGA cable, I just left the sound on the computer's speakers. It wasn't as good as the TV's sound but it worked without giving me a headache trying to get it to work. :lol:

My oldest three kids are within 3 years of each other. The 2nd and 3rd are only 13 months apart. There have been times when it made sense to combine them all even for 3r's subjects and times when it didn't. Some years the two that are 13 months apart do math together, sometimes I have to separate them because one caught on faster than the other. Here's what I would do (and did); go ahead with K for your oldest. Let the younger two participate when and where they can, don't sweat it if they can't keep up on certain things or have no interest in others. As the younger two are more and more ready for formal school over the next few years, you will be able to see more clearly where you can combine and where you need to teach each child individually. Generally, you will often teach 3r's subjects separately and everything else can be taught together. In our home, we've always done history, science, foreign language, music, literature, art and the like as a group. My oldest has almost always been taught language arts subjects and math one on one. Last year I did have my oldest son and oldest daughter work together in spelling because she was quite advanced and he was about the same level as her. My two that are 13 months apart almost always work together in math (this coming year will be the first that all 3 are doing separate maths.) I always reassess each year and see where we can combine and what might need to be done separate. When my younger two children are both school age I will do the same thing, combine content subjects and separate skill subjects.

Since we are in a state where home schools are registered as private schools with the state, does that mean that we qualify as long as we don't mention that our "classroom" is in our home? I agree, what an rude statement to put on a website especially if homeschoolers weren't a problem before. I'm half tempted to register as a private school and then just let it slip half way through that we're actually a home school.:tongue_smilie:

We just got a micro-suede couch set and so far I love it. I wanted leather but dh did not. This micro-suede has been a good compromise. I has been easy to clean so far and the areas I've had to clean still look nice (no color run or water spots...you can't tell there ever was a spill there once it dries) I am a little worried about body oil and sweat stains come summer but so far I'm impressed at how nicely it comes clean. I plan to keep a throw blanket over dh's seat in the summer though to try and prevent sweat marks and oil stains.

I had my older dd's done when she was 8 weeks old. They put special rubber backs on the earrings. It was impossible to put that back on too tight and it completely covered the post in the back so there was no way she could poke herself with the piercing stud. She had absolutely no problems at all with the earrings, she didn't pull at them or even seem bothered by them. She's 9.5yo now and while she doesn't always wear earrings, she likes that she can when she wants to. My younger dd's ears were not pierced as an infant. We were living overseas and didn't want it done off base and the girl who did it on Saturday mornings was hard to get an appointment with and I didn't want to sit all morning hoping for a no show. So we just never did it. She's 4.5yo now and has been asking for earrings for almost a year now. I probably will take her to get her ears pierced some time in the next 6 months. So I guess you can say we've done it both ways. I see pros and cons to both ways and no real reason, in my mind, to do it one way over the other...just seems like a personal preference or situational kind of thing to me. Oh and I was 6yo when I got my ears pierced. I remember having it done and while I rarely wear earrings anymore, I don't regret it. My dd that had it done as an infant cried for about half a second and went back to sleep. We've warned younger dd that it will hurt for a second. She doesn't seem deterred by that at all.

The regular Clinique lotion makes me break out but the oil free one is the only moisturizer I've ever been able to use. Both are the same color and in the same kind of bottles. I always have to double check because more than once the girl at the make up counter has given me the wrong one.

Clinique is the only skin care products that don't break out my skin but I have the opposite problem, I need soap and toner that doesn't leave any kind of film or oil and will break up what my skin over produces (gentle cleansers leave my skin feeling oily and filmy). And I need oil free moisturizers and make up. Clinique is the only brand that I've been able to use without any issues at all. However, I do use their harshest soap and toner. They have 4 levels of soap and toner and I use #4. A friend of mine with much more sensitive skin than mine uses level one and the regular (not oil free) moisturizer and is equally happy with it.

I do use the writing portion but not on its own. I use it as a starting point and then make more assignments and do writing across the curriculum using WTM writing suggestions and Writer's Jungle. The writing portion has all the basics needed but not enough practice for most kids in my experience.

I found 3 to 5 years apart a manageable gap. My first three kids are all within in 3 years, I had 3 kids under 3yo at one time. They were very easy to work together on almost everything and only separate out when they had a significant difference in ability. The younger two of the first three (child #2 and child #3) still work together on many subjects as they are only 13 months difference in age. My third child and my fourth child are almost 5 years apart (4 years and 10 months) This gap was a little tougher but I've still had them work together on some things. I just have different expectations for the older one. The younger one might narrate to me and draw a picture of what we read while the older one writes a paragraph on some extra research. But they both listened to the same main lesson. When you say you are a "hands on teacher" do you mean that you like teaching with games and manipulatives? Do you mean that you prefer to teach rather than have them work independently? Also what ages are we talking about? If you have lots of littles (say 3rd grade and below) and are having trouble having enough time in the day, it's time to take a look at what is taking so much time and perhaps consolidate and cull unnecessary time eaters. If you have a 1st grader and a 6th grader, maybe it's time to start having the older one do some work independently and prioritize which subjects get hands on teaching. Sometimes there just not enough hours in the day to teach everything to everyone in a hands on manner so you have to decide which subjects and students get the most benefit from the hands on approach and streamline the rest.

Unless they have already been filed, I would go pick up your paperwork and tell them they should not expect your business next year. As others have said that is not acceptable at all. Pick up your paperwork and file them yourself, this year. Audits are a pain but if you have all the receipts to back up your claims, you shouldn't have any problem.

It took my oldest about 30 minutes or so when he buckled down. He could drag it out for hours though when he wanted to :banghead: The actual teaching part only took 15 minutes or so tops though (he preferred that I go over the lesson with him rather than do it himself) We did Saxon Grammar and Writing 5 but then decided to do something else for 6th grade...we are going back for 7th grade and my next two kids are starting Saxon 5 this coming year. It is very through and in typical Saxon fashion it usually has either too much practice for some kids and not enough for others. Be prepared to either skip practice problems (or sometimes we do them together on the white board and then they do the rest that we didn't do together) or make some extra practice problems depending on your student.

My dh doesn't teach anything. My first thought when I read the title was, "I don't go to his work and do part of his job, why would he do parts of mine?" :confused: He does watch educational shows with them and talk with them, plays with them, helps with projects and homework, but he would do those things regardless of how they were schooled. I also agree that he brings home a paycheck that allows us to homeschool. But I do seem to be more in the minority in this...maybe my views are shaped by the fact my husband is former military/military contractor? I often spent months, as many as 9 - 12 months at a time, being the only caregiver, teacher, parent, cook, adult in the house with very little, if any, outside help. I guess I've just learned not to rely on him for day-to-day things because we couldn't just go months and months without doing a subject that he had been delegated to teach just like I couldn't let the grass go unmowed or the car not maintained while he was gone and we certainly didn't have the money to pay someone to do these things. Now that he is home every night and not at risk of being sent off for months at a time, I dunno, I just don't see a need to delegate any of the teaching. I'm sure he'd do it if I asked but I just don't see a need to do so.

As a mom who has dealt with a lot of speech problems and speech therapies, "renember" doesn't concern me nearly as much as "doan" at age 5. "Renember" is simply having a bit of trouble differentiating sounds with in a word. The sound he is saying and the target sound are at least similar. Completely age appropriate and normal speech for a 5yo but should be gently corrected so it doesn't become habit. "Doan" for "dough", however is pronouncing sounds that simply aren't there. When you gently correct and break words down for him, does he eventually pronounce it correctly? I noticed that you live in Georgia, we lived in the South for a while ourselves. Regional dialects and accents, however charming, are a nightmare for a child who already has trouble differentiating sounds in words. I would make sure you over enunciate words for him when you correct. Exaggerate the target sound and working one sound at a time, insist on him pronouncing the correct sound once you know he is capable of pronouncing it. If he cannot produce the target sound no matter how many times you break it down for him, it make be time for a hearing and speech evaluation. HTH

We don't snack. We used to but then I realized that my kids always just picked at their meals and were eating way too much between meals. It was healthy stuff they were eating, fresh fruit and veggies, trail mix with dried fruit and nuts, yogurt...but then they wouldn't eat meals. The cost of snacking all the time was getting out of hand, especially as we had more children and I was afraid we were instilling a habit of always having to be eating something. So we stopped the snacks. When they were little and really did need to eat more often, I broke the meals up. For breakfast they would have scrambled eggs and a couple hours later when they were hungry again they'd have a piece of toast. Then they would have a sandwich and some cut up veggies for lunch and a couple hours later a piece of fruit. Instead of giving them the whole meal in one sitting I just spread the meal out a bit. Once they got a little older (around 4 or 5?) they were able to just eat 3 meals a day with nothing in between. So far they are all a healthy weight and no one has shriveled up and died from lack of snacks.