I have 8. Most days it feels like too many esp when I consider my ideal programs. I think I do ok but I could do more with less kids.

Good starter list of skills that I will teach both my boys and girls :tongue_smilie: Here are some others: Basic car maintenance: changing oil, tire, and probably a few that aren't too difficult like changing brake pads... Gardening and seed saving How to purify water Starting a fire Basic yard work - raking, pruning, edging, mowing... Basic card games - Spades, Hearts, Bridge...

I have a good friend, an elementary school teacher, who would like to move to Scotland. She would like to find a teaching job and is looking for any resources to help her in her quest. I figured some of you guys might have some information. If nothing else, inspirational pictures can be forwarded to her :laugh:

1) I was too busy breathlessly turninged the page, impatient to see what happened next.

spot shot will remove anything. the only thing ever that I was unsuccessful at getting removed was a stain from Tang of all things! Spot shot will remove old paint and grease that have been there for years... oil, food.... you name it.

Another one here - it is very reassuring to read this thread! I identified with all the posts but in particular with Kathy in Richmond. Sometimes I get down right envious of some of the other homeschool moms in our group. They seem so.... content in all that they do. I can't seem to be settled for more than a few days without "reviewing my process". It is frustrating. Even when I don't allow myself to shake things up to much, I still seem to always need to review, reassess, reorganize even if it is just mentally.... Blargh!

Rope is always a hit. Maybe try craigslist and tell folks you will come pick up any scrap wood or other building supplies. My boys would just love a huge pile to junk to make stuff with. Oh another craigslist idea - ask for broken appliances - I have one kid who will be thrilled with a box of broken stuff that he could take apart.

Oh, glad to hear there will be a new theme. I can't tolerate the white either - sets off my dystonia.

My son is Greyson. I think of the color as gray.

Yes, if the heat is too high or you forget to stir, the food can and will stick to the Le Creuset.

I have Le Creuset. It is not nonstick. I love it - it cooks wonderfully but I do sometimes wish it was nonstick. At one point, I remember seeing a nonstick pan in an outlet store - for eggs or something. Pretty sure they discontinued it.

This book is pretty cheap and does a great job teaching you how to design websites: http://www.amazon.com/Head-First-HTML-CSS-XHTML/dp/059610197X/ref=pd_sim_b_1 The newest version is here though it is not yet reviewed: http://www.amazon.com/Head-First-HTML-Elisabeth-Robson/dp/0596159900/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1346981576&sr=8-9&keywords=html The book has assignments in it so it would be easy to grade.

Anyone else wishing these posts had pics? :lol: I was much prettier 20 years ago. My husband looks even better. It is distressing. ;)

We use Calvert Spelling. Somewhere along the line they also do all the Phonetic Zoo levels.

I am using the older core btw.

Ack! That was my crazy thread *blush* Here is what I ended up with and I feel good about it for 9th grade. EHE - ALL of it. Some of the questions I turned into essay questions. All the projects have to be bigger ones. (no animal reports :tongue_smilie:) She is not allowed to use the World Book. She has to find the information on the internet/ in books and cite the resource. She learns quite a bit more than just what is in the EHE with the open ended research (rather than being restricted to one source) Mapping - I beef this up a bit by copying the mapping pages before she fills them out. She is quizzed on the mapping section using my blanks. Tests - I choose some of the information from the EHE and have her complete my own tests. One per section studied. Since I have younger children, she reads aloud any of the nonfiction readers to the younger kids. We do Sonlight secularly so I've dropped any mission stories. To the nonfiction read-alouds, I've added for her (so far): Material World Women in the Material World She watches quite a few Netflix documentaries and is require to give me either an oral summary or written summary. For the Pacific Islands, she watched Pururambo She is required to watch Student News / News. 3 times a week she gives me oral / written reports. Extra credit is earned if she can relate a news story to anything she is currently learning. We discuss a LOT. I was an anthropology major though and find it quite fun. Literature: I ended up keeping quite a bit of my list. But I found a wonderful World Literature book & Teacher's Guide that is full of short stories (none are abridged). They are placed in historical context and the critical thinking and essay questions at the end of each are superb. I decided to use half novels and half of the World Literature book. Here is my schedule: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AtefHkOTSNcmdFBUUVU0czBET3ZpSE0zQXpvQ0JXalE For an additional credit, she is also completing a World Religions course: World Religions (2009): A Voyage of Discovery, Third Edition Other than the introduction, the Catholic publisher has been fine. I'm impressed with the book.

Quick and easy but fun: Forbidden Island http://www.amazon.com/Gamewright-317-Forbidden-Island/dp/B003D7F4YY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346117302&sr=8-1&keywords=forbidden+island Challenging and fun: Pandemic http://www.amazon.com/Z-Man-Games-7021ZMG-Pandemic/dp/B0013OBXG2/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1346117318&sr=1-1&keywords=pandemic (great with the expansion too) Great Family Fun: Castle Panic http://www.amazon.com/Fireside-Games-FSD1001-Castle-Panic/dp/B002IUFSPM/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1346117358&sr=1-1&keywords=castle+panic (get the expansion too!)

Eyes bugging out to the point that I wonder if they will go back into place.... It has several variation 1. "Stunned disbelief" - these bug eyes are usually accompanied with a gaping mouth 2. "I'm the most wronged person on the planet" - Manages to make bug eyes squint too and mouth is in a snarl. 3. "Excited" - Over the top excitement which is accompanied crazy flapping arms and some inhuman shrieking

CLE which I've also used has less religion. Easily done in a secular manner imo (assuming you are not doing the Reading - just LA).

We are secular homeschoolers. We used it for a year. I think it is extremely well done but it was just too over-the-top. We got through the year fine but it was too much for me to continue year after year after year.... We ended up with Galore Park and MCT as our winning combination. (I do use other Christian materials such as Sonlight year after year.)

My husband is black and I'm white. Maybe the wording of the scholarship would determine how I'd view my kids and what they are eligible for? Not sure. OTOH, we did have a "one-drop" law. It is a law adopted by most states less than 100 years ago. Rule unconstitutional in 1967 by the US Supreme Court. More information here: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/jefferson/mixed/onedrop.html http://blackhistory.com/content/63228/one-drop-rule Interesting topic.

My kids are big (except one) but we have the genes for that. I agree that I can't make a blanket statement based on just what I see. The 11 year old boy in my house is 5'5'' and 125 lbs. His projected height between 6'5'' and 6'6''.

Thanks everyone!

http://www.currclick.com/product/2073/History-Scribe---World-Religions

Downloaded this to my Kindle last night on a whim. Was up way later than normal ;) Thanks for the rec!