Oh, sorry, I consider PE and Gym the same thing. You know, you get a physical education in gym class kind of thing. I didn't realize some wouldn't consider that the same thing.

He does have some interesting-looking books on Amazon. Thanks for the tip!

I live in WA state and my state requires gym as one of our subjects. some people take a class, like gymnastics, and that counts. But we don't really have money for something like that right now. Some people go to the YMCA for a gym class. But it meets twice per week, for two hours each time, plus I am required to work in the daycare for an hour per week. That seems like a lot of time, and I watch my sister's 2, very young kids as well as my own 3. I really have no time to work in the daycare, and I think 4 hours of gym per week is a lot, even if it does include swimming. So, what does anyone else do for a gym requirement? Does gym really have to require a lot of time and/or money?

Gosh, my son isn't doing a lot with handwriting. I am having him trace a lot of things for copywork and such. He is a 6 year old kindergartener and I feel he just isn't quite ready. I know it will suddenly kick in when he is the right age, so we are just practicing until he gets there.

We used Costco flooring for my ds' room. He has allergies, including dust mites, and it was just better for him if we ripped out the carpet and put in hardwood. My dh and FIL installed it one Saturday. They didn't have any problems and it's held up great!

Gosh, we had that day with math today, too. I stopped about 1/3 of the way through the worksheet, because if he doesn't get it right now (or simply can't right now, which is what I suspect) me getting frustrated is only going to frustrate him, too. He's only a 6 year old kindergartener. Does he HAVE to understand mental math and adding by 9's TODAY? :grouphug:

We bought the one at Target, and it works great. My ds is 6 and hasn't had any problems with it. If it were noisy or uncomfortable, it would bug him and he wouldn't be able to tolerate. He has sensory issues, so his "quirks" are hyper-sensitive.

I keep an empty spaghetti sauce jar in the fridge, and dump all grease in there. When it's full, I toss it and grab a new one.

Thanks! I appreciate it. I don't want to overdo it with my 1st grader, but I certainly don't want to make my 4th grader bored, either.

Can I realisitically use the same core? I was thinking core 1 would be too easy for my 4th grader, as she is an avid reader and it would all be very easy. But, if I am using an appropriate math curriculum for her, and LA, etc, would it be okay to combine? I am using Math U See for my kindergarner, and will use again next year in 1st. I'm still trying to decide if that's what I'll use for my dd as a 4th grader next year, or something else. Sorry, I'm just trying to figure things out. That's my biggest question, though, is the Sonlight. Whether I should use Core 1 for them both, or the Core 1&2 for them both, or have them on different Cores. I really can't see my 1st grader being successful on Core 3 or above at that point, as he doesn't read independently yet.

Is there a website or something that has spelling rules? I'm currently afterschooling my dd (with hopes of bringing her home in the fall) and I am needing some spelling rules for her. She is an avid reader, in 3rd grade, and does well with spelling. However her most recent spelling test, she missed 5! This is very unusual for her. I asked her about it and looked ove the test. The spelling words this time around were all plurals. Her class has never discussed any rules for making a word plural. So she misspelled heroes, libraries, cities simply because she didn't make them plural correctly. She also missed chimneys and dictionaries but those mistakes were more than just making the word plural. She must know something, because she got cherries, ashes, flies and a bunch of others correct. Her regular teacher is on maternity leave and her substitute is a worthless dingbat so I'm trying to pick up the slack. I find more and more slack every day.

:lurk5:

thanks! I figured as much, and I know it's a silly question. I just want to be sure I'm not wasting money on an expensive printer that winds up not suiting our needs.

So, if I'm printing something in black and white, but it has a small graphic on it, or a small picture, will it still be okay? I mean, for example, there is a "copywork" booklet I got online, that is about frogs. On several of the pages, there is a small graphic or photo. On many of these, I don't really care about the graphic. If I print this in black and white, will it show up as a horrible, distracting blob? Will it use all the black ink, making various shades of gray? I hate to use a bunch of color for a small graphic or photograph. And yet many things are pages full of graphics, so of course I will want those printed in color. Thanks so much for all the input. I was looking at Walmart tonight. They didn't have any laser printers. I'm going to look at Costco, too.

Thanks, everyone! I will be looking at Craigs List and comparing at Office Max. Some of the things I print are in color, so I will probably want a color printer. But I will be looking around.

We have a Dell printer, and this think just blows through the ink. And the cartridges are expensive, and non-refillable. We would love to have a new printer. Something that economizes on the ink, hopefully has refillable cartridges, and has new ink cartridges that are affordable. And, of course, we don't have very much money. All I know is we can't afford $50 in printer ink each month! In plotting to bring my dd home from public school, I would like to have the ability to make lapbooks. Plus, I print off worksheets, for printing practice and math, and I've found many little printable books at CurrClick, and mazes, and coloring pages, etc, etc. There is always something that needs to be printed, or simply someone wants it printed.

Do they have any idea what they want to do? Or where they want to attend college? When I attended a class on homeschooling, the moms there said they contacted colleges their children wanted to attend. They asked the colleges what their credit requirements were for specific programs, and what they were looking for. That way, the children could work towards those specific goals their last few years of school at home. Also, are you considering JumpStart? Where the child, at 16, goes to community college for free, as part of high school? It's common here in WA, and if the child is a high school student, it's free. My SIL was one class away from her 2 year degree by the time she graduated high school. And I'm pretty sure they have guidance counselors at the community college. If your kids are interested, maybe they can take advanced classes at a community college, plus earn a degree, and get educational advice, all in their last 2 years of high school.

A good gym will also have fund raisers and such to help offset the costs. The gym we were with also had time commitments from parents when their child made team. My dd loves gymnastics and is pretty good. But when it came time for her to join team, she decided she didn't want to make that time commitment. She "took the summer off", and at the end of the summer decided she didn't want to go back. I was a little bummed, because she is built for gymnastics, loves it, and is good. But, I was also glad, because there is no way we can afford it. Not now, and probably not for quite awhile. I really think God had a hand in that, and I'm thankful He helped my daughter not want something we couldn't hope to afford.

I appreciate all the replies. The global warming thing wasn't part of the curriculum. It was a "general discussion". My dd knows our beliefs, so it wouldn't be a big deal. The big deal was the emphasis on dead and dying polar bears, and how the children were referring to a fictional, end-of-the world movie that was supposed to be caused by global warming, and that a typical warm day was attributed to global warming. Whethere anyone believes in it or not, that should never happen. The teacher lost control of the class and the conversation took a bad turn. THAT is what was upsetting. THEN they carried it further, by talking about the victims of the Haiti earthquake. Of course we want our kids to hear about world events like this, but when the children are allowed to carry on about thousands dead, amputations in the street, etc. All of this is WAY too graphic for any child this age. Especially in the context of a classroom of 20+ kids. It isn't the fact that they discussed global warming or the earthquake in Haiti. It was that the sub allowed such graphic conversation to take place, unchecked, and including fictional things like, "The end of the world in the movie 2012 was supposed to have been caused by global warming." That's definitely not "science" and has no place in any classroom. As for the lockdown, even my BIL, the police officer who works in a middle school and has to initiate these things from time to time, this was, indeed, a lockdown. I"m sure they shielded the children as much as they could (as well they should have). The library and several classrooms overlook that parking lot, and you better believe all the blinds and windows were locked down, and that no one was allowed to wander around out of their classroom. I spoke with a few other parents during RE at church tonight, and I'm not the only one who was extremely upset at the lack of communication. I waited until the next morning before demanding answers of the school, but one mother called and badgered the secretaries until she was given a straight answer. If the school is taking responsibility for people's children during the school day, they have an obligation to be upfront and truthful of things that go on during the school day. And parents should not have to go there in person and demand answers. I was glad to hear from other parents tonight that I was not the only one upset at the lack of communication from the school. About the movie, it's district policy that ANY movie with a PG rating MUST get parental approval before it is shown in class. Stuart Little is a PG movie, and not only did they not get parental approval beforehand, but they didn't notify parents after the sub realized her mistake. The school is not holding their employees accountable for their actions. That is very wrong. Why should the students be expected to follow the rules, but not the staff? I brought the movie Stuart Little up because it is offensive to adoptive families, and my family IS an adoptive family. I wanted the principal to see how not following the school district policy in any way can hurt students. For what it's worth, if they actually HAD sent home a permission slip, I certainly would have given permission to see the movie. We don't own it, but we've seen bits and pieces of it enough times that my kids shouldn't be shocked by the adoptive mouse-boy being carted away by strangers, who claim to be his "real" parents. But the principal and sub not following district policy needs to be addressed. When talking with other parents tonight, many have similar circumstances in the other classrooms. They were encouraging me to address all of these things with the principal, and letting her know that if my concerns are not resolved, that I will notifiy the school board. At this point, the way I see it, there is very little curriculum, no accountability, and no communication. The school has the benefit of my daughter's test scores and the tax money they receive for her attendance. But where is the benefit for my daughter? I would like to ask them that, and also, "Why should I send my daughter to your school next year?" I would like to keep her home next year. I've been praying for God to speak plainly and let me know His wishes, because sometimes I don't think I am listening hard enough. I think He is telling me to keep her home, and convicting my heart that this is best for her. I am going to be working on dh, because we haven't decided anything. I am also praying that we are on the same page. I do appreciate everyone's input. It is helping me, even just writing it all out.

Thanks again for listening. Sometimes I think, "Am I overreacting?". It helps to write it all down like this, and see that it really is quite a lot to be dealing with. I walked in with Daphne this morning, and brought her to the office with me. I told the secretaries, "I need to know why the school was locked down yesterday." They were quick to say, "Oh, we weren't locked down!" Um, my BIL, the police officer who works at a middle school, says that what happened yesterday was the very definition of a lock down. Call it what you will, but a lock down is a lock down. They said I would have to speak with the principal about it. When she came out, she said she would need to speak with me in the confernce room. (This was fine, as I figured they must have been trying to keep the situation from the students) Apparently, over the weekend, a gentleman parked his car in the school parking lot and committed suicide. The windows were very dark tinted and local business often park in the parking lot, so no one noticed this car until sometime after lunch. They had indoor recess for afternoon recess, because you could see the car from one corner of the playground. No one had noticed anything and probably none of the students would have noticed, but, of course, they didn't want to take chances. And they waited until all the students were gone before removing the gentleman and his car. So, really awful circumstances. I'm very sad for the gentleman who did this. But, I feel the school handled the communication part of this very poorly. The did right with the lockdown, and keeping the information from the students. But the parents needed to know something. The principal told me they were telling students who asked questions to discuss it with their parents. And that if their parents have questions, they should contact the town police department. Personally, I feel more information should have been given. They could have sent it on the recorded line that calls to announce things. (Like it called to tell me to pick Daphne up in the bus parking lot). If they didn't want to put the full information there, they could have sent a reassuring message that the "situation" has been resolved, and if any parent had any questions, they should call blah blah blah #. Going back to what I said yesterday, if that were a friend's house, and something similar had occurred, would you just drop your child off? And most of the school takes the bus, so most of the parents are likely not even aware that their child's school was in lockdown yesterday. I'm sorry, but that just feels really wrong to me. Every parent should know everything that is going on in their child's school. As I finished this quick converstion with the principal, I mentioned about the Stuart Little movie, as well. She simply said that she was aware of the situation and had spoken with Ms. G, and that it wouldn't happen again. Um, hello? What about not notifying me of this, even after the fact? What if Daphne had come home crying again, because of this movie? Is that what it takes to get some communication going? When I spoke with my BIL tonight, he was amazed at the lack of information being shared. The principal is nice, but I do not feel like the best interests of my daughter are being met. I am seriously considering writing the superintendant. Do I think it will do any good? Probably not. But, at least I will know that I am looking out for my daughter and her classmates. I guess it comes down to, should I make waves? Or should I keep quiet at the expense of my daughter? I had planned on pulling her at the end of 5th grade, so she could avoid all the middle and high school mess. But I've been thinking now that I may pull her at the end of the year. She is happy in her class, and doesn't realize what a dingbat the sub is. And we do love her regular teacher. I guess we will have to see what happens, and how big the waves I make actually become.

Oh, I don't think it should be edited. That's why in the global warming section, I'm taping in facts, but leaving what is written. I don't want to hide what some people think from my kids. I just want them to know what dh and I believe, and back it up with facts. So, for history, such as the "baby bison" :D it is best to check more than one source, because everyone has a "spin" on it? I guess that makes sense. And I suppose Google is great for that. I would like to find a "happy medium" for history, telling both good and bad. Too often, a race of people (such as whites) are painted as either really, really good, or really, really bad. There is good and bad to everyone, and every race, and I want the whole picture. Not just the pretty or ugly parts. I had been looking at Sonlight for the fall. I don't suppose anyone might share if Sonlight has a balanced view of history? (I will have to post on the curriculum board tomorrow) And thanks for all the info on the buffalo (*ahem* the "baby bison" ) That is very sad, and it's sad that I had never heard that before.

Yes! This is my exact point!

Yes, I know. Again :rolleyes: I know I've discussed the curriculum, but I can't remember if I've discussed everything here. I love Daphne's regular teacher. She's really nice and it's not really her fault that the 3rd grade curriculum at this school totally sucks. But Mrs S is on maternity leave right now, so Daphne has a substitute. From the beginning of January to the end of March, we are stuck with Ms. G. A few weeks ago, when I picked Daphne up from school, she got into the car and started crying. She cried all the way home, and then some. It took her awhile before she could finally calm down enough to tell me what the problem was. I guess Ms. G had started a conversation in the class about Global Warming, and the class discussed it at length. They discussed dead and dying polar bears. They brought up the movie 2012 and some kids in the class said that, in the movie, the end of the world is brought about by global warming. (We haven't seen it yet, so we don't know.) At one point, someone pointed out what a beautiful day it was outside, and even attributed that to global warming. During this time, they also discussed the earthquake in Haiti. They talked about the thousands who had died, thousands more who had crushed limbs that had to be amputated, etc. Basically, all the worst things that those poor people are going through. So between these 2 things, Daphne was understandably upset. I was VERY upset. Not only do we not believe in global warming, but even if we did, who would want their 9 year old hearing all that in school? Or anywhere, for that matter? I waited until very late before writing an email. I sent it to the principal, the sub, and the regular teacher. I hadn't received a response by the late afternoon, so I went in to get Daphne a little early, so I could speak with the principal. She was very apologetic, and assured me that the sub was working on a response. The incident happened on Wednesday, and I spoke with the principal Thursday afternoon. Friday came and went, as did the weekend. By midday on Monday, I was perterbed again that Ms. G hadn't bothered to respond to me, at all. This time I called the principal. She said that she had wanted to look over the letter before Ms. G sent it, and she had seen it Friday morning, so she didn't know what the hold up was. Within an hour or so, I received 2 emails from Ms. G. The first, being a very lame excuse-ridden note about the situation. She said that she didn't hear these things, and would have stopped them if she did. She assured me that this discussion must have occurred out on the playground, out of her earshot. (So basically she is calling Daphne a liar here. Daphne never lies, and she said it occurred during class) The second email was a little note, saying, "Gosh, I sent this on Thursday. I'm not sure why it didn't go through. Sorry you thought I was ignoring you." Um, the prinicipal said she saw it on Friday morning, so here Ms. G was lying again. With the curriculum, it's bad enough that it doesn't drill multiplication. It just taught the concept and moved on. So when the regular teacher, Mrs. S, heard that more than half the class was not yet finished with their math timings, they couldn't figure out why. (and my dd's class isn't the only one this way. I've spoken with parents of other 3rd grade students in other classes at this school). So they moved up the date of when these needed to be done by. They have promised an ice cream party at the end of their math timings session. If you finish them all within the allotted time, you can have your choice of whatever's there. If not, you better hope you finish enough of them to earn some ice cream. So Daphne is stressing about this, and I'm sure she's not the only one. Ms. G doesn't seem to know what to do to fix this. They have now pulled flashcards out twice in class. (These are cards Mrs. S wanted us to supply for our kids, before she went on leave) Daphne has told me that Ms. G has also instituted a new rule - if you get close to finishing, but still have a few problems left unfilled, (up to 4 problems) you can still pass. So she has basically lowered the bar for these kids. Also, they don't work on multiplication problems in the classroom. The homework has always been very easy for Daphne, and usually was centered around spelling words. She has never been sent a worksheet with many math problems on it, and they never do those in the classroom, either. And yet....a couple weeks ago, they had a lot of math problems. There was one sheet of 64 single digit multiplication problems, one sheet of 64 double digit multiplication problems (which they had not learned or discussed in the classroom), and one page of 100 division problems! Daphne was near tears! (Especially considering her teacher had given her the wrong homework, so she didn't receive it until Wednesday). Last week, Ms. G showed the class a movie, Stuart Little. Now, this is a PG movie, and it is our school district's policy that a parent must sign permission before a PG movie can be shown. Ms. G "didn't realize" that this was a PG movie. She told the principal after the fact, but we, the parents, were never notified. Seems like a simple mistake, right? Do you know the storyline of the movie? It's about a mouse, who gets adopted by a human family. Towards the end of the movie, the mouse's "real" parents come back to claim him. Even though they are strangers, the mouse has to go with his "real" parents. Now, as a mom of 3 kids who joined our family through the miracle of adoption, I have BIG problem with this movie! It probably would have been okay, if they had asked ahead of time. It likely would have been okay if they had notified us after. But the only reason I know is because Daphne told me. I have resisted complaining, because I've already been that route, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to bring it up. One or two mistakes can easily be overlooked and forgiven, but they keep stacking up. (And this dingbat substitute teacher makes me want to rip my arm off and start beating people with it! :mad: ) Fast forward to today. At 2:40 today, the school automated machine called. (It gives school-wide announcements) It said, "There has been a non-school incident in the parking lot. If you are picking your child up from school, please pick them up in the bus parking lot. Be sure to arrive after 3:30." That was all it said. It didn't say what had happened. Daphne's school lets out at 3:25. So I arrive late, as it states, and pick her up in the bus parking lot. As I pass our regular parking lot, it is blocked off at both entrances, with cones, and a man in a vest at each entrance. There are 2 police cars in the parking lot. And there is a temporary awning, covering something in the parking lot. When I ask Daphne what was going on, she had no idea. She also said that afternoon recess was an inside recess, but they weren't told why. Now, it was a beautiful day today, and this is the school that sent my baby outside in 18 degree weather, and also in the rain. No. matter. what. So if they are kept inside for recess on a beautiful day, that is a "lock-down" situation. Wouldn't you agree? There were a lot of adults outside with the kids when I picked up Daphne. I had a car full of kids and I didn't want to try to get answers out in the parking lot, with all my kids waiting on me. (I had my sister's 2, as well.) I've looked through Daphne's backpack, and there is no announcement of what, exactly, happened. I spoke with my BIL, a police officer, who works in a middle school, and he raised his eyebrows. He says there is no way there should be that heavy a presence there and the parents not to be notified. I am going to be walking Daphne into the school tomorrow, and if they can't tell me what was going on, I don't feel like I can leave her there. I mean, if she were at a friend's house, and the mom called up and said, "Can you pick her up in the alley today? There's something going on out front." And then, when I got there, there were police cars, the yard was taped off, and there was a big awning in the yard, blocking my view, do you really think I would bring my child back the next day? I mean, given that no explanation was given, that is huge to me. If it were a car fire or something, why hide it? Why not mention the words "lock-down" in the phone message, since that's exactly what it was? *sigh* Thanks for listening. I've been trying to be nice, but I think the time for being nice is over. All of this is completely unacceptable to me.

Okay, maybe this is a weird question, but.....how do you know everything in the books is true? Just because someone publishes something as fact, doesn't mean it's true. A little while ago, I bought a few children's encyclopedia books at Costco. They have pictures and a lot of information in them. Well, on thumbing through one of them, it says that the Buffalo were brought to near extinction by over hunting them. It goes on to say that they were over-hunted on purpose, by the whites that were settling the land. The books says the reason for this is that the settlers were hoping that if they took away a major food source, buffalo, from the native Americans, that they would then become dependent upon the new settlers. I've never heard that before. Was it hidden before? Or made up now? How do I fact-check something like that? To further emphasis how something may be inaccurate, there is mention of global warming and such, too. I am intending to tape a few facts into the book at those couple of pages. Not to hide what is said, but to provide true facts right there, to counter the misconceptions. That way my kids can read it all and be informed.

I'm in WA, too, and we are one of only ten states that does not allow Charter schools. So that is one less option for families in my state. It is bad, everywhere, and only getting worse.