..took the 14 yo to get his student ID card at the local university. Gah. That's all, lol.

I can't tell in the lighting..maybe snap a pic out in natural sunlight?

Dick and Jane..I know they are old school but they are 100% sight word based..they start with a couple of words and add on with each story. New readers can sit down and read the stories right away without needing to sound anything out :). **ETA because I know this is a hot button issue and I want to be clear, lol - please note that I am not advocating teaching your child to read using the sight word method but rather advocating the use of the Dick and Jane readers for boosting confidence by providing beginning readers with the satisfaction of being able to sit down and read a book right away. They are a nice supplement to a traditional phonics program :)*

I definitely think crochet would be a better place to start than knitting with a 7 year old. I'm a fairly confident and experienced crocheter and knitting still intimidates me (and I'm 40, lol). I second YouTube. There are so many really great videos to show you how to get started! :)

Lol, no, I didn't! Here is the correct link ;). https://www.amazon.com/Chess-Childs-Play-Teaching-Techniques/dp/193627731X

Yes..I've known, used and have heard this word used since I ws a kid...I grew up in Buffalo and don't speak Spanish, lol.

Just wondering if anyone is thinking of heading to Supernationals next spring? We've done our State Champs and regular Nationals a few times but never the Supernationals. I keep going back and forth..ds is in 9th grade and really wants to go but it's expensive (flights, hotel, food, etc..). Anyone else thinking of going?

Oh! Somebody had mentioned chess earlier. My older son learned at almost 5 and has been playing completely since he was 6. I can't even express how many awesome benefits we've seen from chess :). I started teaching the little guy shortly after he turned 4 using this book..it's a great teaching tool for littles..lots of fun mini games to keep them interested and engaged and they learn how to play a full game relatively quickly :). https://www.educationalinsights.com/product/phonics+modular+flip+charts.do

We're just sending ds to the local public free pre k program. I think they utilize centers..the curriculum is focused on learning the letters, their sounds, numbers to 20, writing their names, etc.. Truth be told the only reason I'm sending him is that we have some concerns with regards to how he engages and socializes (or doesn't, lol) with kiddos his own age as well as some other minor OCD type behaviors. We were thinking possibly ASD but our ped doesn't see it and seems to think he just needs some time with other kids so preschool will be kind of a testing ground to see if we need to go forward with a formal evaluation. It will also be good for my 14 year old to have a few hours each day of peace and quiet so that he can get his work done, lol. We're planning on homeschooling for Kindergarten up with the little guy :). Yes, we do use the Horizons workbooks..I used them with my older kiddo and like that they are colorful and engaging. Ds doesn't seem to mind seat work and enjoys them :). By the end of the Kindergarten books they have mastered counting to 100 by 1's, 2's, 5s, and 10's, writing numbers to 100, even and odd numbers, left and right, basic shapes (2D and 3D), counting money (pennies, nickels, dimes, dollars), time to the hour and minute, basic measuring (length, perimeter, etc..), the basics of a calendar (days of the week, months, how many days in a week, etc..), basic graphing, patterns, place value (ones and tens), ordinal numbers, adding and subtracting through 100 (so 63+4, 85 - 3, etc..), simple word problems. They probably review a lot of it in the 1st grade books though :).

I'll be sending my 4.5 year old to half day preschool (afternoon) this fall and also doing some schooling at home so I'll chime in with what we have planned..whether or not it works out or needs to be tweaked is yet to be seen, lol. :) Ds sounds a lot like your dd..loves to write, is reading independently at a 2nd grade level, loves math and numbers :). My plan is to spend about a half an hour after breakfast covering the basics... Math (daily) - Horizons 1 Reading (daily) - Continuing on with OPGTTR - Reader - alternating between Elson Readers and Christian Liberty Nature Reader with comprehension questions afterwards Handwriting (daily) - Copywork 2x per week ( current Bible verse or short sentences taken from current literature selections) Spelling (maybe) - thinking of maybe just dictating a daily word list or short sentences created from previous, already learned OPGTTR lessons He'll go to preschool for about 2 1/2 hours in the early afternoon :). Literature (afternoon, daily) - I have a list of picture books I'd like to read over the course of the year..my plan is to read him a book and do some oral narration practice and then have him read me a book :). I also plan to alternate between poetry and an Aesop fable and a short poem ("A Child's Garden of Verses", Charlotte Zolotow's "Seasons" etc..). We'll make a weekly trip to the library to choose books for free reading time and I usually let him have some reading time in bed at night. I'd like to start some longer chapter book read alouds at bedtime..."Stuart Little", "My Father's Dragon", etc.. Science/Art/Nature (1x per week) - I have a list of books (mostly from the "Lets Read and Find Out" series), projects, activities, that we'll pick and choose from throughout the year. Many of them are seasonal or themed around current literature selections. We're also going to make a little nature journal together and try and get out at least once a week or so for a nature walk and then writing, drawing, etc.. about what we saw :). Music - (daily) piano lessons, weekly private lesson, bi-monthly group lessons Logic - (daily) chess So that's the plan as of right now...like I said...we're going to need to see if and how this will work with preschool. I might need to do some major tweaking but we'll just roll with it :).

Didn't Stephen King write a book specifically geared towards the teen age group..."Eyes of the Dragon" maybe?

Oi, my furnaces (yes, we own a double so we have two, lol) and the stress they cause me! They are both 25 years old and every fall I start panicking..listening for loud bangs and other weird noises..watching videos to see how the flames should look and then checking at least once a day to see how the flames are burning..stressing about how we're going to pay for it when they finally go. I spend a lot of time in the basement just staring at my old, crappy furnaces. We had to refinance a few years back to get our roof repaired and the truth is that since then we've scrimped and saved up just enough to probably cover the furnaces but it's the first time in 18 years that we've been able to put anything away in savings and the thought of having to spend it all on two new furnaces breaks my heart.

The 1970's called and they want you to back it up and quietly step away from the mold before things which should remain sleeping are awoken... http://flashbak.com/meals-in-a-mold-the-mid-centurys-love-affair-with-gelatin-34213/

Really, the best things he can do is to play lots of games, go over and study his games (especially the lost games) looking for mistakes and then studying to find ways to improve upon those weaknesses, and practicing tactics. He can sign up at Chess.com where he can play games (both live and correspondence), watch videos on every chess subject imaginable, hone his tactical skills, study beginning and endgames, etc.. Chess Magnet School offers a free trial and is a great teaching tool which works along at the student's individual level and pace. Tactics, tactics, tactics! Almost all games at the intermediate levels are won or lost on tactics. The more you practice the better you'll be at not only executing them but also recognizing when your opponent has a tactical threat against you. Chess Tempo is a free tactics server where you can practice and improve your tactical thinking. Don't underestimate the value of live, in person, over the board games. Even if he can get to a club or a tournament once a month it will help him to improve :).

Mine swell on and off...it started after the birth of my first child when I was 26 (so 14 years ago). I was also diagnosed with hypothyroidism at the same time which has been controlled with meds since but I've always been suspicious that the two are connected somehow. The swelling definitely seems to be sensitive to my hormonal fluctuations and is worse when I'm ovulating/menstruating..also heat and humidity..sitting too long with pressure on the backs of my legs..too much sodium..camping (I have no idea why but they always swell up when I camp, lol)..gluten and sugar seem to have an effect on them as well..so pretty much everything, lol. I'm also overweight so that doesn't help I'm sure. "Idiopathic edema" is what my doc called it...which basically means, "Yeah..your ankles and feet are swelling up but we don't know why and there really isn't anything we can do about it..thanks for the copay."

We used the Prentice Hall Algebra 1 textbook in conjunction with the Math Without Borders lessons to go along with it. I purchased the textbook used off of Amazon..the lessons from MWB and then the answer booklet (which was the most difficult to acquire) I had to purchase through a third party company called Oasis and needed to send in a homeschool affidavit promising we wouldn't share the answers with anyone. I guess since the book is still used in schools they need to be careful about giving out answer booklets. https://mathwithoutborders.com/algebra-1

It's good to acknowledge a bias..to want to work on it to better the relationships in your life :). Perhaps try spending some time with some folks who are intellectually superior to you. It might help to knock you down a few pegs in the humility department and give you taste of what it feels like to be on the other end of the equation :).

Is it possible that if she can finish 6 weeks worth of work in a couple of days that her work load is too light?

We started our 4 year old with Suzuki lessons about 4 months ago shortly after he turned 4. I would have never even thought of starting at 4 but he loves music (to the point of obsession) and was constantly climbing up on the piano trying to pound out songs by ear so we figured we'd give it a try :). We began taking 15 minute weekly lessons with a very talented high school student who has mentored under a Suzuki instructor. It soon became clear that we needed to find someone who had more experience teaching small children. He now takes 30 minute weekly lessons at a Suzuki music school (they also do Saturday group lessons during the school year). His teacher is wonderful with him and over all we're all really happy with the decision to give it a go. I'm new to the Suzuki method but it's neat to see how each piece he learns is teaching him skill and technique..it's all very thought out. They're also encouraging ds to learn to sight read music as well which is nice because then he can begin to work on up and coming songs before they officially begin to learn them :).

Thank you everyone for the input and ideas! I really like the idea of doing topical posters according to his interests...that sounds like it would be right up his alley :)!

I know you've narrowed it down but I wanted to toss Math Without Borders in there as a suggestion if you haven't looked at it yet. The program uses a classic Prentice Hall textbook along with video lessons. It's also very comprehensive and rigorous :). https://mathwithoutborders.com/algebra-1

I taught a creative writing class at a co-op once and we used Chris Van Allsburg's "The Mysteries of Harris Burdick" as our jumping off point. The class was a big hit! The book is basically a series of beautiful illustrations each with a single line. The writer then takes the illustration, the line, and creates a story of their own to accompany it :). Some examples... There is a whole community of folks who write and share their stories to go along with illustrations..some famous writers have even joined in on the fun. http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/harrisburdick/introduction.html

He does have a long standing love affair with all things space so I suspect the planet names are from memory/sight. Thank you for the suggestions..I'm thinking along the same lines!

Younger ds is 4.5 (turns 5 in January). So far we haven't done anything in the way of spelling instruction but he does love to write and I've been debating throwing a little something in this fall. He seems to be a pretty good natural speller. The problem I'm running into is that for the programs I've looked at the level he would be at the activities are too much. I ordered Spelling Workout Level B and I can already tell it would be like pulling teeth to get the 4.5 year old to sit down and write paragraphs about what he did at the dentist or puzzle through a crossword puzzle. If I did add spelling in I was hoping to make it short and simple without too much extra seat work. I've been considering: not doing anything formal at all just yet and just encouraging him to write freely without correction just creating a simple word list based off of current phonics instruction and dictating a few words or short sentences each day hoping someone chimes in a with a program I haven't looked into yet that will work (even if some minor tailoring is needed :) ) ​Here is a sample of his writing/spelling. He wrote this today of his own accord and with no help. I've translated in case you aren't fluent in 4 year old handwriting, lol. "The sun is hot. Mercury is close. Venus is the hottest planet. earth is were we live. Mars is russte (rusty). Jupiter is the biggest planet. Saturn has rings. Uranus spins on its side. Neptune is windde (windy). Pluto is small."

Pack a bag and drop em' at the bus station! Just kidding, lol ;).