Bumping :001_smile:

Darn :tongue_smilie: My husband is fluent in Portuguese and semi fluent in Spanish. But he is not around enough to help with it. An outside class is just so expensive. He did take 2 years of coop Spanish classes in junior high and is fairly comfortable with pronunciation some vocab basic grammer and such. And my sil is totally fluent in Spanish and he could call her on the phone occasionally.

I would love a review of switched on schoolhouse Spanish. It seems like a relatively inexpensive option. Thanks!

How do these line up with HS courses? Is book 1 Spanish 1, Book 2 Spanish 2 etc or something else?

I see! Just looked at website and samples! I really like the look of this. Cant imagine doing the super long passages though. We have never done anything that long...

This is basically what we have ben doing with our copywork/dictation. But its only a few new words a week and I would like something that covered most words on some systematic way. Thank you for the book recommendaton. I will look at it. It may work for the dictation part at least and save me some work!

I forgot about how to teach spelling! Thanks I will give it another look. I have also considered something like spelling city if I could get it all set up over the summer break.

You are absolutely right. I should have put a smilie. I was saying it tongue and cheek :)

Thanks! That is the one I keep going back to! We love all other IEW products we have:) Its not babyish? That has been my only worry. I love the way it is set up and if the rules reinforce what they have already learned and dont conflict thats even better!

Background: I have used nothing but Spell to Write and Read for 9 years, 5 kids so far. I STRONGLY believe in the methodology of this program and dont want to give it up:glare: The youngest of those 5 is entering 2nd grade and will continue with it next year. The oldest two are high school and dont do spelling anymore. That leaves the 5th grader and 7th grader next year. They were taught phonics/reading/spelling with SWR. Ideally we still do spelling with SWR, but reality is that it doesnt happen consistently enough to make much progress each year. They also do copywork/dictation Charlotte Mason style, but I feel like they really need a spelling program too. I want something they can do every day, on their own. That is the reality of our life right now. Even a dreaded workbook that got done each day would be better than inconsistent work with SWR with me. The problem is that everytime I look at another program its different then what they already know and esp with the 7th grader, that just will not work. Plus, because I believe so strongly in the method, other things bother me or seem inferior. Mostly though I just dont want to confuse them which is a strong possibility with the older one. I have tried to make SWR more independent for years. Since they are strong readers I have allowed them to copy the spelling words from the teacher book(I know...) and study them and use the CD to test. They hate this and I dont love it either. I have also pulled words out from writing assignments and done them on the board with all of them, going over rules, syllables etc. That actually has worked very well, but I still feel like they need a program to fill in any gaps. I dont know that I care about the dictation part at this stage in the game. I do however want to keep the rules they've learned the same. I dont care if it is computer based, workbook based, DVD, online, ANYTHING at this point that I can have them work on a few minutes a day everyday is what I need. Something that can go on without needing to wait for me to get 15 mins of quiet, hahaha! I will check up and make sure they are doing it and how they are doing(learned that lesson a little too late with the older ones and Growing with Grammer:tongue_smilie:) Thank you for any thoughts!!

Forgot to mention that my heart was also racing and I was getting weird palpatations too.

I saw this thread on my phone and came to comment about my experience and just saw your update about not eating much... I had this happen to me a few weeks ago(Im 19 weeks). I was so exhausted I could barely get out of bed and everything left me winded. I assumed it was anemia and started on a good iron supplement. It was not helping. At all. I discovered that I was just plain not eating enough. I had MS till about 16 weeks(including vomitting) and when Im pregnant I just dont feel like eating much. I feel yucky and food doesnt sound good AND I just dont get hungry. My stomach NEVER growls when pregnant. I can go all day and not realise I should eat. The week that this was so bad, there were may confounding circumstances that led to nothing that I felt like eating in the house so I was just kinda piecing/snacking. That in combination with the normal 2nd trimester blood volume increase etc was just too much for my body to handle. The day I figured out what was going on was the day I was tired of not feeling like eating and went and got what did sound good(McDonalds for breakfast and Taco Bell for lunch. I DONT reccomended that and I havent done it since!) BUT when I actually got enough calories in me as well as some protein I felt 100% better. I was shocked at what a good afternoon I was having after essentially spending the morning in bed. Then it dawned on me. I do still have some of the same symptoms, but not to the severe degree I did. I feel much much better as long as I force(and I have to force every. single. meal.) myself to eat enough. I understand not wanting to gain lots of weight and know from experience you can do that and still grow a healthy baby when you are overweight to start(BTDT, doing it this time too) BUT you must eat more!! Supplements can only help to some degree. But do take the iron. Hope that is helpful!

Maybe this is the motivation he needs. Instead of just doing what mom tells him to everyday he figures out how to get where he wants and how and then follows through. This could be a sign that he is starting to care more.

I voted no but these this happen but now I remember that I did leave my then about 3 month old baby on the car briefly 3 times! I started on some vitamins which helped the spaciness. But it was very very scary. One time an older child reminded me as I walked away from the van in the parking lot once I looked down and saw the sling around me empty! Both of those times I was only steps away from the van but it was summer in las Vegas! The other time was at home and the van was in the garage. Again only a few minutes and she was fine but it scared me like you wouldn't believe. I think it was a b complex that settled my brain down and possibly fish oil.

I have a upcoming 9th grade girl who is more on the artsy side and very strong/talented in language. Read early, fantastic speller, foreign languages very easy etc. She is quite behind in math though. This year she took DIVE Biology and did ok. Not fantastic, but we are having her re-do a couple sections this summer to be sure that she got some concepts we think she missed. The reason we had her do it was because it was offered at co-op and her older brother was taking it and I have schooled them together(except for math) all along. So next year she will be the correct age for 9th grade, although except for math, all her classes this year were hs level. We originally planned to graduate our kids early(or move to dual enrollment), but with our frustration over getting caught up in math, it may not happen for her. So for science next year for her I am looking at 2 options. One is a basic, check the box physical science class(thinking maybe switched on schoolhouse or something where she could be completely independant) or combining her with the 2 boys younger than her(5th and 7th) and do something fun and interesting all together. Something will lots of reading aloud and hands on and just try to make it a fun year(this one was NOT) and make it so she doesnt have it in her mind that she hates science. Part of the equation is that I am adding another baby to the mix in Nov and will also have a 2,4 and 7 year olds and the older brother who is 15. We are busy and often science becomes the subject that gets skipped:glare: especially the hands-on. I think if I got a complete kit though it would help. I dont feel the pressure to make sure it is high school level seeing as she already has one credit and almost feel like taking advantage of the perks of homeschooling and just have a fun year with regards to science while focusing on catching up in math. But if there was a program I could do that beefed it up for her and was HS level and allowed the other boys to tag along, that would be even better. BUT... doing something like SOS would ensure it got DONE since it wasnt dependant on ME whereas something else might not really end up happening the way I think it will when I plan:tongue_smilie: Thanks for any thoughts!!

Um, ya. You could say they did:) We have 4 boys in one room(ages 15,12,10 and 4) and 3 girls in another(ages 13,6,2) with another baby girl due in the fall. So it will be 4 and 4, BUT the girls room is much smaller. We are still trying to figure out how exactly they are all going to fit.:lol: I tell myself it is character building for them AND me since naptime/bedtime can be a struggle.

We are Christians, but prefer to do our own thing with regards to religious studies. I have used Ambleside Online or similar for years, but am looking at Sonlight. I want something that is literature heavy and prefer something that keeps the family in the same topic at least, with some overlaps of read-alouds and such. We will have a 10th, 9th, 7th, 5th, 2nd, 4yo, 2yo and new baby in the fall. I love the way Sonlight has the weeks mapped out and planned(I am a box checker!) but I would like something that has more assignments instead of just reading/discussing. Sonlight seems really close to what I want, so maybe we would just skip the Bible part and just keep doing what we are doing. But I wanted to know if there was something else I should consider.

I play the trumpet and started teaching my son at age 11. He could have done it sooner but that is when it worked out. His younger brothers have started alto sax and french horn at age 8. The horn player had to really talk me into it as he is small for his age and I didnt think there was any way he could hold it well, let alone play it. But he has done great and 2 years later is making great progress. Tuba, I really think 11-12 would be the youngest. its just so big! But a baritone is smaller and a good option to get started on low brass. it would be very simple to switch to tuba later(fingering and clef is the same)

But see for ME, I am not expecting the teacher to teach everything my child needs to know. They were using DIVE at home and while I wasnt super happy with the program, it did give them readings, lectures, review questions etc. The teacher helped faciliate the labs and classroom reviews, but I wasnt expecting her to do all the teaching. In other words, I didnt give up all responsibilty to the teacher/mom. Maybe some hs moms are doing that and that is what you see. But it is not like that in every situation.

I understand this of course. And everyone has to make their own decisions. But for our family, having the classroom interaction with other kids and the social factor, not to mention someone else organizing all the labs, purchasing the materials etc is invaluable to me. I personally stink at doing the labs. Having someone else help with this and having my kids be able to do the labs with others has worked out great for us. It is just annoying to me to have everyone discredit co-op classes as a matter of course. They can and do work very well for a lot of us:001_smile:

Usually there are daily assignment to do though right? I have heard you and others make similar statements before but for my kids co-op classes they have lots of work to complete and easily spend an hr a day on their course work outside of the once a week class.

I have been hsing for 10 yeas and have added a newborn 3 times. A newborn is easier than a crawling baby or toddler so I don't take much time off when a baby is born. Three weeks at the most unless nursing isn't going well. With a first grader you really can fit short lessons in around the baby and preschooler. Don't send her now. Just take it slow and easy and make it work. Also its a marathon not a race. Do light school in the summer or something and realise next year might be easier and you can make up anything you didn't get to. Focus on the skills and don't stress the content subjects. She is still little and there is lots of time to teach her every thing she needs to know. If you have a mom that is that supportive and you think will be willing to help you are very fortunate.!

I know! You are right for sure. I am figuring this out a little late... But I still think that if they had something that compared to a daily class they would understand and recall the info better. I mean of course there will be a lot of straight memorization, but some of the mistakes I have seen them make on the exams are definetly caused from a lack of understanding. They are trying to memorize and fill in the blanks, but when their memory fails them, they dont have the basic understanding to figure it out. I dont know if that makes sense or not. I am really glad the program is working for your son. I think it probably works for lots of kids. I think my kids needed a different approach and I am struggling to figure out how to get that for next year. Thanks!!

I know thats what he says(that the lectures are the meat) but we dont feel like that has been the case with biology. My kids have taken good notes and do all the review questions. I think if they were better test takers and better at memorizing they would do better. But we dont feel that they have really learned the material. What text is your friend using? If I were to do it again, I would use apologia or possible bob jones. I didnt think the text was going to matter much, but I think it did. Lots of people love dive, so it could just be us. I would say if you are going to use it, make sure you get a good text.

These look really good. Have you used them? Happy with them?