Well, it's tough to say. She would LIKE color pics. But I would prefer no pics. She totally looks at the picture and then just guesses. That wasn't much help, was it? ;)

It's driving us nuts! Every time I get the book out, dd is practically in tears by the time we finish a page. I am so tired of struggling through a sentence with her only to reach the end of it and find that she has completey forgotten the beginning of it. And we both hate the pictures. I think it's time to search for another phonics program. Thanks for the vent.

I borrowed an old (1984) edition of HOP from the library. Can anyone tell me how it has changed since then. Obviously, now it is on CD instead of cassette, and it is more colorful now. But is the music the same?

Do your kids enjoy this? Have you had success with it? Pros/cons? I'm wondering if this would work for my dd6. She enjoys computer games. Thanks.

Do I need the Core Kit or just the book itself?

If you have time, I'd love to hear your ideas! Thanks!

I watched it. Or rather, I started to watch it. I didn't actually finish it because I was bored to tears. And it's rare that I don't finish a movie that I started. I'm sure lots of people liked it, but it just wasn't my cup o tea. Lots of artsy film direction and camera angles, if I remember correctly.

bump...anyone?

Anyone actually use this? How do you like/dislike it?

Wow! That's awesome. I was watching this thread because we also school 6 days and I have yet to see a 6-day planner. I wonder if she will be adding yours to her site.

**I also posted this over at the HSR forums, so those of you who frequent those boards may have seen this already, sorry!** I have a new goal: To use less curriculum. One thing about being on these message boards is that I read about all the wonderful curriculum out there...and then I think I need it all. Now, I will fully agree that there are some subjects I do need curriculum for...science, for example, because I am just not a science-minded person. There are lots of people who do fine without a science curriculum, but I am not one of them because I will tend to let it slide because I just don't think about it. And when my kids get older, curriculum will be a must because, let's face it, my math skills are pretty sad. I've fogotten a lot since high school (probably even middle school) math. But why should I need a curriculum to help me teach my 6yo how to add single digits? I've taught her lots of things without a curriculum. I didn't use a teacher's manual to help with potty training, or using a fork, or putting on her socks, or riding a bike. And to be perfectly honest, her handwriting was fine before I purchased Handwriting Without Tears. Her letter formation was good for a 4yo. Having an actual curriculum made it "school," which made her not like to write. So no more formal handwriting program for us. Maybe in a few years when we start cursive, but then again, I already *know* how to write in cursive, so I may not need that program either. Sorry for the rambling thoughts, but what do you all think? Opinions, please? Are there any must-haves that you think I should not neglect? TIA.

I have a 1st grader. I don't mind buying books if I know I can get a lot of use out of them. These suggestions are great...keep them coming!

I'm currently on a very tight hsing budget, and frankly, our local library stinks. So I'm looking for resources that can be used for multiple grade levels to cut down on the amount of purchases I am making. I guess I'm looking for nonconsumables that I can save and reuse for my next dc and/or all-in-one books rather than each grade in 1 book. Make sense? I'm not sure if I'm wording this correctly. My brain is kind of fried after the family dinner today. :o For geography, I'm thinking things like the Trail Guides or Ultimate Geography and Timeline Guide. I've got Phonics Pathways that I think we will use for a couple of years. Natural Speller when we're ready. Things like that. Anyone? Thanks!

BTDT. We enjoyed it. Thanks everyone for the great ideas. I'm going to see if our movie rental place has some of those series. The lapbook sounds interesting too.

We have been having some financial issues lately that are causing me to have to reassess my 1st grade plans. I really, really want MUS but, to put it bluntly, I need something cheap. We hated Singapore, so what else is there? Thanks for any help!

DD6 wants to learn about dinosaurs. We've read every book our library has about dinosaurs, watched all the dino movies I could find (even those Land Before Time movies that I hate), have done the unit at learningpage.com, three of those Dinosaur Excavation Kid Kits from Usborne, and a *ton* of other worksheets and printouts that I found on the internet. What's next? I plan to order the Complete Book of Dinosaurs workbook for her, but does anyone else have any recommendations? She wants to actually learn about them, not just do coloring pages and the like. Thanks! Oh yes, we are secular, so not looking for anything with a biblical viewpoint. :)

bump

We have been using Phonics Pathways with my dd 6. (Anyone tired of my questions yet??) She is really, really struggling with this. But I noticed something yesterday. She doesn't get the way the book teaches it. It teaches beginning blends in a consonant-vowel fashion (ca, then cat). She seems to understand better when we teach vowel-consonant (at, then cat). Has anyone else noticed that this can make a big difference? She's my first, so this is new for both of us. I'm thinking of switching programs now, to one that teaches vowel-consonant blends first. The first program I ran across was Alpha Phonics. Does anyone have experience with this or can recommend a different program that teaches in this fashion? Thanks for being so patient with me, everyone.

Thanks Daisy. I remembered reading this on your blog before but I had lost the link to your blog. So you just start at the beginning, read and re-read the page with your child until they can do it on their own, turn to the next page, and so on? Does that about sum it up? We've been using Phonics Pathways but dd thinks it is "boring." She tends to like more colorful things. I really like the way First Reader puts the different sounds in red to draw attention to them.

Has anyone used this? If so, can you tell me what you like/dislike, and what a typical lesson at your house might look like? TIA

nt

As some of you may know, dd (almost 6) is struggling with learning to read. I had a couple of questions for you all: Are there any other sites like Starfall? She really enjoyed it, but she's been through the stories so many times that she doesn't want to do them again. I know the repetition would be good for her, but she is bored with them. Also, what else is there for beginning readers besides the Bob Books? They are on my list of things to get next time I go to Borders (hopefully this week), but I was hoping for some other recommendations, as well. Thanks everyone!

No, I gotcha. I was just kind of responding in general. I'M sorry for the misunderstanding, lol!

Bumping this up because I have the same problem! I don't know how old your kids are, but mine is 6.

Dd hasn't found it yet, but dh and I have snuck into it already. Oh, well..we're the ones who bought it, right? :rolleyes: