[My new way of making Anki flashcards (for other Anki nuts)]

Thank you!! I didn't even think of using it together! I was trying to think of how my ds would do it on his own! Doing it together makes much more sense. And that's basically what we're doing anyway.

[My new way of making Anki flashcards (for other Anki nuts)]

So, how exactly do you use flashcards to review spelling? 

[Vocabulary approaches?]

What do you think the best approach to vocabulary is? I would like to start focusing on it more next year. I'd really like opinions on English from the Roots Up or something else that focuses o  Greek or latin word roots? My oldest will be a 6th grader next year and I'm mostly thinking of him, but I will also have a 3rd grader. Thanks! 

 

 

[The Good and the Beautiful]

Thank you for your thoughts. I have been looking at it online and w wondered if there was "enough" ( with the language arts stuff) My kids are kind of all over the map with skill levels. I gave them the placement tests and they were both in different levels of spelling, grammar, and reading. But I just love the art!! It's all so pretty! and the idea of combining subjects like art appreciation and geography (which tend to get put off) with language arts, which won't get put off is very appealing. 

[The Good and the Beautiful]

Has anyone used this? I'd really like to hear about it from someone who has used it for awhile. 

Thanks.

[Clergy and the appearance of inappropriate behavior - looking at this from clergy's POV]

My dad is a pastor (or was before retirement). When I was a teen, occasionally he would ask me to do my homework at his secretary's desk in the evening if he had an appointment with a woman who couldn't come in during normal hours- when there would be a couple secretaries and a youth pastor also in the building. This was about 20 years ago. It was not very common, but a few times. So I know he took precautions so he could not be accused of any misconduct.

[Reasonable Expectations for Visiting]

We're about an hour from my in laws and we don't get there very often. Maybe once/6 weeks. We are them more in the summer and less in the winter. Roads are often bad in the winter. I honestly don't know how people could go much more often than that. Kids have activities on the weekends and it's too far to go on a weeknight. (Not that weeknights are less busy!) This makes my Mil mad- but she almost never travels to us to see the kid's games or whatever. (They have come maybe 3 times to games  and we have had many, many to choose from. My parents have been to more of my kids games and they live 18 hours away. If my parents lived 45 minutes away, I'd see them a lot but I could/would go without dh. I wouldn't have to wait on him to get out of work. Sometimes I take the kids in the summer without dh. But not as much as I would with my own parents. It's just easier for me and the kids to go do stuff. Dh works a lot and we have lots going on. She likes to communicate by texting dh. Dh doesn't respond. Ever. (About scheduling) You'd think she'd figure it out and text me....but she doesn't. I always answer promptly to encourage her to text me- I'm the one who knows what's going on with the schedules!

[grumpy and tired]

Can you put a movie on for the kids and take a nap during the week? Sometimes, when I'm tired enough, I can curl up in a chair with my littlest and he can watch a show while I doze off. Maybe you could have quiet time in their rooms for the 5 and 7 year olds and put the 10 year old in charge of watching the 2 year old? If you put on a movie, the 10 yo may just need to refill snacks/drinks for the littlest. The 10 yo could wake you if there was a problem. Desperate times, desperate measures!

[need help creating schedules/routines]

I've been accomplishing more since I started a bullet journal. I set up a sheet for the curriculum that We're working on. We mark them off as we go along. You could add grades in if you wanted. I find I am very motivated to cross of those lessons. 

[How do you preview books for content?]

I find book lists on Pinterest. There's tons of them and they usually have a little blurb about them. Search for book lists 3rd grade boy for example and you'll get tons. Mostly put together by homeschool mom's or libarians. A blog called "What do we do all day" has particularly good lists.

[Do you remember?]

Well, the first time I saw my dh, he was visiting my church and he was with another girl! The next week he came back by himself and after church my sister said "who was that hot guy and why were you not talking to him?!?" I told her he had been there with another girl the week before. But I definitely noticed him!! He also noticed me. Turns out, the girl was a friend from far away who was traveling in the area, so she stayed with him. They never dated- though I'm sure she liked him.

[.]

I told my 5th grade do that there was a discussion here about 5th grade lit that other kids had liked and he insisted on looking up a LOT of titles! It's a good thing our library day is tomorrow!

[I guess I am just getting old ....]

I think television is a lot better than films at the moment, overall. I've been bored the last few times I've been to the movies, which is weird because they are so much faster-paced, being bored seems a weird response.

I agree. We never seem to really like movies anymore. I know I prefer TV because there is so much more time for character development. I don't think that's the case for my dh- but he never seems to like the movies either.

[Local schools received threats of violence]

I'm sure that the 369 number is waaaay low. We've had threats in several surrounding districts. Our next-door district cancelled school on Thursday and our district also had threats, but were found by the police to not be real- they did not call off school, but a LOT of parents kept their kids home anyway. I remember kids calling in bomb threats when I was a kid- I think this is sortof the same thing.

[What would you put in a Science box?]

I've found lots of science kits at goodwill.

[Crayons in dryer?]

I'm soaking them now in super hot water with lots of detergent and oxyclean. I also figured that if it didn't work, the clothes are going to be tossed anyway. If I can find an iron, I'll try that on some of the better stuff. Thanks.

[Crayons in dryer?]

I have a load of clothes that are totally covered with melted crayon. Any tips on getting this out?

[s/o casserole recipes?]

Our two most common ones-

 

Tater Tot Casserole

1 lb browned ground beef

1 bag frozen mixed veggies

1 bag of shredded cheddar

1 big or 2 small cans of tomato sauce

Mix together and put in 9x13, top with tater tots and cook

 

Beef and Noodle

1 lb ground beef

tomato sauce

Garlic

 

Egg noodles

Sour cream

Cream cheese

Cottage cheese

 

These are mixed separately and layered. 2 cups of shredded cheddar on top.

 

This is often my "take to new moms meal" and it's gotten lots of rave reviews.

[Carrier of strep throat (questions)]

I don't have any answers for you- but I've got more questions! I just got over a horrible bout of strep. Really, really horrible. They gave me steroids to help the swelling go down. No one else in my family has gotten it. i think I am particularly susceptible to strep??? I've had it quite a few times- none of my kids have ever had it. Dh hasn't had it in recent memory- but I've had it twice in the last year or so. The last time I had a mild sore throat, I went to the doc because it had lasted at least a week, but strep test was negative. The time before that, I was at the doctor because of an infection under my fingernail- and she just looked at my throats as a matter of routine and said that it looked awful. I just said it had been a little scratchy. Strep test came back positive! I do always finish my antibiotics... I do still have my tonsils.... Do I just get it every time I'm exposed to it?!? Why?!?!

[7yr olds and extracurriculars]

I'm not saying you should do this- but I had a kid like this. He had to be dragged to everything even if he actually liked it. He never wanted to try anything new. Once he refused to get out of the car and had an absolute meltdown over trying Awana at a different church- a church where we went to co-op, so he knew lots of the kids and the church was not unfamiliar. Anyway, long story short, he's now on anti-anxiety/antidepressants and he's a different kid. He actually suggested trying the chess club at the library and went only knowing one person who might be there. Not even at our regular library. He goes to lots of things now without any problems, enjoys them, and doesn't complain at all! I am NOT saying your kid should be on meds- not AT ALL. But it is something to consider. (My dd is 10 now- he started meds at 8)

[weather and mood]

Sometimes it does work that way. Winter is soooo hard for me. It's like there is this huge gray blanket that is suffocating the life out of everything. A sunny day does wonders for me. I have a lamp and it helps a little. We've also replaced a lot of our light bulbs with the full spectrum ones. It really made a difference at first, but it seems to have worn off.

[Talk to me about your taekwondo]

My kids have gotten a lot out of it. They're he kind of kids that need LOTS of exercise. The structure and goal-setting has been good for my ds. Our instructor is amazing though, I'm sure his teaching style has a lot to do with it.

[kids, food vent]

I was just getting ready to post a vent on Facebook about this! I can post about it here instead! I hate food. I hate planning it, shopping for it, cooking it, cleaning up after it, and MOST of all I hate listening to complaining about it. I have 10,7 and 3 yyear olds and the 3 year old is by far the easiest. My 10 year old often has to fix himself a slob sandwich or something- because I am not making a million different versions of things. It's even a pain to eat out. The 10 and 7 year olds will refuse to eat anything that they thrill may have been touched by something they don't like. And what they like changes. But they won't eat the same thing a bunch of times in a row either. And they will refuse to eat anything and then cry at night because they are hungry. The last time we drove through somewhere, I thought it would probably be less frustrating for me to just drive down the street and throw my money out the window. At least someone would find it and have their day made. Enchiladas used to be 10 yo favorite food. Now he won't touch them. The 7 year old gets this look on her face like she's going to puke if she is told to carry a dish from the table to the kitchen that had a food on it that she doesn't like. At least the kids have a church thing on Wednesday nights and we get to take the 3 year old out to eat. So yeah, I get it. You are not alone!!

[Want to share? What are you researching or what non-fiction are you reading?]

I just started A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived. I saw it while browsing library ebooks last night and my brother had mentioned he was reading it when I saw him at Christmas. It's about what our DNA tells us about history. I just started last night, but it looks interesting.

[Free Homeschool Group Events]

If you have a place to meet, your options are endless! Board game day, pizza and movie day, my absolute favorite (although it's an evening mom-only event) has been where everyone brings snacks to share and their curriculum and we get to look through each other's books!!!! So.much.fun.! We have also planned field days at a local park- the kids move to different stations and the moms run games like short races, long jump, obstacle course, softball/football throw. Park days are free and great! In the winter, maybe a park with a sledding hill and a couple crockpots with hot chocolate.