Introductions Please!! Newbies and Regulars!

[Mrs Mungo]

Hubby came home from deployment, we packed up house in North Carolina, visited Florida, Arkansas and Oklahoma and finally arrived in Hawaii almost 3 weeks ago! I finally get my internet up and working only to discover the WTM board has a new home! Wow! I love it!!

 

For those who are new or don't remember (I do not do well at people's personal details myself) I was Jenmom on the old boards and have posted on the WTM boards off and on for about 6 years or so (eldest is in sixth grade, I think I started posting when she was in K). I have two daughters, the one in sixth grade and the other in fourth and one son who is in first grade. We're a military family and have lived all over but we *just* moved to Hawaii. We are loving the gorgeous weather and beautiful scenery.

 

And to respond the OP I had 55 boxes of books on this move...well 55 that *said* books, I think there were some more that contained books but were cleverly labelled something like "kitchen utensils."

[Lisa in SC]

Hi there! I agree with the others -- at this age, it's better (and more enjoyable for all) to make things fun. If at all possible, turn things into games. If you want to practice handwriting, you can make up sheets with a line or two of the letter you want to practice. At the end of each line, you can offer a sticker or a quick fun activity together. Anything that is fun and motivating.

 

If you're looking for resources for games, I like the "Games for..." series by Peggy Kaye. "Games for Math", "Games for Writing", "Games for Learning," etc. Obviously you don't need all of them, but you can see if your library has any of the titles.

 

Anyway, I really just wanted to say "hello."

Lisa

[Needleroozer]

*waving* Hi LB! Slowly going through all these great introductions, and thought I'd say hi!

 

Waving back at Ya'. How is it all going? You guys well? School going well? Haven't seen you since July!

[slug hollow]

Hi! So nice to meet you all!

I'm a 38 year old mother of 2 & expecting our third in May. I'm married to a wonderful man with whom I love to converse.

Our daughter is 5.5 - super verbal & full of questions. Her memory astounds me. Our son is 3.5 - he's active, coordinated & wise beyond his years. Has a grasp of how things work (physically) that could only have come from his father. Baby-on-the-way is @ 25w1d gestation & is of undetermined gender - I can't wait to meet the little one & see which way the household balance will tip.

I tell people I wanted to homeschool before I was sure I wanted kids. It's still been an intimidating prospect but I love it. I can't wait to try Latin as it's something I always wanted to learn. I am currently stressing about next fall when dd will be ready for some 2nd grade material, I plan to start a more regular schedule of preschool w/ ds and baby will be around 5 months old.

We have a sweet 10 year old dobermut with bad knees. We've never owned a TV. We're not religous people. We have a strong commitment to living a moral life & following a personal philosophy honestly. I like to garden, I used to paint, I love making lists. He can fix almost everything, used to write (and will again:)) and loves technical design done right. I'd like to say I decorate w/ books, but honestly, it's more like clutter. We are in the 4th year of drownding in--- oops, I meant restoring our 1875/1940's fixer-upper here in our micro-climate known as Slug Hollow.

You guys are wonderful - I've really enjoyed reading you & am already regretting that I won't be able to keep up w/ all the fun discussions!

[PixieKris]

Hey there,

 

Life is good... loving homeschooling, loving my schooling - just keeping busy and having fun. Yikes- it has been since July! We must get together again sometime!

 

Kris

[Tracey in TX]

Hi everyone! I've been looking at WTM for 5 yrs before taking the plunge into hs'ing for our family. It's 6 weeks... We are newbies! I used to teach in both public and private school. Spent endless hours supporting our local elementary school and wasn't feeling satisfied. The state curriculum teaches to the lowest common denominator, and wastes most of the year teaching to the standardized test.

My gifted child began losing interest in learning b/c it was a mindless endeavor. DD,Giggles, took the easiest route to modest success. Not the type of life learners I hoped to create. I pulled them out of school in November. The adjustment period is over, but so is the honeymoon period! We hit the books and they're learning topics that they never knew existed. We're in the academic trenches together now!

[kalanamak]

and I learned to sled and horseback ride in the surrounding hills. Do you ever go to Pillsbury Crossing, an old ford the settlers used? Have you found the wonderful, large and ignored crabapple trees on campus? Have you been to Paw-Paw glen east of town? I have so many memories of all he things my parents did with us, on the cheap because there were six of us on a teacher's salary.

[Sugarfoot]

Oh, my goodness! We're going to have to do these things! The town has grown so much just since we've been here. The campus is good for exploring. We'll have to look for the crab apple trees. I hope my kids have lots of good memories of growing up here like you do!

[Maria from IN]

Well, I have one son who's 13 now, and we have been homeschooling since Kindergarten. I started back to college in 2005 after about a 15-year break, so the WTM recommendations we had been pursuing got kind of thrown out the window for a while, and now we're using Switched On Schoolhouse for everything but History--still using SOTW for that. I hope to get into graduate school (just getting ready to turn in my application, cross your fingers!) and become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor. That should make teaching high school rather interesting.

 

I'm divorced and have a great boyfriend who's just as wacky as myself, and this here place is home to a cantankerous cat and an active lab/coon hound puppy, who will tree something only because he wants to play with it. Currently I'm completing an internship at a local hospital's psych unit, and I'm having the best time! I finally know what I want to do when I grow up!

[Tea Party Girl]

OH my goodness, these forums are SO active! I could never get involved with the old one because I could not follow the threads and this is a huge improvement to a newbie. There's so much going on here, though, how will I ever keep track!?

 

My sons are 12 and 9, my daughter 6. We use Sonlight to decide where we're going to focus our history and literature next, but I love PHP grammar materials. I'm thrilled there will be a writing program and an FLL Level 4.

 

I wish I was having more luck with the Phonics (OPGuide) program and my daughter, however. Hope to find out more info here.

 

Look forward to getting to know everyone!

[jacqui in mo]

Hi everyone. I'm Missouri born, & Missouri bred, & when I die, I'll be.... well you should get it by now. A little song I learned in 4-H :).

 

I have 3 dc, 12, 9, & 5. We follow WTM pretty closely. I am a former Speech Therapist who's worked with almost all ages & disorders. I am a decent flute player & married to an excellent cellist/musician/computer programmer. If I'm not reading for the children's homeschooling work, or reading something fun to the kids, then I'm usually reading myself to sleep at night.

 

It's great to be on the new forums.

 

Jacqui

[KidsHappen]

Hubby and I have been married since 1990. I have six dc (b25, g22, g16, g14, g11 & g8) and two step-dc and first grandbaby on the way (Yay! I can't wait). We have lived in Middle TN for five years now and are planning on making this our forever home. I have homeschooled since 1995 and been here since 2002. I used TWTM as a starting point and then kind of created my own curriculum from there. Here are some of the things that we are using:

 

Grammar: Growing with Grammar, Easy Grammar and Analytical Grammar.

 

Writing: Writing Tales, Wordsmith Craftsman and Put That In Writing.

 

Latin: Latin's Not So Tough & Getting Started in Latin.

 

Math: Singapore, Mastering Mathematics, Math-U-See and Teaching Textbooks.

 

Science: Education Exploration, PAC Integrated Chemistry & Physics and Holt Biology (I think).

 

History: Parragon World History Encyclopedia, SYRWTL Junior History, History of US and A Human Odyssey.

 

I am writing a homeschool curriculum guide, although I haven't worked on it in 5 months as life as kind of gotten in the way (buying a house, moving, mono, teen problems). Things have just recently calmed down some and I am getting a maid so I think that I will be back on track soon.

 

The avatar is me and my hubby. This is a picture from Christmas that my dd paid for as my Christmas present. I have pictures of the whole family which I will try to get around to posting soon.

 

It's late and that's all I can think of right now.

[TammyinTN]

Hi Guys..I'm Tammy. I've been homeschooling now for 6 years. I'm getting ready to graduate my second daughter and then I'll be down to just one homeschooler who's never been to public school. He loves homeschooling.

We have used A Beka for the last 3 years but will be changing this fall to a new program. I'm so excited. :)

 

I've been married for almost 21 years to my wonderful husband. Ron is in the military and we feel so lucky to have been able to travel so much and see the world.

[Kate CA]

I will be the last to post! LOL

 

I am Kate, it is pretty obvious I live in CA. :) I have five lovely children; four girls, one boy, 13 to 5. I have been married for 15.5 years and am very happy. I love homeschooling.

 

That about wraps it up! LOL

 

Warmly,

Kate

[Lizzie in Ma]

We began homeschooling after a disastrous ps kindergarten year. As I was sharing with my Pastor's wife she looked at me and said, "Lizzie, if I can do it, YOU can do it". And here I am 7 years later. I read WTM that summer and have used it as my game plan ever since. We are what we call "eclectic classical".

 

My daughters are 11 and 7 now and we are teaching 6th and 1st. I have been married for almost 17 years to my best friend and we are newly addicted to the Sharpe's dvd series by Bernard Cornwell. DH and I are also huge Joss Whedon fanatics.

 

We have 2 guinea pigs, a budgie, a cockatiel, an Aussie Shepherd and a Siamese and an assortment of fish. And, while a totally separate category than the pets, my twin sister and her husband to be live with us as well.

 

I love Christian Light Education Math and Language Arts, Latin Prep, Lively Latin, Lightening Lit, IEW's theme based lessons, SOTW and Truthquest with Mystery of History. I do not like Saxon Math, Latin for Children or Writing Strands.

 

I am an old book collector and reader and a curriculum junkie. My very favorites are the My Book House series,Landmarks and the OLD Childhood of Famous Americans, not the new ones. I also love the old "Twins" series.

I also love knitting and am playing with felted projects lately.

 

We go to a Baptist church where we are incredibly blessed by the church body with friendship and fellowship and many of us home school. My dh is on the worship team and our soon to be old enough dd will join in May. We love singing as a family and the girls are learning guitar from Dad and piano from me.

 

I am so very grateful for the collective wisdom and willingness to share that I have experienced on these boards. I am glad to be among you.

[Just Another Jen]

Always have to have the last word-

Anyway I'm Jen, we've been homeschooling for 6 years and we live in Northern IL. We're about exactly halfway between Chicago and Milwaukee (in fact I grocery shop in WI). We follow a combo of a WTM/LCC curriculum at home.

[mommatlaw]

Ladies - In one day I've already received great advice from you! I look forward to learning more!

[Karenciavo]

 

Wrong smiley inserted, sorry. :o

 

Anyway, I just wanted to say welcome. :)

[Tammyla]

Welcome~

[Jean in Newcastle]

Bumping this up in case someone else wants to introduce themselves. I am finding this very interesting.

[wbtx]

I have 4 daughters 13,14, 15 and 21. My 21 yo is finishing up her commercial pilot license. My other three are trying to drive me insane. :D . We have been homeschooling 9 years. I still don't feel like I have it together.LOL.

I do not like writing this. Everything I say seems lame.:p

[Tutor]

I'm Tutor (dropped the "The"... original, huh?). My family just moved to Dixie this past summer and I am missing the snow this winter.

 

We have 4 munchkins... 11yog, 9yog, 7yob, and 3yob. My dh is a full-time PhD student and a part-time teacher at a local private school. He also helps with homeschooling. (I could care less whether my kids know grammatical terms, but dh loves that stuff, so he took over). I am currently writing a science curriculum for grammar stage students aimed toward homeschoolers and smaller classical schools. (I am currently suffering from writer's block, so I thought I'd hang out here a bit.) I also take care of a majority of the homeschooling. We've been homeschooling since our oldest was born.

 

We aren't involved in many outside activities right now since we only have one car and our schedule changes every semester, but a member of our church offered our oldest free horseback riding lessons, so we are in the midst of arranging those. We are also trying to get our son back into the swing of Cub Scouts before he falls to far behind.

 

We are active in our church home and are so thankful for a church home that has taken us in so lovingly. We attend a PCA church, btw, but my dh grew up Baptist and I grew up alternating between the Unitarian Universalist and United Methodist churches. My dh and I love to discuss religion, politics, movies, books, music... whatever, so we invite people over regularly to just hang out, eat and talk. We love inviting strangers over to hang out, talk, and tell us about their lives. We try to have a movie discussion night once per month.

 

That's all I can think of right now. Shorter is probably sweeter, but, as I said, I am procrastinating, so you got the long version. LOL

[Jolash]

I'm Shari, Mom to one ds 8, who's in second/third grade. We've homeschooled for four years and have finally hit our stride. We follow the WTM, but loosely. This year were using: SOTW2, Saxon 3, Prima Latina, Explorer's Bible, Cursive Connections, Trail Guide to US Geography, SWO, FLL2and Exploring Creation Thru Astronomy. My son is active in Wolf scouts, soccer and takes piano. We have a local HS group that meets once a week that is a real support for me.

 

We live in Central AL. My hubby of 15 years is a minister in the UMC. We have 3 cats, and one very hyper rat terrier named Puck.

 

I've posted very infrequently as Lashjo, but decided to change when the new board started.

[jail warden]

I have 3 children. ds 8, dd 6, dd 1(she'll be 2 in April) In June I've been married to my high school sweetheart for 11 years. We enjoy the WTM as a starting point for our schooling although, I have rarely used what SWB recommends. I LOVE the book, it gave me a starting point and confidence to go beyond a box curriculum.

[Andie]

 

...And all that time, I was sure he'd have me committed for wanting to homeschool. Who knew?...

 

Nah. I'm sure he's got lots of stuff on ya that's better than homeschooling. ;)

[JeanM]

I'm Jean, and I'm homeschooling two boys ages 8 and 6. We're currently living in Michigan, although that may change this spring if DH gets a new job. We've homeschooled since halfway through my elder ds's kindergarten year. I guess that would be almost exactly three years now. Most of the time I love it.

 

I was working part-time from home until I lost my job a year and a half ago. I just interviewed for another at-home job, but don't know yet if I'll get it.

 

Jean

[MoniMoni]

I guess I'll take a stab at it...

 

My DH and I grew up in NC and our Dads are professors at the same college, although we didn't meet until I went to college. We've been together 20 years/married 15. DH is an electrical engineer/Manager, and for some reason that equates to relocation every 2-3 years. We've lived in NC, TN, OR, PA and now we are in MD. I'm not good at setting up house, so I spend too much time and energy settling in.

 

When we moved to MD 2 years ago, we realized the moves had taken a toll on our oldest's education. Too many gaps and too much repeated, so we decided to homeschool her. Last year we brought them all home and it is a challenge. I found TWTM and this board almost 2 years ago and they've been a life saver.

 

The grammar stage kids are a breeze and I wish I had started homeschooling the older two when they were younger. We use a mixture of curricula; the process has forced me to get to know not only the kids strengths, weaknesses, and styles, but also my own. I will have to farm out writing, math, and science for the older kids. It isn't getting done to the level I would like. My hope is that the older girls find a passion that helps them focus their path.

 

Their mom still doesn't know what she wants to be...I love to create, salvaged items, gardening, sewing, baking, painting... I love young adult, fantasy and historical fiction: Terry Pratchett, Jane Austen, Garth Nix, but have a terrible time reading non-fiction. I scan - ((ducking)) Is there a 10 step program for that?

 

I've enjoyed reading about you all!

[Catherine]

I am mom to three boys, two of whom are homeschooled now, first and fifth graders. My ninth grader, original reason for beginning this project, went back to school for HS this fall and is surprisingly thriving and is very happy. I started teaching him 3 years ago. Wish he was still home, but I'm OK with it.

 

We follow TWTM fairly closely, but truly I know little else, though many of my acquaintances use Oak Meadow or Calvert. I love being able to work at their level and go at their pace. Each child is so unique.

 

Personally, I differ from many of you in that I am employed-I am a doctor, working on the weekends at night (half time). It's a challenge, but truly, a breeze after 14 years of part time primary care, which I loved, but was just too much for this mother of three. I may return to it eventually, when they are grown and I have more energy (and am paying for college educations!).

 

We use Singapore for math, Rightstart for the first grader and supplement with singapore, R&S for grammar, FLL, SWO for the older, All About Spelling for the younger, SOTW, lots and lots of reading. I'm on a first name basis with the librarians-thank goodness our local library (Baltimore's Enoch Pratt) is excellent. My boys take music lessons and each do a sport-swimming for the oldest and youngest (a beginner, obviously!) and soccer\baseball for the middle.

 

I will out myself as a liberal politically. I haven't read this entire thread, but am I the only one?? Currently , I don't follow much news as I simply don't have the time. We attend a UU church. I've been married to dh for 15 1/2 years-he's a patient, wonderful man who makes all of this possible by doing daddy duty weekends-plus attending many swim meets (our 14 yo is a swimmer) that mean leaving the house at 5:30 AM Saturday and Sunday. What a guy! He's an academic.

 

I hope to keep homeschooling my younger two sons until they leave home. It is so much fun, they are close, we are thoroughly enjoying it.

 

I also read all of these boards when I have time, and have gotten so much moral support and so many great ideas from all of you. Thank you!

[Kiva- SouthernGirlMusings]

Hey! Let's see where do we start, I have been married for almost 7 years and we have 3 kids - the Princess and the Prince and Malachi that is an angel watching over us. I have been home since a month before the Princess was born, can't believe it as been almost 6 years. Prior to that I worked on Capitol Hill and for a nonprofit doing public policy in Washington DC.

 

The Princess is 5.5 and is in K and we use MUS, trying out TOG, OPGTTR, and anything else that I throw in the mix. The Prince just turned 4 and likes doing school so he is starting some penmanship items and other fun stuff, he likes reading the first level BOB books and he picks up way too much from listening in due to his being highly auditory. :)

 

Hubby works in a good government job. :) We have recently started a home church and that has been interesting but truly a blessing. I love to do all sorts of crafts - sew, crochet, knit, jewelry and anything else that I am can get my hands on..and I love to cook. I have been doing quite a few swaps on Swap-bot and love it and I am currently wishing for spring as the cold weather is driving me crazy.

 

Forgot to add, that I found WTM about a year ago and it helped open my eyes and think more about what type of education we wanted for our children. I found the boards about the same time and have commented periodically.

[AnneJ]

DH and I have 4 children and I've been HSing since July. Before that, the kids went to a Classical Christian school here in town. DH is an accountant and I work part-time as a nurse in a medical ICU.

 

Since starting HSing, our lives have been less stressful and my relationship with my oldest daughter has blossomed. When my oldest was still in school, she said to me, "I wish kids could just take a week off from school so they could spend it with their parents." Now I am really enjoying spending time with them (it's not all roses all the time of course). Plus we are saving a ton of money on private school tuition.

 

I'm not sure how I came upon TWTM book but in 24 hours I pretty much went from thinking I would never homeschool to deciding that it was the right thing for our family. It was quite a shocker to most of our friends and family (they are all very supportive though). When I told my parents our plans, my dad's first words were, "It's about time."

 

As far as hobbies to, I love to read, cook and do crafty things--although I don't have as much time as I used to do those things. I also love to teach others about meal planning, budgeting and the like.

 

We mostly follow TWTM for our curriculum and have been enjoying our selections so far.

 

Well this turned out much longer than I expected. If you want to know more, just visit my blog. Thanks for all of your wisdom!!

[Storm Bay]

Well, it's taken me a while to post here, and it's so far down it may not be seen by many (so many people!) We have 3 kids, a 12 yo dd, a 9 yo dd and a 7 yo ds. We have been officially homeschooling for 4 1/2 years, although I've had kids at home since I had my first. However, dh wasn't so sure that homeschooling would be a good idea at first--he's all for it now!

 

 

We learned about WTM from friends of ours. Although the original intent was to follow it to the letter, we had to modifiy it due to our children's learning styles, etc. I'm going to keep this short. Not too interesting, but for some reason I'm not as chatty tonight as usual. Just quiet is all--perhaps because I was reading a great book while my dd was at swim practice.

[Jessica in KS]

I'm just beginning this homeschool journey with my (soon to be) five dc. The ages of mine are: 5, 5, 3, 1, and baby due in June 2008. As of today I am feeling pretty overwhelmed, but am realizing that I need to grow in my faith, trust Him, and be praying regularly for my dc. I am also needing all the help and suggestions I can get from moms who have had lots of young children with no older ones to help!

[HFClassicalAcademy]

I'm a mom of 4 and homeschool my k and prek. I used to be Liz in NC in the old board and I took a little break only to come back to this forum!!

 

I have a ds almost 6, dd 4, ds2, and ds 5months.

[Michelle in GA]

I have three dc. My oldest, I graduated last year, and he is now at GA Tech as freshman. I also have a 14y/o ds and a 13y/o dd. We use the following curriculum: Truthquest History, BJU DVD science, Chalkdust Math, BJU DVD Spanish, Abeka grammar, Vocabulary Catoons, Wordsmith Craftsman, and tons of library books for reading. I have been visiting this board for about 7 years and I couldn't live without it!!!

 

Michelle

[Stacey in MA]

There are 6 of us in our family:

 

Myself (38yo SAHM),

DH (45yo techie engineer type).

DS8 doing 3rd grade

DD6 doing 1st grade

DD3

Baby DS-almost1YO.

 

We live near Boston as of about 2 years ago (Central CA before that, and upstate NY way before that!). We homeschool for a whole BUNCH of reasons, and came to use the WTM when DS8 was 1st grade age, and been sold ever since. In fact, I used to buy "this and that" curriculum to try out, and often wasted money on things that just didn't work, weren't what we wanted or expected, or were low quality. But all of SWB's recommendations in the WTM have always been right on the money! So now, I mostly stick to her pre-thought and tested choices.

 

FWIW, I find that there are lots of un-schoolers in our area. I have met very few classical homeschoolers. I wonder if that's true of my area specifically, or generally true through the homeschooling community?

 

I started following and posting sometimes on these WTM boards about a year ago. I am not interested in much cyber-debating. I simply read and consider other people's answers and experience, ask when I have a question I think you all might have help to offer with, and offer my experience and ideas when I think it might be useful.

 

Anyway, pleased to be here!

Regards, Stacey in MA

[Dee22]

I have three children and have always homeschooled. Their ages are 14, 12, & 7. We have lived in SE Virginia for almost nine years. My husband's job brought us here and we love the area. It is a great place to live and homeschool:)

[Punks in Ontario]

My name is Karen. I have an incredible husband and five kiddos. My oldest is 21. Then I have four boys aged 11, 10, 5 and 4. We've been homeschooling the boys from the beginning.

 

I've been checking out this board for a few years now. I've gotten a lot of ideas for my 4 yo from the special needs board. Thanks to the imput of the wonderful people, he's pretty normal now!

 

We use a fairly eclectic mix of materials. Everything from Christ Centred Curriculum and of course SOTW, Prof B and whatever else comes my way.

[NYSue]

4 children; dd - 22, ds - 21; both homeschooled part of elementary until highschool.

2 dss still home - ages 10 and 14. Ds 14 has learning disabilities.

Have lived in upstate NY all my life and am not bothered by the weather at all, Peek!! I love the seasons and the green :D

Married 25 years last June, blessed with a beauttiful grandson last September (that's his adorable face you see!).

Owner of one neurotic dog and two very psycho cats.

[Mary in NJ]

Hi,

 

We have three children that we homeschool 11 yo daughter, and 10 yo twin sons, and have always taught them at home. Our two adult children went through the public/private school settings.

 

I began visiting the boards in 2000 when we first decided to homeschool our now 11 yo. I had read TWTM and started using some of the ideas. My husband is a Pastor serving full time in the Army as a Chaplain. We move frequently, so homeschooling works well for us.

 

We use, Rod and Staff for Math and Grammar, SOTW for History, Considering God's Creation for Science, Memoria Press Latin, Spell to Write and Read for Spelling, and other miscellaneous units.

 

I enjoy sewing so I am trying my best to pass this along to my 11 yo daughter. We are using the Christian Light Home Ec course, and it seems to be going well.

 

Joyfully,

Mary

[Anne in Saskatchewan]

Hello everyone:

 

We homeschool 3 boys (9, 6, and 3) in a very small town in Saskatchewan, Canada. I have limited access to other homeschoolers, so I enjoy reading all of your posts, althought I don't often have time to post and participate more fully.

 

My husband found TWTM when we first began researching homeschooling (gasp!) 6 years ago. Our approach has been to try the suggested curriculum first, and if it's not working out, start looking for other things. This has saved us a lot of time, and we are quite happy with our curriculum choices.

 

We are a pretty normal, struggling family. My oldest boy can't get enough hockey, my middle boy is into dance, and my baby would just like to be older.

 

Personally, I like reading and am working my way though Jane Austen this winter. I like movies - we have Bringing Up Baby ready to watch this weekend with the boys. And I volunteer on our local library board.

 

Thank you everyone for the time you put into these boards, for the information and inspiration you share.

 

Anne.

[RenJac1501]

:)Hello everyone, I am a SAHM of one son :)

I have been HS him since he was 4 years old :) and I Love it.

I am from the State of Texas and have been married going on 20 years this October :) .

I Love to Crochet hats for the cancer hospitals, garden,draw and Paint

I am a pretty layed back person , quiet at times, but like to chat up a storm at other times

Well so not to drag this on and bore ya I will go check the board out

Yall have a Blessed day.

 

~Renee~

[ereks mom]

I've been married to my honey for 27+ years and we have have 2 dc: ER is a 17yob & is a high school senior; EK is a 13yog & is a 7th grader.

 

All four of us were born in central Georgia & still call it home, although I did live in my dad's hometown of Adrian, Michigan, for a year when I was a toddler. I don't remember much about that, but we have pictures of me standing in the snow, crying because they made me stand there in a snowsuit (like the one Ralphie's little brother wore in A Christmas Story) so they could send pictures to the southern relatives. Anyway, the stint in Michigan only lasted a year, and then my mom couldn't take the cold weather anymore, so they packed us up and moved back to Georgia and I've been here ever since. :p

 

I have a master's degree in education, and I've taught professionally in preschool, kindergarten, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, & 12th grades. I "retired" when ER was almost 2, and I've been a SAHM most of the time since. ER attended preschool & kindergarten at the lab school for the local college's teacher training program (while I was working on my master's), and we started homeschooling when he was in first grade.

 

I am an eclectic homeschooler. I always read and research a LOT when I'm trying to decide what books & resources would best suit my dc, and I ask way more questions here on the boards than most people, I think! Some of my favorite "finds", thanks to people on the boards have been:

Rod & Staff English & Bible, TruthQuest History, Apologia Science, Starting Points Worldview Primer, and various websites with great free printables, such as literature guides, outline maps, homeschool forms, etc.

 

EK is a bubbly, social butterfly. She excels in all school subjects (except maybe math ;)), and she especially loves history, literature, and writing. She is very artsy; she likes to draw and do crafts, and also loves drama, singing, dancing, and taking photos & editing them.

 

ER is a friendly but quiet "thinker". He also excels in all school subjects, but he especially likes Chemistry and Religion & Philosophy studies. He is very musical; he enjoys composing music and playing piano & guitar. He has been accepted to both of his top two college choices and is trying to decide which is the one for him.

 

Dh is a pastor (Southern Baptist) and former prison chaplain. While working in the prison, dh wrote and taught a character development course for the inmates. They enjoyed it so much that they encouraged him to find a way to offer it to people "on the outside" because they believed it would help others avoid making the mistakes that landed them in prison. Dh rewrote the course and started a company offering the program as a professional development course for individuals and businesses. Its success in that arena led him to begin marketing franchises. It's still in the early phases (read: isn't making money yet!), but we are delighted that learning and applying the principles of the course is helping people make better choices and improve their lives.

 

I'm happy to have you all as my support group!

[Nikita]

I'm Nikita, homeschooling in southern Ontario with dh and my 2 children who have never been to school. We do "classical lite", so I have lurked here for a while but never posted - I feel like my experience is a bit different from a lot of folks who have a more structured homeschool. I love reading everyone's comments on these boards, but sometimes I feel overwhelmed by all that you accomplish with your kiddos - my older one is just not academically inclined even though he's bright. So...

 

13yo son (grade 8) is currently doing Singapore's New Syllabus Math, and Galore Park's Latin Prep 1 (thanks to Laura in China for recommending it!) We follow the suggestions in The Writer's Jungle for writing, because he is such a reluctant writer, although he's done some R&S grammar in the past and we've dabbled in lots of other writing programs unsuccessfully. We're also taking a break from formal science and history right now and unschooling those, as he has his plate full with a bunch of outside activities. He's been involved in First Lego League for the past 3 years as well. These outside activities are crucial for him as he is so social - it's getting harder and harder for us to keep homeschooling as most of his peers are drifting off to institutional schools for high school and he feels the isolation.

 

9yo daughter (grade 4) is finishing up Miquon Math supplemented with Math Mammoth right now (then we'll switch to Singapore), and L'Art de Lire French, also Writer's Jungle for writing and R&S 3 Grammar. I'm using Nebel's for science for her, and SOTW although not on a strict schedule. I'll be starting the Trail Guide geography program with both of them in a couple of weeks (after a family vacation). She's involved in a lot of extra-curricular stuff too, mostly music- and dance-related.

 

Nikita

[Denise in IN]

I love reading through these, so I guess it's time to add mine!

 

I'm Denise, and I live in northeast Indiana, close to Ft. Wayne. My dh grew up here, and I've lived here almost 17 years. We just built a new house right next to dh's parents.

 

We have three boys, ages 8 1/2, 6 1/2, and 3 1/2, and one girl, age 3. Our daughter was born in China and adopted by us at 18 months (thus the small age difference between ds 3 and dd!).

 

We're in our fourth year of homeschooling; my sons are 3rd and 1st grade. We are loosely following TWTM at this point. I discovered these boards 2-3 years ago while looking for good curriculum advice, but I've stayed around for all the good enabling and good company! I can proudly say that I now make my own yogurt, own a front-load washing machine, make vanilla, drink Mike's, own more bookshelves (and booKshelves), and use Foil Hat soap! :D

 

I like to scrapbook, bake, eat chocolate, read, listen to music, and play the piano in the spare moments when I'm not taking care of my family or on the computer. :rolleyes:

[Soph the vet]

I'm fairly new to the board. I usually post responses to vet questions as I am one (horses are my favorite species to work on, but I only do small animal part-time now). I have been married over ten years. We've homeschooled our three kids, dd9, ds7, and dd5, since eldest was in K.

I love reading, cooking, and broomball (we live in the land of the frozen lakes). I 've been following the recommendations in WTM for most of my curriculum choices.

My secret ambition is to relearn piano and perform with Jars of Clay someday....doubtful!

[cricket1178]

Okay, here it goes. I have 3 dc, 2 have graduated, and I am still homeschooling my 11yodd. I am electic in my choices using Saxon Math, Abeka language, and Apologia Science. We belong to a small homeschool group, but enjoy it. Oh, We live in rural Indiana.

[Guest spicygirl]

Hi ya'll! I have been married since high school and we have two sons. Oldest is 8 and youngest is 6. My oldest is struggling with reading comprehension right now, although he reads well above grade level. I hope to get some cool new ideas from you ladies :)

[MolleenCarie]

I'm Colleen, married to Steven. We're homeschooling our oldest, Chancellor, using MFW K. I have B4FIAR for Sarah, but haven't used it at all. Maybe over the summer. Isaac is the baby. He's 10 months old and adorable. :)

[Rachel]

My name is Rachel and I live in Northern California where I am in my 11th year of homeschooling. I have a 22yo, 15yo and 13yo twins.

 

My twins wanted to try school for the first time in the middle of last year so are at a small charter school in our small town........they will be coming back home for high school however. My 15yo has no desire to go to school and has been homeschooled all the way.......

 

I went back to school myself 18 months ago and am now in a holding pattern waiting to get accepted into nursing school or PA (physician's assistant) school.

 

We started out as homeschoolers and then I transitioned each child in 4th grade into a classical/charlotte mason style of learning. It has worked very well for us

[Michele in New Zealand]

I am Michele (in New Zealand). I used to frequent the WTM board years ago and have started browsing and occasionally posting. I have two daughters, dd12 who is still homeschooling, and dd14 who started a private christian school for the first time ever this last Wednesday.

 

Dd12 is a karate princess, a national level dressage rider (but has had to give up due to a change in our circumstances), struggles with math, has dyscalculia, dyslexia but reads and reads and reads, ADD and mild Aspergers. She is incredibly artistic and very crafty.

 

Dd14 has just discovered peer pressure, Queenbees, disinterested teachers, nice teachers, girls who follow along with anything and, thankfully, girls who do the right thing. She is a very bright student and does well with anything she puts her heart into.

 

:) :) :) :)