deerforest Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Beast Academy Living math, history, and science that I made up Logic of English Pet Shop Business Math by Simply Charlotte Mason Excavating English Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeeves Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 My favorites that I wouldn't want to homeschool without: Singapore Math SOTW AAS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetpea3829 Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 There is one curriculum that I've used so far that I would absolutely fully endorse and that's AAS. I am a fantastic speller and have learned things from AAS that I never knew (but spelled instinctively). I also love Singapore for my oldest DS. But I hate it for my DD, who has dyscalculia. So far, Singapore K has been a good fit for my 2nd DS...we'll see how he does with it once he starts 1A. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
My3girls Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Favorites that we cannot do without are Math Mammoth, Analytical Grammar, and Writing with Ease. What didn't work for us was Sequential Spelling. At least not for my dd12. We like the rest of what we use just not enough to get really excited over it. Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KSinNS Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Find of our year-Brave Writer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slache Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Strayer-Upton Practical Arithmetic series Why do you like this? I can't find any in depth information on it and I think we're going to use Ray's but I can't get SU out of my head. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Beautiful Feet :001_wub: Home Art Studio Teaching Textbooks Tin Man Press books Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fdrinca Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 My kids (K and 1st) love Draw Write Now. They ask to do it every day. They even like the copywork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Spell to Write and Read Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXMary2 Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 i think it means "spin off" :confused1: I have always thought it meant, "speaking of" - but spin off makes sense too. :laugh: Our winners: TOG R & S English and Spelling ETC - youngest ds loved it Teaching Textbooks Sonlight Core 5 Eastern Hemisphere- one of our favorite school years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy M Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 SOTW! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
................... Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 For us, probably Calvert. Helps me keep my sanity, be consistent, have a very deep, rich and varied learning experience, taught my kids how to study, and also has a few old Classical elements that make us very happy (CHOW, CHild's History of Art, Famous Legends, Mighty Men, Poetry, etc) Also Apologia Who is God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lots of little ducklings Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 SOTW is a huge winner for us--love it. Spalding was also a big winner this year. My DS moved seamlessly from 100EZ (which we also loved last year) into Spalding, and while I had to modify things to accommodate his fine motor issues, he has learned.so.much. The biggest surprise winner, though, was the Learning to Read and Loving It series of readers available on the Spalding site. I was so hesitant to shell out the money, especially since WRTR (4th Ed) steers instructors away from phonics readers and encourages real literature. But "real lit" was way beyond my struggling new reader, and the readers we pulled from the library were a dismal failure (too easy! Or too hard! too many words per page! too many phonograms he hadn't learned yet! too many star wars and superhero names that I couldn't even pronounce!) However, Learning to Read? This.was.perfect for my son. Since it followed the sequence of phonogram instruction in WRTR, it reinforced his lessons and challenged him without overwhelming him. And --somewhat to my surprise-- he loves the stories/illustrations (even the informative books that he initially declared 'boring' based on the covers and topics.) We are in Series 2 now; still "Loving It." :-) MCP readers, btw, are also a favorite -- but the Spalding readers provided the intentional sequential learning for us that MCP didn't . MCP was a painful experience for DS *until* he'd completed Spalding's Series 1 (which covers all 70 phonograms). Now MCP is "easy" and we use them with great success for the purpose of improving fluency and confidence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walking-Iris Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 I love how so many of these listed as the biggest winners are listed in the biggest mistakes thread as well!!! Over the years I'd say my favorite things are/have been: Bravewriter Pandia Press products for science and history Joy Hakim US History *with* the Oxford Teacher Guides SOTW What Your _Needs to Know books WWE Sequential Spelling Miquon Peak With Books Private Eye Outdoor Hour Challenges nature study Easy Grammar Handwriting Without Tears Montessori inspired anything Drawing With Children Janice VanCleave books Ambleside Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexi Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 We have lots of things that are working well right now. Right Start Math - It's working with my 3 oldest kiddos right now. We all really enjoy it! It may be time consuming but it's worth it right now. FLL - so easy to use and my daughter is retaining it well. Short, sweet, and easy! WWE - Easy to use and I've seen my oldest really grow in her spelling (thank you dictation!) and narration ability. She also really enjoys the excerpts. SOTW - It gets done consistently and we have learned so many fun facts. My daughter finds it very interesting! Beast - We just started but it's been fun and challenging. CAP Fable - Also just started this one but I really love it! My daughter enjoys it as well. AAR - I love it! My son says reading gives him nightmares but it's not the program - it's definitely him! He likes the readers and likes the challenging of reading all of the word cards correctly. And he finds all the little games to be very fun. I like that it's easy to use and that it's working for him. He is finally making some real progress and he's very proud of himself! Prufrock Press Logic books - My kids LOVE these. They always ask to do more logic! Getting Started with Spanish - Learning tons and the lessons are short and doable. NL Science - We do science on a regular basis and my kids find it fun. The supplies are provided and I don't have to stress over planning it. I really needed easy because I have been feeling overwhelmed when trying to get science done with all my little people. My kids retain a ridiculous amount of info from the lessons and they want to do science. I love that the lessons are very short. So, if it's short and sweet, easy to use, and requires little planning or prep time for me, I love it! I tell myself that I'll be able to do more creative stuff when I don't have so many little people destroying my house. But if we can get it done without making me feel stressed then I like it.......or maybe I just like it because we actually get it done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoveMyBeautifulGift Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 LoF was great for getting my math-phobic (previously PS) DD to realize math wasn't so awful. And now, we've moved onto BA and she tells me all the time how much she loves it and math. So both big winners in my book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LifeLovePassion Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Math U See, it fits My girls learning style perfectly. Logic of English, again a great fit with learning style. These are our two biggest hits at this level. I think if I get SO TW on audio that will be on our list as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjlcc Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Mystery of History audio cds Charlotte Mason Help Home Art Studio MacArthur's ESV Bible My Book House series HOD's emerging reader schedule Hey Andrew! Greek! Education Unboxed videos My boys would vote for Minecraft Homeschool hands-down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berta Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 CLE math for my workbook-only girl Teaching Textbooks for my anything-but-a-workbook girl Starline Press History and Science My younger daughter absolutely loves ACE Creative Writing and Literature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
journey00 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Teaching Textbooks Reflex Math Handwriting Without Tears Headsprout Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 I've actually liked most of what I've used, but these were the stand-out hits (that come to mind, wow it's been a lot of years!): Reading Reflex Sequential Spelling Singapore Math K12 Human Odyssey v. 1-3 MCT LA Foersters Algebra AoPS CPO Physics: A First Course Mr. Q Advanced Chemistry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1pageatatime Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 CLE Bible & Math Apologia's Zoology 3 Sonlight Cores D & E (History & Lit) combined with ACE's American History PACES (strange marriage, I know!) Essentials in Writing Teaching Textbooks Algebra Notgrass American History & Bible Paradigm Accelerated Curriculum's Chemistry Electives from Alpha Omega SCM Bible Study (For grades 5,6,10 & 11) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hypatia. Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 McRuffy Language Arts for my girls. The usual things (HWT, OPGTR) just weren't working for DD2 so I switched her and ended up switching DD1 also, they're thriving with it! Getting Started With Latin for DS1, he asks to do it every day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deee Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 For the younger years, Christopherus curriculum. Rigorous, fun, beautiful, easy to adapt to Australian content, just fantastic. The only downside is that it only goes up to year 5. If it went up to year 8, we'd still be using it. MEP for maths. This is a standout at teaching conceptual mathematical thinking. While I loved Key to....., I wished we'd started MEP earlier. Peter McInnes' Australian Backyard Explorer, and companions Backyard Naturalist and Back Astronomer. Great for us Aussies who usually spend time adapting US curricula. Honestly, these are so good you might want to immigrate just so you can use them. History Alive books by Peter Moss. Published in the UK in the 1970s. Great treatment of history from 55BCE onwards. I'm slowly collecting the set (I'm missing book 3). D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ameena Posted March 13, 2014 Share Posted March 13, 2014 Sonlight. Hands down. Every single book we have read this year DD loved by the end of the book. I lvoed not having to schedule at all - just open & go. I will admit their science is lacking...but the rest is great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a27mom Posted March 13, 2014 Share Posted March 13, 2014 Logic of English MEP math Loving these so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS Mom in NC Posted March 13, 2014 Share Posted March 13, 2014 Best- 1 year Chronological Bible SOTW and the adult version of SWB's history books for high school Greenleaf Guide to Ancient Literature Martin Cothran's Traditional Logic, Traditional Logic 2, Material Logic and Rhetoric in conjunction with Euclid's Elements for Geometry and they both teach proofs-one verbally, the other mathematically Writing With Skill (for my child who isn't a natural born writer) Federalist Papers in Modern English Relying heavily on living books for History, Science and Civics websites and books for read aloud ideas: Thomas Jefferson Education Honey for Child's Heart All Through The Ages award winning children's book lists online Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Everything we're using now is a winner! Explode the Code and Happy Phonics (Phonics Pathways and OPGTR were boring!) Handwriting Without Tears Cursive Growing With Grammar and Winning With Writing (We've tried FLL, WWE, and Rod and Staff.) Teaching Textbooks and Life of Fred from Fractions and up (A winner after Miquon and Math-U-See.) Rod and Staff Spelling and Spelling City (All About Spelling was a huge bust here, but we do incorporate the phonogram cards into the Happy Phonics games. My children have memorized all the 72 cards.) Typing Instructor Platinum Apologia elementary science Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Oh, and we love Cuisenaire Rods and these tutorials! http://www.educationunboxed.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Oh, man, so many things! I blame this board. :) Singapore Math Mr. Q HWOT Bible books by Susan and Richie Hunt SOTW History Odyssey -- at least Level 1 GSWL -- if I got nothing else from this board, GSWL alone is worth the time I have spent here Evan-Moore Word-a-Day Latin's Not So Tough Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 2 books of Mr. Q science with audio (do you see a pattern here?) Um, these are on audio? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie Smith Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Um, these are on audio? My dh made an audio recording of both of them. The first one life science (also his first ever audio recording so not that great quality) we have permission to give away free. I'm on my iPad so I can't Provide you with a link. He also made an audio recording of the second book, but we can't give it away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cottonwood Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 For us: MBTP Language Arts units 11-13 Saxon Pre-Alg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birchbark Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Times Tales The Sentence Family Caesar's English Systematic Mathematics Mark Kistler's drawing lessons McHenry's science Wee Folk Art for K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssexton Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 CLE Math grades 3-7 for my oldest, and CLE Algebra for my dd Derek Owens Algebra I and Geometry for my oldest Math Mammoth for my more mathy youngest (though we use it loosely, doing lots of problems on the whiteboard, and adding games and hands-on activities) Apples and Pears Spelling for my oldest, who struggled terribly with spelling Handwriting without Tears cursive Joy Hakim's History of US Genevieve Foster books (Augustus Caesar's world, etc.) Audio books (usually from the library) listened to in the car Pinterest for finding games, videos, other supplements to our reading Yo Millard Fillmore for memorizing the presidents Language Lessons through Literature--a new favorite! Ellen McHenry Lots of reading of real books. Seriously, whatever program we have used (and we've tried them all--TOG, Sonlight, MFW, WP, Biblioplan) it's the books that we remember. The years that we spent lots of time just reading good books have gone just as well as the years that we purchased a big, expensive program. I've loved lots of things for a season, but then moved on. I loved Primary Arts of Language (PAL) by IEW, but then my youngest son made a huge leap in his reading, and we moved on. There have been several things like that with different children over the years; SWR and Phonics Pathways also come to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chloe Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Poetry for Young People Series (not a curriculum perse, but these are excellent!) Yes! We love those too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 You know what cracks me up? When I click on this thread, I forget if I'm reading the "biggest mistakes" or "biggest winners" thread - I have to keep scrolling back up to the title to remember which thread I"m on. I can't tell from the posts, they are almost interchangeable! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Webster's Speller!! The best find ever for my remedial students, I was finally able to get them from at grade level to above grade level. I used it with both my children, too, with good success. Singapore Math Latin Alive with DVDs Older Dolciani PreAlgebra with set theory Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Laurie Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 RightStart math for sure- it taught me so much about teaching math. My kids are strong conceptually, and I credit RS. There are other math programs I like and use, some of my kids have needed to move on to other things, but RS will always be my favorite and first choice. Project Passport Sonlight- It has its flaws and it's unpopular right now, but I will always consider this a winner for us. It introduced me to the idea of reading aloud, even to older kids, when I was a new homeschooler, and we have so many positive memories. It turned my little kids into readers. I'll still use a lot of the books, even while using other things for history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chloe Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 Tried and True: Explode the Code The Reading Lesson Apples and Pears Spelling Winston Grammar Basics Apologia Elementary Science Series Keep Coming Back To: Singapore Math CLE Math Story of the World Ambleside Online Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollyhock Posted March 14, 2014 Share Posted March 14, 2014 I've homeschooled 7 years now and the biggest winners at my house that work for all of my kids are: Math Mammoth R&S Spelling Explode the Code Writing with Ease Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeOrchidSong Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Explode the Code books to learn reading R&S English WWE, WWS, IEW SWI A and B small writing class AAS Spelling Power Sadlier-Oxford Vocabulary Workshop Getting Started with Latin Lively Latin, Getting Started with Spanish Singapore Chinese Singapore Math Life of Fred Scratch Python Programming Story of the World Sonlight Read Alouds and Readers Apologia Elementary Science series Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Twain Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Duolingo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle in MD Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 This is my 13th year with 10 kids, three now in college, still schooling six along with a very late-life 2 year old making things interesting for mom. Our consistent core has been Singapore math, Memoria Press Latin (Prima, LC, & Forms series), and Ambleside Online. Can't imagine life without these things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen the RD Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 Writing Road to Reading--This is my absolute favorite for teaching reading, writing, and spelling! Rod & Staff English Noeo Chemistry I-This was such a fun curriculum! Step by Step Grammar I & II--This is a very straightforward, nonsense approach to grammar; excellent Segway into R&S English 6. Apologia Flying Creatures Outsourced classes: Derek Owens Math & Physical Science, Potter's School French Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
estelleblue Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 TOG w/Writing Aids (I am IN LOVE) AAR AAS R&S English, Spelling, and Math (for a couple of my kiddos) Math Mammoth LOF I also love CAP W&R, but I am not sure we'll be able to fit it in anymore :crying: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Singapore Primary Math Sadlier-Oxford Vocabulary Galore Park French Galore Park Junior English Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeOrchidSong Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Singapore Primary Math Sadlier-Oxford Vocabulary Galore Park French Galore Park Junior English Do you speak French? How much time and how many pages do you do a day with GP French? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Do you speak French? How much time and how many pages do you do a day with GP French? I do but only at an intermediate level. I will outsource French once he gets to Advanced Beginner. The book comes with a CD upon which I rely for pronunciation. We go through it very very slowly, do about 30 minutes a time. We also memorize and do copy work. I will be honest, it takes us forever (weeks?) to go through a lesson. But I think that is the way it's intended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ItoLina Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Singapore math AAR AAS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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