Homeschool Chat

[disneymom3]

Lori--I agree with you about TT being a bit lower than some other curriculums out there. I consider DS 9 to be quite far behind in math and when I was looking at the Teaching Textbooks website eariler today to check out Math 4, I was very surprised because I think he might be able to pass that placement test. There were very few things he would not know how to do, all of which were in the second section. That said, having math on the computer for him really appeals to me because he has a lot of trouble with writing and our OT has suggested seeing if I could find something where he could type in his answers.

Your comment about stopping and reviewing midway really encouraged me. I somehow "forgot" I would be able to do that if it moved too fast. That whole lettting the curriculum use you instead of using the curriculum. I fall into that trap WAY too easily.

 

[disneymom3]

To those that recommend Teaching texts, the site I found
http://www.teachingtextbooks.com/v/vspfiles/tt/Math4.htm

shows it starts with 4th grade-is that right? I am looking for 3rd grade.

It does say somewhere on the site that they expect Math 3 to be available by fall of 09. I sent them an email to see if they knew when the placement test would be online. I will let you know here when I hear back from them.

 

[lori1043]

Lori--I agree with you about TT being a bit lower than some other curriculums out there. I consider DS 9 to be quite far behind in math and when I was looking at the Teaching Textbooks website eariler today to check out Math 4, I was very surprised because I think he might be able to pass that placement test. There were very few things he would not know how to do, all of which were in the second section. That said, having math on the computer for him really appeals to me because he has a lot of trouble with writing and our OT has suggested seeing if I could find something where he could type in his answers.

Your comment about stopping and reviewing midway really encouraged me. I somehow "forgot" I would be able to do that if it moved too fast. That whole lettting the curriculum use you instead of using the curriculum. I fall into that trap WAY too easily.

Your welcome. Anyway, my DD11, took the placement tests for TT5 and TT6-she passed the 5th gr one and was ONE off of the TT6. So I got TT5 to help boost confidence. Well, she did 90 TT5 lessons in about 4 months!! So I ordered TT6 and she is doing great-getting A's consistently. I know I did the right thing. So, DD9 was doing Abeka 3rd gr and since TT5 seemed so simple, i tried her on it. She was making consistent A's till about lesson 30. So, it must have been a lot of review! But I looked closely at it and lots of it was new to her , but after lesson 30 it was getting to mult double digits(top #). So we stopped, like said, and made sure Mult. was really strong. I even ordered something called Times Tales, which has really helped. It is a wierd program, but it DOES work. It is meant for the harder mult facts. We went from there to teach mult doubles and just took off from there making sure she got a well rounded time off from TT5. I figured she could pick back up in a few weeks. She started back this week and is doing fine. She needs to hear it and see it on paper, then work ou the problems.

It does say somewhere on the site that they expect Math 3 to be available by fall of 09. I sent them an email to see if they knew when the placement test would be online. I will let you know here when I hear back from them.

Try out TT4, if you haven't already. I think if they get ONE more wrong from what it says, that they can move to that level.

Blessings, Lori

 

[lori1043]

I guess I should let you know, for those who don't remember me or are newer, that I have been homeschooling 5 years(so not a vet yet!!IMHO). I have 2 girls, 9 and 11.

We live in a great homeschooling state and have a great governor who advocates homeschooling.

Lori

 

[wvdislover]

To those that recommend Teaching texts, the site I found
http://www.teachingtextbooks.com/v/vspfiles/tt/Math4.htm

shows it starts with 4th grade-is that right? I am looking for 3rd grade.

I just read on an a link they sent me that they will be coming out with Math 3 in the fall! It also says that the new Math 4 has all kinds of new drills and games to help kids with their math facts. Parents can also go in and change a grade on a lesson or on a problem. I wish they would adjust that on the higher math programs.

 

[cdhheidi]

Just wanted to share... in case you don't know about it already. There is a great site that offers free downloads each day, today is all about Paul Revere (this weekend is the anniversary of that great ride you know!).



http://www.homeschoolfreebie.wholesomechildhood.com/

Each weekday this site has a new free download of some kind, ranging from ebooks to audio, some for young kids, some for older or for parents. My family has especially enjoyed the audio from homeschool radio shows, much of which is old time radio from the 30's-60's.

Just wanted to pass it on!!

Heidi

 

[Denine]

Proud mom moment.

DD (6), took the CAT test last week. We got the scores back yesterday and she scored in the 98th percentile overall.
I need the scores to turn into the school system for next year.

 

[disneyfinatics]

http://www.greathomeschooltshirts.com/
This website has some great t-shirts! I like giving people the answer before they ask. Has anyone else ever noticed how they can clear out other moms in a social situation when asked, "Where does your child go to school?" I use to feel like I had the plague, now I like to see how many seconds it takes them to run from the freak! I've found a surprising number of teachers that are actually supportive of the fact that we home school. I'm so not ready for my yearly review.
Anyone have advice for a curriculum for a child struggling w/math? We use Switched on Schoolhouse & I know we need to go to a book, but not sure which one.

 

[Disneymom3304]

Hello. I wanted to come on and maybe get some opinions from others that know honest answers on home schooling and not just heresay. My daughter's bday is at the end of August and the cut off for Kindergarten here is September 1st. I decided to hold her back an extra year because of the Kindergarten she would be put in and because she was still a little shy. During her extra year of Pre-K I started looking into home schooling and thought this could be another option for us. The K teacher she would have is the same one I did my field work with in college, I cannot see her thriving in an environment where kids don't come first. Just my opinion but this teacher should not be teaching and it scares me that she would be teaching my child! So I have come up with some options, the charter school in the area or just putting her into first grade. Now I am seriously considering homeschooling. My close friends are worried that socially she will hurt and that I could never teach her as much as the school can. How and where did you start? I find info here and there on the web and this forum is great too,but I just can't get a grasp as to where to start or what I may need to start. Any opinions would be so greatly appreciated!

Thank you for reading this long post!

 

[graygables]

Anyone have advice for a curriculum for a child struggling w/math? We use Switched on Schoolhouse & I know we need to go to a book, but not sure which one.

My DDs had some pretty significant gaps in the knowledge between K12 and SOS, so we started using Math U See with good results. I like it.

Now I am seriously considering homeschooling. My close friends are worried that socially she will hurt and that I could never teach her as much as the school can.

Stepping on my soapbox...she is not your "friends'" child. She is YOUR child. It's none of their business how you choose to school her. You can actually teach her MORE than the school can. My DDs have learned about Michelangelo, Botswana, photography, and more, none of which they would have EVER been able to learn at all, much less in elementary school. The "socialization" issue is a weak response of frightened people who have been socially engineered through the public school model to believe that there is only one right way to educate children.

There is a plethora of activities for homeschooled children providing true socialization. When was the last time you had a job that was ONLY 44-45 year olds? When was the last time you were in the breakroom at work only to be pushed down and your lunch stolen? When was the last time you were in the restroom and had someone offer you marijuana? Precisely NOT the kind of "socialization" I'm interested in, thankyouverymuch. True socialization comes from interacting with people of all ages in positive and healthy ways, even if there is conflict.

In our experience, my 2 older DDs started out in PS (I was a high school English teacher, after all...) and it was VERY difficult to pull them out and re-educate them because of the social programming that had already taken place. We struggled with our decision, even though another child had raged and threatened to kill my daughter and they were only in the 2nd grade. He received no discipline and was allowed to continue to harass her, so we pulled them both out of the school. My younger 2 have never been in a "school" and have done very well. We are a hybrid of "unschooling" and "homeschooling" in that we use some curriculum, but a LOT of what my DDs learn is interest-based and self-driven. We had a lizard in our house this week, so it was straight away to Google to see what we could learn. We didn't know what kind of lizard it was at first, but DDs did some quick searching and discovered that is was a Mediterranean Gecko. Lo and behold, it's not native to Florida and is the only nocturnal lizard we have here. We've recently worked on a lapbook about animal classification, so they were able to add the information about our new "friend" to their books.

My educational philosophy is, "Wake up. Start learning." My second philosophy is "I've SEEN the village. I don't want their help, thank you." My third? "Mind your own beeswax" You have to make the choice that is best for YOU, YOUR child, and YOUR family. It may very well be a public, private, or charter school, but understand that there is a degree of de-schooling that has to happen if they start out that way. I always say it's easier to start them at home and put them in school later than the other way around.

 

[wvdislover]

http://www.greathomeschooltshirts.com/
This website has some great t-shirts! I like giving people the answer before they ask. Has anyone else ever noticed how they can clear out other moms in a social situation when asked, "Where does your child go to school?" I use to feel like I had the plague, now I like to see how many seconds it takes them to run from the freak! I've found a surprising number of teachers that are actually supportive of the fact that we home school. I'm so not ready for my yearly review.
Anyone have advice for a curriculum for a child struggling w/math? We use Switched on Schoolhouse & I know we need to go to a book, but not sure which one.

Read some of the posts above yours Several of us love using Teaching Textbooks for math. It comes with a workbook and uses a CD-Rom, but is much better (and easier to use) than SOS, IMHO.

 

[yanni2]

I am a homeschooling mom to 2 girls, 10 (11 in May) and 8. I have been homeschooling for 5 years now....my oldest went to public school for kindergarten, but we were not happy with it. Lots of wasted time and busy work.

I started out with a charter school (K12) for the first 3 years and then branched out to doing my own thing last year. We are now part of a Christian homeschooling group in our area.

We seem to be using a little bit of everything right now....Sonlight, Excellence on Writing, Science = Exploration Education, Rosetta Stone...etc. Next year we are switching to Teaching Textbook for math since my children love anything having to do with being on the computer.

Both my girls are also competitive gymnasts so that keeps us pretty busy with practice and competitions. The girls enjoy being the only ones not having worry about homework getting done.

We have been to Disney World twice in the last 4 years...both during school months (LOVE THAT!). We would love to go for homeschool days, but it would have to be in January since September is competition season.

I enjoy reading everyones posts and learn about new curriculum possibilities. Can't wait to continue reading more.

 

[wvdislover]

Hello. I wanted to come on and maybe get some opinions from others that know honest answers on home schooling and not just heresay. My daughter's bday is at the end of August and the cut off for Kindergarten here is September 1st. I decided to hold her back an extra year because of the Kindergarten she would be put in and because she was still a little shy. During her extra year of Pre-K I started looking into home schooling and thought this could be another option for us. The K teacher she would have is the same one I did my field work with in college, I cannot see her thriving in an environment where kids don't come first. Just my opinion but this teacher should not be teaching and it scares me that she would be teaching my child! So I have come up with some options, the charter school in the area or just putting her into first grade. Now I am seriously considering homeschooling. My close friends are worried that socially she will hurt and that I could never teach her as much as the school can. How and where did you start? I find info here and there on the web and this forum is great too,but I just can't get a grasp as to where to start or what I may need to start. Any opinions would be so greatly appreciated!

Thank you for reading this long post!

And why don't they think you can't teach your own child? I find that the school isn't really teaching my DD7, who's still in PS, a whole lot. She learns a lot more in life, learning things on her own. I agree with Dawn (graygables) about the socialization issues. My DD11 had a lot of negative "socialization" in school, too, and it has taken us over a year to partially get over that. She still has a lot of healing left to do. I'm realizing it would have been a lot easier to hs my DD's from the beginning. When I ask DD7 if she would like to hs, she says, "no, no! I want to stay in school." At this point, we'll probably let her stay for now (we plan on taking her out by middle school), since we really don't have a "good" reason to pull her out. She's doing great in school, I have no issues with the school at this time, and she has lots of friends, and is really thriving. It would, however, make my life easier and less hectic, but I don't feel that's a valid reason right now, since she is doing so well. It would have been easier if I had started off and she didn't have to make a choice, and SHE'S the one I always said would be a piece of cake to HS! Anyways, you need to do what YOU think is the right thing to do...who knows, maybe your friends will follow suit when they see what a great job you do!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Ditto what Gray Gables has to say!! Socialization is always brought up to me by people who have family in the public school system, or don't mind telling me that they dont want to spend all day with their kids. So... I don't jive with that, so I really don't care what their opinion is of social time for my kids anyway.!! I really don't like the way most of their kids behave anyway--speaking of people who have said this to me, not the public in general. I wonder what people would think if we openly criticized things about them we didn't agree with,the way they feel they have the freedom to comment onmy educational choices for my children! Personally, I don't smoke, and I have allergies that are truly bothered when I am in contact with it for long, but,do I walk up to smokers and start to berate them for 'polluting the air my children and I breathe'? NO. and why, because it's rude! See what I am saying, I really don't understand why this one issue is EVERYBODY'S business. I know lots of people don't understand why we are doing it, but what makes them feel they can freely condemn us, especially in front of the kids? WOW Ok, so following GrayGables, I will now pass the turn for the soapbox to someone else!!!! And I am not picking on smokers, that just was something that is a personal problem for me and an issue which lots of people debate,so thanks for understanding that I am not flaming you.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Amid all that I forgot to extend a hearty welcome to Yanni2! We are glad to have you. Jump right in and get to talking!!!!

 

[lori1043]

My DDs had some pretty significant gaps in the knowledge between K12 and SOS, so we started using Math U See with good results. I like it.



Stepping on my soapbox...she is not your "friends'" child. She is YOUR child. It's none of their business how you choose to school her. You can actually teach her MORE than the school can. My DDs have learned about Michelangelo, Botswana, photography, and more, none of which they would have EVER been able to learn at all, much less in elementary school. The "socialization" issue is a weak response of frightened people who have been socially engineered through the public school model to believe that there is only one right way to educate children.

There is a plethora of activities for homeschooled children providing true socialization. When was the last time you had a job that was ONLY 44-45 year olds? When was the last time you were in the breakroom at work only to be pushed down and your lunch stolen? When was the last time you were in the restroom and had someone offer you marijuana? Precisely NOT the kind of "socialization" I'm interested in, thankyouverymuch. True socialization comes from interacting with people of all ages in positive and healthy ways, even if there is conflict.

In our experience, my 2 older DDs started out in PS (I was a high school English teacher, after all...) and it was VERY difficult to pull them out and re-educate them because of the social programming that had already taken place. We struggled with our decision, even though another child had raged and threatened to kill my daughter and they were only in the 2nd grade. He received no discipline and was allowed to continue to harass her, so we pulled them both out of the school. My younger 2 have never been in a "school" and have done very well. We are a hybrid of "unschooling" and "homeschooling" in that we use some curriculum, but a LOT of what my DDs learn is interest-based and self-driven. We had a lizard in our house this week, so it was straight away to Google to see what we could learn. We didn't know what kind of lizard it was at first, but DDs did some quick searching and discovered that is was a Mediterranean Gecko. Lo and behold, it's not native to Florida and is the only nocturnal lizard we have here. We've recently worked on a lapbook about animal classification, so they were able to add the information about our new "friend" to their books.

My educational philosophy is, "Wake up. Start learning." My second philosophy is "I've SEEN the village. I don't want their help, thank you." My third? "Mind your own beeswax" You have to make the choice that is best for YOU, YOUR child, and YOUR family. It may very well be a public, private, or charter school, but understand that there is a degree of de-schooling that has to happen if they start out that way. I always say it's easier to start them at home and put them in school later than the other way around.

GO girl!! Love your spririt and response!! So true so true. The "social" card gets pulled on me all the time! Whatever!

I will "borrow" the "I've seen the village and don't want thier help, thank you!"

Lori

 

[yanni2]

I figure between church, dance, bible study, and gymnastics, etc.... my girls get more positive socialization with a wide variety of ages (between coaches, other friends, parents etc) than if they were in school. As to kids who are anti-social, you can get those whether they are home schooled or not. The more comfortable a child is the more social they will be.

I have been told, by people who do not know we homeschool, that they would have never guessed my girls are home schooled. They are both extremely social and would most likely be in trouble in school for talking. It is all a matter of what works for you child and no one can tell you otherwise.

 

[emh1129]

My second philosophy is "I've SEEN the village. I don't want their help, thank you."

Wow. Love it!

 

[3princesses+aprince]

Disneymom3304, I had quite a time figuring out if I really wanted to homeschool too. Well I knew I wanted to, but it was a tough decision to make. Sometimes I still sit here and think, "what am I doing"'
I just pulled my dd9 out of school and will HS her til the end of the school year and see how it works for us!! And we'll go from there. I have 2 other daughters, 5 and 7, that do not really want to HS, so we'll see how that works out too!!! Oh, if I only thought of homeschooling before they all started school we'd be so much better off right now.

 

[beautybelle]

We started homeschooling as of today!!! Im so excited and im glad we went ahead instead of waiting till next year. It really take a huge load off. I hated the public schools around here so Im glad we're free from it now.