Homeschool Chat

[LittleBlue22]

Hey LittleBlue!! Good to see you! How's things?

How old are your kiddos? I'm not new to hs'ing, but this IS the first year I'll have all three of mine home!! Yikes....

We're starting with a unit on Epcot, which will be very hands-on!


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Things are interesting. Some days go smoothly and then others get pretty bumpy. My kiddos are 8 (3rd grade), 7 (2nd grade), and 5 (KG). The oldest is doing Switched on schoolhouse (on computer) and the other two are using LifePacs. This being our first year, I didn't want to risk any creativity (except for supplimenting) with their curr. iykwim?

A unit on Epcot?! Awesome! I wish we were close enough to do that.

LM, how old are yours if you don't mind me asking and what are you using for curr.?

 

[SomedayI'llBe]

I checked collegeboard.com and while they list authors, they don't list specific books. Does anyone have a good AP lit book list?

This year ds15 is doing a Classics and Composition course and I figured we might as well pull books from that list.

Oh, and any that you could point out that aren't either endlessly dry or depressing (or both!) would be appreciated.

Thanks,

NHWX

I'm not a homeschooler, but I just finished AP Literature last year. http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/AP/APtitles.html has every title ever used on the AP exam. Good luck!

 

[LegoMom3]

Things are interesting. Some days go smoothly and then others get pretty bumpy. My kiddos are 8 (3rd grade), 7 (2nd grade), and 5 (KG). The oldest is doing Switched on schoolhouse (on computer) and the other two are using LifePacs. This being our first year, I didn't want to risk any creativity (except for supplimenting) with their curr. iykwim?

A unit on Epcot?! Awesome! I wish we were close enough to do that.

LM, how old are yours if you don't mind me asking and what are you using for curr.?

My boys are 11 (6th), 8 (3rd) and 6 (1st). I'm taking it easy this year, focusing more on the big picture than how much "book learning" they get this year. We'll do unit studies, which take a topic or theme and combine all the subjects within that (except Language Arts and math). DS11 still has some LifePacs from last year, which even though it's "5th" grade, it won't hurt him to continue on with that...he's a little weak in that area! Still not sure what I'll use for the other two for L.A. For math I've used Math Mammoth (purchase/download from the Internet, then print out) and Math-u-See. I like the concept of Math-u-See but I'm still getting the hang of applying the video demonstrations to the workbooks.

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[NHWX]

I'm not a homeschooler, but I just finished AP Literature last year. http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/AP/APtitles.html has every title ever used on the AP exam. Good luck!

Thanks! That will be a big help. I'm going to put in a big Amazon order soon. Today I ordered more books off half.com and ebay.com. I love not having to pay full price!

NHWX

 

[NHWX]

Disney Mommy 3 and Praise2Him -

Thanks for the replies on Learning Language Arts through Literature. I think I may get it and incorporate some aspects into our Classics and Composition course for this year.

NHWX

 

[lori1043]

Saxon question- we felt the same way and now we alternate odds and evens. It was TOOO long and she was miserable. I am thinking about Teaching Textbooks for the next level, any thoughts?

LLATL- we LOVE it for DD10 but we are a half year schedule with it as it seems simplified a bit for her. She used some of the purple book in 4th gr and will finish it by the end of January for her 5th grade year. DD8 needed something a bit more "structured"-so we use Easy Grammar/daily grams for her and incorporate a writing program with both, together.

We did an EPCOT unti study the month beofre our Feb trip. It was awesome to incorporate some of the things they learned on our trip!

Lori

 

[DawnM]

Hey guys. I have been out of the loop for a bit. We are on week 5 of our new school year using Sonlight Core 3. We are trying to be much more intense than we have been and have cut out a lot of activities and fooling around this year.

Now I have some other curriculum that I am debating on selling or keeping for future use. I plan to do SL for cores 3 and 4 and then may go back to the 2 years of something else I bought, but 4 years out seems like a LONG time!

I need a good writing program. Both of my boys struggle with writing. One should be 5th grade and is for math and science, but for reading and LA he is more in the 4th grade category. I am hoping to use the next 2 years to catch up to his grade level.

Anyway, lots going on here....I am missing CA really badly these days and feeling a bit down about it right now. DH got a huge promotion over the summer, but it has entailed much longer working hours, so I know that is part of it.

Dawn

 

[Disney_Angel]

Saxon users...I have a question. This year dd is doing algebra. I got a great deal on the saxon set with the dive cd. She has been watching the cd and then doing problems. It is taking her between 1 hour and 2hours. Last year math took less than an hour. Do you have your children do all the problems or only some? It seems that if she does well on some, she shouldn't have to do all?

Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development I am not sure I like the Wiki Article) Vygotsky's was against standardized testing. He belived it was not a good measure of the inteligence of children. He felt that constant repitition was not necessary for a child who already mastered a concept. Expecting a child to do 20+ math problems when they clearly mastered the concept with the first five suggests that you move on to the next concept. Thus the child will not get bored.

Now ofcourse this does not apply when reviewing for a Unit Assesment or just checking for retention..... but I think you get the picture. I hoped this helped.

 

[Denine]

It was so nice this morning. I went out in the cold rain to get the paper and saw all the people waiting for the school bus while DD was inside playing Jumpstart 1st Grade on the computer before we started school at 9:30.
We then completed 2 math lessons and 2 of everything else by around noon.

 

[Disney_Angel]

It was so nice this morning. I went out in the cold rain to get the paper and saw all the people waiting for the school bus while DD was inside playing Jumpstart 1st Grade on the computer before we started school at 9:30.
We then completed 2 math lessons and 2 of everything else by around noon.

We did three units on Medieval China today...one unit in Laguage Arts...One unit in Math on estimating...and one unit in science measuring with liters. All before 1:30. She is sitting down quietly reading her Spiderwick Chronicles field guide. I am afraid ...very afraid it is too perfect a day!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Isn't it nice to see them learn? Makes you feel sooo good. And it's so cozy to be snuggled up at home!! My favorite is autumn/beginning of winter when we are on break and baking cookies & goodies to go in our gift baskets!!!

Every day is a learning experience if you think about it!!

 

[Disney_Angel]

Isn't it nice to see them learn? Makes you feel sooo good. And it's so cozy to be snuggled up at home!! My favorite is autumn/beginning of winter when we are on break and baking cookies & goodies to go in our gift baskets!!!

Every day is a learning experience if you think about it!!

We are baking next week while practicing our measurement and multiplication.
We are taking our baked goodies with us to Disney next week!
And YES! Autumn is the best season.

 

[Disney_Angel]

Historical Offerings in Epcot --- Our Must See List

I pulled the Units on Medieval China, the Vikings and Feudal Japan (still perfecting) so we could see examples of what we have learned. I went a little out of order but she is only in second grade History and we use the k12 program so it leaves some flexibility and the online school adjusts and "remembers" where we left off.

The American Adventure offers many examples of Americana

featured artifacts : Abraham Lincoln's actual stovepipe hat
Many of his personal items including
- the book of Lord Byron poetry that inspired his
second inagural address

George Washington Carver's microscopes

Several of Thomas Edision's inventions
- Tin Foil Cylinder Players
- A motion picture projector

Senator Daniel Inouye's purple heart
- he was a Japanese-American WW11 hero

Items belonging to Rosa Park and Jackie Robinson

An entire section devoted to the space program
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The China Pavilion features several exhibits :

Tomb Warriors - Guardian Spirits of Ancient China
- contains a miniature recreation of the tomb of
Qin Shi Huang the first emperor of China

Authentic tomb scupltures from Ancient China dating
back 2000 years to the Han Dynasty

Not to mention the talented SI XIAN and the sounds of
zheng - (equivalent to the Chinese harp)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Moroccan features :

Beautiful handcut tile work that was handmade and hand
cut and sent to Epcot. Then Maalems traveled to
Epcot to help create a little piece of their
homeland (this covers a lesson on Islamic
Architecture and Mosaics)

The Gallery of Arts and History displays ancient musical
instruments, jewelry and ceramic pottery.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Norway Pavilion features :

A scaled down version of a Stave Church

Collection of authentic Viking Artifacts

Vignettes depicting three Norwegian Viking leaders
- Erik the Red
- King Rognvald the Raider
-King Olaf

Scale model of 9th century Viking ship
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
These are exmples of what we have preapred for ahead of time and will cover while in Disney.

Any suggestions?
I wish I had more time to cover all the countries in detail!!!

 

[Belle & Ariel]

This board is amazing.
We have homeschooled our 3 since kindergarten. We have a DD, 20 starting her 3rd year of college on the Dean's List. Our second DD, 18, started college this week. It was very hard for me even though they both live at home.
I still have one taught at home, DS, 14. We have started freshman year and it is so easy to just have one!
We used mostly Abeka. Their phonics and reading programs can't be beat.
In high school we have used Abeka Biology and Earth Science, switching to Apologia for Chemistry and Marine Biology.
We tried Saxon and Abeka for Algebra. First DD did fine, but second struggled so we tried and love Teaching Textbooks.
Abeka Bible studies were so expensive we used a lot of Explorer Bible Studies. Their questions seem very repititive, so I ask them orally and just pick the better ones.
We are registered through an umbrella school which provides a transcript for college application. It even has a school code you provide when registering for the ACT. My girls even have real diplomas. In our state, the umbrella school provides the necessary proof of attendance to get a driver's license and also info to get a good student discount on insurance.
I am so glad I was able to homeschool our kids. The time has gone by so fast with them here every day--I can't imagine if they were gone 8 hours every day!

 

[Disney8704]

Hi everyone! DH and I dont have any kids yet, but when we do I wanna home school them. So I hope you all dont mind if I tag along for the ride just so I can learn everything I need to learn between now and then. I was looking online for home school online, and they have a couple schools that you can do your classes online from Kindergarten to 12th grade. They are k12.com, connectionsacademy.com & etap.org. k12 and connectionsacademy are tuition-free and etap there is a tuition so it would be like going to a private school at home. Have any of you heard anything about any of these schools? Do you all go through a school online or do you just teach the kids yourself?

 

[disneymarie]

Hi everyone! DH and I dont have any kids yet, but when we do I wanna home school them. So I hope you all dont mind if I tag along for the ride just so I can learn everything I need to learn between now and then. I was looking online for home school online, and they have a couple schools that you can do your classes online from Kindergarten to 12th grade. They are k12.com, connectionsacademy.com & etap.org. k12 and connectionsacademy are tuition-free and etap there is a tuition so it would be like going to a private school at home. Have any of you heard anything about any of these schools? Do you all go through a school online or do you just teach the kids yourself?

My DD is registered in Connections academy, PA. They opened a new office not far from us in the Pocono area and had a grand opening tonight. Great meeting so many parents and the staff.
Many thanks to Jason, jessica and all the others for the wonderful experience.
The tutition is redirected from the school districted and pays for the books, computer, 24 PA outings a month.

So glad we made the decision. She was tested for placement and now in the gifted program along with ahead a year in math, pre algebra. They also were sensitive to her anxiety.Instead of being restricted in working at the class level she is individulized.
This program is in many states. PA first day of school is Sept 2,
Dianne

 

[NHWX]

I've just been through the most dreary couple of days of work. I am sore from sitting down so much! What did I have to do? All the end of year record keeping for ds14.

We started homeschooling him again this January when he decided the high school was not for him. It was in the middle of robotics season (huge time commitment), I didn't have any curriculum ready and I just threw things together. We're using NARS to keep track of credits and issue a diploma and I have all their books but I basically skimmed them.

So now I had all these questions that had to be answered. How the heck do I grade a physics reading course? He wrote papers because I don't know enough about the material to give a test. Art? He did it, OK? No, needs a grade. And so on. Piles of paper. Handing lab reports back to ds saying "If you don't put a hypothesis or conclusion on this, I'll have to mark it down." And I don't mind telling him now because I didn't tell him then.

I feel like I was so horribly disorganized! I didn't even have a copy of his fall grades because they would have been handed out on the first day of the spring semester.

So, in an effort to be more organized, I downloaded the Homeschool Tracker software. It's not going so well. Their 60+ manual doesn't seem to answer the questions I want to ask. Is there a website with an FAQ? I'm signing up for their discussion board but I'm feeling really out of my depth.

Thanks for any help you can give!

NHWX

 

[Temair]

Admitedly I don't have a highschool student yet, but from what I've heard from others is you don't nesicerilly need a transcript. Colleges and Universities are very welcoming of portfolios that show the work a student has done. Actually if gives them a much better idea where the student really is. They also look at the test scores ACT, SAT.

So as long as your son learned the infomration I say move on and not to worry about it.

 

[NHWX]

I really needed to list books, field trips to art museums, topics covered in biology, etc. Those are all the things that will need to be in a homeschool portfolio that we give a college, independent of whether or not we keep using NARS.

How have other homeschoolers of high schoolers handled the organization?

NHWX

 

[Disney_Angel]

Hi everyone! DH and I dont have any kids yet, but when we do I wanna home school them. So I hope you all dont mind if I tag along for the ride just so I can learn everything I need to learn between now and then. I was looking online for home school online, and they have a couple schools that you can do your classes online from Kindergarten to 12th grade. They are k12.com, connectionsacademy.com & etap.org. k12 and connectionsacademy are tuition-free and etap there is a tuition so it would be like going to a private school at home. Have any of you heard anything about any of these schools? Do you all go through a school online or do you just teach the kids yourself?

Welcome!!!

My BIL and SIL live in Odessa, DE! Small world.

We use k12 thru a cyber charter we love it! Accountability was important for me. Because I needed to feel accountable to someone. Other people do perfectly find on their own. I was scared to take the leap and this method was best for me. I know moms who do traditional homeschooling with three or more kids and they got it together better then me.
BTW this is our third year.

My godchild just started Connections Academy and his mom, my aunt could not be happier. There is mention of many curriculums on here. I think the secret is finding the "one" that works for your future child. I have a dear friend who has three kiddos. One attends traditional brick and mortar school, another uses k12 thru a cyber charter and the last is a TH using Sonlight.
That's the beauty you have the freedom to decide. Who better knows their children then their own parents?

I will not lie to you...it is not easy. None of us made this choice because it was easy. It involves dedication and hard word but it is very rewarding. I like the freedom and flexibility.
Homeschooling famlies know all about that, if it were not for them I would not have the educational options I have today. They were the pioneers and they paved the way.