*** Homeschool List ***

[lexeka]

Count me in! This will be our 4th year homeschooling and my first year schooling two children.

We used Sonlight for Grade 1 and Alpha Omega LifePacs for Grade 2. I went from one extreme to the other. This year we are using mostly Bob Jones and some Horizons. I have used Horizons for Math since Grade 1 and LOVE it and we ordered their PreK kit for our youngest and she'll be starting that. I wish they had a complete curriculum set as I love Horizons....

Whoo....all that to say I'm In!

When ya'll starting this year?

 

[lexeka]

Hey Lori -

The amazing thing about working out is it clears your head and gives you energy like you can't believe. I HATE getting up in the morning. My alarm went off this morning and I thought I would cry. I HATE mornings. but, I get up (today I went to the gym late - I didn't get there until 6:30 and only stayed for an hour - I'll do my treadmill later - I worked with a new trainer this morning who was excellent, so I am energized and ready to go!).

It really is about scheduling - but being flexible at the same time. The best thing, we have found, about home schooling is the ability to make our own rules.

I find the home-school-inc website to be invaluable. I can schedule our classes into time slots and then I can move them around at will. It allows you to set up a "school" and enroll as many "students" as you wish. So, for your two children, you can create schedules, incorporate field trips, give assignments (the kids get their own username and password, so they can check online every day to see what their assignments are - you can even send messages to them).

It truly is fantastic. The BEST part about it is the record keeping. When your child completes a class, you mark it complete (which is basically how the program takes attendance). If you give an assignment or a test for a grade, you can enter the grade. It will automatically create reports such as attendance, book lists, course work completed, etc.

I am not afraid to teach my daughter in the evening, on a Sunday, at the nail salon, at work, wherever. You'll be amazed how much time you do have when you actually lay it all out. Outside of my actual teaching, I also make sure she understands the importance of independent work (we don't call it homework - we call it independent work) because in real life, we all have independent work that needs to get done. By showing her how I effectively manage time, I'm hoping she uses these skills to learn how to manage hers to get projects and assignments done independently and handed in on time. Time management is one of the most valuable tools we can teach our kids - but we have to kind of set the example for them.

Good luck!! Try that website - I think you'll love it. It's a little awkward at first, so make sure you have some time to devote to it to get it all set up. Now that I've figured it out - we used it all day long.

Hey there,
I read your message and went to their site but it asks for a user name and password. How might I try it?

THanks!

 

[lexeka]

We are starting to use Bob Jones this year. Anyone with any experience? Two of my friends use it and love it.

 

[lexeka]

Hey Lori -

The amazing thing about working out is it clears your head and gives you energy like you can't believe. I HATE getting up in the morning. My alarm went off this morning and I thought I would cry. I HATE mornings. but, I get up (today I went to the gym late - I didn't get there until 6:30 and only stayed for an hour - I'll do my treadmill later - I worked with a new trainer this morning who was excellent, so I am energized and ready to go!).

It really is about scheduling - but being flexible at the same time. The best thing, we have found, about home schooling is the ability to make our own rules.

I find the home-school-inc website to be invaluable. I can schedule our classes into time slots and then I can move them around at will. It allows you to set up a "school" and enroll as many "students" as you wish. So, for your two children, you can create schedules, incorporate field trips, give assignments (the kids get their own username and password, so they can check online every day to see what their assignments are - you can even send messages to them).

It truly is fantastic. The BEST part about it is the record keeping. When your child completes a class, you mark it complete (which is basically how the program takes attendance). If you give an assignment or a test for a grade, you can enter the grade. It will automatically create reports such as attendance, book lists, course work completed, etc.

I am not afraid to teach my daughter in the evening, on a Sunday, at the nail salon, at work, wherever. You'll be amazed how much time you do have when you actually lay it all out. Outside of my actual teaching, I also make sure she understands the importance of independent work (we don't call it homework - we call it independent work) because in real life, we all have independent work that needs to get done. By showing her how I effectively manage time, I'm hoping she uses these skills to learn how to manage hers to get projects and assignments done independently and handed in on time. Time management is one of the most valuable tools we can teach our kids - but we have to kind of set the example for them.

Good luck!! Try that website - I think you'll love it. It's a little awkward at first, so make sure you have some time to devote to it to get it all set up. Now that I've figured it out - we used it all day long.

NEVER MIND. I GOT IT TO WORK! THANKS!

 

[Blackunicorn]

Hey, I just received notice that a homeschool organization will be having a "field trip" to DL this September, and there will be educational classes available at good prices. If anyone is interested, the information is at their website www.southwest-home-education.com

I'm not a member of this organization and I don't really know any more than I've shared--they posted to a support list I'm on.

 

[applechips]

Hello! I love homeschooling! I really am enjoying reading this thread. I am amazed at how organized you all are. I have a 6 year old dd and a 3 year old (almost) ds. I've been unschooling/homeschooling them for forever. I've worked part time as well and worked the learning in all day. Some family issues came up recently, and me and dh decided with the input of our dd to send her to our Jewish day school for the fall. I felt like I was failing my kid because I became very lax this past year and I felt like I was not exposing her to new things. They started watching tv all day.

Anyway I am just blabbing on and on at the moment. I want to DO homeschooling and do it well but I am struggling with it and needed to try something different with my dd. I have not managed my two children well with time and I don't want to screw them up! LOL

Anyway else experience this? How have you handled it? Believe me--- dh and I thought long and hard about this decision. And we still wonder if its right. She starts August 20th and I am a nervous wreck.

Thanks for all of the great info in this thread!

 

[meandtheguys2]

What cuties! Sometimes life just gets a bit too crazy! I hope things settle for you and your family. You may find you love your school, and it was the right pick, or you can always HS if you feel that is best when the dust settles. I hope you can find peace.

 

[Ellester]

That is about the way I felt about Saxon. I have indeed heard it is much better for the older grades. When I read the teacher's manual back when DD was in second grade, I thought "Oh she is gonna hate me if I do this!!" She's one of those kids who hears it once and gets it. We are actually going to be going into Teaching Textbooks Math 7 in a couple of weeks here. I am buying it used from somoene who still has the workbook even. She said her son just did the computer lessons and that was enough for him. I am thinking that might do it for DD too.

Now see, I've heard that Saxon is not good for higher level math. A friend of mine's mom is a private math tutor and she says that Saxon really falls down on upper level stuff. I haven't looked at it though, so I can't give first hand info. We use Math-U-See and love it so far. Both DH and I have technical degrees, so I'm not as concerned about teaching upper level math as many hs'ers are.

Also, I just recently found out on another HS loop I'm on that Teaching Textbooks can only be installed twice with the same software. This is from TT's FAQ:

Q27. Why am I only allowed to install the Math 7 on two different computers?
A. You can install the Math 7 an infinite number of times on a computer, which means that as one child completes a school year, you can just reinstall and have another child do the course the next year. This allows the whole family to use a single Math 7 set. We have also allowed installation on a second computer to accommodate families who need two children to work on Math 7 at the same time. The program is designed to block installation on more than two different computers; however, if you need an additional installation because of a new computer purchase or to have more than two students use the product simultaneously, just call our office toll-free at 1-866-867-6284 and we can give you another installation priviledge. Unfortunately, experience has taught us that the number of installations must be limited to protect against the use of a single product for an entire classroom.

You may already be aware of that, but if not it might make buying used an issue.

I love seeing this thread on the first page again!

 

[TNKBELL]

Hello! I love homeschooling! I really am enjoying reading this thread. I am amazed at how organized you all are. I have a 6 year old dd and a 3 year old (almost) ds. I've been unschooling/homeschooling them for forever. I've worked part time as well and worked the learning in all day. Some family issues came up recently, and me and dh decided with the input of our dd to send her to our Jewish day school for the fall. I felt like I was failing my kid because I became very lax this past year and I felt like I was not exposing her to new things. They started watching tv all day.

Anyway I am just blabbing on and on at the moment. I want to DO homeschooling and do it well but I am struggling with it and needed to try something different with my dd. I have not managed my two children well with time and I don't want to screw them up! LOL

Anyway else experience this? How have you handled it? Believe me--- dh and I thought long and hard about this decision. And we still wonder if its right. She starts August 20th and I am a nervous wreck.

Thanks for all of the great info in this thread!

You are not failing them! I have felt that way many times, every year is a fresh start, I am always amazed what they pick up during our off time. We are starting our 6th year!! I have a 1st,3rd and 5th grader. I'm about to start reading a book that talks about this, " A Mother's Rule of Life" by Holly Pierlot. Another book that I have read that is excellent is "Real Learning" by Elizabeth Foss
Surround them with good books and read to them, being exposed to good literature has amazing results, find a good book list, one I have used is "Honey For a Child's Heart".

You know one option for you might be a virtual or charter school, it is a program through the public school system, for homeschool families, but you can supplement with other things for Religion and so on. If you are concerned about accountability. It is also very affordable, only paying an enrollment fee, the books and materials are free after that.

I encourage you not feel bad and whatever you decide, we support you and your family!!

 

[sha_lyn]

You know one option for you might be a virtual or charter school, it is a program through the public school system, for homeschool families, but you can supplement with other things for Religion and so on. If you are concerned about accountability. It is also very affordable, only paying an enrollment fee, the books and materials are free after that.

Virtual charters aren't available in all states. I see that applechips is in SC. I don't believe it is an option.

applechip... don't feel bad. Do what is right for you. If the day school doesn't work, you can still HS later on if you want to. There are so many options out there. Not one option is right for everyone.

 

[Lisa Hale]

There are so many options out there. Not one option is right for everyone.

So very true! You may want to check to see if there are any homeschool co-ops locally - some here offer one price for up to 4 subjects taught by experienced homeschoolers, retired teachers, even a couple of retired professors. Then you can take them to classes 1-2 days per week and the rest of the time they work on what was taught/assigned there. There may be cottage schools or various supplemental schools available also that may cover difficult subjects or various elective courses (like science labs, etc.). We have homeschooled for a combined total of 5 years now, but have split that time up when we looked into public school (not a successful venture for us here in KY, there were too many issues with the system itself), and a couple of private schools (too small and not able to provide for advanced students after all). But, we've taken time to pursue various forms of education because we wanted to find what "fit" our family. Come to find out, homeschooling does fit us best, but you may have to spend some time researching and trying options to find the perfect academic fit for your family. Best of luck and know that many are supportive of your choices!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

This is our 4th year to hs and we love it!! Our kids ages are boy 11.5 and boy 8, and girl 4! I don't think I have subscribed to this thread yet, so if you see me on here earlier let me know

We were doing Abeka-the complete curriculum-but, mercy that is soooo much info. for one kid a day! I really love the Charlotte Mason method and we are branching off totally into that this year. We are going to do Saxon math-give that a whirl!

Do any of you change up your school calendar or do you follow your local public schools? We usually start end of July -mid Aug., this year we will probably start next week. I usually do about 9 weeks and take a week of for a little fall break and then work til Thanksgiving. We are out til January and then work through to April-end of the month and we are out for summer.

I am very excited about this year. I love getting to spend so much time with my kids and really know what they are learning and watch them grow.We have such a short time with them anyway-homeschool is just a blessing! I am so thankful the Lord has allowed me this opportunity to be a SAHM and teach them.

Besides-we can all plan WDW trips whenever we want-right?! I have actually had people question if that's why we homeschool! Sure-I teach them all year just so we can take a vacation.They should know better than that because I would not hesitate to take them out of public school for Disney!!

 

[lexeka]

Ok, I don't know what's up but I am not getting an email for this thread when someone responds. So....................... if anyone has responded to me, sorry. There are so many pages but I'll try to get through at some time.

The other threads on the disboards.com do send me notices.

I checked and it said I was subscribed.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

 

[6gr8kidz]

I would love to join in....This will be our first year doing a public school via the computer. We call it a virtual school. They even sent my kids a computer,printer, ink, and all their books.

I have 6 children only 4 are in school now. I have a 6th grader, 3rd grader, 2nd grader and a 1st grader. We are all excited and nervous.

We start Aug.20

 

[graygables]

Do any of you change up your school calendar or do you follow your local public schools?

We school year-round out of necessity. We have to report 920 hours and with my travel schedule, there's no way to do that on a standard calendar. I don't like being off for too long b/c DDs tend to forget things they've learned very easily. Just in our curriculum transition (about 6 weeks this time, computer issues) they've "misplaced" quite a bit of information that I've had to re-teach. They also do schoolwork pretty much every day that we are "in session". DH and I are self-employed and don't have "weekends", so DDs tend to follow our schedule.

 

[merryweather's twin]

Count us in this year! I homeschooled our son for 3 years and put him back in the system in 4th grade mainly for reading. He is now in 7th and we have decided to start up agian! I am so excited. We are just now looking at what to use....
He has PDD with Autistic tendencies. He is a great kid but needs help with writing. He just learned to read well last year. We used McgrawHill and alot of reading workbooks and social studies and Science help books before but he was in his own world then and now he has woke up so to speak...

But now I am unsure what to use. He is reading now on his own and needs much less dictation. I have read all 100+ pages on this post for ideas and am thinking of using Hooked on schoolhouse but have never seen it up close.Do you like it?Can you print off daily work for records? He loves the computer so I was thinking it may be a good fit. I am also looking at a Time for Learning?But I would like to see what the lessions look like and how many there are in each subject.
And if we do not go with the computer..Key to Math or Math You See.. What for a kid learning to write? I mean he can write but he hates it and has never done much without help.(he was non verbal untill 4-5yo but now everything is clicking into place!)I need help picking what to do this year and fast... We need to cover the 5 basic subjects in Mo and then we can pick and choose the rest. Any input or advice would be great. Thanks Bobbie

 

[adoptionmomma4]

We are just getting our year underway We are all excited about all the new stuff. It has been like Christmas getting all of our new books. Plus, I was way under "budget" for the curriculum, so DH gave use some extra money to go to the teacher store (moms favorite) and we also picked up a membership to the local history museum.

I am still looking for a great elementary history curriculum. I was going to use: The Story of the World- Ancient Times, but I think it is a little much for my little ones and it looks a little boring to me also. I want something kind of hands on and fun. I know someone here will have a great suggestion

We are using-

Reading: Phonics Pathways (DS 6)
Writing: Handwriting with out tears
Spelling: Spelling work out
English: First language lessons (DS 6) as well as Rod and Staff (DS 8 & DD 9)
Math: Math-U-See
Science: Apologia- zoology volume 1

We went to our first meeting of our home school group also. I can not wait for the EP classes to start in the fall.

Thanks in advance for the History suggestions.

 

[disneymom3]

Ellester--thank you for the information on Math 7. I did not know that. I do know that first off the family only used it with one child and that they made copies of all the CDs and are selling me the originals. What she told me was that she wanted to make sure the originals did not get scratched. My next one up will not reach Math 7 for several years so we will probably need a new version by then anyway. good to keep in mind if I want to resell it too though!

 

[Tink561]

We loved Story of the World! If you get the activity guide there are lots of hands on things to do.

 

[sha_lyn]

I jsut found out that there is a yahoo group for each vol of SOTW

here's the one for vol 2 that I joined
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StoryoftheWorldVol2Dscn/