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Everything posted by vonbon

  1. Wow. Well, this "slightly sheltered" homeschooler dealt with all sorts of things as an underaged girl who was led into sin and destruction by several "normal" adults. It took years for anyone in my family to catch on to what was occurring when they weren't around. By the time they put up a boundary and we withdrew from that community, my moral compass had already been messed with. It took years as an adult to realize what kind of screwed up mentality came from those formative years. I'm also an immigrant's daughter, so it's not as if I can't "imagine" what goes on related to culture shock or making a way in a new world. Sin is sin. Doesn't matter what demographic, culture, race, or religion you come from. Homeschool...private...public: doesn't matter. I'm hearing a lot of people in this discussion who are sick of perversion being equated to enlightenment (not by you, but in general public discourse). I'm not easily offended, but you make some gross generalizations about the people on this board with this type of comment. It doesn't take long on these boards to discover that many of the people you're having this "conversation" with aren't "slightly sheltered". IME, they do tend to be people who are pretty strong in their opinions and take a passionate stance against harm done to children. They're / We're also from a variety of backgrounds (including many other direct immigrants), from a variety of races and creeds.
  2. This is why we did not continue "dance" classes after 1 class at a local studio... the moves would be considered mild by what's been described above, but I could see where it was all headed by the teenage years. I have no problem calling out what I believe to be inappropriate sexualization of children when I see it. We aren't going to take part in any of that. If you (general you) have a niggling feeling with an activity your children are in -- whatever type, don't downplay it or minimize it. Speak up or withdraw, but protect them and make your beliefs clear to them. I guess I had been naiive about what goes on at even small town studios...we don't watch TV, so I probably wasn't as "informed" as the average American our there on the "world of dance". I am not aware of the "dance world", nor am I interested in it. It seems like this "world" probably has a spectrum. I do think there's a value for society in productions like Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and other classical ballets. We've supported our children taking ballet at a different studio that does classical dance. At this studio, there is: - a clear curriculum, all spelled out - classy dress code (down to the acceptable colors of tights, shoes, leotards, hairstyle) that is required for each and every class - professional, adult teachers - high expectations for attitude, treatment of fellow dancers, care of the facility - a general attitude of respect, good work ethic...goodness and beauty Most importantly, I discussed my moral viewpoints and expectations (as in, no sexual or suggestive content) with the director prior to our children enrollment. Director is upstanding in the community, classy, and a great role model for youth. Just my .02 because when you post comments like this, you need to know that you are describing some studios out there, not all dance classes. It's certainly possible to find high-quality, classy, classical, beautiful, dance classes that don't degrade humans. (This post is an aside, and probably written to parents out there looking for an alternative to mainstream culture for their children interested in dance. I'm not trying to derail the thread, but I think some of these distinctions should be made vs making sweeping assumptions about dance classes / the dance world.)
  3. What's ASMR? I googled it, but I'm not sure this is what you're talking about-- ? 😆 ASMR Autonomous sensory meridian response, sometimes auto sensory meridian response, is a tingling sensation that typically begins on the scalp and moves down the back of the neck and upper spine.
  4. Here's another one of our favorites... I can't figure out how to make a proper link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCngpdIYbl5REio0EaQjlHSA It's a channel called "Crazy for Indian Food". No annoying music or speaking. Beautiful footage of the Indian countryside. Picking fresh vegetables from the field; cooking them in a low-tech way, right out in the field. Wildlife sounds in the background and interesting, healthy, and (I assume?) traditional recipes. No translation needed; the videos are very clear because he shows each ingredient. I like seeing the types of cookware he uses. It's a very meditative, relaxing, beautiful, peaceful process to watch. My kids love watching this channel.
  5. For anyone studying the Middle Ages, knights, horses, handcrafts...or just looking for a great history series, this is a great channel: Modern History TV (on Youtube). https://www.youtube.com/c/ModernHistoryTV/featured The videos are clean and have well-researched content. I like that it's mostly live footage vs animations, flow charts, etc.
  6. Oh, you're kidding. I can't believe you actually have an air hockey table. 😄😆
  7. I would like to add that I have one child who adores some of the things listed on AO by CM: along the lines of origami (listed as "paper folding"), knitting, embroidery, dollmaking, sewing, clay-making, drawing, etc. If it's crafty, she'll love it. She taught herself how to knit during the COVID lockdown. Totally un-prompted; just a desire from within. She only needed the used knitting needles and leftover yarn that was given to her by a friend, and it helped to have a free PDF booklet I found online and printed. Otherwise, I had nothing to do with her learning to knit beautifully; I don't knit, never have...don't have any intention of doing so / no desire / no intrigue. I also have another child who really isn't interested in any of these "handwork / handcraft" types of things. She has other gifts / talents and just doesn't find joy in these skills. All of the materials have always been available; she just isn't interested. Very no-nonsense / non-frilly personality. She'll do them and persist for a little while, but there just isn't a spark of joy. She really doesn't see the point and has other, more important things to get on to (playing outside, gardening, working on outdoor projects, reading, cooking, etc.)... not crafty / handworky things. Just posting as (hopefully) an encouragement to OP: There is value in all of those handcraft skill sets for everyone, I think...to some extent, maybe? (depending?). I just can't see certain people in my life taking up knitting, LOL. Or, they'd do it and just chafe at it the whole time, LOL. Lori phrased it very well. You might end up (likely with 6?) with some children who will just dive in and self-direct on these extras...and others who could really care less. It might be more fruitful for you (and for them) if you could rest more in the afternoons, let your children connect with you in joyful ways, let them discover their own paths and show you what they come up with...and give you a break from all of the overscheduling / path of "too much". You'll find a new way and it will be great!
  8. Oh my GOOD-ness! I'm going to have to print this out. Made me laugh. Thank you! Especially: "Let it go all the way. Once you're down to the studs for a good, long while, you may wish to hang some pictures on the wall, as it were." Recovering perfectionist here and, after spending the first several years of homeschooling in a completely stressed out way, because of trying to to everything all the time (similar to OP's link...right down to the Ambleside Online recs), I'm now finding my / my kids' happy spot in "less is more". P.S. I still love Ambleside, and reference it often, but I don't try to follow all of it. IMO, and said with gratitude and respect for its creators, it has its "holes" too. Better to piece together things that are just right for our family and to enjoy each other and the journey.
  9. Ooops! This was supposed to be: Tech things worth learning I'd say Google Drive helps with sharing docs for our co-op. Easier than trying to make sure everyone received specific emails / attachments. Though I don't appreciate Google spying on everything.
  10. Me too. Same here. Wish I could opt out. I love my printer...because I like to see lots of things on.........................PAPER!!! 😄
  11. Just for snorts and giggles, wanted to let OP know that I read the title as "Anyone use an air hockey table for homeschool planning?" 🤨 I'm thinking, "Hmm....That's very creative... Using an air hockey table and a dry-erase marker to map out all of your homeschool planning for the year. Hmmm...but you'd have to later transcribe all of your dry-erase notes to paper for future reference... Hmmm...seems a bit redundant, but could work for visual people... Hmmm..." 🤔 🙃😃
  12. Hmmm....maybe that was part of the problem with BA. In an effort to be thorough, I've always been pretty neurotic about requiring every problem on every page. Sometimes I would allow her to skip a problem or two at the end of a chapter, but, by and large, I required every problem. The slow pace is really what prompted us to switch back to Singapore. In other subjects, I feel confident deleting things, moving things around, modifying, creating my own lessons...but in math, I've generally required every problem on every page to count the level as "done" for the year. This is helpful info; thank you. And good to know about the similarities of out-of-the-box thinking with AOPS too. Perhaps I can find something to supplement Singapore that is out-of-the-box and problem-solving based without derailing the pace of math over the next 2 years. Thank you!
  13. So I know BA is published by AOPS. And I / she / we really liked BA all around, in general, at first. I think DD11 kind of burned out on the open-ended-ness of BA, if that makes sense. She's got other activities and things going on and she didn't like feeling pressured to complete a certain amount of math, given the day / schedule, because some of the problems just went on and on. I did them as an adult and confirmed that some were just simply very lengthy. Some days she worked for 2-3 hours. In hindsight, maybe that led to the burnout and I should have just cut it off at an hour per day. But that would have equated to a very slow pace... Would you say AOPS Pre-Algebra is similar? I know that might depend on the individual (the pace). Is it out-of-the-box problem solving like BA? I like my students to use out-of-the-box thinking, but I also need to know that she's making the progress that will set her up well for "9th Grade math", whatever that ends up being (Algebra? Geometry?). I just don't want to question the pace the whole time and have her feeling like she can't "afford" to do those seriously long challenge problems without destroying the pace. I'm not *so* concerned about which math she ends up in in 9th Grade, but I do see that, in math, there are certain concepts that need to be covered in particular courses (building blocks for future concepts). We been so careful to lay a complete foundation; I don't want her to end up with a lot of "holes" over the next 2 years. I guess that would be my hesitancy re: AOPS, having dealt with that with BA. I hope that makes sense. Thank you... [I'm logging off now but will check in tomorrow.]
  14. Organized all homeschooling-related passwords into index card flip book... The beauty is that I'll be able to remove and update cards in the future and it's small enough to fit with supplies... Each index card has a letter at the top, A to Z. For example, typingtest.com goes under card letter T. Yay for not searching for passwords last minute!!!
  15. Accomplished (some today; some last time): - Last year's stuff sorted, recycled, filed into "portfolio" boxes per student. - Year-at-a-glance Calendar created; holidays and breaks scheduled; days available tallied. (www.timeanddate.com has a great, very detailed, very modify-able calendar - free! printable! - for anyone looking) - Math pacing, mental math / fact / skill sheets , supplemental math stuff: Planned! ✔️ (for now) - History / Literature titles listed. Listed time periods for each novel to create a mini timeline in our reading. Hoping it generally correlates with our studies in US History. Need to narrow down and be realistic about how many we can actually get through this year. - Reviewed and updated: Mission, Vision, Yearly Goals, "Outlook Inventory" (Barnhill), Course of Study, WTM Curriculum Planning Worksheets (some of these are redundant, but I feel confident and clear, now that they are done). - Prayed about, filled in, and analyzed Excel sheets on fall quarter family commitments (in-home commitments and out-of-the-home commitments) and our Family Time Budget per day of the week. This revealed I'm trying to do too much!!!!!! No wonder I always feel like there's too much going on. - Updated and clarified List of Subjects Planned. Again, having to focus and prioritize what is really most important vs. enrichment. I think there's more and some of this might not make sense to anyone reading, but I think I'll leave it at that. It's nice to know others are planning for the year ahead too.
  16. 😄 Yeah, it's totally unreasonable! I think DH, who normally won't get into the details of homeschool planning with me, and who doesn't stress about such things, thinks I'm nuts. I knew I wouldn't be alone on the forum. 😄 I really appreciate your perspective and the info. I think, when we started Singapore, "way back" in Kinder, they hadn't published Singapore 6 and beyond, so I always just kind of mentally ruled it out beyond Singapore 5. I've seen a lot about Jacob's and AOPS and figured we would just head there next, also based on what I've read. I'll look at Dimensions and see...I like the idea that she'd be ready for Geometry if we finished through Dimensions 8. Thank you for the input! I looked at some of the chapters in Jacob's and liked the way it was written. DD would really be into that style, I think. AOPS - love the website (the perspectives written about), love BA (younger DD loved it and was able to keep a good pace with it)...not sure it would actually be a good fit for DD11. I probably need to investigate further.
  17. Help! 😶 DD11 (12yo this fall): Has done really well with Singapore math K-5... It was getting a bit stale so we hopped over to Beast Academy 5 for a bit... Which was fun until it got so laborious and drawn-out that she lost momentum... I freaked out a bit, ordered Singapore 6A / 6B, which we hopped back to last year... Though Beast was intriguing, fresh, and fun at first, and she did pretty well with it, I could tell she was really relieved at the cut-and-dried-ness of Singapore (as in, do X lesson, finish XYZ pages...and you're done!). Beast was just a little too open-ended for her (high need for control) in that she was never sure if a problem would take 5 minutes or 45 minutes. She's almost done with 6A. We took a break for summer. 6A has been very do-able for her. We need about 90 school days to finish 6A and 6B, by my calculations, which will put us at about halfway through this new school year-ish. And then what? Please help! I've read so many threads on "what to do after Singapore 6B... I've googled and combed and read... have read blogs, have read WTM threads... ...I have bugged my poor DH about it repeatedly... ...and I'm still super-anxious about it. 🥺 According to "state standards" (which I don't put a ton of stock in, BTW): 7th Grade here = Pre-Algebra; 8th Grade = Algebra. I don't know if DD is 6th Grade or 7th at this point. She's young for 7th, but that's how many years we've been schooling, if that makes sense. I know grade level doesn't matter for homeschooling. This will be our 8th year homeschooling and I love that no one has to fit into one particular grade level. BUT.... There is a possibility DD will go to public high school or end up dual-enrolling at a community college. She has always scored very-highly on math assessments. She's pretty mathy, though she'd frankly rather spend her time socializing and doing a variety of other things. IOW, she doesn't want to spend 2 hours / day doing math or doing math for fun, though she probably has the intelligence to do it. I'm thinking: Finish Singapore 6A / 6B. Then begin Jacob's Elementary Algebra. For those who've done this, would you "budget" 1 year or 2 years to get through Jacob's? (I know it depends on the student, but, in general?) Where would this leave a student? Would they have finished what people label as "Pre-Algebra"? Or are they completing "Algebra I"? To make matters more confusing, personally, my cohorts and I did "Algebra I in 9th Grade". It sounds like it's all shifted to the grade prior (8th), not unlike many "standards". And, to just add one more layer of questioning...I'm really impressed with AOPS. Despite BA not being a great fit, I'm still open to using it as a supplement or circling back around to it or to using AOPS Pre-Algebra. I guess, in a nutshell, I know DD is capable with keeping up with her age and/or grade and/or "standards" and can probably exceed / go to a higher level. I don't want to provide a disservice by causing her to be "behind" if she has to enter group learning in math at some point. Please be kind. This issue has made me really anxious for some time and I just need to make a plan and move forward. I'm open to different viewpoints, but I hope the thread won't end up in any sort of debate about standards, grade levels, etc. I just need some sound advice from people who have BTDT with these particular curricula, this particular issue, who have had students go through middle school math, and who can maintain an even keel. 😃 Thank you so much in advance.
  18. I'm back! 😀 I only have a few hours alone today to prep and plan... And my list is way to big and cumbersome to post! 😏 Just wanted to pop in and say, "Hi!" to all of you fellow people in planning mode. I'm really going to try to focus on the basics and the most important things today (math pacing, narrowing down my literature booklist for the year, etc.) and not get into rabbit trails. It's hard, being a Planner and an Idealist, to make a lot of progress with planning because I could just go on and on. And still arrive at the new year without a firm plan. For example, I have 4 (or more) grammar possibilities. Really, any one course of action would be good, assuming it gets done. Best curriculum = finished curriculum. So I'm going to try to get "real" today. 😉🥴
  19. Well, for anyone "live" here, right now, I'm going to take the next 40 minutes or so to tackle the next few items on my list. Have to head out after that, but, 40 minutes is 40 minutes! Thanks for the encouragement today! 🙂
  20. I get it. DH is working at home. He's not a needy guy, but I just have to expect some level of interruption. Plus, all of our homeschooling stuff is stored in his office. He hadn't been working at home for ~2 years... so, it's an adjustment. I know if I go in that room to sort things while he's working, we'll end up interrupting each other, even in positive ways. 🙃 By the way, your original post prompted me to make a comprehensive "prep / to do list" for HS this summer: thank you! I guess I've made them every year, but seeing this post pop up here and there is reminding me to keep at it! 👊
  21. I've used this method for ~3 years and it's worked really well for us. I'm thinking of switching to a weekly format for DD11 to encourage more autonomy, time management, and independence, but I haven't been able to make that work well in the past. I also like the freestyle format of a simple notebook and being able to write notes at the bottom of each day's page like, "Pack stuff for XYZ tomorrow" or "2pm - Piano Lesson", etc. - little reminders that don't really fall anywhere else.
  22. Does anyone else feel like they need to be completely alone to plan / prep? The alone-ness is a luxury I rarely have...I know some (especially with babies) don't have that luxury. Yet, I have anxiety over being repeatedly interrupted...that stops me from making progress on my "school prep to do" list. My kids are even getting older; it's not as if they're constantly requesting my attention. I just feel like I can really only dig in and make headway when the house is empty and quiet. I've had very few alone days this spring / summer. So, my list is about 1/3 finished.
  23. Same here. We'll have to get in the car and drive if we want to see it... Or maybe wake up at 5 a.m. (?), which is definitely not happening. 🙃
  24. A friend lives on property that has mosquitoes year-round. Due to marshy creek land, there's really no way to solve the problem. And there's West Nile around here, so it's an issue. They installed a type of fan that turns on automatically when the front door opens. Not sure of a brand, cost, etc. It kind of blends in with the wall, so it's not too intrusive; it's a rectangular-looking thing, kind of like a small AC unit. It blasts air on the doorway whenever the door opens, so mosquitoes aren't able to fly in. Not sure if that would fit your needs, price range, etc., but, if you live near a hog farm and have constant fly pressure, it's a thought.
  25. We have an old family friend in another country who has raised (literally) millions of chickens over the last 50-60 years. The have a really large chicken farm. You would shudder to know what types of things chickens were fed. Never knew chickens could, ahem, "recycle" stuff like that... I'm not saying I think it's a good idea for them to eat anything...but they will. I agree about not feeding them any chicken products... It seems like that would be a recipe for disease. 🥺
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