I've been on and off this board in the past, but I honestly can't remember the username. I think it was ZZ0607, but...well whatever. It's entirely possible I've also asked this long ago, but how do you know what method or approach is best for you/your family? Is it really just trial and error over the years? I'm horribly conflicted about a classical/well-trained mind type deal and a more relaxed/better-late-than-early notebook/journal approach. We just started "officially" in the beginning of August and DD (6 1/2) was interested the first two weeks, but after that, not so much. We're going from minimal scheduling to about 4 hours (when things go smoothly), and I have two youngers that don't join in the seat work but do listen to the reading and color with her.

We're doing Bible reading, Scripture memory, character study (all that is about 20 minutes over breakfast), math (5 days), phonics (5 days) copywork (4 days), grammar (3 days), spelling (4 days), history-spine, reading, coloring, & narration (3 days), science-same as history (2 days). The seat work portion only takes an hour or less, but it's actually the history and science that seem to not work out as well and I don't know if I'm expecting too much of her or what. I've also considered tossing out spelling and grammar until 2nd or 3rd grade. But she does well at both of those. I don't want to sacrifice content--it could be so much fun.

So...if any of that made sense, help? Like I said, I do lack confidence and am internally conflicted, so if this all sounds confusing, well, it is! Tips, advice, anecdotes, reassurance? Lay it on me!

_________________
DD 2006, DS 2007, DS 2010

It may help to read a book like this one - you might find that one method just clicks for you. I really liked this book, since it gave a nice overview of each of the methods, and helps a lot with understanding the differences & benefits. http://www.amazon.com/Homeschooling-Met ... ng+methods

But, you don't have to confine yourself to a single method unless you really want to.

Intuitively from clues in your post - like the fact that you say that you're uncertain, and you waited to start school until your child was 6 1/2, you sound like a person who would mesh better with a more laid-back method. But, that's just an impression and I could be completely wrong on it.

Whatever you choose (unless you choose unschooling - then you need to ask someone who actually does that), don't worry too much about your student's mood on a given day. All of us have days when we're crazy about our jobs, and days when it's tough - help your little one learn to work through both kinds of days.

And, this is just a start - others here will have more helpful advice to come!

_________________
http://stuffedveggies.blogspot.com/

Cathy Duffy used to explain learning styles in her old Christian Education Manuals, where she reviewed most of the available curriculum available to homeschoolers. She helped you determine your child's learning style and then categorize the reviews according to those styles. I still have my old copies, because they are a wealth of information. She now publishes, 101 Top Picks for Home School Curriculum, and has a review page http://cathyduffyreviews.com/ Her manuals saved me a lot of time and money picking out the right curriculum.

Here is a review of a book that also helps you determine learning style. I had two competent carl's (a boy and a girl) and one sociable sue. This book uses different labels. You may be able to find it at a homeschool lending library.
http://cathyduffyreviews.com/parent-hel ... -style.htm

_________________
"...with men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26

Welcome back to the group!! Each of us on here has different ways of doing things, even if we are using the same method, so you could get many different answers, so beware. We have homeschooled for 14 years now. We, through trial and error, have changed our approach many times, and have even done different approaches with different children, to best meet their learning styles, their personalities, their strengths and their weaknesses. I have 5 kids, three grown and on their own and 2 girls who are in 8th grade this year. We started very "school at home" with little desks, set schedules... and that lasted a couple months and we decided that we wanted the freedom to do things our own way, that was why we were homeshooling.

Over the years we became more and more relaxed with our approach to learning, especially when we watched how much more retention our kids had with less formal, more geared to their interests focused learning approach. I have always picked and chosen different parts of different curriculum, or used no set boxed type curriculum at all. I loved the gathering of books, games, movies, tv shows, video games, computer programs and even some text books and workbooks if it best fit the needs/desires of the kids. Each one used different combinations of materials, and each one used all of them at some point in any given week. We came to view all resources as equal, and my two youngest have maintained their love of learning throughout. My oldest had lost some of that in the earlier years.

That is why you will hear that trial and error works. Each child is different, each parent is different, each season of life brings about different needs/interests in each family member and the family as a whole. The joy of homeschooling is, you can choose what does work for your family. Also keep in mind your dd is only 6 1/2 and will just continue to naturally learn daily just as she did at 1, 3, 5.. so you don't have to do seat work, follow a curriculum.. just give her plenty of creative options to chose from, read to her and one day, when she is ready, she will read. Some kids read at 3, some at 9 - it is all good. If she loves the idea of sitting down with a workbook, then you have an answer, at least for the moment because she might just decide that she'd rather just read books, or build with Legos, or help in the kitchen or... all of these things help build the foundational building blocks for reading, math, fine and gross motor skills.

You know your daughter better than anyone, you have been her partner in learning since birth. Use that bond and knowledge to guide you with what she will do best with in this season of her development. Learning happens, every day so enjoy the process. (edited because my paragraphs disappeared the first time I tried to post)

Welcome back!!! I've had concerns about TWTM since it came out. It is highly structured and very time intensive, and I've always been worried that it will cause homeschooling moms to lose confidence because they can't make it happen. Few kids have that level of motivation at home. (Perhaps they would locked in a classroom and forced to sit in a desk all day, but that's a classroom environment.) And few parents have time to do the level of work called for since they likely have multiple children, a house to take care of, and a husband to look after.

That being said, we did classical in the kids younger years -- up to about 8th grade on my oldest. There are different ways to do it, and they are easier to implement. Take a look at these interviews for some encouragement and great ideas!
http://www.homeschoolchristian.com/alla ... /index.php

My younger children are now teens and the older ones are grown. If I had it to do over again, I would have been MUCH more relaxed in the earlier years. There is no reason at all for a child under age 10 to spend more than an hour or two sitting doing work. There is so much learning that can be done while running around, doing chores, playing with blocks, etc. One of the best things we ever did was to add musical programs that we sang along with in the car or while doing something else around the house. Several of these are on the review page:
http://www.homeschoolchristian.com/curr ... /index.php
Scroll down to "musical curricula."

Hope that gives you a few ideas! Again, glad to see you back!

_________________
******
"Like" us on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/HomeschoolChristiancom

Thanks! I'll look into those books. DD has been doing phonics on a very loose schedule for 2 years (like, 1-3 days per week, one page per day). Otherwise we've been involved in other stuff, but have not had any schedule at home at all. One year (2010) we watched PBS pretty much all day. She is about 2/3 of the way through Phonics Pathways and has an excellent capacity for memorizing words (although I don't encourage that, it is helpful at times). She reads extremely well, I think, for her age. I don't know for sure though. I've never looked up what all the different grade level reading requirements are. I figured if it was based on sight reading, it wouldn't do us much good anyway. She can sound out words like "meditate" and after being told how to pronounce "information," she'll remember the next time she comes across the word. I don't feel like she could read for content yet, though, or I would let her. I'm pretty sure that's the best way for her to retain things. After seat work this morning, I think we will drop spelling for a year or two. When she gets it, it's great, but if she doesn't get it, no amount of review helps. Hopefully copywork will expose her to enough words to make spelling easier when we pick it up again.

I feel like I would be super-relaxed if I were more confident that they were retaining concepts and information, and if I was at all creative in pulling together tons of different sources and experiences to create a cohesive picture for the kids. In theory, I feel like at this age, they benefit more from lots of reading and outings and playing and helping around the house than from tons of seat work. And that progress in content subjects doesn't really even need to be measured. But in reality, I don't have the confidence to do it that way and still feel secure that they are "learning" and having a spouse and parents that don't quite agree with that approach makes it harder. However, my husband has released me to do whatever I feel is necessary and beneficial and is more interested in the ends than the means, but just knowing he differs on method is hard. My parents, well, they aren't hostile and I know they have no authority in my home, but most children want their parents approval, even when they're grown. And to top it off, we're just 5 weeks into it, so I'm aware that I could be giving up on our chosen method too early. Sorry for the novel.

ETA: Thanks Martha! I didn't see your post until after I replied. My kids love music and DD picks up lyrics very easily. We don't do memorization beyond scripture verses (those get several weeks each). But it seems like a good framework that I could tweak. We don't want a packaged curriculum or tons of workbooks or textbooks. Yet when starting from square 1, I'm totally lost. That's what attracted me to TWTM, but yes, it is impossible to get it all done in 4 hours with 2 boys and a house and husband (and soon to be puppy, shhhh, it's a surprise!). Even just looping whatever doesn't get done to first thing the next day feels like it's not working.

_________________
DD 2006, DS 2007, DS 2010

Trust that God created us to learn. Trust in your instincts. Don't be embarrassed about watching lots of PBS, there is so much good on there!!!

Welcome! I just wanted to add that at the age your kids are, lap books are really fun to make and they learn so much by doing these, too! If you are not familiar with lap books, just do a quick google search and you will catch on. My neighbor came up with an inventive way to approach the Bible lesson. She gives them two blank sheets of paper. Then, as she is reading the story, her two kids are coloring/drawing their pictures. When she is done, 20 minutes later, her kids are pretty much finished coloring. Then, she has her kids, one at a time, stand up and talk about their picture. This way, they are not just sitting all the time.

With history...there are plenty of kid-friendly workbooks at school stores or even Walmart. Research about famous people. Have them dress up in time period costumes..thrift stores are your friend, here. Make a time line. Cook food from that time era and use the tools they used, if you can find it. I never bought a book for just history. Actually, I bought Abeka for 3rd grade one time, and half way through the book, I got rid of it. Science...study butterflies and make a diagram of the life cycle. There are a ton of ideas out there on the web.

_________________
Prayer should be your first response.
Not your last resort.

"I feel like I would be super-relaxed if I were more confident that they were retaining concepts and information, and if I was at all creative in pulling together tons of different sources and experiences to create a cohesive picture for the kids. In theory, I feel like at this age, they benefit more from lots of reading and outings and playing and helping around the house than from tons of seat work. And that progress in content subjects doesn't really even need to be measured. But in reality, I don't have the confidence to do it that way and still feel secure that they are "learning" and having a spouse and parents that don't quite agree with that approach makes it harder. However, my husband has released me to do whatever I feel is necessary and beneficial and is more interested in the ends than the means, but just knowing he differs on method is hard. My parents, well, they aren't hostile and I know they have no authority in my home, but most children want their parents approval, even when they're grown. And to top it off, we're just 5 weeks into it, so I'm aware that I could be giving up on our chosen method too early."

From this second post it sounds like you do know what you want to do, but just aren't certain that you can make it work &/or please the other adults involved.

If that is the case, I'd say read up on *your* chosen method- find out how to do it BEST. Read accounts of others who have had success using that method. Become an advocate for it. Be fully convinced & fully informed yourself.

And, if it's compatible with your method of choice, choose one or two projects to really excel at to start with. If your little one has a skill she is good at and FEELS good at, and enjoys demonstrating for Daddy & Grandparents, that will really help sell them on your chosen method. They will enjoy being able to tell co-workers or friends of her achievement - for instance, if she can sing the names of all 50 states with their capitols, or the books of the Bible, some similar project. Add one skill-project at a time so that there are demonstrable results, and that will help all the adults (yourself included) relax about the whole list of things to do.

If she reads extremely well for her age, that's a *great* start! : ) Practicing a book to read to Grandma & Grandpa should help things a lot! : )

_________________
http://stuffedveggies.blogspot.com/

Welcome back! You mentioned TWTM and a classical approach. Have you looked in Classical Conversations? When dd was younger I read TWTM and loved the philosophy, but I couldn't figure out how to put it all together. We've had a pretty relaxed approach to schooling over the past 10 years. Unfortunately, I feel that it created terrible habits in my children. It's one thing to be organized and have a goal in mind, but be gentle and relaxed in getting there. It's a whole other ball of wax to be slack in getting the job done and thus creating bad habits. Which is exactly where I've put my kids. I have many regrets for not being a more diligent parent. I'm having to retrain my kids to understand that school is important. I did them no favors by being relaxed. We've been doing Classical Conversations for the last 2 years and it's been a great way for us to have structure to our days. This slacker mom needs it.