Just Starting ??

[LovedMom]

www.teachinghome.com
This is a site I really wanted to print some articles from, unfortunately my printer is "out of order". But it is a site worth sharing. I am reading an article that touches on 2 year-olds and it answers my questions earlier that I posted. I have been having a hard time with my 2 year old as to what to teach and how, etc...he is so not like his sister at this age. He is more into playing and taking out everything out of it's container or watching "AirBud" or "Blue's Clues" or "Tom n' Jerry". He asks for these daily. If I say no to one he will ask about the other. LOL!
He doesn't seem to stay with one thing too long. However, when it comes to cars, that's a whole different thing. When I draw for him everything is CARS! And now he is showing some interest to my dd's little doll house and all the little furnitures. He also has been seen taking the scrabble pieces and stacking them on top of each other....I just need to get smart and find someway to connect with him and be assured that I am teaching him something like shapes, colors, abc's and numbers, you know.

lovedmom

[mommyof2girls]

Hi everyone. I am new here. I was told about this site cause I'm seeking home school info.
Does anyone here live in Kentucky and know how much it costs to get started? My DD's principal told me I needed $600.00 to get started. WOWSERS! Others have told me I could get the all the books that I would need at the library and I could print worksheets off the web. HELP! I feel so overwhelmed. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[martiehawk]

Hi all! I just jumped to this thread from the Georgia thread because we were discussing some homeschooling there. I've been homeschooling for 9 years and LOVE it.

Mommyof2girls, I have NO CLUE why you would be told you need $600 for start-up costs. You can homeschool young children for practically free. One of my favorite recommendations is www.edhelper.com. You can join for $20 and then all you need is ink for your printer and paper.

I always advise checking out www.hslda.org just because they have a link to the laws for each state and it's the one I always remember. LOL!

For those homeschooling younger children, a good rule of thumb is that their attention span is only as long as their age. If they are 3 years old, 3 minutes is about as long as they will be able to handle sitting still or "paying attention." 6years old would be about 6 minutes at a time. Then you can vary the activity some and as long as you change it up every few minutes it will hold their attention. This does vary some but it's a good general rule of thumb.

Also, you don't need to feel that you are just bringing school home. When you homeschool, you have the freedom to fit everything to your childs needs, abilities and interests.

Well, I'm off to check some of those links now. I don't want to share mine unless they are new to the thread.

Have a wonderful weekend!!

[LovedMom]

for the minutes tip in accordance with their age...2 minutes for 2 year olds...
and mommyof2girls...I spent $200 some for a whole years curriculum for my daughter and then I add supplements with that whatever I choose at my discretion..if it be something online for a nominal fee to join...or buy computer programs, like I spent $5 on a "Typing Tutor" program for my daughter or extra workbooks...and on occassion I spend money on arranged field trips, etc...so it should not cost you too much. Let me know if this helps. ~LovedMom

[gwtw-mom]

I will be "officially" homeschooling this fall and was wondering if anyone has heard of Calvert School? I have been researching different things out there for a LONG time and I found this curriculum in my Big Book of Home Learning by Mary Pride.

My son starts kindergarten this fall and this has everything I need for a full year of learning (including glue and yarn for crafts!) but I wanted to know how good the curriculum was from someone who has either used it or know someone who's used it.

Prior to this, I used pre-K day-by-day from MommyCDs.com. It was great and only $20. I can use it with my younger son while my older one is learning the ways of kindergarten!

I'm really getting nervous, and excited, about this new adventure!

Tammy

[martiehawk]

Hi Tammy,

I'm no help. I've heard of Calvert but know absolutely nothing about it.

I attended a Teaching Time Seminar last night about Unit Studies and I'm think I may take my younger 2 girls in that direction next year. We have part 2 of that class next month which will help me decide for sure.

We also will have a class on lapbooks. Have any of you done these? It looks like a totally cool way to have the children participate hands on with anything they are studying and really help them remember long term what they studied. I'm interested in directions and information should any of you know about these.

Thanks!

[suzybeth]

Hi everyone, I notice this particular forum isn't so busy. Just wanted to pipe up and say We started homeschooling this week with my 12 year old. I took him out of traditional public school for various reasons, and so far he is doing well with it. We are using the Alpha Omega Life Pacs for 7th grade, plus a few elective courses. He loved the public school AR reading program so I found something online that is very cool and similar to the AR reading program. www.bookadventure.com Kids take quizzes on books they have read and earn points to be turned in for prizes. It is sponsored by Sylvan Learning and is free.

[LovedMom]

Suzybeth thank you for the shout out and the sharing of the link!
I am homeschooling my 7 year old with different currciulum materials and have LifePac for Science, Language Arts and History. For Math I use Saxon. I also use other materials.
I have another child who is 3 yrs. old but with him I just improvise.
Nice to hear something going on in this thread lol!
Hugs, LovedMom