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I am going to be very transparent and say this has been a hard week. I am sure a lot of it is mid winter blues, but I am struggling with seeing how much my ds struggles with understanding the readings and writing a good written narration. He leaves out lots of details in oral narrations and due to his dysgraphia his answers in bible are only 2-3 words. Sometimes I have the thought that it would be so much easier just to put some text books in front of him with fill in the blank answers and let him go. I am in need of some encouragement to keep pressing on despite the struggles and thought there might be others out there feeling the same way. So I thought we could put together a list of the benefits/joys of using HOD/Charlotte Mason style learning in the high school years.

I will start since it is good for me to list these things. The first is that he is very relational, so reading books that are living speaks to him so much more than reading a text book. Secondly we get to have deeper level conversations about the struggles that characters in the literature books experience. Third is that I get more insight into what he is thinking because he has to give longer responses in his notebooks or orally, so even if he doesn't get all the details I can at least see what stood out to him and maybe understand him a little better. As a mom with a teenage boy I do think this is important. Also Bible is an integral part of the day. With my dd that did textbooks it was just another book to get through.

Those are just a few that popped into my head. I would love to read your lists.

Just some encouragement here...your post about parkour and his enthusiasm after reading about Wilfred Grendell was so great to read. I'm sure there will be more such moments as he continues. So, prayers for peace and discernment as you continue in God's grace. My own ds is a slow processor, and WG has been a challenge, yet the discussions we have in the course of his school and sometimes late at night have really shown me the depth in his character as well as the talents he he's been given. I really look forward to the years ahead as he discovers the course he should follow.

Lynn - Angie may only make it through the M to MM by the time she graduates, but I can honestly say, the thought of high school will give me the jitters if I dwell on it. I think we can get through a few guides without too much struggle, but when I look ahead, it scares me a little. When I see the struggles Angie has now, I think 'how will she process what lies ahead?' But, I am learning to just live for today. I could have myself depressed thinking about high school. I am just continually asking the Lord for patience and wisdom while I homeschool. From reading your posts, I think you have done an exceptional job with your son. You are an encouragement to me when I read about the accomplishments your son has made using HOD. Although we are only in Bigger, I think most of my reasons for continuing with HOD into high school will be exactly what you mentioned: the Bible and good living books and discussions on character issues, etc. I know Angie would dread having to listen to dry history and science textbooks. I pray you have many good days ahead. Don't give up. We need you here.

Just to clarify my ds would never let us leave HOD and I wouldn't want to either. He has often said he wouldn't want to do school any other way. I just think sometimes seeing what advantages to this style of learning others have seen, especially in the upper grades, can be a real encouragement. I am the only one I know that schools high school this way so I don't have IRL people to talk to. Everyone I know either outsources everything or does something like BJU. Today I have been re-reading the sneak peeks for the history in in the World History guide and this has helped quite a bit, but I still would love to hear all the positives from others.

I can't answer for "high school", however, I can answer the textbook route for this year with BJU, our 8th grade year. We tried that this year. It did not go well.

First, everything seemed disconnected. From science to history, it just seemed like we were "doing" it. DD was not engaged in the same way I saw her with HOD. The days were not shorter, they were different. The work in the BJU activity guides were just that. Just work. I found myself asking 95% of the time, the value of such excercises. They were charting information that seemed to lose the gist of the general idea. Instead, it was all about the wierd little details, but dd couldn't assimilate the general summary of the information since it was so much about names, places and vocabulary words. I had to ask myself why so many times, and when I went to the answer key and continually saw reguritated answers, directly from the text, it unnerved me. Since the work was about complete regurgitation, the main point seemed lost. I wondered often what we were really supposed to get from the reading. It seemed all over the place. BJU would talk about one thing, then continue on in tangents, coming back around to the topic. They didn't seem to know where to stop with telling the story. It was hard to add in a living book, since there were so many points and so many people and so many events in a 2-day spread. Then it was done and gone and you just wondered what the heck happened!

Science. Eek. It was all terms and terminology, but I didn't find it was "teaching". It was telling information. The activity guide info was all over the place, doing perhaps paged 1B, then 1A, then 1D....it was wierd.

The schedules were nuts. There was a schedule in the beginning of the book, then sometimes on that particular starting chapter page. I wasn't sure where to look and it was up in the air how many days you wanted to cover it. It differed from subject to subject, so I didn't feel they were particularily streamlined. But...this is BJU. I know not everything works like BJU. Then there was the schlepping of all the huge guides from one subject to another. I felt scattered between having to decide what was important and what wasn't and what if anything should be printed from the CD, or what should be talked about in the TM.

Big thing...DD learned nothing. I noticed we were missing those comments, like "Hey Mom! Listen to this..." as she proceeded to read a living book. That didn't happen. In fact it was obvious! There was a strange silence to our day. Unengagement, going through the motions.

What a loss. I dumped it all and we are back to HOD. Within the first week Dd was commenting on her reading again. No, she doesn't get all the answers. Sometimes it's like pulling teeth, we don't always finish. But she's back understanding what she's doing and enjoying books again and can talk about it, no matter how much.

DD is not fast, in fact she can't do it all as written. She's just too slow. So I have to pick and choose. I usually leave out crafty things as she hates crafts unless it'll hit home the concept. She's not an audio learner either. So I go with the flow on how she learns. I use what I see fit per guide. Sometimes more isn't better for her. Less is more.

I know the road gets daunting, but we have to adjust whatever we use according to our kid's strengths and weaknesses. Some years it's more adjusting than others. We burned out, we switched, but we should have just enjoyed the parts we chose to do instead of trying to do it all.

I know of no moms by me that go the distance. It's community college or it's putting them in school or frankly, they are so hands off. I can't believe how many are hands off. They hand them the books and haven't a clue what they include or where they're at. You're not alone. Sometimes mom's get tired and have to adjust the load for their sanity! Curriculum is a tool and shouldn't burn anyone out. It's not about completing a guide, it's about learning the skills, giving your kids the tools to learn and that could mean that one year you just need to do what you can and call it good. I know that my dd is wanting more outside interaction. That means that I may use Co-op for electives. It's refreshing to leave the house, plus it gives mom a break.

HTH a little bit.

annaz,
Thank you for this!! It resonated with me. I've prayed so much about these very things and God has shown me exactly this for our family but oh, sometimes I start doubting and wondering and then he brings me back around. One year I had a phrase of a song in my head that He used to help me, "little is much when God is in it". I didn't think we were doing enough but, yet, I was following what I thought was God's will and then that song came to my mind!

Found your post helpful, but especially this:

annaz wrote: know the road gets daunting, but we have to adjust whatever we use according to our kid's strengths and weaknesses. Some years it's more adjusting than others. We burned out, we switched, but we should have just enjoyed the parts we chose to do instead of trying to do it all.

And this:

annaz wrote:You're not alone. Sometimes mom's get tired and have to adjust the load for their sanity! Curriculum is a tool and shouldn't burn anyone out. It's not about completing a guide, it's about learning the skills, giving your kids the tools to learn and that could mean that one year you just need to do what you can and call it good.

As you know, I am not a HOD High School user but I do love HOD.

For me, there are so many benefits in general with HOD!
1. First and most obvious, everything is taught from a Christian perspective. No one would be here right now no matter how good the education was if it wasn't. Not only are the texts and subject material from a Christian perspective but they also include fantastic devotionals and resources to help kids grow in faith, grow in their relationship with our heavenly Father and grow in knowledge of His word.
2. We all also know that these books are amazing!!!! I do not have natural born readers at all. But my kids genuinely love what they read. My oldest did Preparing last year and CTC this year. Last year she was so engrossed in each book she read. This year she did complain a little bit that readings were long (especially science....but if she could just stop looking at those pictures LOL she would have been done faster ) but she did like what she learned. I recently asked her which year she liked more. I thought she would say Preparing (because it was easier LOL). She said CTC! I was so surprised. She said....because she loved the books! Even my son loves the books. I never have to call him more than once when we start school. His favorite books are the story time books of course but he loves science and history too. He even reads his Bible to me for Bible time most days on day 5 of Bigger. My youngest also loves her books too. The books are GREAT!
3. I love the writing structure and integration. I don't know if narration is considered to part of writing officially but I do consider it in the total make up of that subject. Kids need to learn how to communicate information thoroughly and effectively. Narration is a great way to teach a logical progression to expressing written information with good flow and keep it on topic. I also love the writing programs that HOD uses each year. I love that we aren't only learning one person’s philosophy. Each program is so interesting. And studying great writing is so important in developing a strong writer. I never learned how to write until I was an adult. I never had good instruction and it was very hit or miss each year in school. I feel like my kids will be well prepared to share their thoughts on paper for any assignment or any venue by the time they graduate. I also love the grammar books. They are easy to complete and strong in nature. I am glad my kids are learning grammar early on. It does make the art of teaching writing easier to do when you know the names and purposes of elements within a sentence.
4. DITHOR is probably one of my favorite things! I search and searched prior to finding HOD for a literature study that wasn’t focused on reading and comprehension but rather focused on processing the story and its elements freely. DITHOR does this for me. I think discussing the elements of the story in the structure of this program will do wonders for when my kids get older. I am teaching this at my co-op. We are studying Folk Tale right now. Last week I read the kids two stories about the Three Little Pigs. The first was traditional. I asked for the theme of the book. I got traditional answers like take your time and do your work correctly. It is better to not be cheap, lazy and wasteful. Then I read The Triune Tale of Diminutive Swine (this The 3 Little Pigs done with the language of Shakespeare.) This book was written by a comedian and at the end of the story the 3rd pig says his house didn’t fall down because it was made by an American. So we talked about the theme of this book. It was that people should buy American made products. I feel like HOD provides kids with the tools to “think” and use their own logic to make natural connections to what they are reading. I don’t want to raise monkeys who are trying to get a banana out of a machine. I want free thinkers who can allow material to resonate with them and then they share how the story impacted them or applied to their life.
5. Science is fantastic. I have searched and searched for various resources. I think the progression that HOD takes with kids in the younger guides more than prepares them for any science path they want to choose. The resources that HOD picked for high school help the kids to actually understand the material and enjoy it! They will remember it! There is nothing worse than investing your year in a ton of subject matter to only have it fall straight out of your brain as soon as the year is over! I love the experiments that Carrie schedules. I look forward to seeing my children turn into mad scientists with each level they tackle.
6. History is fantastic. I love the living books and notebooking activities. My dd was going through her notebook the other day admiring her work greatly and commenting on the various elements and stories she remembers. It is amazing to me how much she does remember. With a traditional approach kids will forget information quickly, with a month or two. With HOD, my dd still remembers things from last year well enough. The books she reads she remembers because she completing engaging activities that helped solidify those connections. I can only envision that high school is going to be the same.
7. I personally love the volume. I may be crazy and no, my kids don’t whip through their day. I think that as kids get older they need to be challenged. It helps to prepare them for life and make their character strong. I love the volume Carrie has included in the guide and plan to have my kids follow every box. Those living books bring the time period to life so vividly. My oldest really enjoys that every story time book is typically related to the time period she is studying. However, my oldest was so funny today. We are reading Archimedes and the Door of Science. She says, “Mom, I think I liked Boy of the Pyramids better.” I asked why. She said because this book is a learning book LOL. Yes it is LOL. But she does like it and she is sure to tell her daddy very excitedly every day when he comes home just what she learned! But the volume is great. I feel like my kids are getting a full education preparing them for whatever career path they want to pursue and that HOD is only going to be of the greatest benefit to their adult lives educationally.
8. For high school (and other levels), I love the variety. My husband teases that HOD isn’t the cheapest but he does say it is the best! I love the variety and feel like each of my kids may not love every subject but they will at least be exposed to a significant variety of education outlets and will find something they like.

For me – it is probably evident that I think HOD is wonderful. I am so biased! I am also completely spoiled now that I found them. I feel like they have blessed me by allowing my family to skate on the hard work they put in. I know God has called Carrie to this mission field and she is soaring through it (even if it doesn’t always feel like it, Carrie you are amazing). I am grateful to the support of Mike and Julie as well. I can’t imagine having such a full and interesting homeschool path without HOD. I am so grateful that they have published this and shared it with all of us. I can’t wait to see how God uses my kid’s excellent education on their mission fields and to see how He glorifies himself through this hard work that we have dedicated ourselves to complete now.

LynnH wrote: He leaves out lots of details in oral narrations and due to his dysgraphia his answers in bible are only 2-3 words. Sometimes I have the thought that it would be so much easier just to put some text books in front of him with fill in the blank answers and let him go. I am in need of some encouragement to keep pressing on despite the struggles and thought there might be others out there feeling the same way.

I wanted to comment on the issue of dysgraphia. A friend of mine whose son really struggled with the physical act of writing started letting her son type more of his work, leaving the act of writing out of the equation. Once he learned to type, his "written" work was so much better. So we tried it with our daughter who has dyslexia. Her "written" work went from simple sentences so amazing descriptions. We also found it improved her spelling skills tremendously. We do still require some work done by hand so that she can work on the handwriting aspect. Generally anything that needs to be copied like the Bible verse, and her dictation. But for the history narrations and research, we let her type them since the point of those is not handwriting practice rather the art of a good paragraph.

I don't know if this would help your son, but I wanted to share our experience.

Back on topic:

We are not in high school yet, but I love how HOD keeps my kids skills on track. If I try to branch out on my own, I find that I let them slack off on some of those skills they have built up. This is especially true in their writing since this is the area they both struggle (and complain).

I also love how the history is not just a bunch of facts of names and dates to be memorized, Instead it's a story to be enjoyed and remembered.

As a Christian family, it is so nice just to be able to buy the story time and readers suggested by HOD and not worry about their content. My daughter get recommendations for books from friends and I have a hard time staying ahead in previewing them. So to just buy good safe books for school is wonderful.

Conversation between my two daughters in the car last night on the way home from a volleyball game - one is using the WH guide, the other one is using the WG guide. It started because my oldest said, "I LOVE the Scarlet Pimpernel! Just wait until you get to read it next year!" This started a big conversation going back and forth discussing which books they have loved over the past two years. When they couldn't remember the name of one, they would go back and forth about the story, get giggling and laughing, and finally someone would shout out the name. I was so happy as I heard them discussing each book and why the loved it, which ones were their favorites, etc. Or course, I jumped in a time or two myself as I have many favorites in there, too! Would that happen if they were reading all textbooks for school?? I think not! They have learned so much history, so many missionary stories, so much real life from these books that will always stick with them. And these were history books, living library books, world religion books, devotional books, literature books - all of them. My twins loved The King's Fifth so much that my husband picked it up to start reading it today. I could not have put all of these amazing books together and tied them all in like Carrie has done - not in a million years - this alone makes it above and beyond any other high school curriculum out there in my humble opinion.

The education my kids are getting is so rich, so interesting, so lasting. I think about this a lot. I don't remember a whole lot of what I learned in high school. That makes me sad because I spent a lot of time there! I think my kids will remember SO much of what they learn during these years. They can converse about what they are learning together. I don't think I ever conversed with anyone about what I learned in high school... Hmmm.

I know that HOD high school is unconventional and that may make some uncomfortable. You can't grade worksheets and quizzes and tests and, voila, you have a grade! That is hard for some - it was hard for me at first to feel comfortable about the grading aspect. But, I know now that anyone can memorize and regurgitate information to get a good grade. With HOD, I feel my kids are really learning the information in a way that will affect their lives. Give me unconventional any day!

HOD High School is:
1) Integrated
2) Interesting - highly!
3) Comprehensive
4) Planned with great intentionality
5) Includes all necessary electives
6) Living!
7) Full of variety (a must for this mom!)
College prep
9) Lots more that I would like to say, but I'm too tired to put thoughts into words

I was up all night with a new puppy and I'm rambling. Sorry if this doesn't all fit together coherently. I just have to share with anyone considering that I love HOD high school! I wish everyone could learn this way.

I love reading everyone's lists! I will probably print this thread out to look at it on the rough days. Even though my ds hardly ever talks about anything he has read I know he does enjoy the books. I wish he would spontaneously talk about things he has learned, that would truly make my day. I guess that's why I wonder if he is taking in any of it, but he doesn't really talk about anything other than parkour, rock climbing and church.

Crlacey, he does type everything except the few workbooks like bible. I even put things like science lab forms and the bookmarks and book summary sheets on the Ipad so he can type on those. I am looking into getting permission from the publisher of his bible curriculum for the WH guide to put that onto the Ipad.

Ladies,

This is an encouragement to me as I keep on writing! I have enjoyed my second son's high school years immensely, and honestly at this point can't image doing high school without the HOD Guides. It is such a more balanced, planned, Christ-centered, multi-facted education than the one I was able to give my oldest son without the benefit of the HOD Guides being written. Thanks for sharing, ladies. You made my day!

Blessings,
Carrie

These years feel so crucial, don't they? I sometimes look around and see all the different ways parents are not only choosing to school their dc for high school, but also how they are choosing to raise them, and I just pray we are doing it right. When I pray about this, I do feel the Lord answering me, and leading me on, down this kind of unknown path, as this is my firstborn. You asked a good question, and I have been thinking about this answer. For me, the benefits of using HOD for high school are kind of all over the place. I like neat sequential things usually, but the reasons aren't all so neatly connected for me. I'll apologize right off for sounding as if I am rambling!

Academics - I do care about strong academics. I come from a family of educators, and I paid through the nose to get my master's degree in education. It is just in my blood to care deeply about strong academics. Not in the sense that my ds needs to have an off the charts SAT/ACT score, mind you, but in the sense that I want him to be intelligent in a well-rounded sort of way. I want him to be able to walk into an art museum and know something about art when he's looking at the paintings on the wall. I want him to hear a stirring speech where someone quotes George Washington and have the essence of who the man George Washington was rather than being able to join in to on the quote. I want him to hear about a science breakthrough and weigh if its in line with with God says about that. I want him to love America not because it's perfect but because he knows what men and women did so we can be free. I want him to be able to read something and remember what struck him about it - not to remember what struck me about it, and not to remember what a textbook writer wants him to remember about it, and not to quote it back encyclopedia-like to me as if memorizing dates or events makes you get what those incredible moments were about. No, I want him to weigh his own opinions in light of what we he has learned reading about history, science, Bible, etc. in a Charlotte Mason connected way, rather than in a searching for the one-right answer way he thinks somebody else wants him to say. HOD has strong academics, but the kind that I want, not the kind that will have my ds robot like spitting out answers.

Relationship - I care about the relationship I have with my ds. I want time to talk to him about what my dh and I stand for, and I want time to instill in him the qualities and habits we find to be most important. I want him to be able to talk to little kids and grandpas, and I want him to want to talk to ME. The discussions we have in HOD are not throw away ones. They are the ones that matter. They are of the kind that make me think of things my parents have said that stuck in my head for years. Books like Boyhood and Beyond, studies like World Religions and Cultures, Total Health or Pilgrim's Progress this year... these discussions are important. They are helping us make sense of hard to understand things around us - the tough stuff. Wyatt and I don't have the perfect relationship, but we sure love each other a lot, and we can talk about anything thanks to the HOD discussions that have opened that door that teenagers tend to slam shut about now.

Knowing the Lord personally - Not just quoting this or that, not just filling in blanks or regurgitating facts. REALLY knowing God. Getting up with Him every day to do a Bible Quiet Time, singing hymns of praise together to Him, crying out to Him in prayer, talking through decisions with what He wants in mind. Seeing the Bible as the end all - the alpha and omega - the sole standard that can be depended upon to lead us in the right direction all of the time. Not separating Him out or putting Him in one little part of our day, but including Him in everything - science, history, even grammar! And the list goes on. God is everywhere in HOD. You couldn't get away from Him if you tried. He becomes our Way of Life. There's no point in trying to come to school without your Bible or go through 1 school day without Him in HOD. He's ever-present.

Balance - I care about this and so does my ds. He wants to know what he is going to have to do each day and about how long it's going to take him, and he doesn't appreciate it being off-kilter. We only have so much time in the day. We can't spend 2 hours on history one day and 30 minutes the next. We don't want to have days we do nothing creative or hands-on, and we don't want to have days we do nothing sit-down. Routine. Habits. Very Charlotte-Mason like, and very reassuring and confidence building. This is what you'll do this year, and you can count on it being balanced with no big 'oh no this 5 minute thing is going to now take 2 hours' type doomsday feeling. We love school, but we have other things to do too, and knowing what we need to do to get school done each day routinely makes the rest of our life work.

Don't forget the fun stuff - Charlotte Mason bought rubber boots for her students so they could walk outdoors every day, even if it was raining. Reading poetry together, looking at art and doing picture study with it in a fun way, keeping a nature journal, looking at God's creation and marveling at what we see, doing experiments, making history projects, calisthenics, a real education IMO doesn't happen if you are only sitting down in a chair with a pencil or a book in hand hours on end.

Language Arts done right - Charlotte Mason just got it. She knew how to teach dc to THINK about what they read, and then to put into WORDs what they learned personally. No one right answer. That is a toughie when first getting to know Charlotte Mason. We do all long for that one right answer, that elusive answer key that we can gaze at and say, "Yes. Correct." And there is a place for that. Just not in response to living books. DITHOR and the way HOD teaches LA using CM ideals - they keep our dc LOVING books. There was a long period in my life where I never wanted to read another book. It was supposed to be the point in my life where I was the most brilliant, ironically. 4.0 GPA in college, graduating at the height of my education in my masters, and all I could think was, "Please don't make me read another book." Tests. Quizzes. Papers. Essays. Never any heart in any of it. Never the chance to really say what I thought or get passionate about what I was reading. Just figuring out what my professor wanted me to say or how he/she wanted me to respond to receive the proverbial "A." Were it not for HOD, I myself may not have become interested in reading again. My ds always has his head in a book. Always. He LOVES to read, and even out of school, the books he loves all get orally narrated to me or anyone who will listen. And he's not a big talker normally either. HOD just makes a kid love books.

I know there are more reasons, but these are the big ones. It all boils down to me feeling like there is no way Wyatt would ever get this kind of 'education' anywhere else. I care about the mind, but I also care so very much about the heart, and the soul of my ds. And I think this is going to be probably the best thing I've done with my life. My greatest contribution on this earth will probably be the ones I leave behind, and that is going to be due in part, to the way I am blessed to be homeschooling them. I'm glad you asked this Lynn. It made me think, and when I am weary or discouraged, I will return to this thread time and time again. May you find your peace and inspiration moving forward with your dear, dear son.

Love in Christ,
Julie

Love this post!

1. Rigorous: very academic husband approves the rigor of HOD High School. He is so pleased with what dd is reading, writing, synthesizing, and discussing. HOD always schedules in parent involvement and that helps me to maintain relationship with my growing teen. I truly believe discussion is necessary for the synthesis of certain concepts. HOD has been holding my hand to accomplish this task through the I, S, T boxes.

2. Rigorous: this is the education I wish I would have had in my teens! The way it is written plus the narrations and note booking pages allows for a great deal of retention.

3, Rigorous: well suited for college preparation. DD's ophthalmologist was so impressed this week with her extensive reading in 9th grade that she asked if I'd homeschool her son! She also reminded dd to take her glasses off when she reads. I love the quality of the books. They may not be easy but they are excellent.

4. Rigorous: Electives are included! I love that all electives are scheduled for me (if I choose to replace one with another, like we are doing with Spanish for a different language, my dd is still reminded to complete her foreign language and pencils in her own page number and book).

5. LOGIC is included. I think this is absolutely an essential subject in a well-rounded college prep curriculum...and it's scheduled FOR me! When I took Logic in college, my professor was a theologian turned philosopher and was an atheist. I cannot tell you how dangerous a Godless Logic class can be to a growing and immature faith. I am thrilled and seriously relieved that this choice has been included and is describing fallacies with Biblical exogenesis in mind. When my children get to college where they will most certainly have exposure to philosophy or Logic or psychology (any humanities, really) they will have a solid foundation regarding fallacies and how to see the fault in many anti-Biblical arguments. Praise God for HOD and them including a curriculum that really teaches a child to critically think!

6. Moving on...God Centered: Godly fiction reading choices -- Stepping Heavenward (need I say more?! - it's my all time favorite book), Bible-centered history reading and activities (this week in WG we went back to Genesis and Noah's sons to map them while working through the first civilizations), Bible-centered electives (I saw that in the economics choice in MMtM, Logic in WG, I see it in Health for WH).

7. Schedule: It's so important that a teenager have a clear standard for expectations. HOD's schedule is exactly this. She has control over her day and knows what must be accomplished. If she wakes at 6 and starts at 6:30, she can be done by lunch. If she decides to sleep in (which I really discourage) she might be done by dinner. She is given that natural consequence of a late day and I like that I'm not the one handing out the consequence. Incidentally, we start by 7:30 regularly and finish before the school bus comes at 3pm.

8. Confidence: with all of the options in today's homeschooling environment, I used to second guess every curriculum I bought. Since starting with HOD, God has given me a great deal of peace and I've learned to trust HOD's choices and and not waste time trying to reinvent the wheel. I, as the parent, have a great need to have this guidance.

9. Related to number 8: HOD keeps me homeschooling. I think it's possible that I would have given up long ago had HOD not been around. HOD has been a grace provision for me and my family and I owe them a great deal! Because I homeschool with a curriculum, it also deflects those people who disagree with homeschooling. The note booking pages serve this same purpose, awing and even inspiring potential naysayers, and in some cases resulting in those same critics ultimately supporting homeschooling (I have experienced this!).

Wow these are great! I loved reading them and they brought more things to my mind. Thank you for listing all these. This past week we both had better attitudes. One benefit I saw just this week is that even though he doesn't talk much about what he has learned he does have that knowledge and is interested in things because of what he has learned. We are planning a trip to Washington DC and as we were talking about it he heard me say that the National Art Museum has a picture done by Leonardo DaVinci and he got all excited about that. I don't think many 15 year old boys would think that was exciting, but because of HOD he truly enjoys art. Another thing that happened is he has been bugging me to watch the movie 42, because he is very interested in Jackie Robinson. We watched it last night and he was moved close to tears. He really got it, again thanks to everything he read in MTMM last year. We even had a good discussion about the not so great language in the film and why we thought the producer put it in there. I think because we discuss deeper things together on a daily basis these types of conversations just happen.

Mamanlait - you are cracking me up! Rigorous.... Rigorous..... Rigorous.....

I think my husband's favorite thing about HOD is he loves the diversity, challenge and growth he sees in our kids already. He told me we are never switching and ironically, he actually nevered cared about what I did for my kids schooling until I started HOD. He now thinks this is the only way to go