What Your Child Needs to Know When
I feel I must share this and pass on what has been a blessing  to me. After much contemplation and reasoning (excuses) children are  older (5th & 7th), already have resources of this nature, do I really  need another book like this, etc., I listened to my heart (and  confessed again all the money I had wasted on curriculum out of fear)  and bought the book by Robin Scarlata - What Your Child Needs to Know  When.The main reason it appealed to me was because of all the descriptions  telling how it had been revised and expanded and included not so much  what the state expects, but first and foremost what and how the Lord  wants our families focused on and the biblical model of learning and  the education of our children. This book is great!!! The bibliography  is excellent-- I had already read some of the books and found more I  would like to read, but Mrs. Scarlata has pulled all these resources  together for a convicting, mind-renewing read that leaves one not only  informed, but challenged and focused on the Lord for His perfect  direction for our children-- their hearts and mind and education. If  you've not yet been exposed to this kind of thinking, then this is an  excellent resource to read. If you have already been exposed to this  kind of thinking and the renewing and growing is ongoing, then this is  an excellent book to read. I am blessed thatI live in a state where achievement testing is not mandatory, but I  still will have use and value for the evaluation lists. But even if  you never use any of this information, the first half of the book  which is what I have thus described is worth every cent. If you keep a  list of items you either want to purchase or look at book fairs, etc.,  this is one to put on that list!  If someone needs more information,  I'll be glad to give it.   --Diane Alive4Him@aol.comI recently bought and received your book What Your Child Needs  to Know When. I have to tell you that it is much more than the  catalogs describe it as. You know, I have been wanting to run our  school days in a different way (with more emphasis on scripture), but  didn't really know how to change my rigid-schedule-ways, and didn't  have the courage to do so for a long time.Even though most of our curriculum (if not all of it) is  Biblically-based, it just wasnt enough for me, or at least not the  way that I wanted things. It has seemed to me in the past that if I  didnt run a tightly scheduled ship, that things would run amuck,  get out of hand, and that the kids just didn't seem to get their  things done by the end of the day when left to work at their own  pace. To avoid seeing some child aimlessly walking around, or wasting  time, I decided long ago that we would have a schedule to go by to  keep them focused. However, I have never really liked it! I want to be  Spirit-led in my schooling. I have read some things that started me  thinking of how I could get going in the direction I so desired. The  thing that helped me do it was your book!  I loved the philosophy of  teaching and the example of what a typical day might be like for you.God must have really got a hold of me then and things have been really  different in our house! If we werent done with Bible by 8:30  before, I would announce it was time for math!  (Sad, Huh?) Now, we  start Bible maybe by 8 or 8:30 and sometimes go until 10 or 10:30! And  the most exciting thing about it is that after Bible (worship, and  memory verses, and much discussion), the kids seem to go on their way  and get their work done better and more quickly than before. It has  been astounding to me that they get done sooner than before! So, thank  you for being obedient to the Lord and for being an example to me. My  husband and I are first generation Christians, and I am always blessed  by Titus 2 kind of women, even after being a believer for 17 years,  married for 14, and with four children of my own. Also, after all of  the stuff on the loop awhile back about the lesson plans I like  them thank you! I do have trouble picking though because all the  options are so good!  Love in Christ, --Peggy LagoI'm currently reading your book What Your Child Needs to Know  When and it is EXCELLENT!!, and I can't wait to begin the Heart of  Wisdom teaching approach. I felt like it was an answer to prayer when  I read about it. Keep up the great work and may God bless you!! --Regina Ulmer, reginau@arkansas.net