JJsMom, that's a great report card!

I'm so glad you mentioned DSs handwriting! This year, I hadn't focused as much on DS6's handwriting, and just in the last 2 weeks as we're about to finish the 2nd grade HWOT book, I've discovered that he forgot how to make several of his letters correctly....Ys above the lines, Ms with 3 humps, you name it. He writes ALL.THE.TIME., but I think that since we weren't focusing on handwriting per se, he's gotten sloppier and picked up bad habits.

Mine is dying to do cursive since that's the next book, plus the rest of his curriculum is now 4th grade so he thinks this should be too, but I'm seriously considering geting another K-level HWOT book and starting again. Just like yours, mine also gets very irked w/ me about the reminders. Maybe it's a boy thing??

Oh, and I'm just like everyone else here with the outlining, too. It seems like it might help for students who have trouble conceptualizing what they want to write about, but for natural writers, it's such a chore.

I haven't been around much in a while, but I'm so glad to hear all the great news!

HS Mom to DYS6 and DS2