Very New to This and I have Questions Please : )

[inHistiming]

Just have to add that we also LOVE HOD! The read alouds for history and science, extension readings (with the later manuals), story time selections, poetry and bible readings...it's all so wonderful. My children love it, everything is all laid out by the day in bite-size portions...it's so easy to use! And, Mom does learn a lot too. I wish school had been so much fun when I was a child! I hated history all through school...except in the 8th grade because my teacher made everything into story form (like HOD)....and then college, I guess because I was motivated to learn it. The CM style used in the HOD manuals adds a definite 'spark' to our days...we're always looking forward to reading more of the adventures in our books!

[JoyousBlessings]

Hello Everyone! Thank you to those who have posted since I last was on here. I appreciate your input so very much.

I actually went back to the other board and asked the poster (very politely) if she was confused with another curriculum and listed a couple of reasons why I thought that might be the case. She did respond to me saying that HOD was definitely what she was referring to when she posted. She said she was mainly talking about Drawn to the heart of Reading when she commented on the reading area.

She also said she still feels that HOD is very much like a public school program. However, she did mention that she is an "un-schooler", so that may have a lot of bearing on why she believes as she does about the program.

Anyway, I really need something that is laid out well for me. I am a fairly organized person, but with my daycare and just other things in life, I think having the daily lessons planned out will really help me to keep on track. When it comes to my son and his education, I don't want to mess around.

Now, am I understanding correctly that I will add a Bible of my choice to the program and a phonics program if I want??? I am doing a phonics program right now with my son (we just began), so I think I will stick with that. I have noticed many people going with different math too. For Kindergarten, I will keep math very simple. For 1st grade, I will possibly try MathUSee because I have read very good things about it.

Does HOD follow grade levels all the way up to 8th grade? I noticed that it seems to have a range for the ages on the programs. Maybe I am not understanding that as well. I do need to go back over everything. Will this keep my son up to where he needs to be in each grade level academically? We are in GA, and beginning in third grade he will have to do testing, then every three years after that too. Will this program keep him on track there too?

I know I have a lot of questions, but I like to know what I am getting into before I just jump. I have been researching and researching since we made the decision to homeschool our son recently. Now that I found HOD, it seems I have found what I have been really looking for all along. Something put together, yet flexible. Something interesting and fun for my son. It is fairly budget friendly unlike some other programs out there, and it is Christian based which is wonderful.

I had pretty much decided to do my own curriculum for my son with kindergarten because I have been advised by so many that at such a young age curriculum is not completely necessary. However, I really feel that if I have something that I know must be done on a daily basis, it will keep me on track better and not allow too many days to slack off.

Sorry I have gone on so long. My mind is just filled with all kinds of thoughts on this matter and I keep thinking of things to ask and find out more information about. Everyone have a wonderful day and I will check back later. Thanks!

Catrina : )

[lmercon]

Hi,
I'm a newish HOD user, so keep that in mind as you read my post. The Bible portion is provided for you in the curriculum. It is really "weaved" into the rest of the program. You will not need another Bible program. Carrie does offer several children's Bible choices depending on the reading level of the child or parent preference. You do choose your own phonics program. Carrie recommends two different ones, but you are free to add whatever you wish. Math is the same. She does provide activities to go along with Singapore math. I would really encourage you to look at Singapore. As a former ps teacher, I see the benefits to this math program over many others. The early instruction regarding mental math and "seeing" the problem and the "why" behind the solution is very beneficial. My ds is excelling with this program. Carrie doesn't organize the programs by grade but rather by age. That allows moms to combine children who are close in age, if they wish. I would check out the placement chart on the main site. It is extremely helpful. She provides extensions for the higher-level programs if you child is on the upper age-limit of the program. Carrie is very helpful when it comes to placement and ideas on how to best use the programs for your child. I hope I helped a little.
Laura

[Jessi]

Hola Catrina!

While I am not going to try to sell you on HOD as I have read everyone else's glowing and honest responses plus your own replies which lead me to believe you are seriously thinking about using HOD (Whoo Hoo!!!) but I digress....the real reason I am posting is because of you mentioning you run a day care and are interested in how HOD works with day care.... Let me share with you.

It works wonderfully well. Now I will be honest...in the fall it was quite hard but for various reasons. One, I was starting a new baby who had a REALLY hard time adjusting to my home; two, two of my older day care girls started public preschool and were rubbing it in my daughter's face about them being big and her not; three, my daughter was more advanced than the LHTH guide we were using. But once we got that all sorted out and I moved her up to LHFHG we restared in the beginning of January and it has been AMAZING! I had to work on character issues with some day care kids, find the right placement for my daughter, and settle the baby who is now a riot and well adjusted!

All that to say make sure if there are any "issues" in your day care right now, address them before beginning homeschooling with any curriculum. It will make the transition into formal schooling much easier.

Now about LHFHG: My daughter loves it and what is great is that I have the whole group of kids snuggled up to me on the couch for some of our history, esp. when I am reading out of our Bible. They all get into the rhymes in motion (even my 2 year old and my almost 2 year old day care kiddo). I usually let the older ones do the activities with Emma for art, science, drama, etc if they are here. We had a great lesson about the stars last week and I took all my kids into our toy room with the light off and did our lesson in the dark and each got a turn with the flashlight to learn about stars. They LOVED it! I have saved phonics for nap time as it is easier to focus. We use Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading! Storytime I always do at lunch and I would recommend that. The kids love the books and have amazing recall because they are mostly quiet and eating. My son who is two begs for Reddy Fox every day after we pray for lunch. Now when Emma is working on math and handwriting, I do not allow the other children around her. They have stations to play at. The basics I really feel she needs to be able to focus and not have 5 other kids pulling her attention away. It works for us.

Make sure the little ones in your care are occupied with something simple. I am blessed to have a great room with the kitchen and living room as one big open room. So I can keep track on everyone. Sure there are distractions like hair pulling, toy stealing, pushing, crying etc....but my daughter is great about doing what work she can on her own and waiting patiently for me to return to the table so I can help her when I am finished with the situation. Phonics is the only one I will say you REALLY want to do with the least amount of distractions.

If you have any other questions regarding day care and HOD I'd be happy to answer!

[dale1088]

I could just say "ditto" to everything Jessi said! I have a home daycare too, but only on T/Th. My dd is 8 and in 3rd grade, and ds is 4 and is kind of in preschool - although right now I am saving LHTH for him when he turns 5. He was a preemie and just needs some time to grow and mature before I start more school time with him.

I have only been doing this since January, so I am VERY new, but I am loving HoD. I don't have to plan ahead, or think about it. I just open my book and get started. Everyone has already commented on how great the program is, so i will just ditto those thoughts as well.

One other thing as you begin your journey, like Jessi said, sometimes the problem is us or our kiddo's heart, or other circumstances that create problems, not the curriculum. I've had a tough week. Tears over math, bad attitudes, time-outs (and that was just me ) Not good. So I start thinking that I can't do this, I don't have the right materials to motivate her, why isn't she excited about this stuff like I am, yada, yada, yada. Then in my quiet time this morning I realize it's not the materials at all. It's our hearts. I need to work on patience and gentle understanding, but dd needs some serious work in the areas of diligence, self-control, happy heart, first-time obedience, etc. I came online to search for resources to help me work with her and I have new and fresh resolve. She and I are so different that I struggle to understand her sometimes, but God knows her and He knows me, so He is my resource for help.

I also can't emphasize enough the encouragement of this board. Anytime, day or night, these wonderful women are here to help and guide and encourage. What more could you ask for?

[Jessi]

dale- how true about our hearts. I learned that the hard way. We are still working on character issues here but most of them are on the mend.

oh and Catrina- I will echo the other public school teachers (as I used to be one) that HOD is NOT like public school at all. No worries there.

And one more thing...LHFHG takes about 1 1/2 hours a day to accomplish. Use nap times for the quiet subjects like math, handwriting, etc. Break up your day to allow time for your son to play with the kids and allow you some sanity.

[funkmomma71]

I just wanted to encourage to look at Singapore Math; you said that you are running a daycare and need to have things planned out, well with HOD Singapore math is planned out and the time you spend wit it is minimal. With MUS you will need to watch videos before each lesson in order to teach the material. One of girlfriends who uses MUS allowed me to look at it and because of all the prep involved I decided to go with Singapore and keep things simple. My dd is doing very well with it, today we started on subtraction and she picked it up with no problems, as a matter of fact she has had no problems grasping the math concepts as presented by HOD and Singapore. I'm grateful for the carefully laid out lesson plans in HOD, they are easy to implement, flexible and effective.

Blessings,
Nancy