HOD and MFW

[Mrs. Lilac]

Hi ladies....

I haven't posted much, because I'm just a longtime HOD wanna-be. I came SOOO close to doing HOD for K this year, and at the last minute did Winter Promise. It was fine, but too expensive and just too many bits and pieces. Then, I've been researching again and was all set to do Adventures from My Father's World....and I find myself drawn back here! I just can't decide!

Can anyone give me advice as far as choosing HOD Beyond Little Hearts or MFW Adventures? Has anyone done both?

ANY input you can offer would be so much appreciated! Thank you!

[annaz]

I can't help you. I am responding because I have the exact same issue and have now for some time. I have been debating between the two for months and I can't make the decision either. I'll be watching this thread closely. I go back and forth between the two and a have a long relationship with both. Our problem is that there's'one aspect out of each curriclum that isn't working for us. It pains me to say this because I LOVE HOD. But God hasn't led me astray, but keeps pulling me back. Unfortunately he does the same thing with MFW. WP I like but it's just not biblical even though I like AS1. I have had no peace about this, which I've written about on another board and I am at this point getting pretty frazzled by it.

So I'll be waiting for some responses. And I've been praying and praying and praying and either I'm missing his answer or he's ignoring me.

Ann

[Mom2Monkeys]

If you search MFW and HOD you will find lots of posts! I think Julie wrote an excellent comparison between the two that you'll find in the search...or at least a link to it.

I'm a former MFW'er and am SO SO SO SO SO happy with our switch to HOD. There always seemed to be something missing in MFW, and whatever it was, I found it in HOD. The missions focus was great in MFW, but with HOD, the focus is on a relationship with God and the character and heart of my child...a much needed precursor to missions!

HOD includes flexible, easy to follow plans for ALL subjects and still leaves time to do your own interests. MFW doesn't include plans for any LA, Math, Lit. Program or Poetry Study. So where you have all MFW rec's for LA (Primary Lang. Lessons) with all the great CM lessons, HOD has the same already planned in and it ties into the lesson! I love that! Math activities are planned day by day up to Singapore 2B and schedules provided for the levels after that with HOD. MFW has a "suggestion" book for Singapore, but no daily plans or instruction...I just needed more! The poetry study in HOD has been awesome and my children are poetry lovers now! My dd is growing obviously closer to God, which is something I never saw with the Bible lessons in MFW.

That's all my tired mind can come up with right now while on pain meds! LOL

[Kathleen]

Mrs. Lilac,

I haven't used MFW, but one of my best friends does. It was the curriculum that I was seriously considering before I found HOD. We have been thrilled with HOD this year. I love the balance of our days. I feel like we are covering everything that we need to in nice bite-sized portions that make school doable day-in and day-out. We are not burned out at all...and we're nearing the end of the year! My 8 yo still gets excited about what we get to do everyday. My favorite part of how HOD is helping our family though is the focus on the Lord. I am having significant spiritual discussions with my kids frequently...if not daily, at least several times a week. I love the focus on our personal relationship with the Lord, and living for Him!

My daughter tonight wanted to talk with me at bedtime. She wanted to make sure she understood salvation, and trusted Christ! I could see the wheels turning in her head as we talked about heaven yesterday and people who are dear to us who are there now. (We had read the story about Jesus bringing the widow's son back to life in Little Hands to Heaven.) She wanted to go to heaven - and Jesus is THE way.

My 8 yo son today shared the gospel with 2 of his unsaved friends who are homeschooled. Our Bible study this morning had challenged him to show bravery and bring glory to God. He was at first trying to think of some dangerous stunt he could do, and I mentioned that sometimes being brave isn't just about doing something dangerous but about being willing to say something important that your friends might not receive well. He instantly thought of sharing the gospel with his friends.

Now, my husband and I were intentional about emphasizing a personal relationship with the Lord with our kids before we started using HOD, but it has proved to be an invaluable tool for us this year!! I am so thankful for the teachable moments that the guides have prompted. Today, and many others I have had reasons to rejoice for what God is doing in my kids' lives, and it's come from "school" time.

Here is the thread that Tamara mentioned. viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1446 I saw that there were several others, too, if you go to the FAQ folder on the Board Index.

Kathleen

[brenm37]

I have used MFWK, Adventures and about 12 weeks of ECC. I really wanted to like this program.... I even bought 1st grade, looked it over off and on, didn't use it and sold it. I have also sold all the other packages. It just didn't fit my style. Adventures went the best for us, but by the end we were tired of the state pages. K did not fly well with myself (or my daughter) and ECC quickly lost its appeal. I agree with other posters that it is a great program, just not for us! I am very much looking forward to using Preparing and LHFHG next year. I find myself re-looking at the manuals and finding something new and interesting each time. My older daughters want to start Preparing already, but I have a few other things lined up to finish our year. The daily set up and 4 day schedule are very appealing, as well as the strong Bible focus. I am looking forward to a full, rich, enjoyable year with HOD!
Brenda

[Lynnw]

Mrs. Lilac,
I haven't used MFW, but looked at it seriously before coming to HOD. (I was considering the Creation to Greeks package). ONe difference is that with HOD you can choose a package for your younger and then include an older child with the extension packs. With MFW, I would have geared my choice to my oldest with my youngers tagging along and not getting as much from it imho. Also, with HOD it is not difficult to have two packages (or even three) going at once if that's what you need to do for your dc. In my own decision making process there were just too many things I was going to have to tweak to make MFW work for us, I didn't have that same issue with HOD. Sorry I cannot help more as I never actually used MFW.

Ann,
The Lord is not ignoring you. He is with you and will lead you. I'm praying for you that it will be soon and you will have a peace about your school choices!

Lynn

[lmercon]

Here is another old thread with lots of links to yet older threads! The moms shared a lot of information that may be helpful to you.
Laura

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3127&p=23106&hilit=mfw#p23106

[mariaw]

Well, I've done Winter Promise (Animal Worlds and AS1), MFW K and Exploring Countries and Cultures, and now HOD Little Hearts for His Glory and will be doing Preparing next year (for my oldest). I think it's a terribly personal decision that must be prayed over, but I'll tell you my experiences with each.

WP:
Pros--really engaging, esp. loved subject matter in AW. We liked the book selections (had looked at SL and read some of those books, but they weren't as good a fit).
Cons--it's of the "here's more than you can possibly do so pick and choose" school of thought, which didn't work for us. I ended up skipping too much and we really didn't do much of the activities. It was easy for us to get behind, and the way it was laid out week-by-week made it hard for me to feel ok being "behind."

MFW:
Pros--I liked the thoughtful way that the Bible was woven into the curriculum.
Cons--I didn't like many of the book choices (in ECC), and both got very monotonous for us. I didn't see the point in many of the assignments. Many of the activities used things I didn't have in the house, or they were a tad too involved and we didn't do them.

HOD:
Pros--First curriculum that has really appealed to my boys! The layout works better for us. For whatever reason, it doesn't bother me so much to start the week on Day 3 if we didn't finish the week before. The reading (at this level) is very short, and great for short attention spans. The activities are easier to do, and not so abundant that a "non crafts" person like me will be overwhelmed. The Bible verses seem better suited to their level, and are well integrated into each subject for reinforcement. I also really appreciate the "Key Idea" in each box, so that I can reiterate the main idea of our reading or activity. This is a huge thing that I found lacking in MFW.
Cons--They never want to stop. ha ha! Realistically, I'm sure there will be things that don't work for us--it's impossible to have a "perfect curriculum" since everyone is so different. Nothing yet, though!

[annaz]

I put these two together side by side last night. And there was one huge difference that I found in the samples.

HOD asks your child, engages your child in discussion and MFW tells/reads to your child. HOD always gave us great discussions which may be why there are many posts on this board about what their kids said!!!
They both have the almost exact same rotation as they cover the same information in the same order. While there's a one year gap in MFW (they want you to repeat ECC), HOD actually has Beyond or Bigger which fills in that year gap. Rotation is a big deal for me.
Also its clear that HOD leads your child in small increments to independence and shows you how. MFW didn't really do that, it basically said to do "this".
Also MFW's projects while they're not daunting, it's still hard to find some of the items on the material list. We don't drink soda (plastic soda bottles), and 2 jars w/lids, ping pong balls. While it's not a deal killer, it's quite the list of things to save that we don't ever use. So I find myself buying soda to get the bottle, etc.

I found those to be some important aspects of the program.

[mariaw]

HOD asks your child, engages your child in discussion and MFW tells/reads to your child. HOD always gave us great discussions which may be why there are many posts on this board about what their kids said!!!

Yes!! You hit it on the head!! I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but THAT's the big difference to me.

[my3sons]

Mrs. Lilac,
Here's a link that you may find helpful:
viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1446&p=11109

We've used Beyond a few times now. It is simply a stand-out program for that age. I have said a prayer for you in your decision, as we all deeply desire peace in our choices - I pray that you find that peace.

In Christ,
Julie

[busybee4]

I am so surprised to come across this post! I too have been thinking about switching to MFW for some time yet after reading the posts and all of the very unbiased comparisons I have decided to stay with HOD! Hearing the comparisons have reminded me of why I chose HOD in the first place!! Great job ladies!! You've been a great help to a "wayward soul!"

[Mrs. Lilac]

Thank you, ladies, soooo much for all of your thoughtful replies!

When I read everything you wrote (along with some other threads at the MFW board and a few other hs sites)- I realized that HOD really speaks to me....the guide just seems to fit the way my mind works, and I love the Charlotte Mason emphasis. When I thought hard about why I would be doing MFW instead, I realized it comes down to just a few of their resources that appeal to me.....I've looked at the Adventures guide and don't really "get it."

So....what I'm thinking right now is to go ahead and do Beyond, and incorporate the few MFW things that I just think look too good to miss- their classical music resources, for instance, and a few of their recommended readers/read-alouds that I can get from the library. Those things would be easy to add in as we have time.

I have to discuss with DH and look a little more, but I'm 95% there! It'd be so great to really do HOD after about 2 or 3 years of lurking and being a wanna-be.

Thank you again for all the input, and I'll definitely post when we've sealed the deal.

God bless!

[Lynnw]

So....what I'm thinking right now is to go ahead and do Beyond, and incorporate the few MFW things that I just think look too good to miss- their classical music resources, for instance, and a few of their recommended readers/read-alouds that I can get from the library. Those things would be easy to add in as we have time.

I like to add in classical music too. My kids have really enjoyed Mr. Bach Comes to Call and Beethoven Lives Upstairs from Classical Kids (I think). I also hope to add in a few read alouds (maybe a couple times/week?) from Ambleside Online after we get more in a flow (I just started my oldest in Preparing this week). The nice thing about HOD is that you still have time for a few extras here and there without feeling overwhelmed.

Blessings,
Lynn

[Mom25]

Hi Mrs. Lilac,

We used Adventures and really enjoyed it. It was a delightful program and we have many good memories. I remember that we really liked the little art projects included and they were easy and fun to display. We then used ECC, which we also really enjoyed a lot, though the art was tougher (like a previous poster stated). Truthfully, I wouldn't trade those years or change anything about them. We learned a lot, and my kids grew academically and spiritually. I then used Preparing for 4th grade and also had a wonderful experience using the HOD material. The difference I've found is that MFW gives you a bit more freedom in choosing your LA and math, while HOD gives you the plans for poetry and writing, and a schedule for going through the grammar book (which I am hopelessly behind on!). Also, we liked the books for MFW but REALLY liked the books for Preparing.

I really don't think you can go wrong with either program. God is clearly using both to minister to families. I'm not sure what your budget allows, but could you purchase both and use each one for a week or two and then decide which one appeals to your family more, and then sell one??