left side of Beyond for 4 yo

[mommyofgirls]

i am noticing that my 3 yo does all of the little hearts stuff with us (left side). she is doing that as well as her LHTH activities. she turns 4 in february. those of you who have used Beyond: do you think she could tag along with us and do the left side of Beyond next year with her big sister? And i dont mean tag along just for the sake of doing it - i mean would she REALLY grasp it and get a good overview of American History? She can listen very well for chapter books and has a large vocabulary, however, she will only be 4 1/2 next fall.

[sharonb]

My 4.5 year old is tagging along with his big siblings for Beyond. I have been trying to do LHFHG with him, but he really prefers to tag along for now. He listens well and loves participating in the activities.

As for grasping everything fully, I'm not too concerned about that since he'll cover it again in a couple of years. What matters is that he's having a lot of fun learning. I personally don't remember anything I learned in history or science until about 3rd grade. The things I do remember are those that had hands-on activities associated with them.

So, if you feel like your 4 year old would prefer to do the left side of Beyond with her siblings, then go ahead. Just make sure everyone has the appropriate level of math and language arts, and you should be fine! Then when she's 6 you could have her do Beyond herself when her siblings get to Preparing. That's what I'm planning on doing with my ds. (I'm hoping he'll be happy to do LHFHG next year when his siblings are doing Bigger, but so far he has very little interest in having his own history/science/Bible time; but I think by the time he gets to Beyond and the olders are in Preparing, he will be ready to have his own program).

[mommyofgirls]

thanks! that is helpful to hear.

i am doing LHTH and LHFHG this year and i find that, really, my 3 yo needs the letter activities in LHTH (i love them actually!), but it is easier to just add her in on my 5 yo's Bible. don't get me wrong....it is not unmanageable as far as time or effort on my part. i just find it redundant to read the same Bible stories within a day of each other - and they end up doing each other's activities and storytimes anyway. i was thinking next year i would just let my 4 yo tag along with Beyond and then do LHFHG with her the next year (with my then 3 yo tagging along with her). It's good to know she won't be lost next year if i choose to do this!

[Tree House Academy]

I am the opposite. My son is almost 6 and while he is doing well with Beyond, I am not sure that the history is the right level for him. I recently bought Little Hearts for History, Bible, and Sciecne to go along with the right side of Beyond for him. He was "getting it" for the most part, but it seemed a bit difficult for him at times. I would sometimes ask him what we read or what it meant and he would give me this blank stare. It took him a bit to get going and then, still, he doesn't seem to be understanding the significance of it all. Of course, I am not sure backing up a level is the right decision either. He is a great reader and loves read alouds. We shall see...

My biggest worry is that he would not be ready for Bigger next year when he is just barely 7. We are using it with dd10 with extensions this year and I am often reading the material and thinking "no way" for younger ds at 7 years old.

[my3sons]

When my middle ds was 4.5 yo, he was a smart little cookie (reading well, writing pretty well, listening o.k.), but he still was not ready for Beyond. He really needed his own school because he needed his own guided instruction for things my oldest didn't. I started LHFHG half-speed with him, and that worked well. But even that was still a stretch at first - I think Beyond would have been out of his league. Half-speed LHFHG only took 45 minutes to do, and it kept him moving forward with his own learning. My ds would have enjoyed his big brother's company if he'd started Beyond very young paired with him, but I don't think he would have gotten his 3R's down so well (as LHFHG helps do for those little ones). That's just my experience though - I know each family has to determine the best overall path with their entire family's needs in mind. I can see how having your little one riding along with Beyond with an older sibling while still doing LHTH or LHFHG LA and Math on their own - and then the next year doing LHFHG with whichever grade option needed -could work. But a long term plan of having such a young child riding along for programs such as Bigger Hearts, PHFHG, and CTC would be a tough ride IMO. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie