New with Combining Question

[Shawneinfl]

Hi, I'm new to the boards but I used HOD years ago when their were only two books! I was pleasantly surprised to see all the new offerings they had. We don't see HOD too much at curriculum fairs here in the south.

I would like to try to combine my three youngest into two levels for next year. I'm leaning toward having the 5 and 7 yo do Beyond together but I wonder if it would be over the Kindergartner's head. Little Hearts looks too young for my 2nd grader. I prefer to keep the girls together if possible. I will probably have my son do Preparing or CtC. Is there a huge difference in workload for these programs? The other thought was to have him do Bigger Hearts with the 7 yo and just let the youngest dd tag along. I would appreciate any thoughts on this. We do a 4 day week for half the year since we are very involved in our co-op, so I have to factor that in too.

Blessings,

[jenntracy]

Welcome!
I also am in the south ,well, North Florida, and I don't know a soul who uses HOD around here. I am going to take a bunch of catalogs to a curriculum symposium at a local home-school group soon. Maybe we can help spread the word of such great curriculum down here.

Wish i could help with the combining. i will say it may depend on your child. I have a 6yrold son, will be 7 in October, who will use Beyond for 1st grade next year but he is already in emerging readers now and started the 1st grade math mid-year.
My 2nd child ,daughter, just turned 5 yesterday.Will be K in fall. Even though they are close in age, and I would love to combine them for some of the stuff, my daughter would just not be ready to do Beyond. I really contemplated it.

She is really excited to be 5yr old. She keeps saying, "Now i am in Kindergarten." She does tag along on some of the History and science activities, and loves Rhyme Time. We have been finished with LHTH since early fall. I tried including her in LHFHG and she just wasn't ready. Some kids are.
So there is my two cents, if it helps any.

JEnn D.

[mamayi]

I combined my five and seven year olds this year in Beyond. We go "half-speed" through the guide and my five year old kept up well. Of course they are at their own level for reading, LA and math but for all other areas we combine. It's been great.
I think it will depend on the skill level of your five year old. The placement chart would be the best place to tell if he/she could do Beyond.

I have found that the ladies here are great at helping people with placement. It seems many of the families have multiple children and you can get great advice.

Blessings to you,
Andrea

[crlacey]

Welcome!
I can't help too much since I don't plan to combine. I do plan to have my DD (2nd grade next year) doing Bigger when she completes Beyond this spring/summer. With the extensions, you may be able to combine the older set instead of the younger set. Here is a placement chart to help you: http://heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php
I know that others may be able to help you more if you list where each child falls on the chart. That gives everyone a better idea of the skills your children already mastered.

[frankesense]

I combined my 5 year old and 7 year old this year in Beyond. Though they were at their own levels in the Math and LA portions of the program. My 5 year old has done really well keeping up and understanding but I have to remember not to expect as much from her (in things like narration) as my 7 year old. I think that combing them would be doable for you if your 5 year old was able to do it without pushing her too much and then causing her to be frustrated. Where does she fall in the placement chart?

[my3sons]

Hi Shawne, and welcome to the HOD Board! HOD is growing and growing, a guide every year, so I bet you were surprised to see that if you haven't visited the website for awhile. Do you have a catalog yet? They are wonderful and free. Here is a link to order one in case you are interested:
http://www.heartofdakota.com/catalog.php

When choosing HOD guides for your dc, they all look so good that it is too hard to pick! So, the placement chart is super helpful, not to mention, accurately placing your dc goes a very long way to ensuring a good year for each of them. We've used the chart to place each of our dc, and it's been easy to use and accurate. Could you take a moment to look at the placement chart, especially the first page, and share a bit about each of your dc's tentative placement individually? Then, we can help you combine the best way possible, since that is a goal of yours. Here is a link to the chart:
http://www.heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php

We'll all definitely give our 2 cents then, and get you on track to an excellent placement plan for your family! I know you are going to love HOD, and I am glad you are a part of this board.

In Christ,
Julie