Intro and questions about which guide/s

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tadbhoward
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Jan 11, 2011 7:19 pm

Intro and questions about which guide/s

Post by tadbhoward » Thu Jan 20, 2011 3:34 pm

Hello all,

I have decided that HOD is the way to go for my family for the next year but feeling unsure about the how and the what of it all. I currently have 4 girls (8, 6, 3, and 1)and am expecting our 5th in April. Looking at the placement charts, I would tend to think that my 8yo would go into Preparing and my 6yo would go into Beyond. However, I would really like to keep them together and I think that Bigger would work for that. I am seeking some more experienced opinions.

Currently we are doing WinterPromise's Animals and their Worlds, plus Bible Study Guide For All Ages together. My 8yo is doing RS English 3 (more oral than writing though I am slowly trying to increase the amount she writes), Singapore Math 2B, Spelling Workout C, McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader and were are slowly working on learning cursive. She has not had much experience with dictation but she has been doing narration for 3 years now.

My 6yo is working through First Language Lessons, Explode the Code (I'm thinking she will be through book 4 or 5 at this rate), Spelling Workout A, Singapore Math 1A, and A Reason for Handwriting K (she's about to start A).

Does that help give an idea of where we may fall come this fall? lol

My thinking was that if we go with Bigger, for my 8yo, I would redo RS 3 but require the writing this time around and she wants to add on Apologia's Exploring Creation With Flying Creatures b/c she loves Science and animals. She is on target to finish up Singapore a little bit before the end of our year but she could spend the extra time firming up her multiplication and division facts through drills and games so that she would start 3A in the fall. For my 6yo we would just keep it all the same.

Any thoughts?

Thank you so much,
Alisha

my3sons
Posts: 10702
Joined: Sun Aug 26, 2007 7:08 pm
Location: South Dakota

Re: Intro and questions about which guide/s

Post by my3sons » Sat Jan 22, 2011 11:44 am

Hi Alisha! :D Welcome to the HOD Board! Thank you for sharing here about your dc. I think Bigger Hearts is going to be pretty difficult for your 6 yo. It is tough even for most 7 yo's. If you look at the placement chart, can your 6 yo do the writing and reading required in Bigger Hearts? I have a pretty advanced 7 yo (reading difficult chapter books and writing well), and we needed to go half-speed with BHFHG for many months before just now going full-speed. Of course you could tweak it, but then you'll be setting yourself up to tweak forever because the guides keep getting harder. I am wondering if you could start with "Beyond Little Hearts for His Glory" with the 2 of them, add your science for your older, and use the right side of Bigger Hearts for His Glory for your older one's LA and math? Then, the following year when you do Bigger Hearts, your older dd could just use the extension package. if you tried Beyond and decided your older dd is much more advanced than your 6 yo dd and needed BHFHG or PHFHG, you could then separate them. Just a few thoughts I had, but you will know best! :D

In Christ,
Julie
Enjoyed LHTH to USII
Currently using USI
Wife to Rich for 28 years
Mother to 3 sons, ages 23, 20, and 16
Sister to Carrie

tadbhoward
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Jan 11, 2011 7:19 pm

Re: Intro and questions about which guide/s

Post by tadbhoward » Sat Jan 22, 2011 2:44 pm

Julie,

thank you so much for your response. That is the kind of feedback I was hoping for. Looking at the placement chart it does seem like Bigger would be okay but I have read in a few different posts here and on other boards that there is a lot of writing. My fear is that they are just too far apart to combine (essentially they will be 1st grade and 4th grade come fall) but when looking at keeping them separate that would be 6 hours of school a day. I am having a hard time handling the 4 we do now and I do not have the extra baby here yet. My husband thinks it would be fine but I believe he gives me too much credit.

I will have to do more research, especially into the left side/right side concept you mentioned.

I would love more advice and opinions.

Thank you so much,
Alisha

Mom2Monkeys
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Joined: Thu Sep 25, 2008 6:31 pm
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Re: Intro and questions about which guide/s

Post by Mom2Monkeys » Sat Jan 22, 2011 2:57 pm

I promise you it would not be 6 hours of school! Once you hit your groove, and you find where you can overlap teaching times, it will be far less than that. :D i.e. you might get one started with math, then while she's working on it, start math or another subject to the other. You may do your storytime lesson for your bedtime reading or as some do, read during lunch or breakfast. There are plenty of ways to make it work. Keep asking questions and plenty will pop in to help! As you can see below, I have 4 children and this year I've had a 4th a 1st grader. I suggest what Julie said about doing Beyond or doing Beyond with the 6yo and Bigger or Prepraing with the 8. There's much more to Bigger Hearts than meets the eye on here...and I think you 6yo, the following year as a 7yo would struggle so very much if you went with Bigger this year as 6 and 8yo's. I doubt she could do the independent work indepdently and as she enters the following guides, you'll find yourself having to be highly involved in subjects that are intended to be done by the student on their own, which will add much more time to your day. Also, seeing as how you feel pressed for time, Beyond may be a good choice. Then the next year just add the extension in Bigger on for your oldest.
~~Tamara~~
Enjoying HOD since 2008

DD15 long-time HODie finding her own new path
DS12 PHFHG {dysgraphia, APD, SID}
DS9 PHFHG
DS6 LHFHG
DD new nursling

Carrie
Site Admin
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Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2007 8:39 pm

Re: Intro and questions about which guide/s

Post by Carrie » Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:45 pm

Alisha,

The ladies are doing a wonderful job of helping you brainstorm options for your family! :D I'll just pop-in to ask a couple more questions that will really help us advise you even better. As far as your 6 and 8 year old go, how well do they each read? Is the 6 year old reading easy reading type books yet, or level 2 type readers? How about your 8 year old, is she reading short or long chapter books yet? :D

One other consideration is whether or not both kiddos are able to listen to more difficult style chapter book readings with very few to no pictures? :D

One last area to ponder is how much written work each one is comfortable doing. Could the 8 year old copy several sentences up to a paragraph daily in several subject areas without tears or frustration? Is your 6 year old copying sentences or words yet, or is she mainly still writing her letters?

If you get a chance to pop back with these answers, we can really tell much better where your kiddos would fit within HOD. :D It can take a bit of fine-tuning to get your kiddos placed correctly, but it is worth it in the long run! :D

Blessings,
Carrie

tadbhoward
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Jan 11, 2011 7:19 pm

Re: Intro and questions about which guide/s

Post by tadbhoward » Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:02 pm

Thank you Carrie for taking the time to ask and advise.

I have pretty much come to the conclusion that Beyond is where we will land. I will answer your questions though, just in case there is more insight to be had (I can use all I can get) and ask one of my own.

Reading -
6yo just finished 100EZ lessons and is now starting very short daily read alouds plus she is choosing to read books on her own, mainly level 1 readers and some Dr. Suess. She is moving at a decent pace but I really am not sure where she will be in the fall. My thinking is that she will be at or close to the level of books in the Emerging readers set.
My 8yo is reading very well. When she chooses her own books, she chooses short chapter books but for school she is reading aloud at a 4th grade level. She is not a huge fiction lover. Give her a non-fiction book, textbook or the Bible and she only struggles with some higher level vocabulary definition. She was reading the dictionary for fun tonight!

Writing-
6yo is mainly working on letters and small words but she is copying one sentence a day. She is progressing nicely in this area as she really likes to write. My 8yo does not like to write and has only begun to do so without arguing with me over the past month. She is writing no more than a few short paragraphs a week. She is not a big fan of creative writing and struggles in this area.

Listening -
I have always read aloud to the girls from classic books from an early age. Of course the 6yo's attention span is shorter than the 8yo's. This area is the reason why I am thinking Beyond might be the way to go even though I was pretty resistant to it at first. When I compare the book selections from it with Bigger, I just get the feeling that my 6yo is going to enjoy the ones in Beyond more. Which leads me to my question...

If Beyond really is the way for us to go, how hard is it to figure out some more meatier books to go along with the schedule for my 8yo to enjoy.

Thank you to all who read this.
Alisha

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