Please bear with me...

[Heidi in AK]

I am a little impatient, and because I'm still at the Christian school, I find myself having to WAIT to start our HS journey. It is too difficult with school, life, and other responsibilities to start now, though sometimes we try to. I think I'm just going to put LHTH on the shelf till June. SOB!

Please bear with me; I get so excited to read your stories, and I look forward to starting our HS journey. It's been a long time coming, and I have a lot of local friends with whom I'm excited to share it. I have actually also eagerly been sharing HOD, though we're only on Unit 3 of LHTH.

Question though, I have a DD4.5 and a DS almost 2. I am going to go thru LHTH with him later, probably when he's 3 or sooner if he insists, but with DD, who already knows many of her letter sounds, is it ok for me to skip some of the material? I find myself just doing C-C-C- a couple of times a week, and focusing on science and dramatic play, as well as the 3R's. Or should I go systematically through the book? I think it's that we both know she knows her letters, and she also knows the Bible stories. I find it hard to be patient.

[KristinBeth]

Hi Heidi,
I think you should try the activities, and then if something in particular isn't working for your dd then you could leave it out. That's one of the great things about homeschooling right? You aren't bound do your curriculum. But I would give everything a chance. My 4 yo dd knows her letter sounds and her bible stories, and is doing some early reading but she is really just enjoying doing the activities in LHTH. Even if she doesn't "need" them, she likes them and I think it sets the stage for thinking school is fun. If your daughter doesn't like something, then at that point you could adjust as needed.

If you have to wait, you have to wait. Wait for your school to be out, take a breather, then start and enjoy it. I know it is exciting to get started. But in the meantime you could just do some fun crafts with your daughter, play with play dough, and read stories together cuddled up on the couch. For heaven sakes June is less than 4 months away.

Now hopefully someone with more experience than a mother of a 4 and 2 year old can give you some REAL wisdom!

Warmly,
Kristin

[MomtoJGJE]

My almost 4.5yo knows all the Bible stories and letter sounds (and started sounding out words!!! ) but she absolutely LOVES all the activities (well, except art... that's just not her, but she does it anyway) She is my one child who BEGS to do school. In order to keep her challenged until we start LHFHG with her I've added in some alphabet writing books from wal mart and the first of the K level fine motor skills books out of LHFHG.

I would (and will) keep going through it because it really helps them be ready for the next step up to LHFHG... the guides start building on each other from the very start in a way that makes it SO easy to move into the next guide.

Occasionally I will do more than one day at a time... especially if I've been putting her off for a long time that day in order to get other things done... and that excites her as well

[countrymom]

We are going through a tweaked version of LHTH with our youngest a second time through, and he definitely knows his letters and sounds this time. However, the action rhyme is one thing I make sure we do everyday, as this helps children learn to follow directions, act out, and "tell"(prelude to narration) in a very fun way. These are the very beginning skills for other skills they will be expected to develop as they go through the program. Hang in there with the waiting - June will be here before you know it!

[Heidi in AK]

Thanks, all. Countrymom, Girlie wants to do the rhyme two to three days, but then gets tired of it. What did work was an anthology to all the rhymes, so maybe what we'll do is that. She really enjoys the entire set! I guess Mommy will have to work to patience in that area too, sigh...

[Mom2Monkeys]

I just want to second giving them a try They may be familiar stories or letters she knows, but there are purposeful activities that go along with them that are the stepping stones to the next level. And having success with her "school" in early reading b/c she already knows it is a great way to give her confidence and a love for reading. It's so quick and simple and fun, so I don't see a need to skip anything just b/c she already knows it I do it all with my 4.5 year old then add in some more since he's wanting more. Or we may do two days worth if we have time. He's all boy, and very active with difficulty focusing, but we can easily do an hour of LHTH and some other fun learning acivities at one sitting (to my surprise! ) We're doing The Reading Lesson super slowly with him and he's blending three letter words...this was at his request Perhaps you could add something instead skipping anything...perhaps TRL or check out some books or DVDs from the library to extend or add to your learning. Or just read good books, make a nature journal, take walks and sort/count rocks and leaves or such, ......

[my3sons]

My ds knows his letter sounds (he's actually reading BOB books already ), and he knows a lot of the Bible stories too, but we do all of LHTH for a few good reasons. First, it is still fun! Not all of school is about learning something totally new, and the BIble stories better not be "old hat" for him now - goodness, I want him to read the Bible daily the rest of his life! Second, it helps him learn to do school consistently for 20-30 minutes every day, with a balance of skills to be learned. This would be opposed to him just doing what he finds to be his favorite things and thus not learning to have a balance of things you love doing and things you don't love as much but do simply because they need to be learned. Third, he is learning from a young age that his whims of what he feels like doing and what he doesn't feel as much like doing don't determine our school day. I've found after 15 years of teaching (8 years of them being with HOD) one of the best habits to instill in dc from a very young age is "we do what's in the guide" without question, completely, cheerfully, and to the best of our ability. This is a HUGE benefit to me and to them! We don't have a discussion about what will and won't be done, and they have a complete balanced curriculum from which to learn. I chose the best. I am the teacher. They will have to take my word for it and dig in! Having a good work ethic is something to start teaching as a habit from Day 1 of school - I believe it is a habit that will affect them their entire lives!

In Christ,
Julie

[Heidi in AK]

Thanks, Julie, for your wisdom! It is lining up with what else I am getting as we prep. We need to do LHTH, simply for the discipline,humility, & patience to do all in the manual. Girlie has a tendency to want to do only certain things, and, unfortunately, I have the tendency to let her. I think this will be good for all of us!