heartofdakota.com

Hi there! I'm new here, after stumbling across HOD a few weeks ago in my never ending search for curriculum to start using next year when our daughter starts "kindergarten" (she'll be 5 in three weeks). I LOVE the looks of this curriculum!!!!!!!!!!!

Briefly, my main question at this point is that she has been reading at an extremely excelled level for a year now. We had played around with the PreK Hooked on Phonics program when she was three because she has LOVED letters since she was a baby. She started reading a year ago last November (to the complete and utter surprise to her mama and daddy) and is now reading chapter books (Charlotte's Web, Black Beauty) and fun library picture books with full comprehension. She reads everything, and with a voracious appetite we can not keep up with on some days. (no, I promise I'm not complaining....this is the girl that gets up asking to read to Harley (the golden retriever), propping herself in every angle possible on couch armrests, stairs, her bed, as she's walking down to the basement, in the bathtub...okay, you get the picture. Ha.)

My "dilemna" is that while I do believe she understands most all of the phonics rules, we never moved on past the PreK hooked on phonics due to her being bored and wanting to just dive into reading. I feel like the phonics rules are important for learning to spell, and when she moves on to bigger words at higher levels, etc. SO. Upon starting LHFHG next fall, should we go ahead and do a formal phonics program, to "drill" the rules into her sweet little brain for future use?

Also, do you think we should we add in DITHOR for her? Or would that be too advanced as far as some of the elemental lessons it's introducing, etc?

I think the rest of the program would be a nice place to start (as opposed to BHFHG), as it'd be a gentle way for us to start schooling (I also have a 4 mo old son) and I really love the history in the LHFHG, but I'm just really, really, stuck on what to do about those darned phonics. She's workbook driven (what Cathy Duffy calls a "Perfect Paula," as am I), so I know if we added in a phonics program, she'd enjoy the workbook aspect of it....hhhmmm......

Nice to "meet" you girls!

Yes, workbooks that might guide you would be Explode the Code (at least that's one I'm familiar with, you would definitely have to do some placement to see where to jump in - I started my DD on book 2 and it was way too easy for her!) But for a child that is already reading the Emerging Readers (which is explained/contained in Beyond LHFHG, the next guide up) is recommended. From what you are saying the reading level on those books is too low for your daughter even, but it does help them practice reading aloud and answering questions for comprehension. DITHR is the reading program and she may be ready to jump on into that, if I were you I would look at the placement information on the Heart of Dakota website and see if you think she's ready for all aspects of it. She can read the books, it would seem, but is she ready for the other work/projects that would go along with that? If not, Emerging Readers, maybe you could do it at an accelerated pace since it would probably be easy for her.

Since LHFHG gives you just a box every day where you do whatever level of reading is appropriate for your child (as does Beyond LHFHG, but the Emerging Reader info is in the back of it), its easy for you to just give her the level of reading she needs. If you do decide to do Emerging Readers you would want to buy the Beyond LHFHG guide (which does also contain spelling words and guidance for those if your daughter is ready for that too) and the reader books needed for the reading.

Also since your daughter has read so much already, she probably is picking up the rules as she goes along (does she ask you for help with words she doesn't know yet? Have you had her read to you so you know she is really reading most of what is in those longer chapter books? That also might let you know whether you can go ahead and place her higher or maybe make her go back and do some phonics workbooks or something - I wanted to do ETC because I thought my DD needed filling in with phonics rules, but what I realize now is that she has picked them up because she reads so much, and because she asks me when she doesn't know how to sound something out).

Welcome to the HOD Board! Your dd sounds just like one of my sons when he did LHFHG. He also raced his way through HOP, and didn't need to finish it all. He was reading chapter books and writing well too. I chose to do LHFHG for him, along with Explode the Code workbooks 2 and 3, as well as the Emerging Reader's Set plans from Beyond Little Hearts for His Glory. Though he could easily read the Emerging Reader's Set, it was the comprehension and oral narration skills that the Beyond Little Heart's plans taught so well that he needed to be prepared for DITHOR. I'd not start DITHOR with a 5 yo - it's quite meaty and the Student Book would be overwhelming. If your dd is writing fairly well, she could also do Spelling List 1 from Beyond Little Hearts for His Glory, along with the Language Arts plans for this list in the Beyond manual. Then, when she begins Beyond, she can start DITHOR slowly, and do Spelling List 2. We found this to work well for early, avid reader. I think your dd will LOVE LHFHG and the Emerging Reader's Set! HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

Ohh! Thank you, thank you, ladies for your replies and good ideas!! I think you are right...DITHOR would be too much for her. The emerging readers would be a better fit, since it's more about continuing to work on comprehension and narration skills. Oh, and yes, she does ask me for help with words she doesn't know and I do believe she is comprehending, as we have many discussions throughout reading, as well as after.

Merry Christmas to you ladies!
Laura