heartofdakota.com

Hi,
I'm new to the HOD board and am considering switching from Sonlight to HOD next year. I was looking through the long-term progression of HOD and it appears there is a "gap" year if your child is at the older range of the levels listed. I was looking at Bigger for my son who will be 7 in the fall. I've looked at the placement information and he fits there perfectly for math and LA as well as other aspects. But if he does Bigger as a 7-year-old, then he will run out of programs by the time he hits 12th grade. Am I reading this correctly? How do other experienced HOD users solve this?

Thanks so much

Carin

You are correct, but most people see the gap year as being earlier on between Little Hands and Little Hearts.

My daughter will turn 7 in August and will have completed Beyond by then. She solidly fits in the placement chart at Bigger, but I have the guide and there is a lot of writing and it is a BIG jump from Beyond, but not undoable since she has been through Beyond. There are a lot of prep skills in that guide that I think are very important to going into Bigger. We will be taking Bigger as a 2-year program at half-speed for science and history, but full speed for grammar, math, and literature. I have a friend considering HOD with a daughter my daughter's age. I strongly encouraged her to start with Beyond and just up the math and reading to the correct level because there is so much my daughter gained from this year in Beyond to prep her for Bigger as a 2nd grader. If we were beginning our journey with HOD right now, I would place my daughter in Beyond. I have no comparisons to Sonlight though as I've never used it.

There is the thought that the empty 12th grade year could be used for taking classes which would count for college as well.

That's intentional, and as Carrie has said...life happens! You will find very few people actually end up having the gap. Illness, time off for this or that, burn out breaks, unexpected delays, new babies, and sometimes the need to slow the pace of a guide are frequent goings on in the life of a homeschooler. That "gap year" is actually your cushion! In time, it's going to work itself out for most of us and the pressure if off since we know even if we have to stop the school year before finishing a guide, we can finish it the next fall and then start the next one, b/c there's no pressure to "finish quick b/c we'll never finish the 12th grade guide if we don't get moving on the 3rd grade guide" ...it just flows! Make sense?

You might find this thread helpful:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=6614

Also, some people extend LHFHG, Beyond, and Bigger by making them 4-day programs instead of 5.

Kathy

Mom2Monkeys wrote:That's intentional, and as Carrie has said...life happens! You will find very few people actually end up having the gap. Illness, time off for this or that, burn out breaks, unexpected delays, new babies, and sometimes the need to slow the pace of a guide are frequent goings on in the life of a homeschooler. That "gap year" is actually your cushion! In time, it's going to work itself out for most of us and the pressure if off since we know even if we have to stop the school year before finishing a guide, we can finish it the next fall and then start the next one, b/c there's no pressure to "finish quick b/c we'll never finish the 12th grade guide if we don't get moving on the 3rd grade guide" ...it just flows! Make sense?

Mom2Monkeys said this soooooo well! I agree 100%. My oldest ds is in RevtoRev and on the youngest side of the target age range. My parents are in their mid-70's and PTL are quite healthy, but my Dad especially has had some close calls. I love them so much, and I want to be prepared to be there for them if health concerns arise. Likewise, I feel we need to be there for my dh's parents. My dh and I are noted in several wills to assume the caretaker role for dc we love dearly if their parents were to pass away. One of the parents is quite ill. I have had some health concerns, my dh is suddenly traveling so very much for his job, and the list of possible life concerns goes on. If we are blessed enough to have smooth sailing and my oldest ds finishes his school a year early, I will gladly take advantage of that year to go the College Plus route, and teach him a long list of life skills I'd love for him to have intact too. If, however, we have some life concerns to work through, I have the blessing of not having to worry about my oldest ds's school within that crisis. I know I am not alone in this stage of life, and that many others who are homeschooling their dc will have other life concerns as well. If you happen to have an extra year under your belt to give you some wiggle room, I'd say celebrate. HTH!

Oh, and Carin - I think you and your ds would really enjoy diving into Bigger Hearts! It is full of such living books, and the learning in that guide is so rich. We did it with 2 of my dc when they were 7 yo, and I am eagerly looking forward to doing it again with my third. I think you'd love it!

In Christ,
Julie

jer2911mom wrote:You might find this thread helpful:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=6614

Also, some people extend LHFHG, Beyond, and Bigger by making them 4-day programs instead of 5.

Kathy

Good point, good link, Kathy! Thanks for sharing this!
In Christ,
Julie