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I was planning on doing Bigger next year with my 8 (to be 9 in Dec. - going into 3rd) and combining with the extension with my 11 (to be 12 in Jan. - going into 6th). So would be a 3rd grader and a 6th grader. I am now wondering if I should do Preparing so my oldest can get on the rotaion of the new materials each year, not sure if I am getting the panic of the end of the year and trying to over plan but wondering if he will get enough. I am planning on doing DITH of reading with both.
I will also be doing Little Hearts with a kind. and possibly Little Hands with a 3 year old.
Thanks for the advice, I know combining come up many times.
Sheila

where does your 8yo fall on the placement chart? Is he ready for Preparing?

Hi Sheila,

Boy do I understand your question. I am wondering what the placement test said as well?

Quick thoughts of the top of my head....,

If you can comfortably combine using the extension packs, less is always best. However, if one or both children are compromised in that situation then go with two programs. I was comfortably using three when we began. I cut back to two because I found that my oldest was finding the highest program a bit too challenging.

I am wondering why you would move to preparing? Is it because you think it would fit your child's ability level better or because you like the material being covered better? (warm smile)

If it's material and not ability then I say go with ability because you will still get to do preparing the following year.

Ok, I'll keep checking back just to hear what you think. (((Warm Hugs)))

Hi Sheila - I'll be checking back to see what your thoughts are after looking at the placement chart too. I think these ladies already brought up some great "food for thought", and I'll be interested in hearing what you have to say too... and don't worry about second-guessing levels. Now is the time to think through this, and we all love to help each other out here, so ask away!

In Christ,
Julie

Thank you for the replies. I think my 8 to be 9 year old fits best in the Bigger just trying to make it more suitable to both with combining but think it is better to get the younger in the right level and then add other extensions with the older. We have the 2 little girls as well and trying to make the best plan for all and be realalistic about how much I can do with each. This will be our first officail year with HOD but used some of Beyond last year.
Thank you again, you ladies always have such good insight as we all true to figure out the very best for our kids.
Sheila

sheila wrote:Thank you for the replies. I think my 8 to be 9 year old fits best in the Bigger just trying to make it more suitable to both with combining but think it is better to get the younger in the right level and then add other extensions with the older. We have the 2 little girls as well and trying to make the best plan for all and be realalistic about how much I can do with each. This will be our first officail year with HOD but used some of Beyond last year.
Thank you again, you ladies always have such good insight as we all true to figure out the very best for our kids.
Sheila

I'm just coming off of a year of doing Bigger.../DITHR and LHFHG, so I'm smiling for you as I imagine the year ahead of you! I thought we had a good year, and once we got in a rhythm with it (about 3 weeks or so into the routine), we were off for smooth sailing the rest of the year.

I'm thinking that your 3 yo could just join in on whatever LHFHG activities she was able to do. For sure, trying to do parts of the fingerplay , listening to the music CD of the Bible verse, the Bible verse activities, etc. We did try on the history readings and the Storytime readings to not have my toddler right there, since he was banging toys and making way too much noise for anyone to remember what the history was about - including me! Then, maybe you could just wait a year to start LHTH. I think that would shape up to be a very nice routine for you in the long run. This year, you'd do Bigger... with its extensions, DITHR, and LHFHG. Next year, you'd do Preparing... with its extensions, DITHR, Beyond..., and LHTH, etc. That is the rotation I am on, and I love teaching different HOD programs each year. It's just fun to come back to them a second time then.

Of course, you know your dc best, so whether you choose to LHTH or not, I'm sure you'll have a good year! Please do share things on the weekly check-in when you do Bigger... and LHFHG... I'll be missing them next year!

In Christ,
Julie

Julie,
Thank you for the reply, I really appreciate hearing from someone who has done the same plan and found success. Thank you for taking time to be encouraging! I will watch how you walk ahead to share wisdom.
Sheila

Shiela,

I agree with your thoughts that it is good to get your younger child placed right and then add the extensions for your older child. In my opinion, it is much easier to beef a program up for an older child then it is to water one down for a younger child.

So, if it looks like your 8 turning 9 year old fits best in "Bigger...", I would go with that. Then, you could use the entire program, if you chose to do so, for your 9 year old, and use the Extensions with your 12 year old. In this scenario, your oldest would need her own math, grammar, spelling, and writing. You'll have the literature study covered with DITHR.

The ladies gave you some great advice on LHFHG as well. Bigger... along with LHFHG and DITHR was what we did this past year at our house. You could always start LHFHG at half-speed (which is what we did) and then move up to full-speed when you're ready.

I hope you enjoy your year as much as we have.

Blessings,
Carrie

Carrie wrote: So, if it looks like your 8 turning 9 year old fits best in "Bigger...", I would go with that. Then, you could use the entire program, if you chose to do so, for your 9 year old, and use the Extensions with your 12 year old. In this scenario, your oldest would need her own math, grammar, spelling, and writing. You'll have the literature study covered with DITHR.

We have found this to be so true. We started Bigger about 3/4 of the way through with our year last year. We are finding it to be very full and in fact I felt comfortable having it be our entire year next year only on the 4 day a week pace since we got a good chunk done last year. My oldest will be 11 in August and in 6th grade. She is a very good reader. She is always reading. Reads the same book many times even. We took Carrie's advice on meeting the needs of the younger child while beefing up for the oldest and it has worked wonderfully. If you get into and want more to add for your oldest here is a link I found very helpful with Carries recommendations. http://www.heartofdakota.com/board/view ... or+richard
It worked out perfect for us because there were a few on there that my dd was begging to read but I did not know how to work it into our school. So it seemed like a natural for us. You might find just the extension pack to be perfect. I might not have added if we were not doing that read aloud for the sake of my dd that is ten but reading delayed. Because of that I wanted my older dd to have something beyond the extension pack to read on her own.

We love Bigger. There is definitely enough there to cover an even broad range. It's a great program!