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First, HOD's customer service is awesome

I have both LHFHG and Beyond.

After you do the grammar in Beyond; can you skip R & S 2 and go to 3?

(I'm having a hard time composing this question) How is HOD "thinking" the grammar books should line up with what grades?

How far in the R & S grammar book series are you planning on going? All the way through the 8th grade book?

Does the TM schedule R & S everyday? Is the whole book scheduled or just parts?

Am I understanding correctly that we would not need to use Igniting Your Writing?

I hope I worded my questions in an understandable way.

Thank you!

Blessings,
Missy

Hi Missy! I don't think I've "met" you before, so welcome!

I'll take a stab at some of your questions. I only know what I've found out as I'm ready to start Bigger with my oldest soon. I haven't used it yet.

After the gentle grammar in Beyond, HOD reccommends starting with R&S 2. As far as the R&S books lining up with "grade levels"...they are advanced, teach the concepts well, and I believe have finished all the grammar you'd need to know with their "grade 8" (final) book. I'm going to be using R&S 2 with my "3rd grader" this coming year.

I do believe that R&S is scheduled every day in the guides...not exactly sure if you do everything in the R&S book. I know for sure that HOD reccommends doing much of the work orally and only a bit of it written.

You are right that you won't need Igniting Your Writing. Carrie adds her own writing assignments in to Preparing. I don't know how old your kids are that you're looking for...I know of at least one mom that is doing Bigger with a 5th grader and is going to add in some of Igniting Your Writing for him as he needs more writing instruction than is in Bigger because he is older than the target age for it.

Hopefullly someone else can help you out, too.
Kathleen

My understanding is that the gentle grammar in Beyond is to prepare you child for R&S 2. I'm going to be doing the same as Kathleen and not starting R&S 2 until 3rd grade. I've always heard that R&S is very advanced. I think only Carrie can answer as to how far she plans to go with R&S.

Mel

Missy,

The ladies are right that Rod and Staff 2 is the perfect follow-up to the grammar lessons in "Beyond...". Since I did "Bigger.." with a third grader that was when we used Rod and Staff 2. You could use it for a second grader if that child was up for the skill-level of "Bigger...". Rod and Staff is advanced in scope and sequence, and so I'm not sure how far we'll go with it. It is very thorough.

Rod and Staff also includes writing lessons, and we begin our own more formal writing lessons in "Preparing...". So, no additional writing is needed if you are within the target age ranges of our guides.

I hope that helps!

Blessings,
Carrie

Missy,

I forgot to say that in "Bigger..." and "Preparing..." Rod and Staff is scheduled everyday (but remember "Preparing..." is a 4 day plan). Also, we use everything in Rod and Staff, except for one opening lesson in level 3 and a few optional projects at the end of units in 2.

Blessings,
Carrie

Thank you! That helps.

One more question.....Will the writing assignments in Preparing replace the writing assignments in R&S?

Blessings,
Missy

Missy,

They won't replace the assignments in Rod and Staff, but they will fill a void in Rod and Staff, in helping kiddos learn to write written narrations and also to have a creative writing outlet (in a very guided way though).

Blessings,
Carrie