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We are adopting 2 children from Latvia and they do not know English well. Also, they we have a 6 year old son (not reading yet). Has anyone tried this curriculum with children who don't know English?

How exciting, heatherb! I want to be the first to welcome you to the HOD Board. I do not personally have adopted dc, but there are many lovely ladies on this board that do - evidence that YES - you can definitely do HOD with dc with ESL! I am not sure of their ages, but I would say it is important to check out the placement chart and focus less on the ages and more on the skills in this situation. I'd plan on starting in HOD guides below their age levels, and moving along as the best pacing shows itself. We actually give this advice to most families anyway, as age is certainly only one factor (and often not the most prominent consideration) in placement. Keep asking questions, and we will be glad to help! This board is full of lovely ladies that enjoy encouraging one another. In the meantime, do you have a catalog? If not, you will definitely want to order your free one online from the homepage. Also on the homepage is the placement chart, which will eventually be helpful too. HTH, and welcome!

In Christ,
Julie

Hi heatherb!
We are adopting from Latvia also! We are hoping to bring our daughter home in September. Next year we will have one each doing LHFHG, Preparing, and Rev to Rev, and a high schooler. Our new daughter will be 12, knows no English and is special needs, we are not sure to what extent. Our plan is to test her for math placement, use some computer learning for English, use Explode the Code for English/phonics instruction and to let her sit in and listen, most likely with 5yo as these books will have simplest sentence structure and have the most pictures.
Of course , this is all subject to change with a drop of a hat!! How old are your new children?

Hello,
How old are the kids you are adopting? A good phonics program with audio/video of the sounds and words would be best...having them write out the words along with is ideal. Of course, they will need the basics in vocabulary when they come..household items, foods, hygiene, conversation etc...I am not sure of the ages, but I would also consider an ESL book focused on those basics for them--something with lots of pictures to illustrate the dialogue. The New Oxford Picture Dictionaries are great for illustrating basic everyday vocabulary(you would have to pronounce it initially unless they have a series in Latvian) but, there are a number of series out there for introducing the basics with Cd/Dvd etc.. I suppose it all depends on how much English they know already. ESL students require lots of pictures and oral practice at the beginner levels and lots of demonstrations. Writing tends to be the hardest skill for them overall, so keep that in mind...they tend to apply native language concepts as they learn English.
I used to teach ESL and ESL special needs, as well as, foreign languages. I taught mostly middle to high school students, taught bilingual migrant workers of all ages, and some elementary aged kids. Quite a few of my middle schoolers were on a kindergarten level. If you want to email me directly, I can say more...I don't have enough info. from your question to give a thorough response. In brief, I would say HOD is fantastic and has a lot to offer, however, I would supplement/sub out with some ESL specific materials also....having used ESL materials for years, I can say there are some advantages to them not available in regular materials, particularly if you are starting with older kids. For example, they are geared towards older kids and not 'babyish'' in their presentation for lack of a better word. I would begin with phonics, beginner vocab, and beginner conversation and correlating simple writing instruction if I were in your shoes. Also, local churches/community centers may offer some classes to help---there are many in our area. I would think that HOD science would be great and history with supplemental picture books from the library to go with readings perhaps to give more--but again this would depend on the ability/level/age/drive of the kids.
Hope that helps. I LOVED teaching ESL students immensely. God bless you in this new journey in life with His precious children,
Jennifer

Congrats! We have adopted 5 of our 7 children.

This time last year, we brought home our seven year old son from China. The first 6 months we focused on his transition to our home. We also worked on the alphabet, numbers and writing his name. Our family doesn't watch a lot of television, but we had him watch a LeapFrog movie everyday or watch an educational YouTube video (alphabet, counting, colors, numbers). We used flashcards a lot, too.

He picked up language very quickly, and I would say he was almost fluent in language after 4 months home. After he was home about 6 months we started "doing" school. We have worked hard on phonics. He is now just starting to read very simple 3 letter words. He can do basic addition and subtraction with pictures.

We have enjoyed adopting a school-aged child. He is simply amazing. He will be starting HOD Beyond next year, and I can't wait to watch him grow!!!!