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This past year was my first year of homeschooling. I have a daughter who will be 8 in August and will be in 3rd grade in the fall. I love the emphasis on Bible and character in HOD and both my daughter and myself are excited to try it for this next coming year (2013-14). However, I need help in knowing where to place her - my thoughts are Preparing Hearts for His Glory and Drawn into the Heart of Reading (Level 3 books)???

As far as the Placement Chart:
- She will be 8 years old in the fall (just completed 2nd grade this 2012-13 year)
- She definitely reads indepentently (she likes to read Little House on the Prairie books, Box Car Children, some of the American Girl books (1700s and 1800s), etc)......LOVES to read chapter books
- She knows how to form upper and lower case cursive letters
- I can dictate a sentence or two to her, and she does well with writing it correctly
- She can do creative writing; however, it isn't easy for her (doesn't enjoy doing it)
- She has had a BRIEF introduction to parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adverbs, and adjectives)
- Has done Abeka math and phonics for 1st and 2nd grade and has done well with it
- Has studied American History this past year and has a STRONG desire to study different countries

Thanks for any insight you can provide

Welcome to the HOD Board! We're glad to have you here!

I'm so sorry that you haven't received any replies yet. You did a great job of sharing about your daughter's skill levels. With what you've shared so far, I'm thinking either Bigger Hearts or Preparing Hearts would be a good fit.

One thing that will make a huge difference in which guide fits your child best is the amount of writing required of your child throughout the guide. Here is a comparison of the difference in writing between Bigger and Preparing: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3602

The level of independent work and the amount of directions your daughter will need to be able to follow on her own in PHFHG is also a consideration. When you look at the "I" boxes of PHFHG's first week of plans, can she do these boxes well on her own?
http://www.heartofdakota.com/pdf/PHFHG-sample-week.pdf

We're also assuming that by Preparing Hearts a child has been exposed to all parts of speech and is ready for some basic diagramming. It's sounding like this may be an area she's not quite ready for yet with what she's had so far.

As you look at what is shared above, what are your thoughts?

Blessings,
Carrie

Hi mom2kyty, and welcome to the HOD Board! I was wondering if you'd had a chance to check out the writing differences between BHFHG and PHFHG? I'd love to hear your thoughts on that, as well as on the "I" boxes in the plans of PHFHG. I would feel more confident about giving solid placement advice then. Could you come back and share your thoughts on these things when you get a chance? I'd love to help you with specifics then!!!

In Christ,
Julie