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Due to so many family crisis this year (2 vehicle accidents which resulted in totaled cars, MILs illness w/surgeries and nursing home, etc., ) we never completed Beyond with 9yo ds. We did manage, though, to plug through all the readers, most of the copy work, half way through science, math, and some spelling. Basically we didn't complete Pioneers/Patriots, Pilgrims, and Colonial Days. We sort of bounced from week to week and did what was easier for ds to do alone. Not sure if we should try to finish this level, or move on to Bigger.

Thoughts?

Thanks,

If you are done with Emerging Readers you move on to DITHR or another reading program, where they read chapter books and start learning to analyze and describe what they read, in preparation for writing assignments. You could read through the history you haven't yet completed and try to pull some of the rotating box activities that go along with them - art, geography, etc. Where is he at in terms of grammar? Did you do the grammar lessons in Beyond? It doesn't matter where he is at with spelling or dictation, he will just continue where he left off (dictation is in the Bigger guide).

If all you are doing is history and rotating box, maybe science (which is in the Rotating box in Beyond) then you could probably double up and do 2 days each day in order to get it done quickly. About how many units of the guide do you have left to go?

If you look at the placement chart and think he places into Bigger Hearts instead, you could start that, but you may want to go through Beyond's units you did not do and look for any holes in learning, things covered that he may not know or have been exposed to.

I am going to finish reading the history books with 9yo ds and pull in some grammar lessons that were skipped. Not even going to worry about the science we missed. We will try to get that accomplished before the month is over and begin Bigger in Sept. I believe that he is young enough that any potholes will be filled in with this next guide. I need to move forward because staying here with Beyond, with this dc, for much longer, would frustrate him to no end. I will be doing Beyond with 7yo ds and there is that competitive male dynamic that seems to be oozing from the wood work around here. I live with 6 males...and 2 alpha male dogs. I am drrooooooownning in testosterone over here.

If this sounds like an awful strategy, please let me know. I need someone with similar experience to guide me because I almost don't trust my reasoning at the moment due to some other emotional issues in my personal, mid forties, hormonal world.

Thank you,

I think you can go right ahead and start Bigger and not worry about what you missed in Beyond.

We started HOD with Bigger for my son and we didn't encounter any holes in his learning at all.