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It's only day 4 of our first week of school this year, and I am so thankful that we came back to HOD. We left, not because of HOD, but because I wasn't able to do the guides as written and thought it would be better if we held off until my kids had the skills to do the guides as written.

My 10 year olds are in Bigger, and it is a perfect fit. We've been able to get everything accomplished and they are enjoying it. My 12 year old is in Res to Ref, and it is slow going. We are only able to get one side of the guide done a day, with math done every day. I'm trying not to panic about the pace knowing that it is more important for him to establish the skills needed than to race through the guide. Even still, I'm hoping after the first month or so, we are able to pick up the pace. I've always loved the book choices in HOD and even continued with them when we weren't doing the guides as written. This year, I'm especially loving the books in Res to Ref. Peril and Peace, The Forbidden Gate, and Boyhood and Beyond are all great! This year seems like a perfect fit.

I just wanted to say thank you for an awesome curriculum.

So nice to "see" you here again!

Our oldest two did Res to Ref last year and loved it! The books were tremendous, and it was one of our favorite years. It always takes more time at the beginning of the year...hang in there, your son will get the hang of it!

Thanks for sharing this. I'm glad you feel that it's a good fit for your family. We are starting next week, (coming back to HOD after 4 years) and I'm thinking it will be half days for my daughter for at least the first couple of weeks, maybe longer. She just turned 13 and is also doing Res to Ref..probably with the extensions. My son is 11 and will be in CTC. Praying for a smooth transition...And also trying to remember not to have expectations of perfect days, and to be patient with myself, my kids and the process.

I'm so glad you are back, Tracee! It's great to hear BHFHG is a solid fit - hooray! And I think you will see real growth with your dd doing RTR given time. Just remember steady progress forward - even if it's not a day's worth of plans each day - will have that snowball effect... she'll keep picking up speed little by little, learning the ins and outs of the plans in RTR for each box, and soon she'll be doing more and more and you won't even be able to pinpoint the day it started happening. I have found this with half-speed with each of our children when they began a guide they needed to grow into. Half-speed goes on for awhile, then 2/3 speed creeps in, and one day full-speed just works. This is so much better than skipping things, dropping skills, and racing forward to another guide that just has harder skills ahead. Just keep the faith and press on!!! I think that start is somewhat typical for an older student returning to HOD. It is wonderful to have you here, and I anticipate a wonderful year for you and your kiddos!

In Christ,
Julie