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Hi!

We are tying to make our way back to HOD. I had planned to come back next year, but I don't want to wait. I do have a little predicament placing my oldest though.

So here are the stats. My youngest is 6 1/2 (7 in November). She is a pretty precocious thing. She has understand very difficult books since she was quite young. She places well into Beyond. I'. Sure that's where she needs to be. Bigger would have far too much writing this year for her. She is currently halfway through the ER's, so I believe her placement is good.

My oldest is 8 1/2 (9 in January). She is also quite precocious. She was an early reader. At this point, she can read and comprehend pretty much anything. She devours Magic Tree House books in a matter of a couple of hours. She can read much more difficult books as well. MTH are simply for enjoyment. Her writing has come a long ways since last year. Most recently, I saw her write about 7 original sentences on her own quite quickly. I did a happy dance too! she seems to fit the criteria for both Bigger and Preparing. The only spot with Preparing placement is that she is just now learning cursive. Overall, she enjoys school and learning. She is very eager to do a good job and to advance in her work. Should we go with Preparing (starting half speed) so they won't be in back to back guides? Or should I go with Bigger?

HI, It sounds like your placement is good. Your older daughter is above the level of my 10 year old son and he is doing preparing this year (he did bigger last year). I agree it is also a good idea to start off at half speed with preparing (and add cursive) till you think she is ready to go full speed. Good thinking on trying not to get them in back to back guides.

Any other responses? I wonder if also including DITHOR might change anyone's answer on whether to do Bigger or Preparing? I'm planning to start level 3 with her when it arrives. I hate asking over and over. I just want to be really sure I purchase the right set for her and enable us to be as successful as possible.

Have you looked at the sample week for each guide? That will help you get a feel for the amount of work and the difficulty of each level. Also, Bigger is 5 days/week, while Preparing is 4 days/week. As you advance within HOD, the maturity of the content grows, and that may be a consideration as you look ahead.

My 2nd born daughter is in Preparing and we started it right about the time she turned 9, or right before she turned 9. Obviously an 8 1/2-9 year old can do it. My 9 year old isn't even particularly precocious, though she does love being read to. I would think you would want to avoid back to back guides, but if you do Preparing slowly you might end up in Bigger and Preparing at the same time - being towards the end of Preparing when you start Bigger. I've done this, because my kids are a little less than 2 guides apart and they switch at different times. For just a few weeks, it's do-able. Starting both Bigger and Preparing at the same time and doing them together all the way through would be pretty intense, as they are the two most teacher-intensive guides.

I think you placement looks solid too.

Both of my girls started Preparing when they were 8. We have had no trouble at all with the guide at that age. As long as you checked the placement chart (and it looks like you did) and you agree that your child matches up with the requirements, I would use Preparing for your dd.