heartofdakota.com

Hi! Those who have been here a long time may remember me (though I registered with a new user name because it's been so long I can't remember what my old one was) My four older children have all graduated high school using some combination of homeschool and public or online school. Two used HOD for part of their schooling. Two are married. One went to college for a year, and one is away at college in sophomore year. Five and a half years ago, the Lord blessed me and my husband with a lovely little girl So we are homeschooling all over again-yay! After praying and discussing with my husband, we actually chose MFW for Preschool through grade 1 (which she will be starting this fall). We decided it was the best compromise to fit her learning style and my teaching style, and she truly has been loving it. However, I'm not necessarily as enthusiastic about the family cycle in MFW, especially since I only have one student now. Many of the core materials and read-alouds can go over younger students' heads. I love the way the HOD guides meet the student's needs based on abilities-not just in the language arts, but through all the subjects. Now, for my question! I was wondering if the language arts in Beyond is sufficient for a second grader coming from MFW 1st grade, or if I should add more, such as the Rod & Staff 2 book. I remember Rod & Staff being pretty advanced, though, and perhaps more work than my daughter may be ready for at that time. I think I do remember once seeing a recommendation on this board that Beyond would be a good placement for a student coming from MFW 1st grade. Thanks for any input!

It is sufficient!

I made the mistake of doing Rod and Staff 2 for second grade with my oldest (she was in Beyond). Although levels 2 and 3 weren't a big issue, last year with Level 4 I realized it would have been better to have waited. Level 4 contains many things I learned in a solid 7th grade English class, including prepositions and diagramming them.

Carrie's goal is to complete Level 6 by the end of 8th grade/MtMM and Level 8 by the end of high school. That will be more grammar than almost any other program will give them. And that goal is easily reached waiting until third grade and Preparing to do Rod and Staff 2.