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I've been looking at HOD for many years now and am looking at it again for my upcoming school year. I'm just looking for history and Bible and not all the subjects. I've been told this is something I can do with HOD. But then I need to know how to best go about doing this. I will have ages 6, 8, and 10. My 6 year old is a non reader still with a very short attention span. My 8 year old is an emergent reader with some learning and sensory challenges and has low stamina for working. My 10 year old is a pretty typical kid but dislikes doing a lot of reading. I can only read for a short time or my throat bothers me-2 chapters is about my limit. We also have a hobby farm/homestead and a few outside activities to fit in. I can fit in history 3-4 days a week depending on the week. How would I best level my kids to make my life as easy as possible?

If your younger two would work well together, I would suggest starting them in LHFHG or Beyond Little Hearts, wherever your 6yo fits for skills (see the placement chart on the website). Combining them would save your voice and combining at the younger child's level (which is the way two students *should* be combined in HOD) will provide a shorter work day for your middle child's shorter attention span. (Also note that some audio book options are available online: for sure the Burgess books from LHFHG Storytime and several books from Beyond's Storytime - 3 from the Boy set and 5 each in the Girl and Classic sets, as well as one of the Beyond History books.)

Your 10yo is likely ready for some independence and Preparing Hearts is a great guide, so that is where I would suggest starting that one. While CTC is an other option for a 10yo, it does require more independence in reading, so another year of growth might be good for a reluctant reader. Preparing has 2 boxes where the student reads the instructions and the reading, then completes the work independently, as well as some semi-independent work. It's a great place to start.

Blessings,

I agree with Rice. She gave you some great advice and good places to start for those ages and abilities.