Changing to HOD: Help me figure out where to place my clan?

[Three Little Ladies]

Hi everyone,

I am so glad I've looked further at HOD, because it is EXACTLY what we are looking for. We are using a similar curriculum, but I've been feeling a lot missing from it. It's our first year HS'ing.

So, here's the breakdown of us. I'd love some help figuring out where to start next year:
dd9(3rd) - private school for 1st and 2nd (did Greeks and Romans)...this year she's doing MFW Adventures in American History
dd7(1st) - doing MFW 1st and Adventures with Sis
***both girls have Oct birthdays, so are older for their "grades"
dd4.5...no formal curriculum, but learning a lot. Will begin with the HOD K program this fall.

I don't know if I should start this next fall with:
a) Bigger (with extension for 4th grader) - where they get another year of American History (is this redundant...should we move on?)
-OR-
b) Preparing - love the one-year world history concept, but would this be over dd 2nd grader's head? She'll be turning 8 in October.

I'm okay with using 2 programs with 3 kids who are each 2 to 2.5 years apart, but I definitely don't want to use 3.

Thanks everyone! I'm so excited to join you in enjoying this beautifully written plan!

Christa

[Patience]

I'm not sure which program to place you in, so I'll let some others help you with that, but I wanted to say "HI" and welcome! I just recently came to HOD too and I have loved it so much. I know you are going to have a very positive and rewarding homeschool year next year. I have a 3rd grader and a 1st grader this year, and changed midyear from MFW Adventures. I am going to do Bigger next year with my kids, and include the extensions for my daughter. Have you taken a look at the placement chart? The link is located on the main HOD page. That may be helpful to you. You're going to love it!

[Leslie in TN]

Hi Christa, and welcome!

I want to first echo what the previous poster said about checking the placement chart. I found it to be extremely accurate when I first placed my dc's into their HOD programs.

Just from the brief description you gave, my first instinct would be for you to use Bigger with the extension. I wouldn't worry about doing American history again, since Bigger is written from more of a biographical standpoint and includes some fabulous, "not-to-miss" books. (We actually used MFW Adventures several years back with my dd's, and believe me when I say that MFWAdv and Bigger are nothing alike ) I've also heard many people say that Bigger has been their favorite program so far.

[Three Little Ladies]

Thank you Leslie and Patience,

I did spend quite a bit of time with the placement chart, but couldn't figure out if another year of Am. Hx. was a good idea or not. It's good to hear that Adventures and Bigger are very different. And, although it says you can use Preparing with 8-10's, I was curious to hear from moms with experience with it whether or not it would be at all frustrating for a newly-turned 8 y.o. whose reading skills are very average for her age. It's so hard for me to feel confident in my decisions because I'm so new to HS and am still getting a feel for what's appropriate for what age & what my kids SHOULD be doing I know comparison is not good, but I notice so many other dc who appear to be light-years ahead of my dc, and I wonder what I'm doing wrong/am I not challenging them enough...or if I am indeed allowing them to learn and develop at their own pace. Another year in Am. Hx. gave me the impression I'm holding them back, but perhaps not. Anyway, I'm just SO excited to have found this program that I wish I could get started with it mid-year!

Christa

[Mom2Monkeys]

Welcome! I'm another HODie that came from MFW I'm VERY VERY pleased with HOD. I am doing LHTH (plus phonics/math) with my almost K'er that just missed the cutoff and Beyond with my 7.5 yo 2nd grader. Beyond is American History as well and we'll move on to Bigger next year to take a different perspective on American History...It is such a different approach that I see no reason to thing it will be redundant and many other moms have gone this route before with no issues! So, even though you'd be starting Bigger (if you decide that) with a year of American History under your belt, just remember that is the sequence for HOD anyway! And Carrie has good reasons for doing it like that...maybe someone can link you to wherever she commented on this...

I think Bigger with extensions is the best option as well. My dd will be 8yo and 3rd grade next year and is pretty advanced in her reading and math and I still feel Bigger would be a better fit compared to Preparing, especially after bringing my questions to the ladies on this board. They are eager to help, so make sure you ask all the questions you want to in order to feel confident in your decision

I've never had that burned out feeling with HOD like I did with MFW. MFW is great too, but there was always that feeling of something being off, or not having the right stuff for activities or no ink to print stuff off- so we coudlnt' really enjoy it. After 17 weeks of HOD, I still feel like it's brand new and I LOOK FORWARD to starting our school day! I even switched mid-semester and haven't looked back since! I hope you enjoy HOD as much as the rest of us do!

[my3sons]

HI Christa! Welcome to the board! From what you've said thus far, I agree that Bigger Hearts with the extensions sounds like a good fit for your dc. We all do the "comparison thing" from time to time, but you are wise to realize it and break free from it. It can steal the joy from homeschooling if we let it. I would love to have you check out the Placement Chart - especially the first page of it - and share which program(s) would ideally fit your dc. It will help us talk through this with you, with your family's needs in mind. HOD placement lets you fine tune things, so each child can thrive. I'd like to hear a tad bit about each of your dc's reading, writing, and math too, if you get a chance. Oh, and don't worry about the history being redundant - it is totally different because it is done biographically (plus the activities and plans are done in a different way). Here's a link to the placement chart:
http://www.heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php

In Christ,
Julie

[inHistiming]

I have not used MFW, so I can't speak about how they are alike or different. However, I did use Beyond...with my dd for 2nd grade. We moved on to Bigger...this year and she (and I) has truly enjoyed it. There hasn't been anything that we thought was boring or redundant...and I love American History so I was happy to have another year of it! I also wanted to combine my children (dd 3rd, ds 5th this year) because I have a 5 yo and a baby due next month...it has worked out well for us. My ds loves all aspects of the program (well, you know they don't ALWAYS love it all) and has done great with it too. They always want me to read more from the story time selections, have learned so much from the history and science readings, and we've all gained a new appreciation for poetry and hymns through the poetry and music portions of the program. And of course the biblical principals and scriptures that are worked throughout the entire program are awesome. We switched them both to Singapore Math this year and it has worked great, too. They like the workbook format (as opposed to writing out all the problems from a textbook) and the lessons are not time-consuming. We also are using R&S English and I am very pleased with their progress. It is a thorough program that we plan to stick with.

I just wanted to encourage you that Bigger... can be done well with older kids. We're using the extension pack, reading it aloud instead of having ds do it on his own, simply because I wanted to read the books as well as have my dd in on the readings. It takes us about 3.5 hours to complete the program each day. If we get started early enough we can have it done before lunch, though I know times vary for users due to interruptions from little ones, the pace at which their own dc work, how many children they are schooling, etc. I think you would have a great year if you were to go with Bigger...for your older two.

[Kathleen]

Welcome Christa!

It's nice to have you here. I really have nothing else to add to the ladies here because I'd say the same thing. I'm another new one to HOD this year and I'm having a fabulous start with Bigger for my 8 yo. It's a great fit for us, and I can see the skills he's really grown in this year that will make Preparing a great fit next year. I've not used MFW, but know I saw someone post that it is more similar to HOD's Beyond Little Hearts for His Glory, so you shouldn't worry about feeling like you're repeating things. We love everything we're learning in history this year! (Actually it's all great...my ds says his all-time favorites are storytime and science, mine is history because I'm learning so much this year! )

Like you my oldest came from a small private school for K and 1st. 2nd grade we were back to homeschooling. This is our 1st year with a non-textbook approach. I'm saying this because I think Bigger has been a great place to slide into a CM style education. Practicing with oral narration is probably one of the new things that I'm super-glad we got to do before beginning written narrations in Preparing. (You've probably already done some of that with MFW though, so it won't be brand new to you.)

You'll have to let us know what you think about the placement chart and what your plan is. I love how helpful and encouraging the moms here are!
Kathleen