When to start LHFHG....

[LeAnna]

I was trying to find a message that Carrie wrote about this, and I think it's gone. So, I was wondering if she or the other ladies could give me some suggestions on what I should do.
I am trying to plan this out, so here's how it's looking... My son turns 5 in the month August. So, I could start him with LHFHG in K, then. But, that would leave me with a one year gap in the programs. If I started him into the LHFHG in 1st grade then I would be able to make it through until 9th grade. I have also thought about doing LHTH when he's 5 with some K material, and then just move up a grade with those in LHFHG.
What are some of you moms doing with your youngers?

Thanks,
LeAnna

[Samuel'sMommy]

My son is about to turn 4. We started LHTH last July or August I think. We've been doing it very slowly. We started out only doing about 2 days a week. Now we're up to 3 days a week, but we have other stuff going on so if it doesn't get done one day it's not a big deal. My plan is to finish by the end of this year. Then we will start LHFHG in January 2010. My DS will be 5 that year and his K year would officially start that fall. So I will stretch LHFHG out for a year and a half to last until the summer 2011 which would be the end of his K year. I'm not sure if I'm going to stretch it out by going 1/2 speed, just doing 2-3 days a week, or what yet, but I'm not too worried about it. We aren't required to report K in our state so it's not like I'm required to get a certain number of hours in or anything like that. Then he'll be on track to do 1 guide a year after that. He will be on the younger end of the age ranges for the guides so once we finish LHFHG I'll reevaluate and see if I need to take Bigger more slowly or if he will be able to go full speed. We will probably end up finishing the guides in 7th grade and have 1 year left. If we do, I'm probably going to do something like Sonlight Core 5 or WP Children Around the World and focus on geography for a year. I think either of those would be fun and I don't know how else I would fit them in.

[Jessi]

You could do either option. Having him do LHTH with some K materials is not a bad idea. Also, spreading LHFHG out by going half speed (like I am doing) is good too. Really, you ought to look at placement charts and decide where you think he'd fit best. Slowing down is a great way of covering that "missing" year and also allows you to have time for major life events like babies, sickness, travel, etc.... You tailor it to you. I'd really look at the placement chart first though.

I have thought about doing a geography year for 8th grade as well Stephanie, we must be thinking alike there.

[Carrie]

One other thing you could do is to do a 4-day plan with each of the younger guides. By doing this through LHFHG, Beyond, and Bigger you would fill up almost a year of instruction and still keep moving steadily forward each year.

In placing your kiddo now, I would definitely put him in whichever program he fits best in as you're ready to start, according to the placement chart.

Blessings,
Carrie

[tmcg]

I have a 5 yo who just turned 5 this month. She has the mindset of a preschooler but the intelligence of a kindergartner. So, I got the EarlyBird Mathematics from Singapore, the Bible and Devotional from Little Hands and we sing the songs from Little Hands (and my 2 1/2 yo is joining in...it is so cute) and my 1st grader doing Little Hearts loves music so this is fun for her. I got the K science for Little Hearts but decided not to push it. I will do Little Hearts next year for K and do Pre-school now. I also got her K for handwriting. So she does math and handwriting and sometimes we sing (and play instruments with the songs)....she LOVES art and being creative. I struggle to get her to follow directions....if it says color it red....she wants to color it something else, so I am trying to help her have a chance to color pictures whenever possible. We also have discussion about there being a time and place for being creative vs. following directions. She joins in with the Little Hearts storytime and I got the other Thornton Burgess books so when I do it again next year, we won't repeat the same stories but will continue on with the same series. We also do phonics w/ The Reading Lesson or sounding out words elsewhere. I just feel better knowing when she wants to run off and dress up like a princess instead of doing another page in her workbook that I have the time to do this. I decided that she just turned 5 so I am not the least bit behind, but it is hard to feel this way because she wanted to be included when she was 3 and her sister was doing K (beginning of last school year), but if I set realistic expectations and make her do some school but not overwhelm her I feel like she will do better. Sometimes it seems she just wants to do whatever she is not supposed to be doing and having some limits is healthy for her, but I want it to be a positive experience so I will not push it. This is just what worked for me. She likes to sit with her sister when we do Little Hearts but at least if she gets sick of it and wants to go play with her little brother (2 1/2 yo) then I won't struggle to get her back on task, I can take advantage of her help in entertaining him. This has helped w/ HS. If something comes up then we can also read library books and so forth to add in some interesting topics to keep things enjoyable. Just my 2 cents.

[LeAnna]

Thanks for the replies! I am thinking that I might do the 4 day schedule through Bigger. That way, we are moving slower and still getting where I would like to be.

LeAnna