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Hi all. Could I get some advice on which Rod and Staff English to put my daughter in for next year? She fits well into the Preparing skill level set, and has had minimal grammar, but she is an excellent student. We have done some Growing with Grammar, but she is saying she doesn't remember a whole lot from it. It would be easier for me to teach my daughter and son together, but I want to make sure she is on target for her age and skill level and also sufficiently challenged. Should I put her in English 2 or English 3? I love Rod and Staff by the way. The other day I was reading a lesson out loud to my daughter and my 7 year old son who was playing tennis with dad, was stopped dead in his tracks listening to the lesson! Both of my kids find it very interesting.

She must be your 9 yo, right? I'm thinking she'd do well with R & S 3, since she fits well in PHFHG. Diagramming begins in R & S 3, and she sounds strong enough in LA skills to handle it well. If you are going to combine your 2 dc for grammar though, I would not do R & S 3 because it would be too hard for your 7 yo. In the combining scenario, I'd do R & S 2 with both of them.

In Christ,
Julie

I love your user name.

I would give the same advice as Julie. Either way would work depending on where you are comfortable.
Be blessed,
Joyanna

So it sounds like either way would work then? If I do decide to combine them for English, will my daughter finish the R&S material by the suggested time frame? Isn't it something like R & S 6 by 8th grade?

Patience,

I'm considering these options, too. I'll have a 9 1/2 year old and a just barely 8 year old when we start Bigger. I bought both R&S 2 and 3 and can't decide whether to combine. Level 3 would work great for older dd in my family but i think would be a stretch for younger. So either we will do both separately or combine in level 2.

Here's my understanding, but someone can feel free to correct me If we combine, then I would not be able to go half-pace R&S with older in CtC as scheduled. In other words, if she does 2 in 4th grade next year (if we combine) she must do a complete year of R&S each year in order to complete 6 by 8th.

But if we do separate R&S, when we hit CtC with girls in 5th and 6th grade they would both be able to do half-speed R&S (levels 4 and 5) and still finish.

So, do we want the convenience of combining or the slower pace of grammar in 2 years? That's what I'm asking myself.

Hmm, that's not something I thought of before. I didn't realize R & S was scheduled at half speed later on. I'm not so concerned about that, for it's fairly easy for me to keep going with something like R & S, but I'm more concerned that if I skip English 2, than she might be missing important, basic instruction. I have both here too! Well, I guess I'll think on this one a bit longer...I doubt we can mess the children up too bad either way!

All combining scenarios and convenience considerations aside, I'd say the best option is to do R & S 3 with your 9 yo, and R & S 2 with your younger. But, you will know best for your goals, the time/funds you have, and your own dc's needs!

In Christ,
Julie

Thanks to all and especially Julie. I think I am leaning toward going with the level 3 for her. I may just go over a handful of lessons (specifically, the parts of speech) from level 2 with her first, but I do think she has gotten some of what's in level 2 from Primary Language Lessons as well. This should keep her well challenged.

Patience wrote:Thanks to all and especially Julie. I think I am leaning toward going with the level 3 for her. I may just go over a handful of lessons (specifically, the parts of speech) from level 2 with her first, but I do think she has gotten some of what's in level 2 from Primary Language Lessons as well. This should keep her well challenged.

I'm so glad to help - Thanks for letting us know what you've decided - I really appreciate that!
In Christ,
Julie