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I'm embarrased because I have flip flopped so much this year on curriculum and am not quite sure what to do now. We have kept up on our math, reading & LA, and done lots of extra animal/nature things, but history has been the bane of my existance! Not because I dont' like it, but I guess because I've waffled from the whole "set curriculum" thing.

Anyway, because I've been piecing together MFW Adv & Beyond, and been slooow to do it, we are only on week 3 of MFW, and just started Unit 3 of Beyond. The science, geography & art in Beyond seemed too easy for my dc, so in the mean time, I have purchase Bigger!

Here's my question: We were just planning on doing math and reading and light science/nature things for the summer. Since it is close to the end of the school year, do I completely STOP where we're at now in Beyond & MFW and wait until August to start Bigger? I know I won't get much of Beyond done if we do it all summer, and I don't want to be overlapping. I really want to do Bigger because I feel all of it is more suited to my dc.

Sorry this is so long & confusing, but I am really on the edge (again!) here.

Thanks,
Tammi

Hi Tammi! Well, don't be embarrassed as we have all made mistakes such as this before. I've learned, the hard way , that the best way to learn from my mistakes is to try very hard not to repeat them again. This is harder than one would think. I remembered us chatting before and wanted to mesh what you'd shared previously with what's going on now. I know that you shared some really helpful insight on this past post, viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5601&p=41205#p41205, that helped me understand where you're coming from.

From reading past posts as well as this one, I think the thing that you don't want to repeat is the attempting to mesh so many different things together and rob yourself of that truly wonderful feeling of totally completing something within about the time frame you hoped to complete it. I know what it's like to try to put together multiple programs that were not written to go together, and while it seems kind of fun at first or like it's going to offer dc so much more than just one program could, it really becomes quite stressful over time, and really doesn't offer dc anything more as nothing is ever totally getting done. I have been there. I so want for you to just be able to open an HOD manual and teach, and you've openly shared you are on edge, and that makes me sad as I so don't want that for you.

I know it's hard to believe that one curriculum can really be that good, but HOD really is. Why not give just HOD a try as it is for the remainder of this year, and get as far as you do? I was looking back to your comments about placement, and in January, Beyond was a good fit for your ds and dd. I know someone had suggested doing the left side of Beyond for your 2 dc, and doing the right side of Beyond for your ds, and the right side of Bigger for your dd. That could still be a good idea, and you actually own the Bigger Hearts guide now anyway. I really want to encourage you to try to set everything aside except for what's in the Beyond HOD manual, and give that your total focus for the rest of the year. I think that this will do 2 things - 1: It will give you consistency and routine, which should lessen both the length of your school day as well as your stress level, and 2: It will let you see how your dc really do with all of the skills covered in Beyond. I think that will make it clear whether you should do Beyond or Bigger next year better than any amount of chatting we can do here. Then, you would either have a jump start on Beyond and could complete it next year, just doing it 4 days a week, OR, you'd feel more confident setting Beyond aside knowing both of your dc are truly ready for Bigger. Here are some links that describe the amount of writing in Bigger, as these may help you with your decision as well:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3005
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1516&p=11829

I'm sure other ladies will chime in, but from the bottom of my heart, I so want for you to just breathe a big sigh of relief and satisfaction at just using HOD as it is intended and enjoying the beauty of that to its fullest. You will know best what you want to do, but I hope something here can help. Praying for you as you ponder!

In Christ,
Julie

We started Beyond last year and dropped it for a number of reasons. We too will be starting Bigger for our next school year (which starts in late May). In the meantime, we've been reading through the history books scheduled in Beyond so we don't miss those.

So, you could either do Beyond (without trying to combine it with other programs) and just keep going until you finish, and then start Bigger; OR you could just hit the highlights and read the history books and do a few of the activities with the goal of finishing up quickly so that you can start Bigger when you are ready. Even though you feel that Bigger is more suitable for your children, it doesn't hurt to read the history books from Beyond. Mine have learned quite a bit.

Tammi,
I remember the feelings you are going through. I had bought Beyond but didn't want to do just that (beyond) So I combined MFW Countries and Cultures. Needless to say we ended up dropping both. Later in the year (about were you are) after reading posts I decided to pick Beyond back up and finish it. I did just Beyond and didn't tweek it. I was tired of tweeking and working soooo hard to make school great. Well needless to say we fell in love with beyond. We are almost done with Bigger and will not look back. I do not miss those days of combining curriculums to be what I want. I now know why I was doing it. I was looking for the curriculum that filled all my needs. Thanks HOD because you do that. I would recommend Julie said. Give Beyond a try just the way it is. But give it at least 8 weeks. It takes time to get a groove going. It is possible for one curriculum to fit your needs. I still add to HOD but it is extras, spanish, criticial thinking, typing. Please ask me more questions if you want. There just isn't enough space to share all I felt and feel now.