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Hi there!

I'm currently doing Beyond with my 1st grader and Preparing with my 3rd grader.

My son (the 3rd grader) is very interested in American History, and I think I'd like to combine the kids going forward...so, I'm thinking of doing Bigger with both children next year, with extensions for my then 4th grader.

Now, I know this is thinking a little far ahead, but what do I do on the "repeat" year of Preparing with my then 5th grader? Is there enough variation with the extensions to do it over again with him, or should I let him do independent history study that year? Just thinking ahead!

Thanks!

Becky in DE

I should add...by independent history study, I mean let him choose his own history topics to study that year.

thanks!

Gosh, that is a tough question. I think going back to Preparing in a year with extensions would be okay. If it were me, I would split them back up after the year with American History...but if you want to keep them together going forward, I am sure the other ladies can give you some great options.

You know, that is a good point. I could split them back up. I was concerned that it might be too much, but by then the 5th grader would be working more independently through the work, so it would not be as big a deal to split them back up.

In the same vein, will I be messing with the "flow" of the curriculum by moving him back to Bigger for year? Obviously I would keep him moving forward in his Language Arts, Math, etc. But I know the HOD program is very intentional and well laid out in that respect. I don't want to do him a disservice. But he is very eager to do American History next year. I suppose I could just have him take a break from his studies in CTC and listen in on the Bigger lessons too, but that would really extend our school day. Hmmm....just thinking out loud here!

I would keep them both moving forward in their own guides instead of backtracking the older. You could easily let him read the books from Bigger (including the extensions) on his own time. That wouldn't add to your day and in reality, his either! If he likes to read and has an interest in American history, he would enjoy reading those books in addition to his CTC studies since they wouldn't be "school".

If you did decide to combine in Bigger, then split back up, I'm sure that could be done. If he did well with Preparing and could handle the independent activities in CTC, independently, I really lean towards doing what I first mentioned.
Also, if you decide to combine in Bigger and keep moving forward together, you could get him the older student independent study pack that 2nd time through (assuming he's doing the younger one now).

Another thought, you could use some American history based books for DITHOR. Many of the Bigger extension books could be used for this I'm sure. Possibly even some of the Read Alouds-- Perhaps, you could have him read aloud those that fit to you younger child and use that for his DITHOR reading.

I think if you don't mind continuing to do two programs, then I'd keep them separate and do what someone else suggested and just let him listen in on Bigger's readings. Plus let him read the Bigger extension books for fun! My dd has read quite a few history books for fun and has learned a lot. Now, if you wanted to combine them longterm and didn't mind backtracking/repeating some, then I'm sure you could make it work.

I've gone back and forth myself, trying to make the same decision. I'll have a 3rd grader doing Bigger Hearts next year and have considered having my then 6th grader (he's doing Preparing now) join him for some of it (along with some other things to beef it up a bit more, including the Extensions). Your oldest is younger than my oldest, so you do have a little more wiggle room than I do as far as how your oldest will then progress through the future guides. What I've ended up doing is working some of the Extension books from Bigger Hearts into his DITHOR schedule. And, I've chosen titles from the book list that you can buy with DITHOR that pertain to American History. For example, he is covering folk tales right now and is reading American Tall Tales for that genre. Also, as we get further along in Preparing (we haven't gotten that far yet), I plan to add a couple of extra read-alouds that will give a little more coverage to American History.

I've decided to move him on up to CtC. I know he will get alot of American History just from listening in on much of what his little brother will be doing next year. My children listen to each other's books, so it's almost like he'll be getting two streams of history.

I think it depends on your child too. My older son was struggling in some of the basics, so giving him American History with extensions was just a bad idea overall. It was way more History than he could handle at the time. The extensions take extra time and extra reading. My son wasn't quite ready for that yet when we tried it. He is now getting ready to do CTC and I don't think he will have an issue with it at all, doing it as written. Placing them correctly is so key to having a great year, IMO. It is definitely harder with a child who has not done HOD from the beginning. Best of luck with whatever you decide.

Thanks so much for all the ideas, ladies! I really appreciate the input.

I hadn't thought about DITHOR as an American History option. My son had Literature in our weekly co-op this year, so we didn't do DITHOR this year. I think we will do it next year, so working that reading into his literature study is a great idea.

mommaduck wrote: I hadn't thought about DITHOR as an American History option.

You may decide you don't want it to be exclusively that but it does help to work some in that way. This year, with DITHOR, we began with Biography and my son read two books, one on Davy Crockett and one on Albert Einstein. So, you can mix it up.