heartofdakota.com

A brief background: I will be homeschooling 7 again next year (10th, 8th, 6th, 4th/5th, 2nd, 1st and 3yo PreK). This year my 9th grader did MFW Ancients, 4th, 5th and 7th graders did Preparing and 1st, Ker did LHFHG. Although, I must admit, LHFHG is not getting done in its entirety. I'm lucky some days if I keep up with the basics with the littles. Preparing is wonderful and while my boys don't LOVE it, they do it. I LOVE it. 9th grader enjoys MFW AHL. My 7th grader wants to go to public school for high school (actually he wants to be there now!). All the others are content at home. Dh and I have given our consent for ds12 to attend public high school if he still desires when the time comes. At that school, he will study the 2nd half of Amer. Hist in 9th. So here in lies my dilemna and where I need help. I'd love for my 2 older boys to just continue with the CtC guide for next year (ds12 included) but as he has not had the 1st half of Amer. Hist. yet I was also considering the new Rev to Rev guide in preparation for his 9th gr. year at ps. Make sense? Age-wise, the guide is perfect for him. Ds9 (my son who was hospitalized recently) is taking 2 yrs. to complete Preparing due to his issues. Ds11 will move on to CtC. That would be 3 guides going at one time for me! Add Beyond to the mix for ds8 and dd5 and that is 4. And of course dd14 will move onto MFW World History (sure with HOD had high school out, lol!) I get overwhelmed just thinking about that! WWYD in this situation? I see a few options:

1. Keep ds9 in Preparing, Just move the 2 oldest boys to CtC as planned and have ds12 complete a mini-Amer.Hist. course over the summer (just some reading and a few Drive Through Amer. Hist DVDs) to prepare for 9th gr. in ps. Move littles to Beyond and dd14 to MFW World as planned.

2.Keep ds9 in Preparing, Move ds11 to CtC, ds12 to Rev to Rev. and not do a guide with the littles, just focusing on basics again and reading to them a lot as always. Same plan for dd14.

3. Keep ds9 in Preparing, move ds11 AND ds12 to Rev to Rev as both have had a ton of Ancients and Rome to Rev over the years, move little to Beyond and same plan for dd14. Ds11 is capable of independent work (more so than ds12!) and would do well in Rev to Rev.

Okay, if you have read this far...THANK YOU! I am leaning toward option 1 or Option 3. More toward Opt. 3. I can't see myself keeping up with 4 guides plus high school AND I don't want my littles to miss out on Beyond (although they could both easily do it the next year, kwim?). UGH! So many choices. And yes...I am praying! I know God will direct my steps. Finances are another issue as I can't see spending $1000 on curriculum for next year. Thanks for any input you have!

Hi Sue! I vote for Option 1. I think that it will be the most independent option, and it will keep dc moving along. The Drive Through History DVD's would be an easy yet effective way for your older ds to get in some American history. I would not choose an option based on your ds 12 yo having to have "x" if he chooses to go into high school. Who knows what will happen there, and there are tons of dc that move from school to school and transfer schools and don't have "x" that the school they go to already taught before they enrolled. I think you need to have your olders be able to be as independent as possible because you need time for your youngers. These are important years for the youngers right now. CTC will be more independent for your dc than RTR will be. RTR is harder. CTC lays the groundwork well for RTR. However, as always, this is just my opinion, and you will know best.

In Christ,
Julie

Thanks Julie! You are right that I do not know what will happen in the future! I've learned that I can plan but God often has other plans. I did some more thinking/praying last night and thought of another option. Move ds11 and ds12 into RtR and skip CtC. Not b/c I want to skip any of the guides but we have had a TON of Ancient History and they boys are becoming quite bored by it. I am becoming quite bored by it. I think RtR fits them both academically. How much more difficult than CtC is RtR? Ds11 is very independent with his work and could easily do RtR mostly independent. Ds12 not so much but he could mature by then! What do you think? Sure wish we would have found HOD when we first began our hs journey.

Sue,

I agree that it will be so important for you to place your kiddos where they fit on the placement chart, all thoughts of future school possibilities and history cycle aside. With that being said, I will share that now that your younger of the 3 students that were in Preparing Hearts this year will be out of the mix next year, it is possible that your consideration of placement for the older two kiddos in Preparing Hearts could change from what your plan would have been if you had kept all 3 together for next year. This is a long-winded way of saying that CTC or RTR could be a consideration, depending on a few things.

When looking at placement for your would be 11 and 12 year olds for next year, try to make an honest assessment of where those two kiddos would fit not only on the first page of the placement chart but also independence-wise (as far as reading and following extensive written directions on their own and working on their own). This will play a big factor in how well a move from Preparing Hearts to RTR would go for them. CTC does much to train kiddos in the skills of independence in bite-sized pieces. RTR is assuming students have these skills in place. I would hate to have your kiddos move into RTR only for you to find that are needing to sit with them through all of the 'I' boxes and losing precious teaching time that you could be using with other kiddos in your family.

If, after weighing the first page of the placement chart and your kiddos' independence, you feel that RTR is truly the better fit, then by all means do that. So much of how successful HOD is depends on correct placement. While typically we would never advise skipping a guide, it is possible that there are exceptions such as when kiddos have been placed in a bit lower guide in order to combine with a younger sibling. I'm sorry I can't clearly say one way or another, as I don't know the specifics of your two kiddos' strengths in the 3R's and their independence level. So, you'll truly be the better judge in this case.

Blessings,
Carrie

Carrie, thanks for chiming in! I can say without a shadow of a doubt that ds11 is capable of the independent work required in RtR. He does most of Preparing independently already. Ds12 is "capable" of the independent work, but much prefers to have my involvement. If pushed, he can do the work on his own. Honestly, both ds11 and ds12 placed better in CtC but I chose Preparing so I could combine the 3 boys. I don't regret that decision. So, looking at HOD this year as if I were completely new, just coming to HOD from another program...RtR is def. where my ds11 and ds12 would best place. Ds9 would still place in Preparing. Ds8 and dd5 would place in Beyond. Skipping a guide is certainly not what I want to do in a "perfect world". LOL. However, I must say that again, I just can't stomach another year of Ancients. You ladies have been very helpful and I so appreciate your wisdom here.