heartofdakota.com

Hello, ladies,
I have gleaned so much information on the forum and registered today to post. We have been homeschooling for 4 years (can that be?) and have 4 children. I bought the Beyond Little Hearts program in Jan. to "supplement" what we were doing with our 8 year old (2nd grade this year) son. I have to say, I am really enjoying it and think we will move to this being our curr. next year. Our 11 year old son(5th grader this year) is also listening in with the Bible, History, and a few other things. I have read and re-read the program guide/placement chart and re-worked the best plan for the next year with the option of combining the two guys. I was thinking we would jump up to the "Preparing" as to better fit our older son but think the "Bigger" would match the younger one. Is it better to go through Bigger with the second part of American History and then do Preparing the following year or just move on to Preparing. I realize this depends so much on each child and family but trying to figure out the best plan and also cyle perhaps since we also have a daugther starting Kind, in the fall and a soon to be 3 year old. I purchased the first book to do with the girls but am thinking the (6 year old in the fall) might need the 2nd book. It seems a bit too much for me to try and do all of these. Thank you for any input from others on this. It is always insightful to hear from those who have already mapped out the course. I am struggling with not providing enough for the "older" of the two groups and with the notion that you can build and expand any good curr. and education (histroy is timeless, Biblical principles, etc.)
Sorry, this has gotten so long!!
Thanks,
Sheila

Hi Shelia!

Since I am only in Little Hands I don't have experience with the other levels. I'm sure the other more experienced ladies will jump in and assist you. I just wanted to send a great big wave and welcome you to HOD!!

Welcome!

I can't help you with the older kids, but did want to mention that I think your assessment for your 6 yr old is correct. I think Little Hands to Heaven (the first program) would be too light for her. I'd move her into Little Hearts for His Glory. My daughter is using that for K and is enjoying it.

I will be using Bigger.. with my (then) 3rd and 5th graders. We plan to start mid-summer; they will be 8.5 and 10.5 when we begin. I added the extension pack books for my older child, which is for the purpose of extending learning for 4th and 5th graders learning with younger children with Bigger...I wanted to keep it to 2 programs, as we also have a K starting next year. He will be a just turned 5, and I will be using Little Hearts, although I think I could have gone with Little Hands and waited a year for the next one. There are ladies here who are currently using 3 programs and say it is 'doable' but I was not ready to try that...maybe the next year if I find I need to. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I think it would work out fine for you. The Math and Language Arts would be on each child's level, with the rest done together and the extended reading in History and Science for the older child. Also, if you need a reading program, HOD has Drawn Into the Heart of Reading available for 2-8 grade students. We will be using this as well. It's a literature study...you will find it on the website. As far as your question about which is better....people differ on that, obviously. I think it is easier to 'beef up' a program for an older student than to 'dumb' it down. However, I also want to teach the youngers as much as they can learn, instead of assuming it's too much for him/her. They retain so much more than you realize, even when you think they are not listening. I'm sure you know this since you've been hs'ing for 4 years; I've only been doing it 2 years. So, I guess it's just preference, but I think most people here agree to 'beef up' if needed....you can always move faster through the curriculum if your kids can handle it...it's difficult to watch them struggle with something that's too hard, KWIM?

I'm sure some others will chime in with some great advice. Good luck in your decision...I'm sure God will lead you in the right direction. BTW, it looks like our kids are all the same age, except I don't have a 4th one!

sheila wrote:Hello, ladies,
I have gleaned so much information on the forum and registered today to post. We have been homeschooling for 4 years (can that be?) and have 4 children. I bought the Beyond Little Hearts program in Jan. to "supplement" what we were doing with our 8 year old (2nd grade this year) son. I have to say, I am really enjoying it and think we will move to this being our curr. next year. Our 11 year old son(5th grader this year) is also listening in with the Bible, History, and a few other things. I have read and re-read the program guide/placement chart and re-worked the best plan for the next year with the option of combining the two guys. I was thinking we would jump up to the "Preparing" as to better fit our older son but think the "Bigger" would match the younger one. Is it better to go through Bigger with the second part of American History and then do Preparing the following year or just move on to Preparing. I realize this depends so much on each child and family but trying to figure out the best plan and also cyle perhaps since we also have a daugther starting Kind, in the fall and a soon to be 3 year old. I purchased the first book to do with the girls but am thinking the (6 year old in the fall) might need the 2nd book. It seems a bit too much for me to try and do all of these. Thank you for any input from others on this. It is always insightful to hear from those who have already mapped out the course. I am struggling with not providing enough for the "older" of the two groups and with the notion that you can build and expand any good curr. and education (histroy is timeless, Biblical principles, etc.)
Sorry, this has gotten so long!!
Thanks,
Sheila

Hi-I'm not sure if you mean that they are these grades now or will be later this year. If your kids will be grade 2 and 5 when you start Heart of Dakota, then I would go with Bigger, using the grade 4/5 extension pack for the older child. If they are going to be grade 3 and 6 when you start, Preparing with the grade 5/6 extension and grade 3/4 deluxe packs would probably be a better fit for combining. My kids in grade 3 and 4 are done with Bigger in 3 hours a day.
For the youngest two-if you think that Little Hearts for his Glory would be a better fit for the one turning 6, you are probably right. This is designed to take about an hour and a half each day. As for the youngest, you could either wait til next year to start Little Hands when that child turns 4, or you could use Little Hands 2 to 3 times a week, stretching it out over 2 years. Each day's lessons in Little Hands to Heaven takes 30 minutes or less. Any way you slice it, you CAN do it!

I completely agree with what inHistiming and Lourdes have said here. I am doing LHFHG and Bigger and DITHOR now, and it is not hard to do - honestly! I think Bigger..., LHFHG, and LHTH are great placements for your dc. I think that many of the skills learned in Bigger... are preparing our dc for "Preparing Hearts for His Glory". For example, oral narration is taught in Bigger.., and written narrations will be introduced in Preparing. Notebooking is taught in Bigger..., and will become more independent in Preparing. Dictation, same thing. So anyway, if you are looking at the list of the things taught in Preparing and thinking your younger one doing Bigger... wouldn't be ready for that, than I'd do Bigger... for sure. LHTH only takes 20-30 minutes a day, so you can add that in easily whenever you want to.
Does that help?
In Christ,
Julie

Sheila,

Poppin' in to say hello and welcome!

Candice

Sheila,

The ladies are giving you excellent advice! They are wonderful at helping moms think through their options!

If you are desiring to combine your two older kiddos, I think you'll need to go with "Bigger..." to keep your younger one in the loop. By adding the Extension Pack to the program, you'll beef up the science and history quite a bit. You could also easily add "Short Lessons in World History" to bring the level up a little more in the questioning, mapping, and overview of U.S. history for your older kiddo.

As far as your third little honey goes, "Little Hearts..." would be best. You could always do it at half-speed, doing the left side one day and the right the next until you feel comfortable ramping up to doing a whole day in a day. Then, later you could easily add "Little Hands.." for your littlest one.

You'll be surprised that you can do this. It helps to add one layer at a time, until you're at full speed.

Blessings,
Carrie

Thank you so much ladies for the encouragement and insight. I was feeling quite overwhelmed trying to figure out the right placement and also if I was capable of doing 2-3 different programs. I am so impressed with HOD, both the level of academic skill and also the creativty (and fun) for the ideas. I really appreacite having the input from those who are at a similar postion with kids and using the various programs. Thank you so much for the suggestions and encouragement. In the short amound of time I have been reading the forum I have found this board to be so supportive and isn't that a wonderful thing for homeschooling moms to share. Thank you again. Sheila

Sheila,

You are so right! The moms on the board work so hard at encouraging and supporting one another. It is a wonderful blessing to so many families and really helps usa all as we walk the HOD road together!

We're glad you're here. Feel free to ask away about anything else. We love to help!

Blessings,
Carrie