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I'm hoping to start DITHOR some time this spring or summer. My DD is going to be in 4th, but probably will be reading mostly 2/3 books. Which student book should I get...the one for her age, or the one for her book's level?

Holly, how is your dd at things like reading comprehension? Is she reading at level? Has she had any formal literature instruction? If she is completing everything at level, and is reading at level with comprehension, then she would probably do fine in DITHOR 4/5. But, not knowing her abilities, I can only tell you my personal experience:

Here is what we did, and I give it only as an option as I know there are women with much more experience using DITHOR than I have! I started a struggling reading (in 4th grade - reading at a 2nd grade level) with DITHOR 2/3. He struggled with the program, but grew leaps and bounds. By the end of 4th grade he was reading and understanding books above his grade level...as well as using DITHOR 4/5. I know, after having used them both, that 2/3 was the right choice for him at the time! He never could have made it through 4/5 in the beginning, even with me sitting next to him the whole time. HTH

I think it's nice to begin with Level 2/3 for a year, and then the following year use 4/5. This will give an excellent foundation to build upon. The levels are not necessarily "grade levels", but rather an incremental way to move through DITHOR. For 4th grade dc who have not had much experience with genre studies, story elements, etc., beginning with Level 2/3 is a wise start. Then, the following year in fifth grade, Level 4/5 can be used for either 1 or 2 years. After that, dc progress to Level 6/7/8. This progression is incremental, but flexible - one of the many benefits of using DITHOR. The fact that it is not a lock-step program that must be used at a certain age for an exact number of years, really makes it easy to use and flexible to each child's reading needs, pacing, and growth over the years. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

Thanks for the replies! My DD does pretty well reading (and has come very far in the last couple months), but I'm more concerned with her writing and expressing her thoughts. I think we'll go with 2/3 after reading your suggestions.