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~sigh~ Well I was pretty positive that Preparing would be just the right fit for us, but I am now having 2nd thoughts and am sooo torn about where to begin. Let me give a little background. I have ds who turned 10 last Oct. and dd who turned 8 last Dec. We began hs'ing in K using A Beka for everything. Grammar, phonics, reading was heavily covered until last year --our first "fun and happy" year of homeschooling when I gave up my "type-A, school-at-home" style of homeschooling and made the switch to MFW using Exploring Countries and Cultures. We used Primary Language Lessons and Intermediate Languages Lessons, which most of you prob. know, is a HUGE change from A Beka Language. But, we enjoyed the gentleness of it and it allowed for us to all really "enjoy" one another again and the time we spent doing school. I thank God for MFW in that respect.

Now, I'm feeling that HOD will be a better fit for us in the upcoming years. Here are my concerns btw Bigger and Preparing:

-Bigger would give us a year of American History that we have not been able to thoroughly delve into before. I worry that if we wait to cover it, well the wait will be a long one before we do! lol
-Bigger may be closer to 8 yr.old dd's grammar level than Preparing is as she has not had much coverage of basic parts of speech yet, though she is an AVID and EXEPTIONAL reader and actually LOVES to write -in cursive -dictation, copywork, etc. and does it very well. However, her last formal grammar experience was using A Beka Language in 1st grade and some A Beka 2nd grade level.
-I'm wondering if Bigger may be too light for 10 yr. old ds. in terms of work-load??? Not that I want to weigh him down with work, but I do want to keep him challenged.
-Bigger seems to be more on ds's emotional/mental level than Preparing. I have one of those kind-hearted, wear's his heart on his sleeve, sensitive boys that get's easily disturbed about the harder issues of life. I had to paraphrase A LOT in many of the topics we covered during ECC because, if I didn't he would dwell on it and worry about it for days afterwards. I wonder if the reading material in Bigger may be a better fit for him in this level.
-On the flip-side, ds is super sharp in areas like Science, Math, Geography. For example, in MFW-ECC, he LOVED Properties of Ecosystems, which is an upper grade level book. He already new all of the names and locations of all of the oceans and continents before we started and now knows all of the countries. He just eats that stuff up. Most of it, he just came along with us for the ride. He's currently using Teaching Textbooks Math 6 in the 4th grade. Again, I worry that he won't be challenged enough.

So that's my dilemma...Do I sound incoherent? LOL Any help and suggestions would be sooo appreciated!

Well, you can take my opinion for what it's worth since we haven't actually STARTED Bigger yet...but we will this week.

My oldest is 4th grade this year and we were doing Ambleside Online Year 4 but we've just made the switch to HOD. I will be combining her with her younger sister who is 7. My older daughter will be doing the history extension books and additional science (Considering God's Creation - we had already started it and we want to finish it). She will also be using DITHOR. You can substitute any math for your child, mine are both using Rod and Staff instead of Singapore. I just placed a sticky note over the math directions in the guide for Bigger and wrote in what assignment they need to do from the books we have. My oldest will use Spelling Wisdom for her dictation instead of what is in Bigger. And we were already doing Latin so she will continue with that as well. I also was torn, thinking I should have placed her in Preparing instead...but once the guide came and I started looking at everything I'm REALLY happy I chose Bigger. With the extension sets I can beef up the reading for her but the remainder of the work will be just right. There's a LOT of great work in Bigger and I know they'll really enjoy a year in American History!

I hope this helps!
Blessings,
Caryn

If you didn't know about the extension set here's a link:
http://heartofdakota.com/bigger-hearts-packages.php

The extension pack is scheduled in the Appendix of the Bigger Guide for you as well.

I was also going to suggest the extensions for your oldest and just place him in math and grammar wherever he falls. We haven't started Bigger yet, but I have the whole set and it looks awesome. It would also help both children build skills before moving into something that starts to become a little more independent.

Bigger with extensions sounds like a great fit for many reasons, mainly to help you be successful. And I don't think Bigger is light at all, especially if you're using extensions and DITHOR and grammar and math on the child's level. Your plate will be happily full and balanced!

My BFF is using Bigger with extensions with her daughter who is 10. There is no reason to think it won't be strong enough for a 10 yo/5th grader. It will give a great foundation to the narration and notebook that is required in Preparing. Enjoy it!

Ahhh....my breathing is beginning to return to a normal pattern now I'm feeling so much better about using Bigger instead of Preparing. The more I looked at Bigger, the more I felt like we should be doing it instead, but I think my biggest concern was that it wasn't going to be enough for my 10 yr. old. I just couldn't get past the "age thing". Thank you all so much!