heartofdakota.com

HI. I hope Carrie that you see this and have a chance to answer..I know you are at conventions this week, but maybe????
And of course I would love to hear from anyone else as well. It is just that I have gotten differing opinions so would like to know what Carrie thinks...First, I cannot decide btwn Bigger or Preparing..I have 2 boys ages8 and 10 that will be in 3rd and 5th in the fall..When I do the placement charts in the catalogue, my youngest has more circled in Bigger and my oldest has almost all in Preparing. My youngest does not know cursive at all and my oldest has just been learning cursive this year. They are both very good readers and my oldest is a very advanced reader. And my youngest is on the same level math(4th grade level as my oldest). And we have done Sonlights first year of American HIstory this year..If we stuck with SL, which we are not we would do a second year of American HIstory so I though doing another year with Bigger of American History would be appropriate or maybe it would be repetitive? Also, if it is suggested that we do Bigger my son has read 5 of the books already that are in the extension pkg that I don't think he would want to repeat. So, could we use different books with same theme or not in the extension pkg? Also, if Bigger is suggested he wouldn't be able to finish all the programs upon graduating? How would that work? Would he need to finish all of the levels?
Next, DITHOR.....If my boys were at the same level for DITHOR..would they both need a student book? Also, is it easier to do DITHOR if all children are on the same level or is doing two of the different levels just as easy?
Okay, I think that is it...I would love to get all this ordered this week or next so we can do school this summer as we are in AZ. and it is very hot in the summer and we are inside a lot. Thank you so much Carrie and everyone else who takes the time to read and help me out!

Wendy
3 boys ages 5,8 and 10

Hi Wendy,
I don't have an answer for you, but am very interested in what others say as this is exactly the same situation I am in with my boys who are 8 and 10. My 8yo will be 9 in July and my 10 yo will be 11 end of November. This is what I think we are going to do since this is our first time using HOD. I have ordered everything for Bigger plus the extension books. We will also be switching out some of the ext. books because my 10 yo ds has already read them as well. We will be starting Bigger in June, or sooner if everything gets here. I have also orderd the Preparing Guide for the upper levels of dictation for my 10 yo ds. So I am planning on using the Bigger guide as planned for my younger son, and adding R&S 3 for my 10 yo son and probably the level 3 dictation from the Preparing guide. Then as soon as we finish up the Bigger guide we will go right into the Preparing Guide and my 8 yo son who will be 9 will do the R&S 3 with the level 3 dictation and my 10 yo son, who will be 11, will do R&S 4 with the Level 4 dictation in the Preparing guide. Does this make any sense to anyone besides me?? We use a different math program that both boys are doing really well in so I am not changing math, but I am going with HOD recommendations for everything else. My 10 yo ds will also not complete every guide and we will figure that out as we get there. I am really looking forward to getting started, and my boys are as well. I also have a 15 yo ds and an almost 13 yo dd who are using the Diana Waring Programs, as well as an eclectic mix, for Highschool, and a 19 yo dd who has graduated homeschool and is in college but still living at home. You'd think I'd have this down by now!!

Blessings,
Sarah
married to my best friend
mom to:
Taylor 19 dd
Ryan 15 ds
Olivia 12 dd (13 in June)
Alec 10 ds
Jack 8 ds

Yes..it all makes perfect sense and I am happy to know that we are both starting off in the same boat. Sounds like you have lots of experience:) Thank you so much for your reply..it makes me feel better to know you are doing similar things as me:) Are you going to do DITHOR as well? P.s. Love all the names of your kids.
Thankyou,
Wendy
Luke,10
Landon,8
Liam,5

Wendy,

Thanks so much for waiting to hear back from me! I truly appreciate your patience. We are in the convention season now, so we're catching up on the board as time allows.

To refresh my memory about your situation before responding, I looked back over what you'd shared so far about your kiddos in some past posts. From what I'm reading so far, I'd lean toward placing your two kiddos in Bigger Hearts with extensions for a few reasons. First, I fear that bumping your soon to be 8 year old up into Preparing may be too much for that little sweetie, and then you'd end up bumping him back to an earlier guide and lose out on the chance to combine in the long haul. Next, I am pretty sure that the little bit of independence in Preparing would really be a stretch for your youngest, so that would end up being something you'd need to direct in the long haul then, as it would always be over his head.

Then, I'm thinking that the overall level for your older child may actually be better in Bigger Hearts (due to all of the skills being wound into it) than Preparing Hearts might be. Bigger Hearts is a very rich program, so you will find many skills in the guide that will help both of your kiddos in the long haul. Plus, it is always easier with HOD to bump a child up than it is to bring a child back. So, if you ever do need to bump your older child forward that is very easy to do, giving you a terrific back up plan. But, if you had to head backward with your younger child, it can feel a bit defeating and also leave you with an interesting situation when that child has to come forward later.

With your older child, you'll need to make sure to place him in DITHR Level 4/5 with your younger child being in Level 2/3. It is also likely that your older child will need a higher level of grammar from what is scheduled in Bigger Hearts. I'd lean toward English 3 or 4, depending on how much grammar instruction he's previously had. Your 8 year old will likely need English 2. You may also need to have a higher level of spelling/dication for your 5th grader, which you can either do through buying the Preparing Hearts guide only to have the higher level passages, or you can purchase your own spelling program, or you can do studied dictation without the Preparing Hearts guide following the link here (scroll down to my final post): viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2028

Feel free to post back when you get a chance with your thoughts. We'll be glad to help with any other questions you may have to find the best fit for your family. The last thing to check would be to make sure that the math is a high enough level for your oldest. We schedule 2A/2B and 3A/3B in Bigger Hearts, but you can use a higher level or the math of your choice to meet your child's needs. Should you decide to purchase the Preparing Hearts guide only to follow the dictation passgaes and the Rod and Staff 3 or 4 schedule, you would also have the math schedule for 2A/2B, 3A/3B, 4A/4B.

Blessings,
Carrie

Thank you Carrie for being so concerned about us! Well, I already ordered last night.ha! So much for my patience.lol! But from what eeryone replied from my posts and also your husband emailed me back and answered some things as well.. But I feel good about what I ordered and can't wait to gete started and receie my box:)
The only thing I did different from your post is that I ordered DITHOR level 2/3 for both my boys because many people said it was best to start theere ecspecially if I have a reluctant writer! And my oldest does not like to write at all:)
So, do you think I need to return it and get the 4/5? I was just going to have him read higher level boooks which he reads all the time and at a very high level and still do the 2/3 student book with the bigger books..what do you think?
I didn't order math because we do teaching textbooks. My oldest is also a Very good speller so we do a little spelling but not alot with him as it just comes naturally with him. My younger boy I do more spelling work with him... And yes, I do a higher level grammer with my oldest:)
I think that is it! Very excited to begin reading all of these wonderful books.. We love books over here:) And love our read aloud time together! Thankyou so much. Hope the conventions are going well:)
Wendy
Luke
Landon
Liam

Wendy,

I'm so glad that you figured out what you needed! If your oldest son really doesn't like to write, and hasn't had much in the way of "formal literature study, then he will likely be alright in Level 2/3 for one year. You're right that adding higher level books will help raise the reading level, while keeping the writing level manageable. Typically with a 5th grader, we don't like to back up to Level 2/3, so you can weigh that when your 2/3 Student Book comes in. If your son was a 4th grader, I'd be more inclined to place him in 2/3. But, you will know best, once you get the Student Book in hand. It is always a balance between pushing too much and pushing enough.

Blessings,
Carrie