heartofdakota.com

I am homeschooling my 7 year old son. He went to kindergarten at our local school and I decided to home school him after that. He has cystic fibrosis and missed over 30 days of school and I had said at the beginning of the school year if his health was compromised then I would home school plus I felt a tugging from God to do this.
We started last September using TOG year one, Apologia Science- Flying Creatures- MUS Alpha and I loosely followed Ambleside Online. The problem is we have been off track since January. We haven't done any of the above- I have been focused on reading and we have done some math and we use Time4learning. We start our day with prayer and then he reads from The Early Reader's Bible and then we go straight to Time4learning, some days we do copy work.
I found out about Heart of Dakota a couple of months ago and I really think it could work for us but I am concerned about the fact that he really won't
" finish" first grade. I had thought about trying to start Beyond Little Hearts within the next month or so and then just work through it until finished and then call first grade done, then go to Bigger Hearts and work through it until finished and call that 2nd grade and then we could probably start 3rd grade on schedule.
But now I am thinking of just finishing up what we are doing- go back to MUS, and the science and continue with reading and do what we can in TOG until the end of May, go ahead and take the summer break, have him work in Time4learning over the summer and then begin with Beyond Little Hearts for 2nd grade in September, and then use Bigger Hearts for 3rd grade and Preparing Hearts for 4th grade.
Could this work? I am new to homeschooling and really want to succeed in it. My son's health has been excellent over the past year and that alone makes this year a success but while I love the fact that he is healthy, I need to make sure he learns too.
thanks,
Laura

Laura,

I just wanted to give you a warm welcome! I know some more experienced moms will be much help to you!

Candice

The great thing about homeschooling is that your 'school year' can really start at any time (unless your state has some rule against that). There are some here who started HOD mid-year, last summer, in the fall, etc. We are all in different spots with our curriculum, and that's okay. It's difficult to get over the fact that they must 'finish', I struggle with that myself! However, keep in mind that very often the teachers in public or private schools do not actually finish their manuals either. They may skip lessons, or they might stop before they get to the end.

Having said that, I think you would be fine either way. If you really feel what you're using now is not working, boring, whatever...you could get Beyond...and start right away. We just switched my daughter to Beyond....this week. We picked up at unit 15 because we had done the first 14 previously, and everything in that unit has been very relevant to our lives right now! God knows where you are in your life at this time, and He will bring it all together to work for you.

Waiting until fall would be okay too. I used Beyond in first grade, and now we're finishing it in second grade. It's been great for my daughter! The age range is 6-8, so she falls right in there. Carrie did that purposely, because she realizes children work at different levels even within the same grade! I guess what I'm trying to say is HOD is very flexible. You can use it however you like. I would suggest just doing what you feel God is pulling you toward. I know you'll get some more, maybe more specific, advice from the others here. Keep asking your questions, as we love to help out.

Laura,

I just wanted to say hi and welcome!!

Here is the link to HOD's placement chart.
http://www.heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php
This will help you see which program your son fits in, and I've seen many moms say how accurate it is in placing your child. I would say to start wherever he fits. The HOD programs are aimed at an age range of kids, but not necessarily a "grade". Some moms start a program with their kids when they are on the young side of the age range and make it last for 2 years...so you don't even have to finish a program in a year. You are free to go at the pace of your child!

I am planning to start Bigger with my 8 y/o this summer or fall, and it will be for "3rd grade". I am currently using LHTH with my almost 4 y/o. I'm sure there are many moms with more experience that can help you out more, and they can usually give you better advice if you tell them where your child places on the chart.

Kathleen

Hi Laura and welcome!
I'll be using Beyond for 2nd grade! It's such a wonderful program. You could really start anytime with it, just depends on how strongly you feel about finishing up your other curriculum. Either way will be ok.

Glad to have you here!
Mel

To finish or not to finish that is the question!
here are some posts!

http://www.heartofdakota.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=742

So what is a grade lvl anyway!
http://www.heartofdakota.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=701

welcome to the board!

I really appreciate all the great advice. I think I will then work with what I have now and then start on Beyond Little Hearts in the fall.
It is not so much that I have to finish what I am using now. There is no way I would finish the TOG anyway- we didn't get real far in that to begin with. I just want more than what we are doing right now. I just have to get motivated again.
I can't wait to be able to order from HOD and get it all in my hands. I think this will really work well for my son.
thanks again,
Laura

Laura,

I'm sorry I am coming to this thread late. I just wanted to welcome you!

I also wanted to mention that if you're not moving forward with what you had purchased for this year, it can be a HUGE relief to just change gears and get started on something else (like "Beyond..." now). We did this during my oldest son's 3rd grade year (several years ago), and I felt so much better about ending the year on a good note. It also took the pressure off of us for the following year, and we were able to do a 4-day schedule the following year and still finish on time. We used the 5th day of the next year for extras I wanted to put in.

Anyway, just food for thought!

Blessings,
Carrie