heartofdakota.com

Hello Ladies,
This is my first time posting here, but I am really hopeful that I can get some good advice here! My dd is 7 yo and just finished BLHFHG, which she absolutely loved (and I did too)! Now I just ordered BHFHG (based on her placement, I could have gone with this or PHFHG-but decided on BHFHG because of all the great reviews on it, and I think she would really be missing out if we skipped this!). I am somewhat unsure about the LA, I ordered R&S 2 for her, but now I am second-guessing myself on that. She <almost> completed Christian Light Education (CLE) LA 2 last year- she did fabulous on it, but I must say that it was tearful and difficult for her to complete the work (some of that from boredom with the reviews of things she knew very well). So, I am not sure if I should have ordered the R&S 3 for her? Does BHFHG have a schedule to follow in the teacher guide for R&S 3? I am hoping it will be easy for me to have a clear schedule of what to teach in LA. I think she would have been more relaxed if I would have taken an easier route with LA last year. Also, she is a phenomenal reader, she can read a Little House on the Prairie book in just a few days, and does have excellent understanding of what she reads. The only thing I have noticed, is that she will come to an unfamiliar word and just make up something for it or replace it with a known word that looks similar, so that is concerning to me. I am planning to do DITHOR 2/3 with her and I bought the level 3 book package. I am planning to have her read the selections aloud to me, so I can make sure she is reading the words correctly (at least until I feel comfortable with her reading). Does this sound like the correct placement for her in DITHOR? I don't want her to be bored with the reading. Last year in BLHFHG she started as an Emerging Reader, so I bought that set, and in just about a month she was an excellent reader, and went on to quickly devour the readers, and I constantly had to find other books for her to read to keep up with her! She also started re-reading the story-time selections on her own time, and fast too! So, I just want to make sure the level 3 package for DITHOR won't be beneath her. I suppose I could put together my own selections, but that is a bit overwhelming to me right now- could I order the level 4 package and use it with DITHOR 2/3, or does that mess things up for next year? Sorry this is so long, but I just wanted to paint a clear picture!
Thanks,
Karen

Hi Karen, and welcome to the HOD board! I think your 7 yo sounds exactly like my 7 yo when he began BHFHG. He had also read all of the Little House series, and similar books with ease. He did well with BHFHG, but needed some time to grow into the writing portions of it. I'm glad you chose BHFHG for your dd - it is a wonderful program to do, and it will definitely be enough of a challenge for your 7 yo.

I would start with R & S English 2. First, to give a firm foundation in grammar R & S style, as R & S also teaches grammar for the purpose of excellent writing. HOD suggests to do 2/3 of it orally or on markerboard, reserving just around 1/3 for dc to write. This has worked well for both our dc through the years. There is no need to rush into R & S 3, as you wouldn't want to be to R & S 4 too early - it's a jump. R & S 2 is the only one planned in the BHFHG manual, and it is very fitting for those ages. So, you should be set there.

For DITHOR, you'd definitely want to begin with Level 2/3. It is necessary to have general understanding of genres, story elements, Godly character traits, and to be able to analyze literature well before attempting 4/5. Level 2/3 will provide all of that so well for dd. Level 4/5 also requires a LOT more writing. Level 2/3 along with the Level 3 Book Pack should be perfect for dd. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

Thank you for your help! I feel really good about doing GHFHG with R&S 2 and the DITHOR level 3 books with the 2/3 student book, now. My daughter is really excited about next year!