Comparing HOD and MFW

[DHT1999]

we needed a stronger literature element

That is the main reason that I decided to look for something else for our family. Overall, I think that the books that MFW schedules lack (this is a generalization and not true for every book but definately for most of them) the living books quality that I want for our homeschool. I was running myself nuts trying to add some life to the program by filling the book basket with titles that inspired us. We were able to do that and we did enjoy the book basket, but I didn't like being dependent on the library or on making extra purchases through the year. We really enjoyed Adventures in MFW and I have considered using it again with my youngest son but that is only because I have a very large collection of books that I purchased to use alongside it when I used it with my oldest son. We had a fun year but by the end of the year I was burned out from seeking out living books to add to it. I can say with 100% honesty that we have not had that problem with HOD. We still use the library but we don't depend on it. The books that HOD schedules for me are truly living books that inspire us.

I think MFW works best for someone who really enjoys seeking out extra books, which is not hard to do since MFW gives you the book lists. Personally, I was overwhelmed by the book lists. We buy a ton of books now just as we did then but our homeschool is not dependent on that.

One more thing that HOD provides that I have not found elsewhere, not with MFW and not with other "complete" curricula that we have used, is explicit instruction. I am frustrated with curricula that give the children assignments but 1) are not very specific about what to do and 2) have not taught the skills needed to complete the work with confidence and success. I like that with HOD I have material to teach that is in the guide itself, not just in the resources that we use to cover specific areas of our curriculum. HOD integrates it all very strongly. The instruction doesn't feel isolated and we are able to transfer what we have learned in our grammar book (for example) to other assignments much better. That is kind of hard to explain but I think that anyone who has used HOD for awhile (not tried it for one month) will know what I mean. With HOD, I feel very well equipped as a teacher. I truly don't worry that my sons won't learn what they need because I've seen it all laid out in the program. I can't think of anything that HOD lacks that is fundamental to their educations.

I personally need a curriculum that has alot of hand holding, that tells me what my children should be doing at a particular level and how to get them to the point where they can do those things. HOD does that for us. MFW may do that for another mom but I personally did not find that level of support in the TMs.

[deltagal]

I was running myself nuts trying to add some life to the program by filling the book basket with titles that inspired us. We were able to do that and we did enjoy the book basket, but I didn't like being dependent on the library or on making extra purchases through the year. ...
One more thing that HOD provides that I have not found elsewhere, not with MFW and not with other "complete" curricula that we have used, is explicit instruction. I am frustrated with curricula that give the children assignments but 1) are not very specific about what to do and 2) have not taught the skills needed to complete the work with confidence and success. I like that with HOD I have material to teach that is in the guide itself, not just in the resources that we use to cover specific areas of our curriculum. HOD integrates it all very strongly.

I completely agree. The MFW booklist wore me down, since our library NEVER had any of the books.

And I love the HOD instruction. With other curriculums I have often felt, "what am I not doing?" But with HOD it is very clear. You do it and move on.

[John'smom]

I too enjoyed reading this post!!! I've considered MFW for years now, but just never had perfect peace about it and my dh was not on board either. I would always wonder if we were kind of missing out, but knew I had to follow the Lord. I learned about HOD at the end of last year and have just been so happy and excited. I began praying right away. After awhile I presented to dh and he wholeheartedly agreed that we should use HOD. Everything Julie typed out about HOD is what I want for my dc. We've currently been using unit studies and love it, but I'm just worn out pulling everything together. Dh wasn't a grab and go for me as well. Now that Convention is here I get to make my purchases from HOD.

[threegreatkids]

We've used both and love both. I think Julie's comparison is excellent, and shows why one might work for one family and the other for another. Or even for different "seasons" within one family (though consistency is always ideal).
They are quite different, but I've been consistently impressed by the "heart" of each...strongly biblical, excellent for discipleship, well-rounded overall, good book selections, enjoyable to teach. I would have loved learning with either program as a child. I'm so glad to have the opportunity to teach my own children this way, and to get to learn right along with them

[funkmomma71]

I just had to throw this in, my dear friend who chose to go with MFW (adventures) this year, ended up using both Boys and Girls of Colonial Days and Stories of the Pilgrims in addition to their curriculum. She says her dc love those books!!

[Catherine]

That was such a sweet, clearly stated comparison of two wonderful programs. I just wanted to mark this thread for future reference. Thanks!

[mariaw]

One more thing that HOD provides that I have not found elsewhere, not with MFW and not with other "complete" curricula that we have used, is explicit instruction. I am frustrated with curricula that give the children assignments but 1) are not very specific about what to do and 2) have not taught the skills needed to complete the work with confidence and success. I like that with HOD I have material to teach that is in the guide itself, not just in the resources that we use to cover specific areas of our curriculum. HOD integrates it all very strongly. The instruction doesn't feel isolated and we are able to transfer what we have learned in our grammar book (for example) to other assignments much better. That is kind of hard to explain but I think that anyone who has used HOD for awhile (not tried it for one month) will know what I mean. With HOD, I feel very well equipped as a teacher. I truly don't worry that my sons won't learn what they need because I've seen it all laid out in the program. I can't think of anything that HOD lacks that is fundamental to their educations.

I personally need a curriculum that has alot of hand holding, that tells me what my children should be doing at a particular level and how to get them to the point where they can do those things. HOD does that for us. MFW may do that for another mom but I personally did not find that level of support in the TMs.

My feelings exactly! I used 2 levels of MFW, and like it has been said, it is a great program. I can see why people love it. But I found myself following the assignments and just not knowing what to do with it. I went looking for a curriculum that at least gave a "key idea" for each assignment so I would understand what the point was, and someone (on another board) suggested that I look at HOD. I'm so glad I did! I vaguely remember the days of piecing together different subjects, hoping that I was covering everything I needed to cover. I'm so glad not to be there anymore, and I really appreciate the extra instruction provided in the HOD guides!

[melissamomof3girls]

That is the main reason that I decided to look for something else for our family. Overall, I think that the books that MFW schedules lack (this is a generalization and not true for every book but definately for most of them) the living books quality that I want for our homeschool. I was running myself nuts trying to add some life to the program by filling the book basket with titles that inspired us. We were able to do that and we did enjoy the book basket, but I didn't like being dependent on the library or on making extra purchases through the year. We really enjoyed Adventures in MFW and I have considered using it again with my youngest son but that is only because I have a very large collection of books that I purchased to use alongside it when I used it with my oldest son. We had a fun year but by the end of the year I was burned out from seeking out living books to add to it. I can say with 100% honesty that we have not had that problem with HOD. We still use the library but we don't depend on it. The books that HOD schedules for me are truly living books that inspire us.

I think MFW works best for someone who really enjoys seeking out extra books, which is not hard to do since MFW gives you the book lists. Personally, I was overwhelmed by the book lists. We buy a ton of books now just as we did then but our homeschool is not dependent on that.

One more thing that HOD provides that I have not found elsewhere, not with MFW and not with other "complete" curricula that we have used, is explicit instruction. I am frustrated with curricula that give the children assignments but 1) are not very specific about what to do and 2) have not taught the skills needed to complete the work with confidence and success. I like that with HOD I have material to teach that is in the guide itself, not just in the resources that we use to cover specific areas of our curriculum. HOD integrates it all very strongly. The instruction doesn't feel isolated and we are able to transfer what we have learned in our grammar book (for example) to other assignments much better. That is kind of hard to explain but I think that anyone who has used HOD for awhile (not tried it for one month) will know what I mean. With HOD, I feel very well equipped as a teacher. I truly don't worry that my sons won't learn what they need because I've seen it all laid out in the program. I can't think of anything that HOD lacks that is fundamental to their educations.

I personally need a curriculum that has alot of hand holding, that tells me what my children should be doing at a particular level and how to get them to the point where they can do those things. HOD does that for us. MFW may do that for another mom but I personally did not find that level of support in the TMs.

Just a bump here and I want to say how much I appreciated this whole thread! It's exactly everything I needed to read.

The quoted post here also is exactly my same feelings. Thank you for sharing!

I love math, I was always an A+ math student in high school but of course, Singapore is so different! I've had a hard time teaching it to my daughter and she's had a hard time learning it! One of the problems was MFW just gave me the textbook and workbook and a schedule to follow, but no other direction in games or teaching it. I see that HOD also gives little games each time to help reinforce the ideas. LOVE THAT!

[KellyB]

One thing I'd like to add, that I noticed because I was wandering between the 2 myself (I liked the Geo/missions component), is that if you don't like some of the main books (such as in Science), its going to be hard to swap out because the subjects are integrated. In HOD, I can do my own science all together if I want.

That's where I struggled, they incorporated books that I KNEW personally I didn't prefer. Its not that they are bad, its just I didn't want to use them. I asked on one of their boards but didn't get much of a response of how people do it, and those who did , made it seem harder to do

I like that with HOD, if I don't prefer a book (such as in the readers) I can substitute my own. What I wrote above may be true for the HOD basic package...honestly, I'd not considered that as all those books are pretty much what I would choose any way.

Just my 2 cents, and likely not even worth that

[funfinder5]

This thread is very helpful. We just finished our first year of homeschooling and used MFW Adventures. It is a great curriculum. We loved the Bible portion. We loved the book basket books. We also had a wonderful time learning about history together but I am concerned about some other aspects for this coming year. I feel like my children who are at the early stages of independent reading need a little more encouragement in the reading area (beyond the book basket and reading time). I want just the right balance with reading for pleasure but also having some accountability. I don't feel like they had much this year. I also feel like we need a little more age-appropriate instruction on writing and language in completing assignments. (We struggled a little for example with draw a picture and write some sentences about the particular history topic). The strengths of HOD outlined here seem to meet my concerns about MFW.

[mothermayi]

Thank you for posting this! It really solidifies my decision to switch to HOD.

[jackieb]

I am bumping this thread again because it is SO helpful! Thank you, Julie! You have helped clarify a lot of the things that I've tried to compare on the two, as we've used MFW since homeschooling in 2011. I had looked into HOD several times, but had a tough time taking the plunge because it just didn't make sense to me at the time. Now that I've read this, I can clearly see why I've been looking at HOD all this time. So many other families get stuck as I have with looking at these two curricula, without a good foundation on both. God bless you and thank you for such a non-biased comparison!

Jackie B.