Do you supplement HOD at all?

[erin.kate]

One more question from the HOD newbie today ... So grateful for this board!

Do you supplement HOD with foreign language, art, music, drawing ... ?

The program feels quite comprehensive to me, but I would still like for my kids to learn Latin and to continue with music and picture study (we study one composer and one artist every six weeks) and we have a drawing lesson twice per week (lots of messy art too).

In your experience, would that be just too much to expect out of our days once we are schooling with HOD (three different programs beginning in July)? Maybe it's just something I need to wait and see and or maybe many of you are wildly successful at seamlessly infusing these (or other) subjects into your days.

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Thank you so much!
Erin Kate

[arstephia]

I have an art program that we do on Fridays and my kids continue to work through a vocab program that we had started long before we were doing HOD, but neither are necessary to the program. They were just things we had been doing and continued because we enjoyed them. (I see in CTC there is watercolor painting, so we likely won't be doing the extra art next year.) I haven't found any short-comings in HOD that I felt I needed to fill in or adapt for, so I guess no, we don't really supplement.

[twoxcell]

Yep, we do composer, and artist study on top of HOD. We also do some foreign language Latin and Spanish. These topics are done fairly lightly at this point, but my kids love them. I also try to get nature study in when we can.

[christina101902]

We incorporate ASL and Spanish into our curriculum. Its wonderful to see three and four year olds signing their abc's while they sing.

Christina

[Mom2Monkeys]

I add of purely out of want, not out of need as HOD is completely complete. We have some meaty programs we use casually without losing the meat. They're fun and yet, get the job done. Art/artists study, music/composer study, and Latin. I intend to add sign language too as I feel it's important for our family since I have a DD with very mild hearing loss and a disease that can potentially make her totally deaf in her late teens to early 20s.
I'd be glad to share what we use if you'd like to PM me.

[LynnH]

Last year I did a composer study with Preparing, but now knowing that a composer study will be in Rev to Rev, I wouldn't have done that. I definitely think there is plenty of art instruction in Preparing and CTC that extra art isn't necessary. Draw and Write Through history covers the detailed drawing and shading etc and then the watercolor paintings that you do with poetry in CTC teach lots of techniques for that. Also there is lots of art in various forms in the history projects.

I do add a vocabulary root study, but that is just because my ds really struggles with vocabulary. Next year I am planning on adding a computer programming class because that is something he is very interested in. If you are just starting out with HOD and especially with 3 programs I would do it as scheduled for awhile before adding anything else in.

[erin.kate]

Yep, we do composer, and artist study on top of HOD. We also do some foreign language Latin and Spanish. These topics are done fairly lightly at this point, but my kids love them. I also try to get nature study in when we can.

Sounds a lot like what we try to include in our week. The nature study is harder for us since we live in such a cold climate and getting out enough in the winter is tricky. We do a lot in late summer/early fall.

Thank you! It's good to know that I can still work some things in and not to the detriment of HOD.

[erin.kate]

Last year I did a composer study with Preparing, but now knowing that a composer study will be in Rev to Rev, I wouldn't have done that. I definitely think there is plenty of art instruction in Preparing and CTC that extra art isn't necessary. Draw and Write Through history covers the detailed drawing and shading etc and then the watercolor paintings that you do with poetry in CTC teach lots of techniques for that. Also there is lots of art in various forms in the history projects.

I do add a vocabulary root study, but that is just because my ds really struggles with vocabulary. Next year I am planning on adding a computer programming class because that is something he is very interested in. If you are just starting out with HOD and especially with 3 programs I would do it as scheduled for awhile before adding anything else in.

Great to hear that we can look forward to drawing in later HOD programs, as I prefer for that to somehow tie into their core. Thanks for your insight ... we may take it slow our first term and then sprinkle in music and picture study as we go. The Latin is really fun and it's a musical approach, so it's meaningful but in a less "academic" way.

Thank you!

[erin.kate]

I have an art program that we do on Fridays and my kids continue to work through a vocab program that we had started long before we were doing HOD, but neither are necessary to the program. They were just things we had been doing and continued because we enjoyed them. (I see in CTC there is watercolor painting, so we likely won't be doing the extra art next year.) I haven't found any short-comings in HOD that I felt I needed to fill in or adapt for, so I guess no, we don't really supplement.

Thank you for your thoughts! So helpful to hear.

[erin.kate]

I add of purely out of want, not out of need as HOD is completely complete. We have some meaty programs we use casually without losing the meat. They're fun and yet, get the job done. Art/artists study, music/composer study, and Latin. I intend to add sign language too as I feel it's important for our family since I have a DD with very mild hearing loss and a disease that can potentially make her totally deaf in her late teens to early 20s.
I'd be glad to share what we use if you'd like to PM me.

We definitely could benefit from ASL as my son from Ethiopia will not speak English when he comes home ... that might be just what we need to transition him well. I will PM you to talk more about what you plan to use.

[Mommamo]

Well, I don't think anything NEEDS to be added to HOD. We do add some extra things just for fun.

I have a music degree, so we add some piano and music appreciation type things. We listen to the Classics for Kids podcast and do the little activity along with that. We don't do a formal nature study (there's a lot of nature study-type things included in HOD) but we do get out a lot and observe what we can see, collect sticks and berries and rocks and things, etc. We do add Spanish and sign language and next year will be adding Latin, just because that's important to us. We also do a little logic book thing because my oldest loves it. We were doing an art curriculum, but C is doing that same curriculum this year at our co-op that it's just not necessary this year, and then I think the art steps up a little bit in Preparing so I may not need it next year either.

The great thing I think about HOD is that it is so complete that you don't need to add anything, yet it's streamlined enough that you CAN add things if you want to. With everything that we add, we're still done by lunch every day, and that's doing LHTH and Bigger and having a 2 yo running around. I think that if I were doing something else, there's no way I'd be able to add everything I wanted to.

[erin.kate]

Well, I don't think anything NEEDS to be added to HOD. We do add some extra things just for fun.

I have a music degree, so we add some piano and music appreciation type things. We listen to the Classics for Kids podcast and do the little activity along with that. We don't do a formal nature study (there's a lot of nature study-type things included in HOD) but we do get out a lot and observe what we can see, collect sticks and berries and rocks and things, etc. We do add Spanish and sign language and next year will be adding Latin, just because that's important to us. We also do a little logic book thing because my oldest loves it. We were doing an art curriculum, but C is doing that same curriculum this year at our co-op that it's just not necessary this year, and then I think the art steps up a little bit in Preparing so I may not need it next year either.

The great thing I think about HOD is that it is so complete that you don't need to add anything, yet it's streamlined enough that you CAN add things if you want to. With everything that we add, we're still done by lunch every day, and that's doing LHTH and Bigger and having a 2 yo running around. I think that if I were doing something else, there's no way I'd be able to add everything I wanted to.

Perfectly said ... thank you from the bottom of my heart. I love this candid encouragement. I feel very confident that I can pull this altogether and WELL with HOD. It sounds like you blend a lot of other things beautifully, even though it is not necessary, which probably makes it more enjoyable since the "have-to" stress is not there. So great!

[my3sons]

I did - I don't. I think it is fine to add if moms and dc enjoy what they are adding, and if it doesn't detract from doing HOD. For us, we used to do a bunch of different things, but they are all showing up in HOD eventually. We did a composer study (now it's in RevtoRev), we did painting (now it's in CTC), art appreciation (in RTR and will be in RevtoRev), nature study (HOD science is already living), Bible music sing alongs (music is now in every guide somehow), etc. Sooooo, I have stopped the extras and just enjoy the 3 HOD programs we do. If I had one child, I would probably enjoy doing some extras. HOD has also given me the feeling that I can help our dc explore their individual interests, hobbies, etc. by trying different things with the free time extra time in the day provides. This has been fun and fulfilling! This thread shows there are many possible answers to this question - and most are successful provided HOD's getting done - it's just very flexible. Good question!

In Christ,
Julie

[erin.kate]

I did - I don't. I think it is fine to add if moms and dc enjoy what they are adding, and if it doesn't detract from doing HOD. For us, we used to do a bunch of different things, but they are all showing up in HOD eventually. We did a composer study (now it's in RevtoRev), we did painting (now it's in CTC), art appreciation (in RTR and will be in RevtoRev), nature study (HOD science is already living), Bible music sing alongs (music is now in every guide somehow), etc. Sooooo, I have stopped the extras and just enjoy the 3 HOD programs we do. If I had one child, I would probably enjoy doing some extras. HOD has also given me the feeling that I can help our dc explore their individual interests, hobbies, etc. by trying different things with the free time extra time in the day provides. This has been fun and fulfilling! This thread shows there are many possible answers to this question - and most are successful provided HOD's getting done - it's just very flexible. Good question!

In Christ,
Julie

Hi Julie.
Well you have been tremendously helpful ... I love knowing that art and music will be sprinkled in along the way. That makes me feel less pressure and more able just to really enjoy HOD and each other!
Is it July yet? Can't wait to get started.