Would this work?

[mirandahoops]

I currently have 3 children that are now in public school, but I am going to be homeschooling them after this school year. I have previously used Little Hands to Heaven and enjoyed it very much. I would like to use another HOD program. My kids will be ages 10, 8, and 7. Their grade levels respectively would be 4, 3, and 1. I am thinking about using Bigger Hearts for His Glory for all 3 children, using the extensions for the older 2, but wondered if BHFHG would be too difficult for my 7 year old. He is a beginning reader, and struggles with that. I have a phonics/reading program that I will work with separately for him as well. Thank you!

[GinainMD]

Hello and Welcome! I haven't used Bigger yet so cannot help there. Praying that God will direct you to the right choice for your sweeties.

[sahervey]

I am going to be a new homeschool mom next year. I decided to make it super easy on myself and not get too overwhelmed. So...I'm using Bigger for my 3 kids too. Mine will be 11, 9, and 7 (5th, 4th, and 1st grades). Yes, I know they may place a little differently, but we'll see how it works out. My 7 year old is a great reader and is just finishing kindergarten this year, so he'll be doing the Emerging Readers. I figure for math and English, I'll just get the books where he places and not the ones that Bigger calls for. Then as far as History, read alouds, Bible, and science goes, he'll pick up what he can. I won't expect the same from him that I do for the older 2. Next year, I'll either re-do bigger with him and expect a lot more or go on to the next one. I'll just have to weigh that at the end of next year. No rush.

[lharris]

Hello,
Carrie would have you check the placement chart, she has suggested circling the squares for each child for placement, then compare your results. I think you could easily keep the 4th and 3rd grader together with Bigger with hardly no adjustments, due to lack of skills taught at ps. When your older ones are doing some independent work with Bigger, you could take the half hour and work from a younger HOD manual for the first grader. I would hate for your little one to miss the absolute joy of Little Hearts for His Glory, a wonderful first grade program, again, depending on his skill, he/she could also fit better with Beyond. I love the Little Hearts because you spend the whole year with reading aloud Thorton Burgess classics storytimes that are an absolute joy but a little new because your child will not be used to listening to non-picture books at first. What wonderful memories you will build with your kids! (all your kids will love to be included in storytimes from both Bigger and Little Hearts if you go that route). One alarming new literacy problem that is now surfacing with children is the lack of visualizing text (story) without the use of pictures. You get such a great start in this with HOD at the younger levels, that I hate to see little ones miss it. I've had teenagers tell me they couldn't get past the first few pages of a novel because they can't "see" what's happening. Public school kids are no longer read aloud to in the classroom (especially older grades), so your older students may be sorely lacking in listening to novels unless they have always done so with their wonderful mom! It is vital (and why I love HOD) that older children continue to be read-aloud to by the mom, well into the teenage years. This will be new for them. Welcome to HOD! Congratulations on your choice -- it is the best program on the market. Your children will love it!
Laura
Librarian and mom of 3

[Gwenny]

I would think that the Bigger would be way too much for your little one. I agree with lharris, the Little Hearts or Beyond would be great for them. I just started Bigger with two of mine, and the youngest is 8.5, first time doing CM stuff. It's a lot for her and she's a fantastic reader and speller. I would think she would miss so much by not learning the skills she would gain by using the younger guides. I really think that if I didn't have to combine her with my older (because we are doing 4 guides already) then Beyond would still be good for her. She will be 9 in April. I don't even think you would need to do extensions with the olders, but if they are great readers it would be okay. There is really so much more to do in the guide than it seems when you are glancing over it. They are fantastic!
Just some thoughts!
Nancy

[Samuel'sMommy]

I agree with the others that Bigger may be too much for your 1st grader. You will definitely want to check the placement chart to be sure. My son is currently doing Little Hearts for Kindergarten and we will be using Beyond for 1st grade. I already have the guide and after looking for it, I may even have to slow some of it down at first to allow him time to grow into it since he's on the young end of the guide. He definitely would not be ready for Bigger in 1st grade.

I only have 1 child so I have no experience doing more than one guide, but there are several ladies on here that do 2, 3 and even 4 guides and say it is not as hard as it seems. I'm sure they would be willing to answer your questions if you decide to split your kiddos up.

[tnahid]

I agree that Bigger would be too much for a 1st grader. You could try to use Beyond for the youngest, or you could possibly use Beyond with all three, and add extensions to the Beyond guide somehow? My 7 and now 10 year olds do Beyond with no extensions and it is working out just fine. My older does higher math and LA of course. I think that might work if you desire to just stick with one guide, but I think Bigger would be too much for the youngest personally. Especially for this being your first year at home (as mine was this year with HOD) I am glad I chose Beyond and put them all together. It made this year really enjoyable for me. Blessings!

[blessedmomof4]

Also agreeing Bigger would probably be too much for your youngest. HOD guides are written with a narrow age range in order to target kids where they are developmentally. Each guide builds on the skills learned in the one before it. Using Bigger for your older two, and using Little Hearts or Beyond for your youngest (depending on where he fits best on the placement chart http://www.heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php ) would be a good way to go. One thing you can do to save time in the day, besides working with the youngest while the olders are working on something independent, is to choose one Storytime and do it with all of the children, rather than doing the Storytime from both guides. This way, you have a "family together time" without lengthening your day.
As for the Extensions in Bigger, keep in mind they range in reading level from 4.0 to 6.7, and are intended to be read independently by the child, and they shoul be able to write a brief summary twice a week and give an oral narration twice a week, and draw a picture with a caption once a week, to demonstrate their understanding of the day's scheduled reading. If your older children are really strong independent readers, then use the Extensions, otherwise they may even not need them. Bigger Hearts is a very full and rich program as written.
If you plan to use Singapore Math, be sure to visit the Singapore Math website and print out the free placment tests. Singapore is more advanced and has a different scope and sequence than most American programs, so your children may place 1 to 2 levels lower than their grade.

[mirandahoops]

Thank you so much for all of your advice. I think I will try them all with Beyond Little Hearts for His Glory, and just add to it for the older ones. I appreciate your advice.