Post
by pjdobro » Mon Apr 11, 2011 12:58 pm
Daph, this thread had examples of the various levels of dictation:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1221
It's so easy to second guess ourselves, isn't it? I will say that there is more than meets the eye to Bigger so don't second guess yourself too soon. On the other hand, Preparing is a wonderful program, and we're looking forward to starting it here this fall with my 4th graders. Don't start making comparisons though because we've been doing the guides for 3 years now, and my dc are familiar with a lot of the CM skills used. If the cursive is the only thing holding your dd back from Preparing though, I don't think that would be too big a deal. A bigger consideration would be things like how well does she listen to the read alouds and retain the information. Can she narrate back a longer passage? Is she ready to begin doing written narrations? Can she follow directions to do the notebooking and science experiments independently? Is she ready to do more involved research and vocabulary work? Is she ready for quite a bit more writing each day? Here is a great thread about the writing in Preparing versus Bigger:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3602 I would look at those things carefully and perhaps look at the first weeks of Bigger and Preparing again. Just starting out with the CM and HOD way of doing things, I don't think you want to overwhelm your daughter or yourself. It's different (better IMHO) than textbook learning. So if you're coming from that way of learning (forgive me I don't remember

) starting a bit on the easier side is a good way to get your feet wet and get familiar with the new way of learning. Oh and don't worry about the extensions unless you really feel that your daughter needs them. Bigger really is a full program as written with the extensions.

Patty in NC
b/g twins '02 Rev2Rev 2014/15
previously enjoyed LHFHG, BLHFHG, Bigger, Preparing, CTC, RTR
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