Placement challenge - your thoughts & experience welcome!

[abrightmom]

Ladies,

My 8.5 year old is MORE THAN READY to start Bigger ASAP. He's really ready for either Bigger or Preparing but I think Bigger is a better plan overall..... He NEEDS the challenge and the structure of the program. I have been sorely tempted to wait until fall and move him to Preparing (he'll be 9 then) for 3rd grade. But he hasn't had the benefit of studying with HOD yet and I'm a teensy bit concerned about getting in over our heads.

I've planned to combine DD 5 (just turned) and DS (almost) 7 in LHFHG. DS7 is blossoming right now .... If I wait too long LHFHG is going to be too "young" for him although I think it is "just right" for him NOW (as long as we're working on skills at Beyond's right side level). He could very easily start in Beyond (though not Bigger with his brother) also and work straight from the guide. He's a little ahead of the curve with spelling, reading & math since he's going to be repeating first grade (we decided pretty early on to hold him back but he's suddenly going full steam ahead ....).

My challenge:

DD5 doesn't seem ready for much of LHFHG yet. I *think* I'm willing to try although it's really a concession out of desperation to combine. I foresee getting a year or maybe two down the road and needing to slow her down to half speed for a guide (Beyond or Bigger perhaps). This puts our family using 3 HOD Guides with children who are only 3.5 years apart (though they are all over the map academically ).

I can't know the future or how each child will progress....

At what point is running 3 guides comfortable? I think my kids are really too close together to do this successfully YET they are too far apart skill wise right now for me to feel super comfy in combining. My older two need to move forward while my daughter needs to just "be".

Admittedly, what I love about HOD is proving to be my undoing! I adore the guides, the skill progression, etc. but when I combine I feel like I'm losing some of that as many of the skills I want are intertwined amongst the content subjects of the guides. They build on one another beautifully which is why starting my middle son NOW seems right. Asking my daughter to WAIT seems right. Moving my big boy full steam ahead IS right for him (whether it is with Bigger or Preparing).

I'm looking for any creative solutions to using HOD that I haven't thought of..... full speed, half speed, stagger starts, placing a kid in a different guide from my original plan (caveat: oldest son absolutely MUST use Bigger or Preparing). I am still moving forward with preparations to begin Little Hearts and Bigger although I don't know who will do what or if I should think about starting in different guides this fall.... and keeping DD out of the HOD line-up until she is 6.

My two scenarios would look like this:

Year One: Bigger with 1 kid, Little Hearts with 1 kid, a young K'er working on very basic skills (reading, writing, #s)
Year Two: Preparing with 1 kid, Beyond with 1 kid, Little Hearts with 1 kid (this seems overwhelming)

Year One: Preparing with 1 kid (perhaps taking a slow start to ease in), Beyond with 1 kid, young K'er working on basic skills (no guide)
Year Two: CTC with 1 kid, Bigger with 1 kid, Little Hearts with a 6 year old advanced K or young 1st grader (depending upon how she blossoms this year)

In either scenario I have a toddler and I am a low-energy Mom who is easily overwhelmed physically. I have a TON of mental and heart energy but unfortunately my body/health cannot always keep up....by God's design.

Thanks for your never ending patience and grace in helping me try to find a good fit for our family! I must be overcomplicating things but every time I set my mind to plan/prep. I hit a snag (i.e. such as realizing that my daughter is simply NOT ready to begin and I do NOT have peace about pushing her right now).

With humility and gratitude,

[KTLM6]

I do agree with you on using Bigger for your 8 yr old. I jumped into Preparing with my dd who, at the time, was 9 and in 4th grade. We had no previous experience with HOD or any of the Charlotte Mason methods. I ended up dropping the program for awhile. I couldn't afford to buy the previous guide, but the skills in Preparing took more getting used to than I expected. Preparing is a wonderful program. Now, a year later, she is blossoming using it. Using Bigger will still have your son in the age range, though a bit on the upper half. For me, I am fine with that. I think my dd is picking up on and retaining so much more than she would have last year. It was stressful to me to want Preparing to work, but realize too late that I had placed her wrong. It would have been less stressful for me to start her with HOD using Bigger and let her progress in the skill areas.

I can't comment on your younger children since I haven't used many of those guides. I do know that if you don't have peace about pushing your daughter, then follow that and pray. Sometimes it only takes a few weeks or months for a child to mature and be ready for something new. I've seen the negative results of pushing too hard, and I know there are so many other ways. I am sure that you'll get lots of suggestions that are much more informative.

[pjdobro]

It sounds like your older son is ready to go, so starting with Bigger on Monday sounds like a great idea. How about just start there for a bit and get used to that one guide? What are you doing now for school for your 5 and 7 year old? I'm thinking that in a few months, your dd might be ready for LHFHG. It's amazing to me how quickly they mature at this age and how much things can change in a few months. In the meantime if you need to be doing something different than what you are doing now with your 7 year old, how about just doing the basics (right side) in Beyond right now. I'm thinking if you give it a few months then your dd might be ready to begin in the fall. In the meantime you can get used to running one guide fully, Bigger with your older ds. In a few months you can re-evaluate and see whether or not to combine your dd5 and ds7 in LHFHG or start your ds7 in Beyond. I'm thinking a little bit of time just getting used to running one guide might help ease your fears and give you a better idea of how to schedule your day when adding in another guide later. I hope that gives you another idea to ponder.

[momofgreatones]

Hi Katrina,

My suggestion would be to go ahead and start your 5 and 7 yo in Little Hearts. (Unless of course your 5 yo dd is not close at all to Little Hearts skill-wise on the placement chart...) I am doing this now with my 5 and 7 yo. My 5 yo dd would still be happy as a clam in LHTH, but I'd already decided she and my 7 yo ds are a pair going through the guides, so I began them together in Little Hearts when we finished LHTH. My 5 yo wasn't "unready" I wouldn't say, but she wasn't as ready as my 7 yo, of course. But I can honestly tell you that it is working so well, because of the way the program is laid out. They do the left side together and the nature of the material is that it meets each of them where they are at. They are both getting different things from the readings and activities, but they are both enjoying them immensely. They love being together as a little "class" , tossing the ball to each other for scripture memory verses, the Dramatic Play and Thinking Games, etc. They are each far apart from one another in what they are doing on the right side of the guides - the three R's basically. My 7 yo is doing the math activities from Beyond, my 5 yo is doing math from Little Hearts. They are far apart in their reading and handwriting abilities. But none of this affects their ability to enjoy the content areas of the guide. The biggest challenge for my 5 yo has been the Storytime books. At first she was not overly enthused with them because they have no pictures. They didn't hold her attention and she complained when we would read them. But I persevered, and by the end of the first book she had improved a lot. We just started the second book and she now listens much better and is even starting to answer some of the questions and begin mini-narrations. It has been an important skill for her to learn and was a good challenge for her to take on and succeed at! We still read other picture books at other times of the day so she is getting that too.

All that to say, you may find a similar situation if you start your two together in Little Hearts. Your 5 yo may progress nicely and enable you to keep them in one guide. It isn't pushing her if you keep her 3 R's at her own level, which you can do by following her lead on the right side of the guide. I wouldn't worry about what to do if she needs slowed down in a later guide, since you can't predict that now and she may progress without ever needing that. You can cross that bridge when you come to it!

I'd keep your oldest little guy in Bigger, and he will probably be really ready for Preparing next year and enjoy it even more. I haven't done Preparing yet, but I understand that it begins to be much more independent with that guide. If you do this plan, you'll be set up to be teaching only two guides as you progress, and the older one will always be in a more independent guide, which would be very manageable for you. My .02.

[birchbark]

It sounds like your older son is ready to go, so starting with Bigger on Monday sounds like a great idea. How about just start there for a bit and get used to that one guide? What are you doing now for school for your 5 and 7 year old? I'm thinking that in a few months, your dd might be ready for LHFHG. It's amazing to me how quickly they mature at this age and how much things can change in a few months. In the meantime if you need to be doing something different than what you are doing now with your 7 year old, how about just doing the basics (right side) in Beyond right now. I'm thinking if you give it a few months then your dd might be ready to begin in the fall. In the meantime you can get used to running one guide fully, Bigger with your older ds. In a few months you can re-evaluate and see whether or not to combine your dd5 and ds7 in LHFHG or start your ds7 in Beyond. I'm thinking a little bit of time just getting used to running one guide might help ease your fears and give you a better idea of how to schedule your day when adding in another guide later. I hope that gives you another idea to ponder.

I like this.

[abrightmom]

Thanks ladies....good ideas to chew on.

We're on pause because we had an eventful weekend that threw off my ability to be prepared for Monday!

[Carrie]

Katrina,

I think that the ladies have shared fabulous advice, and you have done an amazing job of researching your kiddos fit at present, but one element is truly missing from your assessment... and that is trying it out. So much of the "correct fit" in HOD can only be discovered by really trying what you have planned. So, with this in mind, I would set aside the time you are currently spending researching, and open the Bigger Hearts guide and teach. I say this in all love, as I am a born researcher and planner to the hilt.

I would plan to give Bigger Hearts a good 6 weeks before summer to truly see its progression and see its fit for your son. At some point in that journey, I would add in LHFHG before summer break to truly put your mind at rest. You will honestly never know how it will go, if you do not have a trial period. During this trial time, I would be careful not to continue researching but would really focus on the guides and putting all your energies into making them work in your home with your family.

In this manner by the time you reach summer, you will know whether your children are well-placed and will have a glimpse of how HOD works in your home. You will have the summer to think on your plans and have good information on how to make HOD fit your family in the fall, but you will be armed with a real test as to how well placed your kiddos are. I caution you that you will not see the full fruition of HOD after only 6 weeks, as it takes a full year to really be able to look back and see the fruit, but you will have a glimpse of your own kiddos using HOD, which is better than reading anyone else's glimpse.

Our God is a God of peace, and I find that when I am continually researching, I am not peaceful. This is why I encourage you to set aside your research for a short season and give HOD a real try. We're here to help you as you go, and we want to make your journey as peaceful as possible. We look forward to helping you as you begin! I'm doing Bigger Hearts now with my third little guy, and we have seen such tremendous progress already. Bigger Hearts has much woven within the plans and is very rich in the day-to-day! We pray you will find the same to be true.

Blessings,
Carrie

[MomtoJGJE]

Just wanted to let you know that I also have 3 kids in 3.5 years who are all at completely different academic levels. I tried combining the middle two (I also have a toddler!) and it was a lot of stress on all of us. I split them and now everyone absolutely loves school! Right now I"m doing Bigger, LHFHG, and LHTH.... by January I'll be doing Preparing, Beyond, and LHFHG. It is so much easier now that they are all in their correct placement than it was when I was combining with LHTH!

[abrightmom]

Katrina,

I think that the ladies have shared fabulous advice, and you have done an amazing job of researching your kiddos fit at present, but one element is truly missing from your assessment... and that is trying it out. So much of the "correct fit" in HOD can only be discovered by really trying what you have planned. So, with this in mind, I would set aside the time you are currently spending researching, and open the Bigger Hearts guide and teach. I say this in all love, as I am a born researcher and planner to the hilt.

I would plan to give Bigger Hearts a good 6 weeks before summer to truly see its progression and see its fit for your son. At some point in that journey, I would add in LHFHG before summer break to truly put your mind at rest. You will honestly never know how it will go, if you do not have a trial period. During this trial time, I would be careful not to continue researching but would really focus on the guides and putting all your energies into making them work in your home with your family.

In this manner by the time you reach summer, you will know whether your children are well-placed and will have a glimpse of how HOD works in your home. You will have the summer to think on your plans and have good information on how to make HOD fit your family in the fall, but you will be armed with a real test as to how well placed your kiddos are. I caution you that you will not see the full fruition of HOD after only 6 weeks, as it takes a full year to really be able to look back and see the fruit, but you will have a glimpse of your own kiddos using HOD, which is better than reading anyone else's glimpse.

Our God is a God of peace, and I find that when I am continually researching, I am not peaceful. This is why I encourage you to set aside your research for a short season and give HOD a real try. We're here to help you as you go, and we want to make your journey as peaceful as possible. We look forward to helping you as you begin! I'm doing Bigger Hearts now with my third little guy, and we have seen such tremendous progress already. Bigger Hearts has much woven within the plans and is very rich in the day-to-day! We pray you will find the same to be true.

Blessings,
Carrie

Carrie,

Wow....you have such a way with words and it's definitely taken in love! Your love for the Lord, for other Moms & their kids, and for home schooling comes through! I appreciate your boldness in saying what needs to be said... it's honoring to the Lord and you are right. Thanks for saying what you did. I'll share it with my sweet, patient, long suffering husband.

I'm almost ready to plunge in....I have just had to exhaust all possibilities and really grapple with ME....I confess to being pulled between classical education (my first love) and HOD. I want both! I hope it's O.K. to say that here. That's really at the heart of my struggle and one I'm still contending with (and perhaps I will for some time). There's a lot there for me....letting go of other curricula that I loved.... struggling with the uniqueness of HOD's placement.....assessing my kiddos.....nailing down the areas that are important to ME and that I'm unwilling to waver on..... recognizing where I need to submit and give up my desires for something different (and perhaps better).....wondering if I can DO 2 (and likely 3) guides....my kids are very different from one another though they are close in age.....my oldest is "older" and I've ALWAYS under challenged him..... I don't want to do that again. I've done it every year.....he amazes me.

Yes, I am a researcher at heart. There is so much to LEARN and I have a lot of questions . There is a time to stop though and TEACH. You are so right. God is a God of peace....and I certainly have NOT be peaceful. My original plan was to use HOD for 2 years and then evaluate. Two years....or two guides per kid....whatever comes first .

Thanks again Carrie. I have been praying for your family as I know you're in the trenches during this very busy season. God has given me many opportunities to explain how HOD works to others and every time I explain, link, etc. I am reminded about how excellent the guides are. Thanks for your patience and understanding toward me as well as I'm in process.

Katrina

[Carrie]

Katrina,

I can fully understand your struggle. When I first entered homeschooling, I began with Sonlight and had a plan mapped out all the way through graduation (including plans for two unborn children). When I parted ways from Sonlight, I knew it was time to go, as there were more things each year that showed me it wasn't a good fit for our family. Next, I moved onto a more CM-style education and did Ambleside for three years with my oldest son. By the end of that time, I could tell that I still desired a more Christ-centered education for him than what he was receiving, and I wanted to interact with him more too! By then, I was writing guides for my younger kiddos and just began having my oldest pilot our next guides in line with extensions in very rough form. I can tell you that I noticed a big change in him and in his heart and our relationship as we moved into doing this. While I still have more planning to do for him each year than for my other children, I just trust the Lord from year-to-year to show me the route to go for my oldest son.

I have true peace with my youngers as they move through the HOD guides. I have found that peace comes from the Lord, and from knowing the path my children will take. Yet, for me I also have to know that the skills are covered well, and even more importantly that God's word is saturated throughout all we do. In this way my children will deeply know their Lord and Savior, crave a relationship with Him, and be equipped to do whatever He calls them to do!

I have some regrets with my older child's education, even though he is such a strong academic learner, yet I have no regrets for my next three. That is a weight that I no longer carry daily. I pray the Lord will give you His peace as you see how HOD works for you.

Blessings,
Carrie