Newbie..placement and a few q's

[kwickimom]

Hi! I have totally fallen in love with HOD and want to use it next year. This was my first year HS'ing and I used a bunch of different things, and now I know I want something all planned out for me

I placed my DS in LHFHG, he is 5.

For my DD soon to be 9....she places mostly in Preparing because she will be "4th grade" knows cursive and has completed R&S 3. I see a lot of kiddos her age being placed in Bigger and I am wondering if I should do Bigger with extensions, or if Preparing is the place to be. I kind of looked ahead and if she does Preparing this year....am I right that she will be done with Rev2Rev in 7th? I know there is a HS program out, but will this mean she will be doing the HS program in 8th?

Can I really run 2 kids right off the bat?? I figure if I run into problems, I can do LHFHG half speed as we school year round and then try and pick up pace by the following year.


Thanks in advance for advice, i am so excited about this curriculum!!

Erin

[MomtoJGJE]

I think I might place her in Bigger if she seems like she might place in Preparing. I know that doesn't make sense, but the greatness of the program is that when they are placed correctly it really flows well. Of course I don't know what you've done before, but if you haven't done a Charlotte Mason type program then Bigger would be a great training year, especially if it is slightly easy for her. I don't know what to do about the English, but with Cursive you would either do another year of cursive or just have her do her copywork in cursive for practice and skip that part of the guide.

Now, if she truly places well in Preparing, and you've done Charlotte Mason, then Preparing would be the way to go! My oldest will be in Preparing for her 3rd-4th grade year (we school year round with her guides starting in January) and will be doing the first high school guide in what would be her 8th grade year. The guides prepare the kiddos for the next guide very very well.

LHFHG is a wonderful program too We have loved every minute of it!

[momofjka]

I am going to be homeschooling for the first time this year coming up, and went through the EXACT same questions as you. My DS will be 9 and going into 4th grade and "placed" on the chart for Preparing too. He is very smart in History, Science, and English and has been using Abeka for the last 4 years of private school. But everyone told me that Bigger would be the better level for my DS because there is more writing and independent work in Preparing, he had never done dictation or oral/written narrations, and because Charlotte Mason style of teaching/learning was new for us both. I think we could have made Preparing work for us, but along with the above, my other concern was that he would be in CTC the following year (which is more intense and has even more independent work and writing)...and I wasn't sure he'd be ready for that. So after alot of prayer, I ordered Bigger with Singapore Math 2A/2B, R&S 3 (he could have done 4, but w/ switching curriculums I wanted to make sure there were no gaps), and DITHOR 2/3. I had been really concerned that Bigger wouldn't be enough to challenge him because he is very smart (he has always scored several grade levels above on the SAT's) and makes high grades at school. But after getting the materials in, I think it will be perfect for us.
I agree with momtoJGJE, it really depends on what you've used for past materials and the style of teaching you've done. I think Bigger "as is" to start would be fine (you could always add the extensions later if you find your DD needs more) and maybe order the guide for Preparing (we did this just to use for the English and for the dictation. Then I will already have it for next year!)
If your DD has never done Singapore Math, you should also go to the Singapore math website and have her do the placement test...(just be sure to use the one for US edition, not standard... they are not the same). I was surprised at where my DS placed, but Singapore Math is more advanced than other programs. Hope this helps... biggest thing to do is use the placement chart, get council, and PRAY! God will direct you to the right level for your DS.

Jennifer

[creativemommy]

You can do 2 programs at once! LHFHG is a lot of fun and we finished most days within 1 1/2 hours or less when we did it last year. I'll be doing it again this coming school year with my dd while my ds is doing Bigger.

[kwickimom]

We use math mammoth and are sticking with it. My DD places in Preparing for just about everything....we did follow mostly WTM, so she has done narrations and dictations all year. That wont be a problem.

Also, now that I look at it closer, we just did American History this year also, so I hate to repeat. I guess I will go with Preparing and hope for the best. I get to do Bigger with the boys, so we wont totally miss out.

Thanks for the input!!

[blessedmomof4]

I kind of looked ahead and if she does Preparing this year....am I right that she will be done with Rev2Rev in 7th? I know there is a HS program out, but will this mean she will be doing the HS program in 8th?

Rev to Rev is the 3rd course in a history cycle. HOD is scheduled to have the 4th book in the cycle, which will cover Modern Times, out in 2012, followed by a Geography-based guide in 2013. These guides all have age ranges, so if your daughter finishes Rev to Rev in "7th grade" you would simply follow with the next guide (Modern Times) for 8th. Here is a link to the Scope and Sequence of HOD: http://www.heartofdakota.com/scope.php

[kwickimom]

I kind of looked ahead and if she does Preparing this year....am I right that she will be done with Rev2Rev in 7th? I know there is a HS program out, but will this mean she will be doing the HS program in 8th?

Rev to Rev is the 3rd course in a history cycle. HOD is scheduled to have the 4th book in the cycle, which will cover Modern Times, out in 2012, followed by a Geography-based guide in 2013. These guides all have age ranges, so if your daughter finishes Rev to Rev in "7th grade" you would simply follow with the next guide (Modern Times) for 8th. Here is a link to the Scope and Sequence of HOD: http://www.heartofdakota.com/scope.php

thanks! I somehow missed that page