Advice on where to re-start....

[inHistiming]

Hello, all. I have used HOD various years, but have not gotten through a full year in quite a while without switching to something else, then regretting it. That's a problem with me though, not HOD. I miss HOD, but I know I can only handle using one guide right now. That was the reason I was switching, trying to find a way to combine my 3 oldest (now almost 14, almost 12, and 8.5). But, nothing I have tried has really satisfied me, esp. in the area of bible-centeredness, if that makes sense. So, with that in mind, I would love advice from anyone willing for what might work well to combine just the almost 12 and 8.5 yo..

My 12 yo has gone through most of Preparing.....missed about the last 10 units. My 8 yo has not done much from HOD, just a few weeks combined with his sister mostly. I would really like to begin with CTC.....but not sure as my son is just under the youngest age listed.

Another scenario might be to just start my 8.5 yo back in HOD exactly where he is on the placement chart and try to find something my daughter can do on her own, but with LOTS of accountability built in. We have had a problem with that in the past, which is why I thought maybe these two need to be combined. Of course, I have 2.5 yo & 14 month old daughters as well, so it's very busy around here. Plus, I now work from home 5-10 hrs a week, so have to fit that in somewhere. My oldest son will be using an independent program, so we don't need to worry about him right now....though I really wish the high school level programs were ready so he could jump right back in too!

Anyway, I think I'm babbling now. I would love any thoughts you ladies could offer. I really do miss the solid biblical teaching within the HOD programs and truly want to find a way to dive back in. Thank you in advance!

By the way, my plan has always been to begin from the start in HOD with my youngest two, but I really want to get back here before then.....

[my3sons]

inHistiming - I just wanted to say "hi" and that I've missed you - and also, that I am going to think on this a bit. All my dc are running around me shooting their nerf guns, and I'm supposed to be getting supper on the table here now too, dh just walked in the door and had a not-so-great day at work he wants to talk about. Definitely NOT the environment for some good thinking to take place , and I really do want to think clearly about this here. I will definitely get back to you here though when I can actually think clearly! Maybe someone else will have some words of advice that is in a calmer environment!

In Christ,
Julie

[water2wine]

Welcome back!!!!! So glad to see you!

Just looking at what you are saying here I am wondering if you have considered putting the 12 year old in CTC or where they fit best and then placing the 8 year old where they fit best. You have a 4 year span there and I honestly think it would be less work to run them right at their placement than to try to combine a span that big. Is that possible for you?

[inHistiming]

W2W, yes I have considered that! Actually, I have both Bigger and CTC in my shopping cart right now, just so I could see how much it would cost to get both new. I'm not sure I can pay the money right now for both.

I would likely start my son first because he is the one who has barely experienced HOD at all, and then possibly my daughter later on. I have so much here already I hate to even think about buying anything, but it just doesn't work and I don't think we've had biblical teaching done as well with anything else. That's most important to me right now.

My main issue with having them in separate guides is time. If I can find a way to just relax, not worry so much about every one of the boxes being completed each day, then I think it would work. But,if I begin expecting to finish within 9-10 months I know it won't work at all. If I chose separate guides, we would begin Bigger in January, most likely, then by Feb. or March my daughter will be finished with her current curr. and ready to start CTC with extensions. I would plan to just finish with both by May of 2013, which would give me plenty of wiggle room, I think, especially since my soon to be 14 yo will be going into high school in the fall.

I do think it would benefit us a lot by having one-on-one time with each of them, though.

Thoughts?

[Kathleen]

inhistiming - Popping in to say hi, too! I'm kind of thinking that I like your Bigger/CTC idea for placement (especially since you've already used most of Preparing). There is a lot in CTC that is independent. I think that it was an hour-hour and a half that it took of me. And, you would want to check up on all the boxes with your dd. I try to do this during our day here, but I have to admit that is the hardest thing for me to get squeezed in. Inevitably one of the little guys needs a diaper changed or has just dumped a box of cereal on the floor or is playing in the toilet... So, sometimes it gets pushed to the afternoon or I look over things after bedtime and chat with Grant as we begin the next morning. I'm guessing that you haven't found anything else that really makes your day enough easier that it's worth the trade in content? I haven't done any hopping around, but that's what I have assumed. Homeschooling/raising 5 kids is going to be work, and my days are going to be full. I know that I love HOD because of the wonderful content and saturation with God's Word, so we are pressing on and really enjoying our days. Praying that you have wisdom in this decision. We'd love to see you back here on the board, and I'm sure that you will love those special moments in God's Word with your kids as you're teaching them! I agree - that's most important!

Kathleen

[water2wine]

It is really very doable to run CTC and Bigger. One thing you can do to help a bit is lead your youngest to be a little more independent over time. I found the box under History Reading that changes daily was very easy to have be semi independent. My kids also always did the science projects pretty much themselves with coming to me if they needed help, showing me what happened when it was done, and then we would talk about it afterwards. I did have more than one kid working together but you might find your dd can become more independent as well. I am not meaning to completely let them go more just that they can get going on their own and get quite a bit done that way. My kids actually really enjoy doing it that way.

[Carrie]

inHistiming,

It is good to "see" you again. In thinking about what you've shared so far, my feeling is that there is much wisdom in the advice the ladies have given in this thread. You could possibly combine your two kiddos in Bigger Hearts, however since your daughter has already done more than 3/4 of Preparing, and if I remember right has also already been through Bigger before, then I think combining the pair in Bigger would be too much of a step back (and a repeat) for your daughter.

With this in mind, it does make more sense to place your two kiddos where each fits individually on the placement chart. I would lean toward CTC for your daughter and either Bigger, or possibly Beyond, for your son (depending on where he fits best). Since he's 8, he could do either Beyond or Bigger. If you were desiring to combine, it is possible that your oldest two could possibly be combined in CTC (as I'm thinking that neither of your older two have ever done that particular program). I know your oldest did a quarter or so of RTR, but combining the pair in CTC wouldn't be a repeat then. Anyway, just a thought, if you are looking to combine somewhere. If your oldest is happily placed in something else, then there is no need to consider a switch, but I just thought I'd mention it as a possible combining scenario.

Feel free to pop back and share a bit more about where your kiddos fit on the first page mainly of the placement chart. That will help us advise you even better.

Blessings,
Carrie

[inHistiming]

Thanks, Carrie, for popping in to help me.

Beginning in Bigger... with my 12 and 8 yo is not an option. My daughter has already completed that program and I decided previously not to repeat it with her, esp. since she's already done most of Preparing...as well. My daughter places in CTC...quite well, so I do believe that would be the best place for her, without the extensions but along with DITHOR. I'm still not sure if we will go with HOD for her. We had been looking at something more online, but nothing has been decided yet. My husband will weigh in more on that decision when it comes down to it.

My 8 yo I think is capable of going through Bigger....however, I believe I would prefer to start him back in Beyond....simply because he is still within that age range, I think he would truly enjoy it, and since it takes less time I believe it would benefit all of us more right now. We did begin R&S 2 but have only done about 18 lessons, so I'm not sure if I should continue with that or if I should drop it until we get to Bigger. Any thoughts on that?

[my3sons]

I am just getting back here and see you have received good advice to ponder. We did RTR and BIgger Hearts last year, and found that easy to do together. I think CTC and Bigger Hearts would work well too. Your 8 yo really could do either Beyond or Bigger Hearts. We enjoyed both of those very much. A few differences between Beyond and Bigger are the level of difficulty in assignments and the amount of writing. I thought maybe this comparison between the two from a previous thread may help...

...Bigger requires more writing in the areas of a once a week history notebooking assignment, a once a week science experiment sheet and a once a week science notebooking entry, along with once a week copywork of a Bible verse, 1-3 vocabulary cards each week, cursive handwriting practice daily, and daily grammar instruction with written practice. It also provides a choice of spelling or dictation passages. If your little one sounds like that would be fine for her, she belongs in Bigger. If not, then Beyond would be best. Beyond has much less writing doing copywork daily from the poetry, using a gentle once a week introduction to grammar, and writing daily for very short spelling lessons...

As far as R & S English 2, if your ds is doing well with it, I'd keep going. You could drop to doing it half-speed and finish it out during the next year too. You could read through the lesson together and do the oral drill part one day, and then have ds do the written part (of that same lesson) the next day. That way, even though it would be half-speed, ds would still be getting daily English. That's just an idea though.

HTH!
In Christ,
Julie

[inHistiming]

Great idea, Julie! That's probably what we will do. I don't think I'm comfortable dropping it completely, but half-speed should work well. He'll like that, I know. Plus, it will be easier for me to complete the boxes with him since his LA box will only take slightly more time instead of a full lesson's worth.

Another couple of questions:

We have always used A Reason for Handwriting (with all of my kids) but I noticed there's a different program offered now, Cheerful Cursive. Would it be more beneficial for us to switch to that? He has not begun cursive yet, but will very shortly after the new year.

And, he is a very good reader, but since he has never done the emergent readers should we stick with that to get him used to answering the questions before heading into DITHOR?

[inHistiming]

I ended up going with Beyond, and will continue to use ARFH for handwriting until we finish our current book. Very excited about getting back to HOD! Decisions about dd will come later since she's not quite finished with her current curr. Thanks so much for all of the suggestions!

[my3sons]

Great idea, Julie! That's probably what we will do. I don't think I'm comfortable dropping it completely, but half-speed should work well. He'll like that, I know. Plus, it will be easier for me to complete the boxes with him since his LA box will only take slightly more time instead of a full lesson's worth.

Another couple of questions:

We have always used A Reason for Handwriting (with all of my kids) but I noticed there's a different program offered now, Cheerful Cursive. Would it be more beneficial for us to switch to that? He has not begun cursive yet, but will very shortly after the new year.

And, he is a very good reader, but since he has never done the emergent readers should we stick with that to get him used to answering the questions before heading into DITHOR?

You can easily sub in ARFH as you are familiar with it and have enjoyed it in the past. As far as your question about ERS or DITHOR, the ERS usually has about 3 questions and leads dc to have familiarity with oral narration skills. It has no written work. The book levels range from Level 1 to Level 4, or so. DITHOR Level 2/3 books range from 3.0 to 4.1. So, the ERS will have a wider range of reading levels that begin with easier books, and then progress gradually to more difficult books. In DITHOR 2/3, the books will be more focused on the ending range of the ERS books, while also being a greater length with fewer pictures in most cases. Also, DITHOR has not only oral discussion questions, but also writing that is done in the 2/3 Student Book about 2-3 times each week. There are also other accompanying activities like the kickoff, prereading strategies, vocabulary, story element studies, Godly character trait studies, and final projects. It is quite a bit more difficult than the ERS. I'm hoping these descriptions may help you see where you think your ds would fit best, but if you are still feeling like he is somewhere between the ERS and DITHOR 2/3, you may want to start him in the middle of the ERS or so. This would give him half a year of the upper end of ERS and half a year of DITHOR 2/3. HTH - sorry to just be getting back to ya - busy season! I hope you had a good Christmas!

In Christ,
Julie