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Hi Fellow Friends of Heart of Dakota,
I am writing to ask a question about ROD 2 and 3. My son is in 4th grade (age 9) and my daughter is in 2nd grade (age 7). They are both on unit 20 of Bigger. My son in 4th grade and has done R&S grammar. I am confused how to approach the grammar as it seems to be at his level but I am concerned he is "behind" and may need an extra push forward. Should I start at book 3 and simply give it a try or wait until we finish Bigger in late February/early March. I have to approach my 7yo in a very gentle way as she is an emerging reader and needs encouragement to write beyond our daily copywork. I think part of the issue is she needs me to help her strengthen her will.

My son recently started following the extensions and is enjoying it. We started slower than the schedule because he was feeling fatigued after reading some of the lessons but seems to be reading very comfortably now and keeping up better. Will we be reading STory of the World again in Preparing?

Thank you very much for your time and have a great day.
Melissa Ward

I think you have two options. First, though, you have to consider how he is doing with R&S2. Is it easy? Is it perfectly challenging? If it is easy, I might switch to R&S 3 or consider skipping 3 and going to 4 (I have heard that skipping 3 isn't a huge issue). But, if 2 is going well without being super easy, you can also just follow the HOD schedule. At most he is about 1/2 of a book behind in grammar, which would be easy to recover in the guides that have you do R&S half speed.

Hi Melissa, and welcome to the HOD Board! As a general guideline, R & S English 7 and 8 are often spread across high school as a portion of high school credit for English (in conjunction with literature and composition). Working back from that, HOD recommends (and schedules as such) completing R & S English 6 by the close of Grade 8. Our oldest ds is currently completing his sophomore year of high school using R & S English 7 (the second half of it), and I can assure you it is rigorous enough (even more so than my college grammar courses). My 6th grade ds is completing R & S English 4 within RTR. They both score well on their standardized testing required by our state. StephanieU brings up a very good question about how R & S English 2 is going for your ds. From what you have shared thus far, it seems like it is going fine, but that he could do more. Considering your ds is doing well with BHFHG 's extensions, it seems that LA is a subject with which your ds probably does well. If so, I'd move him to R & S English 3, and simply do a lesson a day. You can spend 2 days on the reviews if they seem too lengthy to complete in one day. On the contrary, if R & S English 2 is seeming heavy for him, then completing it this year instead of beginning R & S English 3 at this time would probably be fine. In choosing between these two options, if he can do R & S English 3, I'd have him do it.

Many, many 4th grade students starting R & S English start in R & S English 3 without having completed R & S English 2 and do beautifully. It is not difficult to have missed R & S English 2 and come into R & S English 3. It IS difficult to have missed R & S English 2 and 3 and come into R & S English 4 though. So, this is an ideal time to make a switch. As you wisely mentioned, I'd keep helping younger dd along and encouraging her. She is younger, and BHFHG is a meaty guide. As she is younger than ds, she will need more time to complete assignments, as well as more 'hand-holding' with LA/math based skills. It sounds like you are doing a wonderful job of homeschooling your dc! How blessed they are to have a mom that loves them and is choosing to school them at home with HOD - a curriculum based upon sound academics and Christ-centered learning! We just don't hear this enough as homeschool moms, so I am saying it today so you know it and can feel a smidgeon of the appreciation so deserved. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

As an encouragement - my dd did R&S 3 last year for 4th grade and she had never had grammar before. She did very well last year.

Thank you so much for your comments and suggestions. I am going to get him started on R&S 3 one lesson at a time. I think it will be great. Have a blessed week!
Melissa Ward