I'll second the recommendation for Heart of Dakota. It's chock full of really great book choices. In the 8 years I've used it, I've not had one book come along that I felt was inappropriate at all. (As a side note, I've used Sonlight -which we really liked for lots of reasons- but I had to pre-read books as quite a few were not appropriate to the age group intended, or contained elements i did *not* want them reading. Don't get me wrong, we loved SO many of their books, but wanted our studies to have more depth than just surface reading and comprehension questions.) Heart of Dakota *can* be an all-in-one type curriculum, as their guides include lesson plans for every subject, but we found it overwhelming to use that way. Instead we pick and choose the parts we enjoy most, like Bible, history, geography, music and at times art. It's a great program, but just remember that it's a tool to help you teach your kids, and not a master! Best wishes! ;)

It's going to come down to what you feel would be the better fit for your particular student. Both Saxon and MUS (and many, many other math programs) are amazing curricula for the students they fit. I've used both at different times, for different reasons, with different kids. Really think about what makes each one unique, then think about how your dd learns best, and evaluate which program would help her be successful in understanding math and growing in skills. Best wishes! 😊

I just have to ask for those of you getting school done in about 4 hours of work time....what subjects are you covering daily? Do you alternate days for history and science? (Our science and history programs require us to do daily assignments, so we can't alternate those, unfortunately.) Do you do language arts using a combined curriculum? Anything special you do that keeps it to this timeframe at this lovely age group? OP, please forgive me for the slight hijack....;)

Interested in reading replies, too. I have a 6th grader who is currently taking forever with the school day. I know a BIG part of this is age. This student *does* work independently, but has trouble staying focused on the work and getting things done in a reasonable timeframe.

We don't have DE or co-ops as an option where we live, and our internet isn't such that would support online classes (which we couldn't afford anyway). We've always done homegrown courses or curriculum for their studies. It's what works best for our family. I absolutely love homeschooling my kids, and the benefits and blessings of having them here and being involved in their learning (even through high school), has been amazing. ;) We use a lot of Heart of Dakota, though we don't do everything listed in the guides. We pick and choose the parts (subjects) that work for us, and for each student it looks different. We also use Analytical Grammar (& JAG), Writing & Rhetoric, Math U See, Singapore, Teaching Textbooks, IEW writing intensives, CLE Language Arts, and many others for different kids at different times. As we prepare to graduate our oldest this year, we're pleased with the path we've taken and plan on doing the same for the next four. ;) I know outsourcing, dual enrollment, and online courses work beautifully for a lot of people, but it's just never been an option here. It can work without those options, and I believe there are a lot of families out there doing just that. I'm just thankful there are so many quality choices for families to choose from in educating their kids in the method that works best for them. :D

:D

Ditto! :D

TT has worked great for our oldest. He's used it through high school and scored very well on the ACT. :D

Could you go back to where you left off in MUS Algebra 1? Sometimes kids just need a little more time to be developmentally ready to tackle those abstract algebra concepts. MUS teaches very clearly, and gives students the chance to learn each new concept well before moving on to new topics. My younger ds is finally finding success with MUS Algebra 1 after spending time trying two other programs last year. I know others here will recommend programs that are deeper, or more rigorous, but it's been amazing this year to see him understanding it and moving forward with success! ;) Best wishes! :)

Yes, they enjoy the programs. Even my academic - resistant 10th grader remarked yesterday that much to his amazement, he actually enjoys history!! Lol! 😂

I'm nodding in agreement with your last post. ;) I've been there myself weighing out one provider over another. We are blessed to have so many good options to choose from. :) For us, we just really find a good fit with the approach HOD takes, so we've stuck with it. My two oldest are in the high school levels (all of my kids are using HOD where they each fit). Our oldest will graduate this spring. He took the ACT last spring and scored very well, so I believe that this approach has worked well for him. :) Enjoy planning your ds's year, it looks great! :D Edited to fix a quote mishap....llol! ;)

I was going to say the same thing! :) I've used a number of different math curricula and aporoaches, and we've found MUS's teaching to be excellent, clear, and SO fun with their fraction overlay set. Clear teaching that sticks! ;)

Since you mentioned him liking the workbook format, have you looked at CLE Language Arts? They have lightunits (thin workbooks) the kids work through. They include gramnar, as well as spelling, penmanship, and writing. At first I thought there's no way I want everything in one book, since I preferred a different spelling or handwriting, but their english grammar is excellent and we just skip past the very small sections for spelling, penmanship and writing, using what we like for those. The grammar is where they shine, in our opinion. We also *LOVE* CAP'S W&R series! :) We run these two side by side doing a lesson a day (skipping the spelling, penmanship, and writing in CLE). These two programs actually work really well together. Can't say enough about this writing program, though....simply love it! ;) I know you didn't originally mention CLE as a choice, but it's worth looking into, and is fairly inexpensive for such a comprehensive program. Best wishes! ;)

We've loved their book choices quite a bit, as well as her approach to high school literature, especially in the 10th grade and up guides (World History, US 1, and US 2). We do history and Bible pretty much as is, and modify other things depending on the student, doing only the boxes/subjects that we are needing or wanting to cover that particular year (much like you're doing!). ;) For literature (especially for my older boys who'd rather be building things out in the shop), I modify the number of books/works covered, knowing they're still getting a great exposure to literature and how to interact with it. I might feel differently when my younger ones (who are voracious readers) get there, but I've always felt their literature and reading load was quite full (especially with the option of the living library books...which are really good, as well). We've also loved that they include audio books, or audio dramas alongside reading great literary works. Weve always used a different math and english/grammar. Some years we use their writing recommendation, and other years enjoyed other resources....depending on the guide and child that year. :) The key is to use it as a tool to help you educate your kids, and not feel like you have to do it all. Best wishes! :)

I've used HOD for many years (through high school for my olders). For the part of your plan involving the HOD guide and credits, it looks good to me. :) I'm curious why the Bible credit is wrapped into the Religion & Cultures half credit? The Rooted and Grounded course and accompanying plans are worth a credit, unless you mean that you'll just wrap Bible in with the R&C course, not using the HOD Bible plans (Rooted and Grounded book). Forgive my misunderstanding here...;) Looks like a fun year for your student! :)

Also wondering this....;)

That's pretty much our plan, too. Best wishes, and hope things go better! :)

Just curious what you decided to do? In a similar boat. ;)

I have a child who has a June birthday, and we started her in K at 5. She's now 11 in 6th grade. We've always determined official start time based on readiness, and challenged each where they are at. :)

We've loved pairing CLE LA with CAP'S Writing & Rhetoric. My kids look forward to, and enjoy the writing lessons a lot. We tend to skip the penmanship, and writing in the lightunits, and focus on the writing in W&R. This year we're mixing it up a bit and doing IEW SWI alongside CLE LA, and it's going well, too. Next year, we'll return to W&R, as we love it so much. I think with writing it's nice to incorporate different methods and programs for different seasons. Both have worked well alongside CLE. Best wishes! ;)

I've used TT in the past and have had some of the same frustrations with it. We moved to Math U See and have been experiencing much better understanding and retention in math. I was always afraid of using it because many reviewers say it's *not enough* or *not rigorous*. Thing is, I don't need rigorous. I need a math my kids click with and learn from. They'll go much further with a program they understand well. My plan is to supplement with Khan (when needed) and Zaccaro's word problems. If your kids really click with MUS, I'd encourage you to use Khan to supplement where you need more explanation, or to call MUS, as I believe they'll give help over the phone or email, too. Best wishes! 😊

Especially since TT didn't work well....definitely try Math U See ' s Geometry. Very clear and straightforward. 😊 ETA: It's $92 at CBD right now.

We've successfully used Heart of Dakota for most of our homeschooling years. It could be overwhelming if you tried to do everything. We make it work for us, choosing our own thing for math, language arts, and at times going with their picks for the rest...depending on the year. We really love their history and excellent book choices! :D

Heart of Dakota CLE Math, then TT CLE LA ....now adding MUS and AAS as favorites! 😊

^^ ....so true! 😂