Cheryl, thank you for your insight. And it IS encouraging! We do need to take more advantage of our memberships, that's for sure. I'm still mulling all of this over in my mind. The good news is that you all have reassured me that I have some time, that I'm not going to ruin her during kindergarten :). I would love to mix and match curricula, but I don't know enough about all the different options out there yet. Maybe someday I'll get there.

Thank you all again. I was thinking about this last night. I really do like MFW. My daughter and I are both really enjoying our lessons, even if it's a slower pace than I had expected. My biggest worry right now is that she's not up to speed with her peers. I guess I have to remind myself that that's the beauty of homeschooling though...we don't necessarily have to work by someone else's schedule. I have to keep remembering this! I should clarify that she's not READING reading...we did How To Teach a Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons when she was 4, but we only got about 2/3 through it. MFW K is still very much easy for her (in fact, my three-year-old is doing it along with us), but that doesn't mean it's wrong. Ideally, I would like to take a laid-back approach to teaching, especially the lower grades. If I had it in me, I would actually be using a Waldorf curriculum. But academics are also very important to me, so it's hard to let go of the "this isn't challenging enough" mentality. I have to remember that we're both enjoying what we're doing right now, and she IS learning. You all have given me a lot of food for thought. I definitely need to figure things out, but I guess it's not the end of the world if it takes me a year or two ;). Thank you again.

Kathy, HOD is at the top of my list for a new curriculum. I do love MFW though, and I've been thinking about moving up to first grade. Or maybe just sticking with the K curriculum and using it to reinforce what she already knows. I don't know...I'm so confused about it all! One thing I need in a curriculum is a good Bible-base. We're Christians, but I didn't grow up going to church, so I feel ill-equipped to teach my children our beliefs. That is one of the HUGE benefits of MFW. UmMusa, this is a bit off topic, but do you teach your children Arabic? If so, do you use a particular curriculum. I need to decide which language to teach my children, and Arabic is one of the top choices :). Trishe, thank you so much for your advice. It's been in my heart to stick with MFW kindergarden for your very reason. We do weekly library trips, and we do a lot of other trips too. The zoo, the dinosaur museum...the aquarium this week. I'm just afraid that I will end up putting her in public school eventually, and I don't want her to be behind, if that's the case. I know it's good to not rush her, and I love hearing your experience with your children.

Thank you all SO much! I only have a few friends who HS (none nearby), and my family is pretty much against HS'ing. Support is hard to come by! I don't remember who asked, but my daughter is almost six, and she's currently doing kindergarden. And yes, MFW K seems like pre-K to me (not that I have any experience, LOL). It's so easy. So it's okay to switch curricula in the middle of the year? I would love to stick with MFW, but I honestly don't think it's going to cut it for me. Not unless the next grade kicks it up a notch or two. We are definitely having fun (well, for the most part). That's probably what I like most about MFW...all the crafts and activities. And I keep trying to remind myself that HS'ing isn't just about academics. There's the whole relationship issue there too. What's really hard for me is that I'm so unorganized. Up until we started kindergarden, we've never had any sort of routine. Trying to figure out a routine with a five-year-old, a three-year-old, and a baby is hard when you've never done it before! The call of public school is loud and clear, but I don't want to give up until I've given HS'ing a fair try either. I've been so convicted to HS my children, but now that it's reality and not some far-off-in-the-future thing...it's harder than I thought. Public school would be so easy, and I have a lot of people in my life saying it would be better too. It's very hard to keep going forward with HS'ing with those judgments echoing in my head, especially on the days that don't go so well. Anyway, thank you all again for the encouragement. I'm going to keep looking at different curricula, and I might start her on something new after the holidays.

Thank you, Beaners. I'll definitely try that.

I guess I should add that she really enjoys what we're doing right now, but it's way too easy for her. She can already read, so it seems so redundant to be learning the alphabet. That's why I was asking about switching after Christmas. What I do like about MFW is that it is biblically-based and that it's a lot of fun for both of us. I'm not sure that's enough to keep us using a curriculum that is too easy. I'm concerned about the other grades because the kindergarden doesn't exactly meet my standards. So does that mean the future grades won't either?

I'm new here, and I'm new to HS'ing. I'm very overwhelmed by it all. I need to figure out which curriculum to go with for first grade and if I should switch after Christmas or not. I'm currently using My Father's World kindergarden curriculum, but I'm also supplementing with Math U See and New American Cursive. I really love MFW, but...it's too easy for my daughter. And I'm afraid it's not going to cut it with teaching her all that I need to teach her. So right now, I'm struggling with whether or not to stay with it. I really want her to be strong in academics, and what I've seen so far with MFW just doesn't do it. Anyway, I guess my question is, is there any way to read reviews about different curricula? Or do I have to cross my fingers and hope that the curriculum I choose is good enough? I'm ready to quit HS'ing because I have no clue what I'm doing. I'm not naturally organized, so I NEED a curriculum to tell me what to do. I would love to pick and choose different programs for different subjects, but I don't know enough about what is available and what she needs to be learning at which age. Thank you for any help. I'm on the verge of enrolling her in public school for first grade because I don't want to fail her.