HOD for older children? Will be 12 in fall...

[sandalwood]

Is 12 "too old" for HOD? I have an 11 yr. old, soon to be 12 year old boy. I am intrigued by the posts concerning it. Are the extensions just more books for older children or are lesson plans in it? Thanks for any info.

[hmschooling]

There are moms using all levels from Beyond up to the newest guide, CTC, with their 12 yos! The extension books are scheduled day by day. There are also certain requirements of the children each week using those books. Those are also listed.

[sandalwood]

There are moms using all levels from Beyond up to the newest guide, CTC, with their 12 yos! The extension books are scheduled day by day. There are also certain requirements of the children each week using those books. Those are also listed.

Thanks very much for the info! That gives me a much better idea of how the extension works!

[Donna A.]

It depends on the 12yo. My oldest dd (who was still 12 when I started looking at, and later bought Preparing) had already read most of the books in the Preparing package, and the activities in Preparing were waayyyy too young for her.

 

I haven't looked at their Creation to Christ package to see if that would work, as she's only a year away from high school now.

 

Either way, though, for an older child, I'd definitely say to take it on a child-by-child basis.

[Caroline4kids]

We will be doing Preparing this year and my son will be 12. I am planning on using my CM methods with books I will choose from All Through the Ages as I see a need to "beef up" his schedule. What I am going to do is pick a book and select dictation and copywork from his readings and assign written narrations from these as well. As he completes one book I will add another, more challenging book. This keeps everyone on the same page while not neglecting the younger ones.He is using a higher level of R&S English also.

 

Even though some of the art projects are geared for younger kids, I have yet to see my oldest walk away from salt dough or paint.:)

 

CTC adds in Write With the Best which is a multi-level program for 3rd to 12th. I plan on him doing this when we get there and focus on written narration this year.

[love2read]

The program really appeals to me too, but when I thought long and deep about it I realized I wouldn't really like it anymore than what I already had. It also looked to easy for my 12 yo and the add on books would be just more reading and not add depth to the lesson plans. I would have brought that in with the Drawn Into material (which I do own.) At least that's what I'm getting from the page.

[Sheila in OK]

This is a great idea, Caroline! I think I will 'steal' it while using Bigger with my 11yo this year.

 

We will be doing Preparing this year and my son will be 12. I am planning on using my CM methods with books I will choose from All Through the Ages as I see a need to "beef up" his schedule. What I am going to do is pick a book and select dictation and copywork from his readings and assign written narrations from these as well. As he completes one book I will add another, more challenging book. This keeps everyone on the same page while not neglecting the younger ones.He is using a higher level of R&S English also.

 

Even though some of the art projects are geared for younger kids, I have yet to see my oldest walk away from salt dough or paint.:)

 

 

[Caroline4kids]

Oh, there are the extention packages, which are great, but I prefer to pick one or two meaty books to supplement for financial reasons. My oldest has also read many of the books in the extention packages and I just wanted to show how we add in things and still make it all flow well.

[hmschooling]

The program really appeals to me too, but when I thought long and deep about it I realized I wouldn't really like it anymore than what I already had. It also looked to easy for my 12 yo and the add on books would be just more reading and not add depth to the lesson plans. I would have brought that in with the Drawn Into material (which I do own.) At least that's what I'm getting from the page.

 

 

There's more than just reading, and much depth is added by the requirements for the readings. Each week, they have assignments to go along with the week's readings. It's also independent, so that is a lesson in and of itself. :001_smile:

 

It's much like Caroline4kids's idea, but she'll be using her own books instead of those planned in the guide.

[Donna T.]

Is 12 "too old" for HOD? I have an 11 yr. old, soon to be 12 year old boy. I am intrigued by the posts concerning it. Are the extensions just more books for older children or are lesson plans in it? Thanks for any info.

 

The books that are in the extension packages are scheduled for you. The schedule is in the appendix. The guide gives you several ideas on assignments that you can give to the child to go along with the reading but they are not as elaborate (probably not the best choice of word) as the assignments for the books that are in the rest of the package.

 

For example, in the Preparing Guide, the books that are included in the Deluxe Package (recommended for 3rd, 4th or 5th graders) are scheduled in the Independent History Study box of the guide. The assignments in that box vary. One day, the child may be told to orally retell or narrate the portion that he read for that day - using a checklist of narration tips as needed. The next day, he may be instructed to look up a particular Bible verse that relates to that reading in some way, copy it in cursive, draw a diagram from page # whatever. These assignments are generally along that line... orally narrate, copy Bible verses or text from the book that he read, draw a picture or diagram. The child is also doing written narrations but not with those books. So, the instructions to the child are quite specific, which aids them in transitioning to independent work (Preparing is considered a year of transitioning to the independence required in the next year of the program, the beginning of the four year history cycle).

 

The books in the Extension Package are recommended for 5th or 6th graders. The books themselves are written at a mid-5th to upper 7th grade reading level. The package that you choose for a 5th grader depends on the needs of that particular child. Some 5th graders would do the Deluxe Package, some the Extension Package, or some combination. My 5th grader will be doing all of the books in the Deluxe package and a majority, but not all, of the books in the Extension Package. It is not necessary to have the child do both sets of books, but that's what I'll be doing (because my son is a bookworm) minus a couple of titles in the Extension Package that are not a good fit for him.

 

Anyways.... :tongue_smilie:

 

for those books, you have the child follow the schedule in the Appendix. There is no box in the guide for those, assuming the child has already begun to work independently and doesn't need the hand-holding that is in the Independent History Study Box. Following the schedule for those books, there is info. (it is quite brief) about how to assess your child's reading comprehension. The guide gives several suggestions for how to do that and you can pick whichever idea you like and have the child do that: orally narrate, write a 2 to 3 paragraph summary, draw a picture and write a summary... you can choose what you want but it's not a specific assignment like you have for the books in the Independent History Study Box.

 

In my opinion, either Preparing or Creation to Christ would be great for a 12 year old unless you run into the problem that Donna A. mentioned. The books that Carrie uses are really popular so it may be that you have already read some of them and don't want to repeat them. We will be repeating many of the titles but I'm ok with that as we love the books and the way that HOD uses them will be different for us. Or, you may find that the projects are too childish for your 12 year old... I guess that just depends on the child. My 10 year old is doing the projects in Little Hearts with his 7 yo brother and loves them. I think this could be an issue for some children in Preparing but not in Creation to Christ.

 

Sorry if this is too much info. Maybe it will help someone who is wondering about it.

Edited June 26, 2009 by Donna T.