HOD Placement ds8 & dd6

[janie_ranae]

I was originally planning on using HOD's PHFHG curriculum with my oldest two, but am second guessing my purchase/plan. Any suggestions from anyone who has used it before with their dc?

 

Thanks!

[fenni]

I think you are wise to re-consider. Have you looked at their placement chart? http://www.heartofdakota.com/placing-your-child.php

[Guest mrsjamiesouth]

Do you want to combine them? Also, can your 6yo read and write on her own?

My 6yo son cannot read well or write well yet and I placed him in LHFHG, which is perfect.

 

If you want to combine I would look at Beyond. Just use your own Math and LA that fits your oldest, and the books would be perfect for him.

[Allison TX]

We loved Preparing Hearts, but my kids were older. I think it might be too difficult, especially for your 6 year old. You could adjust the writing, but if I were you I would look at Bigger or Beyond. They are such great guides as well. :) Hope this helps!

[Donna T.]

My oldest son used Preparing Hearts for His Glory with the Extensions for 5th grade. It was a very good fit for him. He was able to do all of the assignments with success and he really grew in his skills, especially writing and narrating. My 7 year old 2nd grader sat in on alot of Preparing but only the parts that I was reading aloud. He enjoyed listening to the books and he did participate in our discussions. He learned alot but there is no way he could have used Preparing Hearts as written. He used Little Hearts for His Glory as his main program. It was a little light for him but since he was getting so much out of the readings from Preparing it was enough and he had a wonderful year. Little Hearts for His Glory and Preparing Hearts are both one year overviews of World History with alot of Ancient History in the beginning. They matched up very well for a little over half of the year and even after that, they were fun to teach together though not matching up as much as they had in the beginning of the year. (Mentioning that as you may consider doing the two programs together.)

 

I would think that your 8 year old may be able to use Preparing if that child is reading fluently and ready for longish copywork (not just sentences but paragraphs) and some original writing. Much of the reading in Preparing is independent, for the child to read, so that's why you would want your child to be comfortable reading. I think your 6 year old may enjoy some of the readings and could hang out for some of the activities and discussions but would still need their own focused instruction in some areas.

 

The placement chart at HOD is the place to start for deciding where each of your children would place. Then, you can decide if you want to combine them or not. Carrie will help with placement. You can email her, call them, or post on their web site.

Edited August 17, 2010 by Donna T.

[Tree House Academy]

Oh gosh no, I wouldn't use preparing with a 6 year old. When my son is 8, he will be doing Bigger, but I do know some people do Preparing at 8 too. I would look at the placement chart and do your best to place them right where they fit. We didn't at first last year and I ended up really having to drop back and punt, so to speak. Placement is KEY with HOD, IMO.

 

FWIW: I have a 2nd grader who will be 7 at the end of Sept and he finished Little Hearts last year, has just started Beyond. I also have a 6th grader who just turned 11. He tried Bigger last year and it was a flop. He fit into Preparing, but I was determined to do American History. He ended up stopping mid-year and dropping HOD. Now, he is back to HOD using CTC and he fits perfectly into that guide and loves it. :)

Edited August 17, 2010 by Tree House Academy

[Sue G in PA]

I do think Preparing would be too challenging for most 6yos. My 7, almost 8yo will be using LHFHG (but he is just starting to read). I'd look at Beyond or Bigger if you want to combine (after checking the placement charts) or use 2 different programs if their skills are too far apart.

[twoxcell]

If you want to combine them I would use Beyond. It is a really fun program, and I'm using it for my 7 year old ds. I also have the Bigger guide and it is definitely a step up. I do add in some extras for him. If you want to do them separately than look at the placement and place them both according to their abilities. I was trying to combine my 7 year old and almost 5 year old with Beyond, but decided dd(4.75) was going to be missing too much, so I just ordered her Little Hearts. I will be doing two guides soon.

[Holly]

I'm using HOD with my 8 and 5 (soon to be 6) YOs. I'm using Beyond and adding Bigger for DD's 3Rs. DS is using Beyond for both parts. It is a perfect fit for both. I also recommend checking the placement charts. My DD was between Beyond and Bigger, my DS between LHFHG and Beyond.

 

It was recommended by Carrie to add in the science for my 8yo, but I wanted to keep them together. We'll be adding in some little science studies on birds and oceans instead.

[janie_ranae]

Thank you so much for all your suggestions! I appreciate your feedback - thanks so much!!