Sonlight, WP, or something else?

[Tsutsie]

Hello

 

I'm hoping someone more experienced will be able to help me out with choosing our curriculum for next year?

 

My son, who is almost 6 will finish Sonlight's Core P4/5 within the next month or 2. He is also doing Horizons Reading, Phonics and Spelling 1, Sonlight Readers 2, Noeo Science Biology 1, Math U See Alpha and various bits and pieces here and there (Art, Mapskills, Health, etc). I do have Core P3/4, and might just fill the rest of the year with that, while he completes his Science, MUS Alpha, LA, etc.

 

I have a little girl who turned 3 in August.

 

Here is my question: I do own Core K, but would really like to wait with that until my daughter is 6, thus 3 more years - and then combine them.

 

What would you do in the mean time?

 

I can do Hideaways in History from WP for my son next year, but what do I do after that? (He is not a Animals lover, so Animals and their Worlds is not an option. Also, we are not American, so it might be hard to relate to US History 1...) I see on the WP website that Children Around the World is not recommended for a K and Grade 2 student. Will it be possible to stretch Hideaways over 2 years? Will it not be VERY slow then?

 

The WP programs looks fantastic - I would love to try those before we get to the higher grades and things becomes more complicated.

 

Is there any other literature based programs out there?

 

Thank you,

Yvette

[kiwi mum]

Since you already own Sonlight K, I would go ahead with that. I can see waiting 3 years to do SLK as being a good option for your daughter, but I can't imagine it holding the interest of your (by then) 9 year old, especially since he is already doing readers 2 now. A three year gap is really hard to combine in the lower cores (unless the older one is behind etc). I could see using core 3 with an 8 and 11 year old, but before that I think combining is going to be hard.

[Mom0012]

You may be able to use core K with your daughter before you think, especially if you read to her a lot in the meantime. I used core K when my son was in first and my daughter was in Pre-K and it worked well. That still leaves you with some time to fill. I might look at WP Animal Worlds or just pull out Jim Trelease's read-aloud handbook and read lots of books from that for a year. To me, the important thing at these ages is just to read to them a lot.

Lisa

[Jean in CA]

I would start K with your 6 and 3 year old and move at a slower pace. The pace of reading picks up every year with SL 1, 2, 3, so I'd recommend stretching the cores over a a year and a half, if you'd like to reach the upper cores when your daughter is more mature.

 

In particular my children LOVED core 2, medieval history, so we added a lot of crafts, more books, etc, and also added SOTW 2 and the Reformation using Rats, Bulls, and Flying Machines. It is still one of our favorite memories.

 

I have 2 older kids, 3 years apart, and also 2 younger ones, also 3 years apart, so I understand your dilemma with combining SL cores.

 

One other thing to consider is supplementing down with the plethora of books available for American History once you get to Core 3. The read-alouds might be a bit much for your younger one.... I'm thinking of The Witch on Blackbird Pond, but if she's used to listening to "real" literature staring at a young age, you'll be amazed at her comprehension skills by the time she is only 6 or 7!

 

Enjoy!