Need advice as to which program for my 6 and 4 year old

[threelilbirds]

Hello,

I am looking into next year, and was curious in others opinions on my "plan of action" which, actually is NO plan as of yet, lol.

My DS will be in first grade, 6 years old. My littlest will be 4. 20 months apart. I am looking for a program that I can combine them in..and have been looking alot at Heart of Dakota.

I really love Story of the World, also, and cant wait myself to start that, but it seems that it is way over both of their heads at this point..they are both very immature..Should I do Little Hearts for His Glory next year, and then move to Story of the World the year after, or should I just start Story of the World next year, and hope they retain at least some of the info? If I did story of the world, I was planning on doing Elemental Science, Intro to Science along with it..

My main goal is to start teaching them together, at least for SS, S, and read alouds,etc..butkeep them separate for math and phonics/reading..thanks for any input

Edited April 27, 2011 by threelilbirds

[threelilbirds]

;)Looks like Heart of Dakota is a pretty popular program around here, lol, Im finding lots of info, just by searching

[VBoulden]

You could use a Sonlight Core of your choice and then work separately on phonics and math... I used Sonlight for that last year right before my daughter was ready for The Story of the World, etc. :001_smile:

[Guest RecumbentHeart]

I personally would be inclined to do Heart of Dakota's LHFHG first in this case. :)

[boscopup]

SOTW would very likely be over the 4 year old's head, but that can be fine. I have a 6 year old and a 4 year old, and my 4 year old won't be folded into the history officially until he's 6. The only issue I have is that at that point, we'll be in modern history probably, so I might do American with him and SOTW + American with my oldest, then when we get back to ancients, we'd just do whatever we're using for that. I think my youngest ends up jumping in at middle ages, which isn't so bad. He can listen in on ancients when he's in K. SOTW1 is working great for my 6 year old right now.

 

ES Intro to Science would be a good choice for combining those ages. I used it for a bit, and my 4 year old LOVED it, though he wasn't really ready for actual science yet (that part of his brain just turned on about a month ago). He enjoyed the experiments, even if he didn't understand at all what we were doing. :) The only reason I dropped it was because my oldest was ready for heftier science. He was on the opposite end of the spectrum, already fully understanding what we were doing and ready to move on to "real science" (as opposed to K-level intro science). I now do science with just the oldest usually, and I don't worry about the 4 year old and science. Again, when he's 6, he can officially join in for science. Until then, he can tag along, but I'm not really worried about him understanding. He's not "school age" yet, so anything I do with him is just for fun (I usually do reading or math lessons with him, and he joins in with art and any projects we do).

 

So basically, I teach my 6 year old at his level. My 4 year old can tag along if he wants, or he can go play. It doesn't matter. He's not supposed to be in K until the fall of 2012. So the following year, I will require that he join in on history and science. Until then, I mostly focus on the 3Rs with him (really mainly reading right now). He gets one-on-one mommy time for that. Otherwise, he goes off to play while the 6 year old does serious school. Don't fret too much about combining at this stage, when one child doesn't even need formal history or science (or school at all, for that matter). Teach to the oldest, and fold in the younger when they're ready. That way, the developmental gap will be not quite so wide (ie, you won't have reader vs. non-reader, etc.).

[Joyoflearning]

HOD is a great choice. I have a very advanced 4 year old using LHFHG and was looking for something not grouped by "grade". HOD is awesome in that it lets you substitute whatever you need (math/ LA) without messing up the rest of the program. I am also new to homeschooling and wanted to focus on finding a strong math program and researching a long-term educational plan. I have 3 children under the age of 4 and it has been a blessing to have something that is open and go and I don't look at it till I say "let's do school". I plan to use TOG w/ SOTW or MOH in the future, but I love this so much I'm not sure when I'll switch. At first I thought it looked "too easy", but my child is learning so much while having fun and it is a great overview of biblical history and american history before starting a four year cycle. It could easily be adapted for both children. There is also a book list in the back so you can check out other books from the library to go with each week. It also doesn't take a lot of time which is great if there are extra things you were wanting to add (although the more I try to change or add things, the more I realize they already did it better). The Thornton Burgess books are great. My daughter is a strong reader and would read them herself, but the language can be difficult and the guide makes her stop and think so I know she is comprehending the stories. I hope you find what will work for you!:001_smile:

[Tracy]

I am not familiar with HOD. But I thought I would put in a plug for FIAR. It would be very easy to combine them and add a little more for the 6yo. You cover social studies, language arts, art, some math, and science. When I used FIAR with dd, we concentrated social studies on geography, and I felt that it was a fabulous preparation for history the following year. There is also a Bible supplement for it.

 

When my ds3 starts kindy, my plan is FIAR and SWR.

[Five More Minutes]

I am not familiar with HOD. But I thought I would put in a plug for FIAR. It would be very easy to combine them and add a little more for the 6yo. You cover social studies, language arts, art, some math, and science. When I used FIAR with dd, we concentrated social studies on geography, and I felt that it was a fabulous preparation for history the following year. There is also a Bible supplement for it.

 

When my ds3 starts kindy, my plan is FIAR and SWR.

 

I agree with this! I used FIAR this past year with my two daughters (5 and 4, 16 months apart). It was a fun learning time together, and my older daughter just had slightly more challenging projects to do related to the book. (For example, while my youngest might be colouring in a flag, my oldest might label a map.)

[Joyoflearning]

I am not familiar with HOD. But I thought I would put in a plug for FIAR. It would be very easy to combine them and add a little more for the 6yo. You cover social studies, language arts, art, some math, and science. When I used FIAR with dd, we concentrated social studies on geography, and I felt that it was a fabulous preparation for history the following year. There is also a Bible supplement for it.

 

When my ds3 starts kindy, my plan is FIAR and SWR.

 

I also think that FIAR is great. I actually own 3 volumes and the cookbook. :001_smile: Since we started HOD midyear, I figured that FIAR could be a good "filler" to round out next school year. My son will be almost 3 and a half and can join us. Otherwise, I may just use it for a week here and there next summer as an extra fun thing. That being said, I would say that HOD appears much meatier with the flexibility to ease up where needed. I like that HOD is more streamlined, with an overview of history in chronological order along with integrated Bible. It is a full curriculum including Bible memory, Fine and Gross motor skills, Literature, math activities, etc. FIAR on the other hand introduces one to many cultures and places in the world, but in no particular order. It also provides LA, and MATH, geography and others but with no Scope and Sequence. (For example, one lesson might talk about onomatopoeias and the next about using metaphors). I appreciate its very gentle approach to education. There is a Bible supplement, but it seems to be more of an "add on" rather than fully integrated. Some of the books may be hard to find which may be difficult to make one volume last a full school year.

[AngelBee]

HOD could be a great choice.

 

What level is your 4yr old at?

[sagira]

Hardly mentioned here, but I love Peak With Books with either a 4- or 5-year-old. Great book selections and activities. I add something like Family Math for Young Children and a child-guided Miquon, and you're set. If you like, you could add religious education (Bible for most), art, and a foreign language exposure.

[~Kirsten~]

I'm with the others here; if you don't think your 6-year-old is ready for SotW, hold off. We started last year, but my daughter was ready. I thought my 4-year-old would jump in, too, but very rarely did she even ask for a coloring page. Now, she was ALL OVER the extra projects we did. :D But she usually played elsewhere, colored her own thing, or played on Starfall instead of listening to history.

 

I love ES's Intro. I'm going to use it this coming year with my now-Ker, but I do think you could easily use it with a 6 and a 4. Great choice there! Also, if you delay SotW for one more year, you'll be officially "on track" to start it right alongside biology. I'm not sure that's really all that important, but you can. ;)

 

In a nutshell, I totally agree with teaching to your 6-year-old and allowing your 4-year-old to jump in and out at will. So if you like HOD for the 6, go for that. If you like something else, do it. Even a super-duper excited-for-school 4-year-old is still just 4, and doesn't need to be working at the same level as a 6-year-old. I think it's fantastic to plan NOW with an eye to folding them together, and figure out where that might work or where it might not work. But try not to stress too much, and don't alter too drastically what you expect of your older child as a result.

 

Oh, and I do have to say, we kept SotW very fun. We read the book, colored the pages and maps (and I didn't demand super neat map work by any stretch of the imagination), and often got supplemental books from the library. I wrote down narrations where my daughter told me what she liked best. No quizzes; no stress. We did projects where they seemed fun--like the chicken mummy, but I didn't stress those, either. I've been really amazed by how much her listening skills improved and by her intense interest in history. I think sometimes the "idea" of history is more over kids' heads than it actually is, you know? I mean, mummies and Roman soldiers and the Wall of China and toga parties can be very accessible to kids. Just wanted to put that plug in there! And remember, next year with 7 and 5, you might find that your 5-year-old still isn't quite ready for SotW, either. That's okay, too. If you wait, and your older child is ready, go ahead and start then. Fold in when ready. :001_smile:

[....]

I also want to add...you don't have to do a boxed curriculum. You could always follow the curriculum suggestions from TWTM. It seems like there's a big trend in boxed curricula on the forums right now, but it's not necessary. If you look in the "grammar stage at a glance" section in TWTM, SWB has all the subjects broken down and suggestions for each subject.

 

Also, if I had 2 kids, I probably wouldn't go out of my way to combine them. You have a lot of flexibility with 2 - especially when they're older.

[historically accurate]

I'm using Winter Promise Animals & Their World for that age (middle turning 6 in July, youngest turned 4 in March). Five in a Row would also be a good choice. I've never used HOD, so I can't comment on it.