fenni Posted May 15, 2011 Share Posted May 15, 2011 I was set on doing Preparing Hearts with my 8 and 10 yr. old boys for 2011-2012. I keep having a nudging, though, that HOD may not be right for my oldest son. I love HOD, but am tired of dragging him through it. He doesn't like activities and I know SL is lighter on activities/has them as optional. My 8 yr. old, on the other hand, does like activities and doesn't drag his feet on seatwork like the 10 yr. old does, either. So I've started considering SL B+C. What things do I need to consider? Should I just go with HOD (because I know I like it), but use it in more of a SL way w/ my 10 yr. old? My concerns: *I may decide to go back to HOD and am concerned they might not be ready for CTC after using SL B+C. *"Controversial" books in SL. We are pretty conservative, but not against discussion. Which books at this level cause concern for others? *Bible being more interwoven with Preparing. *HOD moves to independence. (Ignore my signature. It is wrong, but the site won't let me fix it right now. My 7 yr. old is using Bigger w/ the 9 yr. old and placement in Preparing will be fine for him.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnMomof7 Posted May 15, 2011 Share Posted May 15, 2011 We have 1+2/B+C on the shelf waiting for us to get started. The only book I'm a bit iffy about is "A Little Princess" - but that's because we are super-conservative too. The main history texts are pretty mainstream - Usborne and CHOW, but to be honest, SL doesn't schedule the pre-history readings that are focused on evolution, and we are used to handling evolution in any case, it just seems impossible to avoid in this life, so my oldest children are already becoming proficient at thinking critically about evolution's claims. SL activities are definitely optional, the bulk of the program is books (be still my heart!) I've never used HOD though, so I can't give you a comparison on that front :). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenni Posted May 17, 2011 Author Share Posted May 17, 2011 Thanks for the input!! I was able to look at a friend's SL guide today for D+E. I really think my oldest would be happier with SL, but I'm still not sure what I want to do. hoping for some more input... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenni Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaneP Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I was deciding between HOD's Preparing and SL B+C a few months too so I can sympathize. However I had not done any HOD before (or SL for that matter). I was wondering what you meant when you said he doesn't like the activities? Do you mean the history projects? Could you just skip these? I ended up choosing "Preparing" and I had given myself permission to skip the history projects if it didn't suit us. So far my dd likes them but I think personally the program could work without them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenni Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 That is what I am wondering. If I could use Preparing, but just skip the projects. He doesn't like when it seems useless to him "what's the point?" and I'm thinking SL kids don't do projects and fair well. So can we just read and discuss, timeline, and maps? Then I worry that he'll be missing something. *sigh* I'm tired of dragging him through school. He's a smart kid, just not sit in your desk and do this. I understand. Some of Bigger has seemed useless or too simple. A lot of the science experiments, he already knew/understood. Yet, they say do them anyway, teach the process of guess, procedure, conclusion. BUT really? how many years does it take to teach that? Are you really telling me if they don't do that from 3rd grade on, they won't be able to do higher science? I doubt it. He started saying he hates science, but yet I know he loves science in real life, just not "school science." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaneP Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 I would be interested in hearing what other HOD users think about the projects and how essential they are to the curriculum. As I said, my dd likes the history projects so far but I don't see why you couldn't skip them. But I have only used Preparing for 6 weeks so maybe I don't really understand the big picture when it comes to the purpose of the history projects. We like science in Preparing so you could give that a try but be prepared to do another science if Preparing's science ended up not working for your dc. I think they even say on their website that you can substitute another science. I personally think the HOD manual is good value for money that I wouldn't mind just using it for the history, storytime and Language Art boxes. All the best! I will be interested to hear what you end up choosing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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