Is it okay to start late?

[Guest JungleMama]

I have had my copy of SotW 1 for 3 years now. Due to many family upheavals (think moving interstate and within state every 10-12 months, 2 car accidents for my in-laws, a baby born, and now another baby due) we have not gotten beyond Ch 1.

 

I love this book. I loved history and science as a child and I love the whole rotation idea of Classical Education. I just haven't been able to get started, partly due to all the dramas listed above but also because my eldest has been a late starter. I think he may be slightly Aspergers, enough to mean he has had troubles listening and understanding, fitting into the routines I set (prefers to go his own path) and phonics instructions are a struggle.

 

Now my second is ready for school and I want to get going. I feel that this child will 'appreciate' what I teach and will not battle me like the first has.

 

Is it okay that the eldest is now 9.5yo but only just starting on the first rotation through History and Science? With all his delays I think he could be in the Grammar stage longer than most normal kids anyway but I am open to keeping an eye on him and expecting more from him as he develops.

 

Will I need to adjust SotW 2, 3 or 4 as he will be 10.5, 11.5 and 12.5 yo when I start those?

 

I have a friend who is starting each child at the appropriate stage of history for their age but with the spread of mine I am just not up to 4 separate history and science lessons. I would prefer to just start with the second child as my marker and move on with differing expectations of each child as they progress.

 

So, I guess that was really a rant and a question that I don't want answered. lol

 

Thanks for any input.

 

Best wishes,

Jen in Oz

[Lizzie in Ma]

You can tailor SOTW as dc get older by adding more challenging reads to it for sure. Lots of BTDT families on the boards. Mostly I am answering to bump your post up to them. Enjoy your journey, it is never too late to start. ;)

[Karenciavo]

To me it makes more sense to have the people in the house studying the same time period at their level. I would start SOTW with both children.

 

I would also try to get a diagnosis for your oldest or at least some tools for you to help him learn. I bet if you asked over at the Special Needs board many could help you with the latter.

[Peela]

Better late than never, for sure! We didn't "discover" SOTW until the kids were older anyway- oldest was 10, younger 8 or 9 , and we did 4 very happy years of SOTW. I added lots of historical fiction because that's what we love around here. In the SOTW books nowadays, they say they can be used for Logic Stage as well as Grammar Stage. Just add what feels right for your own kids. We used the maps, and chose our own extra books, and we always tie in our Literature studies to History, but there were many, many weeks when we only got to read SOTW and do the map, and some sort of writing assignment for history, and that was it. And I still feel they got a lot out of it and know more about history that I did at their age.

Enjoy with no regrets!

[Colleen in SEVA]

Honestly, based on what you shared I think it will be BETTER that you waited with your oldest. He isn't "behind" if you consider that Sonlight uses SOTW as texts for ages 11-14. I also remember reading a post that PHP is coming out with an Activity Guide for older kids for SOTW1, and for younger kids for SOTW4.

 

FWIW... I can relate completely. I started SOTW at the beginning of his 1st grade year but dropped it when the baby was born. We started again in 2nd grade, but tried to make it more complicated than it needed to be and got stuck in Egypt! We are starting it again now, sticking to the basics, and letting the younger boys listen in and color along with us (as they want to -- not required!), but plan to take a 3-month break from ALL subjects when this baby is born! :)

[abreakfromlife]

I'm going to have all my kids doing the same rotation, no matter how old they are. I've read that kids this age don't really 'get' the timeline of history, so I don't think it would really even realize that they are starting in the middle of history.