Advice...

[blessedmama]

So my dd is going to be 11 in Nov. and in the fifth grade (fall). We did Preparing last year and she did very well. I have a ds who is 9 and will be in the fourth grade (fall). He finished Bigger last year and did very well. Here is where I need advice. I am thinking of having my dd do Preparing again this year so that I can combine my ds and dd into one guide. Is this going to slow my dd down? I have four children and last year I did four guides. It wasn't terrible but it was work for me. I don't want to hold any of my kids back just so I can eliminate a guide. Have any of you held an older back one guide so that you can combine? I know that you don't have to do four guides but my mind just can't wrap around the idea of piecing guides together to fit the needs of everyone but still have one guide. That is almost more work for me than to do four guides.

I would love to hear some feedback. Also, would love to know if there are other mama's that find doing a separate guide for each child works better for them.

[LynnH]

Since you said you dd did very well with Preparing I would not have her repeat it. I would think that would be boring and really not challenging at all. It really would be holding her back and basically making her repeat a "grade". Preparing is the last of the more teacher intensive guides. It only gets more independent from there. In CTC she will take over her own history reading which should free up some of your time. She will be in the good age range to do CTC as written with all the Independent boxes and then when she moves to RTR it becomes even more independent.

[MomtoJGJE]

We are using separate guides for everyone. I just don't feel there is any way to combine them based on their abilities.

But I think if I thought it would work later on down the road that what I'd do would be go half speed for a while with the older one (of the two combining) and maybe even half speed 4 days/week, and full speed 5 days/week with the younger (of the two)... then it would be roughly two years and they'd be together. Not to mention the half speed would be easier on you in general than full speed. I wouldn't go half speed for a whole guide because that would make the new guide pretty hard. Just half of it or so.

I have thought about doing that with two of mine, but I can't figure out which two to go with... mine are just so far apart in abilities right now that it just doesn't make sense for me to combine for the sake of combining. Which means that eventually I'll be doing 5 guides.

Also, it seems like you were doing pretty teacher intensive guides... I think once your olders move into more independent guides it won't be such a stretch for you.

[blessedmama]

Lynn, about how much teacher time does it take for CtC?

[LynnH]

Sara, I am not a good one to tell teacher times since my ds has Cerebral Palsy I sometimes have to be more involved in his I boxes than is typical. He sometimes dictates to me or I have to help him with science experiments because of his hand tremors. I do know that with him taking over the history readings I suddenly had a block of time that I didn't have before. I just needed to be there when he finished his written narrations to go over that with him or to listen to his oral narration once a week. Also the Poetry box is supposed to be Independent and that is where they do the watercolor paintings and I don't remember the Bible Quiet time being as Independent in Preparing as it is in CTC. If you look closely at CTC's preview week on the website you can see there aren't very many T boxes. I know my ds got where he did much of the S boxes at least 90% on his own.

[chillin'inandover]

Sara,
My ds will begin CTC in the fall (I'm so excited) I have checked out all the times each section will take and used Julie's schedule so this is what I have come up with when combining with dd in LHFHG/BLHFHG starting at 8:15-9:30 (Beyond); 9:30-10 (CTC grammmar/WWTB/dictation);
10-10:45(CTC Math/poetry);10:45-11:15 (Beyond & dd home speech therapy); 11:15-11:35 (CTC history project/written narration-just start ds for about 5 minutes & he should be independent after that); 11:35-12:15 (CTC storytime & Genesis/Geography); 12:15-12:40 (CTC DITHOR-ds will read independently during most of this time we will just discuss DITHOR workbook or from teacher manual depending on day). So in theory we should be done with our day by 12:40 with a lunch at that time & snack was at 10ish while working on math. If it says Beyond then CTC ds was working independently. Not all times for CTC are teacher intensive, but I indicated those times-about 20 minutes tops. The 9:30-10, 11:35-12:15 and math portion of 10-10:30 are teacher intensive (70 minutes plus math teaching-I use MUS DVD). My ds is 10 & going into 5th grade. He has done LHFHG, Beyond, Bigger, and Preparing. Hope I haven't made this too confusing. Would love to join you in CTC! Tammy

[8arrows]

Is there any possiblity that the younger one would place into CTC on the chart? I know that that would not be the usual course of events, but sometimes things are not usual. I also have a limit to the number of guides that will get done well in my house. You as the mother will know if that would be too much of a jump.

[tollhousemom]

This post lists the expected amount of time for each box, and indicates which are independent. You might also want to look back through some of the Let's Share our Schedules thread to look at CTC schedules.

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