Help me to know how this would work

[girlboygirlboy]

In my curriculum search(we are coming off 3 years of Konos), I keep getting drawn back to HOD for my family. If I did, I would do CtC with my dd10(5th grade) and BHFHG with my ds9(3rd) & ddwillbe7(2nd) with my K4 just tagging along. Considering I've never used HOD would that be too much? It does look like much of CtC can be done independently - is that true? For those who have done CtC, how much parental time/support does it take daily? Do you just give your child the manual and have him/her read the instructions? How does the read aloud/storytime work when you are doing more than one level? Do you still have a family Bible time, or do you do it separately? I really like the look of it, but the idea of doing two levels(and in a year 3 levels) is really intimidating.

Thanks in advance!

Blessings!

Jennifer
mom to girl10, boy9, girl6, boy4

[happy@home]

I just wanted to welcome you to HOD and to the board!

I am sorry that I don't have any advice for you, as my dc are just finishing LHFHG!!

I am sure that some of the more seasoned ladies will join in soon, they are really a great bunch of ladies here!!

Robbin

[my3sons]

Hi and welcome to the board! We taught CTC, BHFHG, and LHTH this last year, and had a great year. I have done HOD for many years, but I do not think it is difficult to teach multiple programs. Much of CTC was independent, but of course that depends on how independent a student is used to being, and how well that student follows directions. If you take time to train your ds to use the CTC manual, follow directions carefully, and help him learn how to do each box the first month, you should reap the rewards of a very smooth year. For your BHFHG, that will be where your teaching time is more, which is very appropriate for that age. Taking time to establish a routine is worth it, and doing the boxes in relatively the same order makes a big difference in how well the day flows. We used blocks of time, and loved that. We finished each day by lunch, and had a wonderful year. Here is a link where I described this (just arrow down to 'my3sons' post):
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5244

I think you'd enjoy HOD as much as we have! I would not consider doing 3 programs of anything but HOD, but it is such a happy way to school with HOD, and totally doable. HTH - and I look forward to getting to know you more here!

In Christ,
Julie

[wow8kids]

Hi Jennifer,

I haven't started yet - am trying to figure this all out for taking the leap in the fall. But, I'm considering using 3 guides. I think it might be a little crazy, but with 8 children - my life is ALWAYS crazy. The encouraging part that I've found is that, from a LOT of the posts I've read - people get 1-2 guides done easily by lunch. I figure that gives me at least 3 hours of wiggle room to get in the third guide, since my kids are already used to doing school most of the morning and for a couple of hours after lunch.

I've only known a couple of people, personally, who have used KONOS - if you're coming from that - this should be a snap.

Looking forward to getting to know more people on this board as I get more involved in this curriculum!

Stacey

[Carrie]

Jennifer,

We do multiple programs in our own home, and I think doing 2 programs for your first HOD year would work well. It will be important that your child that is doing CTC is able to read and follow directions quite well and has strong reading/writing skills. Think of the CTC guide as your child's daily planner (rather than as your Teacher's Guide). Your child will read directly from the guide and complete the activities that are laid out within it. You will in essence be borrowing the CTC guide from your child to teach your Teacher-Directed boxes. The two Teacher Directed boxes take approximately 15-20 min. each per day with the Semi-Independent boxes taking some time as well. If your child is not coming from a previous HOD program it is likely the skills in CTC may be new, requiring some help and guidance on your part to instill. It is wise to plan to take some time training your CTC child to be able to truly work independently within the CTC guide. Plan on a month of training and guidance before smooth sailing.

For your next kiddos in line, you will be training them throughout Bigger Hearts but will truly find it is time well-spent in the future years as it pays big dividends in the future guides. There are many important skills within Bigger Hearts for the children to learn, and you will see much growth and progress throughout the year. You may wish to start Bigger Hearts at half-speed for a few weeks, while training your older child to work well within CTC.

You may use one storytime for all of your children, if you prefer. If you do go that route, I would definitely lean toward doing the storytime in Bigger Hearts with all, as your younger children will really need the literary skills that are wound up within the Bigger Heart's Storytime box of the plans. You may wish to check to make sure that your 10 year old fits strongly within CTC (especially the first page of the chart). Correct placement will make a big difference in how successful your year is.

Blessings,
Carrie