Combining 1st and an OLDER program

[ruthamelia]

We haven't used first grade, but ECC was our first year with MFW and everyone loved it! I hope your family does as well!

One thing I would encourage as you begin is to be flexible. It takes some time to try different things- like schedules- and find out what works for your family. One of my favorite things about homeschooling is the ability to adapt to the individual needs and preferences of each child. That means you may use pieces of many different scheduling suggestions, and adapt as you go until you find something that works. Don't expect it to be perfect the first time!

My oldest nephew (11) is very self motivated and likes to work independently. My niece (9) needs a lot more guidance and enjoys being creative and artistic. he starts school on his own at 6:30 and is usually done by 12 or 1, while she gets started around 8:30 or 9 and finishes sometime in the afternoon, depending on how motivated and cooperative she is . Group work is the piece that has to be negotiated a little. He has to wait until mid morning when she is ready, and she has to finish independent work later so she doesn't prevent him from finishing in a timely fashion. I think my point in all this rambling is to say that starting with a schedule in mind can be very useful, but we have found that being flexible and meeting individual variations works best.

Another note specific to ECC: the first two weeks can feel a little overwhelming as you learn what book is used when, how to use the teachers manual, etc. The third week starts a routine that continues the rest of the year spas you visit different countries. Give yourself Grace those first two weeks! Expect things to take a little longer than you plan. Expect to keep kids waiting while you remember what comes next!

My final suggestion is to stagger start times. Starting all of first and ECC with all kids could be overwhelming. You could stagger starts many ways, but it may look something like this: start math and language arts with older students week 1. Start first grade and 2nd grader math and LA week 2. Start ECC week 3 (meaning week 1 in TM), perhaps skipping a few days of math/LA. Everything up and running week 4. I'm sure this wouldn't be everyone's preference, but I think it's a nice way to ease into the school year, especially your first year homeschooling!

Hope to hear how things end up going for you!

[asheslawson]

I loved ECC & 1st! I did CTG with a 1st grader tagging along. She did her work while my older child did independent work - and then she usually sat in the living room with a quiet activity to tag along with him during his history, bible, science. She always wanted to do everything and actually contributed to our discussions very well. I would not trade those sweet days for a minute - and now looking at how big they are getting - I would just love to slip back and relive a few more of those wonderful times with us all snuggled up on the couch captivated by a great story.

Don't skip those readers in ECC - they were wonderful! I especially loved the Christian Heroes series! Move them to bedtime if it makes it easier - sometimes little ones can't sit for too long at once, so it's good to break up the listening times if that helps!

[gratitude]

Is it truly possible to teach a first and third grader at the same time using "Exploring Countries and Cultures?"
Thanks,
Amy

Are you more concerned about time, content, level of work, or all three?

When we did ECC I started it in the spring and I was doing it with a 4th, 2nd, & first graders. I finished it in the winter with a 5th, 3rd, and 2nd grader. So I used ECC when my youngest was at the end of first grader and the beginning of her second grade year. She would have been age 7 with a January Birthday. My first grader was doing first grade phonics and MFW1 Bible Note book with it for Language Arts.

The parts of ECC she was able to participate in at age 7 as a third born raised around home schooling:

*cooking
*passport (she loved this part)
*geography
*geography coloring sheets (I expected less writing on the flag sheets)
*geography game
*art projects
*The younger YWAM poetry books of the same missionaries (not the longer ones with ECC, but the poetry versions Christian books sells)
*Hero Tales
*Bible
*Bible Translation book (She LOVED this, and had me read it 5 - 6 times in the first month of ECC)
*Early mapping activities

She is on the sensitive side. She excused herself from the following, and went downstairs with younger sister):
*Kingdom Tales
*Longer Missionary books
*Many parts of Windows of the World

The science was over her head. I ended up swapping out AiG and swapping in Apologia Land Animals 1/2 way through so she could participate.

I hope that helps!

What language arts and math are you planning on doing with the first grader?

P.S. If you are concerned about family learning, MFW is set up well to make it work. My oldest in 4th / 5th did more writing and the Geography work books. My dd7 did very little writing for ECC. My 2nd / 3rd at the time did somewhere in between.

[manyblessings]

Are these your only students? Typically MFW recommends Adventures for 3rd graders who have no older siblings in the program-unless you have already been through Adventures or just really have your heart set on ECC.

In either case, I think the younger could tag along fine with the older for the other subjects and even do some of the student sheets, just adjust accordingly

I would definitely say it would be good to have MFW 1st grade (just the basic) for language and math for your first grader, unless you have another way you plan to cover those areas already. Another thing to note is that Adventures is also recommended for advanced 1st graders who already read and write well, so if that is your situation, that is another thing to consider, just using Adventures for both your 1st and 3rd graders (with grade appropriate grammar and math).

[AmyRL]

Wow! Thanks for the detailed answers. I was more concerned about her comprehending the content of ECC than anything else. Thanks for the tip on the science too.

My first grader would be doing first grade math and language. I already have them and used them on my older child.

[gratitude]

My first / second grader at the time was able to grasp the geography, other cultures, mission focus, and locating places on the maps. I would say the science was the only area she wasn't able to grasp. Then as I mentioned before there were topics in Windows of the World and the full missionary books and Kingdom Tales that she wasn't ready for and skipped. She is third born though, and having been around home schooling did have some base for ECC going into it.

I agree with manyblessings that Adventures is a very good fit for a 3rd and first grader to do together. The first time I did Adventures was with a second and Kindergartener and they really had fun together with it. The second time I did it was with a 3rd and 2nd grader (actually after ECC for them), and they also really enjoyed it at those ages. It lays a nice American History foundation and has a fabulous history spine with the Pioneers and Patriots. The note book pages are good for those ages to do. The time-line gave a visual of American History in a gentle way. It would be another one to consider, and your first grader and third grader would grasp it fully.