Combining Adventures and 1st

[Heidi]

Hello ladies! I have a question regarding my 7yod who did MFWK last year and can read 3-5 letter words relatively well. She still sounds out each letter as she reads though, which I hope will change to more blending. I realize that MFW1 would probably be the best fit, however we are currently doing ADV. with 8yod and 7yod together.

Do I need to do all of MFW1 with her or is there a reading/phonics part within it that would stand alone for her? Do any of you do both mfw1 and Adv. together? How difficult is that?

Thank you for any help!!
Karen in WA

We did Adventures altogether last year (ds-8/9, dd-5/6, ds 2/3) while daughter did MFW-1, plus I had a toddler underfoot.

Here is what I did:

I did the Math, LA - PLL, Spelling and Bible with oldest ds - while dd and little ds played together using the MFW preschool toys and read to him.

Then I did MFW-1 with dd while oldest ds played with little ds again playing with MFW preschool toys and reading to him.

The toddler watched music DVD's while I did history, science, art, music, etc. with the older two - though usually he joined us for science, art and music as mush as he could. My oldest did everything. My MFW-1'er had enough notebooking with MFW-1 so for her history notebook, she simply practiced narrating (this is her weakness) while I wrote down on scrap paper her narration for her to copy onto her notebook. She loves to draw so she did the drawings for her notebook. She also joined in with the state notebook - but I had an older version [of Adventures] using the Dover state coloring book. My older two also did Russian ( they are Russian born).

This seemed to work for us.

I would highly suggest your three letter reader use the MFW-1 as it is wonderful and made fluent reader out of both of my oldest , and my dd - she reads pretty well too - definitely passed blending and three letter words - her problem is sight words and uisng the phoncs she knows well in drill in the reading setting is in the process of getting correct diagnosis - maybe ADD and maybe some reading/language issue -probably auditory processing disorder .

[kfrench]

We do Adventures and MFW1 together. We do only the phonics and biblestories from 1 and then all of Adventures. It works fine. I do cut down the amount of writing in Adventures sometimes on the notebook pages she copies the first sentence and then I write the rest.
Kris

[caod]

We do Adventures and MFW1. It works fine. We do all of the science and other stuff from Adventures and only the phonics (bible reader and notebooks) with MFW1. Since your dd is older and doing fairly well you could omit some of the "hands on, cut and paste" type stuff if you wanted and she would still get the program very nicely. It would depend if she liked that kind of thing or needed the reinforcement. But the program would hold together on the notebooks and reader alone.

Connie

[TurnOurHearts]

I've been pouring over our TMs since they arrived, and we will definitely be using as much of both programs as possible.

...The only thing I can really see to pare down is science. I don't want to burn out my dc with 2 complete programs, no matter how wonderful they look. If Adventures is "optional" (kind of) then should we actually do the science from 1st? But then we lose the science/bible connection in Adv.

Thanks for your thoughts on this question!!!

I'm pretty sure Marie actually says in the TM that the science projects are not optional in ADV. Last weekend I spent some time talking with Marie at NCHE and she mentioned the science in particular. She had originally done something else entirely with the science. But in her words, "It just didn't have that 'My Father's World' feel." She found the materials we have now & just knew it had finally come together.

We finished our last day of ADV today (waaaaah!), and I am so glad we haven't skipped the science. It really goes a long way in undergirding everything else you learn.

Maybe take it week by week? In my house, the kids can't get enough of those little Usborne science books. Even when I'm not involved, they drag them out & do the projects on their own (oh my!)!

But definitely DON'T WORRY. God will help you find your groove. :) Have a great year in MFW!

[NHMom]

We have done Adventures and part of MFW 1st this year (we're on day 49 of 1st and have 1 week left of Adventures).

We do all of the science in Adventures. For the 1st grade science, I have my daughter read the book to me for reading practice, or I'll read it to her sometimes. She narrates it back, but we don't do the activities.

We do plenty of science in Adventures, but I didn't want her to miss out on the 1st grade topics either. This seems to be working, and I think she really enjoys extra alone time with mommy :-)

[Lucy]

If you have to choose between the two you will want to go with Adventures. While MFW 1st is fun and hands-on, it is not part of the unit study in MFW 1, but covers a variety of activities. The science in Adventures is very much apart of the unit study, sometimes with bible and other times with the state history as you study about birds.

Do not feel that your 1st graders has to do everything in Adventures either. If it seems to be too much for her in a day then just let her sit in and join in activities that she will enjoy.

Also with the bible you may choose to discuss the Proverbs with both children but only have them memorize either the Proverbs or the Adventure verses. This is always a hard call I think. You can have them memorizing separate verses too of course, but it may simplify it to only do one set. Just something for you to think about.

One idea may be to do the Proverbs with Daddy as a family in the evening and do the Names of Jesus (the bible in Adventures) in the morning. Again these are just some ideas for you to think about in trying to simplify a bit so that it is not too much of a good thing:).

Hope this gives you a start.

Lucy

[RB]

Help! I'm trying to teach 1st grade phonics and math to my ds(6), as well as Adv to my ds (71/2).

How do I include my 6 y/o without requiring as much writing from him - and occupy him as he is waiting for me to work with him? How do you all handle the activities (tee pees, almanac, napkin holder, etc) - have them each do one (that is what we have been doing)?

My friends who have large families all have older children. Thanks for any insight
Melanie

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2007 2:08 pm
We, too are doing 1st and Adv. My 2 oldest are the same ages as yours, but they are girls. We've fallen into a nice groove with the combination, but remember mine are girls :) And it didn't happen right away, we just finished week 7.

We often start off with a couple of books from the 1st science library list, because they are fun and my 4 yo likes them too. Then we do bible. He (ds 4) is then free to come or go, and some mornings we take him to preschool at 9:30.

Then I usually do phonics and math from 1st with dd 6. She just started the bible reader and notebook, along with the workbook and student sheets. During this time I often have dd 7 1/2 read whatever book she is reading for school and work on flashmaster for math drill.

Then we all 3 do calendar and number of the day from 1st. dd 7 needs the reinforcement.

Then dd6 gets some playtime, either alone or with ds 4. Dd 7 and I do singapore math, spelling, PLL and anything else that is just for her.

Snack/Stretch break

Then we do History (reading and notebooking) Science, activities, bb, etc.
For the record, i stopped having dd 6 do writing on her Adventures pages, and I give her a Coloring page instead. The bible notebook in 1st will help her with this skill, and she was easily discouraged. Sometimes I have her narrate and I write it for her.

Eventually we will add foreign language (Czech) and more consistent art (maybe).

I think that's about it. For the record we've not done many activities (bible or science) from 1st. We've only done 1 proverb from 1st, but both girls have been learning the verses from Adv. We do almost all of the activities and experiments from Adv, but I admit I have skipped a couple (the salty candle and homemade playdough off the top of my head). Also, we only do one of each project usually. Like the bread shaped napkin holder- dd 7 traced and cut the paper, I cut the box, dd 6 glued the paper on, dd 7 wrote the words on one side and dd 6 drew a picture of Jesus on the other. Figured we only needed on napkin holder !

I hope this helps in some way. We typically finish in 3 to 4 hours. We love it...most of the time :)

Oh, and we do read alous at bedtime as a family.

And I must say we've really only been in a good groove for about 2 weeks. Partly because it took me several weeks to figure out what and how I wanted to combine the two programs.

Hope you find a good groove, too!

[shannon]

Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2007 7:22 pm
I am also doing both 1st and adventures with my 6 and 8 year olds. We do adventures together first thing in the morning. Then while I am assisting my 8 year old with math etc., I have my 6yo do some copywork. By the time she is finished, my son is ready for a break. I let him go play, then do the 1st grade work with her. If one of them needs a little one-on-one time with school, I just give the other a little busy work or free time. Also, we memorize only the Adventures scripture each week, instead of the proverb in 1st. Everything else seems to get covered in about 3-4 hours a day.Hope this helps some. Shannon

[dhudson]

We're starting school on Wednesday (not starting curriculum until Thurs), and I thought I was getting close to ready, but I've been trying all evening to write a schedule out and I can't for the life of me figure it out! This is my first year really teaching 2. Plus, my 2yo no longer takes a morning nap.
Kirsten

Everyone is different in how they schedule but I can tell you what I did when we were in different stages. Keep in mind that I have an older son and twins who are three years younger. A sample day for us might look like this:

8:30 - Pledge of Allegiance and Opening Prayer and Bible. I always did our bible together - and then split out if we had different activities. I just kept myself in the middle to help with writing Bible verses or making a Bible craft

9:00 - set oldest up with Math and worked through Phonics (1st) and Bible Reader and activities with the twins

9:30 - set twins with Book Basket time and worked with older LA/ Spelling and then 1st grade math with twins while older finished up

10:00 - snack time - they ate and I read - usually science and then did any experiments - all together both curriculums if needed

10:30 - Book Basket for older child while I finished up activities with 1st

11:00 - Either let twins go outside for a while while I read and finished up ADV with the oldest or we all did it together depending on how everyone was doing.

12:00 - Lunch! I might read the read aloud or a book basket book to them while they ate and then they all had play time while I ate.

1:00 - Quiet rest time for twins while older did piano and Rosetta Stone and I might take a rest too!

2:00 - Free Time and other learning opportunities.

We usually do the composers in the car - we listen to them a lot that way! Longer crafts and science are fun in the evening or Sat with Dad if you can't get them all done in the week.

When the twins were two and we were doing school, I had toys set aside for school ( check out the toys for Toddlers from MFW) and used a timer and switched out the toys every 10 min or so. Chalkboards are great, clay works well, we used a baking pan and magnets for years as great toys for the Toddler years, beginner puzzles and their own book basket filled with age appropriate books.

This is what worked for us - I'm sure you'll get many other great ideas as well!

[teach4]

Hi, Your year sounds a lot like mine was last year. I did Adv. with my 8 year old, 1st with my 6 year old, and I had a 3 and a one year old. The first thing I want to do is encourage you that it is OK for all your kids to participate in both programs as they are able. Also, it will work out just fine if you have to leave things out. They will have a great, well rounded year learning from each other.

I did not follow a tight schedule. I found that I could not keep it and it stressed me out. I did not "fly by the seat of my pants either". In the evening I would go through my TM's and write out what lessons and activities I wanted to cover. Our approximate schedule...

8:30 or 9:00 we would sing bible songs and do some light excercise. I found that this helped get everyone in one room and focused.

9:00ish we would do Bible. Some days I would do the Bible from 1st. My three oldest all made a Bible notebook. Somedays we would do Bible from Adv. I would tend to double up on the readings so that we could fit everything in in one week.

9:15 0r 9:30 we would do State coloring pages or any reading aloud that was scheduled in. This would include history from adv., science books, or whatever. Just put it all in a pile and read it while I had peoples attention.

Around 10 we would go outside, weather permitting for a brief recess. I would then start bringing them in one at a time for LA, math, and whatever else needed to be done individually. On nice days I would work with them outside. This helped keep the little ones out of my hair a bit =)

10:45 or 11 we would come back inside and do art, science experiment, craft, or cooking. I would pick and choose these projects from among both programs.

Sometimes I would read aloud from a chapter book to wrap things up and we would call it a day. Whatever didn't get done from one day got rolled over to the next or dropped. Many times we would get really "behind" for a few weeks and then have a great week and catch up.

Also, I should mention that I am spreading 1st out over 2 years for my now just turned 7 year old. She is also really young for the grade and needs more time and reinforcement for the phonics than the 1st TM provided. So this year I will be doing ECC, 1st, and have a 4 and 2 tagging along.

My best 2 cents is to try to get organized and write out the plan the night before. Gather all the supplies and books the night before. Then be flexible and roll with the punches each school day.

Don't know if this helps much, but you can have a great year with both programs.

Blessings, Cymbrie

[mom2boys]

Hi Kirsten,

I am not a schedule person either, more of a routine person. First we will do this, then that, then next, etc. I don't like to put times on everything. I do have a start time which is 8:30 this year. Managers of Their Home is a popular book that teaches scheduling, but it was way to micro scheduled for me and my 3 kids. What I did learn from that book was to include myself and my toddler on that routine that I make.

So for your rough draft start out with a column for each of you and start filling it in. So first you might have Bible for all, then while you read a book/color or whatever with 2 yo. to fill up his love bucket first, 1st grader and 8 yo. will do math fact flash cards with each other. Next you will get 2 yo started on an independent activity on the floor (maybe some of those cool Lauri toys that MFW recommends), 1st grader will work with mom on 1st grade stuff, 8yo does math. Etc. so that you can make sure everyone is busy with something. Give them some activity that they can always do if they get stuck or finished early and mom is not available (book basket, independent reading, play with math manipulatives empty the dishwasher etc.) Include each older child spending time with the 2 yo while you get some one-on-one with the other. And a 30 minute video (gasp!) after the 2 yo has rotated through time with everyone sure works wonders with this family!

So after that long winded explanation, I guess my advice is to include yourself and your toddler in the schedule so you don't over book yourself or neglect your toddler. This is just what I have found helpful. And the beginning of each year takes us a few weeks to get in the groove, so don't expect seamless transitions your first day!

Blessings on you and your new school year!

[GoodCat]

Hi Kristen,

I've found that some years (like the ones when I had really little ones), I would need to just start school and see how everything flows. Then I could get a better understanding on what I needed to do with my family. In fact, that is where I'm at with this year. We are doing RtR with my 4 older ones, and K with my 5dd, and I'll have a 2 dd. Since I haven't done this year before, I'm waiting until we start to decide how I want to continue to plan my days/year. Does that make sence?

Anyway, just a thought.

Cathy

[RB]

I just bought Adventures. My children will be 7 1/2 and just turned 6 then. My dd who will be 6 can read books like Frog and Toad, but it's slow and she needs help on a word now and then.

I was going to combine her with her brother in Adventures, but now I'm second guessing myself. She would love the Bible history and I'm wondering if reviewing phonics would help her become more proficient, and I don't want to rush her. She is really mature for her age and has advanced fine motor skills, so I don't think she'd find Adventures hard, but maybe the point is not to rush at this age. What do you all think?

Is it too time consuming to do both? I'll also have a highschool level child to help.

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 11:06 am
When we started in August my dds were 7 1/2 and barely 6 (she actually had her birthday 2 weeks into our school year).

I, too, debated using 1st but I'm so glad we did. dd6 sped through the first 30 or so lessons (she could already read something like Amelia Bedelia), but then it has been an excellent way for her to learn all the phonograms, gain speed and fluency, and learn early writing and spelling skills.

She does much of Adventures, too. We do not do all of 1st (science, hands-on) because we have not had enough time. We usually school from about 9am to 12 noon, with the read-aloud at bedtime. HTH!

[LoveBaby]

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 9:45 pm

My 8yo DD is starting adventures next week (we're waiting on a few items) and my 6 yo DS is just over 1/2 way through the K program. My plan is to have DS only complete the phonics/math portions of the 1st program and jump in on the rest of the Adventures program (history/bible/geography/science etc.) I know that w/ an almost 4yo and an infant it will be too much for me to try to do both of the complete programs.

My 8yoDD greatly benefited from the phonics portion of the 1st grade program. I'm so thankful that we didn't go ahead and push her into the Adventures program. Her reading has become much more fluent and accurate!

[warriormom]

Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 8:39 pm

I was operating on the same line of thinking as you when I decided to go ahead and do most of the 1st grade with my 6 year old son and let him sit in on Adventures with his 7.5 year old brother. I was initially afraid that the phonics would bore him but didn't want him to miss out on the Bible Notebook.

We are on day 92 and not regretting the review, and the Bible Notebook is such a treasure that I wouldn't want to miss that keepsake!
Melanie

[Heidi]

Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 10:02 am

When we combined Adventures with 1st - the two did all the unit stuff together with even my then toddler listened in as he wished. My ds did all of Adventures stuff and dd did the 1st Bible notebook for her reading, writing and she did her own math. She wanted so much to participate with the history notebook that she dictated to me what she wished to write, I wrote it and she did this for her copywork and added a picture (she loves to draw).

[Mommyto2]

Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 7:43 am

I do K and Adventures with an almost 6 and an almost 9 now.

We do Adventures together. At the beginning my Ker usually listened in on all the history reading but I didn't make her do anything with it. We are in the states now and she colors the state sheets and has her sticker. I don't make her retell me any facts but she listens in while coloring. She learns all the Celebrate America music and Nutcracker. She also watches and participates in all the science because it is so fun.

I break them apart for math and LA. I do a "light" version of K because she has already sat in on all the Adventures stuff and is getting tired of school.

My Ker knew all her letters and almost all her sounds and how to count when we started so we skip some of the easy drills and mostly just do the worksheets now and some games. We have lots of her subject books for book basket and usually an educational movie about it too.

If she hadn't known her letters and sounds in the beginning, I wouldn't have had her do as much Adventures because would have been too much. Some days we skip K because Adventures is too much information and she just can't do more. Then I just make sure she has read a little mini paper book or something to keep her reading level up.

Brenda

[cbollin]

If I get MFW 1st how could I combine the 2? Would I use 1st for LA and then use ADV for the rest?

Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 8:38 am
There is a recommendation in the ADV manual that says something like:
Use ADV as base and then First Grade: complete the reading and math portion of 1st. The other sections (science, other activities) can either be omitted or added as time allows.

I’ve read several post where families are using the Bible reader, notebook (because that’s part of the reading/writing instruction) and also at least using the Proverbs memory work in 1st grade for copywork and character lessons. But they tend to omit science from 1st in favor of the science in ADV (or even do the 1st grade science on light day in Adventures)

Any of the math in 1st grade manual will be a great way to learn math even if you use another program for worksheets. There are lots of games and hands on learning activities in the math program, so that part wouldn’t be wasted from the manual for you either.

-crystal

[Lucy]

I have 3 sons- ages 8, 6, and 4. We are definitely doing Adventures this next year. I am considering also doing 1st grade from my middle son. I am not sure what to do for math and phonics and that is why I am tempted to buy 1st grade-- mainly for those two subjects. Perhaps if I buy it, we would just do those two subjects (plus possibly the bible notebook? ) I dunno.

We are involved with several things outside the home and need to be careful not to try to do to much curriculum wise (that sounds bad, but I hope you understand my heart on that!).

Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 11:19 am
K and 1st were written (time wise) to be done alongside any older program. MFW K and MFW 1 primarily focus on teaching a child to read, write, and cover first grade math topics. I takes 1 1/2-2 hours a day. This can be done during some independent time in Adventures.

The other subjects such as bible (and a bit of bible history) are interwoven into Language Arts in the 1st program. Science has its own day and is easy to not do if you put them in the older kids program.

So your first grader will join in for the science and probably bible lessons in Adv. and any other reading that he is interested in. In a recent discussion Paige mentioned how much her K child enjoyed the stories in Patriots and Pioneers. So the younger will join in but you will not need to feel that he do all of the program. I would consider the state sheets if the first grader would be interested and the extra stickers.

Since bible is so important in both years you will want to do both. I do not think you will find it to be too much and as I think Crystal mentioned it is good, if you can, to involve dad in one of them in the evening. I would suggest doing that with Adventures. The Proverbs, in MFW1, are just so good for character building and again I like the idea of posting and reviewing it even if the 2nd grader is not "memorizing that one". It is doable.

So I would get 1st to teach the phonics and other language arts as well as math. It will all be in one manual and in one place and it all fits together. You also read a bible story to the first grader on many days. This is actually part of the reading/composition lesson since they later read the same story from their own bible reader and then write a sentence or two in their own bible notebook that they create throughout the year.

I am sure others will chime in but I wanted you to hopefully get a feel for the program and know that when MFW wrote it they knew that many would have older children that they were teaching at the same time.
Lucy

[RachelT]

Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 4:08 pm

If you are certain that your 6 yr. old will be ready for 1st grade and not K, you can look at this link from the main message board "Choosing Curriculum" archive that I think will help you. It talks about how to begin MFW while teaching K and 1st grade, but if you look below that at the "next year" in this plan it will describe what you are talking about, except that you would also need the 1st grade basic package since you have not taught it before.

http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?t=191

Below I am just copying and pasting this section, but you can look at the link for more.

The next year (1st and 2nd)

1. Teach MFW-1 to your 1st grader but only Bible, reading (and writing), and math.
2. Teach Adventures in My Father’s World to both children. Do not expect the 1st grader to do any of the writing (or copying) assignments in Bible or history.
Note: If you are also teaching a 3rd-8th grader, do not use Adventures. Instead, let your 2nd grader join his older siblings in the five-year cycle. (A younger sibling does not begin with Year 1, Exploring Countries and Cultures; he joins his siblings in whichever year they are currently doing.)
3. For your 2nd grader, add math (Singapore), spelling (Spelling by Sound and Structure for Grade 2), and language arts (Primary Language Lessons). Let your 2nd grader practice reading with lots of easy readers from the library.

Purchase:
Adventures in My Father’s World Deluxe Package
First Grade Student Materials
Primary Language Lessons, Spelling by Sound and Structure for Grade 2, and 2nd grade math (Singapore)

I hope that is helpful!
Rachel

[teach4]

Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 12:57 am

I am currently teaching adv (ds8) and 1st (dd6) together. I also have a 4dd and 20 mo dd tagging along. These two programs work really well together if you are comfortable dropping some activities and also just allowing all children to participate in each others work. For example:

Bible: All my children are making a Bible notebook according to their own ability. On the days that we do this we do not do the Adventures Bible. On the others days all the children listen in on the Bible reading from adventures. Both the proverbs from 1st and the memory verses from Adv. are memorized by all children.

Science: We only do the science activities scheduled in adventures. All the children participate in this, again according to their ability. I have included some of the MFW1 science books in our book basket but do not do any of the 1st science activities.

History: All the children listen in on Adv. History and make state pages. They are all making a history notebook, again according to their own ability. We have combined the timelines from 1st and adventures and just add things in as we get to them. My children all enjoy being read to so I tend to condense one week in the Adv. TM into 2-3 days. I also do not feel guilty about skipping a project here or there.

Phonics/LA/spelling: My dd (age 6) is a very young 1st grader. We are taking the phonics slowly. We will not finish all of the 1st grade program this year. DS (8) has been doing Rod and Staff spelling and PLL.

Math: ds (8) is currently working in singapore 2b. dd (6) is doing a little bit from the complete book of math. We talk about patterns and I make up simple word and money problems for her in the course of life. She seems to grasp the concepts.

Art, music, and other extras: We do a little bit from "I Can Do All Things." For music, I mostly put on the classical radio station in the car and they attend the youth concerts at the symphony. We will begin piano lessons soon. Foreign language is a distant goal...

Everyone has learned a lot this year. Probably I have learned the most by learning to let go of the schedule and simply lift each day up to Jesus. Some days we "accomplish" virtually nothing. Others, we fly through our work and really "catch-up". Everything that is touched on in these two programs will be covered again in later years. Don't worry about missing something or skimming over something.

Anyway, I hope even a little bit of this has helped. All the best.
Cymbrie

[Julie in MN]

I am trying to decide next year if I should use MFW Adv for my ds (8) and 1st for my dd (9) and dd (6). My dd (9) has special needs and needs some more phonics/writing instruction so that is why I am considering MFW 1st for her. I know I can just use the phonics/writing portion of 1st and combine bible/history...but I know I won't want to miss the bible/science in MFW 1st. How difficult would it be to teach Adventures and 1st together? I am a little upset my dd's will miss out on Adventures though because I think it looks like a great program.

Hi ArmyWife,
Thanks for your service

Here are some threads to get your thinking started this morning.
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=5052 (ADV, K, + 1st)
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=3419 (K + Adv)
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2713 (1st + older programs)
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=191 (Marie Hazell's post, see the section on 1st and 2nd)
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=3271 (science)
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=899 (age 7+)
http://board.mfwbooks.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3786 (all vs. part of 1st)
[and above]

As for your littles, they will get Adventures both joining in next year as they want to and again doing many of the same activities in year 4 of the history cycle. Don't worry, it's all good
Julie

[Michelle in WA]

We are doing ADV & 1st this year. I'm doing mostly the phonics from first (we're only on day 22). We combine for history in ADV and science. I skip 1st science. We will do 1st bible. It can be done. I just combine when we can and separate when we need to.

[gratitude]

I'm curious whether anyone has taught ADV to first graders by combining it with the phonics portion of MFW1 (assuming the child/children have already been successful with MFWK) alongside an older sibling in ADV?

I guess I have a little bit of an answer, although it is a fairly recent development. (My ds7 is doing ADV, and ds5 is finishing K and starting 1)

My ds5, K, is just in the process of finishing K. At his request he already finished reading all the K stories and is very ready for 1st grade phonics / reading; although I hesitate with his age. I keep thinking Take It Slow.

Anyways, he is finishing a little of K, but started some first grade phonics two weeks ago (a few days a week). He also started a little 1st grade math. I only have him do what he really is willing and wanting to do at this age. Since I want to bring in the first grade reader & bible notebook my plan is to:

Not have him do the ADV notebook, but continue to do what he is doing. He is involved in listening to the ADV books, being involved in the discussions, doing the science, included in the Bible, and hearing the people's names on the time-line. I am also including him in any US state geography activities we do.

So the only thing he really isn't doing is the Art & Notebook & Spanish (he listens in though). I rather have him do MFW 1st grade for both of those activities.

I hope this helps a little.

[Metairie]

You know, Carin, I am surprised how much Jordan is retaining from Adventures. She talks about our stories, draws pictures about them, listens to the read alouds. I just blogged about that on my weekly report last night. I am excited to see how they really can be combined after 1st grade. I like the way you are using both. We are starting K next week, so I have no idea how fast, or slow, we will go. I'm just going to take it at her pace and sit back and enjoy.