Hello, I just started MBTP with my bright but probably not gifted 7.5 year old and my ADHD, mildly dyslexic,gifted 9 year old. I also have a 19 month old running around distracting us as we try to work. I am having both boys do the 7-9 level, both read fairly well but struggle with writing. We did lesson 1 of "Tornado" yesterday and it went fairly well. My 7 year old could have probably done a bit more work at that point, but there is no way in the world that I would have been able to keep my 9 year old focused any longer and thus we did not get through the first science lesson like were were "supposed to". I was thinking that we would alternate days, do LA one day and Science or social studies the next, but if we do that we would only get through about half of the material in a year. What should we do if we don't make it through a whole years worth of material in one year? Should we just keep going with the 7-9 level until done and then move up to 8-10? Should I reassess them periodically and move up to the next level when I feel they are ready even if we don't finish the whole level?

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The joy of homeschooling is you are able to go at your child's pace. Some days I do 2 lessons, some days I do 1/2 of one lesson. The main thing you need to decide is if your going to teach them together or separate. If you want to teach together stay with 7-9 until all the curriculum is complete and concepts are learned, then retest, go at the 9year olds pace. Your 7yo has plenty to learn outside of MBTP in Math and writing and even reading that they can go on their own pace so doing less of MBTP won't mean less learning. The idea share here also should have plenty to continue his MBTP learning without getting ahead book wise of the 9yo.

I would only retest before curriculum was complete if they were bored because it's too easy AND if you are willing to teach separately. Curriculum could easily be modified individually to be harder then the hard work provided. However, having a 19 month old and teaching 2 separate curriculum is not easy. You could practice teaching separately by teaching 7-9 at each child's pace. Even if they don't test higher, your 7yo, if worked with individually would probably finish 7-9 and start 8-10 by February or March. Your 9yo however could surprise you after seeing what projects the 7yo is working on by wanting to catch up and work together. Or stay on something like the MBTP year round (or more) schedule and finish 7-9 by June.

My 2017/2018 plan has left over MBTP lessons that will carry into 2018/2019. My plan is loose but very detailed and realistic. It will be the first year my youngest won't be tagging along. I will be teaching 4-5 (again) and 7-9 along with their respective grade level extras. Just the thought of it, because after 3 years of HSing I know what I'm getting myself into, would be insanely overwhelming for me without a roadmap. So my advice is always figure out your realistic goals and limitations. Which isn't always easy when first starting out.

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I agree with kimberly p...some days I can do both the LA & SS/S lesson and other days I just do LA or SS/S. It depends how long it takes and how long our math lesson is that day. My child has autism so we are also working on fine motor, gross motor, life skills, and social skills so sometimes the academics is lighter and other days we do predominantly academics. Either way, he is getting so much more of an education through this program in the homeschool environment than he ever received in the SDC at the public school. I absolutely love MBTP and recommend it highly.

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I'm in a similar situation. My son is currently enrolled in an online public school but I'm researching homeschool curriculums. I keep coming back to MBTP for him. We can't keep up with the "busy" work required for the online public school because we are working on the motor/social/life skills at the same time. I need way more flexibility and control when it comes to his assignments.

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Definitely take however long it takes to finish a level. My daughter took two years to finish one level and it was well worth it. My son has taken three years. You can always expect more by asking them to write more or try writing the work in cursive for example. For some kids I end up scribing for them. This is the best curriculum I could find for all types a kid. Go fast or slow as you wish.

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Ultimately, you are the parent and teacher and you know your child best. Do whatever works best for you and your family.

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I know this forum hasn't been active for awhile, but we too are going at a slower pace. Doing all four lessons (including Life of Fred Math) every day just doesn't seem possible for us. We do Science and Math two days a week and Lang Art and SS two days a week and French. We won't be finishing all ten units in Lang Art and SS by the end of the year this way. We are at the 12-14 level for an 8th grader and I would be fine with continuing the remaining units into his 9th grade year. What I worry about is for homeschooling high school, don't you still have to have the 4 years of Lang Arts and the 3 years of History to qualify for colleges? Would continuing 8th grade Lang Arts into 9th grade count? Or can we really just cover those years the way we want. We are in Washington State and the homeschooling rules are actually very accommodating here about doing it your own way.

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Interestingly, you'll need to base your decision on what college or university your child intends to attend. Generally, where I am, there's the 4x4 rule. Four years of English, Math, Science, Social Studies. However, you'll want to investigate what your state requires, and again, what school your child wants to attend will have admissions requirements.

Sometimes there are separate homeschool admissions guidelines as well like standardized testing. HSLDA.org has good requirements information for each state. Also, look at your local university's admissions requirements.

Whether you stretch out the 12-14 curriculum into 9th grade is up to you, ultimately. As long as it fits into your state's requirements and your goals.

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I am in Oregon and our homeschooling regulations are similar to Washington. Our state colleges require 4 Math/4 Language Arts/ 3 Science and 3 Social studies at minimum. I would not be concerned with running the Age 12-14 through into 9th grade as you have complete flexibility to create a transcript that simply reflects what you have taught at the time.

With my girls, I am doing 4 lessons a week in each subject. This makes the year a bit longer but we can still complete our schooling in 10 months. I will also sometimes spend some time in the summer concentrating on one subject that my children choose...usually science. This helps them to get a bit ahead and gives more wiggle room during the school year.

As your high school years go on, you will want to be aware that if you continue to reduce the workload too much, your child may not be ready for a full load in college. But, ultimately, it will depend on your family, lifestyle, and your children's long term goals how you design their high school education. The best part of homeschooling is that we can find the best fit for our children and allow them to grow and develop in their own time.

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Thank you so much for the replies! We are new at this, barely 5 months in, and it helps to hear how others are handling things. We began with the idea of four lessons per subject per week, so maybe we can strive to reach that. My son's main interest is computer science/programming and he is already quite proficient at it, spending a lot of his time accomplishing projects in those subjects all on his own. Science and Math are moving along quickly as well. So, technically he is doing Science, Math, LA, SS, Computer, and a little bit of French. It's the reading requirement per lesson in LA and SS, as well as his lack of interest in those subjects, that are slowing us down.
I majored in Archaeology/Anth so social studies and history interest me...but not so much him. I figure I'll need a tutor in math eventually as that wasn't my best subject either. Opposite interests :)
We do feel that even in just the last few months he is getting a much more in depth and fuller education than what he was getting with public school. I hope MBTP creates more curriculum for High School in the future, as we would seriously consider using it.

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My husband is an anthropologist so your message made me laugh a bit. My two children have very different interests at this age (late middle school) and this is the first time we have really let their schoolwork diverge. One is interested in classical studies and the other engineering and robotics. I would definitely allow your child to work to their interests and strengths. We actually also worked up to 4 lessons a week at the beginning of the school year as I knew these upper levels require more commitment. And my girls have also always needed an extra day to finish any writing assignment. We have always used the "wiggle room" in the curriculum for that (since the Age 7-9 level).

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