fyonaf
- Reviewed on Friday, June 25, 2010
- Grades Used: Pre-K
- Dates used: 2009-2010
Little Hands to Heaven was EXACTLY what our family needed this year. I began the year with 2.5 year old twin boys and an almost 4-year old daughter. This program allowed us all get used to the idea of "school" in a VERY preschool friendly format. My favorite part is that your child(ren) will emerge from this program really knowing their Bible. There is nothing I'd rather my preschoolers know than the basic Bible stories. Plenty of time later to learn phonics and so forth. There's no rush, folks. As a former middle/high school teacher, let me encourage everyone to build good HABITS with their young ones and then get the basics down. No rush. I've seen what kids are like at age 12 who don't know how to focus, don't know how to be creative or think on their own. And many don't know their Bible....
Pros:
-Easy and complete package
-Inexpensive
-Short, child friendly lessons
-Thorough coverage of Bible stories (yes, even the "violent" stories, but so many of those same stories are ones in which God's redemptive plan are seen so clearly--like Abraham and Isaac)
-AMAZING recommended resources (both story Bibles, both devotional guides, and the CD's are all excellent resources that every family should have even if they're not working through this curriculum)
-Good introduction to the basics (letters, numbers, etc.)
-Consistent (yes, there is repetition. However, this builds confidence in children and enables the mom/teacher to know what's coming--it's much easier to adapt on the fly or to even "teach" in another location from memory. Let's face it: even vacations with several toddlers/preschoolers can have some hours to fill :) ).
Cons:
-the copying (this would be easier if the book came spiral bound)
One tip: get several Bible story books (the Beginners Bible from Zonderkidz has all the same stories in it and The Big Picture Bible is a great overview); then you can read the stories for the week several times. My kids didn't get tired of hearing David and Goliath 3 or 4 times in a week. Now, they really know the stories and can tell me all about Hannah who prayed for baby Samuel, the dreams of Joseph, the 10 plagues, and so forth.
On a final note: if you have a junior high (or older) student and a preschooler or two at home, this curriculum would be GREAT practice for that junior high student to practice teaching with. It would be great review for him/her in Biblical literacy as well as a fun way for him/her to really get to know a younger sibling. Just a thought! A junior high student could pick up the book and teach everything in it quite easily.
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momlove7
- Reviewed on Thursday, October 29, 2009
- Grades Used: preK
- Dates used: 2008
I would agree with the previous reviewer as far as pros and cons.
My child became quickly bored with the repetition of the program and I became bored with the copying. Overall, this is a nice way to get your toddler involved with school.
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taylorfamily6
- Reviewed on Wednesday, July 01, 2009
- Grades Used: Pre-k (2 yrs old)
- Dates used: 2009
I want to start by saying I love HOD and their programs. I do think that LHTH was a good program for my 2 yr old. It will teach your child the alphabet and sounds, numbers to 10, and colors.
That said, here are the pros and cons of LHTH...
Pros:
1. Upfront Cost
2. Short, easy lessons (very CM)
3. Your child will know the alphabet, numbers to 10, and colors when done.
Cons:
1. Cost of ink and paper to print pages needed by child
2. Time spent scanning and copying pages needed by child
3. Repetitive-the activities for each letter are essentially the same, the count on me is the same every week, the number page is just cutting and gluing that number of items (a predesignated item that you must find in magazines or yet again find and print from the net) to the page...
4. Fingerplays do not flow, often have no tune for you to follow
5. Dramatic play feels forced. Is often violent Bible stories.
I have enjoyed LHTH with my 2 year old this year. I have not enjoyed scanning, copying and printing all the pages needed. Taping each of the letters with masking tape to your floor gets old after a while also. My son hated the fingerplays and wouldn't try them. He did not like the devotional option for youngers, Big Thoughts for Little People. He wouldn't even listen to me read it. We don't use the alphabet cards b/c yet again you have to scan them, copy them, and print them...then cut them out. I never got past printing them all, cutting up to F, and folding. It isn't going to happen and we have used sandpaper letters instead.
I did finally get him interested in fingerplays by using the original recommended devotional by LHTH, Playtime Devotions, which is now out of print. He loves it and the fingerplays.
I would recommend LHTH for a 2-3 year old that wants to do school like older siblings or for someone who needs a light, fun year.
I would not recommend this for a k4 year or to be prepared for kindergarten.
It is a great program to give your chid a gentle, fun introduction to "school". I feel it was a good fit for my 2 year old. I would not recommend it for a 4 or 5 year old getting ready for formal school instruction.
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CindyLou
- Reviewed on Saturday, January 03, 2009
- Grades Used: Pre-K (age 4)
- Dates used: Summer/Fall 2008
Little Hands to Heaven is such a sweet program. I love how the Bible is inter-woven throughout the entire program. My 4-year-olds (especially dd) were asking to do "school" (their little neighborhood friends attend pre-school) and I wanted something easy (having absolutely no experience with homeschooling). My Father's World (MFW - the curriculum I planned on using for K) did not offer a formal pre-k program and I stumbled upon Heart of Dakota's LHTH. It looked fun & easy & was very affordable, so I thought I'd give it a try. I'm SO GLAD I did!
My two dc are complete opposites - ds is very active & tactile young 4 with little patience/attention-span, and dd is very methodical bright older 4 perfectionist (almost 5). This program was MORE than I could have asked for - simple and fun for ALL of us. DS thought it was playing, not really school and he loved it - learned so much (before had absolutely no interest in "learning"). DD wanted MORE so I supplemented with Kumon, About Three, R&S, and Critical Thinking workbooks for her. Being that they are both four, and already knew some letters and sounds, we were able to go through it fairly quickly - they finished it in 7 months, doing 3-4 days a week (June thru Dec) but we often did more than one unit in a week. Still we spent no more than an hour or so (usually less) per day (not counting the time my dd spent on her supplemental workbooks - she'd work on those all day if I let her!).
Initially I thought I'd do LITTLE HANDS just for preschool since MFW doesn't have a formal preschool program, but I have absolutely fallen in love with Heart of Dakota that I've purchased the K-1st grade LITTLE HEART program which we will start in just a few weeks! It looks like the two curriculums (HOD and MFW) are very similar so I know I couldn't have gone wrong with either. But HOD won me over with their gentle, fun pre-k program and I plan to continue with them!
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