Think I need to separate my oldest 2?

[mrsrandolph]

My 12 year old (girl) and 11 year old (boy) are in CTC. The problem is that my 11 year old has learning disabilities and my 12 year old is EXTREMELY bright and sees everything as a competition.

This is making my younger son feel "stupid"...like he "can't do anything right", etc.

So, I am seriously considering bumping my daughter up to Res to Ref and leaving my son in CTC so that there school work is totally separate.

I feel this might be better for both of them. My daughter can definitely handle RtR.

This is going to put a strain on me and will put me doing 3 guides. My youngest 2 finishing up Beyond. One in CTC and one in RtR.

Thoughts?

[Gwenny]

I would think it would make everyone happier to separate. It will be very hard on your son to have that going on everyday, the last thing he needs is to feel worse about his struggles. Does he place in CTC for sure? If so, bump her up.

[rumkimom]

I agree. It sounds like it will make everyone happier. I am doing a 2 week trail to see if my boys can handle being together...I may end up in the same situation (running 3 guides instead of 2). Oh, 2 of mine are special needs (the older 2) and of course the youngest one can't read so all 3 will be highly needy in the beginning.

[Mumkins]

Yes! CTC was our split guide too. I think they'll be happier. Less competition. These guides are fairly independent. RTR more than CTC. I think it'll be an easy adjustment.

[queenireneof3]

I split my 7yo and 9yo up this year for similar reasons. They did Beyond together last year. The younger seemed to lose focus and not enjoy the readings as much as my oldest, especially as my oldest is so good at narrating. It was discouraging to watch her disengage, partly due to having their skills compared back to back like that. They are so close in skills I was hoping it would work to combine all the way through their schooling, but she does MUCH better with her own work.

This year she is on her own track. They do a few things together like cursive, hymn and calendar time. But otherwise, her semester is a bit lighter. She is basically doing the right side of Beyond, and some extra handwriting and science or home ec. Hopefully she will start Bigger in January at 4 days a week so she can take a year and a half to finish it and be ready to start Preparing when she gets in 4th grade.

Once you come up with a good schedule to accommodate the different guides, it is much easier to have them at their own levels because you are not battling bad attitudes, or discouragement everyday. Each kids feels like they have their own special place in school as well. You can also slow down each guide as necessary without feeling like you are holding another child back.

I did a lot of reading on this forum and praying and thinking before making the decision, but I am so glad I did separate them!