I’m not sure what ages you are considering – but here was some of my thoughts when trying to place him last year….
I thought that Year 2 would be interesting for him. What a great time period for a boy (it is also good for a girl, don’t get me wrong…) Knighthood, Crusades, Robin Hood. For a girl, there are great books like Heidi and Understood Betsy…
There are plenty of challenging books in Year 2. Pilgrim’s Progress. Tales from Shakespeare. Parables from Nature. There are easier books too.
Looking ahead, Year 4 has actual Shakespeare, etc. We needed more time before that started…
And I figure if we continue to follow AO, he would graduate with AO Year 10 – which is way more than would be needed for a good solid HS grad…
Ok, if I were jumping into AO with an 11yo and a 6yo (which is what they will be in September…) This is what I’d be tempted to do (with no more information about them at all….)
If the 11yo is fairly used to working with living books, I’d consider possibly the pre-year-7 level, year 5 or 6. If he isn’t a strong independant reader, I’d look more at a Year 4 or possibly even Year 3.
The question for the 6yo is whether or not to start Year 1. He might be ready, he might not. I’d be tempted to consider starting him in Year 1 in JANUARY, or the next year. That would give you more time to get yourself transitioned into AO and get a flow going, as well as time to focus with the 6yo with reading, basic writing, basic math, and still more outdoor time. (He could join in with picture study, composer study, etc.) That said, many 6yo’s are ready for Year 1, and sometimes you can’t tell until you’ve tried – so you could try and then back off if it isn’t working well…
So, not sure how helpful I’m being… lol. Are you on the AO forums? There would be other people with advice too.