Progress report/update on us :) (with a question at the end)

[TheReader]

I mentioned this in the thread on Barton, but didn't want it to get buried there because it's such a big deal.....(well, ha!, for us this is a big deal...).

 

DS is going through Barton Level 3, and while we did not intend to take any time off for summer, life happened, and one thing led to another and yesterday was our first day touching it since May. (ahem). 

 

I expected difficulty, but he blew me away! Not only did he still remember all the rules so far (closed syllable, FLOSS, etc.), which I thought I'd need to review, he picked up the c/k (Kiss the Cat) rule and Watch Out vowels right away, solidly enough that I skipped the nonsense words extra practice part. 

 

Even more than that, though, when I filled in the check list (I write the date completed in the blank, vs. just putting a check mark), I noticed that we had done *twice as much* in one sitting as ever before. I work not so much via time limit, but until he begins to be fatigued (that very first hint that "this is too much"), and honestly we stopped when we did more because I had other commitments to get to than because he was showing fatigue signs. 

 

I pointed that out to him, and he was thrilled. We're halfway through Level 3, and I had thought we'd likely take the semester to finish it at our old pace. Now I think we might need to order Level 4 by September, which is awesome! 

 

I do have a question for experienced users: I showed him the "use a blank" method (for c vs. k), but the spelling comes to him so quickly that he's thinking to the next letter and then grabbing the appropriate c or k right then rather than building it with a blank, finishing the word, and going back to check. Now, in my novice thought process, this is good, because if he's at school and needing to write, he'll need to know which to use, and the goal seems to be to move to this being instinctive. But, is there any reason I'm missing for why I should make him slow down and use the blank method instead? 

 

thanks for cheering us on and for any help on that one issue, and all the help getting us to this point! 

[OneStepAtATime]

:hurray:  :hurray:  :hurray:

 

I'm no expert but if he is already internalizing when to use the correct letter I don't see the need to slow down and make him put in the blank tile first.  If, at a later time, he starts to struggle you can go back to that but for the moment if things are gelling then I say go for it!  (someone else may have a different opinion)

[PeterPan]

No help on the spelling, but congrats on your progress!  :)

[TheReader]

thanks, guys!