Tracy
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Posts posted by Tracy
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I'm with you on this. My aunt had a master's and refused to teach me or her children piano. I have a degree in piano and would not teach my nieces and nephew -- I was afraid it would strain our relationship when I had to get "tough"...
I am teaching piano to dd4, and she loves it so much that I don't have to "get tough." Once we reach that stage, I would definitely outsource the piano lessons.
Tracy
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Kumon makes some great workbooks. My DD loves the Mazes workbook. At that age, I started buying the workbooks with dry erase pens. That way DD could do them over and over again. I also found some great sticker workbooks at Walmart and some from Costco (these were more for fun - Disney).
:iagree::iagree:
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When my dd4 was at this point, she loved the Word Whammer (a contraption that sticks to your refridgerator and has magnetic letters that fit in three slots). It has different levels of games, including just saying the letter and sound, spelling a word, building your own word, and making rhyming words. (Once she started to "get it," she told me she wanted a "stronger Word Whammer" that could make 4-letter words.) It was among the best $30 that I ever spent. DS2 now plays with it all the time.
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We are half way through Horizons K, and we haven't needed manipulatives at all. For addition, it uses a number line to help with the problems. If dd gets too much writing on the number line, though, she will resort to using her fingers, instead. I like how the program gently introduces the child to concepts while encouraging mental math.
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You're correct :001_smile:
:iagree:
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Thanks so much for these links! This rocker chick is feeling really bewildered at dd4's interest in classical music. This is very helpful.
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My answer is "We home school because there isn't any reason for us to send the kids to school at this time." School is an institution, and you need a reason to institutionalize a person. I don't need a reason to not institutionalize my children. To ask why my kids aren't in school is a bit lit asking why am I not in prison? Or in a mental hospital? Or an old age home?
Love this. I think I will adopt it. ;)
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The author hosts two yahoo groups. They are not terribly active, but the author responds personally to each post.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/K5science/?yguid=12164133
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Nebelselementaryeducation/?yguid=12164133
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I am, however, overwhelmed by TOG. I printed off one week, and it looks like a novel. How much does it cost to print out one unit? Do you take it Kinko's?
We have decided to purchase TOG and were wavering between the digital and print version. In the meantime, we were also trying to figure out how best to print out CSMP for math. When I called FedEx Kinko's for CSMP, they gave me a quote of $300 for about 1000 pages. :eek: So I would say no to calling Kinko's.
After a little research, we discovered that we can buy a good, fast, color laser printer that costs .03 per page to print for less than $300. If you order the digital version of TOG and have them print it for you, they charge you .05 per page plus shipping. So I figure by the time I have printed out 4 years of TOG and 6 yrs of CSMP, the laser printer will have paid for itself.
Now lets just hope that both programs work for us, since I can't sell that digital version! ;)
Tracy
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How about file folder games? I did one for my dd when she was about that age where she had to match upper and lower case letters. You can google free file folder games and find all kinds of ideas and printables. Putting them together is a pain, but then you have them forever.
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I don't think that you ever need a vocabulary program or a reading comprehension program for an avid reader, especially if you are researching new words as a matter of course. I do think that at 7yo, you need some sort of spelling program. A child may be a great speller at a lower level and then hit a wall when the words become more difficult. Many people prefer to do spelling CM style, and this might be a good option for you. My personal preference is something that is more phonics-driven.
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Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding is a guide and you can add in supplemental books.
We just ordered this, too. I can't wait to get it. It is reportedly designed to help children make connections between different ideas and topics, rather than studying each item in a vacuum.
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Thanks for this website, and all of the other ideas, too. I was surprised to learn that even dramatization could be used for narration. DD does this all the time. Once we read a book, we often have to "play it," too.
I am interested in WWE, but I hesitate to purchase yet another curriculum for a child that is not even school-age, yet (she will be 5yo in Mar.). I want to make sure that she doesn't lose the skills that she has already acquired, but I don't want it to be too burdensome at a time when she is still supposed to be a little kid. So for now, I want to just very gently incorporate some of these ideas, and we will expand on them as she gets older.
Thanks so much, everyone! :)
Tracy
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I am wondering if anyone can recommend some resources on copywork and narration--maybe CM style?
Here are some questions off the top of my head:
- For copywork, is it better to use this as spelling or vocab practice, or is there more benefit to having dd copy sentences from literature?
- For narration--oral or written? Or is a written narration more like outlining?
And I am really new to these ideas, so I am sure that there are issues that I haven't even thought of yet. Thanks for your help!
- For copywork, is it better to use this as spelling or vocab practice, or is there more benefit to having dd copy sentences from literature?
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My dd4 is in the same boat. Here is what we are doing this year for K. http://myfamilyiseternal.blogspot.com/2009/10/view-of-our-first-year.html
I have tweaked it a lot, though. We eliminated phonics when I saw her reading level was climbing way faster than the phonics. We do spelling orally, and she does copywork for handwriting. We are doing social studies as more of a unit-study approach. She picks a country, and I find books to go along with that country. For math, I have her skip a lot of sections that are just too simple for her.
Next year, we are doing:
Tapestry of Grace for social studies/literature (reportedly a great program for gifted kids)
CSMP for math (better for verbal kids--dd is advanced in math but doesn't like math just for the sake of math, kwim?)
Spelling Workout B
Nebel's Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding
Continue copywork for handwriting
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We are doing K with dd4 this year. We never did formal phonics before she could read, as she already knew her letter sounds. So we started out before the school year with the Nora Gaydos series of books, which are about the shortest, easiest books available (and they come with stickers, which were a big hit). After that, we started formal K, and here is what that looked like at the beginning: http://myfamilyiseternal.blogspot.com/2009/10/view-of-our-first-year.html
Since I wrote that, we have made a lot of accommodations for writing. Although she can write as well or better than the average 1st grader, she cannot yet handle the volume. We are also making some changes for next year in both math and science.
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I just respond with great confidence, as in "Are you kidding? There is no way ps would work for dd! Have you seen her read!" When you respond as if your choice to homeschool is the only reasonable option, most people feel obligated to agree with you.
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:iagree:FIAR books are very engaging. Most kids enjoy reading them everyday but some don't. No big deal. You can either just refer to the book by saying "Remember in the book we read yesterday..." or just re-read the pertinent part of the book for your lesson on the days you do lessons and not read the whole story. On art days you can just look at the pictures, you don't have to read it if you don't want to. ;)We do read the books 4-5 days, but I could see how some children wouldn't want that. One thing that we do that helps dd stay engages with the books 5 days in a row is we follow the vocabulary suggestion. We pick out a few vocabulary words the first day, and then we read them before reading the book each day, and dd loves identifying the vocab words as we read. But dd is a very verbal child, so that might not work with a child that is not.
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:iagree:
So pardon me for being blunt, but I don't think you need a curriculum for a 14 month old, and if anyone tries to sell you $500 worth of curriculum for a child that age, you might consider walking away, fast.That being said, I would second Before Five in a Row and spending the money on buying books in the program. My 4yo loves FIAR now, and I wish I had known about Before FIAR when she was 2yo. We get our books from the library, but dd asks me to put the FIAR books on her Amazon wish list all the time, so I wish we had the money to buy them.
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I can see the aversion to the use of the term "school." However, my dd has asked me on occasion why she is homeschooled rather than going to school. I think if I tried to remove the word school altogether, it would make her feel even more removed from the norm.
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We've used BJUP from Day 1, and we're happy with it.
We have also used BJUP, and it is a great program. I really like that I don't have to do very much except put together the supplies. My only problem with it is that the topics are so random. There is no effort to tie the topics together and make connections between them. We are going with Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding by Bernard Nebel for next year.
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I'll have a 1st grader, a PreKer, and a baby (due at the end of Feb.) Any recommendations on something simple, fun, and educational for PreK? I'm not sure what direction I even want to go as far as structure of the learning.:)
I highly recommend the Five in a Row series (4-8yos). You didn't say what age your PreKer is, so Before Five in a Row (2-4yos) might be more suitable.
My dd loves this curriculum so much, she is already asking to do it again next year. It is very flexible and can be as simple or advanced and complex as you want it to be. The lessons can very short or a lengthy hands-on activity, depending on your needs and circumstances. It doesn't feel structured, at all, yet every week, we are hitting on social studies, language arts, art, math and science. Every day, we just put the little one to bed and cuddle up on the couch with a book and use it to learn something different everyday. Some days, we end up looking up things on the computer, engaged in dramatizing the story, or drawing and coloring at the table. Other days, it is just a short discussion, and we are done. You can see more of my review on my blog.
We jumped right into FIAR, but if I had known what a hit it would be, I would have started with Before FIAR so I would have two years of material.
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Wow! I am surprised so many of you knew so early. I thought my son was special needs. He did not speak until 3 and had motor issues too. In first grade I noticed that he was about 2 grade levels ahead, but I thought it was because we started K when he was 4 and worked year round. I think when he was in second and read an entire encyclopedia set, I realized that he was smart. But when he took an achievement test in 3rd grade and came back as being on a 7th grade level is when I finally realized that he was gifted. I guess I am pretty slow. ;)
No, you are not slow, at all. Giftedness can be masked by other problems, especially in the early years. And sometimes it takes professional testing by people familiar with gifted issues to sort out the giftedness vs. LDs, etc. Many gifted people are actually 2E (twice-exceptional), meaning they are gifted with some sort of learning or other disability.
Have you checked out the TAG (talented and gifted) lists? They are a great resource for these and other gifted issues.
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Tracymirko- I highly encourage you to read The Einstein Syndrome: Bright Children who Talk Late by Dr. Thomas Sowell.
Thank you so much for this reference. I never thought to even look for such a book. I am looking for it ASAP!
Disillusioned about Charlotte
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted
I wanted to share a bit of wisdom that I learned from DH, who is a high school teacher. He says that when he talks to a girl, he faces her and looks her in the eye. He tries to show her he is interested in what she is saying. With boys, he invites them to go for a walk or work with him on something. He never looks them in the eye, and he keeps them physically busy while they are talking.
I've seen a lot of moms express frustration with getting their boys involved in discussion-based curricula, and I wonder if this is applicable here.
Tracy