nd293
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Posts posted by nd293
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You actually hear the soft "c" in the words:excitingexceptexcellent
Compare to:
exitexempt:iagree: There's a definite difference. It's not eks-ite, it's eks-site, and it's eks-it, not eks-sit.
So much of mis-spelling comes from indistinct pronunciation, I think. Reminds me of dd and a friend playing I Spy in the car, phonetically, as they were pre-reading. The sound was ch, and when dd couldn't guess, her friend eventually gave the word as tree (pronouncing it chree). My daughter was quick to correct her, and just as quick to pick chraffic (traffic) as her word that began with a ch!
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I think that as long as he understands the concept of 8+5=(8+2)+3, memorising is just fine. It is really important, though, that he understands the concept of "making groups of 10" as this is really foundational in maths (as a forerunner to carrying groups of ten). Let him know that memorising makes things quicker, but that he won't always be able to memorise everything.
When dd and I come up against this sort of thing, I often jump her ahead by guiding her through a problem that is beyond her current maths level. This makes it clear that what we are learning now is a step towards something greater. So I might show her long multiplication when we are doing simple multiplication in response to a comment like "Yes, but we can't multiply 22x34". I don't really expect her to internalise the concept of long multiplication, but I think showing her the links between aspects of maths is helpful.
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Great to hear - I have plans to use it next year, but was going to buy a couple of other things too, out of anxiety. Think I will just go with MCT!
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When Grade 1 Singapore didn't work for us we switched to Horizons Maths with great success. It is spiral - each lesson covers 5 or 6 different areas, and learning is incremental. It's very colourful and attractively laid out. The Teacher's Manual recommends use of manipulatives, but we really haven't used many.
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I don't have any experience with this, but do know of a child who wrote with both hands but swapped in the middle of the page (if I understood the mother correctly). This had to do with "crossing the midline" (or rather, not crossing the midline) and did need some remedial action to correct. She was still ambidexterous, but they resolved the midline issue.
Fascinating stuff!
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We do 4.5 days a week of schooling, as we have co-op Wednesday morning. We don't do either a "main subject" or Maths on that day. We are doing one art lesson (Meet the Masters) and one music lesson (an audio CD with music and biography) a month. It's not a lot, but better than nothing. One thing that has helped, is to schedule art and music with another family. It is a social event for the kids, and gives us some accountability to make sure we don't sweep those subjects under the rug for another month. Sometimes we do those on a Saturday.
We break schooling into 4 week blocks, which makes planning easier. It is easier for me to be realistic about what we can achieve in the next month, rather than for six months.
I am struggling to get all the history I want done. We are using SOTW, and I am starting to combine a couple of chapters for a quick read-through and outline, so we can do more additional fiction or fictionalised readings. Dd is 8yrs old, and her reading is still not fast enough to get through a huge amount, while ds2 makes long periods of read-alouds impossible, so we are still really struggling to get through everything I want in this area. I like the idea of a nightly bedtime read from our history reading list. Audio books are also a big hit with dd.
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I feel exactly the same way, both about ticking-the-boxes and how much time history takes!
What we are currently trying is to do only Maths and spelling daily (also a 10 minute "wake-up exercise" of either flashcards or a logic puzzle). On Monday we do 2-2.5hrs English. Tuesday is History, Thursday is Science, Fri alternates - Art, Logic, Music, Logic.
Latin is done twice a week, for 30 minutes each lesson. The remaining "30 minute slots" are used as a catch-all for whatever needs completing.
Only a couple of weeks in, but it feels like an improvement. It might still need some tweaking. For instance, as both English and History involve writing, it might be best to move them to opposite ends of the week. I'm trying to decide...
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The HOTS book is very good. It has the 'take up the challenge' section which usually consists of 2 questions related to experiments and requires both math and logic/common sense.
Unfortunately, singaporemath.com is very stingy with samples. QUOTE]
What edition / year is this MPH? We buy directly from Singapore (through SGBox) and they don't seem to have an HOTS. Is that the same as the "Science Process Skills", do you think? And if you think Singaporemath.com is stingy with the samples, you should meet SGBox - there are no samples whatsoever. It makes me very reluctant to purchase.
We are using MPH Singapore Science, just the textbooks and workbooks, but finding it quite light, so maybe I need the "extras"?
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Is there a way to borrow directly from the State Library? If the local library gets funds (and books) from the State Library / state, are they allowed to give you a hard time about borrowing from other library systems?
If it were me, I'd make an appointment with the professional librarian (assuming that there is one, and that the librarian might not be at your local library), raise the above issues (once you've uncovered the answers!) and say that you are a homeschooler, will be borrowing a lot of books from outside your library system, and what's the best way for you to do it.
I've told my dh we're just going to have to buy in the area we're in now, as I'm not switching to another library system! Ours is really good, with all catalogues accessible with the Internet, books renewable online, e-mail reminders when books due, online reservations for books within the 6 library system, a simple system for borrowing from other libraries, and generally helpful staff. After, as I said, no public library for 5 years (although we did have a school library for two years), I'm not going anywhere.
Good luck.
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Hi Amber,
When we did SOTW we had no library access, so the books I mention below I own and still like enough to think are worth buying. I think we're on the same state library system (WA?), and once I started looking, I saw that almost everything I own is on the system. Given your initial question, I've noted which are in the library system - the others are the ones I'd buy, but not necessarily the best of the bunch.
I have Usborne, and while it's lovely, I've found that for grammar stage, good fiction forms an excellent peg for other history facts. If you are on a limited budget, then ebooks are also a good option. And I buy from bookdepository.co.uk - cheaper than Amazon once you figure in postage.
The Cave Twins by Lucy Fitz Perkins (download free ebook here)
Seeker of Knowledge: the Man who deciphered Egyptian Hieroglyphics - James Rumford
*Egyptian Diary: The Journal of Nakht by Richard Platt - detailed picture book - funny & informative (library)
I Wonder Why Pyramids Were Built (library)
The Orchard Book of Stories from Ancient Egypt (library)
*Gilgamesh the King - Ludmila Zeman (library)
*The Revenge of Ishtar - Ludmila Zeman (library)
*The Last Quest of Gilgamesh - Ludmila Zeman (library)
I Wonder Why Greeks Built Temples (library)
Usborne Greek Myths for Young Children - Heather Amery (library)
Atticus the Story Teller: 100 Stories from Greece - Lucy Coats (library)
Wise Guy: The Life and Philosophy of Socrates - M.D. Usher
The Spartan Twins by Lucy Fitz Perkins (download free ebook here)
I Wonder Why Romans Wore Togas (library)
In Search of a Homeland: The Story of the Aenid - Penelope Lively (library)
Prince Siddhartha: The Story of Buddha - Janet Brooke (library)
My prehistory selection if you study that too:
I Wonder Why Fish Grew Legs (library)
The First Dog - Jan Brett (library)
The Story of Life on Earth - Nicholas Harris (library)
*Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story - Lisa Westberg Peters (library)
Creation: Read Aloud Stories from Many Lands - Ann Pilling
Well, there you have it. Only three books not in the WA library system. I've starred the 5 fiction reads that impressed me the most. If you wanted non-fiction, I'd go for the "I Wonder Why" books - fun and informative.
Oh, and I'd definitely look in the library for any relevant Magic Tree House books - dd loved those, and they're great for young readers.
Enjoy your shopping!
Nikki
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Laurie - It's odd, the resistance to reading in some quarters. Dd went to a fantastic IB school for a while, and they didn't "push" the children. In theory, that's great, but what it meant was a resistance to supporting children who were comfortable with tasks such as reading. Dd was reading when she started there, but they did nothing to encourage her. I moved forward with her reading, but felt I had to hide it from the teachers.
Foreevergrace - Thanks for the kind and supportive words. I find Steiner's philosophy odd, but figured that was something one could just work around (accept the positive without buying in to it). I think I recognise the "end of the rope" feeling. I just know something is not working in our homeschooling, and guess I am desperately grasping at straws for some alternative that will make us all happy. Dd does not seem happy at home (or in general?), but says she does not want to go to school. I will visit the open day at the school, but think that ultimately, we just have to keep at the homeschooling for now, and perhaps turn attention to other areas of life that need work. That's the harder part, and perhaps why I am looking towards school - an outside, rather than internal solution?
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If you're going year-round, it's not too disruptive to try different schedules, and see what works. We work 4-weeks-on-1-week-off, and 4 weeks is a nice block of time to test a new schedule. No harm done if you don't like it and try something else for the next block.
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We had a similar schedule, and found that it became about "ticking the boxes" after a while. We are now trying something different: We spend 2hrs a day on a particular subject: Monday is English (spelling, writing, grammar), Tuesday is History, Thursday is Science, Friday rotates Music/Logic/Art/Logic. (Wednesday is co-op.) In addition, the day starts with 15 minutes spent either on some sort of memory work, or a short logic exercise. Maths is done 4 days a week, 45min, more or less. Latin is done 2 days a week for 30 minutes, and the other 3 days have 30 min for "project work" which is a catch-all category where I can put anything that I want done or that hasn't been finished. I fold additional writing in to other subjects.
We have only been doing this for a couple of weeks, so it is too early to tell, but it feels promising. I will have to add in a few more short spelling slots for review and testing. We are taking a break from official cursive "lessons" as she hated them, but I get her to write something in cursive each day, even if it is just the spelling words.
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We're in a new country, so I don't have much to judge the quality of education by, unfortunately.
LaurieNE - what were your experiences at the open house?
forevergrace - I am a little concerned about the "needing more" myself. That is what is holding me back.
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I think with Beowulf you need to remember that the story is extremely violent and gorey. So the question would be more about whether the version you choose is appropriate, rather than just looking at the reading level. We read the version by Michael Morpurgo as a read-aloud, and while it wasn't really objectionable to us, it was definitely gruesome.
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Thanks for the added information. Yes, I have to agree, Steiner is probably not a good fit with the family, even though it would suite dd in many ways. TV is a real problem for us, and is a bad habit we slipped into when the family was under stress with an international move. Bedtimes were regular when dd had the regular schedule of waking for school, but flexible rising times is one of the many benefits of full-time homeschooling.
The Maths described in the Steiner prospectus sounds limited, but it might be in the desciption rather than the execution.
Thanks again.
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Thanks so much for all the really, really useful information on Steiner.
I have now received a prospectus from the school, with a very detailed questionaire, which has me wondering if we will fit in at all. Bedtimes? Chaotic, irregular and late here. Immunization? Yes. Relationships with extended family? Well, we were expats for 5 years, then immigrated 6 months ago to a country where we knew 2 people (only 1 in our city). TV? Children confirmed addicts, although this was certainly not the goal. And so it goes on.
I am going to go to their open day later this month, and take it from there.
In terms of the WTM afterschooling aspect, I think I would have to focus on academic writing, Maths and History. That would be do-able, I think. I'd start with outlining skills, Life of Fred (in a year or so, she is finishing Gr3) and continue on SOTW history rotation with a focus on fiction and biography. Dd will have a fit if she has traditional school and "traditional" homeschooling.
A final question: What sort of personality fits in well in a Steiner school? Dd is very strong-willed and opinionated. She is outgoing, and gets on well with other kids, but conflict can develop because she wants things done her way. She likes things to be done the "right way" and gets stressed if other people don't follow directions. Would she cope in a Steiner school? Would they welcome the role of encouraging her to be quieter and more open to other people's views, or would it simply be a "bad fit" situation. I gather "fitting in" would be quite important in the Steiner environment?
Thanks again for all your help.
Nikki
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My dd8 had access to scissors by 2yrs, and was holding and using them properly well before her peers.
I plan on giving my ds2 scissors just as soon as he is earning his own income and can replace the things he cuts up. I let him use them when he fusses enough, but only when wearing protective gloves (for me, I mean) and sitting right next to him. Vast amounts of time and energy are spent on hiding scissors from him. If we gave him scissors, we'd probably wake up scalped. What's the scissor version of a pyromaniac? That's him.
So the short version is, each child is different. And I know what you mean about safety scissors that won't even cut paper frustrating them.
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"One More River" by Lynne Reid Banks is about a Canadian Jewish girl who moves to a kibbutz on the banks of the Jordan just before one of the wars - 1967 or 1973. While it is obviously from a Jewish Israeli perspective, it emphasises a fledgling friendship between an Arab boy and a Jewish girl, and the wish for peace between peoples.
I have just picked up "Camel Rider" by Prue Mason for my daughter. It is set at the start of a war in a fictional Arabian Gulf country. I haven't read it yet, but looks interesting. Seems more about overcoming barriers of culture and understanding than about war per se. Although the one pretty much equals the other, I guess.
GoodwordKidz publishes children's books about Islam and Islamic history.
Hood Hood Books focuses mainly on Islamic history and historical figures (e.g. Ibn Battuta).
I understand this is not really what you asked for, but goes to background for the region.
Nikki (now in Australia, after 5yrs in the Middle East)
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But so far these past six weeks we've been homeschooling, it feels like we just move from assignment to assignment. I try to be flexible when necessary, but mostly we just march through the list of things to accomplish in the school day.
Oh, that is exactly where we are at, at the moment (a good year into homeschooling), except that I am not fine with it. I am considering sending her back to school, because I just can't see the purpose of boring her to death before 4th grade. She would be learning with so much more fun at school. But I can't get her to work at a steady enough pace to ever get to "fun stuff" and when I ask for the "real" stuff to be done in a fun way, she just does her own thing, so that the end result has no relationship to what we were learning.
I am trying a few things now. One is to work on one subject per morning, for a longer period of time, around 2.5hrs (LA Monday, History Tues, Science Thurs, Music/Art/Logic rotating on Fri). Then we add Maths daily, and Latin twice a week, with the other 3 days being "project work and catch-up" during the Latin slot.
Another thing I might like to try is to work in blocks of subjects - History every day for 2-4weeks, then Science every day for 2-4weeks etc. This has some relationship to how the Waldorf schools do it (although the comparison ends there).
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When dd was in school she used to try to read books backwards Can't get more phonetic than that. :laugh: (Better if you try to keep the phonograms intact though - sdarwckab)
Ugh. I am thinking about going from homeschooling back to afterschooling, but being here reminds me of all the school hassles (at a really good private school). Mostly little things, but so annoying. For example, I was "allowed" to take extra class readers for dd(then5) "but please don't say anything to the other mothers".
Dd was reading fluently by 6-ish, and I never checked her school reading after that. She'd read the book in the car coming home, and put it right back in her bag. We read mostly reader that I chose from the school library. I found the school librarian very helpful, as long as I didn't use the words "reading above her grade level" which seemed to offend her. I could indicate a book, and ask for more at a similar level, but if I actually suggested dd was reading above grade level I felt like I was being labeled the pushy mother.
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We are enjoying LL. In terms of teaching Latin, I have no complaints. The grammar instruction seems good. However, I do have some issues with the programme in general:
1) The inclusion of Roman history is not necessary if you are doing history in WTM rotation. We simply don't print the pages that deal with Roman history. This does not affect the Latin instruction.
2) Having to make the vocab cards really annoys me - it is just "busy work". I have figured out how to print them out (requires retyping), then laminate and cut them. Still takes time, but mine, not dd's, and probably less time overall.
3) The website does not work terribly well (e.g. having to click through multiple steps to get to the audio; the audio often does not work if accessed online, I have to download it as MP3 to make it play).
4) The Magistra does not answer queries (usually about technical problems), despite there being a forum to post problems. It is intensely frustrating.
All said, I would buy it again, but maybe in CD format (we are overseas, so I wanted to cut out postage costs).
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Any specific comments about the education in general, and how it meshes with WTM afterschooling in particular?
We are looking at switching from homeschooling to private schooling - I just can't get dd8 to work at home, and am getting more and more resentful about having to be "on her case" all the time.
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You are clearly still teaching reading. I think it is difficult to do any independent work expect "busy work" before your child is reading independently. At nearly-9yrs my dd is doing about 75-80% of her work independently. Six months ago when we saw the moderator who is required to evaluate us annually here, he commented on how independently my dd was working. I guess it depends partly on the definition of "independent". I can leave her with list of instructions for the day, and she can figure out what is required and do it. That is a very different "independent" than what is meant by telling kids to do a worksheet, collecting it, telling them to do another, collecting it, etc etc
What would be the easiest Latin program to use...
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted
Another Lively Latin fan here, and I agree with the other posters that it's easy to use and has a great deal of variety.
The website is really badly designed, and the author does not respond to questions posted to the forum she set up for the purpose, so if you have questions, you might want to e-mail them, as another poster recommends.