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jade

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Posts posted by jade

  1. Maybe try a few graphic novels, too. The Time Warp Trio is in graphic novel form and chapter book format, too. They are particularly written for boys. The Bone graphic novels by Jeff Smith are popular. Some in our house like it, some don't. Artemis Fowl is in graphic novel format, but might be a little advanced. There are lots of new, updated classics illustrated. We are big fans of Baby Mouse

     

    Definitely check out Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

     

    Also, this may sound odd, but don't underestimate non-fiction reading as well. My son has spent hours reading and working through a Pokemon guide and another one for Scribblenauts, a word and drawing game for the Nintendo DS. It's reading, but not fiction reading.

     

    You can also try more regular non-fiction, including biographies, science books, etc.

  2. We really like Caesar's English. DS also likes to be inspired by the vocabulary and uses it throughout the week. But Grammar Town isn't working very well for us Maybe we need the workbooks, as others have said they're helpful.

  3. If you're a parent who thinks that the books kids have to read in school are too tragic or too much "Doom and Gloom" (as librarians say), you might enjoy reading Welcome to Lizard Motel: Children, Stories and the Mystery of Making Things Up by Barbara Feinberg. Feinberg teaches creative arts to children 3 - 14 in New York. She couldn't figure out why her 12 year old son hated reading the books assigned in school, but liked reading otherwise. Feinberg then tries to figure out what has happened to teaching reading in school. Her research is pretty sound and her writing style, mostly in memoir form about her children's lives, makes the book enjoyable. (Amazon link to book)

  4. These are all great suggestions! If anyone wants to add more that would be cool, too!

     

    What about girl books for 7th-8th grade? Does anyone let their girls read Sara Dressen books? We are wondering about these as they're popular among some girls. What about graphic novels?

     

    In response to the questions about the touchy-feely books kids have to read in school, we are always frustrated by this and have been annoyed that our son had to read some in public school, which is a tiny part of the reason why we're home schooling.

     

    In general, my husband tries to encourage the education students in his English classes to have a broad approach to children's literature. He always mixes his reading list with fiction for girls and boys, non-fiction, poetry, sometimes plays and usually these days graphic novels. He likes to make connections with non-book texts -- films, music and websites. You can see some of the courses he's been teaching in the link in my signature.

     

    There's a great book about a mom who was similarly frustrated with the reading lists her kids were forced to read. She said the teacher once told a parent group that a book is good 'if it makes you cry.' ( I can't find the book around the house, but will post the title later.) I attribute the popularity of these books to the Oprah effect. She's really into weepy books and has elevated them far too much, I think. Some teachers may think if it's a funny book, it's not as good, or as 'meaty.' They need drama to teach conflict, I guess.

  5. Here's a request from my husband, who is putting together his book list for a children's literature course taught to college students, primarily future teachers, focusing on middle school readers. This English literature course studies books for 5th - 8th graders. He's looking for new and more recent books that kids this age enjoyed. They can be books for boys, for girls, or both. If your child has a specific reason why they like a book, that's helpful.

     

    I have been printing out lists everyone has compiled and these are always helpful. They are good reminders. My husband is always changing and tweaking the courses he teaches and tries to keep them current. But it is hard to keep up with all the latest books. He thinks it's important that elementary education students know what's popular, too, and that they learn how to keep up with what students like as well.

     

    Any ideas you have would be helpful and maybe this could be a fun resource for people here to see what middle school kids read and enjoy. Thanks!

  6. Well, actually that wasn't quite the definitive list. This morning my husband said he forgot to mention at least one more The Young Lewis Carroll by Joanna Richardson.(Roy Publishing, 1963). It might be available at a library. Fourth grade reading level and up.

     

    We are a little too packed with Lewis Carroll books at our house.. So if you have other questions about the author or the Alice books, feel free to ask.

     

    Hope you have fun reading the Alice books and learning about the author.

  7. Well, I thought I should ask my husband, a Lewis Carroll scholar, and here are three that he suggests:

    Lewis Carroll: Through the Looking Glass by Angelica Shirley Carpenter (4th grade and up reading level with photos) amazon link

    Very Truly Yours, Charles Dodgson Alias Lewis Carroll: A Biography by Lisa Bassett (for a good reader at 3rd grade level and up, lots of letters) amazon link

     

    The Story of Lewis Carroll by Roger Lancelyn Green (1951) He says this is the best, but you probably have to find it in the library. (5th grade & up reading level) amazon link for used version

     

    You might also like Martin Gardner's The Annotated Alice: The Definitive Edition amazon link

     

    Hope this helps.

     

    Hope this helps.

  8. We started homeschooling this year and so far people have been pretty nice about it. but it's still a little terrifying. I find it strange for them to say: So who's doing most of the teaching, are you? Well, yeah, it's mostly me because my husband has a full-time job and is rather busy. It's like they're a little surprised anyone would really think that people could do it. Oh well, mostly it's fun.

  9. The Homeschool Buyers Co-op has teacherfilebox.com by Evan Moor on sale until Feb. 15. I think it's essentially all the Evan Moor books re-organized into worksheets.

     

    I have been trying the science book that Noeo science uses (Usborne Internet-Linked Science book) with my fifth grader. I can pretty much make up decent worksheets that follow along with the text and then use the links for supplements. The text is easy to follow. That said, I wouldn't use this Usborne book below 4th grade and it would probably be fine through 7th grade. This has been working okay for us.

  10. This is not exactly a guidebook, but you might enjoy look at both the The Little House Cookbook and The Laura Ingalls Wilder Songbook. The recipes are clearly linked to sections in specific books. Some recipes are viable for today, others are simply fascinating to read. The Songbook is wonderful! I loved knowing how the music that Pa sang and played on his fiddle actually sounded like. I used to play the music when I was in grade school on the piano.

     

    In looking for these books on Amazon, I noticed that there are now Little House craft books and a wide assortment of books about Wilder and her family. Here's a CD with recordings of many of the songs, called Happy Land: Musical Tributes to Laura Ingalls Wilder. Among children's lit academics, the critical works by William T. Anderson on Wilder are considered among the standards -- these are for adults, usually, not kids. But they might help you answer some of their questions.

  11. A few more ideas, as everyone has great ones so far.

     

    Check out Rick & Lanie's Excellent Kitchen Adventures, by Rick Bayless and his daughter. He has PBS cooking shows focused on his love of Mexican food and he has the amazing Frontera Grill in Chicago. What I like is that the book is about cooking for and with teens. Lanie provides her input and explains why she and her teenage friends like a recipe.

     

    Maybe you can find it used. I check out lots of cookbooks from the library and photocopy the recipes I like. That way I have a copy I want to try it again. I have also learned the hard way to put my loose recipes in plastic sleeves in 3-ring binders.

     

    The suggestion of Cook's magazine above is right. I have learned quite a bit through Cook's very detailed cooking guide. My husband read the magazine from cover to cover when we subscribed, and he's a vegetarian. Check out the related PBS show, America's Test Kitchen. They also have a Country Kitchen magazine. Now I read them from the library.

     

    I'd also suggest going to online sites. My favorite is Recipezaar. Check out food blogs -- there are a lot. Here's one: 101 Cookbooks. The food blogs are often very detailed on how to cook something. Amanda Hesser, former NY Times writer, has a good blog I can't find just now. Good luck!

  12. We were following the fifth grade spelling lists that our local school district uses, which is Harcourt Brace. I purchased the Steck-Vaughan spelling book from Rainbow Resource, as it was on sale, but I thought the words were too easy and it emphasized phonetics too much. So now we're trying Spellwell. It's not four color, but I like that it's straight forward, that we can add other words, and the words are about the right challenge from my son, who's a pretty good speller and a great memorizer.

     

    He's been taking spelling tests on wizardsspell.com. We started using this a few years ago when he got frustrated with doing spelling. Somehow practicing the words on a computer made it easier for him. Wizards Spell is more expensive than I'd like, but it's worked for us.

  13. Have you ever wondered what's covered in elementary education courses in college? My husband is an English professor who teaches courses in children's literature, adolescent literature, and Victorian literature at Illinois State University. We work together on his website: ghostofthetalkingcricket.squarespace.com

     

    On the website, you can find course syllabi, including book lists, as well as lots of links to websites related to the books and films that the students are learning about. The links may be helpful to your students, or your own background info.

     

    My son and I are following along the reading list for ENG 271: Literature for Young Children. We've had fun reading fairy tales from Andrew Lang's Blue Book, which I know some of you have read, too.

     

    Just thought that maybe some of you might like reading lists, web links, and ideas on children's literature from a college perspective.

  14. I would agree with everyone. The person who lives in the Oak Park area is exactly right. Also, check out Zillow and lots of local real estate websites. You can gain an enormous amount of info that way.

     

    Just wanted to put a plug in for Elmhurst, my former hometown, as it is a great town, has a good school system (best cross-country team in the country) and is on the train line (but not the L). The redone downtown is cool (movie theaters, stores, restaurants). Still, it's 20+ minutes to Oak Park under good driving conditions, altho on a map it looks like it should take less time.

     

    You definitely need to visit Chicago, especially in the winter. You may not really like it. The 1/2 acre lot you desire will require a pretty long commute for your husband. Maybe you could find some bigger lots in Lombard, Downers Grove, but you will definitely pay a premium wherever you find one.

     

    The Cubs have spring training in Arizona. I think that's a reason there are lots of connections between Arizona and Chicago. Lots of Illinois kids go to Arizona colleges, too. You might find good air fare rates and bring up the whole family in February. to see what it's like. But the areas are really different!

  15. All the ideas so far are good.

     

    A blog attached to a website will get more attention. You don't have to say much. A few sentences every few days is fine. Add a photo, too. Be sure you have lots of people check out the website in general and critique it.

     

    Figure out something new and different about your product. Then put together a press release -- which these days is sent via email to your local newspaper. Tie something together with an upcoming event -- spring cleaning, spring fix it time?

     

    You definitely want to have a booth at one of those home repair shows that are happening between now and April. Be sure to ask for people's email addresses and regular addresses. Then follow up with a short ad as well.

     

    Postcards would be another way to advertise. Good luck!

  16. We bought the Fun with Hieroglyphs stamps at a garage sale (http://www.amazon.com/Fun-Hieroglyphs-Hieroglyph-Guidebook-Metropolitan/dp/0670835765/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1264301638&sr=1-2) and have enjoyed it for several Egyptian projects through the years.

     

    We also liked the Usborne books on Egypt

     

    There are some cool Playmobil toys that are Egyptian related that look incredibly fun. It's often hard to find Egyptian toys, altho the ones in the tube are pretty good.

     

    The easiest hieroglyphs to read are the names of the kings and queens. Once you can do that, visit a museum with ancient Egyptian items and impress everyone with your ancient Egyptian reading knowledge.

  17. Finding the right church home can be very difficult. This is something I struggled with for a long time. We're finally in a church where we're pretty happy. It's a church I never thought I would go in -- I thought it was too big, too cliquish and we would be out our league. Turns out these are some of the friendliest church people in town and very Christian.

     

    I would take time looking for another church. Perhaps your kids can go to kids' activities at churches with their friends. Try out others' Vacation Bible School programs. Your current church friends probably won't question that and other churches will be welcoming. Check out websites of local churches --look for pastor's sermons, newsletters and calendars. Go to church sales, fundraisers, pancake/chili dinners, etc. Some churches have sports programs (Upward sports). Lent and special services are great times to get a feel of other places. Pick up as much info as you can at the churches. They will give you a sense of what they are like.

     

    In a friendly way, ask people about their church -- what's good, what's difficult. You could see this as a positive way to talk about the Christian faith you share.

     

    There's good advice here about what to say to your current church members when they ask. My sense is that if you're nervous about talking with your pastor about the problems you're experiencing then he (assuming he) may not be as understanding about your criticism and concerns. My general experience is that if you're already feeling a guilt-trip, the pastor will probably guilt you even more and you don't need that. It may be better to go to the pastor with a specific problem that could be solvable, rather than a generic 'we're upset.' Or go when you're ready to leave.

     

    In the end, my feeling is that your Christian journey is with God, not a group of people in one congregation, and that may take you on a path that's not with this church.

     

    Good luck!

  18. We just signed up for the Adapted Curriculum program that seemed like an okay deal through the Homeschool Buyer's Co-op. It's math or science or both and is geared for middle school. It has to be secular because it's mainly for school districts. We'll see how it goes. I have read some positive reviews here. We looked at a few others available through the Co-op as well as time4learning.com, but we thought we would start with this program. What have you looked at?

  19. I have found what I was looking for and thanks to your posts I have found even more!

     

    The list of books & videos was a post by Lori D in response to KIN looking for physics for 4th, 2nd and K. Here: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68577&highlight=physics+4th+2nd

     

    The list that plain Jane notes by Lori D is similar and also incredibly helpful. I am also thinking about the books noted by Pata.

     

    Thanks!:)

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