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Country Girl

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Posts posted by Country Girl

    how do you teach fractions to a second grader?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Okay, this may sound silly, but to help my son understand them, I used a candy bar. I talk to him about sharing it with his brother or his brother and sister. If he doesn't have to share it, he has a whole. If he has to share it with his brother, the candy bar is split in two and his piece will be smaller. If he has to share it with his brother and sister, the candy bar will be split into three pieces and each piece will be even smaller. Food is a big motivator around here.

     

    HTH!

    First Grade Science

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    My suggestion would be R.E.A.L. science Life from Pandia Press. I used this with my son last year when he was 5 and we both really enjoyed it. It was really easy to use and schedule. We also included books from the library and videos from United Streaming to fill out the topics. It also focuses heavily on animals which is something you mentioned your son is interested in.

    Refinished hardwood floors (poll)

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    We have high gloss floors and I hate them. Oh, they look beautiful for literally the first minute after they are mopped. But as soon as one person walks on them, you can see little footprints. They always look smudgy and every scratch (which with kids, is many) is very noticeable. Plus, with our natural style preferences and the practical, lived in look of our house, I think satin or maybe semi-gloss would be better.

    Understanding Writing - anyone used this?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Johanna,

     

    I sent you the information. Also, here is my response to your question about my recent post looking for an integrated LA program. I thought I'd include it here in case anyone else was interested.

     

    As to my post on an integrated LA curriculum. Yes, I have been searching for something that might make my life easier, an all-in-one, everything laid out, make sure I'm not missing anything type of program, based on a more Charlotte Mason/Ruth Beechick type approach. My desire for this wasn't based on the fact that I'm unhappy with UW, but rather that I was looking for a way to streamline grammar, copywork/dictation, and narration from good books. I'm still interested in a few that were mentioned (LLATL and Sonlight) and hope to look at them at the conference this summer, but even if I go with one of them, I'll still use UW for our writing instruction. Also, I have to admit, I still hope to take a peek at a copy of SWB new writing program this summer at our conference but even then, I'd try to mesh the two, not give up UW. I'm mostly interested in SWB new program as a way to incorporate the copywork, narration, and some grammar instruction. If I don't go that route I think I'll be purchasing some copies of the Arrow and using those for copywork, and some gentle grammar (as well as reading the books the passages were chosen from and doing narration with them). I don't feel a need to put a big focus on grammar, and love the way it is gently incorporated into the writing lessons in UW. However, I'm terrible at grammar and just want a little bit more, but still very gentle and integrated with writing. I would just pull passages from our reading myself and highlight grammar topics, but as I mentioned, I'm horrible at grammar and wouldn't know what to highlight (I've learned tons this year with the stuff I've been doing with my 6yo so that gives you an idea of my level of grammar competency).

     

    We've been using UW this year and enjoying it! The recent posts also caused me to look over it a little more closely and where it is going in the future and my feelings are still the same, that it is a good program for us.

     

     

    HTH!

    Understanding Writing - anyone used this?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I e-mailed them about a year ago about this program and just got a reply last week. They apparently were having server problems and a bunch of e-mails got lost and just recently were delivered. The author sent me a copy of their brochure as well as a sample unit. If you let me know your e-mail address I can forward her message on to you and it may help.

     

    Also, I found a older version of this that someone was giving away so I snatched it up. We have been using parts of it and I really like it so far. One thing you may want to note is that she doesn't recommend using any separate grammar program until grade 8 (I think, I may be wrong on the year but I do remember it is just one year). There is some grammar, word usage, etc. covered gently throughout the program.

     

    You are also right about the letter writing, however, we skip that. Basically, whatever the assignment was for writing, is then supposed to be put in a letter and sent to someone. The purpose is to make the student think about their intended audience whenever they write something.

     

    The program is really very easy to use. It is completely scripted and laid out day by day. The samples she sent me have a 2006 copyright but I have an older version. I haven't compared things closely but I think the updates are primarily formatting issues. I plan to e-mail her to find out for sure.

     

    One final thing to note, she recommends young students start at level 1 and all other students start at level 2.

     

    Writing definitely isn't my strong suit, so take this with a grain of salt, but I do think this would be a very comprehensive program if it is used as all the way through.

     

    HTH!

     

    Edited to add: I just received a reply back and the content of my older, 1991 coypright, is the same as the newer 2006 copyright.

    KAR1200- Bite Size Physics

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Erica,

     

    Thank you so much for this information. I am so glad to hear from someone who is actually using it and your take on the math. I contacted the author last summer because I was seriously considering using it with my 6yo ds who loves science, especially physical science, and had covered a lot of the beginning type physical science experiments and concepts on his own. I know the author and his website say the math can be skipped but I was a little skeptical about how well the program would go without it. It sounds like this is really doable. The author also said it had been used with younger but 6 might still be a bit young since the first 10 bites are more concrete but the later bites are more conceptual. My son has really advanced in his math this year and we have been doing a more systematic study of physics so now I'm thinking he may really be ready for this in the fall. It looks like such a great curriculum and laid out exactly how I would do it if I designed it myself.

     

    Thanks!

    KAR1200- Bite Size Physics

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I got very excited when I noticed in another thread you mentioned Bite Size Physics. I have been looking at this and was wondering if you use this? If so, for what ages and how is it working? How are you scheduling it?

     

    Edited to add: did you buy the print copy from Lulu or did you get the on-line subscription?

     

    Thanks!

    Is there an LA curriculum like this?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Heather,

     

    Thanks for giving an explanation of the difference between the different programs. I have looked at the Arrow samples and really like them, I just wish they included literature analysis, then I think they'd be a great fit for what I'm looking for. I still might go with them and add narration. I still haven't had a enough time to properly look over the LLATL, Sonlight, and Classical Writing samples so I need to make some time to spend on this.

     

    Thanks!

    Is there an LA curriculum like this?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Thanks again Heather! I'm not sure what my son's reading level is (he is 6 yo) but he can really read pretty much anything. I will say that Tom Sawyer gave him problems, not because of the actual words, but more the understanding of what some of the sayings meant, and the written accents. We dropped that one. Some recent reads have been The Mysterious Benedict Society, Chronicles of Narnia, YWAM Heroes in History biographies, just to give an idea of level. A potential problem I see is matching his reading level (both ability and interest) with the output required from an LA program. My thought is that I can adapt by having him do copywork instead of a dictation and breaking it up into smaller chunks. I think grammar wise he can understand the concepts okay so I think we would be okay there. I'm definitely going to take a look at Sonlight and see if it might fit the bill. If you have used this, do you have any recommendations on level or just how the program has worked for you?

     

    Thanks!

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