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TyraTooters

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Posts posted by TyraTooters

    Math Mammoth question

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I know that MM doesn't really have daily lessons and that each new lesson can last 2-4 (or so) days but I'm wanting/trying to plan out our school year so I was trying to break down how many days wed need to get through the first grade year, assuming he continues to catch on quickly. It obviously won't be set in stone but a good idea is all I'm wanting.

     

    So, when you make lesson plans for the week/year/month (however you do it) how do you divide up the lessons/days?

    Purchasing AAS has been put on hold...how about ETC?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I'd love to purchase AAS, and was going to this weekend but I'm just not able to right now. I've heard so many great things about ETC that I thought about adding it to mr CBD order while I'm at it.

     

    Couple questions first though.

     

    The Boy can read. Can actually read pretty good with very litte help. But the trouble lies with sounding out to spell words. I'd say tht he words he knows how to spell are mostly just from spelling tests from public school, just based on memorization. So where do I start?

     

    Can this be used and be just as effective as AAS?

    FLL & WWE question and ordering help!

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Thanks ladies! Unfortunately, our library (even checked the next county over!) doesn't have the manual but if I can just use the workbook we should be fine as I'm not sure I'm ready to pull my own yet. If I find that we're having a hard time staying interested I might figure out how to pull from what we are reading but we'll try it this way first.

    FLL & WWE question and ordering help!

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I'm pretty sure we are going to go with First Language Lessons and Writing With Ease but I have a question or two before I order tomorrow.

     

    1) they seem to overlap some, this is a good thing, right? And are they made to be used at the same time?

     

    And

     

    2) What all do I need with each? I'm seeing workbooks on some websites but I'm not 100% certain what goes with what.

    First grade choices for first time homeschoolers. Tell me what you think.

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Oh yes, reading is for sure on the list! I'm working on a list of top first grade books for us to read aloud or together and then we will be hitting the library for him to get whatever he wants to read. 

     

    Science/history projects will be on a whim whenever something interests him. At some point in plan to add in a study on the human body from Apologia but wanted to get him in the groover first. He loves the human body and I have several fun projects to go with it. Can't wait! We will definitely be doing some Magic School Bus stuff!! 

     

    I've got tons of ideas/games/activities pinned that I need to go through and add to lesson plans so that school isn't so 'boring' to him. 

     

    Oh lesson plans...that makes me nervous!!!

    First grade choices for first time homeschoolers. Tell me what you think.

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    We're getting ready to pull our six year old out of the public school. I've had such a hard time picking curriculum. At first I was set on Heart of Dakota. Then something inside me told me to shop around some more because I just wasn't at peace about that one. After lots of research, suggestions and many a nights at the computer I'm thinking I might have narrowed it down. I'm very open to suggestions, tips...anything.

     

    The boy is six years old. Can read independently but still needs the assurance that he's doing a good job. Can read all the way through Frog and Toad books. Could read a chapter book fairly easy if it wasn't for the length. Hates math and I find he needs to be walked through each step or given ideas on how to solve it. Good at it once he knows it. Can write a sentence with proper capitalization and punctuation. Dislikes writing and its sloppy but he can! We tend to butt heads and he can be quye stubborn. He doesn't have a currency so there's no bribing him. So lessons will need to be short & sweet, at least until we get used to the homeschool way!

     

    So here we go...this could (and can) change. It's been revised a million times already!

     

    Language Lessons 1

    Math Mammoth 1st grade

    All About Spelling (starting at level one to hopefully drill in the rules to help solidify spelling)

    Writing With Ease

     

    Those are the basics. I'm also going to add Bible studies in there but for a while they will just be short little Devotionals. I'm also thinking about doing the Road Trip USA from Confessions of a Homeschooler.

     

    How's it looking?!

    (Math Mammoth) What do you use?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    I'm thinking about buying MM to use as our core but can't figure out which to get. I think I read to go with light blue for first grade. So when I go to the sale site, what exactly do I need to order? I'd like the answer key, not so much for myself, but for the boy because he tends to not believe me and needs proof of the answer.

     

    ETA: I was confused on the sale site because I could get the same thing for the same price elsewhere but then I looked again...if I order elsewhere I only order it PER grade, correct? Where this light blue set for half off has ALL grades 1-6? This is confusing for the newbie!

    What Do You Think of Our First Grade Curriculum So Far? Any Suggestions Welcomed

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    Does AAS have a spelling program? I'm going to get it (I think) to help my six year old. He is reading pretty darn good. Can read a chapter book if it wasn't for how long they are. He really likes the level 2 and 3 'I can read' books we can get from Walmart and can ready any book from the young readers section in the library. He just has a difficult time with spelling. 

    First grade help! - added possible options

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    FWIW, nearly anything recommended in WTM will be age appropriate and fine for boys.  SWB herself had boys first.   :)

     

    First Language Lessons is short and sweet at this level.  

     

    Spelling Workout can be short and sweet.  We use All About Spelling which is a lot more phonics-based.  If you've got a natural speller (I have one), SWO would be just fine.

     

    Writing With Ease lessons at this level does not take more than 10 minutes.

     

    For math, Math Mammoth is pretty incremental.  For a perfectionist, the step-by-step, hold-my-hand approach is very welcome.  We also liked Miquon at the beginning math level.

     

    So, for first grade with grammar, spelling, writing, and math, you could be done in an hour for sure.  

    Thanks for the suggestions. I've been looking at all of them. Math Mammoth looks nice and easy. Might be a good choice to use for our first year of hs. Question though...does it teach mastery? Like how Math U See and Singapore teach the facts to essentially KNOW that you KNOW or is it more of a 'add this apple to that apple and you get two apples' type of thing where he's always needing things to help him add. Did that many any sense? I'm having a hard time writing out what I'm trying to ask. 

     

    Looked at the Writing With Ease...I'm not sure he is quite ready for that just yet but it looks very interesting. 

     

    And I agree with you on First Language Lessons. I like short and sweet. I found some pirntables on TPT for grammar and I could use those activities (or free ones from Pinterest) to reinforce the lessons if need be. 

     

    I see that you use All About Spelling...I'm tempted to purchase it just to be sure there aren't any gaps in his knowledge of phonics. The kid can read at a second grade level. The spelling list he takes a pretest on are ones they learned in kinder so then he is given a challenge list, I wonder if I could correctly assume that they are the first grade level. Challenge list this week is working on the 'short O rule' with words like stop, clock, drop, plot. He's not confident enough to spell them correctly then he gets upset and it's all downhill from there. This system might help. 

     

    And one last thing...I LOVE your blog. Thanks for sharing everything you guys do! I look forward to keep up with your schooling. 

     

    For phonics, work through blend phonics in the manner I describe on my how to tutor page in the links at the end.

     

    Use the quick version, quoted from my webpage here:

     

    For a quick version of the above, use the above links but use the following Webster's Speller Excerpts and the checklist below. Read and spell a few words of each type for things your student knows well. Read all and spell a few more for word types your student does not know well. Use the phonics concentration game as needed to curb guessing habits.

     

    http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/howtotutor.html

     

    Again, the links you need are at the end of the page. It adds in spelling rules and is mastery based, so it is easy to do just a bit for areas that are well known but the whole section for an area that needs work. The concentration game is fun for that age, and a good way to practice phonics because it includes nonsense words.

    I was a little confused when I first went to your website but after reading it a few times I finally found the concentration game. It looks great and I think we might try it out this weekend if I can talk the six year old into playing along. I didn't check out the Webster's Spellers yet...going to find that part next! Thanks for the freebies!!

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