Spelling Workout or other spelling programs compared to AAS?

[Annie Laurie]

Everything I do with my youngest three kids is very teacher intensive and I'm getting to the point were something has to give. I rarely get everything done every day with each kid, I always end up having to skip something because as it is, we're doing school for 3 or 4 hours and they're young. I figure that it would be better to do a spelling workbook if it gets done every day than to keep trying to plug away at AAS and only get to it 2 days a week. What do you all think? Honest input wanted.

 

This is what we're doing:

 

8 and 6 year olds are doing SL Core 1 for history. They do AAS, WWE, FLL, SL readers, and RightStart math. Sometimes we do Miquon also, for my very mathy dd. I had to drop Singapore for her. Sometimes when we have time we make books and they dictate their stories to me, as their scribe. They really like that but we rarely have time. I have not been able to get to Latin yet or art appreciation and I have NOEO but never get to it, so I just strew science-y things around and we go to the aquarium and science museum a lot. I am one of those slackers who is not overly concerned with formal science in the grammar stage. ;)

 

We get involved in math, we play games everyday and when they go on math exploring tangents, I let them. When ds8 told me today that he invented a new game called "I Love Math", and wanted me to play it with him, I wasn't going to say 'Later, sweetie, we have to do spelling." I don't want to give up RightStart and think it's worth the time.

 

Reading aloud is important to me, so SL or another lit based history program will stay.

 

WWE and FLL are perfect for us, and they take the least amount of time of all that I listed.

 

The only thing I'm willing to change is AAS. But I do think it's a great program, and I've been learning new rules and things myself. Also, none of my kids really learned phonics, most of them taught themselves to read at an early age, so I feel like going over the phonics rules now is important. Will something like Spelling Workout that they could do independently be as effective at going over those rules as AAS is? I would use ETC for my youngest for now.

 

Even when I limit AAS to 15 min, it still takes 45 min then between the three of them. Also, my dd is horribly fidgety and AAS with her goes very slowly, we accomplish 5 min worth of a lesson in the 15 min time limit I set. And my oldest son has atrocious spelling so I recently convinced him to go through it fast and I think it's been good for him so far. So when I use AAS with him too, that's an hour total for me each day. Would something like Megawords work for him? What about The Phonetic Zoo?

 

Any and all spelling input appreciated!

Edited May 15, 2009 by Annie Laurie

[rowan25]

:lurk5::bigear:

[ElizabethB]

My phonics lessons teach all the spelling rules and would be a good phonics review.

 

Once they watch the lessons, you could switch to another less teacher intensive program.

 

They could work through something with word lists and quiz one another. I would get a program that groups words by pattern or rule. Webster's Speller is free and groups by pattern, Pollard's Speller groups by pattern and has some rules, both are linked from my Spelling for Success page:

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Spelling/spellingforsucce.html

 

(Easy steps in Spelling might also work.)

 

Edit: I haven't seen Spelling Workout. (I haven't seen AAS either, but the samples look good and people whose other recommendations I trust seem to love AAS.)

[Kate in Arabia]

I think it will depend on the child. My oldest is a natural speller; he has used SWO from level A (is now completing Level F). He does it almost entirely on his own, he enjoys it for the most part, and does well.

 

I tried SWO A last year with ds 7, and we struggled through SWO B this year. He is not a natural speller. He can't do it on his own very well, and does not do well on the word tests each week, even when I make it more like a game (with letter tiles) and trying different things during the week. I'm thinking to switch him to AAS next year because he clearly needs more individualized work on this topic.

 

Are there sample pages for SWO online somewhere? You could do a "test drive" with your kids to see how they do with it?

[Soph the vet]

I've only used Spelling Workout (A - F) with my dc so far. The first two are natural spellers, the third it does not come as easily for her. But she has only done A and I am moving on to B as planned at this point. I like that SWO is easy to use, we do one lesson per week, and it only takes a few minutes. There is built in review, but I also have the dc copy out their spelling words on paper as well as give an oral "spelling bee" each week, which is kind of fun. I've looked at AAS and it just seems like too much work for something that really does not have to be that complicated.

[Lisa in the UP of MI]

Could you combine the AAS time? The review time could easily be done together and spelling words could maybe be done together too (although if you only have one set of tiles and they all still want to use them that could be a problem). I know that all children are different, but my dd is thriving with AAS and I don't think anything else would work as well for her. She a very hands-on, interactive learner. Plus, this is what we use for phonics so that's one more thing I was able to cut out. If it was me I would cut something else before I cut AAS, but you know your dc better than I do.

[MerryAtHope]

We tried workbooks and tons of other things, but none of them were working for us. I think I'd focus on the 14 yo & 8 yo first, let the 4 yo go for awhile, and maybe even the 6 yo. You could probably get through all 4 levels of AAS with your oldest in a year, and by then 5 & 6 would be out & you could do those in another year. Then you would be done and could focus more on your youngest two. Likely in another year or two your dd wouldn't be as fidgety and you'd make more progress in the lessons then anyway. Even though she is ready ability-wise, it sounds like she's really not quite ready in other ways.

 

Another option might be to teach the 14 yo, and have the 14 yo teach one of the younger kids. Might not work in every home, but an added benefit would be that the info would stick more for your 14 yo.

 

Hope you find a way to make things work for you, or find something else that works!

 

Merry :-)

[tiffany k]

I found the same problem when trying to use it with my oldest three, it was way too time intensive. I stagger it now for the older two and I'm waiting on the 5yo, he really doesn't need this now. So, Monday, I teach my ds8 the lesson with the tiles and he writes the first list in his notebook. For the rest of the week, I dictate three of the phrases or sentences right after breakfast while I clean up. I can remind him of a rule if I see him stumped, but I'm not just sitting there doing nothing while he painstakingly uses his most perfect cursive writing. Then, Wednesday, I give my daughter her next lesson with the tiles and she takes dictation on the other days in the same manner. Usually, if she is struggling, my son will tell her the rule, thus reinforcing previous rules for himself. This has made it manageable. It is such a great program for our family, I wasn't willing to drop it.

 

HTH!:001_smile:

[Annie Laurie]

My phonics lessons teach all the spelling rules and would be a good phonics review.

 

Once they watch the lessons, you could switch to another less teacher intensive program.

 

They could work through something with word lists and quiz one another. I would get a program that groups words by pattern or rule. Webster's Speller is free and groups by pattern, Pollard's Speller groups by pattern and has some rules, both are linked from my Spelling for Success page:

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Spelling/spellingforsucce.html

 

(Easy steps in Spelling might also work.)

 

Edit: I haven't seen Spelling Workout. (I haven't seen AAS either, but the samples look good and people whose other recommendations I trust seem to love AAS.)

 

Thanks for offering your input, Elizabeth. I looked at your lessons, (the movies I'm assuming) and they look good but I'm not sure if they'd be any less time consuming than AAS? Is a student able to progress through them fairly quickly?

 

Thanks for the links to all of your great free resources!

[Annie Laurie]

I think it will depend on the child. My oldest is a natural speller; he has used SWO from level A (is now completing Level F). He does it almost entirely on his own, he enjoys it for the most part, and does well.

 

I tried SWO A last year with ds 7, and we struggled through SWO B this year. He is not a natural speller. He can't do it on his own very well, and does not do well on the word tests each week, even when I make it more like a game (with letter tiles) and trying different things during the week. I'm thinking to switch him to AAS next year because he clearly needs more individualized work on this topic.

 

Are there sample pages for SWO online somewhere? You could do a "test drive" with your kids to see how they do with it?

 

This is what I worry would be the case here too. Ds8 is a natural speller and would probably be fine with SWO. Dd6 is not a natural speller and so SWO might not be enough for her.

 

Not to mention, that my kids like AAS and ds8 does not like workbooks and would probably be upset if I made him switch to SWO.

 

I like that SWO is easy to use, we do one lesson per week, and it only takes a few minutes. There is built in review, but I also have the dc copy out their spelling words on paper as well as give an oral "spelling bee" each week, which is kind of fun. I've looked at AAS and it just seems like too much work for something that really does not have to be that complicated.

 

That's where I get stuck too, AAS just seems more complicated. In reality, I suppose it's not really, once it's all set up. The lessons aren't hard for me to do, it's just time consuming with so many kids.

 

And since SWB recommends SWO I assumed it's a solid spelling program and just need one area that doesn't require me all the time that the kids can do.

 

Could you combine the AAS time? The review time could easily be done together and spelling words could maybe be done together too (although if you only have one set of tiles and they all still want to use them that could be a problem). I know that all children are different, but my dd is thriving with AAS and I don't think anything else would work as well for her. She a very hands-on, interactive learner. Plus, this is what we use for phonics so that's one more thing I was able to cut out. If it was me I would cut something else before I cut AAS, but you know your dc better than I do.

 

This strikes a cord with me also. My dd really enjoys hands-on things too and I do think this is probably the best program for her.

 

I also use it for phonics with my youngest son and would then have him continue on for spelling.

 

Combining is a great idea and I wish I could, but it becomes chaos around here. I tried combining my 8 and 6 yr old in RightStart math and it was terrible, so I think AAS would yield the same results.

 

It does seem too good to drop, but everything I'm using really is!

 

I think I'd focus on the 14 yo & 8 yo first, let the 4 yo go for awhile, and maybe even the 6 yo. You could probably get through all 4 levels of AAS with your oldest in a year, and by then 5 & 6 would be out & you could do those in another year. Then you would be done and could focus more on your youngest two. Likely in another year or two your dd wouldn't be as fidgety and you'd make more progress in the lessons then anyway. Even though she is ready ability-wise, it sounds like she's really not quite ready in other ways.

 

Another option might be to teach the 14 yo, and have the 14 yo teach one of the younger kids. Might not work in every home, but an added benefit would be that the info would stick more for your 14 yo.

 

Hope you find a way to make things work for you, or find something else that works!

 

Merry :-)

 

Thanks Merry, those are good ideas.

 

It makes sense to me also to worry about the oldest two for now, but my 4 and 6 yr olds are very advanced and voracious readers and I worry since they did not have phonics instruction, that if I let it go for now, they'll develop bad reading habits.

 

And it does seem like the wiggly issue says my dd isn't ready, though she can sit through several chapters of a read aloud fine, but she has a huge imagination and is so easily distracted during AAS, she wants to make up a story about each rule or sentence I'm dictating and sometimes forgets what she's doing. So good reminder that she is only 6.

 

I think the idea of my 14 yo learning the lesson and then reteaching it to one of the other kids is fabulous! That one we will do, as long as he can find the time in the middle of his high school workload. I know he would enjoy it though, he teaches them new math concepts sometimes just for fun, so I know he likes teaching them.

 

I found the same problem when trying to use it with my oldest three, it was way too time intensive. I stagger it now for the older two and I'm waiting on the 5yo, he really doesn't need this now. So, Monday, I teach my ds8 the lesson with the tiles and he writes the first list in his notebook. For the rest of the week, I dictate three of the phrases or sentences right after breakfast while I clean up. I can remind him of a rule if I see him stumped, but I'm not just sitting there doing nothing while he painstakingly uses his most perfect cursive writing. Then, Wednesday, I give my daughter her next lesson with the tiles and she takes dictation on the other days in the same manner. Usually, if she is struggling, my son will tell her the rule, thus reinforcing previous rules for himself. This has made it manageable. It is such a great program for our family, I wasn't willing to drop it.

 

HTH!:001_smile:

 

It is a great program and I think you all have convinced me to stick with it. I like your ideas and am going to print this and think on some of these suggestions. I really need to get a handle on my schedule and start managing our time better, there is just so much to do with so many different kids.

Edited May 15, 2009 by Annie Laurie
typos

[MerryAtHope]

And it does seem like the wiggly issue says my dd isn't ready, though she can sit through several chapters of a read aloud fine, but she has a huge imagination and is so easily distracted during AAS, she wants to make up a story about each rule or sentence I'm dictating and sometimes forgets what she's doing. So good reminder that she is only 6.

 

LOL, my 10 yo is like this! She relates a dictation sentence to something else, or draws a picture of the word she's writing on her whiteboard...we don't make as much progress in her lessons, LOL!

 

Merry :-)

[ElizabethB]

Thanks for offering your input, Elizabeth. I looked at your lessons, (the movies I'm assuming) and they look good but I'm not sure if they'd be any less time consuming than AAS? Is a student able to progress through them fairly quickly?

 

Thanks for the links to all of your great free resources!

 

You're welcome!

 

They are time consuming for the student, but you do not need to sit there with them, so it's not time consuming for you. Each movie has the time it takes to watch the movie next to it. I wouldn't watch more than one a day for a young child.

 

There are several words they are supposed to spell each lesson, you could just check their paper after each movie to make sure they've written down some words. (They just watch the move with a piece of paper and a pencil.)