What programs have helped you become a better teacher, mentor, or coach?

[rafiki]

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[rafiki]

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[prairiegirl]

My list is:

 

RightStart Math

Teaching the Classics

ClassicalWriting

Writing With Ease

[Haiku]

RightStart Math

 

Writing with Ease

 

Tara

[lgm]

Singapore Primary Math

[HappyGrace]

:lurk5: Great thread! I would also love to hear HOW you felt these things helped you, if possible.

 

For us-RightStart math-showed me things I never knew about math-like in 8+7, take two from the seven to make the 8 a ten and then add-all the tricks like that. I never truly learned math in school and RS was like a refresher course for me, and took me step by step through how to teach it too.

 

Looking carefully at schedules for WP and SL helped me learn how to schedule lit-based history so that I've been able to make my own SL-looking schedules but using the resources *I* want for the last three years.

 

I may think of more and post back later.

[angela in ohio]

Practice. :001_smile: That accounts for 99% of my improvement, regardless of the curriculum.

 

Also:

R&S English - for reminding me what all those grammatical concepts are called, so that I can explain them when correcting writing assignments

 

Not a curriculum, but Phonics from A to Z (a Scholastic book, I beleive) was a really helpful reference when I was teaching dc to read.

 

Teaching the Classics (and various literature guides, as well as some great talks from the VP Teacher Training) for showing me how to teach literature.

[Spy Car]

For us-RightStart math-showed me things I never knew about math-like in 8+7, take two from the seven to make the 8 a ten and then add-all the tricks like that. I never truly learned math in school and RS was like a refresher course for me, and took me step by step through how to teach it too.

 

 

Please excuse a little story, as the serendipity is too strong for me to ignore this.

 

I teach math this way with my 5 year old son. And NOT ONLY THAT, but last night (after his stories and after the lights were out) the was still fighting sleep and he says, "let's talk about numbers."

 

So I start to talk about 8+7. And as I'm running though the little story we tell of how many 8 would need to become a 10, and how many 7 would give up to help 8, and what 7 would become, and what number "one-ten and 5-units" is........well, he drifts off to sleep.

 

So this morning, out of a sound sleep, I hear him yell out: FIFTEEN! :lol:

 

True story. Not one I'd believe, but true none-the-less.

 

Bill

[8filltheheart]

Practice. :001_smile: That accounts for 99% of my improvement, regardless of the curriculum.

 

.

 

:iagree: I learned grammar that I never knew with my oldest 2. Now I am able to teach grammar without even thinking about it and my teaching is so much more effective simply b/c I KNOW what I am teaching.

 

Simply having tried multiple different approaches, I have mish-mashed the most effective techniques of lots of different things to teach my kids better.

[PeterPan]

I don't think it's a program but rather just growing and maturing as parents. The more we mature, the more we have to give. Age has its advantages. :)

 

(Said as someone who feels the differences between parenting a newborn/little one 10 years ago and now. You don't realize how much you've changed till you come back to it.)

[teacalm]

Not by reading a particular book or books per se, but repeatedly teaching the same topics year after year starting with my oldest, and then again, with my younger kids. When I revisit the same topics, my teaching time is faster since I don't have to read up or consult the teacher's manual to look up the right answer. I noticed that I can calculate faster, spot my kids' mistakes right away, and respond to their questions quickly. I grow more confident as the years go by. I do read a huge amount of material to prepare for my kids classes. Like last night, I read on a critical guidebook for Chaim Potok's books since ds is reading one of Potok's books. At the same time, I was also reading a critical handbook on one of Oscar Wilde's The Happy Prince short story. On top of this, I was reading an AP English book on how to structure a literary analysis essay. All this to prepare for the next day so I can help my kids to structure their essays. All these readings and studying gets stored in my brain, and I get to draw these newly found tools when the time comes again that my kids need help.

[TechWife]

IEW helped me tremendously as a teacher. Not only did it help me teach writing, but it also helped me to be a better teacher by helping me understand more about how childrens' minds work and that these differences between kids were not unique, but observed by others.

 

Thomas Jefferson Education - for helping me think about goals instead of the methods.

 

Horizons Math - helped me understand how to teach "tricks" to help memory, which in turn helped me understand why things work the way they do.

 

Precept Ministries International - the leadership training I took years ago taught me how to study and how to formulate a lecture/lesson. It also taught me how to be objective when handling objections and how to manage a group discussion (comes in handy when teaching co-op).

 

Nurturing Inquiry - I read this recently. It taught me about the inquiry approach to science - letting the kids be scientists on their own!

[Strawberry Queen]

Singapore Math-mostly because it allowed me to look at math from a new perspective-enhanced understanding.

 

FLL/WWE These helped me because it broke all the info into bite-sized pieces so I could learn the info.(well, at least learn the info for grammar-I DO know how to narrate and take dictation.:lol:)

 

WTM- This broke everything down into manageable portions. I could see the progression of skill for each area, and how I taught something in grammar stage impacted how I will teach it in logic. A must for this big-picture thinker.

 

PHP audio products (science, WWF) This gave me more detailed info which rounded out the info in WTM.

 

HTH

[woolybear]

Ambleside Online

Charlotte Mason

 

 

I've been CMish for awhile. We are just starting on the Ambleside way. The more I read of Charlotte Mason's approach and understand and really incorporate it, the better I become at teaching. Ambleside is really helping me pull it all together.

 

Woolybear

[DB in NJ]

Believe it or not, watching bits and pieces of my dd's ABeka DVD's has helped me tremendously. Due to many unsettling events this year, I needed someone else to do the teaching for me this year, so dd is using all ABeka. Seeing the teachers being kind and patient and loving and understanding ALL. THE. TIME. has really inspired me to be more patient with my little guy. It has truly made me a better teacher.

[Joy at Home]

Please excuse a little story, as the serendipity is too strong for me to ignore this.

 

I teach math this way with my 5 year old son. And NOT ONLY THAT, but last night (after his stories and after the lights were out) the was still fighting sleep and he says, "let's talk about numbers."

 

So I start to talk about 8+7. And as I'm running though the little story we tell of how many 8 would need to become a 10, and how many 7 would give up to help 8, and what 7 would become, and what number "one-ten and 5-units" is........well, he drifts off to sleep.

 

So this morning, out of a sound sleep, I hear him yell out: FIFTEEN! :lol:

 

True story. Not one I'd believe, but true none-the-less.

 

Bill

 

 

:lol: That's too cute, Bill.

 

Blessings,

Lisa

[pageta]

I'm going to say the practice of narration. Now when I read something, I do a quick narration to myself when I finish, and I find that I learn so much more and get so much more out of it. It's easier to think about it and analyze it later after reinforcing the details with narration - I have something in my mind to build on rather than ideas passing in one ear and out the other...

[MyLittleWonders]

Please excuse a little story, as the serendipity is too strong for me to ignore this.

 

I teach math this way with my 5 year old son. And NOT ONLY THAT, but last night (after his stories and after the lights were out) the was still fighting sleep and he says, "let's talk about numbers."

 

So I start to talk about 8+7. And as I'm running though the little story we tell of how many 8 would need to become a 10, and how many 7 would give up to help 8, and what 7 would become, and what number "one-ten and 5-units" is........well, he drifts off to sleep.

 

So this morning, out of a sound sleep, I hear him yell out: FIFTEEN! :lol:

 

True story. Not one I'd believe, but true none-the-less.

 

Bill

:lol: I love it!

 

So far for me, it would be TWTM and CM as resources - helping me feel confident in our homeschooling philosophy. :)

[In the Rain]

AAS has been interesting for me. I am a decent speller, but have never known the "rules".

 

Singapore Primary math. It is a whole new way of thinking about math for me. I am humbled that my 8yo is faster at mental math than I am. :001_huh:

[msjones]

All About Spelling -- this has shown me that for some kids, it's good to slow down, take the time needed to teach thoroughly, and give plenty of review. There's no just handing over the book -- the material is actively TAUGHT to the child.

 

RightStart Math -- this is so well planned for K-3, that we have hardly had a day of math misery in 4 years of using it. Again, I think it requires the parent to teach -- not just hand the book over to a child.

 

Bravewriter -- check out this site. It is very different from WWE and other WTM writing suggestions, but has so much good advice about teaching in a homeschool setting.

[Lori D.]

Grammar

Joyce Herzog long ago put out a wonderful booklet on simplifing teaching grammar, which has been the single most helpful tool throughout our grammar instruction. No matter how small or large the sentence, always start with finding the subject and the simple predicate -- and EVERYTHING else is just adding on in some way!

 

Spelling

Sequential Spelling - we only used the program for a few months, but -- we continue to use the valuable method of starting with a small root word and adding to it has been extremely beneficial in working with spelling words.

 

Stevenson Blue Spelling Manual - we didn't use the whole Stevenson Language Arts program, but the visualization of vowel patterns in the spelling manual was *incredibly* helpful; we used that as a springboard in creating our own additional visualizations of vowel patterns, homophones, etc.

 

Math

Using 2 math programs, especially in the elementary years, is SO beneficial to developing math thinking in the student and helping me, the teacher, see math connections and the fluidness of math. Even if you end up only using one math program for your students, it is SO beneficial to learn a second math program on the side for the completely different point of view and to have more than one way to understand / explain math concepts.

Edited November 3, 2009 by Lori D.
added info

[Leanna Tomlinson]

First Language Lessons 1,2, 3 & 4- It has taught me that kids really do need repetition. I also understand how to diagram a sentence after trying several confusing programs with my older kids.

 

Math-U-See and Math Mammoth - both of these remind me to TELL my kids some of the tricks to solve a problem that I do so automatically that I don't even realize I'm doing them.

 

Writing Aids- It helped me to learn to write rubrics so that I can objectively grade a writing assignment. It also gives me great ideas for writing assignments that utilize basic skills, but bring variety to our writing assignments.

 

Tapestry of Grace- I have learned how to effectively lead Socratic discussions by utilizing the teacher's notes. Now, I don't even look at the notes when I have done the reading, because I can have Socratic discussion all day just out of my brain.;)

 

Bravewriter and KidsWrite Basic - taught me how to find the positive aspects of writing even when I see HUGE problems. It taught me how to encourage the original thoughts and not force my kids into formula writing.

 

SWR - taught me spelling rules, so I don't have to say, "That's just how we spell it."

 

Leanna

[ElizabethB]

"The ABCs and All Their Tricks" by Bishop. It's actually a reference book, but it's been very valuable for my phonics tutoring.

 

Webster's Speller. I didn't realize how accent dependent English was until I started using this, and when I used it with some ESL students, I realized it even more, it made a huge difference for them. Also, I have always taught with syllables and syllable division rules, but the way Webster arranges them by accent pattern leads to much better results.

 

Singapore Math. Who know 1st and 2nd grade math needed to be explained several different ways.

 

Liping Ma's "Knowing and Understanding Elementary Math." Linping Ma knows and understands how and why to teach elementary math several different ways and with a true mathematical understanding in mind.

[2_girls_mommy]

I have learned so much from doing Rod and Staff math for 3 yrs w/my girls. I have seen how the repetition and practicing and memorizing really helps them retain the info. My youngest dd could only count to 17 last year. We started math 1 and in two mos. she can almost count to 100 on her own. I have seen how the daily practice, step by step, and re practicing makes a difference with her. It reminds me to do this in all of the subjects with her.

[Zoo Keeper]

Singapore and Miquon math: I never knew that math could be fun; I always thought of it as "this is the one way to do it and that is that". We are all having fun exploring relationships with numbers. Wow!

[moki4]

That was so funny, Bill!

:lol:

[kalanamak]

 

For us-RightStart math-showed me things I never knew about math-like in 8+7, take two from the seven to make the 8 a ten and then add-all the tricks like that. I never truly learned math in school and RS was like a refresher course for me, and took me step by step through how to teach it too.

 

 

SM did this for me, but the biggest boost for me was SWR. Once you push aside the superfluous stuff, the whole idea of starting with a subtle cue, then less subtle, and then a quick visual "hint" has helped both of us cope with other subjects.

[5LittleMonkeys]

Many books by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish. How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk and How To Talk So Kids Can Learn At Home Or At School were 2 of the most beneficial. I have both of these books and have re-visited them many times over the past 8 years. I put the skills I learned,from these books and others by these authors, into practice all day everyday.

 

These aren't curriculum but they have given me the tools to have a respectful relationship with my children and to deal with the little trials and tribulations with a calm demeanor and loving attitude. No matter how good the curriculum is that you are using, if you do not have a solid foundation of respect between yourself and your children you aren't going to be able to teach them effectively. IMHO:D

[Mamasteff]

I taught in a public school for several years and even did private tutoring for students in their homes.

 

I did NOT understand how to teach reading/ learning letters until I moved to a country which uses a completely different but phonetic alphabet. When I tried to learn to read and write, it opened my eyes to what younger students were going through.

 

Not everyone can move to a new country to learn these lessons, but when I am in charge of educating educators, I will require reading specialists to learn to read in Cyrillic or Arabic or another phonetic alphabet.