Help me salvage my TOG plan!

[vlshort]

Help!

We are halfway through TOG 2. DS is doing D-level, and hates the history reading (H.E.Marshall books). He did much better last year in UG level. He'll be 13 in September, so I feel he should be in D-level. I thought he was a good reader, and in fact, even though he did UG last year in history, he did the D level literature books. But he doesn't seem to retain as much with these Marshall books. I think he's a "just the facts ma'm" kind of kid, and the Marshall books are not that way.

 

So... what should I do?

 

I could just stop with the D books, and try to get UG books for the rest of the year.

 

Or.... I could have him use some strategies during his reading of D books to try to retain, and put some structure around what he's learning. But I don't know what those strategies might be? Some kind of note taking? Outlining?

 

If I read aloud his history, we can discuss it, and he gets it. But, it's hard for me to make time to do all of his history reading aloud - this D level has a heavy load of reading.

 

Suggestions please?

Thanks so much!

-vanessa

[angela in ohio]

Or.... I could have him use some strategies during his reading of D books to try to retain, and put some structure around what he's learning. But I don't know what those strategies might be? Some kind of note taking? Outlining?

 

I think this is an excellent idea. He is at the perfect age to learn these strategies that he will really need for high school.

 

For reading strategies, the SPQ3R method is the standard. You can google and find pages from schools and study centers that detail how to use it.

 

Outlining is another excellent way to interact with a text.

 

Here's a recent thread that you might find helpful: How do I teach dd12 how to take notes.

[Melissa in CA]

I like the idea of notetaking, but if your ds dislikes the Marshall books, being forced to take notes on them is not going to inspire any type love for them, or history.

 

I realize that it's not always about loving what you are studying, and that we must help our kids to learn from whatever text they are given, but he is still young and I must admit that those Marshall books can seem rather...well, dry and long winded. I personally wouldn't like them.

 

My ds just turned 13 in April and we used a mixture of the UG and D level History selections this year. I found that the UG level primary books were just as good as the Dialectic. Even now, with my ds going into 8th in the fall, I would have no problem with him reading Y2s UG history selections. In fact, we split the year up and will be completing Y2 Units 3 and 4 for 8th grade. I plan for him to read the D level, but I am not at all opposed to the UG books. History is history, and the UG books are good books. Not little kid stuff.

 

As for notetaking, etc. If your ds does not yet know how to outline, I would choose a book, like the Kingfisher History Encyclopedia, and begin teaching him how to outline. I don't think I would attempt that with the TOG primary books, though some of the in-depth books would be good for outlining as several are 'encyclopedia-ish'. I personally would not try to force him to take notes on the Marshall books though. That, I think, would be pure torture. :tongue_smilie: With a history encyclopedia you could easily find an entry the goes with what is being taught in TOG. Perhaps pick a day when no history is scheduled, and have him practice outlining his history.

 

Just my random thoughts. ;)

[siloam]

Help!

We are halfway through TOG 2. DS is doing D-level, and hates the history reading (H.E.Marshall books). He did much better last year in UG level. He'll be 13 in September, so I feel he should be in D-level. I thought he was a good reader, and in fact, even though he did UG last year in history, he did the D level literature books. But he doesn't seem to retain as much with these Marshall books. I think he's a "just the facts ma'm" kind of kid, and the Marshall books are not that way.

 

So... what should I do?

 

I could just stop with the D books, and try to get UG books for the rest of the year.

 

Or.... I could have him use some strategies during his reading of D books to try to retain, and put some structure around what he's learning. But I don't know what those strategies might be? Some kind of note taking? Outlining?

 

If I read aloud his history, we can discuss it, and he gets it. But, it's hard for me to make time to do all of his history reading aloud - this D level has a heavy load of reading.

 

Suggestions please?

Thanks so much!

-vanessa

Vanessa,

 

This is a hard one. Options I would consider if I were in the same situation:

 

1. Buying the MP3's or the Kindle version of Our Island Story (You can install Kindle software onto your computer to read and speak text without buying a Kindle)

2. Going back to UG, but having him do the in depth with it.

3. Trying the alternate text.

4. Finding something he does like and schedule it in myself.

 

Is he by chance an auditory learner? It might be that with UG and the reading being light her could go at a pace that was comfortable, so even through it was not his learning style he did fine, but now he feels rushed, and he is missing important information in just trying to get it done. But when you RA you play to his strength and take the reading pressure off, and he does fine.

 

If it makes you feel better my 12yo is still in UG, and may be so till she turns 13. Depends on how long it takes us to finish year 4. When I go back to year 1 I want to try to move her to D, and she is an auditory learner.

 

Heather

[Michelle My Bell]

I like the other ideas mentioned, but I wanted to tell you something that is working for us. One of my daughters just finished her spine books which she loved. When she moved on to her next selection she was having the same issues. What I did was to read the first chapter to her, giving her a foundation to understand how to pronounce words (Ancient Greece, so there were some odd words,names in there), get a feel for the flow & rhythm of the text and also to have her practice some narration.

 

Then I added in some supplementry items. Since we are studying Greece, I got the Drive Through History DVD, Greece is the Word. We have been watching that together. I also got another Schlessinger DVD on Ancient Greece.

 

This was a topic that she was pretty unfamiliar with, so having these helps that introduced the topics a number of times along with some visuals has really helped her with the more difficult text in her book.