AAS-need help before tomorrow please!

[parias1126]

I just started AAS with my DD8 who has some trouble spelling thinking it would be perfect. We are on lesson 6 in Level 1. Just yesterday. She started with, "here we go again.....". Then today, same thing! "Mom, do I really have to do this again?????"!

 

Ok! What now? She has already memorized all the phonograms! Level 1 is too easy I'm guessing. She hasn't finished the Key Cards or anything else though, although, when I show it to her, it is instantly memorized.

 

Should I just keep going through Level 1 and just cut down some of the repetativeness? Or should I switch to a program like SWO? At this point she is not really expanding her vocabulary with new words. What about adding in spelling and vocab until we get to being challenged with AAS.

 

I have noticed that she always does the same sort of thing when she attempts to spell. Today she wrote me a cute note that said, "I love my teahcr". When I ask her to look at the word "teahcr" and tell me what 2 letters say "ch" (the sound) she can tell me "c-h" and then fix it. Then right away she noticed she forgot her "e" before the "r" at the end of the word which seems to happen everyday with words ending in "er".

 

What now???:confused:

Edited September 29, 2010 by parias1126

[Kirch]

I would keep going and cut out some of the repetition. If she knows (*really* knows) how to spell the words and can consistently apply the rule (even in writing outside of spelling work), don't belabor it. It wasn't unusual for us to do a step a day when we started, but we slowed down later on to work on newer topics. We also used the earlier lessons to work on getting familiar with the AAS way of doing things--procedures for working with the letter tiles, how to review with the cards, dictation procedures, etc.

 

Just going from your example, you might want to practice some with her on segmenting words as she spells them to hopefully encourage her to get to the place where she mentally does it on her own.

 

AAS is spelling rather than vocab, so I don't know (looking through level 2, which we just started) that she'll be learning any new words any time soon. There may be a vocab element at higher levels--I'm not sure, since I haven't looked ahead that far. If you want vocabulary as well, you might want to check out Wordly Wise or something like that.

[Sandy in Indy]

How long are you spending on each lesson? You may be able to go through Level 1 very quickly. My ds knew the phongrams before we started AAS, and we completed Level 1 in about 6 weeks. Don't drag it out, but is important to get the foundational stuff covered.

 

I wouldn't switch just yet. What is it that she objects to? Don't feel that you have to do it just as written. If she hates spelling with tiles, then don't spell with tiles.

[parias1126]

How long are you spending on each lesson? You may be able to go through Level 1 very quickly. My ds knew the phongrams before we started AAS, and we completed Level 1 in about 6 weeks. Don't drag it out, but is important to get the foundational stuff covered.

 

I wouldn't switch just yet. What is it that she objects to? Don't feel that you have to do it just as written. If she hates spelling with tiles, then don't spell with tiles.

We are spending 15 minutes at most. It's the tiles she is huffing and puffing over. She just says, "Why do we have to do this? I already know all these words."

 

I mean, I can see her frustration since thus far it's all CVC words. I think we completed lesson 7 today. I'm only doing every other day. I would love for her to be expanding her vocabulary though and if AAS is going to be this easy for her for the first couple levels, I'm wondering if maybe I should add something else in.

[Kate in Arabia]

What about skipping the tiles for now and just doing the dictation sentences at the end of the lesson? If she makes mistakes then you can go back and do the lesson properly with the tiles?

 

I started AAS with ds #2 last year, he is really not a natural speller. We went through every lesson in level one and are now midway through level 2, but I do modify it in that we don't do all the tile work (just some); we only occasionally use the cards; we do a lot of the writing drills (he uses a marker with the white board, which he likes), and I can tell immediately if he's grasped the concept of the lesson or not. My point is, I think you can tweak AAS to work for you, not feel obligated to follow it to-the-letter (pun not really intended ;) )

 

My oldest uses SWO; it does expand his vocabulary, but he is a natural speller; he easily focuses on new words and meanings and doesn't even need to think about spelling rules because it just clicks for him. I tried it with ds #2 and it was a disaster, because he does not have that ability to internalize spelling so seemingly effortlessly. He was so bogged down in the spelling, to add new words and meanings on top of that was overwhelming, kwim?

 

I don't know whether anyone has tried using both programs, like alternating days, so you get both kinds?

[anneofalamo]

I have a 12 year old DS in AAS, book 1...we are on lesson 11

and he is teaching me...I have to say the sounds, and he corrects me...that is how we start, I have to answer. It is hilarious!

it helped me, as he knows it is beginner and we are doing a lesson a day, and plan on going thru the whole thing...I showed him where this curriculum will take him, to the cd player and doing spelling on his own, and he wants that bad. So we have book 1, 2, and 3 for this year, and if we can get thru, he goes on to egads, institute of writing?? I think that is it!!

He totally is tripped on the every syllable has a vowel! I mean he didn't have a clue about that rule/key card! When you said she wrote teachr, that popped in my head...

perhaps have her find the rule/key card she missed? pull out 3 of them ? and do a classification?

I know it is working, we only do 15 minutes, that is it, and it is just him and myself on the couch, very relaxed and snuggles. But I had to get more enthused about it...cause it is very basic....but it is so what he needed.

Edited September 29, 2010 by anneofalamo

[anneofalamo]

I do modify it in that we don't do all the tile work (just some); we only occasionally use the cards; we do a lot of the writing drills (he uses a marker with the white board, which he likes), and I can tell immediately if he's grasped the concept of the lesson or not. My point is, I think you can tweak AAS to work for you, not feel obligated to follow it to-the-letter (pun not really intended ;) )

 

 

 

brilliant about the white board! will do tomorrow!! that will put a smile on his face!!

[In2why]

We are spending 15 minutes at most. It's the tiles she is huffing and puffing over. She just says, "Why do we have to do this? I already know all these words."

 

I mean, I can see her frustration since thus far it's all CVC words. I think we completed lesson 7 today. I'm only doing every other day. I would love for her to be expanding her vocabulary though and if AAS is going to be this easy for her for the first couple levels, I'm wondering if maybe I should add something else in.

 

 

We faced the same issue when we began. But I am glad we started with level one so that he could learn all the rules without the gaps. In the beginning we did 2-3 lessons a day and If he knew the concept we skipped the tiles and went right to the words and then to the dictation.

 

Once he got to lesson 17? where he had to remember the rule for K and C, we slowed down, since it wasn't automatic recall on his part. Now we do 1 lesson every other day but I make sure he is using the rules that he has learned so far in his other writing assignments.

[1GirlTwinBoys]

I'm doing 15 mins (set by timer) each day with my 3. I let them use the little individual white boards and write the words at our study table. They prefer this way much more to standing and using the tiles.

[MerryAtHope]

First, you don't have to make her spell all of the words, or even do any of a step that is too easy for her. Fast track through lessons she has solid, and spend more time in lessons she doesn't have down. I would let her know, "I know that you have memorized how to spell these words, so we are not going to spell all of them when you know them. But this program also looks at spelling concepts and I want to make sure we don't have any gaps, because the same concepts apply to longer and harder words." Let her know you're going to pick up the pace now but that you'll be on the lookout--and she should too--for new information. If she knows something, test it out on a couple of words, and move on to the next step unless she struggles. You don't want her bored with the easy stuff while you look for gaps, and moving quickly while letting her in on what the goal is here might help.

 

With the segmenting that she learned in the early steps--show her how it could help her with things like "teahcr." If she segments that she would get /t/ /ee/ /h/ /k/ /r/. (Later she'll learn that every syllable has at least one vowel). Segmenting will help her catch errors like this, so you want to start showing her how to use that skill with some of the mistakes she makes.

 

I HTH! Merry :-)

[siloam]

My oldest was spelling at a 7th grade level when we started AAS. I focus on the why and not the words, though I do have her do all the dictation to bring it together. In the first 4 levels she has only misspelled a totally of about 6 words. That said I also figured out she was relying heavily on visual memory, so I started having her teach me everything, orally telling me what to do and why. I tested her again about a month ago and she is not testing at a 8.8 grade level, so something is working. :D

 

BTW my oldest only uses the tiles when covering new material, to be able to "see it". She doesn't spell with them.

 

My feeling is that if you continue you will see good results, but you should watch for the using visual/auditory memory vs. actually applying the rules, especially in dividing syllables. With many kids it just takes time to pull all the pieces together and use them. Your child obviously knows the rules, but needs them reinforced. AAS will use multiple means of reinforcing and practicing spelling words, adding endings, adding prefixes, and distinguishing between homophones as well as continued work with phonograms and spelling rules.

 

Just keep swimming...

 

Heather

 

[Homemama2]

You could do the cards one day a week (or just do one color of cards each day....yellow cards on Mon, red on Tues etc.) and then double up lessons. You could easily do 2 steps or more a day until you reached a point where she was needed more work. And with some of the CVC words that you KNOW she knows, just use your judgement about jumping ahead. Starting in AAS3 they don't have to use the tiles to spell the words, they just write them on paper or on a white board. This is not due to the level (AAS3 vrs. AAS1) but because older kids do not like to use the tiles as much. My 3rd grader doesn't like them either, so I let him write.

[crimsonkelley]

We just finished AAS 1 with my 8 soon to be 9 year old. We did 1 lesson a day. He knew alot of the information, so there was no need to drag it out. I would normally make him spell the letters with the tiles and then write the dictation sentences. We have tried several spelling programs and this is the first one that has worked! He can actually write a sentence!! Although he felt that the information was very easy at first, he was excited to put stickers on his chart and complete book number 1.

 

Hang in there!