Shurley English Help, again!

[fourcatmom]

So, I have looking over the SE books and TE books and I received advice that I should use the practice books as well but I have to say I am a little confused on HOW to use the practice books. There are just sentences in the book like they have in the TE book that say you are suppose to write them out and work on them each breaking them apart, etc. What exactly or how exactly are you suppose to use the practice book?

 

Thanks:001_smile:

[chepyl]

The practice books are so you don't have to write out every sentence. It is a time saver.

[Margo out of lurking]

I typed out the sentences from the regular books every few months and printed them out for my child. It came in very handy when the second child used the book.

 

You don't need the practice books at all.

[fourcatmom]

I typed out the sentences from the regular books every few months and printed them out for my child. It came in very handy when the second child used the book.

 

You don't need the practice books at all.

 

Okay, so that confirms my thoughts that I didn't need these. There are spaces in them before the sentences so I wasn't sure if they were suppose to write something or not?

 

SE is really a lot of work, I hope it pays off. It's quite time intensive if you ask me. Every time I open the book to make a schedule for the first month, I end up closing it and moving on to another subject.:confused:

[fourcatmom]

The practice books are so you don't have to write out every sentence. It is a time saver.

 

 

I just thought since it said "practice book" it meant they were suppose to DO something in it, kwim?

[Alenee]

IMO, SE is time consuming if you're adding in the writing component and NOT following a classical model of teaching (meaning you've added far too much school work in other areas). At the point in which I began using SE, I could spend anywhere from 20-40 minutes on each lesson. That is, until I quit using their writing component. Once we got the method down, we never spent any more than 30 minutes per lesson and that was on the high side. I cannot say enough good things about the program and even heard several times recently about how much the kids from my co-op class had learned. Their parents were totally shocked with what their kids learned in only one hour of class per week. If you're interested in hearing how I use it for co-op so as to cut out unnecessary time-suckers, I'd be happy to share. Just send me a pm. ;)

[Alenee]

I just thought since it said "practice book" it meant they were suppose to DO something in it, kwim?

 

The practice booklet is used both for independent students and as a time-saver for the teacher. The student should be marking the sentences in their practice booklet as the teacher walks them through the Question and Answer Flow. This is especially helpful when teaching more than one student. I wouldn't say that it is a waste of money. I used to type them out for my dd after she became independent but then I realized how much of my time was being eaten, not to mention my own printing costs. They can also take these booklets on the road! :)

 

eta: the sentence classifying is the core to this program, imo. I thought about the comment I quoted above and realized you may not understand that yet, having not used the program. The point which I'm trying to make is that you've chosen wisely. Relax! You're going to do a great job and it won't be as time consuming as it may first appear.

Edited August 9, 2011 by Alenee

[Margo out of lurking]

The practice books do contain only the practice sentences to use at the beginning of each day's lesson. It is a booklet for convenience only. In a classroom, the teacher would write these on the board, and the class would recite the parsing in unison. I typed them myself and didn't pay for the practice booklet. I printed them in landscape so that the sentence was usually just on one line.

 

You'll need to provide your child with the sentences somehow, whether you write in on a board or paper, type it, provide the workbook, etc.

 

Okay, so that confirms my thoughts that I didn't need these. There are spaces in them before the sentences so I wasn't sure if they were suppose to write something or not?

 

SE is really a lot of work, I hope it pays off. It's quite time intensive if you ask me. Every time I open the book to make a schedule for the first month, I end up closing it and moving on to another subject.:confused:

 

The space that looks like ___________ before the sentence is necessary. It's where the student writes a few abbreviations indicating sentence pattern.

 

Random thoughts at 2:30 a.m. from me: SE is a lot of work. I absolutely love the end result. Are you using it with both kids simultaneously? (If your kids are a year apart, I would.) I've used it for several years, skipping every other year. Dd and I learned it in a classroom setting, so it was easy to transition at home.

 

Tweak it to suit you. I think I saw that your dc are 9 and 10? They may not want to sing the jingles. That's fine, they can say them in a sing-song rhythm. Get into a routine with what you will cover every day. You do not have to do the entire lesson as written if your child grasps the concept.

 

For example (without looking at my book, and not having done it in 1.5 years), we always did the practice sentences. Dc could do them alone, and I would check work. We'd move into the main lesson, do practice, and they would work on the exercise alone. I did vocab with one child, not with the other. We never used the writing portion (hated it!).

 

Several years ago, OhElizabeth? gave a great rundown on learning Shurley quickly. I believe she said to focus on the sections with the lightbulbs when you are looking at what to teach. I've searched the boards and googled a dozen ways tonight and can't find the exact post.

 

Aaaaand this subject is putting me to sleep, so that's a good thing!

[fourcatmom]

The practice books do contain only the practice sentences to use at the beginning of each day's lesson. It is a booklet for convenience only. In a classroom, the teacher would write these on the board, and the class would recite the parsing in unison. I typed them myself and didn't pay for the practice booklet. I printed them in landscape so that the sentence was usually just on one line.

 

You'll need to provide your child with the sentences somehow, whether you write in on a board or paper, type it, provide the workbook, etc.

 

 

 

The space that looks like ___________ before the sentence is necessary. It's where the student writes a few abbreviations indicating sentence pattern.

 

Random thoughts at 2:30 a.m. from me: SE is a lot of work. I absolutely love the end result. Are you using it with both kids simultaneously? (If your kids are a year apart, I would.) I've used it for several years, skipping every other year. Dd and I learned it in a classroom setting, so it was easy to transition at home.

 

Tweak it to suit you. I think I saw that your dc are 9 and 10? They may not want to sing the jingles. That's fine, they can say them in a sing-song rhythm. Get into a routine with what you will cover every day. You do not have to do the entire lesson as written if your child grasps the concept.

 

For example (without looking at my book, and not having done it in 1.5 years), we always did the practice sentences. Dc could do them alone, and I would check work. We'd move into the main lesson, do practice, and they would work on the exercise alone. I did vocab with one child, not with the other. We never used the writing portion (hated it!).

 

Several years ago, OhElizabeth? gave a great rundown on learning Shurley quickly. I believe she said to focus on the sections with the lightbulbs when you are looking at what to teach. I've searched the boards and googled a dozen ways tonight and can't find the exact post.

 

Aaaaand this subject is putting me to sleep, so that's a good thing!

 

Thank you for all the feedback. Yes, two children using SE. Level 4 and 5. I didn't realize about skipping levels until after I purchased it. I will have to see if I can teach from both books.

 

Again, I am glad that I bought it but just feeling overwhelmed. Your suggestions were very helpful. :001_smile:

[missmoe]

At the beginning of each lesson the student and teacher together label three sentences. The sentences in the practice book are those sentences. If you are organized and can type those sentences out ahead of time, you don't need the practice book. I found the few dollars I spent on the practice books well worth it.

 

I combined my kids when working with Shurley. You may want to use just level 4 or 5 and return the other level. Working in two levels so close together will be time consuming.

 

The first few weeks may be time consuming as you learn the program, but after you get in the swing of things most lessons don't take longer than 20-30 minutes.

[Margo out of lurking]

Yes, two children using SE. Level 4 and 5.

 

Oh, definitely, combine the two. There is no reason to spend twice your time, and the kids may very well be able to help each other. I would suggest both at Level 4. Shurley is good, rigorous. Your 5th grader will not be "behind" in Level 4. Each level covers what was learned in previous years, only much more quickly, and then adds on new concepts.

 

If you feel too guilty about buying both levels, you can teach Level 4 this year, wait a year, and then move into Level 5. You can later skip 6 and teach 7 (the last level).

[PeterPan]

Well I like the practice books for Shurley and find the tm varying shades of annoying. Yes, I'm the one who bought it, threw it at the wall, and the realized it was the only thing that was going to fit my little grammar-phobe dd, meaning I had to learn it. Here's how I taught it for years. (Remember we did FLL1/2 prior to Shurley, so we had done the memory work.)

 

We skipped the jingles.

Open practice book. Open tm to page that corresponds to practice book. Go through it. Put away.

When the mood strikes you every so often, open student workbook, do one of the pages orally (they're on conventions, s/v agreement, that sort of thing), realize you've already nailed that stuff because of the copywork and dictation you're doing. Put away.

Every so often realize you've done 5 lessons in Shurley and are to nifty activities they give for writing sentences from labels. Do those. If you've missed several weeks worth, do 'em all. Put away.

 

That's it. You're doing lots of other stuff that works these skills (dictation, CW, whatever you're doing), so you DON'T have to beat this to a pulp. And no, please don't try to plan it. Laminate yourself a full-page bookmark, stick it in to mark your spot, and call it good. Depending on the child you may not NEED all the stuff in those lessons. Depending on the child, you may not need to do the vocab. (Use it for spelling just to say you did!) Depending on the child, you may find he catches on so quickly that they zoom ahead of you and just need to be checked very couple weeks when something new is added. The lightbulbs have important stuff and the boxes have the parsing. Everything else is just a matter of whether *your* student needs it. We skipped the writing, because we were doing our own.

 

And no, I would not do Shurley 4 and 5. Pick one and send the other back.

[fourcatmom]

Oh, definitely, combine the two. There is no reason to spend twice your time, and the kids may very well be able to help each other. I would suggest both at Level 4. Shurley is good, rigorous. Your 5th grader will not be "behind" in Level 4. Each level covers what was learned in previous years, only much more quickly, and then adds on new concepts.

 

If you feel too guilty about buying both levels, you can teach Level 4 this year, wait a year, and then move into Level 5. You can later skip 6 and teach 7 (the last level).

 

 

One question, why would I wait a year and not just go into level 5 next year?

[Margo out of lurking]

One question, why would I wait a year and not just go into level 5 next year?

 

I've never found it necessary to use Shurley two years in a row. My kids remembered.

 

Muhahahaha! (Sorry, couldn't resist!)

[PeterPan]

We spread a level over two years once (just sorta happened that way), and that was good too. If you do that, jump from 4 to 6 or 4 to 7. The reason that worked for us was because we were doing grammar in our writing programs as well.