WWE - Brief summary

[sleeplessnights]

We have finished WWE 1 & 2, and are looking to start level 3 after the new year. From what I recall:

 

WWE 1: Read story to child + oral narration. Copywork.

 

WWE 2: Read story to child + oral narration. Dictation. Later, dictate narration.

 

WWE 3: Child reads story to self + oral narration. Dictate narrations back to student. Dictation. Is there anything else?

 

WWE 4: ???

 

I am wondering what skills are introduced in Level 4. Do they write their own summaries without the intermediary step? I've heard that the dictations get even harder, but I'm wondering if I could skip level four and do something like Writing Tales, then pick up WWS in 5th grade.

 

Just curious.

 

Thanks!

[Xanadu]

I'm using WWE 4 for a Dyslexic/Dysgraphic 6th grader....and all I can say is the dictation is tough. Think 2 complex sentences..

 

Example:

 

It was common for the working class and poor to send their young sons to work as apprentices for masters skilled in a trade. For a small fee, the apprentice was taught the techniques of his master.

 

And this is an example from the beginning...they get even longer toward the end. Saying it only 3x before expecting it repeated & written down doesn't work at all in our house.

 

 

As of now my son can only get 6 words written down before he forgets everything, and he can't repeat back to me more than the first 9-10 words before trying to write it himself. (He has documented working memory problems & no mid-term memory to speak off)......so sometimes I end up saying the sentences 10x, 20x....or I just stop after 3 and say, "give me what u do remember", Then I make him watch me write it, and he retypes it on computer (he types way faster than he writes, so sometimes he also does his dictation on computer, but memory is still a big problem)...What we do all depends on whether I want to spend 15 min or 1 hr that day on a dictation exercise :lol:.

 

Yesterday he asked for something easier...So I'm gonna order WWE 3.

 

You may wonder why I'm sticking with it...

 

The truth is he needs this ability.....and so far WWE is the only thing that has gotten his working memory past 3 word from dictation...sometimes he even writes 7 or 8 before failing to remember....so I see progress....and with his exceptionalities every little step forward is huge. We also do FLL, MCT, VFTR, SS, and Writing Skills/The Paragraph Book...We spend alot of times on Grammar/Vocab/Spelling/Writing around here, but it usually only amounts to 1 hour 1/1 with him a day, and 1 hour of him independently writing/vocab/spelling before we work together to review and cover new material.

 

All in all I would consider WWE 4 a challenge in dictation for a typical 4th grader. It's almost impossible for my 6th grader who is reading/writing on a 4th grade level. (And this is only after intensive Wilson training 2x a week for 3 years) But I think the struggle is what makes it work...it forces the brain to stretch itself...just be willing to adjust expectations and not push for perfection (or anything close to it) with regards to the dictation unless your child is a natural mimic. I love the mix of literature/reference material used in all the WWE books, and 4 is no exception. It has even enticed him to go find books to read for pleasure that he has read excerpts out of....This alone is worth the cost of the book to me.