? about AAS -

[momsuz123]

Are the levels based on grades? For example, is level 1 more geared for first grade, level 2 second grade, etc. Just curious. Thanks.

[Lots of boys]

No, not really. The levels could be started anytime between K and above (my ds started them in Gr. 2). Level one only took us about two months to complete and level 2 will be only slightly longer. I have heard it slows down after this. Each level does not take a year to complete.

[LittleIzumi]

Absolutely not. :) You could fly through level 1 in 3 weeks in 1st grade if your child is a reader, IMO.

[Rivka]

:iagree: We started AAS 1 in June, took several weeks off for vacation and moving, and are still on track to finish AAS 2 by December. I'm hoping that we slow down soon, because otherwise this will get expensive.

[MerryAtHope]

No, the levels progress incrementally, rather than according to grade levels. Level 7 takes kids up to high school level spelling.

 

Have you seen the samples & scope & sequence links? That might help. Merry :-)

[MerryAtHope]

:iagree: We started AAS 1 in June, took several weeks off for vacation and moving, and are still on track to finish AAS 2 by December. I'm hoping that we slow down soon, because otherwise this will get expensive.

 

In AAS 3 there is more visual work, more analysis, longer dictations, and another section called "The Writing Station" added, so that may slow you down some :-).

 

Merry :-)

[Dahliarw]

I'm glad to hear we won't breeze through all the levels as fast as level one. We started end of September and are going to finish it by Thanksgiving.

[Rivka]

In AAS 3 there is more visual work, more analysis, longer dictations, and another section called "The Writing Station" added, so that may slow you down some :-).

 

Merry :-)

 

Yay? :lol:

 

We're doing longer dictations already, just because the sentences can be more fun that way. But the writing station will DEFINITELY slow us down, and so will my directive that in AAS 3 she has to start using appropriate capitalization instead of all block capitals. :D

[LynnG in Arizona]

Just to offer an alternate viewpoint, I actually think that the AAS spelling levels *do* roughly correlate to grade levels. Roughly.

 

We started my daughter on AAS Level 1 when she was maybe 2/3rds of the way through kindergarten. We're on track to finish Level 1 approximately half way through her first grade year, maybe a bit later. I feel like my daughter is a normal bright little girl. Not profoundly gifted, but with no known learning issues or challenges either. And I feel like Level 1 is the perfect level for her right now as an early reader - not too easy, not too difficult - just right. :)

 

I will confess that I have no idea how kids zip through a level in a couple weeks, particularly if they are *not* doing it remedially. Sure, if you're 9 or 10 years old and doing Level 1 just to play catch up to learn the AAS "method", I can see where you could get through it that quickly.

 

But if you really suck the marrow out of the program - doing ALL the review, all the extra words, all the dictation phrases - well, it's a pretty rich, full program.

 

So I'm completely fine with treating the AAS levels approximately as grade levels. That would have your student finishing up spelling around grade 5-7, which seems just about right to me.

 

HTH.

[Dahliarw]

Just to offer an alternate viewpoint, I actually think that the AAS spelling levels *do* roughly correlate to grade levels. Roughly.

 

We started my daughter on AAS Level 1 when she was maybe 2/3rds of the way through kindergarten. We're on track to finish Level 1 approximately half way through her first grade year, maybe a bit later. I feel like my daughter is a normal bright little girl. Not profoundly gifted, but with no known learning issues or challenges either. And I feel like Level 1 is the perfect level for her right now as an early reader - not too easy, not too difficult - just right. :)

 

I will confess that I have no idea how kids zip through a level in a couple weeks, particularly if they are *not* doing it remedially. Sure, if you're 9 or 10 years old and doing Level 1 just to play catch up to learn the AAS "method", I can see where you could get through it that quickly.

 

But if you really suck the marrow out of the program - doing ALL the review, all the extra words, all the dictation phrases - well, it's a pretty rich, full program.

 

So I'm completely fine with treating the AAS levels approximately as grade levels. That would have your student finishing up spelling around grade 5-7, which seems just about right to me.

 

HTH.

 

My ds went through it quickly because he already knew most of the rules and could spell the words out loud the minute I said them. I felt like making him do the tiles and then write them, etc was a waste of time when he knew and was comfortable with them. So I go through those ones more quickly. Right now the whole c makes the s sound is a bit confusing, so we're slowing down, using the tiles, etc until he gets it. We also do 5 dictation phrases/day (4 days/week), so we get through 2 sets of those in one week.