Creek Edge Task Card users: how's it going?

[Halcyon]

I know there was a lot of hubbub about these when they were first mentioned on these boards, and quite a few people bought them. Can I ask how it's going? Are you enjoying them? We are considering the Art History cards for next year.

 

:bigear:

[Katiebug_1976]

:lurk5: I'm curious, too.

[TCB]

I am using the Earth Science set for dd11. She really, really likes them and so do I. She is writing a lot and even she feels that she is much less stressed out about writing because of getting so much practice. She is really interested in this area of science - didn't know she was going to be - so I don't know if this is why she likes them so much or if the Task Cards are sparking her interest. I change the assignments a little, once and a while, but they really offer quite a good variety of things to do. Right now she is working on a poster of a coral reef and really putting good effort into it. I have not been doing the cards in the prescribed order - I think the fact that they are so flexible is one of their greatest selling points for me- structured yet flexible.

[mama25angels]

bump, because i'd love to hear from anyone else using these.

[Joyofsixreboot]

Still interested in these for my 5th grader so :bigear:

[Halcyon]

Thanks for the feedback! Bumping for more responses.

[leeannpal]

Has anyone tried making something similar yourself? For some subjects, it seems like it wouldn't be too difficult. I really like the concept. I am planning on using the life science ones with DD next year, but I am a history, English and geography teacher, and I think I could make my own. Of course, it might turn out to be more difficult than it seems.

[Another Lynn]

I have the American History set, but haven't implemented them yet.

 

I'm undecided on whether to

 

1)use the card to help me come up with an assignment and then assign it, or

 

2)to hand them the card and say choose one (or two, or whatever)

 

3)to hand them the card with 2 or 3 things marked for them to do

 

or other variations :)

[mama25angels]

are we allowed to photocopy the card for our own personal use? Or would we have to buy two sets to use with two different students? Just asking, for just in case, lol.

[Chava_Raizel]

Has anyone tried making something similar yourself? For some subjects, it seems like it wouldn't be too difficult. I really like the concept. I am planning on using the life science ones with DD next year, but I am a history, English and geography teacher, and I think I could make my own. Of course, it might turn out to be more difficult than it seems.

 

I made my own. I looked over the Creek Edge Press cards and just couldn't justify buying them. They were basically just a bunch of assignments based on readings in children's encyclopedias.

 

I chose the topics we'd be studying and jotted down a few assignments that could go with each topic.

 

For example, for history this week, we're studying Henry II. Here's what I've got on our task card:

 

 

Week 15 Henry of Anjou

 

◊ Encyclopedia research – Henry of Anjou or Henry II

◊ Further reading – Thomas a Becket, Eleanor of Aquitaine

◊ Mapwork – Shade in the area that Henry II ruled. Label the following:

England Gascony

Canterbury Aquitaine

Normandy Paris

Brittany Framce

◊ Write a brief summary about – Henry II, Thomas a Becket, and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

◊ Retell the story of Henry II and Thomas a Becket in your own words. Illustrate at least one scene.

◊ Create a family tree beginning with William the Conqueror and ending with Richard the Lionheart and King John of England.

◊ Media – Watch Becket and/or The Lion in Winter.

◊ Add significant people and events to your timeline.

 

 

My 7th grader can just look over the card and go through the assignments. My 4th graders need a bit more guidance. They might only do a few of the assignments.

 

I own History Odyssey and Story of the World, so I pull some of the activities from those two resources. Some of them I just came up with on my own. It took me a few weeks to make a set of history and science cards, so it's not a quick project, but definitely doable.

[leeannpal]

I made my own. I looked over the Creek Edge Press cards and just couldn't justify buying them. They were basically just a bunch of assignments based on readings in children's encyclopedias.

 

I chose the topics we'd be studying and jotted down a few assignments that could go with each topic.

 

For example, for history this week, we're studying Henry II. Here's what I've got on our task card:

 

 

Week 15 Henry of Anjou

 

◊ Encyclopedia research – Henry of Anjou or Henry II

◊ Further reading – Thomas a Becket, Eleanor of Aquitaine

◊ Mapwork – Shade in the area that Henry II ruled. Label the following:

England Gascony

Canterbury Aquitaine

Normandy Paris

Brittany Framce

◊ Write a brief summary about – Henry II, Thomas a Becket, and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

◊ Retell the story of Henry II and Thomas a Becket in your own words. Illustrate at least one scene.

◊ Create a family tree beginning with William the Conqueror and ending with Richard the Lionheart and King John of England.

◊ Media – Watch Becket and/or The Lion in Winter.

◊ Add significant people and events to your timeline.

 

 

My 7th grader can just look over the card and go through the assignments. My 4th graders need a bit more guidance. They might only do a few of the assignments.

 

I own History Odyssey and Story of the World, so I pull some of the activities from those two resources. Some of them I just came up with on my own. It took me a few weeks to make a set of history and science cards, so it's not a quick project, but definitely doable.

 

Sounds great! I did order the Life Science ones and am looking forward to reviewing them up close. You've done a great job with history!

[mama25angels]

I made my own. I looked over the Creek Edge Press cards and just couldn't justify buying them. They were basically just a bunch of assignments based on readings in children's encyclopedias.

 

I chose the topics we'd be studying and jotted down a few assignments that could go with each topic.

 

For example, for history this week, we're studying Henry II. Here's what I've got on our task card:

 

 

Week 15 Henry of Anjou

 

◊ Encyclopedia research – Henry of Anjou or Henry II

◊ Further reading – Thomas a Becket, Eleanor of Aquitaine

◊ Mapwork – Shade in the area that Henry II ruled. Label the following:

England Gascony

Canterbury Aquitaine

Normandy Paris

Brittany Framce

◊ Write a brief summary about – Henry II, Thomas a Becket, and Eleanor of Aquitaine.

◊ Retell the story of Henry II and Thomas a Becket in your own words. Illustrate at least one scene.

◊ Create a family tree beginning with William the Conqueror and ending with Richard the Lionheart and King John of England.

◊ Media – Watch Becket and/or The Lion in Winter.

◊ Add significant people and events to your timeline.

 

 

My 7th grader can just look over the card and go through the assignments. My 4th graders need a bit more guidance. They might only do a few of the assignments.

 

I own History Odyssey and Story of the World, so I pull some of the activities from those two resources. Some of them I just came up with on my own. It took me a few weeks to make a set of history and science cards, so it's not a quick project, but definitely doable.

 

 

 

That is awesome!!!

[threeturn]

We got the geography set and have not used them.

 

My thoughts... I wouldn't even think of doing them with a non-reader/non-speller. It would require a ton of my time to help them even pick the right books and such to look at, then I would have to read to them, help them do every last bit of writing (from summeries to labeling posters).

 

:iagree:

 

Lots of work for mom with non-readers and writers.

 

And I think they are totally doable on your own -- if you want to spend the time. Sometimes my time is worth much more than the money I would spend on the cards. That said, I think Chava_Raizel did a fantastic job on her version. What makes these great is that they are so open-ended and flexible. You could even flip it over and jot down another task if there was something you wanted them to do that was not on there.

 

are we allowed to photocopy the card for our own personal use? Or would we have to buy two sets to use with two different students? Just asking, for just in case, lol.

 

I don't think you would need an extra copy for more than one student. After glancing at the card and getting a task or two for the day the student should be able to pass it to the next person so they can share. Or you can stagger subjects so one is working on history while the other is working on science or something.

[Chava_Raizel]

That is awesome!!!

 

Thanks! I'm contemplating doing some for geography and maybe art. I haven't decided yet. I definitely like the flexibility of being able to just pull out a card and hand it to the kids. It takes some time putting them together, but then it frees up some time for me during the school year since much of the work can be done independently.

[Halcyon]

Thanks! I'm contemplating doing some for geography and maybe art. I haven't decided yet. I definitely like the flexibility of being able to just pull out a card and hand it to the kids. It takes some time putting them together, but then it frees up some time for me during the school year since much of the work can be done independently.

 

I agree! your cards look great....

 

has anyone used the art history ones? I think i might get them, as art history is not getting done now.

[Heart_Mom]

Hi!

 

I just learned of these cards a few days ago, and I'm VERY interested in them! I'm wondering if anyone has updates on how these are going with your family now that you've been using them for a while longer.

 

With a new baby coming in September, and also a 10 year old who is getting good better and being independent, I'm thinking these could be a boon to my family!

 

So ... any updates?

 

:bigear:

[Lily_Grace]

Okay, we're on our second week of using the Medieval World history cards with a 7th grader. We used HO for ancients, so some of what we're doing corresponds with that.

 

The pros:

He can choose the order of work and what to work with.

 

The cons:

Some of the materials can be hard to find (literature about the Byzantine empire, for example)

 

We have the Oxford University press Medieval & Modern World book set, Kingfisher history encyclopedia, and our library just taught him how to search their database for news articles pertaining to what he is researching. "Encyclopedia research" is done first by outlining, "further reading" is added to that, and then a summary is produced.

We have modified some of the assignments to be computer-only: collages, a summary, and other projects will be done each week on the computer and placed in a file for that week. We're trying to balance learning how to find good sources online with good sources in the books.

 

Literature has been tricky. I gave up trying to find a book for each card and we skip those. Instead, I amassed a list of 30 books for him to read, one each week, that progress through history and (most of the time) correspond to what he is learning that week or the next. I don't require summaries on them but we do talk about what's happening next. I will admit that I've scoured book lists from Sonlight, Pandia Press, and SOTW to help find the books I wanted.

 

Overall we've been very happy. There's enough variety in the cards to keep him interested and they're broken down to 2 tasks per day. We can make them as difficult or as easy as we want. I like how we integrate the lit reading better than HO did, which felt more of throwing a book in there and calling it good. Some of the lessons were awkward and didn't go with the flow.

[Heart_Mom]

Okay, we're on our second week of using the Medieval World history cards with a 7th grader. We used HO for ancients, so some of what we're doing corresponds with that.

 

The pros:

He can choose the order of work and what to work with.

 

The cons:

Some of the materials can be hard to find (literature about the Byzantine empire, for example)

 

We have the Oxford University press Medieval & Modern World book set, Kingfisher history encyclopedia, and our library just taught him how to search their database for news articles pertaining to what he is researching. "Encyclopedia research" is done first by outlining, "further reading" is added to that, and then a summary is produced.

We have modified some of the assignments to be computer-only: collages, a summary, and other projects will be done each week on the computer and placed in a file for that week. We're trying to balance learning how to find good sources online with good sources in the books.

 

Literature has been tricky. I gave up trying to find a book for each card and we skip those. Instead, I amassed a list of 30 books for him to read, one each week, that progress through history and (most of the time) correspond to what he is learning that week or the next. I don't require summaries on them but we do talk about what's happening next. I will admit that I've scoured book lists from Sonlight, Pandia Press, and SOTW to help find the books I wanted.

 

Overall we've been very happy. There's enough variety in the cards to keep him interested and they're broken down to 2 tasks per day. We can make them as difficult or as easy as we want. I like how we integrate the lit reading better than HO did, which felt more of throwing a book in there and calling it good. Some of the lessons were awkward and didn't go with the flow.

 

Thank you for letting us know how it's going with your child! :)

 

By the way, what's HO?

 

Thanks!

[Lily_Grace]

HO is History Odyssey. I really liked how it progressed over time with research and notetaking expectations, but the add-in literature never felt like part of the program. We still use the timelines from them because they are broken down so wonderfully.

[rieshy]

We've been doing the earth science cards since the beginning of the school year. My 4th and 7th grader have been using them. I have also used them to help choose the weekly science book selections from the library that I read aloud to my 5 and 4 yo.

 

We have not been using encyclopedias at all, though they sometimes research on the Internet.

 

I really, really like them. One less thing for me to plan. My kids like the independence. They pick 4 tasks from each card and must complete them each week, plus they must read one book (on their level) on the subject of the card each week.

 

Our library is not great so the flexibility the cards offered was really important. On weeks we can't get to the library our home library has been sufficient.

 

Could I make the cards myself? Yes, with time. Time is exactly what I don't have. I felt like the cards were worth the expense- and very systematic.

 

I will order another science pack for next year for my rising 5th and 1st grader. Unfortunately the 8th grader will be moving on to general science. I don't expect my 1st grader to do it alone. -But I can't imagine a single science curriculum that I would have my 1st grader do by himself.

Edited March 2, 2012 by rieshy

[Heart_Mom]

HO is History Odyssey. I really liked how it progressed over time with research and notetaking expectations, but the add-in literature never felt like part of the program. We still use the timelines from them because they are broken down so wonderfully.

 

Thanks!:001_smile:

[Halcyon]

Bumping again....interested particularly in hearing about the Art and Artists and the Geography cards, as we are considering them for next year. Thanks.

Edited May 3, 2012 by Halcyon

[Halcyon]

Just bumping this thread. I received the Life Science cards today from another WTM-er and i like them. They are nice and open-ended, perfect for my younger. I think they would work for up to 3rd grade or so. I think i will be getting the art history ones next!

[Halcyon]

Bumping for art history feedback