Dmmetler Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 My 7 yr old is a born copy-editor. Or linguist. Or something... This is a child who LOVES grammar, loves spelling, reads books about Grammar and spelling and word derivations for fun, and is absolutely ecstatic when she finds a spelling or grammar mistake in a book because she can correct it. She saw that Michael Clay Thompson was going to be at the homeschool convention here, and reacted the same way the girls on her cheer team do to the mention of Justin Bieber.:tongue_smilie: (I haven't had the heart to tell her that parents who go to homeschool conventions generally don't want 7 yr olds in the sessions, clutching copies of Grammar Island to be autographed by their idol). Poor kid spent a very frustrating park day yesterday,trying to convince other kids to join her "Grammar lovers club". To say the least, she didn't get many takers. Especially not since most of the families are pretty relaxed in their homeschooling, so grammar probably isn't being formally taught. Does anyone have any suggestions for finding her an outlet where she can share her love with others who are equally enthusiastic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ester Maria Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Have her read in foreign languages the stuff she would normally be reading in English. If possible, connect with people who speak those languages. Early bilingualism is one of the best gifts you can give to a child, especially one that shows an interest in languages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 It's not grammar, but my DD enjoys being part of a Word Masters Challenge team. She also does spelling bees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted February 1, 2012 Author Share Posted February 1, 2012 Have her read in foreign languages the stuff she would normally be reading in English. If possible, connect with people who speak those languages. Early bilingualism is one of the best gifts you can give to a child, especially one that shows an interest in languages. We already do that in Spanish-and, in fact, are doing a Spanish literature and Grammar curriculum designed for kids her age who are native speakers, plus lots of books in Spanish. She also LOVES Latin, where we combine grammar-focused LfC with Cambridge, and I'm looking at Athenaze for next year for Greek (she's doing Hey, Andrew, which she says is "OK, but too easy") right now. She'd LOVE to do more languages, but honestly, I'm past the point I can handle already (she's doing Hey, Andrew mostly independently at this point) I think what she wants/needs most, though, is someone who is willing to sit with her and discuss the difference between verb tenses in multiple languages-this is the child who peppered the poor mom who did a mini-unit on Mandarin and Chinese culture with questions about plurals, subject/verb agreement, tenses, and so on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ester Maria Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 We already do that in Spanish-and, in fact, are doing a Spanish literature and Grammar curriculum designed for kids her age who are native speakers, plus lots of books in Spanish. She also LOVES Latin, where we combine grammar-focused LfC with Cambridge, and I'm looking at Athenaze for next year for Greek (she's doing Hey, Andrew, which she says is "OK, but too easy") right now. She'd LOVE to do more languages, but honestly, I'm past the point I can handle already (she's doing Hey, Andrew mostly independently at this point) I think what she wants/needs most, though, is someone who is willing to sit with her and discuss the difference between verb tenses in multiple languages-this is the child who peppered the poor mom who did a mini-unit on Mandarin and Chinese culture with questions about plurals, subject/verb agreement, tenses, and so on. My ideal child. :drool5: Not sure what else I could possibly recommend next to what you are already doing, but she sounds awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted February 1, 2012 Author Share Posted February 1, 2012 It's not grammar, but my DD enjoys being part of a Word Masters Challenge team. She also does spelling bees. She'd LOVE that-she's officially only 1st grade age, though, so it will depend on how flexible they are on cut-off dates whether she'd be eligible to participate next year. She does Spelling bees and has done well in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Not exactly the same thing, but I loved reading the appendices of the Lord of the Rings at that age and taught myself to write with Tolkien's various alphabets from them. That road eventually led to me going into Linguistics in college. I met a few other like-minded nerds in my major who had started the same way and gotten into making conlangs (constructed languages) as a hobby. According to these people, there is an online community of folks who do this. Good luck to you in finding grammar friends for her. I never met any linguistics friends outside my university major. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted February 1, 2012 Author Share Posted February 1, 2012 My ideal child. :drool5:Not sure what else I could possibly recommend next to what you are already doing, but she sounds awesome. I wish we were closer (like in the same COUNTRY)-I'd gladly send her to you :). I have another e-friend who teaches college Spanish who would LOVE to adopt my DD, but she lives across about 3/4 of the USA. The more time I spend around DD and trying to meet her needs, the more I recognize that I never really was taught, nor understood grammar. I'm good at picking what looks and sounds correct, which was enough to get me through school without problems, but DD processes it on a much deeper level, and makes connections between languages that I never did. Which is kind of embarrassing, given that she's barely 7 and I'm 40! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald Stoker Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 (edited) nm Edited November 21, 2012 by Honoria Glossop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyforlatin Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 (edited) If we lived in the same state, DD would join your daughter's club. Alas, we're in CA. What about starting French and using Breaking the Barrier? And then using a vintage French reader from google.com? DD is also great with grammar and rather than studying English in-depth, I added a couple of more languages so that she sees how Latin has spawned a couple of modern languages. ETA: I re-read your previous post and it sounds like you are not ready to add another language. Not to convince you, but BtB can be done independently if your DD has an interest in French or expanding the study of grammar. The audio CDs are well-done and the exercises won't be difficult for her as she is already learning Latin/Greek/Spanish, but there are a few instances where she would need a native speaker. We have a tutor and group class, but I was also considering using Skype. Edited February 3, 2012 by crazyforlatin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
applesing Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 She saw that Michael Clay Thompson was going to be at the homeschool convention here, and reacted the same way the girls on her cheer team do to the mention of Justin Bieber.:tongue_smilie: (I haven't had the heart to tell her that parents who go to homeschool conventions generally don't want 7 yr olds in the sessions, clutching copies of Grammar Island to be autographed by their idol). My daughters feel the same way about MCT! In fact, so do I. :001_wub: I met him last year at the Memphis convention, and he seemed like such a kind man. He even autographed a book for me. You should definitely take her to meet him! She would never forget it. Frankly, I think she would really enjoy attending his presentations! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kubiac Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 She might like Jack Umstatter's books: http://www.amazon.com/Jack-Umstatter/e/B001JSAMTQ/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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