Shannon in TN Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Hi all, I'm struggling with teaching my dd SOTW3. She's a strong reader, does well with comprehension of other reading subjects and is normally reading several grades ahead (she's in 4th), but for whatever reason, she is.not.getting.it with SOTW3. When we go over the review questions, she misses more than half of them more often than not. She says she can't remember, or she tells me something totally off topic (like it's something that she read later in the chapter). Am I the only one struggling like this? It's so frustrating to be going through the questions and having so few of them even remotely answered correctly. Even using the test book to evaluate her chapters doesn't work - she's missing enough to be given a failing grade, if that's how I were grading them. Does anyone have any suggestions for how to get past this and help her understand and remember what she needs to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssavings Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Maybe if you got the audio cds and let her listen to the chapters a few times before reading it, it would help her retention? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon in TN Posted February 10, 2012 Author Share Posted February 10, 2012 Maybe if you got the audio cds and let her listen to the chapters a few times before reading it, it would help her retention? Honestly, I haven't considered that. It's worth a try, but I'd have to find them used, so that could take some time. Any other suggestions in the meantime? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ByGrace3 Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 We are doing SOTW 1 with a first grader, so not sure if this will help at all, but . . . We were/are having the same problems. I have realized that dd is NOT a detail person. The details in the questions of SOTW and WWE were driving her crazy. She really hated history because of it. I knew I had to do something, I hated seeing her cry and get so stressed out over something that was supposed to be "fun" and helping her develop a love of learning :glare: For the last few weeks I have skipped the comprehension questions, allowed her simply to narrate. She loves to tell major details of the "story" but often misses most of the info the AG asks for. I am ok with it, she is getting the big picture and enjoying it sooo much more. Now I am adding some of the questions back in but without the stress or expectations I had before, and now I simply use the questions as points for me to highlight for her after she narrates (and missed that info!) ;) This is working for now. I do plan to get the audio for next year so she can hear it while she reads along. I am hoping that helps some as well. ETA: reading the questions before we read has helped some. As well as me being familiar with them to help highlight those points as we go along. Not a long term fix, but is helping for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAS in LA Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 In lieu of cds, you could read them out loud to her. I like the questions-first idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunshineMom Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I would encourage reading from the chapter suggested book lists rather than just SOTW chapters (listen together to the CDs). I use each SOTW chapter as a background introduction to history. We also watch videos, visit local history reenactment events, and have fun making the SOTW craft projects. I have also sewn many period costumes (mommy fun). I don't look for mastery (tests) but rather encourage a genuine interest in the story of history. This approach is working for my kids are grabbing for biographies and wacky type history fact books when we visit the library. Additionally, when my kids make history connections in other readings, that's when I know they are retaining. History is fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon in TN Posted February 10, 2012 Author Share Posted February 10, 2012 Thank you, everyone, for the suggestions and encouragement. We're done with SOTW for this week, so I'll regroup over the weekend and start implementing ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camdunson Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I ordered the PDF files of the tests for each SOTW book. DS fills out the test "open book style" as he reads the chapter--that way I know he's read it and got the main ideas. It also gives me a basis for grading. With my younger son, I find that he takes awhile to "warm up" with each book--to get accustomed to the language of the book and then his comprehension picks up after a few days... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeeBeaks Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 The SOTW gets harder 1-4 ... is SOTW 3 her first exposure to SOTW? I'm just wondering if it is a new style to her and is throwing her. I agree with audio CDs. We do a listen and read simultaneously also. We have the test book and do it as review (open book style). Lastly, instead of test, we do narration pages some weeks (written with a picture drawn for the notebook). My DS I do this with is 4th grade currently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I had this last year with SOTW 2 with both a 5th and 1st grader. It seems to be a common complaint I have seen quite a few times on here. I gave them copies what I was reading so they could follow along, did the questions, and used the test as review. I also made memory cards for the questions and they review these several times per week. My older DD does much better with lecture style stuff and copying notes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 with SOTW3 I still read it to my kid. If there was a big issue, like missing half, I read the section again in total and then reasked the questions. If there was still a problem I would ask the question and then give him the book and show him a particular paragraph to read out loud to me. Then I would ask the question again. I rarely had to do that though. Generally, re-reading the section was sufficient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I've noticed my kids have better comprehension with fictional selections. SOTW, and nonfiction WWE selections are much more challenging for them, to the point of frustration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2_girls_mommy Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I do almost identical to RedSquirrel. I read it aloud. I stop and focus on things that are important that I know will be on the questions or is of importance like a new vocabulary word. Sometimes I write new words on the small whiteboard as we come across them. Then when we go over the questions, I give dd9 the book. She is allowed to go back and find the answer when needed. And I also use it for discussion. If they don't get every detail, I don't worry about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama Anna Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Dd8 is in SOTW3. This the first year that she is reading the text on her own, most times. She often misses questions from the AG, at which point I pull out the book, find the paragraph, and read it aloud. She then gets it. I've chosen to read some of the more complicated chapters (like the ones on the American Constitution, etc.) aloud - then she gets it right away. One difference between SOTW1 &2 and SOTW3 is the increased complexity - that's why there are so many "Guided Narrations." It really is harder. I second (third?) the idea of previewing the questions before reading the chapter. Like we learned in Principles of Teaching: "Tell them what they'll learn, teach them, tell them what they learned, and then ask them what they learned." Or something. The more times they're exposed to the information, the more of it they'll take away. HTH! Mama Anna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon in TN Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 The SOTW gets harder 1-4 ... is SOTW 3 her first exposure to SOTW? I'm just wondering if it is a new style to her and is throwing her. I agree with audio CDs. We do a listen and read simultaneously also. We have the test book and do it as review (open book style). Lastly, instead of test, we do narration pages some weeks (written with a picture drawn for the notebook). My DS I do this with is 4th grade currently. Nope, we started with SOTW1 and never had any trouble. In fact, she used to give me too much information when I would go through the discussion questions. Sure, she'd miss unusual or foreign names, but she almost always got the basics and then some. It seems to me that even though she's taking her "normal" time to read, she's only skimming the surface of what's going on and not taking it all in. Although, now that I think about it, the first few chapters we did earlier in the year were much better and her narrative paragraphs were well done. Maybe she's just going through a slump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon in TN Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 Thanks so much for all the suggestions! I'll be implementing a few of them (including reading the questions ahead of time for her to be on the look-out, and doing better about getting the extra reading books) over the next few weeks to see if I can help her out of the slump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrissySC Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Hi all, I'm struggling with teaching my dd SOTW3. She's a strong reader, does well with comprehension of other reading subjects and is normally reading several grades ahead (she's in 4th), but for whatever reason, she is.not.getting.it with SOTW3. When we go over the review questions, she misses more than half of them more often than not. She says she can't remember, or she tells me something totally off topic (like it's something that she read later in the chapter). Am I the only one struggling like this? It's so frustrating to be going through the questions and having so few of them even remotely answered correctly. Even using the test book to evaluate her chapters doesn't work - she's missing enough to be given a failing grade, if that's how I were grading them. Does anyone have any suggestions for how to get past this and help her understand and remember what she needs to? We had a difficult time with SOTW 4 in the fourth grade. I imagine that it is similar to my own plight. I struggled with this. "I don't know." "Where was that at?" I had her keep going back to read. I listed the discussion questions on an index card (printed them), and had her refer to them while she read. In other subject areas, I required that she provide a list of simple facts from her reading. I trained the brain to find the content. You could try something similar or find your own way to train her to find the information. There are some great skills workbooks for inference, comprehension, etc. I found them at Currclick.com, and I downloaded the PDF, which I printed as I found the need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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