mathnerd Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 My son who is 6 is advanced in LA. He loves words and meanings and spellings and so do I. So, we have been doing vocabulary informally for a while now. I pick a word of the day and he looks it up on his dictionary and each of us comes up with sentences that illustrate the usage. We make it a fun game. And we read a lot all the time - above grade level books - fiction and non-fiction. We also listen to good literature on audio books on car trips. My child is very motivated and loves to learn words. How do I help him? Is there a curriculum or just reading more and more is enough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 I really like Michael Clay Thompson's Caesar's English. However, I would not personally do it before 2nd even with a PG kid. Both my school-aged kids started it around 7 1/2. DD did it spring semester of 2nd and fall semester of 3rd. DS just started it this week (I wasn't sure he was ready yet but he requested it and the first lesson at least went well). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathnerd Posted June 25, 2013 Author Share Posted June 25, 2013 Thanks, Crimson Wife. I have been looking into MCT curriculum for the next few years. I will definitely get Caesar's English when the time is right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Word a day calendars are fun, the one we get not only tell us the word meaning but the history(if any) for the word. Look on the Wordly WIse site, they have their word list available for each grade. I found the best way to increase their vocabulary is by using and exposure...as you are doing. Having books above their level read to them. Using words in sentences. Don't forget science words too...these make great vocabulary builders. My dd has a very extensive vocabulary thanks to her older brothers. They found great pleasure in teaching her words from their high school vocabulary lists (when she was just 3 or 4) and then having her use them on me. So don't be afraid to look to list for older students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerileanne99 Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Ashleyfs, This is us as well:) We started with a word of the day, and made it a game for the whole family to see who could use the word the most times (correctly!) in a day, recorded in a tally sheet by my kiddo. Whilst she is 3.5 she is very advanced in language. We also allow her to underline new vocabulary words in her books with a pencil, which is fantastic as she will not just glide over words she doesn't understand, I am able to see what she needs to work on, and there is instant feedback for comprehension. After we introduced her to literary terms and concepts informally, she really began asking for more. Obviously there are fantastic language arts programs out there, but I am not willing to go there until her writing catches up a bit...so, I have found a few things that work well. Since you specifically asked about vocabulary, here are our favorites: 1) Marie's Words- this is our absolute favorite because it is right-brain based, with accompanying pictures to enhance memorization. They are a set of business-sized cards that are designed for SAT prep, but don't let that phase you. The SAT uses them for a reason:) http://www.marieswords.com/buy.html Amazon usually has them but I just saw they are out of stock there. Still, there are a lot of reviews there. We play games with these after we have picked a new one, usually still 1-2 per day. We might arrange them in a grid and make it a challenge: find the word that is a synonym for...or I am thinking of a word that is an antonym for... She likes to play with these cards, look at the pictures, drop them one by one into her toy mailbox, etc. I much prefer them to a workbook or the fun Vocabulary Cartoons as I am wantin to stay away from a workbook format and encourage her love of words rather than stifle it:) 2) we also have a handful of these vocabulary flip books, as well as one by the same company for similes/methaphors, and one for common idioms. They stay on the table so she can flip through them. If you do get these, I would not purchase any lower than the 2nd/3rd grade levels if he is advanced and reading. I discovered this by accident! http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1602140057/ref=redir_mdp_mobile?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_details_o01_s00_i00 Also, if you have an IPad, both Marie's words and WordlyWise have apps that are useful...fun, but we find the hands on works best...and then she gets a huge thrill from finding our words or new words as we do our reading! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyforlatin Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 Each time I buy a book to start, I basically drop it within a couple of lessons. It's just very boring (for me) and I'm not actually sure if it's an efficient way of learning new words. However, CE is great, and I think it's only good now since DD is older (almost 8). I tried it once when she was 5 and then 6, but I thought it wasn't worth spending too much time on it with a younger child. There are a lot of references to classics and I wanted her to be exposed to some of these books first (e.g. Treasure Island, Wind in the Willows). I don't like having to go through the same book twice with the same kid, but that's actually more of a flaw in my personality. She has been studying Latin for several years and Greek for almost two years, so she is usually able to figure out meanings based on those languages and within context of what she is reading or listening to on audio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incognito Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 My dad told me he used to read the dictionary when he was a kid, so I tried that too. It's quite fun, and you learn all sorts of interesting words. Admittedly, I didn't make it to Z, but I'd highlight my dictionary when I knew the words, I'd come back to them another day when I didn't... Cheap, easy fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radiobrain Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 Other than MCT, Tove Jansson's Moomintroll books have wonderfully rich vocabulary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staceyshoe Posted June 29, 2013 Share Posted June 29, 2013 My kiddo is a science-type, but he developed a strong fascination for word roots by playing Rummy Roots. He often browses the dictionary for "fun" to learn more about word origins, and he regularly chooses Rummy Roots as a favorite game to play. MCT has a book prior to Caesar's English called Building Language which ds completed at age 6. He *loved* it, but we are waiting a little longer before starting Caesar's English because there is quite a gap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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