Q for All About Spelling 3 and/or 4 users

[mamamin]

We are about to finish AAS level 2, and I have always purchased the manual AND the student packet, but I am wondering if it's really necessary for the student packet as well? we mainly just use the whiteboard anyway and rarely use the tiles. I do use the cards for review, but have no problem making up my own. Will I be missing out on anything if I just buy the manuals from here on out, or is there something in the student packet that I really need?

[silver]

Level 3 has a silent e book in the student pack that my son really likes using. And there is also the word banks sheet. You could probably make your own silent e book and skip the word bank. There's a sheet for recording homophones, which would be easy to make. I forget offhand what else is included, but I think the AAS website does list it out.

[Farrar]

It comes with extra tiles too.  And occasionally there are things where it tells you to refer to a list and the list is a random piece of paper in the student packet.  Honestly, that's the part that annoys me most.  It would be massively better to include that in the teacher manual IMO.

 

I had the same question...  And I ended up getting the packet for 3 and 4 and was no sorry about getting it for 3.  The cards have turned out to be needed resources for us and making them would have been a PITA.  Ds who finished 4 didn't touch the student packet once though.  Now my bad speller is starting 4.  I'll use the cards, so it won't be a waste, but...  I decided not to get it for 5, at least for now.  If it tells us to refer to a random list, we'll just go without.

[MerryAtHope]

If you look at the link for the "Student Packet Only" within each level, you can see the list of items included. Just click on one of the levels on the left side & then scroll down to the bottom to the individual items to see that level's packet list. That might help you decide if you want to get the next packet or want to try it without.

 

Levels 3, 5, and 6 have consumable booklets, and 7 has several consumable items plus a system of Writing Station prompts that is different from the WS in earlier levels (my son just wanted to do what he'd always done, but my dd is LOVING these and begs to do extra ones--the prompts are mix and match and you can come up with all kinds of different combinations).

 

Most levels have word banks. (We found those more and more necessary as we went up in level, because it builds up visual memory. Kids who don't struggle might not need them, but they were very needed here. Also useful for reading practice for kids who tend to guess from context when they read--reading lists of unrelated words that they have to decode is good practice for this type of student. And the higher we got in the levels, the more I found words that they didn't know, despite always testing sky high on vocabulary.)

 

Level 3 has suffix tiles, L 4 has prefix tiles, The spelling strategies and syllable division rules charts are added to as you go, some levels have cut-apart word-lists for practice with alphabetizing, L 6 and 7 have advanced phonograms, L7 has Greek and Latin roots tiles (which were handy for my students, even though we hadn't used the tiles in a couple of years)...

 

Some people do make do with just the manual, but you are missing out on quite a few materials as you move up in the levels, that reinforce the additional strategies and concepts that are taught. We found them essential here--may just depend on your students and their needs. 

 

HTH some! Merry :-)

[mom2att]

Most levels have word banks. (We found those more and more necessary as we went up in level, because it builds up visual memory. Kids who don't struggle might not need them, but they were very needed here. Also useful for reading practice for kids who tend to guess from context when they read--reading lists of unrelated words that they have to decode is good practice for this type of student. And the higher we got in the levels, the more I found words that they didn't know, despite always testing sky high on vocabulary.)

This.  My son is just finishing up level 6, and while we don't use the cards or tiles anymore, we use the word lists all the time.  Both visual memory and vocabulary are skills that are difficult for him, so these lists have been invaluable in building up both.

 

[Farrar]

Yes, the word bank is the one thing I'm sorry I don't have for my ds who is doing level 5.  But honestly, I'm not going to pay $15 for a single sheet of paper if I don't think I need the other bits.  I plan to just dig around and make it myself, which is a lot more doable than making all those cards if you're really using them.  I really do like AAS a lot, but there have a been a few things like this that just make me crazy.  Why can't the word bank and the lists of rules be in the manual or at least also in the manual so you know what "number 3" means?  Why do the tiles have to be thin plastic with magnets that don't cover their whole back so they tip and get knocked off the board all the time?  I get that it's tied to money (trying to make you buy the student packet, because it's cheap) but both are just annoying.

 

Anyway, to me it boils down to if you're using the tiles and cards, yes for the student packet, if you're not, all the other bits and pieces are things you can make yourself.  I mean, sure, it would be nice to have the little Silent E book, but you could also just fold a few pieces of paper in half and staple and write "SILENT E BOOK" on the cover, because it's not much more than that.

[MerryAtHope]

Yes, the word bank is the one thing I'm sorry I don't have for my ds who is doing level 5.  But honestly, I'm not going to pay $15 for a single sheet of paper if I don't think I need the other bits.  I plan to just dig around and make it myself, which is a lot more doable than making all those cards if you're really using them.  I really do like AAS a lot, but there have a been a few things like this that just make me crazy.  Why can't the word bank and the lists of rules be in the manual or at least also in the manual so you know what "number 3" means?  Why do the tiles have to be thin plastic with magnets that don't cover their whole back so they tip and get knocked off the board all the time?  I get that it's tied to money (trying to make you buy the student packet, because it's cheap) but both are just annoying.

 

Anyway, to me it boils down to if you're using the tiles and cards, yes for the student packet, if you're not, all the other bits and pieces are things you can make yourself.  I mean, sure, it would be nice to have the little Silent E book, but you could also just fold a few pieces of paper in half and staple and write "SILENT E BOOK" on the cover, because it's not much more than that.

 

You have some good suggestions, you should send them in to AAS!

 

I use all the handouts as page-markers, and it's easier for me than flipping to find a page, but I can see how it would be handy to have it both ways, especially for those who prefer it the other way.

 

My tiles never did get knocked down, and when I tried covering the whole back, they were too hard to move--the "tipping" nature you described is actually how we easily got them on and off. But I didn't have little ones or pets etc... to deal with when we started.

 

Also, AAS will often send out a handout or a PDF file of a few individual items for free--if you want a L5 word bank, email support@allaboutlearningpress.com. Then you won't have to make one. You can also get the booklets for $2.50 if you call them, if you don't want a whole packet.  Just some options!

Merry :-)