Has anyone thrown out/modified the dictation portion of WWE?

[Forget-Me-Not]

It's seriously turning me into Angry Mom. My 5th grader is doing WWE4. I feel like he's getting the hang of summarizing, but the dictation selections, IMO, are ridiculous. Long, complex sentences with difficult words. It makes me stabby when I have to help him spell 8-10 words in a selection. He loses his place in the sentence and we have to repeat it AGAIN.

 

Half the time I treat them as copy work instead. I know the whole idea is to learn to hold sentences in his head for his own writing--which he does well on his own compositions. And maybe to learn to listen carefully and take careful notes, but that is rarely going to require verbatim repetition.

 

Thoughts?

[nansk]

Don't worry, you are not alone. There have been many threads about WWE4 along this theme. I can't locate the exact recent thread now, but if you search, you'll find it.

 

Some people skip WWE4 entirely. I would either modify the WWE dictation style and dictate just 1-2 short sentences at a time, or I would dictate something else (preferably non-fiction) from the history or science text or from National Geographic or some such non-fiction source.

[Chrysalis Academy]

We didn't do WWE4.  We did WWE3 for the first part of 4th grade, then started WWS the last 10 weeks.  I think narration and dictation are great - critical skills - but if your kid doesn't need 4 years to learn them, by all means don't torture them!  find something different!  I really like the looks of CAP's new Writing and Rhetoric program, and people really seem to be digging it.

[5LittleMonkeys]

the whole idea is to learn to hold sentences in his head for his own writing--which he does well on his own compositions. And maybe to learn to listen carefully and take careful notes, but that is rarely going to require verbatim repetition.

 

Thoughts?

 

This.

 

Don't loose sleep over it. Move on. :)

 

I used them as paraphrasing exercises, which I think will serve my dc better anyway.

[TarynB]

Yes, we modified the dictation in WWE4.  Even SWB herself didn't do them exactly as instructed in the book.  Check out her video series on YouTube called Dictation with Dan.  She keeps it real - gives shorter phrases, repeats more, offers more help & support.  Here's a link to the first one:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9fXrQVOOo8

 

BTW, I'd encourage you to watch all of SWB's YouTube videos.  Very inspiring and informative!

[hollyhock]

Are you using the workbook? The length of dictation passages in the workbooks is far longer than what the instructor text recommends. The longest they are supposed to get by the end of level 4 is 25-30 words. So if he can do that, or he's close to it, then you're good. I personally don't require longer than 25 words for my sons.

[redsquirrel]

We did it in chunks. It isn't to help them be able to paraphrase or regurgitate quotes. It is supposed to help them hold ideas in their head long enough to get it down on paper. That is a skill that some students seriously struggle with.

 

There is a video on youtube on the PHP channel where SWB demonstrates doing a dictation with her son. You might find it liberating.

[happypamama]

My son is still on WWE3, but he's not so much of an auditory learner; he seems to be much more visual. So I have him study the sentence first (helping to cement the correct spelling in his head), and then when he can repeat it to me, I have him write it without looking. So he's still holding it in his head, but he needs a different method of input (I am exactly the same way).

[Forget-Me-Not]

Thank you all! So glad to know I'm not alone in my frustrations. Not sure what we will do yet.

[journey00]

Yes, I do and we are only doing WWE1 & 2! Record yourself then instead of repeating yourself hit play. I got that idea from another thread on WWE.

[Walking-Iris]

I do WWE dictation in a Bravewriter style. I highly encourage you to buy at least one Bravewriter Arrow guide if for nothing else than the dictation instructions! Which she calls "French dictation" based on the way it is taught in French schools. 

 

I've said this in other threads. I pretty much hated everything about WWE until I started reading Bravewriter material. Then I began to understand how to do it and teach it. WWE gives no instruction other than "repeat this 3 times." 

[Forget-Me-Not]

I keep looking at the Bravewriter stuff wondering if it would be a good fit for him.

[journey00]

Funny, I also have been eyeing the Bravewriter website this week. ;)

[Punks in Ontario]

For better or worse, I write out difficult words for my poor speller, explain key punctuation ideas and dictate one sentence or long phrase at a time.  He can usually say it back to me before he writes.  

 

I find them rather frustrating too and find I skip about 1/4 of them.