Shellie Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Okay, some of you know my kids are still in school. It didn't make sense to pull them for two months with the school system already on my back and all the paperwork involved. Anyway, I have been "after schooling" I guess you would call it. Getting really involved with what they're learning in school and supplementing when I can/have the time to. One of the things I have been doing is having them read the homework out loud to me - so for example if it's not a reading lesson, they have to read me the instructions. They skip words they don't know or mumble them to themselves. They can usually get the gist of what's being said, but don't try to sound out the word they don't know. When I was homeschooling them before, we always did that. So i asked them why they don't anymore and they said the teachers don't let them try, they just say the word the kid didn't get. I guess that's the "whole word" method. But it irks me. The other thing that gets me is the writing. First of all, "kid writing" sends me over the edge. But just the way the letters are formed is driving me insane. They don't teach HOW to form letters. As long as you can make the letter look something like a b, then that's okay. you can start in the middle of the bubble if you want to, if it looks like a b, then it's correct. SHEESH! I'm going to have to teach my 5th grader cursive (because she opted out without my permission, which they don't need), 3rd grader how to form b's and d's, and also how to sound out words (which he all already knew, but picked up some bad habits) and my little guy, the 1st grader, I don't even know where to start. He has no phonics at all. He's learned how to form his letters all wrong. It's just awful. I'm gonna spend a year un-doing all of this. *Warning - pity party ahead* WHY did I send them to school???!!! Granted, I thought it was the only decision at the time, but boy if I could turn back the clock... Thanks for reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 :grouphug: So, you're going to keep them home after this, right? Well, you can catch them up at home. I would, of course, recommend Spalding, because your dc will gain back what they lost, and more. Your story is not uncommon, sad to say. We can only weep for the children whose parents don't see how badly things are really going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellie Posted April 24, 2014 Author Share Posted April 24, 2014 What is Spalding? And thanks for the encouragement! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Let me preface this by saying I am not against public school. Many of my friends have kids in ps that are doing quite well. I did well in public school. And my kids made lots of friends and learned quite a bit while they were in brick and mortar. But at least for my kids, I do mourn the years we lost while they attended and have wished many times I could turn back the clock, listen to my mommy instincts and pull them much sooner. We wasted years. Years we are still trying to make up for because I had to help them unlearn then relearn a tremendous amount. I sympathize and wish you and your children the best. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Twain Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I think it won't take you too long to fix your 3rd and 5th grader issues. Maybe you could make those things your summer project, such as have them read aloud to you 10-15 minutes per day and then spend another 10-15 minutes working on handwriting. Throw in a few math problems, and I bet you could get a long way just doing that this summer. As for your 1st grader, I went through the same thing and I feel your pain. I pulled my son out of 1st grade and spent the next year trying to fix all of the problems because of the (bad word seems like it should be inserted here except that I don't say bad words) D'Nealian he learned in school. So just plug away with the reading and handwriting day by day. It will get fixed eventually if you persevere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 What is Spalding? And thanks for the encouragement! The Spalding Method teaches children to read by teaching them to spell, so it's excellent for children who need to be remediated in both reading and spelling. It also includes penmanship, capitalization and punctuation, and simple writing. It is, in fact, your whole English course in one fell swoop. :-) The manual is the Writing Road to Reading, by Romalda Spalding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 :grouphug: A few extra nonsense words and the things here will get them back on track. Have them stop reading sentences and books for a few weeks while you work on syllables, words and word lists. Also, they can play my game together to get in the nonsense words they will need. For people that have started with sight words and skipping and guessing habits, I recommend 1 to 2 months of no outside reading, but since they have a good base a few weeks should do. http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/WellTaughtPhonicsStudent.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I missed that your 1st grader was taught to read in the school, he will need at least 2 months of no outside reading and the full program on my how to tutor page: http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/WellTaughtPhonicsStudent.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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