thegeyser Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 For those of you who have used Killgallon's Sentence Composing for Elementary Students, was there a period when you had to hold their hand through the exercises? My son has completed Latin for Children A and FLL 4, so he has a pretty decent understanding of parts of speech and sentence structure. Nonetheless, we just finished our 8th exercise and I have to sit and walk him through each step still. He can be a whiny student at times, so I don't know if this experience is normal or just "him." He gets the chunking without a hitch, but he gets that wide-eyed freak out blank stare and says "I don't know what to write" when it comes to the actual imitation. We talk about the different parts of speech, and I pity the child using the curriculum who has not yet been exposed to transitive verbs. Despite all the encouragement and attempt to package it as an advanced level MadLibs, it is still quite a painful experience for both of us. Does it get easier and better? Regardless, of the pain and suffering, he seems to come up with a decent imitation that makes sense. We've been reading Otto of the Silver Hand, so I think that book was his inspiration for his sentences. There was only one section I let him have some wiggle room and he didn't produce a strict imitation. His imitation sample today for his first paragraph imitation (Page 17): "Again, outside the castle, digging and building a wide tunnel, was a large armor-covered fierce knight brigade. As the drawbridge dropped down, the knights pulled out their weapons quickly, preparing their swords and lowering their spears. Their leader charged, and his black horse reared above the men as the enemy gave a loud, war cry." Well, he is all boy, I guess. :) I would appreciate some feedback. I really need this to be an independent exercise due to a new baby coming. I feel like the exercises are too valuable to ditch, but I know my season of hand-holding this much will forcibly come to an end very soon. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 I feel the need to share with you the sentence my ds wrote for today's imitation: The fish swam into the castle, dodged the axe, grabbed the sword, and beat the dragon. Great minds think alike! Now that you have completed one full set of practices and activities, a lot of them will repeat in following sections pertaining to specific parts of speech. Perhaps he will find it easier the next time he encounters a practice or activity? I modify quite a bit in our house, both spreading out the lessons and doing a lot of it orally. My ds gets a sad, defeated look if I ask for too much writing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegeyser Posted June 25, 2014 Author Share Posted June 25, 2014 I read him your child's imitation sentence. He was really tickled and is telling his Dad about it. Thank you for that. Anything that makes him smile about these exercises... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegeyser Posted June 25, 2014 Author Share Posted June 25, 2014 I am looking ahead in the books, and it does look as if it'll start to break the procedures down incrementally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 My oldest did two Killgallon books (Story Grammar and Grammar for Middle School) and the second book went a LOT more smoothly than the first. So there definitely is a learning curve. That said, I saw the biggest gains in her writing as a result of Story Grammar. The second book helped to cement what she learned through the first book. With a 4th or 5th grader, I think it would be perfectly fine to break the book into sections and shelve it for a bit after your new baby arrives. So you could do some now and then finish up the book next spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SA Homeschooler Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Where might I find information on "Story Grammar"? Thank you for your help!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 http://www.heinemann.com/products/E01246.aspx Amazon often has better prices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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