lgliser Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 This is a follow up question to my post on the general education discussion boards. I was saying how FLL level 2 is just seeming to go a little fast for my kids. They're really struggling with adverbs and adjectives. Last year in level 1 it spent basically all year on nouns and now this year they're introducing a lot of parts of speech at a much quicker pace. On the other board, it was recommended that maybe I put it away for the rest of the year until they mature a bit. It's all a little abstract, which I totally get. I'm also wondering if FLL maybe just isn't for us? I like the ease of it and I like that it's scripted. I myself need that. But I think my kids may need more hands on learning like worksheets. They really like worksheets. Is there maybe another program that would meet our needs better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 This is a follow up question to my post on the general education discussion boards. I was saying how FLL level 2 is just seeming to go a little fast for my kids. They're really struggling with adverbs and adjectives. Last year in level 1 it spent basically all year on nouns and now this year they're introducing a lot of parts of speech at a much quicker pace. On the other board, it was recommended that maybe I put it away for the rest of the year until they mature a bit. It's all a little abstract, which I totally get. I'm also wondering if FLL maybe just isn't for us? I like the ease of it and I like that it's scripted. I myself need that. But I think my kids may need more hands on learning like worksheets. They really like worksheets. Is there maybe another program that would meet our needs better? Worksheets are not "hands-on." That your dc like them doesn't mean it's the best thing for them. Worksheets are just easy; it doesn't mean they are better. :-) I can't get worked up over doing grammar with little persons who are just 7. Even 8 might be a little early. :-) But if I felt the need to do that, my go-to would be Rod and Staff English, which is pretty comprehensive, including composition, learning to use reference materials, and more. it is not a workbook. The children have to write on actual paper, although they aren't necessarily doing a boatload more writing than they would if they had a workbook. Paper is easier, and IMHO having to write on actual paper is really good for learning English well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 (edited) . Edited May 16 by SilverMoon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 (edited) . Edited May 16 by SilverMoon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smootwater Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Retention is pretty low at this age. We did FLL 1& 2 previous years with my now 8 yo son, and always struggled with parts of speech. He chose Abeka LA this year over R&S because it is colorful. What we did is used some Montessori grammar materials over the summer, that is color coded and pretty simple. It helped him understanding the content better. You can download Montessori Grammar manuals from the internet for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS Mom in NC Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 My 8 year old wasn't getting it either so we stopped. We waited to do grammar again at 9. It's going much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgliser Posted January 29, 2015 Author Share Posted January 29, 2015 Thanks everyone! You can download Montessori Grammar manuals from the internet for free. Do you have a link to this? They're not expected to have mastery of all eight parts of speech by the end of that book. They're just getting their first exposure. It's totally okay if you have to hold their hand to find the preposition. Ok... so they'll go over it more in future FLLs then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smootwater Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 You can find Language Arts albums and other albums at Cultivating Dharma's website: http://www.freemontessori.org/?page_id=9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desertflower Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 You can try mad libs. There's a free website I think called wacky webs or wacky tales. I'll have to get back to you on that. If you are still looking for ways to teach you can check out from the library Ruth Heller's World of Language. She has a book on nouns, one on verbs, etc. I just found out about these and put a hold on them. At this point in time, I'm just going to read to them because so far FLL is working for my ds. I'm hoping it's a good read aloud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desertflower Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Wacky web tales http://www.eduplace.com/tales/ My kids like these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheAttachedMama Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 I don't think you need to jump ship quite yet. FLL 2 is going a bit fast for my kids too in some parts. I just adapt and slow down when I need to. Here's how.... For example, let's say that we have covered adjectives and the next lesson starts to introduce something new. I simply don't move ahead. Instead our "grammar" lessons consists of a quick random review of previously learned poetry, definitions, and lists. (I use the back of the book for this.) Then, we talk about adjectives some more. We say the definition a few times together. THEN..... I write a sentence from what ever book they are reading on the white board that happens to contain adjectives. (I pick this on the fly.) Then I have them copy it, and we circle nouns, verbs, pronouns, and adjectives in different colors. OR....if I don't feel like doing copywork, we practice going around the room and touching a noun and thinking of an adjective that could describe it and using it in a sentence. Before we move ahead we keep practicing adjectives until I feel like they have it down. ------ Also, keep in mind that EVERY grammar program out there seems to have a ton of review built in. (A TON!) So I don't think kids are expected to know these things backwards and forwards at this level. If you look at FLL 3, a lot of these things are covered again, just at a quicker pace. Then, they are touched on again in FLL 4. Then, if you study Latin, grammar concepts will be taught and reviewed again! Then, some writing programs cover grammar again. There just seems to be a TON of review of these concepts. So don't feel like you have to teach everything in 2nd grade. (Just my 2 cents.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 Ok... so they'll go over it more in future FLLs then? Every year they do grammar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
give_me_a_latte Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 Somewhere on the vast Internet ;-) I found worksheets to go along with FLL2. They've been helpful....not so much that there is a lot of writing or whatnot to do on them, but instead, they give my son something to look at while we do a lesson. Many of the sentences from the book are printed on the worksheet, so he can follow along as I read. And every so often there is a little bit of work, like writing AV or N or something above the correct words in the sentence, or highlighting the helping verbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgliser Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 Yes! I think this is what you're talking about http://murrayshire.blogspot.com/ I love them!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smootwater Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 Another option is "The Sentence Family: Introducing Grammar Through Art and Story" http://www.stmichaelschool.us/sentencefamily.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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