Stalling out in Treasured Conversations Lesson 22

[jaderbee]

We seem to have hit a wall in lesson 22. Vocabulary, sentence structure and just the quantity of writing seem to be more than my 8 yr old can handle. If you have hit a similar wall how did you handle it?

[Lori D.]

No personal experience with Treasured Conversations.

 

But stalling out is quite common for younger elementary ages. Often it's a math topic they aren't getting, but also common to "hit the wall" with LA topics, too. Whatever program is being used, you have several options that you can even "mix and match", as it works for your student and you:

 

1. Take A Break

 

a. take a holiday

If your student has been working long and hard with no breaks for several months, consider taking a week-long spring break from all school to allow your student to completely recharge.

 

b. take a weekly mini-break 

School 4 days a week and day 5 use lots of fun games, supplements, etc. that are different from your spine materials; still getting exposure, but also getting a break from what the student is finding exhausting.

 

c. rotating break

Write 5-8 subject areas or curricula, each on a slip of paper and put into a jar; each day your student gets to draw one and you set it aside -- that's the subject the student doesn't have to do that day. Examples of subject areas:

- math facts

- copywork,

- spelling practice

- Treasured Conversations

- Grammar Program

After you cycle through all 5-8 subjects, dropping them one each day, put all the slips of paper back in the jar, and cycle through dropping them one a day again.

 

2. Substitute A Supplement For Several Weeks...

a. ...and use it to look at the concept from a different perspective

b. ...and use it to cover some completely other topic in language arts; let the "struggle topic" simmer on the back burner of the student's mind -- often when you return to the "spine" program, the "struggle topic" suddenly just clicks

 

3. Stop Now / Re-Start Next Year

Stop the program entirely and try it again next year when the student is fresher and has matured in some brain areas that may make the program easier doing it next year. That might be an esp. good option for you right now, with only about 9 weeks or so left if you roughly follow a typical school year schedule, and pick it up again next year -- start next year by dipping into completed lessons as a review for the first two weeks, and then start up full force with lesson 22...

 

4. Slow It Down

 

a. break into bites

Break lessons into much smaller bites, so a typical lesson takes 2-3x as long as usually scheduled.

 

b. micro bursts of learning

Instead of scheduling 20-30 minutes each day for T.C. (or whatever you usually do), go for just 10-15 minutes -- which also helps break each lesson into multiple small bites, and helps to make the lesson not feel so overwhelming.

 

c. focus on just one aspect of the lesson each day

Again, this also helps break the lesson into smaller bites and helps you slow down a lesson. Examples:

- one day, focus just on vocabulary in the lesson

- next day focus on together reading aloud/understanding the teaching info on sentence structure

- next day, review the sentence structure concept and do a few examples aloud together

- next day, actually write something

- next day, focus on any grammar aspect in the lesson

- etc.

 

5. Reduce The Writing Load

 

a. do more of it orally

That allows the student to devote more of their limited "battery power" to learning concepts rather than struggling with the exhaustion of writing by hand.

 

b. student dictates

Let your student dictate their writing and you write it -- that helps the student focus on the concept being learned, rather than pouring all their energy into the exhausting work of writing by hand.

 

c. drop some of the writing assignments or exercises

Eliminate any busywork; pick and choose from exercises and assignments, and only have your student write those that would be most helpful. 

 

 

I used all of these ideas at one time or another as needed. Along about age 10-12, DSs turned a corner and didn't need these ideas anymore. BEST of luck in your LA adventures! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

[jaderbee]

Thank you so much Lori for such a detailed response! It is the best go to resource for for managing "hitting a wall" in any subject I've seen! Thank you for all the thought and time you take in posting your advice. I really appreciate it!

[Ewe Mama]

We hit a wall around that point, as well. We put it on the shelf and are currently reading through Grammar-Land and will then do The Sentence Family. After all that, we will try TC again. If we need more time, I will find something else to keep it fresh in their minds.

[kirstenhill]

Another thought -- you are on the last main "story" in section 2 already -- maybe look ahead and see if Section 3 (starting in lesson 27) is more up your student's alley?  It's a different skill doing outlines and reports on factual content instead of fictional stories.  Maybe it won't be at all, but it is worth a look perhaps.

 

I'm doing TC with my DD who is at the upper end of the suggested age range.  The outlining and fictional paragraphs were hard for her at first, but then she just hit a point where it "clicked", and we actually skipped that last story as well (so, maybe the 5-6 lessons before part 3)...not because it was a "wall" but more because she felt she was ready to move on and tackle report writing.  It's kind of funny -- Section 3 has almost been too much scaffolding and she flew through most of them in 2 days per lesson, combining the note taking and outlining step.  We only have two lessons left now.  But I can see how if I tried TC with DS who will be 3rd grade next year, it would probably be a much different experience. 

[jaderbee]

We hit a wall around that point, as well. We put it on the shelf and are currently reading through Grammar-Land and will then do The Sentence Family. After all that, we will try TC again. If we need more time, I will find something else to keep it fresh in their minds.

I don't have the sentence family is it similar to killgallon sentences?

[jaderbee]

Another thought -- you are on the last main "story" in section 2 already -- maybe look ahead and see if Section 3 (starting in lesson 27) is more up your student's alley? It's a different skill doing outlines and reports on factual content instead of fictional stories. Maybe it won't be at all, but it is worth a look perhaps.

 

I'm doing TC with my DD who is at the upper end of the suggested age range. The outlining and fictional paragraphs were hard for her at first, but then she just hit a point where it "clicked", and we actually skipped that last story as well (so, maybe the 5-6 lessons before part 3)...not because it was a "wall" but more because she felt she was ready to move on and tackle report writing. It's kind of funny -- Section 3 has almost been too much scaffolding and she flew through most of them in 2 days per lesson, combining the note taking and outlining step. We only have two lessons left now. But I can see how if I tried TC with DS who will be 3rd grade next year, it would probably be a much different experience.

I looked ahead as you suggested. I like...26 or 27 ... The lesson about revising. I think we'll do that next week, or the week after, with some of her first paragraphs. Maybe revising paragraphs for a few weeks will help her build better paragraphs??