Guest Elen@ Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 Hi! I started to homeschool my 4th grader and 6th grader about three months now. I took them out of the public school. I noticed they were getting frustrated. They don't like to read. My 6th grader is getting into it, but my 4th grader is giving me such a hard time. Both of them are almost at the same level in math. I don't want to pull my older back. A friend of mind told me about the TWTM and this forum. I am scared! I need some opinions from those moms that have been doing this for a long time. I am reading the book and I realized that my children haven't studied not even half of the subjects that are mentioned in the book. I love my kids! And I decided to give them the education that I didn't have. Help please!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 Welcome! The best way to eat an elephant is one-bite-at-a-time. You love your kids. Be willing to learn along with them. There will always be holes, so teach them how to find the one information they need. Teach them to love books. Teach them to use a library. Teach them how to use their resources. Teach them what a good Google search result looks like vs a bad one. Teach them to network and how to ask for what they want. Laugh a lot. Cry a little. Learn something new every day. Enjoy the journey. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 I agree with the idea that you eat an elephant one bite at a time. It's only been three months so you'll probably need to do some tweaking. Most people do. What subjects are you teaching currently? What curriculum do you use? What are the specific problems about reading with your 4th grader? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Elen@ Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 Thank you!! We use Math U see, Write with ease, First language lesson level 3, God's Creation for Science. I read aloud history books. They do typing for 10 min two days a week. My 4 th grader say's that reading is boring, so I read to him, he likes that. I guess I have to relax a little bit. I see some mom read poetry to their children. Which books should I use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momto6inIN Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 My best advice to getting a reluctant reader to enjoy reading is to read fun and highly interesting books out loud to him that are slightly above his own reading level and would be difficult for him to read on his own. This probably means a lot of battle scenes are in your future. :) Ones my boys have loved: Harry Potter series Narnia series Redwall series The Hobbit Rosemary Sutcliff's retellings of Beowulf and the Odyssey and the Iliad Geraldine McCaughrean's retellings of Gilgamesh and 1001 Arabian Nights At the beginning if you choose to read poetry out loud, I would only use funny poetry, like Shel Silverstein. Poetry is an acquired taste, especially for boys, but if you get them hooked on the funny stuff they'll receive the more serious stuff much better later on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Elen@ Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 Thank you for the suggestions! More reading aloud. He enjoys that. Definitely going to the library tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbutton Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 If you have a Kindle, consider using both audio versions of the book and the written version--if the book is whispersync enabled, then you can read and listen at the same time with the Kindle highlighting the words in the book. Amazon has some free or inexpensive titles where you can do this, and you can check both versions out through the library sometimes. I would not be above bribing to get him to read--my kids do really well with summer reading program incentives. We've used punch cards to keep track of tasks my kids don't like, and when they fill a punch card, they get a prize from our prize box. Or, sometimes they earn something bigger--it has to be worked out ahead to make it fair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 In addition to reading aloud, you can see if your library carries good audiobooks. It'll save your voice some, they're good if you spend much time in the car, and he can listen while you are working one-on-one with the other child. You could consider Petry Teatimes: http://www.bravewriter.com/program/brave-writer-lifestyle/poetry-teatimes/ If you enjoy the poetry teas, look at the rest of the BraveWriter lifestyle pieces for language arts. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jodi-FL Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 homeschooling for 19 years here, but my kids have spent a year or two in public school also (in 2 different states). i'm currently homeschooling my 2 youngest (of 7) who are 12 and 10. first, welcome. the homeschooling world is a wonderful community of helpful information. you can do this. second, public schooling often kills love of reading (esp. if they were "grouped" into reading groups by skill level, or had a required reading log, or were made to read from anthologies that often only gave parts of stories.) i was a reading specialist at public school the past 2 years :) my current 4th grader struggles with this currently. what helps him is to read books *below* his level, but at his interest, and the ones on his level, we read together. (he reads a page, I read a page). he's also motivated to do other things by reading for "just 15 minutes more." third, it often takes a good year to decompress from the scheduling of school. getting outside as often as we can, hikes, field trips, museums, anything out of the ordinary that they couldn't do if they were in school is what we focus on. years ago (like 20) someone on this board recommended having an "other place" that you go to on the bad days. for me 20 years ago, that was a mega bookstore. i could get a hot drink, gather all the books or magazines i wanted to peruse, and we headed to the children's area where the kids could peruse their own books or play with the train set. now that they're older, we head to a library that has a cool cafe and used bookstore. you can do this. enjoy your kids, let them know that you do have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckens Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 Welcome to Homeschooling!!!!Be unafraid of starting small. Many homeschoolers start every autumn with just a couple of subjects (Math and Reading/Language Arts). Once those are launched, other stuff is added, one subject at a time. **This may or may not be an option, depending on how much pressure the laws in your state put on you.** FTR, we don't do every.single.thing. in TWTM. And many things we do in a different way. We do what works for us. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoutTN Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Welcome to to the boards and to homeschooling!!! Enjoy your kids, work on the basics and let them explore what they love. As you settle in and they decompress from school, you will find a good path for your family. Don't panic! Read here. Read aloud lots. Do math every school day. Do things you couldn't if they were in school. It will be okay. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 (edited) If they learned to read with sight words, which most schools use, it is possible that they don't like reading because they are not fluent phonetic readers, you can give the MWIA to see if they need nonsense words and phonics remediation, and I also have some free reading grade level tests. http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/readinggradeleve.html I have an article called "Why Johnny Doesn't Like to Read" that explains why. http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/aliterate.html Edited December 10, 2015 by ElizabethB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Elen@ Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Thanks for your help!! All of you have been very helpful! I appreciate it. I feel more relax. 😊 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beimao Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Welcome to homeschooling! It can be fun, it can be hard, but so can PS and we all get to pick our own kind of craziness! I agree with the thought that the reading skills might still be developing or maybe out of practice. Even my usually avid readers will have points where they move away from reading so much and can struggle getting back into the habit. My 6th grader just mentioned something about it yesterday! Sometimes enjoyment in reading is a skill that must be worked on before it comes naturally. Read aloud time is an excellent idea. Have you ever heard of the Read Aloud Revival Podcast? The lady who hosts it is amazing and has amazing guests on it, discussing so many topics. Look it up :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamiof5 Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Welcome to this fun but wild journey!!! Lots of great comments here as usual. But I do have a small suggestion to add. For 4th grader who doesn't like to read, yes, definitely read aloudsalouds and library... But in my case I'd want some independent reading as well. If might come slow, but as someone said, little bites? Have him pick a book an start by him reading to you 3mins/a page, and increase from there? What about some sort of reward chart thrown in the mix? For so many hours of reading he can get his favorite ice cream or some incentive? I just think it's important for kids not only to be read to, but read on their own. Much learning happens through reading. I was not a reader, and made my learning process harder. Just my experience. He's at a perfect age to try to make a change :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Welcome! Just wanted to say you are doing great! I'd stick to the basics this year to get a routine established- stick with what you are doing---especially math, Lang, and reading good literature out loud as well as scheduling time for them to read most days. Use your time to look into different education styles, plug into a homeschool community and have fun enjoying life---field trips, park days, library trips, craft & baking days, movie days, and then add in as you feel ready for more. TWTM is a great resource, but it isn't the only homeschool style and it may or may not be a great fit. IMO, with 4 & 6, if you are hitting Bible, math, Lang, history, science, PE, and some sort of rctuve you're probably good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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