Jennifer132 Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 My dd will be 10 this summer. She struggles with informational texts. She doesn't enjoy history and science mainly because she struggles with the unfamiliar vocabulary (places, names of wars, dynasties, emperors, etc). It's hard for her to place herself in a world different from her own. Thus far she has done a lot of biographies on different historical figures, and she does okay with that, but I'd like to give her a more chronological history now. Can anyone recommend a text that is very introductory and simple just to get her feet wet? As for science, she struggles again with terms and language related to science. The reality is I don't have a lot of time to devote to one on one teaching with experiments and such. So I need something easy to understand for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 Read through The Well Trained Mind and find a form of timeline that works for you/her. It gives a visual of what came first. I wouldn't worry if she remembers exact dates. I found home education took more time as they aged. Try and find some simple experiments for her to do while you are available , maybe doing something else in the kitchen. Reading textbooks and testing gets boring fast. My dd says she learned science from Miss Frizell at that age. haha I'm sure we did more than the Magic School Bus videos and books. Maybe not... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 For history, I would try two things: 1. Help her keep a timeline 2. Mapwork - so she has a visual of where things occurred. For keeping track of definitions/people, etc., I use quizlet. I enter the definitions I think dd needs to remember in order to help with comprehension. I keep the list short. Sometimes I will have her re-read after she has mastered the words in quizlet. Charts, diagrams, coloring pages, and other visuals also help. We made a family tree of the Greek Gods, and that was a hit. You can find small pictures of historical figures or science items, print them out, and write a definition/sentence next to them. These things can be looked over periodically as a review of what she has covered. Most of all, though, it helps to have engaging materials. Story of the World, picture books, etc. that present information as a story or in an interesting way really help with comprehension around here. And don't be overly worried about retention. At this age, you are introducing material that will be revisited and built upon later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 At that age in history, we just picked fun, short unit-type workbooks and did a lot of fun activities to go with it. It might be a workbook on the ancient Egyptians, for example. Or on the early American pioneers. We'd do art projects, cook, write diaries as though we lived in that time, made miniature homes reflective of the period and culture, read stories and biographies, etc. We did follow a loose chronological structure, but highlighted only certain cultures or periods and had fun with those. We plotted everything we studied on a timeline. We kind of did the same with science. It was a lot easier (and more interesting) for my kids to work with short unit notebooks that were colorful with fun activities and lasted about a month. Then it would be completely done, and we'd move on to the next one. I used to be able to get workbooks like these at the Lakeshore Learning Center. For example, in one year, we might pick 6: Plants, Planets, Weather, Ocean Life, Pond Life, etc. I let my kids help pick them, and we'd spend about a month on each. We didn't get into more serious textbooks until 8th grade or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 For history, I would try two things: 1. Help her keep a timeline 2. Mapwork - so she has a visual of where things occurred. I agree. These two visuals were extremely helpful for my kids. Even if no other information "sticks" from those early years, what they get from these visuals can be a great foundation for moving forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 My youngest has some of the same issues, so this year I decided to shelve my usual history progression. Instead, we're using Studies Weekly for history and science. We turn them into little mini unit studies each week by looking up some Youtube videos and doing some additional reading. It's giving my son practice reading informational text without trying to follow a larger narrative story. He enjoys it and seems to retain quite a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 (edited) Does she like art? If so, then maybe if you make it more about art history it would appeal to her. Not memorization of names and dates but the art and the general history occurring at the time. Do simple art projects tied to that time frame. Look at the architecture of the time then walk around your area and see if any of that style still exists in some way. Look at pottery and let her create her own. Look at the clothing of the time and try to recreate pieces with whatever is lying around the house (DD actually uses leaves and other plants from our backyard sometimes). Let her look at the early days of books and create and illuminate her own. (See some examples of how to create your own book below). Art history and science can also be tied together. Edited March 7, 2016 by OneStepAtATime Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 I have problems with names to. People in history, or people down the street, if it is unfamiliar I will have a hard time remembering it. I can't read Russian novels without getting hopelessly muddled if I relay on my own brain. If I am giving a presentation I write them down separately from my main text too, and include a phonetic spelling in many cases. I think this problem is really common with kids in history and science. I find it is a big help to simply give them a cheat sheet. In a history reading, before you start, write down the unfamiliar names and something to remember who that person is - the emperor or his son or the apple-seller, whatever. Go over it once before beginning. The cheat sheet can be referred to as they read through any time its needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almondbutterandjelly Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 (edited) I would do lots of movies and documentaries for history, in semi-chronological order. Start with Ancient Mesopotamia (sumer/babylon/assyria). Then do Ancient Egypt. Then Ancient Greece then Ancient Rome. If you want output, maybe have her draw a picture from the movie and label it with a caption. Tape it to the wall in order. Netflix used to have tons of history documentaries. Horribles Histories by BBC is very good, and the DVDs (region 2) play on my computer in the US, even if they don't play in my dvd player. I would do something similar for science. Pick science topics and watch lots of science documentaries. Also, lots of Magic School Bus and Bill Nye the Science Guy. Some kids (mine is like this) need to a large "library" of visual images to help them process what they read. My dd is like this. Regarding a text to help her get her feet wet, you might like Usborne's First Encyclopedia of History. Edited March 7, 2016 by perkybunch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 Have you thought about a story science like Quark Chronicles? I'd probably pair it up with an Usborne internet-linked book and just require notebooking, no comprehension question. As far as history, I'm a big fan of plotting timelines or ripples. We often put an event in the middle of the paper and leap from one ring to the next: this happened so this happened so this happened...and review slowly, starting about 5 rings back each time before we get to the present chapter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incognito Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 I'd suggest Story of the World - Audiobook with activity guide for history. There are a lot of supplementary picture books and chapter books which can make the stories come even more to life if you have the time, but the audiobook and activity guide are also great without extra things. Find videos that go with some of the things you are learning about. Timelines are really great too if you can be diligent about keeping it up (says the person who tried but isn't). Science - the Let's Read and Find Out series is very basic, but would be a place to build a foundation of scientific vocabulary. Real Science 4 Kids has books that are written to the kids (and easy enough experiments). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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