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Help with Writing

Jul7

imagesHaving used a variety of writing curricula over the years,  I am inclined to believe you have to find an author who most closely aligns with your style of teaching and philosophy since people approach writing through a variety of avenues.

Some authors prefer to be formal and have specific elements that are to be present in each of the piece that is written. If that is your style and thinking, then here are a few programs to research:

Institute for Excellence in Writing, Andrew Pudewa This program is tried and true with a DVD set to help you understand and teach writing. Areas of study include: outlining, summarizing, research papers, essay writing, and creative writing. Multi -age and multi-grade level, beginning in elementary and continuing through senior high school, this program will serve your student well in communicating in a clear and concise manner. Essay writing will be a breeze and research papers will not be a daunting task since students are taught how to do this easily with this program.

Writing Strands, Dave Marks, is a veteran teacher and home school dad created a multi-grade program for students. The four strands of writing (argumentative, explanatory, creative, and report writing) are explained and modeled for students. Short lessons for students to practice after each lesson with humor are sprinkled throughout the  lessons.

Are you interested in an incremental writing program? Two that I recommend are Jump In and Write Shop.

Jump In is a writing program from Apologia that can walk your writer through a step-by-step process of even the most daunting writing tasks.  The writing steps are small with a practice section for the students after each skill is taught.  The process is explained in a conversational manner that a junior high student could read it on their own and you, the teacher, can  discuss  and monitor the work that is being produced. Students of various writing levels and grades will enjoy using this curriculum.

Write Shop has programs beginning in kindergarten. The nice thing about the primary books is that you can do them orally with your beginning writers. Having used the middle school program,  students enjoy the topics they are given to explore. Giving students the opportunity each time to write about something they enjoy enhances the program and involves the student even more in the writing process.

Are you looking for online programs?

The Potter’s School has classes for writing beginning with 5th grade and continuing through 12th grade. Not only can your student take a writing class, but they have a wide selection of classes in every academic area. There are summer and year round classes from which to choose. In the past have worked with several of the outstanding tutors and I highly recommend this program.

Write at Home can either be used as an a la carte program that your student submits individual papers to be read and graded by a teacher, or your child may enroll in a full-time class beginning in the fall. Their classes begin with middle school (5th grade) and continue through 12th grade. One of my friends used it exclusively for their a la cart program and her daughter loved it.

Home2teach offers high quality, challenging, college-prep online writing classes to homeschoolers ages 8 to 18 world-wide.  While I have not used this program, it does look like a terrific option for students.

If you have found a program that I have not discussed here, please leave a comment.

~Lisa

Pete the Cat

Jun2

Jade-web-300x300Three cheers for Pete the Cat! If you have never seen this series, I think you are going to love this. I do!

Pete the Cat and His Magic Sunglasses, Pete is having a bad day. His friend shares his magic sunglasses that help him see things in a whole new way. Of course, Pete encounters several of his friends that are having problems as well. When he shares his magic sunglasses with them, they see things differently too. All is going well until… his glasses break! The wise owl has to help Pete see that he doesn’t need those glasses to see things differently. This is a great book for beginning readers because it has repeating phrases and older students will like Pete the Cat because the story is fun. I found a video for Pete the Cat too! click here

I got a kick out of the UTube videos I saw about Pete the Cat’s other adventures. There are several with catchy songs that are sung throughout. Pete the Cat and His White Shoes not only helps readers realize that it is fine if your new shoes get dirty, (one of my pet peeves!) but the text allows children to make predictions about what color Pete’s shoes are going to be next! My favorite video is Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons. Buttons keep popping off of Pete’s shirt, but Pete keeps on going. Subtraction is incorporated into the story, which i love!

I also discovered early readers at the library this week! Pete at the Beach, and Pete’s Big Lunch would both be excellent books to discuss safety and health, both required topics of study for homeschoolers in Ohio. They also have good morals to them. There are many more stories for your book-worm to read. Oh happy day! 🙂

~Lisa

 

Maisy Mouse

May26

imagesI want to do a series of blogs for preschoolers and beginning readers so that all of the skills that were learned over the school year are continuing throughout the summer. So, here is the first one. I am sure your child will enjoy this little mouse.

Maisy Mouse is a book series that is appealing to preschoolers through early elementary. If your child is just beginning to read, then this is a good collection to have your child enjoy getting to know. The difficult words are repeated and there are pictures to help give “clues” too. The characters are cute and the pages are bright and colorful.

Maisy Mouse and her friends have all sorts of adventures such as going to the grocery store; going on a camping excursion; taking a trip to the library; and  visiting the museum. There are even other books in the series that children might experience such as going to the hospital. The hospital isn’t such a frightening place after seeing Maisy getting her broken leg set, sharing toys with a fellow patient, and spending the night.

If your child is enjoying Masiy and her friends there are UTube videos and a fan club too! To find out more about the club, click here. I hope your early reader enjoys these books. 🙂

Paperback Swap

Feb17

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I love to read, and currently I am reading these two books that I think will help me to eat better. Typically, I go to the library, read a book, but rarely do I buy one. (Although, I did splurge and buy these two books because a dear friend gave me an Amazon gift card recently. ) However, I do have a large collection of books in a cabinet that I have inherited and have read almost all of these. So, what can I do with them after I have read them and no longer need them? What if I don’t want to go out in the weather or don’t have time to peruse the library book shelves?

I am seriously thinking about joining Book Swap. It is free and books are delivered right to your door! You just register, list the books you’d like to swap, mail them out, and order books from other members. Of course, you can buy books as well. It’s like online shopping for books, but better because they are free! If you would like to learn more about it, click here.

We may have to start our own Homeschool Book Swap because I don’t think they have that category of books. Hmmm… now that’s an idea!

Measurement Activities

Jan6

images-1Getting back in the swing of things after taking a few days off for the holidays might be tough.  How about reinforcing measurement by playing some games and easing back into a routine? You can make these simple games and activities and then calculate the distance. Have your little ones join in the fun and calculate the distance for their participation as well.  Create a graph as a culminating activity with each of the games and the distances each participant’s results. Isn’t this a great way to teach math and health?

Frisbee Toss 

Use a paper plate as the frisbee by cutting out the center of the plate. See how far it can be thrown. Measure in inches and feet (if thrown further than a foot).

Penny Drop

Use a large plastic cup as the target for your child into which to drop the pennies. Measure the height from 6 inches, 9 inches, and so on until they miss. Compare the results of other siblings or you, Mom.

Potato Walk

How far can your child walk with having a potato that was placed on the top of their foot before it falls off? Measure in inches (and feet if applicable).

Tight Rope Walk

Make a zig zag line with jump ropes. Have them tiptoe on the rope. How far can your acrobat walk before “falling off”? Measure in inches (and feet if applicable).

Basketball

Wad up pieces of scratch paper or use a spongy ball to throw into a wastepaper basket. How far can your star basketball players throw it until they miss? Measure the distance in inches (and feet if applicable).

Standing Broad Jump

Stand behind a starting line (use the jump rope from the tight rope activity or a piece of masking tape on the carpet). Have each athlete jump as far forward as they can. Measure the distance from the rope to where their heels landed. Measure the distance in inches (and feet if applicable).

I have included a website for you to print graph paper for the graphing activity. Click here.

Have fun!

~Lisa