Know How You Learn

Recently, my son and I were meeting about our novel. Joshua started to describe the changes he thought we should make to a particular scene and told me I could just jot down whatever I thought I needed to. I told him to hold on for a minute while I got a blank sheet of paper, then I promptly did the following:

1. Numbered each note as he spoke
2. Put sub notes under the note with the character's initial and the motivational changes that Joshua thought we needed (M: Needs to begin this scene....)
3. Drew arrows to and from things as he spoke

Then when I was ready to rewrite that scene, guess what I did? I typed those notes all up--complete with the numbering and sub-numbering, etc.

Why am I telling you this? If you are a student, pay close attention to HOW you learn. I could not have written from paragraph notes. I could not have written with a word or two for each point. I could not have written from my handwritten notes--I needed to type it up in order to further understand it.

Whatever you do as a student to learn tells you a lot about how you learn! Utilize this information for test preparation, writing projects, and more. And like I always tell my students: "You know more than you realize you know!"

day 82: homework help—final sentence writing help

A few more ideas for encouraging/helping your child with sentence writing, then we’re on to something new!

1. If your child is hesitant to write because of penmanship difficulties, either teach him how to type (use a typing program for young kids) or write for him as he dictates to you. He needs to see that penmanship difficulties do not mean that he is unable to write. Writing is thinking. Penning is art.
2. Try having him write sentences about things you are doing. For example, have him write a sentence each day in a journal about that day or every Saturday about the weekend.
3. Or have specific things listed at the top of a journal for him or her that he/she writes about:
1. Monday: Weekend
2. Tuesday: Food
3. Wednesday: Book
4. Thursday: Animal
5. Friday: Person
6. Saturday: Movie
4. Have him write a sentence under a picture, similar to captions. These pictures may be ones that he has drawn or colored or cartoons or pictures from a book.
5. Make a list of nouns and a list of verbs. Have him write a sentence using one word from the noun list and one word from the verb list. For example:

NOUNS                                               VERBS

Dog                                                     run

Boy                                                      jump

Girl                                                     catch

Radio                                                  blare

Cow                                                    ate

For more sentence writing help, along with help in other areas of language arts, for the second/third grade level (i.e. already reading well), check out the sample of the our books, “Character Quality Language Arts,” Level Pre A (http://www.tfths.com/samples.php ). There is a full month that you may use with our child free of charge. Happy writing!

day 77: homework help--reading and writing connection part i of ii

One of the best ways you can help a child become good in language arts (which carries over to all of his school work--since all school work involves reading, comprehending, etc.) is to help him become a good reader. Yesterday I posted some links for laying a foundation for strong readers. Today I will give you some thoughts on early reading for those who are helping young readers practice their reading skills--then I will give some ideas on the reading/writing connection.

If you have a new reader in your home that you are trying to help with reading at home, try these "homework helps":
  
1. Be sure he reads from a book every day. So much reading instruction nowadays is workbook oriented. This is like taking piano lessons while only doing theory books--with no actual playing time. If his school does not have oral reading time each day (or even if it does--sometimes it is only a sentence or two read by each student), be sure to practice reading with him at home. (I will put links below for readability information.)

2. Try the "you read, I'll read" approach. Have him read a page or paragraph then you read a page or paragraph.

3. If he gets stuck on a word that you think he knows, remind him of what he knows about it:
a. Remember, this rhymes with light and bright. You had this word before.
   b. Do you remember what the e at the end of the word makes the first vowel say?
   c. How do you think Rabbit feels? Would that word be sad or silly based on how he probably feels?


4. If he is stuck too long or you do not think he knows a word, tell him what it is (and anything about it that might help him in the future) and move on. Do not get bogged down on each word.

5. Ask your librarian for help getting a reader that is truly at his level (or check out the links below for vocabulary controlled readers). Do not believe those readers that say K level in the corner but contain two syllable words!

6. Read aloud to him from a chapter book or other book that he enjoys to make the reading experience pleasant for him.

7. Reward him for practicing reading at home--stickers, coins, candy--it's worth bribing for!

Tomorrow--more on the reading/writing connection in the early reader's life! Check out our links below for more reading help for your young student.


Readability Levels of Materials: http://positiveparenting3-6-5.blogspot.com/2010/06/day-176-summertime-beginning-reading.html


Choosing Readers (starts with this day then moves on for several more): http://positiveparenting3-6-5.blogspot.com/2010/06/day-173-summertime-beginning-reading.html

days 13 & 14: roots and affixes list

I am putting all of the roots and affixes I want to share (from our CQLA curriculum) together for two days (rather than dividing them up in two entries). Feel free to print them off, give a sheet to each of your kids, tape it on the fridge, work on a root or affix a week…however it can help you or your kids/students.

    (a) GEN--birth, race, kind                                                              

 generous, generate, generation, geneology, gender    

           

b) DIC, DICT, DIT--tell, say, word

        dictate, verdict, edict, contradict, predict, diction, indict

  

    (c) SPEC, SPIC, SPIT--look, see

 perspective, aspect, spectator, spectacle, suspect     

           

d) SUPER, SUR, SUM--above

        surpass, summit, supersede, superstition

  

   

   (e) TENT, TENS, TEND, TENU--stretch, thin                                           

 tension, extend, tendency, tendon, tent, distend         

(f) TRANS--across

transfer, transient, transitory, transgress, transport

  

    (g) DOC, DUC, DAC--teach, lead                                         

          conduct, document, doctrine, induce, indoctrinate                    

 (h) CO, CON, COM-with, together

company, collaborate, comply, congruent,

(i)              VERS, VERT--turn                                                                      

 convert, revert, subvert, divert, diverse, extrovert, versatile          

  

(j) LOC, LOG, LOQU--word, speech

        

        eloquent, logic, apology, monologue, dialogue, prologue

    (k) SEN--feel, sense                                                                                  

  sensitive, sensation, consent, dissent, assent, sentiment  

                 

(l) DE--away, down, off

denounce, defraud, decry, deplete, devoid, defile

  

    

    (m) NOM, NOUN, NOWN, NAM, NYM--name, order, rule

anonymous, nominate, renounce, renown, misnomer                                                      

(n) CLA, CLO, CLU--shut, close

          closet, enclose, disclose, include, conclude, seclude

  

      

    (o) VO, VOC, VOK, VOW--call                                                      

vocal, advocate, vocation, convoke, revoke, avow     

                        

 (p) MAL--bad

          malicious, malady, dismal, malign, malevolent

  

      

    (q) FRA, FRAC, FRAG—break

fracture, fraction, fragment, fragile, frail, fractious                                                                                        

   (r) OB--against

          objective, obsolete, obscure, obstruct, obstinate

  

        

    (s) SUB—under

          submissive, subordinate, sublime, subtle, subversion                                                                                                        

(t) AB--from, away

 abandon, abhor, abstain, absolve, abstruse, abstract

  

       

    (u) GRESS, GRAD—step

progress, regress, gradual, digress, degrade, transgress                                                                       

 (v) SEC, SEQU--follow

          second, sequel, sequence, consequence, prosecute

  

  

     (w) PRO--much, for, a lot 

prolific, profuse, prodigal, prtracted, prodigy, propensity                                                                   

  (x) QUE, QUIS--ask, seek

           inquire, question, request, quest, query, acquire, querulous

  

     

     (y) SACR, SANCT, SECR—sacred

sacrifice, sanctuary, sanctify, sanction, consecrate                                                                   

 (z) SCRIB, SCRIP--write     

                     scribble, describe, script, prescribe, ascribe, inscribe

  

                                                             

   (aa) PATHY, PAS, PAT--feeling               

          apathy, sympathy, empathy, antipathy, passionate                                  

 (bb) DIS, DIF--not

                                  disdain, dissuade, dismay, disparate, disparage

  

  

  (cc) CIRCU--around

circumference, circulation, circumstances, circumvent                                                            

 (dd) NON, UN, IN, AN, A--no or not

  

nonviolent, uncooperative, inappreciative, anonymous

  

  

  (ee) AD--to  

          adhere, adjective, addict, adverb

                                                                          

(ff) INFRA--below

 infrastructure, infraction, infrared, infra-bass

  

  

  (gg) AMBI—both

  ambidextrous, amibguous, ambition, ambivalent                                                                                

 (hh) EPI--on

 epidemic, epic, epitomy, episode

day 5: another “they’re”

Do you remember the “their and there” Wacky Words (WW) from the other day? “There” is another WW that goes with that pair—it is the word “they’re.”

First, a little "there/their" WW review is in order:

1. There

    a. Has the word here in it: there.

    b. Remember, here and there.
    c. Examples:

            i. There are seven cats on the barn.

            ii. There is one more piece of cake.

          iii. Put the books over there.

2.Their                                                                                                                                                        

    a. Their has the word heir in it: their.
    b. Their is a pronoun that shows ownership.

    c. We call this a possessive pronoun.

    e. Examples:

            i. Their home is up on the left.

            ii. I hope their dogs are not loose.

 

Enter the WW “they’re.” It’s not really as tricky as it seems if you following TFT Publishers’ (Training for Triumph) cardinal rule for understanding when to use a contraction and when not to:

When you are about to write with a contraction, say the “contraction” in its “uncontracted” form—and you will immediately know if you want to use that word or a different word altogether.

Examples:

1.     We are going to they’re party---SAY…We are going to “they are” party. WRONG! You need “their”---the party belongs to them.

2.     We should park over they’re---SAY….We should park over “they are.” WRONG! You need “there”---here and there—a place to park.

This works for any contraction, any time you are writing! If you follow this one “saying the uncontracted word aloud before you write the contraction” tip, you will never write a contraction when you shouldn’t.