Showing posts with label English Language. Show all posts
Showing posts with label English Language. Show all posts

Monday 6 January 2014

Language Arts {Virtual Curriculum Fair}

Welcome to my first post for the 2014 Virtual Curriculum Fair.  Today I'm sharing on Language Arts, both what we do and some of the curriculum that is available in the homeschool market to help you with Language Arts in your homeschool.

I shared some of my thoughts on language arts in high school in two posts: Writing and Composition in High School as well as The Art of Language in High School.

In our homeschool we are following an eclectic approach this year incorporating a Charlotte Mason approach along with Delight Directed education and Sonlight.  We are working on strengthening Sir N's writing skills through copy work and hand writing practice.

We are currently working on narration skills at the moment as I have come to realise that it certainly pays high dividends in the high school years with the fruit of a student who is able to "Attend, remember, visualize, comprehend, synthesize (see the whole from the parts), and articulate as the result." A Charlotte Mason Companion page 115.  Narration helps a child to train his/her mind to "sort, arrange, correlate, select, reject and classify" information. A Charlotte Mason
"Narration develops the power of self expression and forces the child to use his own mind and form his own judgement." - Karen Andreola A Charlotte Mason Companion page 114Companion page 115.

Spelling is the servant necessary to be successful in all the areas of written language arts. We will be using copy work and once we have completed Explode the Code book 3 we will be working our way through Spelling Workout.  

Vocabulary is not synonymous with spelling and is often times missed in language arts programs and deserves equal mention and attention. Twaddle free literature introduces new words in context to the student. Do not make the mistake of only choosing literature that your child can read to themselves.

Poetry enlarges a students language ability and teaches the clever use of words in self expression.  With this in mind we will be enjoying poetry together.  As Sir N gains confidence in public speaking we will add in poems to learn and present with expression. We will try different types of poetry until we find some that we like and then explore it further.  Poetry comments on all human experiences, it is comprised of everything  from war poems and epics, to psalms of worship, to love sonnets, to delightful nonsense verse that trips off the tongue, to nursery rhymes - CMC Page 220

Our Year Ahead


Language Arts

Readers
Read Alouds


Resources
Grammar Programs


Spelling Programs
Narration & Copy Work
On Pinterest

FREE on the WWW
Language Arts Curriculums

Take some time this week to visit some of the other 2014 Virtual Curriculum Fair participants.

Some of these links will not be live until tomorrow due to time zone differences as these bloggers are from across the globe.

What are you using for language arts this school year.  Susan has invited you all to share what you are using and add your link to the linky

Blessings
Chareen

Posted by at 9 comments:
Labels: , , ,

Tuesday 1 October 2013

Teaching Compostion {Language Arts}

Teaching writing seems to be one of the catch phrases amongst home school families and one of the most discussed topics within home school co-ops and support groups and is evidenced by the quantity of writing curriculum's available today on the market.

Writing structure and style is not something that comes with ease to us and the reason for this is because it was not something that was taught to us.  Most adults I've consulted with have memories of topics and word counts but no formal knowledge on tackling the written paper.

Composition com·po·si·tion (kmp-zshn) n.
  1. a. The combining of distinct parts or elements to form a whole. 
    b. The manner in which such parts are combined or related. 
    c. General makeup: the changing composition of the electorate.
    d. The result or product of composing; a mixture or compound. 
  2. 2. Arrangement of artistic parts so as to form a unified whole. 
  3. a. The art or act of composing a musical or literary work.
    b. A work of music, literature, or art, or its structure or organisation.
  4.  A short essay, especially one written as an academic exercise.

Charlotte Mason says "The earliest practise in writing proper for children of seven or eight should be, not letter writing or dictation, but transcription, slow and beautiful work... Transcription should be an introduction to spelling. Children should be encouraged to look at the word, see a picture of it with their eyes shut, and then write from memory." v1 p239

In the Charlotte Mason philosophy composition starts with the art of Narration.  Once a child can narrate with ease he is then ready for written narration (composition).


"...Composition is not an adjunct but an integral part of their education in every subject "Charlotte Mason ~Vol. 6, p.192


Tools
  1. Spelling - without a good grounding in spelling a student will struggle in formal written work.
  2. Writing - A student needs to be comfortable with letter formation and do so with ease before starting the formal written assignments. Copy work is a two edged sword: it serves to learn letter formation and correcting spelling.
  3. Vocabulary - Without a sufficient vocabulary it is difficult to express oneself. Vocabulary is easily acquired via listening to excellent literature read out loud and reading quality books to oneself.
  4. Narration - helps the student to organise their thoughts with ease.
The first years of school are the foundational years of these four tools in the life of a student without these tools the student is severely handicapped in their journey to writing well. Teaching writing starts by practising the art verbally {narration}.  We do not want to over whelm our students with formal written composition while they are still developing the formal mechanical ability to write. This frees up the student to learn the art of ordering their thoughts in preparation for when they formally start written compositions.  

How
The art of written composition is started at around the age of ten after the student has a sufficient efficiency with the mechanical necessities of writing and a good grounding in the servant spelling.  There is very little point in overwhelming a student by expecting too many things all at once.  It is to our benefit to equip our students with excellent vocabulary via great literature read out loud and to themselves. Teach them to spell well and practise organising their thoughts via narration. 

At this point introduce the lessons from the Student Writing Intensive. This program is a good transition into formal compositions as the student does not have to compose any written work simply from imagination. IEW teach the student how to take good notes from supplied stories and re-tell the story in their own words on paper. Once this step is complete the students are then equipped with how to improve their written work and formulate excellent presentable work with no stress. 


Resources

For Further Reading

What is your favourite resource for teaching children writing ?
Blessings

Chareen

This post is part of the Homeschool Help series brought to you by a group of home school Mom's from around the globe.  Do not forget to visit and read their inspirational insight.


This week
 ---ooOoo---
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels: , ,

Thursday 28 March 2013

The Art of Language in High School

The idea of teaching Language Arts at high school level can evoke many emotions in home school circles.  I think that too often as home school mom's we rely on our understanding of language arts through the memory of what we did at school and we waste many tedious hours comparing what we are doing or think we ought to be doing in comparison with what students are 'covering' at school. Two of the main factors that will influence your journey are: Your strengths and the strengths of your child/ren in the language arena.

Language Arts generally covers three main areas of study: Composition, Literature/Comprehension (to be covered in October 2013),  Vocabulary/Spelling/Grammar and Public speaking.


Over the years I have come to realize that Language Arts in high school starts with the art of Narration and an excellent foundation in spelling and twaddle free literature.
 
What does your language arts program look like?
When Mr T and Miss J were in high school we used the high school core's from Sonlight and worked through their language arts program's. Sonlight have aligned their approach with Ruth Beechick and Charlotte Mason. We read excellent twaddle free literature, did composition, worked our way through the entire set of Spelling Workout books and did copy work.

What influences your choices/selection?
At the time that T & J were in high school choice was limited in the home school environment. I trusted Sonlight implicitly that they were have it covered. I felt that with out a good grounding in spelling anything else was a waste of time and energy. An excellent grasp of self expression was important too because if your student can't speak it they can't write it either.  I armed myself by reading The 3 R's by Ruth Beechick and the The Art of Narration chapters in A Charlotte Mason Companion (CMC)

In the Future
Looking back I now realize that I need to start as I intend to finish it's too hard to change mid stroke and in the high school years depending on the students personality it can really become their undoing.

Mature self expression begins with the art of narration which in itself is the cornerstone of public self expression. Public expression does not only mean standing on a stage but encompasses speaking to any one any where. With this in mind we will be working on improving narration for the next few years. Narration Adheres Vocabulary to the Mind - CMC Page 167. There are many benefits to narration one being that narration strengthens and challenges all the powers of mind. Attending, remembering, visualizing, comprehending, synthesizing (seeing the whole from the parts), and articulating. - CMC Page 115

Spelling is the servant necessary to be successful in all the areas of written language arts. We will be using copy work and once we have completed Explode the Code book 3 we will be working our way through Spelling Workout. It is important to complete all the levels of which ever spelling curriculum you choose in order that your student is well equipped to express themselves with the pen.

Never underestimate the power of Copy Work.  I remember when one of my children was six years old and doing copy work they proudly came to me one day and exclaimed: "Mom I can spell circumcision now!" We have started copy work this year and will be building on this. Copying excellent literature helps a student to recognize and incorporate punctuation, reinforces correct spelling and enlarges vocabulary.

Some time later this year I am looking at joining up with some home school families once a fortnight to practice public speaking. We will be learning poems or something of interest and build from there.When we reach the beginning of the teen years we will be looking for a public speaking group and attending regularly.

Vocabulary is not synonymous with spelling and is often times missed in language arts programs and deserves equal mention and attention. Twaddle free literature introduces new words in context to the student. Do not make the mistake of only choosing literature that your child can read to themselves. This is where read alouds serve you well. In a read aloud your student figures out meaning via context. Actively choose words to enlarge their vocabulary. As a student gains ability create lists of words not to be used in written communication or composition (eg said, walk, talk,). Classical literature is a good friend to any home educating family, because the words used in them are not in use in today's society. Often times we have had to have a dictionary on hand to look up a word.  I remember when we read The Little Britches Series and had to look up the word victuals and from that day it became a family favorite.

Poetry enlarges a students language ability and teaches the clever use of words in self expression.  With this in mind we will be enjoying poetry together.  As Sir N gains confidence in public speaking we will add in poems to learn and present with expression. We will try different types of poetry until we find some that we like and then explore it further.  Poetry comments on all human experiences, it is comprised of everything  from war poems and epics, to psalms of worship, to love sonnets, to delightful nonsense verse that trips off the tongue, to nursery rhymes - CMC Page 220



Grammar Programs

Spelling Programs
Narration & Copy Work

On the www
Blessings
Chareen


This post is part of the Home school High School Carnival.  Don't forget to pop on over to Jimmie's Collage to read what others are saying about this topic. (Carnival will be live in April).




Disclaimer & Disclosure: Opinions expressed by contributing authors, comment's and reviewers are solely the responsibility of the author of each blog/website. Every Bed of Roses assumes no responsibility for the accuracy of the contributions, comments, and reviews. There are no affiliate links in this post. Links to external, or third party Web sites, are provided solely for visitors' convenience. Links taken to other sites are done so at your own risk and Every Bed of Roses accepts no liability for any linked sites or their content. When you access an external Web site, keep in mind that Every Bed of Roses has no control over its content.
Posted by at 8 comments:
Labels: , ,

Tuesday 16 October 2012

TT - Dickens His Work and His World

 Welcome to Tuesdays Treasures.  I started these posts as a way of sharing great books in honour of my friend in New Zealand who would arrive with the treasures she had unearthed at her weekly trip to the library!

There are so many wonderful books out there hiding on shelves so I invite you to blog about a book on your shelf, one you're reading or one you found at the library and add your post to Learning All the Time Favourite Resource Link Up. 



This week ...


I am super excited about this discover at our library and have now purchased it to have in mine.  It's a beautiful book well written and easy to read.  It's definitely one that Charlotte Mason would call a living book. It is engaging and easy to understand without twaddle and family friendly.  Wonderful read aloud and the illustrations bring this story to life. 

Book Depository Description - What the Dickens is all the fuss? Take a lively look at an author whose indelible characters live on in our language and culture -- and whose legacy shapes our literature to this day. Join award-winning author, critic, and anthologist Michael Rosen for a spirited tour of the life and work of one of our greatest novelists. With stunning illustrations by Robert Ingpen, this accessible, child-friendly book vividly re-creates the world of Charles Dickens, from the author's childhood in London to his early career, his performances, and, of course, the great social and political upheavals of the time, which inspired so much of his work. Michael Rosen's vibrant discussion covers some of the best-known novels by Dickens, describing OLIVER TWIST, A CHRISTMAS CAROL, and DAVID COPPERFIELD, and providing a fascinating detailed analysis of GREAT EXPECTATIONS.

Reviews on the www:
Buy the book:
Blessings
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels: ,

Monday 12 March 2012

15 Grammar Goofs from Copyblogger

I was surfing a local Aussie Home School Blog and discovered this excellent graphic that I thought I would share with you. Feel free to print and use.  This graphic is used with permission to share.

15 Grammar Goofs That Make You Look Silly
Like this infographic? Get more copywriting tips from Copyblogger.
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels:

Tuesday 26 July 2011

Tuesdays Treasures (Vol 1-8)

The Usborne Illustrated Thesaurus

This book I must confess is one of the best purchases I have ever made.  I will never go back to a standard thesaurus after using this one.
On the back cover: The Usborne Illustrated Thesaurus makes it fun and easy to find the perfect word. Clearly written alphabetical entries are interspersed with stunning illustrated panels to provide inspiration for creative writing. Special panels for overused words, such as "nice", encourage writers to be more adventurous.

The panels are what make this book special and set it apart from any other thesaurus out there.  Someone has uploaded a few of the panels on line to give you an idea of what I am talking about and just what sets this book apart and makes it a must have.

Details:
  • Reading level: Young Adult
  • Paperback: 160 pages
  • Publisher: Usborne (June 29, 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0746046111
  • ISBN-13: 978-0746046111
  • Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.5 x 0.6 inches
  • Author: Jane Bingham and Fiona Chandler

Blessings

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , ,

Saturday 18 June 2011

Just for fun :)

Ode to English Plurals

We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.

You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.
If the plural of man is always called men,
Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?

If I speak of my foot and show you my feet,
And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?
If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?

Then one may be that, and three would be those,
Yet hat in the plural would never be hose,
And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.
We speak of a brother and also of brethren,

But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him,
But imagine the feminine: she, shis and shim!
Let's face it - English is a crazy language.

There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger;
neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren't invented in England .
We take English for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes,

we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square,
and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing,
grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?

Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend.
If you have a bunch of odds and ends and
get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?
If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?

Sometimes I think all the folks who grew up speaking English
should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.
In what other language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?

We ship by truck but send cargo by ship.
We have noses that run and feet that smell.
We park in a driveway and drive in a parkway.
And how can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same,
while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language
in which your house can burn up as it burns down,
in which you fill in a form by filling it out,  and
in which an alarm goes off by going on.

And in closing, if Father is Pop, how come Mother's not Mop?

 *-*-*-*-*

The first five verses are from a poem “Pluralities” written in January 2006 by Eugenia A. Nidia (EFITA Newsletter). I haven’t been able to determine who wrote the second part -

This poem really illustrates some of the interesting things that our children need to learn in order to grasp the English language ! 

I think as adults we forget just how much our students still need to learn.

 
Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,

Tuesday 14 June 2011

Factors influencing learning to read (Part 2 of 5)

Philosophies in learning to read

There are two very different camps in the homeschool fraternity: Better late than early and the it's Never too early. 

Better late than Early

"Dr. Raymond Moore and his late wife, Dorothy Moore are probably the best-known advocates of the later-is-better approach. The Moores' 1975 book Better Late Than Early summarizes research supporting their contention that children are not psychologically ready for formal learning until age eight to ten. They suggest that waiting allows children to gain the maturity and logical skills necessary for formal work and prevents them from becoming frustrated and discouraged by attempts to handle material they are simply not yet ready to understand." Quoted from Better late than Early on Homeschool.com To read the complete article go to: Better Late than Early - An Excerpt from: Homeschooling for Success

It's Never too Early

"When learned very young, while the infant brain is still being "wired up", it becomes second nature, another form of language used as fluently as speaking and listening. leave it until the age of five though, when the great spurt of brain growth and making of connections has finished, ..."

"It is for this reason that the so called plasticity of the baby brain must be used to advantage. By helping the growing child to make connections in her growing brain, we ensure that the brain itself is being modified and prepared for life."

The above excerpts are from Little Readers Foundation to read the complete article go to: Why teach very young children to read

Factor number 2 for me came in trying to figure out what what our philosophy was in regards to the right age to start teaching reading and not letting others sway me once I had it in place. Some people are very good at making their case.  If I change my mind every other day then I become a source of insecurity for my children and my homeschool. (James 1:8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.)

Personally I have decided that for each child it is different and it's all about knowing your student.  Some children thrive on early and for others they need to wait.  I found that pushing too early caused more frustration, tears and damaged our relationship.

What works better for you: Earlier?  Later or a mix of both ? More importantly why have you chosen this stance ?






Other posts you might enjoy

*-*-*-*-*-*
    Posted by at 3 comments:
    Labels: , ,

    Monday 13 June 2011

    Factors influencing learning to read (Part 1 of 5)

    This 5 day series of posts has been born out of a friends Facebook status expressing her concerns for her son who was struggling to learn his phonics rules. This in turn brought forth a cascade of memories from years ago when I first started homeschooling and was wrestling with my children learning to read.

    I remember we had been homeschooling for around six months and my beautiful bed of roses was very quickly turning into a handful of thorns!

    I was sitting at the table with Mr T and had both him and I in a flood of tears when the phone rang. It was Mrs O (a homeschool mom who had been home educating for around eight years) who asked me what was going on?  After listening politely to my woeful day, told me that if I was crying and he was crying I need to put away the reading / phonics books as he was not ready. After this I was to do some enjoyable learning together.  Gratefully I put the phone down, made some morning tea, snuggled up on the couch and read some great books together. We were in the middle of Core K from Sonlight. (As of 2011 it has been renamed: Core A)

    While all this was most pleasant it did not remove this nagging feeling that somehow I was failing my son, who after all was already six years old and not reading.  It's one thing to have homeschool mom's saying: "It's alright it will happen when they are ready." but quite another to daily walk that road when it feels like your child is the only child not reading.

    1001 Questions

    Questions constantly plagued me:

    • What was I doing wrong ?  
    • Should I do this or should I be doing that ?
    • Should I have started earlier?
    • Do I need to be waiting and starting later ? 
    • Maybe I need a different phonics program? 
    • Which is the best phonics program? 
    • Do I need to do phonics ?
    • Why do I need to do this phonics ?
    • Do I need a more intensive / less intensive program ?

    Adding to the the burden were well meaning friends who were asking me how the reading was progressing ? Every where I went I found mother's (yes school Moms and home school Moms!) comparing their children's abilities to read.  All this did was add to my anxiety. I did not want to be exposing my failures to all these people, let alone expose my children to prying eyes. I was beginning to feel like I needed to go into hiding till my children could read.

    Why is it that...
    • When we are young and at school we compare ourselves to our peers and their ability to read.  
    • When we become young people it never even crosses our minds to wonder how old the person in front of us was when they learned to read. 
    • When we go for a job interview we are never asked how old we were when we learned to read ?
    • When we are parents we start comparing our child's progress in learning to read with other parents.
    It occurred to me that no one has ever asked me how old I was when I started reading, so why am I allowing every one to judge me now on my child's ability to read ? This was the question that helped me take firm hold of the fact that we had chosen to home educate to allow for the time it took for each of my children to learn any new skill with out the pressure to preform or measure up to someone else's expectations.

    Now I do realize we need to have some 'standards' which come from comparison, otherwise how would we know when something is seriously wrong? Please note that I am not advocating never comparing, that is swinging the pendulum too far the other way. However I am talking about the comparisons we use which make us anxious and weary.

    I have learned that the first factor starts with me and the attitude I have. This encompasses the motives I have for wanting my student to do a certain thing or do a certain thing within a certain time frame.

    This process considerably eased my anxiety but not all of it.  I continued to search for answers to understand where we were on our journey.

    I leave you with this question:

    Why do we as home educators / parents compare our child against this unspoken rule that by the age of six our children should be reading ?







    Other posts you might enjoy

    Posted by at 3 comments:
    Labels: , ,

    Sunday 12 June 2011

    Teaching children to read .....

    I started writing about my journey on this topic when after three hours I realized that I had written a very long essay ! So I have decided next week to do a 5 day series of posts called:

    Some factors influencing learning to Read

    This will not be about the different methods used to teach reading but rather about some of the factors that influence a students ability to learn to read.

    I am looking forward to sharing my journey with you, the things that have shaped my philosophy about teaching children to read, and most importantly the things that have helped me relax and enjoy watching my students learn to read.

    I am looking forward to hearing what you have all learned on your journeys in teaching reading to your students!







    Other posts you might enjoy

    Posted by at 5 comments:
    Labels: , , ,

    Thursday 26 May 2011

    Why the english language is hard to learn

    I was reading a home school news letter and thought I would share this for fun.  I hope you enjoy these as much as I did. 

    The bandage was wound around the wound.
    The farm was used to produce produce.
    The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
    We must polish the Polish furniture.
    He could lead if he would get the lead out.
    The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
    Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.
    A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.
    When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
    I did not object to the object.
    The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
    There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
    They were too close to the door to close it.
    The buck does strange things when the does are present.
    A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
    To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
    The wind was too strong for us to wind the sail.
    After a number of injections my jaw got number.
    Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
    I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
    How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?
    Posted by at 1 comment:
    Labels:
    Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)