I was reminded again why we’ll be heading into our sixth year enjoying Rod and Staff English. Yesterday, third grader and I read… How sweet are thy words unto my taste! Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Psalm 119:103 The assignment to emphasize that when we read God’s word we “should be careful to get all the good sweetness we can… …We must not
First Language Lessons and Language Lessons for the Very Young 1: A Comparison
It is confession time. We used First Language Lessons this year for our language study. We also used Language Lessons for the Very Young 1. It is true. I subjected my six-year old first grader to two different language books. Gasp. I had decided to use First Language Lessons when I saw the picture studies in Language Lessons for the Very Young 1. The gorgeous,
Games for Writing: Playful Ways to Help Your Child Learn to Write
Do have a child who is a reluctant writer, one who has an allergy to writing instruments, or who fills your house with moans and groans when it’s time to put pencil to paper? Whether you do or not, Games for Writing by Peggy Kaye is sure to make writing a fun subject for all of your children – and for you too! The book
Schoolhouse Rock Helps Learning Stick
Not everything has to become a formal lesson at our house, but I love being able to sneak in some learning with a helping of fun. I have seen in my own life that songs I have learned as a child I can still remember to this day. While this has many applications to homeschooling I only want to talk about one today, called Schoolhouse
Language of God Grammar Series from Catholic Heritage Curricula
Language arts covers such a dizzying array of subjects — from spelling to composition, from grammar to vocabulary, just to name a few. While, for whatever reason, we have gone primarily with secular sources for much of our language arts materials, we happily use Language of God for Little Folks from Catholic Heritage Curricula for grammar instruction. The Language of God books take a gentle
Institute for Excellence in Writing: TWSS
Institute For Excellence in Writing- Teaching Writing: Structure and Style DVDs By Andrew Pudewa Feeling Empowered as a Parent/Teacher Many of my blog readers have been asking me to write a review of Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) for a long time. I have hesitated to write the review since we are still very much a work in progress using their system of writing.
Teaching Grammar With Playful Poems
When I taught school outside my home it was all the rage to teach grammar through writing. While grading the students papers I made notes on the grammar I thought they needed to learn and then used the grammar textbook to teach grammar in mini ten minute lessons three times a week. Overall, I didn’t feel very successful, but I kept plugging along as that
Editor in Chief
My last review I shared about my search for a grammar text that would finish our study of grammar. I found Our Mother Tongue, and I am pleased with the way it teaches grammar. But, it doesn’t include sentence mechanics. (There is an appendix for the topic, but I don’t find it adequate.) It doesn’t address topics such as where to put commas, semi-colons, and