Teaching Tip Tuesday ~ 3 Writing Ideas for the Beginning Writer Moving Towards Independent Writing

Idea #1 ~ Shared Story

Materials Needed: a die, paper (with criss-crossed lines drawn to make small boxes is optional), pencil

What To Do:  Take turns with your child rolling a die.  The number that is on the rolled die is the amount of words that the roller gets to write of the story.  Encourage your child to write the words that she is able.  If your child wants to write a word that she does not know how to spell, then there are a few options: 1) write the word on a whiteboard and have her copy it, 2) spell the word orally while she writes the letters, 3) allow her to try to spell the word phonetically and then show her the correct spelling by writing it above her word.   This has been one of my children's favourite writing activities.  Below is a sample of one of our first stories ever written, completed about a year ago.

Idea #2 ~ Daily Journal Entry with Personal Dictionary

Materials Needed: Hilroy notebook, personal dictionary printable, pencil

What To Do: Provide daily opportunities for your child to write in a journal. You may leave the writing topic open ended, or you may choose to provide a sentence starter that is relevant to your child. Set a timer for a short amount of time {2-5 minutes}and inform your child that she only needs to write for the length of time set. When the timer goes off, immediately go over your child's writing with her. Remind her about capitalization and punctuation, and write the correct spelling above any misspelled words. Add any misspelled words to the personal dictionary page that is attached to the front cover of the journal so that your child can reference challenging words in the future.

{Please email Mrs.Holder for your own printable personal dictionary.}

Idea #3 ~ Sing a Super Sentence!

Writer's Way has a neat idea for helping your child practice writing interesting sentences - sentences that include an adjective, noun, action verb and a prepositional phrase! This website has many great writing ideas to browse through.  To access the instructions for Sing a Super Sentence, click here: Writer's Way, scroll down to the writing activity table, and find Sing a Super Sentence in the 3rd column, 4th row of activities.

Enjoy!

Life Journaling

Journal Entry #11:
We've been enjoying this book:

Mrs. Katz and Tush by Patricia Polacco



And along the way we have been learning how to follow one of the greatest commandments: Matthew 22:38-39

May you consider with your children ways to love your neighbours?
~ Pay a visit to an elderly one who enjoys seeing the young ones.
~ Bake cookies and make a card for a family who has recently moved in.
~ Invite the neighbour kids over for a tea party to give their mother some time to herself.

“For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.


For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.


For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.


For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.


For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.


People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed.


Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms.


As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself and the other for helping others.”


~ Audrey Hepburn

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May I share a couple of sweet ministries of some young ones with you?  The hands and feet and mouths of these youth are doing until the least of these. 

Braided Tresses   ~ Twelve year old Sharaya, is raising money for an orphanage in China from where friends of hers are adopting a baby.  She is a blessing!

Shoes for Kids ~ After a trip to Kenya, eleven year old Isabel, decided to start collecting shoes for the barefooted children in Kenya.  She has an amazing heart!

Matthew 25:34~40

Art Creations ~ Term 2

Another digital slideshow by Smilebox

Teaching Tip Tuesday ~ Learning to Write

In the Winter 2010/11 edition of The Old Schoolhouse, Susan Wise Bauer offers excellent recommendations on how to teach writing to your elementary student.

Writing is a process that involves two distinct mental steps.  First, the writer puts an idea into words; then, she puts the words down on paper.

In the elementary years, you should teach those two skills separately.  Teach students to take ideas and put them into words through using narration; ask the student to tell back to you in her own words what she's just read in her history or science or literature.  As the young student narrates out loud, she is practicing the first part of  the writing process without having to worry about the second part of the writing process: putting those words down on paper.

Separately, the student begins to master the second part of the process: putting words down on paper. This skill is developed through copywork and dictation.  Copywork and dictation allow the student to master the second step of the process without having to worry about the first (and difficult) task of putting ideas into words.

Eventually, elementary students will learn that in order to write, all they need to do is put an idea into words (something they've practiced extensively through narration) and then put those words down on paper (which they're accustomed to doing during dictation). 

To help clarify what Susan is describing, I have provided some definitions of the writing processes that she describes:

Narration: Student retells in her own words information acquired from her reading.  The information may have been read to her, or if she is a fluent reader, she may have read the information herself.  Narration is a quick and easy way to check for understanding of the material read.  Narrations can be recorded by a parent if desired.

Copywork: Copying quality writing which may include poetry, scripture, great sentences from literature, famous quotations, facts copied from science or social studies learning, well structured sentences chosen by the parent, etc.

Dictation: Parent reads a sentence out loud and the student writes it.  Sentences may come from the student's copywork, or from a grammar/spelling curriculum, or from well structured sentences chosen by the parent. Dictation usually begins after the student is quite proficient at copywork.

Further Links Highlighting the Above Writing Processes:

Telling Back as a Learning Strategy/ What is Narration? 

Free Bible Verse Copywork Printables

More Free Copywork ~ Simply Charlotte Mason

Using Dictation ~ Katie's Homeschool Cottage

Dictation ~ Pioneer Woman Homeschooling

Please note:  The above links often refer to the Charlotte Mason or classical methods of homeschooling as the primary methods that use narration, copywork and dictation.  While this is typical, these writing strategies can easily be implemented alongside any homeschooling curriculum of  your choice.

Ann Voskamp, an author, a farmer's wife, a homeschooling mom of a 'half a dozen children', has designed a collection of seventeen readings and prayers to lead up to the celebration of Easter.  Included alongside each devotion is a corresponding classical art piece, as well as an activity suggestion for the family to draw closer to Him by doing.  Sharing the gift here: A Holy Experience