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Syncletica
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| Posted: Feb 06 2012 at 10:43pm | IP Logged
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I'm really starting to struggle with what to do for language arts lately and starting to be a bit burnt out. I want to do a C.M/Ruth Beechick type of Natural Method learning, but don't have a set plan and my brain is on overload; unable to think of what to do. I want to do copywork (how often?); dictation (how often?); narration --we don't do this nearly as often as we should. I want a Monday to Thursday plan, since Fridays are off.
I really, really like R. Beechick's ideas in "You Can Teach Your Child Successfully" where the child uses a certain selection for the week: copywork, compare their work with the model, dictation, and other grammar assignments. My issue is most especially coming up with other assignments. I don't know what to teach or if there's a resource that would help with it.
Perhaps I should resort to workbooks again?
Sorry if this appears as a mindless ranting plea  -- I've got a lot on my plate right now.
Thanks in advance for any and all help!! 
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Syncletica
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| Posted: Feb 06 2012 at 10:44pm | IP Logged
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Are there any good reference books for elementary and middle grades?
I was told about "Writer's Toolbox" by BJU for High School. Does anyone have any experience with that one? Is it a good one to get?
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"Live as though your judge were to meet you today, and you will not fear Him when He does come." - St. Augustine
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Mackfam
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| Posted: Feb 07 2012 at 8:38am | IP Logged
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Syncletica wrote:
| I want to do a C.M/Ruth Beechick type of Natural Method learning, but don't have a set plan and my brain is on overload; unable to think of what to do. I want to do copywork (how often?); dictation (how often?); narration --we don't do this nearly as often as we should. I want a Monday to Thursday plan, since Fridays are off. |
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This depends to a large extent on how old the kids are.
Narration - As often as you can manage for all kids over age 6, but this will have to bend some in a house with multiple children. Obviously, it's nearly impossible to listen to them narrate everything they read. I let the children know I *could* ask for a narration from anything (this lets them know they need to bring their powers of attention to all their reading)....but I choose narrations from random subjects throughout the week. So, I might ask a child to narrate from their history reading one day, and I may ask for a narration from their religion reading on another day. My high schooler can summarize her narrations quite well now, so she is either writing her narrations or summarizing a week's worth of reading at the end of the week for me. If you have some older children (10+) that have been narrating orally for some time and can do so with ease, it's time to begin asking them for written narrations. I don't ask for more than one written narration a day from my writers.
Young narrators will need you to listen to their narration immediately after they read, so I make that my priority. My older narrators can narrate much later in the day, and sometimes even later in the week. Great times for listening to older children's narrations:
** while folding laundry
** making dinner
** driving for errands
** weeding in the garden
** any time the hands are busy and involved, but you are able to be attentive.
There are many threads here on narration.
Copywork - Once a day for grades 2+ (some 1st graders could write). Choose something from a poem, a piece of literature, a hymn, a Latin prayer, something from the Mass, a saint's writing - something noble and worthy. When asking a child to do copywork, the goal is BEST EFFORT, therefore I do not ask the child to copy a certain amount (like 2 stanzas, or 6 lines) but rather, I set a timer for a reasonable amount of time for younger people (5 min for beginners) and ask them to give me their best handwriting no matter how slowly they have to write. Once a child is older (3rd or 4th grade), I let them choose what they would like to copy. This is a transition time from copywork into writing in their own commonplace book, which is a habit I encourage from around 7th/8th grade on. There are some neat ideas at Simply Charlotte Mason on a A Book of Mottoes, and here are a couple of threads from here on the Commonplace book:
Commonplace Book
Charlotte Mason's Notebooks
And some further reading for you here on the topic of copywork.
Dictation - We do these 2x a week. We spend one day studying the selection, and the next day writing it. Dictation exercises are one of the most efficient ways to teach language arts within the context of a living thought and a very short lesson. Talk about a power packed mini vitamin - you convey critical information in a way that is easy to digest, and in a short blurb of time so it isn't overwhelming!! In a dictation lesson we cover words that are a spelling challenge, and basic grammar: punctuation, useage, mechanics - all within the context of a sentence or two (sometimes a paragraph or more for older-high-school-age children). I usually begin dictation lessons when children are in the 4th or 5th grade.
There are many threads here which further discuss dictation.
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Grace&Chaos
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| Posted: Feb 07 2012 at 9:28am | IP Logged
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Syncletica wrote:
I don't know what to teach or if there's a resource that would help with it.
Perhaps I should resort to workbooks again?
Sorry if this appears as a mindless ranting plea -- I've got a lot on my plate right now.
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I'm discovering that language arts is always what stumps moms new to CM. This seems to be what most moms in my CM group have many questions about. Your thoughts are not ranting at all; very good questions 
(I'm not very familiar with Beechick.) My favorite place for resources on language arts the CM way is the Simply Charlotte Mason site. Before starting to read CM's original works, I thought that Hearing and Reading, Telling and Writing ... handbook provides a great start. There are many quotes from the original CM writings with the what to do and in what grades/levels.
And my other favorite place for encouragement and mechanics is this forum. Check out the threads Jen linked and her blog. She has a wonderful post series on LA. I always recommend the ladies in my CM group to read them. 
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Jenny
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jawgee
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| Posted: Feb 07 2012 at 10:07am | IP Logged
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Quickly...since you already have so many great responses!
We use Spelling Wisdom from Simply Charlotte Mason for dictation and copywork. I got the set of all five books in PDF format. I generally go chronologically through each book, but I do make exceptions if there is a passage that folds nicely into what we are studying.
(When DH was reading The Wizard of Oz to the kids, I pulled a bunch of passages from that book out for dictation/copywork, DS is doing lots of Thomas Paine now, and he just got done with some Benjamin Franklin quotes).
I like it because all of the passages are chosen for me, and a quick "control-f" can help me find any passages that relate nicely to our studies.
Right now with my 10YO son, we do copywork once a week and dictation once a week, although I'd like to move them both to twice a week next year.
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MNMommy
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| Posted: Feb 09 2012 at 6:44am | IP Logged
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I also really like the WWE series. Starting in the youngest years, WWE has 2 days of copywork and 2 days of oral narration per week. Over 4 years, it progresses to having your child write their own narrations. Until we started WWE, I couldn't get my head around how to do narrations.
I use Dictation Day by Day for daily dictation for my 2nd and 4th graders. It is free on google books. I use it for spelling and grammar, and I really like that the sentences are appropriate for their levels. It's not great literature, but it's been very effective for my purposes. I have used it consistently with my 2nd grader this year, and he seems to be more comfortable writing and have a better grasp of spelling that my dd did at the same age.
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Jennifer
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