Writing Progress

Last year, one of Autumn's friends wrote a poem at school that was quite creative and cute. When I read it, I questioned whether Autumn could write something like that. This wasn't the pride kind of questioning. It was the 'is she even able'--'does she know how to write at all'--kind of question. I've written on this blog that I decided to switch writing curriculums this year. For Kindergarten, I had used The Writing Spot with the girls. But, the first grade teacher's guide I had wasn't specific enough in its plans so it seemed overwhelming. That was why I'd switched two years ago. After two years of Writing With Ease I had questions like the ones I mentioned earlier. Is Autumn learning to write?

She is a creative little girl and my feeling began to grow that she needed a creative curriculum. So, I went back to the curriculum I'd started with in Kindergarten from Great Source. I'm starting Autumn with the second grade level, though, because she hasn't been taught formally how to write. Writing With Ease taught her how to summarize (which she still wasn't very good at after 2 years) and copy good grammar and punctuation. So, we started school last week and she was so excited to jump into her new writing curriculum, Write Away. The first three days were getting to know her book. Yesterday she had her first practice journal writing and I wanted to share it. Her dad and I were pretty surprised by it. It reinforced to me that I made the right choice in switching.

*Please note that all spelling, grammar, and punctuation have been typed exactly as she wrote them.

My Practice Journal by Autumn

One day I was doing my spelling, When I felt my chair move. I thought, "I did not move my chair. Who did?" I looked underneath my chair and I saw Eli, my silly brother. I laughed. I said "Eli, What are you doing?" Eli said "I want to be a Gost for Haloween." I said "Eli, I know you want to be a gost for Haloween. Now, get out from under there." (Now jsut to be sure, I was not being mean. I had to do my spelling you know.) So Eli, my silly brother, my Three-year-old brother got out. He had draped a blanket over himself. But instead of taking it off and going to play he said "O-o-o-o-o." (He was being a ghost.) At lunch I said Eli "Eli since I know how to sew (for the first time,) I'll make a costume for you. it will be a ghost one." the end

Sami is enjoying her writing now too. My plan is to do copywork (one sentence) and dictation (again 1 sentence) once a week with her like Writing With Ease recommends to supplement her writing curriculum, Write One.

She dictated this story to me yesterday:

Sami's Story

Pam and Dan Race

Pam and Dan race. Then they have a picnic. They have a great time! They get back to the race. Go Pam. Go Dan. Pam wins. The End

I'm excited to see my girls develop this year in writing!

Missing Pieces

The other day I was discussing a book with my mom and explaining to her my concern about how "blame" is cast upon the child in the story. My mom commented about how deeply I read and consider what is written. Sometimes I wonder if I go overboard. Am I questioning too much? Am I overreacting? Why am I reacting this way? I come back to knowing that God wired me this way. But, I also reflect on how God has guided my path through the maze of books I've read over the past few years and what I've learned from the books themselves and from reading them. Recently, I read a book that troubled me. The book I finished reading was Guiltless Living by Ginger Hubbard. When I began reading it, I found myself puzzled and then disconcerted. And in the end, I cried. But, I cried for a different reason than one might suspect. I'd like to explain. I did not read Ms. Hubbard's previous book “ Don't Make Me Count to Three ”, but I knew from f...

listening or rather not listening to directions...

This week has been very eye opening. I am observing and noticing what I need to learn in order to be a better homeschooling mom and teacher and what my daughter needs to learn to be a good homeschooling student. My weakness when I was a teacher in a first grade classroom was not understanding how small concepts had to be broken down--and I lost my patience very quickly. This week, in particular today, I am seeing how detailed my directions need to be. I am going to be working very consciously and deliberately on this. On the other hand, I realized that my daughter does not listen! Wowsers! In a classroom, Autumn listens very well. She is a compliant child and very influenced by peer pressure and conformity. So, she listens along with everyone else and follows directions. But, at home, it's just Autumn and maybe Sami and Mommy. Very, very different! I had forgotten that most of kindergarten in the public schools is not focused on teaching students academic and learning co...

Writing A Homeschool Teacher Resume

I'm helping a friend who's switching jobs write a resume. She hasn't written one in years, so this is something new. I began working on her resume, but then stopped to write my own because I thought it might be helpful. Being a homeschool teacher may not seem to many like an occupation or career, but it is. I used the combined form of resume for myself. I began with the basic information, then moved on to strengths (the combined skills/experience part), education, Occupational Experience, then Related Experience, Certifications, Computer Skills, and mentioned at the end... References Available Upon Request. Sometimes homeschooling parents have to reenter the workplace because of family changes and needs. How could you express what you've been doing in a way that's acceptable for a resume? Well, here's my take on it... Teacher, Homeschool ...

love to paint

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