Merry, Merry Christmas

The Mystical Nativity by Sandro Boticelli

It Came Upon a Midnight Clear by Edmund Sears
(final verse)

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophets seen of old,
When with the ever-circling years
Shall come the time foretold,
When the new heaven and earth shall own
The Prince of Peace, their King,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

Days 20-22

Day Twenty

New sounds to introduce: u and f

Build some words using all the sounds so far: bug, puff, up, fit, cup, fin.

Briefly introduce concept of double consonants (such as ff, ss)

Introduce new sight word: to

Read Book 8 ("Muff and Ruff") pp. 1-4.

Day Twenty-One

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, f, hard-g, h, short-i, j, m, n, short-o, p, r, soft-s, hard-s, t, u, w

Build some words using all the sounds so far: rip, dip, sip, hit, gut, cut.

Introduce new sight word: for

Review old sight words: the, to

Read Book 8 ("Muff and Ruff") pp. 5-ff.

Day Twenty-Two

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, f, hard-g, h, short-i, j, m, n, short-o, p, r, soft-s, hard-s, t, u, w

Build some words using all the sounds so far: has, tap, pig.

Review old sight words: the, to, for, or

Read Book 9 ("10 Cut-Ups") all through.

Tips on Book 9

Book 9 is basically a review book in that it does not add any new sounds to our repertoire.

However, comma.

Book 9 requires the child to be able to read the number symbols 1 through 10.

Depending on the age and readiness of your child, he may or may not already know the number symbols. Knowledge of number symbols, though important, is not prerequisite knowledge for reading (contrary to the belief of text-messengers everywhere).

There are a few options if your child does not yet know the number symbols. The first is to read through the book with your child reading words and you reading number symbols. The second is to stop now, teach the symbols, and return to reading in a week or two (not highly suggested by me, by the way). The third is to skip the book and come back to it.

I personally would choose either the first or third options. Either way, if your child is beginning to read, he is perfectly capable of learning the number symbols, so get a puzzle or (my personal favorite) a piece of paper and some blocks to count, and start teaching those symbols. Once your child has learned the symbols, even if you choose option one and read the book right away, go back and read it again, letting the child read the numbers alone.

Looking Forward: What Comes After Phonics?

Before I begin, let me explain that I am going to explain to you what I do with my students. By saying this, I am implying that this is not the only way to go about working on language mastery. I am just sharing what I do and have done. This does not mean I disapprove of others who choose a different route.

You see, some families and schools choose to do many years of intensive phonics. I don't. Instead, I move my students through all the patterns of the English language as quickly as I can. This doesn't mean that it is rushed, but that I don't tarry any longer than is necessary.

You see, my goal is to have a solid reader by Year One, also known as first grade. We will see how this works with A. We have one and a half years before we begin Year One.

So, as I was saying, I keep moving along. We learn sound after sound, pattern after pattern, until we've gone through all of the Bob Books and through a whole collection of easy-to-read books I have in our family library. I keep a chart of the first 100 books the child reads (I'll post about that some other time). Once we've read 100 books, besides being richly rewarded, we start working in reverse.

Instead of reading lessons, we switch to spelling lessons.

Or, at least, that was what I did with my first child and what I plan to do with subsequent children. Tutoring students of mine would have just went their own way when I was done with them. I mean, who ever hires a spelling tutor?

I certainly didn't think this way back when I was tutoring. In fact, it wasn't until a couple years ago that I learned of Sequential Spelling,but I am thrilled with it nonetheless. In my opinion, it is the back door to phonics.

Sequential Spellingdoes not teach the child to spell particular words, but to spell English words in general. It actually aims to unlock the patterns of the language for the child so that they grow in their understanding of how the language works.

Another thing I like about the program is that it doesn't avoid difficult situations, such as words which sound the same but are spelled differently. In fact, it became obvious to me that the program was written by a man when these complicated cases were faced head-on, day after day. This was a man, by the way, who "cured" his own dyslexia. He is not afraid to tangle with words.

So, as I was saying, in our home, our plan is to do a broad but thorough overview of phonics. I do not worry if they forget a couple digraphs here and there because I know that they will be reinforced as we learn to spell thousands of words.

Incidently, I would never begin spelling simply because a child was in Year One. I would always, always, finish up our phonics program before finishing spelling. Now that I've worked with the program for a while, I think that will work best for our family, and you might find it works for yours, too.

So, to bring this full circle: What comes after phonics? In our home, the answer to that question is spelling.

Tips on Book 8

Before I actually post my plans, we need to talk a bit about Book 8 ("Muff and Ruff"). Book 8 actually adds two sight words into the child's vocabulary without warning, and I made the mistake of not prepping Neighbor M. It was fine, because she is flexible that way, but I'm glad my memory was refreshed before encountering the situation with Daughter A.

The sight words are: to and for.

The way I have written the plan (as it will appear next week...I use autopost for this blog) is that they are introduced on separate days.

A few thoughts on this are as follows: First, we are beginning to possess a short list of sight words. Now is the time to add this into the plans. This will make the lessons only slightly longer. I am henceforth adding in a "sight words to review" section of the lessons. Second, since the word "or" is inside of the word "for" we can go ahead and teach the child this, which is basically to teach them a basic spelling pattern anyhow.

Third, do you notice anything about these words?

Raise your hand if you think your child is going to mistake them for numbers!

Almost all children do. This is why when you are introducing homonyms--any homonyms--you must, must, must use a sentence. Words without context are meaningless anyhow. Furthermore, this is a good habit for any new word in general. The difference is that with homonymns, the child will think that they know the meaning of the word when they do not.

I usually say something like, "This is the word to. Now, you probably think that this is the number two, but it isn't and we're going to learn how to read the number two later on. But this is the other to. Do you know what it means?"

Some children do and will use it in a sentence. If the child is baffled, I go on: "Well, let's have a conversation using the word so that you will understand it." Then, hand the child the book or binder or pen you are using and tell them to hand it back to you. Then point to the word and say, "See? Hand it to me. To. This word tells us where something is going, what it is moving towards."

Try a similar approach with for. Don't be afraid of homonymns. Admit that they probably think it is a name of a number, but it isn't really. And so on.

Distinctions are a very important part of the process of learning to think. Just as I sometimes have my students study the letters b, d, p, and q and try to tell me how all of these very similar looking letters are different, so we have them begin to distinguish between the homonymns. The ability to distinguish is the beginning of the ability to think rightly, so don't be shy.

TRWBB: The Method

Let me be frank with you: once you get this method down, you can teach a child to read using any basic book. I happen to really like the Bob Booksbecause they add letters slowly, and with an easily overwhelmed child (like my daughter A.), they work at just the right pace. However, there are other similar options, such as the Now I'm Reading!series, or even an old reader from the 1800s.

You can even start with the first sentence of the Bible.

The point is that you start somewhere. Introduce some basic letter sounds. Play with those sounds and build some words. And then read something, somewhere, that is in print. What I like about Bob Booksis the feeling of success they give the children. If they can read one word, they can flip the first page of the first book. There is nothing so satisfying as flipping a page when you first begin to read. Finishing a whole book is even better.

If you do this every day, reviewing old sounds, learning new sounds, and practicing, if you move on over time, going through digraphs and diphthongs, until the child has learned the basic patterns of the English language, you will have a reader.

It really isn't as hard as it seems to begin with. And you will find that you know when your students are ready because students who are ready learn quickly and naturally.

In a word, it is enjoyable.

For those of you who were using my plans and might be disappointed that I'm going backwards to begin my newest student, I really think you can do this on your own.

Go through four pages of the Bob Bookyou are currently reading through. Discover the new sounds in the book (do not trust the list at the front; it is not always exhaustive) and teach them to your child, play with those sounds, read those pages, and then do the same thing tomorrow. And then the next day. And then the day after that.

You will find that, in a year or so, you have taught your child to read.

This is the first step in mastering the language. Learning to read is necessary for being able to spell, to learn grammar, to write...to think. So, in ten minutes per day, you are doing your child a favor. You are helping them enter the world of thinking well in English.

Persevere. Practice.

You will do fine.

The Future of TRWBB

When I first began this blog, not so long ago, I thought that I had a good six months of working with Neighbor M. ahead of me. Now, I find that she will be moving on at the end of this week. This is very good news. I am excited that she can take this journey with her mother from here on out; I love to see the hearts of parents and children turned toward one another, and learning together tends to have that effect.

However, I will not pretend that this does not impact the blog.

My question became what to do with it. I don't know how many of you five readers (ha) are actually using the lessons, versus just reading along to get ideas for what you are already doing in your home. I briefly considered carrying on and writing out lesson plans that I wasn't actually teaching. I decided that wasn't realistic, nor a good use of my time, nor a good idea in general.

Theoretical lesson plans have a greatly diminished potential for success compared with a journal of what actually happened.

With this said, you all know that I began formal reading lessons with my daughter A. this week. I have decided to continue to publish my teaching journal here, but this might be incredibly boring for some of you because I am starting back over at Day One. Of course, unlike Neighbor M., God willing I will be continuing through all forty Bob Books with her, and this will give the blog the long, healthy life I initally intended for it to have.

I may also throw in some pre-reading prerequisite knowledge posts if I learn anything interesting. I begin working with my almost three-year-old daughter Q. in term two of this year. She is turning three in a few weeks, and she is wanting to learn something interesting, so she tells me.

So there you have it: we will continue along as we have been going. I will finish up my journal for one student, and begin a new journal with a different student. And so it goes.

Her First Reading Lesson

Yesterday was the big day. Last week, A. received her last little letter for her matching game. Then, we practiced the game for three more days, always remembering that next week, on Monday morning, A. would receive her very first reading lesson.

And she was so excited. Everyday she asked me if today was the day. She jumped up and down and wiggled and generally revealed that her entire self was full of joy over this new prospect.

On Monday morning, Neighbor M. had her regular reading lesson, and then I had all of the girls outside briefly to finish up snacks and give me a couple moments to prepare for A.'s lesson. I had forgotten about it over the weekend and hadn't yet gathered her binder supplies.

A. came in early.

Is it time? she wanted to know.

I told her it wasn't, that I still wanted to brew some coffee, but that she could wait for me on the couch if she wished.

And so she did.

Now, A. is my most emotional child. She is also a bit of a worrier. If I ever introduced anxiety into the learning process, I think she would shut down entirely.

So, as I was saying, she sat there. And as she sat, she began to think. And as she thought, she began to worry. And as she worried, she began to fret.

I saw her begin to physically collapse on herself, and she arched her back in a sort-of tantrum that was really more like physical distress.

Mom! she loudly whimpered.

Yes?

But I can't weed!

I know. That is why I'm going to teach you.

But what if I can't wemember? What if I don't do it wight? What if I forget the sounds, or say them wong?

My heart broke for her, and my mind flew into the future. I imagined all the numerous times I was going to be giving this child a pep talk. She doubts herself. She falters at the merest hint of criticism. You can do it! is going to be the theme of my relationship with her, I just know it.

And so that is what I said. You can do this, A...and I will help you. I know you'll be just fine.

All of her doubts had even convinced me. I planned a much easier first lesson than I had done with the confident Neighbor M. I planned for only reading two pages in the first book instead of four. I expected her to forget her sounds. I was ready to pick her up with failure.

And she completely blew me away.

She needed very little coaching. She remembered everything in a way that is uncommon for this scatter-brained child of mine. She flew through the two pages, so I added two more.

She did it.

And she loved it.

You did it! I said.

__________________________

Crossposted at Afterthoughts

Day 19

I know that I usually post three lessons at a time, but I was finishing some things up and thought I'd post this. I will post one more set of lessons (three of them if all goes as planned) and then, as far as I know, that will be the end of my instruction with Neighbor M.

I will talk more about that in a future post.

For today, I thought I'd just post Day 19. If you recall, I am moving at the new pace of only two days per book. This means that we will, hopefully, get into book 9 before Neighbor M. starts working with her mommy.

Day Nineteen

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, hard-g, h, short-i, j, m, n, short-o, p, r, soft-s, hard-s, t, w

Build some words using all the sounds so far: hop, bop, top, win, tin, bin.

Read Book ("Jig and Mag") pp. 5-ff.

Days 16-18

At this point, my current student, Neighbor M. (these "lessons" are more of a journal concerning what we actually did each day than anything else), is ready to speed up a bit. She has an excellent memory for sounds and isn't easily overwhelmed by the fact that we're adding new ones weekly.

With that said, the lesson plans are going to reflect a pace that is slightly faster than before. What I cut out was the review day--the day where she reads the whole book all of the way through. I have a couple motivations for this. First of all, I want to keep it challenging for her, so getting to book six was important. Second of all, next Thursday is, if all goes as planned, my last day tutoring Neighbor M. Her mommy is ready to take over, which is a good thing. However, I find myself wanting to really finish well, and get her as far along as I can so that she is ready to start strong with her mommy as her new teacher.

The timing in the latter, by the way, works out perfectly. It turns out that, in God's providence, my own little A. is ready to commence reading lessons on Monday morning. So, all in one week, I lose one reading student while gaining another. It is so satisifying to see these children growing. A. moves into reading, and Q. takes her place at learning letters. Q. is receiving some letter puzzles for Christmas which will come in handy for just this purpose.

And so it goes: the cycle of life. One graduates, and another comes to take her place. And woe to the culture which has no future students to take the place of the former, for that culture is a dying one. But I digress.

Ahem.

On to the lessons! But first: if you haven't already noticed, I spent time yesterday discussing how to teach the new concepts introduced in Book Six. Please read my tips on cadence and beginning grammar before continuing. The details in that post will not reappear here in this one.

Day Sixteen

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, hard-g, h, short-i, m, n, short-o, p, r, soft-s, hard-s, t

Build some words using all the sounds so far: rib, can, sit, him, dim, bib, big, tap, man, pot, rob, top.

Briefly introduce the concepts of cadence and grammar.

Read Book 6 ("Dot and the Dog") pp. 1-4.

Day Seventeen

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, hard-g, h, short-i, m, n, short-o, p, r, soft-s, hard-s, t

Build some words using all the sounds so far: din, Ron, top, sand, mad, gob.

Read Book 6 ("Dot and the Dog") pp. 4-ff.

I do not do a review grammar/cadence lesson unless I really think the student didn't understand it. From this point on, however, I work with the child on improving cadence. Some children will ask again about question marks, and answering their questions simply will help. Today, for instance, I was asked, "Why is there a question mark there?" The answer was, "Because that is the end of the question." I traced the whole sentence with my finger and said, "See? This is the whole question, the whole thought."

And that was all, and it was enough.

At this point, because I'm clipping along at the new, faster pace, we are skipping reading all the way through, like I mentioned before. With tutoring students, there isn't anything I can do about this, but with my own children, when I'm moving at this type of pace, I have them review the books, if possible, with another adult (like their father) later in the day. This gives them the chance to read the whole book without spending an entire day on it.

If I had regular tutoring students, I'd make sure I had a few copies of the books so that I could lend them out in instances like this one.

Day Eighteen

List of sounds to introduce: j and w

Build some words using all the sounds so far: Jig, win, wit, jab, jam, bit.

Read Book 7 ("Jig and Mag") pp. 1-4.

Remember to make sure the sounds for these new consonants are quick, clipped at the end. We want them reading jam as jam and not juh-am.

Tips on Book Six: Cadence and Basic Grammar

Book Six from Bob Books: Set 1 introduces a couple new concepts, rather than new letters. In my experience, younger children (age 3 and early 4) hardly notice this because it takes all of their mental energy to read the words. Older children, like the bright five-year-old I was working with today (she's not my child, so I can call her "bright" without bragging), however, will have the sounds down because the book isn't working with new sounds, and their eyes will be wide open to the other things that are new.

The two new concepts are: (1) more than one sentence on a page, and (2) the question mark.

When you begin this book, you need to be prepared to teach a tiny bit of grammar. There is no way around this, especially if the child is inquisitive.

Before beginning this book, there was a period at the end of each sentence, but the child was not pausing at the end of the sentence due to the period. No, he was pausing because it was the end of the page. However, you can use this association to train him. You can show him a book from before, and point out how each page contained one single thought (I use the words thought and sentence interchangeably because later, in actual grammar instruction, I want him thinking of sentences as expressing the structure of thinking), and point out the periods.

Now, tell him that this new book is because he is growing up and he can read more than one thought per page. But he needs to remember that each sentence is a separate thought. The period tells us where the thought ends.

This is a good time to read a single sentence. Have him read one sentence, and then stop. Explain that he stopped because that was the end of the thought. Tell him to take each thought separately. This is important, for from the very beginning they are working on the cadence of the language, and it is best to set healthy patterns now.

Now that he understands that a sentence is a thought, show him the question mark. Just point it out right there on the first page. Tell him the name of the question mark and ask him what he thinks it is for. A lot of kids will infer from its name that it is for questions. If your student does not, try asking an easy question like, "If it is called a question mark, do you think I use it to ask questions with?"

So then he learns that periods denote one type of thought (statements) while question marks denote a different type of thought (questions).

At this point, read a question. After the child has sounded out the words, instruct him to say it like he's really asking a question. Look for the upwards vocal inflection at the end of the sentence. This is how Americans ask questions: there is a high "note" in the tone at the end. Practice. Not every child will "get" this on the first day, so don't fret about it.

All of this should only take five minutes, and then move on with whatever you were doing.

Each time you open Book Six, however, review these basic ideas. Make sure you ask questions rather than just informing the child. If you spend three or four days on this, he'll have a decent grasp of it.

From this point on, however, you will have to reinforce pausing at the end of sentences. Some students will get this after one day, others will perfect it over the course of months, so be patient.

Achieving proper cadence is part of learning to read. Not all reading is phonics. With that said, don't skip this lesson. Have you ever heard an adult read aloud and it sounds all wrong, even though they didn't miss any of the words? This is because no one ever taught them proper cadence.

Incorporating Practice During Read-Aloud Time

Hopefully, you are reading aloud to your children for an hour or two (no, not in a row!) each day. We read on and off throughout the day. Some of our reading times are odd compared to other families. We like to break out a book, for instance, on the way to the grocery store. This has become a pleasant tradition, and now the children miss it when we forget to bring a book.

Hearing the language is key to growing in understanding of the language. This is yet another reason to choose good, well-written, living books.

With that said, there will be times when you and your child are snuggled on the couch. I am not one to normally point to the words as I read, but I have found that this does help any onlookers start to make connections. I had one child who didn't understand what part of the book I was reading until I started doing this. I don't know if she thought I was making up a story as I went, or "reading" the pictures, but she acted shocked when it dawned on her that I was reading those little letters down at the bottom of the page!

At the earliest stages of reading lessons, a child may enjoy excercising these new mental muscles. We can give them this opportunity during our times of reading aloud.

Before I go on, I must give a brief disclaimer: an easily-flustered child may not like this idea. (Ask me how I know.) So, this is good fun for some children, and to be completely avoided with other children, and you will have to decide on a child-by-child basis.

If you pre-read, that is best, but if not, you can be spontaneous. Just try and catch a word here and there that they are able to read. Let them read it quickly, or sound it out slowly, whatever is their level of ability. They will enjoy helping with the story.

Some children will be able to handle this on every page. Others will only enjoy reading a handful of words in one sitting. Adjust to the child's preference; remember that we are avoiding burnout!

What I have found with this exercise is that this is the beginning of getting them out of the Bob Books and into exploring the books in the family library.

New Words? Fear Not!

Today with Neighbor M., I was playing with the letters, trying to come up with words she hadn't read before. I hesitated before listing a few because I thought that she might not know their meanings. And then it dawned on me that this is what it is all about. We are nurturing language ability. How can a child incorporate new words if they never hear them? And how will they hear them if we fear challenging them with new words?

Mind you, all of the words we were working with were three-letter combinations. There was nothing tricky. And I want to show her the amazing flexibility she already has now that she has mastered so many basic sounds.

So, for instance, I gave her the word dab.

What's dab mean? she says. I didn't define it by telling her about it. I showed her. I said that maybe she hit her head and she was bleeding a little and I grab a cloth and...I dab off the blood. I gently swiped at her forehead.

I also told her that we use it to mean "a small amount." So maybe your mom is making you a sandwich and she asks if you want mustard on it and you say, "Just a dab." She giggled. And then she tried to use the word herself!

And then it came back to me that this is what I am constantly doing with E., who is an advanced reader. He is expected to keep a list of words as he goes, along with the page numbers so that we can find them again in context. Sometimes, they are words he has never seen before. Other times, they are words in British literature or older literature that are used differently from the way he has read them before. In any event, we do not fear the new words, but tackle them head-on.

He has built an amazing vocabulary this way, which is really to say that he has broadened his ability to think precisely this way, because all thinking takes place using words.

My new approach is going to be to attempt as many new words as are available to us with the sounds we are studying. I want her to absorb the idea that all of this is an adventure of the mind, that growing in knowledge and understanding is exactly what she was born to do.

So, do not fear new words!

Of course, you will have to guage your student. My A., who is just about to start reading lessons herself (maybe January) would be totally overwhelmed by more than one new word during a lesson. She is easily flustered. The goal is to stretch without breaking.

Days 13-15

Just as a reminder, if any children are finding this pace too fast, all you need to do is slow down the lessons. Perhaps you will stretch one day out to three days by listing the review sounds, building some words (or even sentences), and then ending by reading only two or three pages. Always keep at the child's pace.

Also, stick to the time limit. Once anxiety is introduced into the process through a burned-out brain, you might lose the child's sense of delight. Delight is key to lifelong learning, so we don't want to lose it!

Day Thirteen

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, hard-g, h, m, n, short-o, r, soft-s, hard-s, t

Build some words using all the sounds so far: can, bag, sag, cab.

Read Book 4 ("Mac") straight through

Day Fourteen

List of sounds to introduce: p and short-i

Build some words using all the sounds so far: bit, pit, dip, pin nip, nap, pan, rap, gap, tip, sin, him, dig, is

Read Book 5 ("Dot and Mit") pp. 1-4

Day Fifteen

List of sounds to review: short-a, b, hard-c, d, hard-g, h, short-i, m, n, short-o, p, r, soft-s, hard-s, t

Build some words using all the sounds so far: did, sit, big, tin, rip, pig.

Read Book 5 ("Dot and Mit") pp. 5-ff

A Tip on The

The word the sort of follows a rule. I say sort of because it is more of a sight word than anything else, and yet the consonant digraph |th| has a consistent sound throughout the language (this, then, them, they, those, and so on). However, when learning phonics, there are some words we need to introduce before we are working on digraphs of any kind, and one of those words is the.

This is actually very simple to do.

Any child who has been read to will be familiar with the concept of "the end." Thankfully for us, each of the books we are taking the children through also ends with "the end." So the child has probably already picked up on it to begin with.

The first time we run across the within the text of the book and not just "the end" at the end, the child is usually stumped. So I quickly flip to the end and show them "the end." Usually, the child remembers the phrase and reads it. At this point, I flip back and forth, showing them that the in "the end" is the same word as the in the story.

Then, I show the child that we use this word all the time. I make up two or three sentences: Mom ate the cake. He hit the ball. She sat on the table. Help them see that we use the word all the time, and that "the end" is only one of the times.

After this happens, I am prepared for the the likelihood that during the next two or three weeks, the child is not going to remember the unless they are reading "the end" at the end. No worries here. Every single time, flip to the end and ask them if they remember this word right here, and point to the. Remind them that this matches the word they are trying to read. Ask them what the word is for one last review and move on.

After a few weeks of this, they will naturally begin to read the within the text.