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Let’s Talk Copy Work and Dictation

When it comes to learning to read and write, copy work and dictation activities offer students the terrific opportunity to practice newly introduced material and to review previously taught information. Incorporate this activity into your weekly lessons for Hatchling, Volume 1 for Kindergarten, Hatchling, Volume 2 for 1st Grade, and Earlybird for 2nd Grade.

Copy Work places the focus on what the student actually sees. Copy work always begins with reading, decoding what is on the page before picking up the pencil to write.

Dictation places the focus on what the student hears. Listening carefully to the phonemes (sounds) being spoken, tying to encode (write) what is heard to using graphemes (symbol) on the page is no small task! But utilizing both newly taught information, while simultaneously reviewing previously taught information will help students to move toward mastery.

So how is this accomplished? At first the exercises are limited to tools available to the student.  This silly sentence is for review only, utilizing short vowels, sight words the, on and to, plus consonant blends sw, tr, fr, and cl is just right for a student during the middle of Kindergarten:

Can the dog swim on the trip to the frog club?

This silly sentence reviews  short vowels, blends, digraph, utilizes sight words: the, a, and to plus utilizes new material long vowel pattern a_e.  Utilize a sentence like this for students at the beginning of 1st Grade:

Can the dog bake you a cake to take to the lake for the trip to the twin’s ship club?

By the time students enter the 2nd grade,  they will have been introduced to the whole gambit of phonics for reading and writing, will have learned to read and write a hefty collection of sight words, and will have practiced constructing all four types of sentences with Hatchling, Volume 1 and Hatchling, Volume 2. These students are ready to tackle passages from the books they are exploring.

Move from gentle:

“One winter morning Peter woke up and looked out the window. Snow had fallen during the night. It covered everything as far as he could see.” ~from The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

To more complex:

“They made such a noise that Michael came running, waving his arms and blowing his whistle. He planted himself in the center of the road, raised one hand to stop the traffic, and then beckoned with the other, the way policemen do, for Mrs. Mallard to cross over.” ~from Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey

 

As students get older, progressing to CORE Level 1, Level 2, Level 3 and beyond,  passages from books are longer, words and phrasing becomes beautifully complex:

“His sympathy made tears spring to Lina’s eyes. Doon looked startled for a moment, and then he took a step toward her and wrapped his arms around her. He gave her a squeeze so quick and tight that it made her cough, and then it made her laugh. She realized all at once that Doon—thin, dark-eyed Doon with his troublesome temper and his terrible brown jacket and his good heart—was the person that she knew better than anyone now. He was her best friend.” ~from The City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau

FIVE Tips to GUIDE the Exercise

ONE. Create a Copy work/Dictation Notebook. Pre-bound composition books work great as a space to house this work. Date each entry and skip lines between entries. Dedicate a single page for longer entries.

TWO Type up what is to be copied or dictated.

THREE. READ! For copy work, the student reads the sentence or passage aloud slowly before beginning to copy. For dictation, first read the sentence or passage as a whole. Next begin reading phrases slowly, encouraging the student to repeat when necessary. Having your student read aloud  before beginning copywork, or repeating dictation when necessary will help to be present in the activity and to press what is being learned into memory.

FOUR.  Don’t hover over the student! Don’t interupt with corrections during copy work or dictation. Letting mistakes happen will help you to assess what the student has actually mastered.

FIVE. When the copy work or dictation exercise is complete, ask the student to re-read what has been written. If there are no mistakes—Bravo! If there are mistakes point them out and have the student re-copy, mistake free. Remind them that mistakes are opportunities to learn.

Thomas Edison once said:  “I have not failed one thousand times. I have successfully discovered one thousand ways to NOT make a light bulb.”

 

~Kimberly

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Let’s Talk Just Right Readers

 Books for primary readers are categorized into levels of difficulty—Just Right Readers.

Some of these books are categorized by grade level (GRL), some  by a developmental readiness assessment (DRA), and others still are categorized by a Lexile measure. The purpose of these readers is to provide opportunities for children to read as they are mastering the patterns of phonics.

Hatchling Volume 1 for kindergarten and Hatchling Volume 2 for 1st grade, systematically introduce students to phonics for reading and writing. In the Teacher Helps that is tied to both units, we offer information and strategies including this tidbit at the top of page 9:

“Phonics is a method of teaching students to read and write by helping them HEAR.”

 

In the English language, there are 44 sounds that make up every single spoken word.  These sound bites are called phonemes. The 26 letters of the alphabet are combined in various ways to replicate the sounds we hear. These are called graphemes. There are around 250 graphemes to write the 44 phonemes! Phenomenal, right? This is the heart of phonics.

During kindergarten and 1st grade, students using our Hatchling curriculum are introduced to over 150 of these graphemes setting them firmly on their way to reading and writing well. As students are introduced to phonics, it is important to practice both reading and writing. Early on, during kindergarten, students will have limited skills. At first, once the consonant and short vowel sounds are mastered, they will be able to read and write “can” or “fun” or “let” with ease. However, they might write “pepl” for “people” because those are the sounds they have mastered. As more complex graphemes are introduced (consonant blends, digraphs, long vowel patterns and so on), the reading and writing lexicon increases.

This is where Just Right Readers enter the scene.

Amelia Bedelia brought delight to my childhood. I mean, she took every figure of speech and turned it upside down, literally! She made me laugh out loud! “Dress the chicken,” seemed an odd task to Amelia Bedelia. But she obediently got on with the task and suddenly the chicken was dressed in overalls! Once upon a time, back in my day, this series of stories was not a Just Right Reader, but rather a wonderful series of picture books. The first twelve books in the series are written by Peggy Parish. After her death, nephew Herman Parish, continued the series. Since 2009, the stories have been adapted for part of the I Can Read series published by Harper Kids.

Just Right Readers are just right for primary readers. So fill a basket with wonderful stories for your Kindergartener, 1st, or 2nd grader. I promise Amelia Bedelia will make them chuckle! I promise she will stand the test of time.

 

~Kimberly

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October-Focus-on-ELA-fest

It’s October.

Fall is here and we are, most of us, 6 to 8 weeks into the 2023/24 school year.

What now?

First, please CONGRATULATE yourself for completing the first cycle of CORE Integrated Reading & Writing units, and likely introducing APPLICATION materials such as Calendar of Days, Operation Lexicon, One True Sentence, or Tools of Style. Be encouraged! Take heart!

“A power of Butterfly must be –
The Aptitude to fly
Meadows of Majesty concedes
And easy Sweeps of Sky —”

~Emily Dickinson

This butterfly, a California Buckeye, was spotted this week when I took a moment to enjoy a lovely fall day in the garden. And I thought of Emily Dickinson’s  amazing observation of the butterfly’s aptitude to fly.
And this got me to thinking of education and childhood.

A power of Childhood must be –
The Aptitude to fly—

It’s October.
Your students are stretching their wings.
You are likely getting ready to add Earlybird Introduction to Animals or your first Research People of the year or one of the Research Science units on top of the second CORE unit. And you might be a bit overwhelmed. You are not alone!
Sometimes, after the delightful anticipation and early days of back-to-school fades, fatigue sets in.
You may be experiencing that oh-so-familiar desire to countdown to the holidays!

We say: Not yet!!!

Don’t give up!

Take a moment in the garden. Enjoy the sights of fall.

Now is the time to take a breath and join hands with the teacher built in to your materials!

Let October-Focus-on-ELA-fest begin!!!

Here’s how:

1. Look back on your student’s first completed CORE unit. Make note of the small steps of progress.
2. Read about the 5-Minute Conference in preparation for the second CORE unit of the year.
3. Read (again) through the “How to Use this Guide” in the front of the student workbooks.

Primary (Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade)

At the primary level, foundational skills are introduced and reviewed, and put into practice. This is where students learn to delight in the joy of stories and the taming of ideas begins. Watch the Professional development for parents and teachers from August session for inspiration this October.

Elementary (3rd, 4th, and 5th grade)

Elementary readers and writers are becoming confident with grammar, mechanics, and form—sentences and paragraphs—and style! Writing at this level involves learning to craft an amazing Hook and working through the process of crafting an idea the happy way. Watch the Professional development for parents and teachers from our August session for inspiration this October.

Middle School (6th, 7th, and 8th grade)

and

High School (9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade)

The goal is for middle and high school writers to transfer their creativity and courageous ability to write an idea to more advanced forms—poems, literary, descriptive, and persuasive essays, and longer research. Watch the Professional development for parents and teachers from our August session for inspiration this October.
During the months of October, watch for weekly festive posts to boost you on toward November!

Your students will take flight!

 

~Kimberly

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How to Encourage Elementary Writers

 

How do students in 3rd Grade who are brand new to the paragraph form and still mastering foundational skills become unencumbered idea makers?

Incrementally and inspired by idea making, of course!

Writing is a creative habit that begins with an idea and ends with words on the page.

Over time, as students move into upper elementary (4th and 5th grade), with our CORE, they will become engaged in the work of learning to re-read their work, becoming friends with the red pen. Self-editing is courageous! Engaging in this process will bring shape to ideas which is precisely what enables them to press into and enjoy the process of writing.

And this habit, built over time, motivates students to write well!

Let’s explore how our CORE Integrated Literature and Writing units produce exceptional writers! Gain insight, tips, and encouragement.

Click through to watch a recording of the August Professional Development sessions with Mrs. B & Ms. Clare:

How to Edit Elementary Student Writing! 

 

~Kimberly