Does handwriting matter?

While the jury may still be out regarding the importance of teaching handwriting/penmanship, from where I sit, it isn’t something we want to leave out of our teaching repertoire. Though some might think the time needed to develop fluent handwriting would best be spent teaching keyboarding skills, I would contend that there is room for both. And, since keyboarding skills are now a current part of many curricula, it’s the handwriting skill that seems to get left by the wayside.

 As a former primary school teacher, I knew that basic letter recognition, formation, and sound-association were an absolute must for my first and second graders. But, even then, I didn’t understand the neurological underpinnings that learning handwriting has. First of all, I never truly considered what the brain and hand were doing while handwriting practice was conducted. To be honest, at first, I just used handwriting practice as a time-filling seatwork activity that allowed me the time take care of a few morning teacher tasks.

With experience, I began to give the handwriting practice time its due diligence. I started noticing that students developed a much stronger sense of directionality—writing left to right. I also found that students grasped the concept of “return-sweep” when they got to the end of a baseline and had to continue to the far left of the next base line on their handwriting paper. Why did that matter? Well, it had an impact on their ability to “return-sweep” when READING, too. Hmmm…go figure! I didn’t know this when I started teaching early reading, but some young students sort of fell off the face of the planet when they arrived at the end of a line of text they were reading. Amazingly, some students don’t naturally understand that they have to go back to the far left of the next line in order to continue reading fluently.

Another important aspect of teaching and learning handwriting is the support it can lend to students who exhibit dyslexia. Because of the connectedness you can achieve in cursive handwriting, reversals can be avoided. So, I began teaching cursive handwriting as early as my students were willing to put in the time and the practice to write cursive legibly. I know that many first graders just aren’t developmentally ready for cursive, but that never stopped us! I just taught them a simple set of handwriting strokes that would allow them to learn the connections between letters as soon as the basic formations were locked in. Here’s a short list of the handwriting strokes and their names:

If you are of the same school as thought as I am, then try adopting these basic handwriting practice strokes into your kids’ daily agendas, along with some meaningful copy work, such as short poems, scriptures, or famous quotes, and you will be doing your child a great service for now and in the future.

Summer Learning: Developing Your Child's Communication Skills

Have you ever thought of scheduling a weekly family meeting during the summer months? It really is a great way to boost communication skills at home! Kids of all ages, when given the chance, can participate in structured discussions to recap the previous week and plan for the next one. Routine meetings can allow everyone to contribute personal thoughts, feelings, ideas, choices, etc., so that everyone has an opportunity to be heard.  Topic possibilities are endless, yet providing this type of platform can build family connections and help children develop their personal communication skills.

Here’s how it works:

1. Pick a time which you set aside to conduct the weekly family meetings this summer.  It can be some time on the weekend or whatever works with your family’s schedule.  The point is to plan the time into your schedule so your children can look forward to having a special time to express themselves.

2. Work together to name the time set apart to meet. (Example:  The Johnson Council)  Create an official sign using the chosen name, and display it during family meetings!

3. Assign an office to each contributing family member.  Making the meeting time more formal can be fun for your children and also introduce them to the structure of a public meeting forum.  Here’s an example:

4. Create an agenda for your meeting time.  Include a recap of the last meeting, a budget discussion by the treasurer, weekly stars, and weekly wishes that are ideas for the upcoming week.  (A “star” would be something that is working well in your schedule; a “wish” would be something that will continually change.)  Example:

Providing your children with an opportunity to participate in a weekly family meeting during the summer months can sharpen their communication skills.  Meetings can coax reluctant speakers with a venue to express themselves as well as supply more vocal children with a vehicle to communicate in a safe, controlled environment.  Everyone can have a chance to contribute, and you might be surprised by what you will learn during these discussions. 

True Story:  (If I may share a short story with you from my own childhood, it might help you think about your own communication habits within your family.)

While I was in grade school, my mother used to braid my tremendously long hair in two braids every single day. Unbeknownst to her, the other kids would tease me about my braids, which of course mortified me.  I was embarrassed and would have preferred not wearing my hair that way, but in my shy obedience to my mom, I never said a word about it to her.

Imagine my surprise years later when I mentioned this period of my growing up years to her.  I will never forget her saying, “All you had to do was tell me. You didn’t have to wear your hair that way.”  …Wait! …All I had to do was tell her?! Ugh! 

My mother’s words opened a window in my mind to the value of communication.

Is there a shy, obedient child in your family that might benefit from a weekly time to express what is on his or her mind?  Do you have a more expressive child that needs structure and guidance to speak in an orderly way? Perhaps a weekly family meeting this summer could be just the tool your family needs to build communication skills.

What is cyclical spelling?

Here’s an idea to kick your kids’ spelling prowess into high gear. While it’s true that some kids are just naturally good spellers, my experience has been that most are not. They need a sure-fire way to lock in accurate spelling, especially when summer time rolls around and school is out.

Cyclical spelling might just be for you and your kids. Here’s how it works:

1. Start small.

Choose a source from which you will draw out vocabulary. It might be the word list your kid(s) used during the school year. Words can be drawn out of a book that you are reading aloud this summer, from a book your child is reading, from the newspaper, or even from video games with text narration.

Now, here’s the “start small” part…only pick one word a day! You pick it, or your child picks it—but pick only one. You will pick one word a day, but make it a fun competition between you and the whole family.

For that one word that is picked, have your players write it down somewhere fun. You can write words in sand in the sandbox, in sugar scattered on the table, or on paper with liquid jello. This is the time to get creative! The goal is for the word to be practiced at least six times throughout the day…and it MUST involve actually writing it down.

At the end of the day, at a designated time, the word should be spelled aloud and then written on lined paper. Everyone who is participating needs to have their own sheet of paper so that the list can grow.

2. Add a word-a-day.

When day two comes, pick another word and follow the same procedure for the new word. But, now enters the “cyclical spelling” approach. At the end of day two, both the first word AND the new word should be recited and then spelled correctly on the developing list.

Now that you will have two words for the spellers to spell, it’s time to pick the Teacher of the Day (TOD), who will be in charge of administering the cyclical spelling test. So, at the end of day two, someone needs to be in charge of gathering all spellers to take the Two-Word Test. The TOD will also be in charge of grading. Keep it light. You could implement M&M rewards…one M&M per correctly spelled word.

Remember, it's all about spelling AND having fun! At the end of day three, there will be three words on the quiz. At the end of day four…four words. You get the idea.

3. Keep the cycle going!

Continue to add the Word-a-Day and quizzing through all the words each day until you have five words on the list (skip weekends). Then, you will begin to drop off the very first word you started with, and it will now be omitted from the daily quiz. The next new word is added to the bottom of the list, which will, for now and until the end of the contest, contain five words to be quizzed daily.

The beauty of spelling like this over the summer is its cyclical nature. Too often, kids learn a group of words for the Wednesday Pre-Test and the Friday Final Test—and that’s it. When the next list of fifteen or so words is introduced, the first group becomes a mere acquaintance, soon forgotten. With cyclical spelling, spellers accumulate words that they have spelled (correctly!) and get the chance to work with them daily for five days in a row. This, my friends, is intensity without the tension.

Why not give cyclical spelling a try this summer…it may be a real hit with your kids—maybe even the whole family. Remember, the energy you put in is the energy you will get back out of it!

If you are using Shurley English, you engage in cyclical spelling in grades 1 and 2 all school year long. For more information about Shurley English and cyclical spelling in the primary levels, go to www.shurley.com.

Spend your summer at the library!

I fondly recall the summers I spent taking my son to the local library when he was young.  I can still remember his excitement as he perused the library shelves, looking for just the right books to take home to read.  Those weekly trips were part of our routine, and we both looked forward to them with anticipation!

Did you know that many libraries across the nation create summer reading programs for children?  I know that my local library hosts an incentive system where kids can earn points for reading books.  Those points can be used to redeem great prizes that students can use and enjoy.  Another special opportunity that’s offered is designed to encourage parental involvement. In this program, parents are given points for each book they read with or to their child.  Once an entire card is filled with book titles, parents can redeem points for prizes they can use and enjoy.  I personally believe that summer library reading programs like these are invaluable because of the life-long love of reading my son and I still relish today.

I’m sharing this information with you now because some libraries are offering really cool prizes this summer!  It’s not too late to get started!  Here are just a few examples I found:

• Students can earn points to win prizes.
• Students can earn points to win restaurant vouchers.
• Students can earn points for admission to local attractions.
• Students can enter a drawing for a college savings account.

How long has it been since you visited a library with your child? There are numerous incentives out there, so find out what’s going on at your local library today!  Your child can enjoy a fun summer program where the more they read, the more they will earn! You might find a great book to check out and read too!  It’s truly a win-win for everyone!  Take it from me; the benefits of a summer library reading program can be big enough to last a lifetime!

Why Downtime is Beneficial for Students

If you’ve been following our Shurley English Blog posts you know we’ve been flooding you with creative ideas on how to continue supporting your students’ academic progress throughout the summer.  We are also aware that with the high demands placed upon our children in today’s U.S. classrooms, it’s evident that children (and adults) have fewer opportunities to truly unwind and relax. 

Today, my suggestion is to remember to INCLUDE some “DOWNTIME” into your child’s daily summer schedule…here’s why:

*Research shows time off-task is important for proper brain function & health.

*The brain uses 20% of the body’s energy while on-task.

*Napping 10-30 minutes can increase alertness and improve performance.

*Meditation is a way to give the brain a break from work and refresh our ability to concentrate.

*Resting mental states help us process our experiences, consolidate memories, reinforce learning, regulate our attention & emotions, and keep us productive!

Downtime will give the brain an opportunity to make sense of what has just been learned, and shifting off-task can actually help learners refresh their minds, gain insight, and return to the task with more focus.

Time off-task isn’t always wasted time or a sign of laziness! I encourage you to create the balance between being a “human-being” and a “human-doing” this summer!      

Grammar Reinforcement + Sentence Building FUN!

As you near the end of your school year, it’s more important than ever to change up how you review any of the skills you want your students to retain over the summer. If you’re using Shurley English, there are many ways to add a twist to almost any concept you want to reinforce.

Earlier in the year, we showed you how to make Grammar Necklaces with the parts of speech. Here's a variation of this activity that I like to call "Team Building Sentences." (Team Building/Building Sentences...see what I did there?!?)  Here's what you need to get started:

Supplies Needed: yarn, construction paper, markers, stapler or tape

Assembly Instructions:

1.   Fold a sheet of construction paper in half over the yarn.

2. Staple or tape the outside edges to keep the yarn in place.

3. Write words on the construction paper. The more choices you offer, the more fun your kids will have! Be sure to have samples from all eight parts of speech. Here are some examples to get you started:

a, an, the

bug, lizard, leaf, log, rock

creepy, slimy, brown, scary, hairy, fuzzy, wet

under, over, around, inside

scuttled, oozed, crept, slithered, zig-zagged

Now, you can utilize these word necklaces in a variety of ways. Here are a few ideas:

1. With students wearing the word necklaces, arrange them in front of your classroom or learning space in a scrambled order. Then, when you say “Go!” have them rearrange themselves so that the necklaces create a complete sentence. You may even want to spice up the competition by giving them a time limit. Students who aren’t wearing the necklace can be the audience first, and then have everyone switch roles after one turn.

2. To help build teamwork skills, have your students who are “wearing the words” to collaborate and assemble their own sentences by traveling around, linking arms with other suitable partners whose words will help them build a great sentence. Be sure to have punctuation signs available that are not on necklaces, but displayed where they can be selected and used to make the sentences complete.

CHALLENGE LEVEL:

After you have verified that a correct sentence has been created, it’s time to jazz it up a bit by having students experiment with the four sentence types taught in Shurley English: declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory. Students will get a great grammar workout by arranging and re-arranging the “human sentences” so that each kind of sentence is created, using the same words.

The possibilities are endless! Feel free to share your ideas with us by using the comment section below.

Sensory-Based Activities for Spelling

As you approach the end of your instructional year, it’s time to pull out all the stops. It's a great time to reinforce the skills your students have learned throughout the year. Here are several cool ways to have some spelling fun:

Idea #1: Let Your Fingers Do the Learning

Tactile learners need extra stimulus through their sense of touch. No doubt, you have one or two in your bunch who learn best through touch. You can tap into their strengths by using shaving cream spread thinly on a large, solid, flat surface. Students can practice spelling basic phonemes in the shaving cream by drawing the letter symbols with their fingers in the thin shaving cream covering on the work surface. Sometimes, your kids may exhibit fine motor or gross motor issues—for instance, in their handwriting.

Idea #2: Piping Sounds and Words

Finally, for a completely edible and delicious way to review spelling strategies or phonics concepts, melt some chocolate chips and add a bit of paraffin wax to the mixture. Scoop some chocolate into plastic decorator bags or zip-lock baggies with a small hole cut out of one of the bottom corners. Announce a group of phonemes you want to review, or whole words to spell, and challenge the kids to “squeeze” out chocolate sounds and words onto wax paper. Refrigerate them after the review and enjoy eating them for a tasty and positive morsel of reinforcement!

By giving your students multiple sensory experiences with various mediums, such as shaving cream, you can review skills in a fun way and also help ease some of their frustration. Don't limit this activity to just sounds; you can have students spell out entire words, too. You can also turn this into a small-group activity and let students take turns.

Supplies Needed:

Shaving cream (foam, not gel)

Chocolate chips

Paraffin wax (the kind used in home canning)

Decorator bags or zip-lock baggies

You can always change-up the sensory activity by utilizing other materials. For example, consider using colored art sand or colored dusting sugar on a large, flat surface. Letting their fingers do the learning and the reviewing can stay with them for a lifetime if you play it up right.

Haiku Review: the Valentine's Day Edition

Need a new idea to get the creative juices flowing in your classroom?

The Haiku offers that opportunity to your students by channeling their creativity into this unique form of Japanese poetry. 

Here is a great lesson plan to get you started. (By the way, you can find this lesson, along with many others, in the Unit Studies Section of your Shurley English book!)

EXPAND THE LESSON: VALENTINE'S DAY

You can adapt the directions by creating an example with your students that focuses on the desired holiday or season.  For this example, I focused on creating a haiku to include in a valentine for a mother or grandmother in the life of the student.

Loving me each day

Never giving up on me

My Valentine Mom.

Missing you today

Happy Valentine’s Day, Mom

Hugs up to heaven.

She wakes me each day

With a smile and a big hug -

Now filled, love others!

No other mother

Can fix my crushed, broken heart

She’s just right for me!

Just Grandma and me

Baking her special cookies

Making memories!

Of course, the students can use whatever craft supplies you provide to design a special valentine card, which includes their haiku to bring a smile to someone. Just think, you can help to create lifelong treasures in the families represented in your classroom! I saved many of the special creations of my own son, most of them prompted by his wonderful teachers throughout his elementary school years.  What a privilege you have to be a part of making memories to last a lifetime!

Understanding Degrees of Comparison

At first glance, teaching the Degrees of Adjectives and Adverbs may seem trite, but after personally hearing numerous adults use this concept incorrectly, I feel it’s worth addressing to ensure the communication success of our young learners. Here is a great reference for you to use during your lesson:

I have to admit that I cringe when I hear people use double comparisons such as, “more better” or “most wealthiest,” especially when it’s uttered from a schooled adult.  Here’s another Shurley Reference to save the day!

When teaching Degrees of Comparison, pay close attention to irregular adjectives and adverbs, along with these valuable References and Student Tips found in your Teacher’s Manual.  After teaching these concepts to your students or refreshing your own memory, remember to apply them in your own verbal and written communication...never forget that YOU are always a model for your students!

This concept has been taught to students in the Shurley English Curriculum since Level 3, which is consistent with my experience teaching from other publisher’s Language Arts curricula in 3rd-5th grade…so why is such a simple concept still being used incorrectly among adults?  I’m not claiming to know the answer, but I believe it might have something to do with teacher instruction, modeling, and application & accountability.   Allow me to show you how Shurley English can help clean up this mess.

You’ve probably used various comparison activities using physical objects to illustrate this concept.  If so, EXCELLENT! If not, here’s a simple activity to consider.  Others can also be found in your Teacher’s Manual.

For example:  Show students a golf ball and other larger sized sports balls and have students repeat after you.

One.  Simple.  The golf ball is small.

Two.  Comparative. The golf ball is smaller than the baseball.

Three or more.  Superlative. The golf ball is the smallest ball here.