There are many reading lists available for picking out grade-level appropriate literature. I have found that the easiest thing for me to do is use the Veritas Press catalog as a guide. (If you do not get their catalog, I love it!)
Each grade level has a literature section with good, classic literature. Some books have study guides, but I usually just ask comprehension questions or assign a book report. (How to Report on Books is a good series published by Evan Moore.)
I will mention, however, that Veritas prices are not the lowest out there; I usually take the list and go to Rainbowresource.com.
As far as Spelling goes, I have not found anything that I just love. Programs seem to either go by commonly misspelled words or loosely follow phonics rules. Frankly, they all seem pretty random to me.
The Rigg's Institute has a list of "47 Rules of Spelling and Syllabication" that is used along with their materials. I think I am going to take the list and create a two year spelling program that involves learning the rules and list words that go along with each rule. Who knows, I may end up with a perfectly random spelling curriculum of my own...
3 comments:
I volunteer my kids as guinea pigs for you to test out your spelling curriculum! If it works on them, it would work for anyone!
I was happy to discover your blog today. I was unable to find an email link in your profile. I hope it's OK that I'm contacting you through a public comment. I've developed an educational program for Windows called SpellQuizzer that helps children learn their spelling words without the battle that parents often have getting them to sit down and write them out while the parents dictate to them. The parent enters the child's spelling words into the software making a sound recording of each word. Then the software helps the child practice his or her their words. It really helped my children with their weekly spelling lists.
I would appreciate your reviewing SpellQuizzer in Diary of the Duleys. You can learn more about the program at http://www.SpellQuizzer.com. There's a video demo you can watch at http://www.spellquizzer.com/SpellQuizzer-Demo.htm. Finally, there's a page targeted to homeschooling families at http://www.spellquizzer.com/spelling-software-for-homeschoolers.htm. I'd be happy to send you a complimentary license for the software. Please let me know if you are interested.
Thank you very much!
Dan Hite
TedCo Software
http://www.SpellQuizzer.com
Dan@SpellQuizzer.com
I so enjoyed catching up on your blog. Amen to the post on "Our Zeal" - I needed that today! I had a good chuckle on your cooped up. I can imagine your frustration when no-one heard you. I left you quite a long comment on my blog - thanks for visiting. Tammy's spelling is improving at an amazing rate and we don't have a spelling programme - we just work on words she comes across in her reading and need to learn (pronunciation, meaning, sight reading and spelling.) I am rather against lists and this I base on my own French experience. I never confused "le livre" and "la livre" because I learned them separately, but I remember there was a French lesson where we learnt a whole lot of words that took both le and la and had different meanings and I was forever confused.
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