A friend of mine recently complained to me that her first-grader hated a certain part of her workbook curriculum. My advice? Don't do it! My goodness, in first grade, all learning should be fun. As our children progress, we will have to teach them that life requires activities we don't much like. But at such a young age, I advocate finding fun ways to teach the basics. One of my kids loves, loves, loves workbooks. You know I love that--it's certainly easy on the teacher! But I've had to be more creative with my other students.
We use games. I love active games. I came up with one for spelling this morning that needs some modification to work with the mix of temperaments in my family. The kids were hitting a balloon into the air to keep it from hitting the ground when it was time for school to start. Instead of pulling them away from their fun to begin the tedious process of spelling, I added this twist to the game: I called out a spelling word, and with each balloon bop, the child had to name the next letter in the word. They were begging me for more words! (Tempers ran hot when the smarter kid "stole" the letter from the rightful caller.) So next time, I'll probably make the same person spell the whole word, requiring one letter with each bop.
When we actually sat down to our school table, the kitchen remodel obscured our education--literally. The cloud of dust choked and blinded me, so I announced recess. During our playtime, I scouted iPhone apps for spelling games for second graders.
I found no good ones.
I've spent the entire morning trying to find an excellent phonics app to teach my second-grader to spell. His reading fluency tops fourth grade, and most of the phonics apps aim to teach reading fluency. Spelling and reading do complement one another, but they are entirely different skills. Similarly, when you're learning vocabulary, defining a vocabulary word takes a different skill set than being able to come up with the word when given the definition.
Apple's genius marketing plan has me stuck using iProducts. Any universal app I download on my iPhone can also transfer to other iPhones, iPads, or iPods. I recently learned that students at our local Christian school are required to lease an iPad as part of their education. I've resisted buying a $500 piece of glass for my clumsy children, but I've decided now that if I were rich, I would absolutely buy each of my children an iPad (with the indestructible case) for supplementing our education. Unfortunately, the recent Steve-Jobs-less update has changed the way the app store categorizes the apps and made it incredibly difficult for me to narrow down the fields for browsing my specific desires. Even searching for an app by name often yields incorrect results.
I never have any trouble making the kids sit down to play an app--I only have trouble making them take turns! I welcome anything that reduces friction and fighting in my home. I wish I could find a good app that teaches phonics for spelling in a game setting (instead of a flashcard setting).
Here are some apps for iPhone I've had success with:
1. TeachMe Kindergarten, TeachMe First Grade, etc. My 4-year-old twins have finished the first grade app and are working in the second grade app. I credit this app with their advanced learning.
2. Save the Sushi--a math game.
3. Rocket Math--a math game that's basically flash cards, but the players earn money to buy rocket pieces and launch rockets after each session. My kids can't get enough of it.
If you're looking for iLearn apps, join the Facebook group Apps for Homeschooling. They often offer promo codes and personal reviews of new educational apps, including appropriate age range. Plus, they have a section of free apps. And that's why I have no more memory on my phone.
A good reason to buy an iPad, right?
1 comment:
I use flashcard app by www.superflashcard.com to teach my children at home. It's a good free app available in Apps Store. I think other parents should try this too, my children like playing its flashcard games a lot
Post a Comment