Tag Archives: Reading

Logic of English Foundations

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A few weeks ago, I overheard my kindergartner talking to his baby sister.
“Are you an i, u, v, or j?” he was saying in his sweetest voice. “Because if you are, you cannot come at the end of an English word!”
This he repeated a few times over the next few minutes as he played with her toys, talked to her, and otherwise engaged in his own world of play with his sister, who was just delighted that he was nearby.
Apparently, my son internalized one of the most recent spelling rules we learned far more than I had realized. We had reviewed the rule a few mornings before this event. The manual had suggested repeating the rule in a “silly” voice and then again in another voice. I thought that was ridiculous, but I did that with my son anyway. And then, days later, he was repeating the rule to his sister without even realizing he was rehearsing his English lesson.
My experiences and my son’s experiences with the Logic of English Foundations program have been truly fun.The Logic of English Foundations program is comprehensive and fun for my kindergartner. Although the lessons are scripted, the games and built-in review make it flexible to meet our needs!
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Normal Stages of Reading with a Baby or Toddler

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As I’ve been through Reading 1000 Books before Kindergarten with my two oldest kids, I’ve realized that there are various “stages” of reading with children, especially reading with my babies. I started reading with my babies from their infancy, and my third child is nearly two. My thoughts on baby-reading stages are based on my personal observations of three different babies in a house that is full of book-lovers. It’s not scientific. Still, it’s a reminder that it is never to young to start reading with a baby!

When my son was a baby, I visited the library for myself mainly. On one particular day, when he was about six months old, I handed him a baby board book to hold as he sat in the stroller so he had something to hold while I searched for my book of choice. Imagine my surprise when an older lady commented, “Don’t you think he’s a bit too young?”

I’ve thought about that many times in the past 9 years. No, ma’am, I don’t think my son was too young for a book! Was he maybe too young to treat it with gentle reverence? Probably. But babies are never to young for books.

Babies are never too young for you to start reading to them. Read to your baby even if it puts her to sleep! Eventually she'll want to eat it, then read it, and finally love it!
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Princess School: The Rapunzel Engineering Challenge

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With our Rapunzel engineering challenge, we practiced building a tower (and learned about foundations) as well as retelling a favorite story.One subject keeps my preschooler interested right now, and that is princesses. She loves Sofia the First. She loves the other Disney princesses. She loves ponies with long shimmering hair. She loves dressing like a princess and acting like a princess. If I can add princesses into school time, then I’ll get her attention. This week for Princess School, we did a Rapunzel engineering challenge as we built a block tower for Rapunzel to let down her hair from. Of course, then we needed to act out the story with our new scenery. Continue reading →

Zoo Flakes: Symmetrical STEAM Snowflake Craft

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Learning about snowflakes is a perfect lesson for learning about symmetry.  When we read Zoo Flakes ABC by Will C. Howell, we got a unique alphabet of zoo animals as well as instructions for making our own symmetrical STEAM snowflake craft.  Continue reading →

Week in Review: Close Reading

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An Experiment in Close Reading | Line upon Line Learning blogRaisin is a very strong reader, and he loves to read anything and everything! This week he has been reading about scabs. And all the other gross things on our bodies. The library books he checked out have real photographs of scabs on the covers. I call them the “icky books” and Strawberry has begun to parrot me when she sees them. “Mom! Icky book!”
At any rate, Raisin likes to read fiction too, and enjoys reading in his free time and before bed. Because he is a strong reader, he breezes through a book and then cannot tell me what it was about, beyond basic plot points or even specific things that happened that stood out to him. I’d love to talk over fine literature with him, but I have not been sure to best methods to use.
So, that said, close reading is my goal with Raisin for the coming months. I have determined that we need to read together more frequently and notice what we read more. We need to talk about it together and predict together.
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Lessons Learned from Bedtime Stories

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As I cram myself in the rocking chair with an almost two year old and a first grader, I feel elbows in my side, and knees knocking me in the face. And yet the simple bedtime story time has been a ritual. By the end of yet one more reading of LMNO Peas tonight, I was reminded of how important it was for me and my kids.
Here are some simple lessons I have learned from our bedtime stories.
lessons learned from bedtime stories
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National Poetry Month

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April is National Poetry Month.

Poets.org shares a number of different activities, including an emailed poem every day this month. Check out their site at the link above for more ways to participate.

I’ve been reading some poetry this month because I certainly appreciate reading poetry, but I am not a poet by any stretch of the imagination. That’s why this site has been silent, as I’ve struggled to figure out how to celebrate when I certainly don’t feel my poetry is “post worthy.”

However, I’m going to try my hand at some of the “exercises” in style in various poetic forms. I’ll try some in the coming days.

How are you celebrating National Poetry Month?

Why I (Want to) Write

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In the past few months, I’ve been focusing on my reading. That is why I’ve been absent from “Writing Practices.”

In the New Year, I want to visit “Writing Practices” at least twice a month. I will share inspiring quotes, write my thoughts about writing, and maybe revisiting some of the memes that I really would like to participate in.

I’ve been thinking about why I want to write. In some respects, I feel like I’m really meant to be a reader. I am so impressed with the power that others have behind their words. The more I read, the more I want to keep reading, and the more I feel I will never be able to command language as do others.

In The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, one task for the budding artist/writer was to go a week without reading: that way, you are open to your own creativity. But I don’t want to do that. Not yet. I am so in love with reading at this point in my life that I don’t want to let go of it. Reading – both fiction and nonfiction – inspires me and helps me expand my mind.

I know writing would do the same for me: I just must do it in order to experience that creativity.

I want to be more balanced in my life overall, by reading, by writing, by cooking, and by working on my photography. I’d love for you to follow along with my progress, although don’t be surprised if my reading blog remains the most active 2009.