It’s time for another post in my series about using picture books to teach writing to middle and high school students! Today’s topic is using picture books to teach text structure. What is text structure? It’s how the information written in a text is organized. Learning to identify text structure as a reader can greatly improve…
My children don’t typically jump for joy when given a writing assignment. Do yours? I’ve found several ways over the years to take writing from dreaded to enjoyable in our home, though. One of the most beloved of those ideas is writing newsletters. Several years ago, I wrote the monthly newsletter for our church. I…
I {heart} picture books for so many reasons. One giant reason is their ability to teach so many in depth concepts in such non-intimidating ways that students often don’t see fear in the lessons that follow. One such example is writing. I can’t tell you the times I’ve been asked by homeschooling parents to tutor…
I’ve been sharing a little series of posts about how to use living literature to teach writing – specifically, narratives and persuasive pieces. In this post, I’m focusing less on a particular style of writing and more on writing with style – otherwise known as literary techniques. No matter the age of your children, you…
We’re striving for more independent reading time with my 2nd grader. As an emergent reader, he still reads aloud daily to me so I can teach, cheer him on and keep tabs on his progress. But, he’s finally doing well enough that it’s time for him to find his own pleasure in books. Transitioning to…
When you think of teaching grammar to your elementary student, does the word “boring” pop into your head? Maybe not your head, but your children’s perhaps? Well, I have two pieces of good news for you! 1. Formal grammar lessons aren’t all that important in elementary school! Really. A little here, a little there and…
In an effort to focus a bit more on the genre of poetry this year, my 2nd grader is completing a weekly recitation. I honestly had no idea how much fun the two of us would have with this assignment! Practice has become a bright spot each day and I watch him beam at the…
(I received a subscription to Mango Languages for free and was compensated for my time spent writing this review. As always, my opinions are strictly my own.) Homeschool with Mango Languages Truth time. I’ve not been the best about teaching foreign languages up to this point. A little Spanish here, a little Latin there. Even…
If you’ve been around here long at all, you know there’s living literature out there to help teach ANY subject. Did you know that’s true for the Bible, too? Over the years, I’ve found some FABULOUS books to go along with our Bible studies. Now, I’m not saying we read literature instead of the Bible…
(This post contains affiliate links and links to my business, Shining Dawn Books.) In Charlotte Mason Homeschooling in 18 EASY Step-by-Step Lessons, I obviously discuss things like copywork, dictation and transcription. In the early years of homeschooling, these methods (along with reading living literature) are fabulous for teaching the language arts of handwriting, spelling/phonics, grammar,…
(This post contains affiliate links.) Analyzing the Themes from Amos Fortune I have a young man who would be perfectly content if he never had to read or write another day in his homeschooling life. Much to his dismay, he still has to read and write quite often. Occasionally, to dull the horrendous pain he…
We love living literature! If you’ve been around at all, you know I LOVE living literature! It’s been such a blessing to our homeschool. Need to know more about living literature? Start with my Living Books post. Our Favorite Books Not too long ago, I pulled together a 10-day series (that turned into an 11-day…
End of content
End of content