by Donna | Jun 7, 2011
Over the next few days, I will be linking you to many past posts that have to do with summer–helping your chid with reading; spending time with your kids in the summer; etc. Today I will start with general reading help and reviews of phonics programs. Just click on the links below to find the beginning of each thread listed. Happy reading!
Introduction to helping your child with reading (decoding) this summer—start here: https://positiveparenting3-6-5.blogspot.com/2010/06/day-158-summertimehelping-struggling.html
Tutoring your child without a formal program in reading—start here: https://positiveparenting3-6-5.blogspot.com/2010/06/day-162-summertimebeginning-reading.html
Phonics programs to use at home with struggling readers—start here (several posts/reviews): https://positiveparenting3-6-5.blogspot.com/2010/06/day-164-summertimebeginning-reading_17.html
by Donna | Jun 6, 2011
I love a new site I just discovered–and thought any wordy people (or anyone writing practically anything–letters, thank-you notes, stories, essays, etc.) would enjoy hearing about it.
It is called Phrase Up–and I give it a hearty thumbs up! This amazing “search engine” allows you to type part of a phrase (colloquialisms, analogies, metaphors, or just common phrases) and put an * in the parts that you are missing. Then voila! It brings up a list of possible phrases that you might be looking for. (Watch out! It’s addicting for wordsmiths!)
Again, this may be a great help to get just the right phrase or tone in a cover letter or thank-you note. To get the perfect metaphor for a story. And so much more. I think you’ll like it!
https://www.phraseup.com/
by Donna | Jun 6, 2011
In the past eight weeks, we have spoken at three homeschool conventions, done one parenting seminar, graduated one from college and one from high school, had both of our daughters home for a week plus, got one son off for the summer for a summer ministry opportunity, and had an open house for the high school graduate! So when we woke up this morning, we were tired….and yet excited about the summer!
We homeschool year round, which basically means that some learning always takes place everyday! But we do allow time for fun “extras” in the summer–short trips, long weekends, swimming days, bonfire evenings…..more family time–yay!
I want to link you to some posts from last year–about reading with your kids in the summer, about helping your students academically during the summer, and much more. So in the next few days, I will detour again away from first thing in the morning and get some of these things re-posted (as well as some new things!). Then we’ll continue first thing in the morning with our kids by moving into “character training” (chores!). Invite your friends! Thanks for joining us.
by Donna | Jun 1, 2011
I think I confused more than helped in my last post about “coming with…” I am going to elaborate a bit on the different uses that words that are commonly prepositions might have in writing:
1. First of all, a word is seldom a certain part of speech in isolation. Words are called parts of speech because they are used in a certain way in speech (and writing). Thus, it is often incorrect to say that, for instance, a dog is a noun. You can be dog tired. You can dog somebody to pay you. A part of speech is a part of speech when it is used–not in isolation.
2. Thus, the preposition as other parts of speech problem. We have students memorize lists of prepositions (though we prefer to have them use them in Check Sentences, again, because that is how “parts of speech” are used)–but we have to remember that those prepositions are only prepositions when they are used as prepositions–how is that for confusing? Remember, a preposition must have an object following it in order to be considered as being used as a preposition.
3. Examples!!! I will list prepositions below to show how they may be used as prepositions or how they may be used as other parts of speech–again, in context.
a. Over
i. I am coming over. (Adverb–tells where you are coming….)
ii. Jump over the water. (Preposition–begins the prepositional phrase (PP for short): over the water…)
b. Down
i. He fell down. (Adverb–tells where he fell..)
ii. We rode down the hill. (Preposition–begins the PP down the hill…)
c. Before
i. Before we go to class, let’s check our backpacks. (Subordinator–before is used as a subordinator beginning the subordinate clause before we go to class–a subordinate clause is a clause (subject/verb) that begins with a subordinator and is not a real sentence by itself.)
ii. I heard that story before. (Adverb–tells when you heard that story…)
iii. He has to go before the leaders. (Preposition–begins the PP before the leaders…)
Hope this helps! Feel free to write in questions–if I don’t know the answer, I will look the question up in my 600 page reference! 🙂
by Donna | May 30, 2011
Another pet peeve of mine is popping up everywhere, so I thought I would share with our readers what it is and why it sounds so incorrect to me.
This pet peeve is people using the preposition with as an adverb (or, in the case of my daughter–with an understood object of the preposition–her way of using grammar terms to justify its use!).
Here is the run down on what I see as this pet peeve’s problem:
1. First of all, yes, words have multiple uses and parts of speech everywhere all the time. This is one reason why we advocate only using grammar programs for children that have the words used–not lists of words in which the student is to identify what part of speech it is. A part of speech is determined by the word’s use, not the word itself:
a. jump–a student might determine that jump is a verb…which it can be. But it can also be a noun (she made a huge jump) and an adjective (it was a jump start program).
b. to–a student might determine that to is a preposition…which it can be. But it can also be part of a verbal phrase known as an infinitive (to run).
2. With is not one of those “multiple use” kinds of words. With is almost always (and probably always) a preposition.
a. With is a preposition because a preposition is a word that shows possession, has an object with it (the object of the preposition), and is the beginning of a prepositional phrase: with her, with the show, with the leader.
b. With is seldom, if ever, used alone as an adverb (like many other prepositions can be):
i. She is going along. (Along is an adverb here.)
ii. She ran along the trail. (Along is a preposition here.)
iii. I told him to jump down. (Down is an adverb here.)
iv. He ran down the street. (Down is a preposition here.)
3. With is not an adverb by itself. It is not the kind of word that can stand alone as another part of speech. It is a preposition that needs an object to show a relationship (with whom? with what?).
So…tell who you are going with–and use with as a preposition, the way it was intended to be used! Smile…
by Donna | May 30, 2011
The other day as I was reading aloud to my sons out of a book about Clara Barton, I came across a sentence that i read, then re-read, then re-read again. It was about Clara Barton, the founder of the US Red Cross during the Civil War, becoming weary on the battle front. I was sure that the author had misused the word weary–and really needed wary. It was then and there that I decided that the concept of weary and wary warranted its own “Tricky Trick to Help It Stick”!
Weary is a word that means tired or overwhelmed from something, such as too much work, no rest, difficult circumstances, etc.
Wary is a word that means to be paranoid or suspicious.
Both words are adjectives, meaning they describe nouns (or sometimes pronouns, in the case of predicate adjectives: I am weary.).
So, what can we use for a Tricky Trick?
Well, I will propose one that has worked for me since my Clara Barton encounter–see if it helps you as well:
1. The day was dreary, so she grew weary–just remember that the spellings are the same–dreary and weary (dreary weather makes you tired or weary!).
2. The salesman was scary, so the buyers were wary–just remember that the spellings are the same–scary and wary (a scary saleperson makes you wary or suspicious/paranoid).
Now, I hope you don’t get weary in your grammar studies–or wary when you write a sentence using weary/wary!
