Class Update 9/25 - Prepositions!

Yesterday in class, I covered all of the information about prepositions listed on the syllabus.

Prepositions, Object of the Preposition, Prepositional Flow, An adverb, a helping verb or prepositional phrases at the beginning of a sentence, All Preposition Jingles

We then labeled several sentences as a class together using the Question and Answer Flow for the different parts of speech, and placed the prepositional phrases in parenthesis. I introduced prepositions with the Christmas song, "Over the river, and through the woods..." :-) Our class was blessed to hear JC sing a Prepositon Jingle that he wrote himself! It is posted below! Way to go, JC!

After returning the students' writing assignments, I went over three points.

1.) The students should avoid using "frivolous" words. These are words that are not needed in the sentence or words that restate points verbatim. Encourage them drop unnecessary words and to use synonyms to restate points.

2.) The students (especially the older ones) need to use quality adjectives and adverbs to make their writing interesting.

Example of the two points stated above:

I like my cat, because, well, he is black.

Rewritten -

Drop - well -because it is not needed.
Use more descriptive words - change like to enjoy, add intelligent as an adjective to describe the cat, and give a reason why you enjoy the cat. Use a descriptive adverb to modify the verb - "aggressively chases" instead of "chases."

I enjoy my intelligent black cat because he aggressively chases balls.

These points were introduced based on the writing assignment from this past week. These are areas where the students can improve. Their current papers are "good," but I am striving to help them become excellent writers! :-) The "key" is not to be wordy, but to be descriptive!

3. Capitalization Rule #8 (from Reference 31 on workbook page 27)
Rule #8 - Family names are capitalized when used in place of or with the person's name.
(Grandmother, Auntie, Uncle Joe, Mother - Do NOT capitalize my mother or my mom.)
I noticed this on several papers this week. I decided not to mark it because we had not gone over it in class, and it was a frequent error on the papers. Please watch for this in the future.

We ended the class with a fun game to reinforce their weekly vocabulary. After finding the synonyms and antonyms students then had to think of their own synonyms and antonyms for the pairs of words. Very soon, I will be asking students to implement some of their vocabulary words in their writing assignments.

HOMEWORK COUPONS - For clarity, completed homework coupons may be turned in to replace one journal entry, one exercise or one set of sentences to be labeled. Homework Coupons do not replace all of the weekly homework. (I know your children wish otherwise!) Homework coupons may never be used for a writing assignment. (Although I am planning to have two writing assignment coupons available at the silent auction for TC!)

I hope this blog is helpful to you. Please let me know if you are reading this, and if you find it beneficial at home. It takes me some time to communicate all of this to you, and I want to be sure I am not wasting my time. :-) Thank you in advance for e-mailing me your comments and/or suggestions.

Your children are a blessing to teach! I enjoy them tremendously!

We have now reviewed References 1-17, and introduced Jingles 1-9 in class. Use these for review at home.

Assignments Due 10/3
Workbook Assignment: Ch. 5 Vocabulary, (there are NO exercises for Ch. 5) Ch. 5 Sentences Labeled in Practice Booklet, Ch. 5 Test p. 101, (optional! You may wish to wait until after the next TC), and at least THREE entries in your Journal.Writing Assignment: NONE this week. Use your extra time to understand prepositions. Work on memorizing all 49 in the jingle! You can also play online games, or make-up sentences with prepositional phrases.

Preposition Jingle! WOW!

Here is a preposition jingle written by one of our students! JC is one creative fifth grader! Thank you for sharing this with all of us! Perhaps you will be writing English curriculum later in life!



Preposition preposition how are you so small?

Preposition preposition do we ever use you at all?

Preposition preposition we use you every day.

Preposition preposition we can use you in every way:

outside, inside, below, behind, off, and on,

in and out, up and down, and all around.

Learning is the greatest thing ever found!!

Writing STARS 9-18-08 WA #2

Congratulations to our four Writing STARS for Writing Assignment #2! Way to go! Students were assigned a Three Point Expository Paragraph on their Favorite Adults.

(I am "indenting" these paragraphs as I type them. However, when they post, they publish without the indent. Sorry! Yes, I do realize these should be indented.)

My Favorite People

by: WB, grade 3

I have three favorite people. These people are Mom, Dad and Papaw. My first favorite person is Mom. I like Mom because she’s a great teacher. My second favorite person is Dad. I like Dad because he makes the best burgers. My third favorite person is Papaw. I like Papaw because he’s funny. I like all three because they’re in my family.

My Three Favorite Adults

by: MS, grade 4

(written as an essay instead of a paragraph)

I have three favorite adults outside of my family. They are Chuck, Rachel, and Ms. Tamie. These are my reasons why they are my favorite adults.
My first favorite adult is Chuck. I like Chuck because he is fun and he loves to make people laugh. He also has really long, cool, brown dreadlocks!
My second favorite adult is Rachel. Rachel is Chuck’s wife. She is one of my favorite adults because she’s really energetic and crazy. I like it when she leads the kids worship. She just had a baby, Kennedy. She is so cute.
My third favorite adult is Ms. Tamie. She is my best friend’s mom. I like her because she takes care of me when I go over to play at her house with my friend Anna. One of my favorite things about her is she is a really good cook. My favorite thing she cooks is her vegetable soup. It’s really good!
Out of all my favorite adults, my favorite would have to be Chuck. He’s my favorite because he is a great role model and he loves kids. One day I hope I’m as cool as he is.

My Three Favorite Adults

by: JC, grade 4

My three favorite adults are Dad, Mom, and Grandpa. My Dad is the best! He helps me with sports, school, and always helps me make good choices. My Mom is so fun. We play games, cook, and have tea parties. My Grandpa loves life. He loves plants, animals, people, and, most of all, he loves God. I have a great family. I love them and they love me.

My Three Favorite Adults

by: JC, grade 5

My three favorite adults are Dad, Mom, and Grandma. My Dad is a very joyful man. He always has a smile on his face. My Dad loves and cares for me. He works very hard to make money so I can have a beautiful house, good food, and stay at home to do school. My Mom is a super woman. She does laundry, makes meals, and cares for me so I can stay healthy and active. My Mom is also a great teacher. She teaches me school and how to love other people. My Grandma has a heart filled with love. She has shown love to me my entire life. Every time we're together, we always do special things. I don't really know how I could live without my family. They're awesome!

A Few Grading Errors

It has been brought to my attention that there were a few errors with grading your children's work this week. I extend my sincerest apologies. I have a helper that comes in to help check the work. I do not get to look the books over before they are handed back to the students. I wanted to send you the corrections because these were a bit "tricky."

In the Practice Booklet:
Ch. 3, Lesson 3 - 1. The incredibly talented musician ...Incredibly is an ADV not an ADJ. Incredibly modifies talented. The question to figure out the part of speech would be HOW talented? How is an adverb question (as stated in the jingle - how? when? where?), and adverbs can modify a verb, adjective or another adverb.

Ch. 3, Lesson 2 - 3. The extremely late flight ...Extremely is an ADV not an ADJ. Extremely is an adverb because it modifies an adjective - late.

Ch. 3, Lesson 3 - 3. The very excited fans ...Very is an ADV not an ADJ. Very is an adverb modifying excited (adj)!

In the Workbook:
Ch.3 Lesson 3 Practice 1 (p.66)The students were to underline the complete subject and the complete predicate. It was corrected to the simple subject and predicate.

I am so sorry! I am sorry for the confusion. I will try to make sure this doesn't happen again. Thank you for understanding!

Updated Class Syllabus 9-18

Here is the updated class syllabus for the next three weeks. I am continuing to introduce new concepts, and trying to keep the class enjoyable for your children. ALL of the children participate in class. We have a lot of interaction and dialogue with one another!

I covered everything listed on the syllabus today. We congratulated our "Class Stars" who have been published on the blog!

The first writing assignments were returned to the students. There are lots of notes on them, so be sure to look over the paper with your child. These assignments impressed me!

Additionally, I introduced two more banned words! The following words are "No-No Words" for their writing assignments... Good, Bad, Big, Little

We ended the class with a very silly Mad Lib! It was a fantastic way to review different parts of speech. The kids loved it! It thrilled me to hear them giggle and laugh!

Please let me know if you are not receiving e-mails from me weekly to link you to this blog. I am sending additional information via e-mail.


Shurley English Grammar Class - Syllabus Part II - Fall Semester 2008

9/18 Predicate Words Located in the Complete Subject, Writing Improved Sentences, Different Parts of Speech [References 14-16 (p.17)]
Assignments Due 9/25
Workbook Assignment: Ch. 4 Vocabulary, Ch. 4 Practice p. 68, Ch. 4 Sentences Labeled in Practice Booklet p. 3, Ch. 4 Test p. 100, (optional! You may wish to wait until after the next TC), and at least two entries in your Journal.
Writing Assignment: Write a three-point expository paragraph on one of the following topics. Be sure you revise and edit it before turning in a “final draft” copy to me next week.
Why I Like to Camp
Why I Like to Play (You name the sport – Soccer, Baseball, Football, Swimming, Karate, etc…)
My Favorite Movies / Games

9/25 Prepositions, Object of the Preposition, Prepositional Flow, An adverb, a helping verb or prepositional phrases at the beginning of a sentence, All Preposition Jingles
Assignments Due 10/3
Workbook Assignment: Ch. 5 Vocabulary, (there are NO exercises for Ch. 5) Ch. 5 Sentences Labeled in Practice Booklet, Ch. 5 Test p. 101, (optional! You may wish to wait until after the next TC), and at least THREE entries in your Journal.
Writing Assignment: NONE this week. Use your extra time to understand prepositions. Work on memorizing all 49 in the jingle! You can also play online games, or make-up sentences with prepositional phrases.

10/3 Writing in First Person or Third Person, Pronoun Jingle, Subject Pronoun Jingle, Possessive Pronoun Jingle, Subject Pronoun, Possessive Pronouns, Understood Subject Pronoun, Subject/Verb agreement
Assignments Due 10/10
Workbook Assignment: Ch. 6 Vocabulary, Ch. 6 Practice p. 69, Ch. 6 Sentences Labeled in Practice Booklet p. 5, Ch. 6 Test p. 102, (optional! You may wish to wait until after the next TC), and at least TWO entries in your Journal.
Writing Assignment: Be sure you bring in a FINAL draft to class.
Three Point Expository Paragraph in First Person
(Choose one of the topics below.)
My Favorite Animals 2. People I Would Like to Meet
OR, Three Point Expository Paragraph in Third Person
(Choose one of the topics below.)
1. (Person’s name) Favorite Animals 2. People (Person’s Name) Would Like to Meet (ex. Emily’s Favorite Animals)

First Writing Assignment Class STARS

I will try to display at least 3 of the best writing assignments from class. To be published on the BLOG, the student must include a rough draft with his/her final draft. There must not be many grammatical, spelling, or form errors. Consider it an honor to be PUBLISHED on the Class Blog. My hope is that all students will see their work here at least once during the semester.

Assignment : Three Point Expository Paragraph about three favorite school subjects.

My Favorite Subjects
by: WP, grade 6

I have three favorite subjects. These subjects are English, science, and math. My first favorite subject is English. I like English because it helps improve my spelling. My second favorite subject is science. I like science because of all that you can do in science such as experiments. My third favorite subject is math. I like math because I like to write numbers which is different than writing words. I enjoy studying all kinds of different subjects, but my favorites will always be English, science, and math.

My Favorite Subjects

by: MB, grade 5

I have three favorite subjects in school. They are math, history, and Shurley English. My very favorite subject is math. I like math because it is fun and I like to add and subtract. My second favorite subject is history. I like history because it is fun to learn about stuff from long ago. My third favorite subject is Shurley English. I like Shurley English because it is fun and you can learn a lot. I like other subjects in school but those are my three favorite.

My Favorite Subjects

by: CF, grade 3

I have three favorite subjects. These subjects are reading, writing, and Spanish. My first favorite subject is reading. I like reading because I can use my imagination. My second favorite subject is writing. I like writing because I can be creative. My third favorite subject is Spanish. I like Spanish because I can learn a different language. I like all subjects but my favorite subjects are reading, writing, and Spanish.

Common, Proper, Singular, Plural 9-11

The title should give you a few hints about what was covered in class today! :-)

Our class today was sweltering hot because the church's air conditioning unit was broken. Thankfully, it was Teacher-To-The-Rescue with a few ice-pops to break the heat! Hee-hee!

Today we started with all six jingles, and your kids sang with enthusiasm and smiles! :-) I had them listen to the preposition jingles while they enjoyed the popsicles. We will be moving into prepositions soon.

We went over Ch. 2 test, reviewed some of the homework, labeled sentences from Chapter Three, and learned about the Subject/Verb Pattern of a sentence. (This is the first of seven sentence patterns.) We also reviewed finding the simple subject and simple predicate of the sentence.

Today, I introduced the "Noun Check." We walked through the terms in the title above...common, proper, singular, plural. Students were exposed to the roles and rules for each noun form.

After our grammar lesson, we moved into writing. Several of your children shared their papers with the class. I WAS VERY IMPRESSED WITH WHAT I HEARD! In the paragraphs I listened to, it seemed that your children are easily following the form of a three point expository paragraph. Yeah!

As part of the writing instruction, I introduced two "NO-NO Words." (I could have labeled them "banned" words, but NO-NO seemed more fun!) I have asked the students to avoid using good and bad in their writing. There are many quality adjectives that are enticingly more descriptive. I used the following two sentences in class to demonstrate the point. (These seemed fitting because of today's date.)

1 - September 11, 2001 was a bad day for America.
2- Firefighters performed some good deeds on September 11, 2001.

Don't these two sentences completely diminish the catastrophic happenings of this date in history? The students came up with more descriptive adjectives and we listed them on the board. As you review your child's writing assignments, please help them expand their vocabulary by choosing words that convey the purpose they desire.

Finally, to address writing. YOU have the freedom to alter the assignments I send home. If your child needs to write a thank you note; this can replace one journal entry. If your child is writing a report for a class; have them bring in a copy to me in lieu of a formal writing assignment. The assignments I send home are important, but, because we home educate, there will be weeks where other subjects requiring writing will need to take precedence. Please know you have that freedom!

Here is the homework due next week:
ALL Ch. 3 Exercises in Workbook (p.66-67)
ALL Ch. 3 Vocabulary
ALL Ch. 3 Sentences in Practice Booklet (p.2) - labeled with simple subject, simple predicate, type of sentence, and sentence pattern indicated as we have done in class.
2 Journal Entries (or writing assignments you choose)
3 Point Expository Paragraph on My Three Favorite Adults - Have FINAL DRAFT stapled to the rough draft to hand in - Avoid using the words good and bad :-)

Have a great week! Your children are doing FANTASTIC!

9-4 Update and Homework

We had a fantastic day in class yesterday. We covered a lot of material!

In class, I taught the Abverb Jingle and the Adjective Jingle. We have now learned Jingles 1-6 (pp. 2-3 in your Shurley Workbook). I can not emphasize enough how important it is that your child learn these jingles. We will continue singing them in class, but please review them during the week as well.

I taught how to label sentences adding adverbs, adjectives, underlining the simple subject once, underlining the simple predicate twice, and labeling the "type" of sentence at the end. (D = Statement, Declarative)

We also talked about the importance of editing and proofreading our writing. We reviewed Reference 5 and 6. I brought in some funny examples of things that have been mass produced with spelling and grammatical errors! Your children can bring in "editing errors" for the rest of the year. I would love for them to "have an eye" for misspelled words!

Finally, I went over the points of a three-point paragraph. This is Reference 12 in your book. Please have your child follow this format for the writing assignment.

NEW HOMEWORK:
We will not follow the syllabus. Here is the homework due next week.
Writing Assignment -
Write a Three Point Paragraph about your Three Favorite School Subjects - your child needs to turn in a FINAL DRAFT to me stapled to the rough draft. Please follow the editing guidelines, and review with your child.

Workbook -
Chapter 2 Test (Optional) p.98
Finish Ch.2 Introductory Sentences in Practice Booklet p.1 (Be sure they add the labeling elements introduced in class - simple subject, simple predicate, type of sentence.)
Three Journal Entries - your choice of subjects...