Playing With Words

 If you were to enter my house at any given time, you would most likely hear an audio book or two. We seem to always have one going in the house and one in the car. If you came to my house for lunch, you might hear a poem or maybe an adventure story.

In our house, we listen to a lot of audio books. We also have a couple of read a loud books going at the same time. Dragon is an avid reader and writer. He is constantly coming up with fantastic ideas! He is currently working on his first book. Last year he was able to meet one of his heroes, Christopher Paolini. Ever since then he has been more determined to finish his book. I try to help, but he is way beyond my level. He has just started taking writing lessons from a neighbor. This is his favorite part of the week! In addition to writing lessons, we are using Painless Spelling & Vocabulary. For his Literature we are using Living Books. We pick out classics, read and then discuss them.

Tracker is just starting to come into his own when it comes to writing and reading. He has made tremendous progress since he has started therapy for his dyslexia. He is currently using Spectrum workbooks for grammar and vocabulary. We do a short reading comprehension everyday. I am so thankful to be there when I get to see that spark.  He has homework from therapy that he must do everyday, but he sees them as games. He is also reading anything that he can find on hunting, fishing, and zombies. Quite the combination!

Squirrel is a combination of both Dragon and Tracker when it comes to grammar and reading. She is a mild dyslexic that is an avid reader and writer. She taught herself to read, but still has some difficulties here and there. We are working on those spots every week. She is also using Spectrum workbooks. She is most often found curled up on the couch with a couple of books. Her current favorite is Junie B. Jones.

This semester we are going to be changing things up just a little bit. We will be using Ignite Your Writing. I love this program! I can use it with all 3 children and just make a few adjustments. We have done one or two of the lessons before and the kids thoroughly enjoyed them. Another new thing this year, will be writing journals. We are going to be writing in them everyday. I am going to use inspirational quotes, picture prompts, and a journal jar for inspirations. This semester we will focusing on doing research reports. We will continue with 30 Days of Poetry as well(you can find the file here). The children will each continue using Spelling City. This is a fairly new addition to our day, but the children love it. 

For many more wonderful ideas, stop by the Virtual Curriculum Fair at Homeschooling Hearts & Minds.


Reading on Time by Cindy Horton @ Fenced in Family
Playing with Words: the Language Arts by Christa Darr @ Fairfield Corner Academy
Reading and Beyond: Language Arts in Our Homeschool by Laura O in AK @ Day by Day in Our World
Language Arts that Work for Us by Melissa @ Grace Christian School
Learning Language at Our House by Jessica @ Modest Mama
Virtual Curriculum Fair: Language Arts by Christine T. @ Our Homeschool Reviews
The Learning of Language by Dawn @ tractors & tire swings
Reading and Spelling: Modifying the Magic by Pam @ Pam and Everyday Snapshots
An In Depth Look at All About Spelling by Missouri Mama @ Ozark Ramblings
Virtual Curriculum Fair: Let's Talk About Words by Debra @ Footprints in the Butter
Why We Love Classical Conversations Essentials (and how I know that is not a complete sentence!) by Nicole @ Schooling in the Sun
Virtual Curriculum Fair---Playing with Words: the Language Arts by Angie @ Petra School
Whole Language vs. Phonics by Christine @ Crunchy Country Catholic
It's All About the Art of Language by Brenda Emmett @ Garden of Learning
Watching Movies for Language Arts Class by Debbie @ Debbie's Digest
Only 5 Spelling Tests a Year! (Can we do that?) by LP @ justpitchingmytent Language Art at Our House by Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory
Virtual Curriculum Fair Week One Playing with Words: the Language Arts by Leah Courtney @ The Courtney Six Homeschool Blog