We've all heard the whining and complaining that can come with teaching composition. Many children just refuse to make the effort to write, and when they finally do finish an assignment their parents agonize over how to grade the composition. Having heard the writing complaints for years, I am excited to report that there is now a solution in WriteGuide.com.
The Writing Strands program focuses on the structure of writing by teaching the student to organize his thoughts before writing. Many of the ideas the author uses are found in other English programs, such as Voyages in English, but in WS they are presented in a more systematic fashion with each lesson building on preceding lessons. The lessons are written for the child to read and do independently, with the parent checking work occasionally. WS is very straightforward and directs the child to write about specific topics.
This book provides twelve engaging saint stories (four to nine pages each) with a page or so of vocabulary words, comprehension questions, quotes from the saint and project ideas. Saints covered in this volume are: Saint Faustina Kowalska, Saint Juan Diego, St. Rose of Lima, St. Francis of Assisi (in two parts), Rose Hawthorne Lathrop, Venerable Fr. Solanus Casey, St. Helena, Blessed Fr. Damien of Molokai, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Ambrose and Mother Seton.
The ad for this book does not do it justice. It is far more than just a reading comprehension workbook and although the ad does list the activities involved, it doesn't express their depth or breadth. This book could be used as a unit study! I plan to have my 12 year old select a saint each quarter to prayerfully study and to immerse himself in the saints life and spirituality. Although Isaiah enjoys reading the lives of the saints, when he's done with a book (usually in a few days) his devotion to the saint usually doesn't last long.
Mrs. Woodfield has brought to life yet another collection of wonderful, but somewhat lesser-known, saints through beautiful stories, study questions and other projects that help older children grow to love and better understand these beautiful saints. This collection covers the lives of three canonized Saints and one very holy man who has been declared Venerable: Saint Katherine Drexel, Venerable Matt Talbot, St. Josephine Bakhita and Pope St. Pius X.
The Phonetic Zoo is an auditory (CD) based spelling program that includes at each level 5 Audio CD's (540 rule-based spelling words), 47 5 ½"x 8 ½" flashcards teaching the most important spelling rules and similar set of 2 �" x 3 5/8" (illustrated) zoo cards, an introductory DVD, and a pamphlet that explains the basics of the program.
Seton Home Study has published a full line of Catholic spelling texts. Unfortunately, we have a difficult time providing reviews because we wish only to review the most recent editions and Seton revises their books frequently. You may view sample pages of these books on Seton's Website.
This review of Spelling Power includes a comparison with Phonetic Zoo and My Catholic Speller.
Spelling Power is a single volume, non-consumable resource for teaching spelling to children (and adults) of all ages. It includes over 5,000 spelling words organized by rule and difficulty level, dozens of activities to help the child remember the correct spelling, extensive notes explaining how and why the program was designed and a clear explanation of how the program is to be used.
The Spelling Power Activity Task Cards provide a multi-sensory approach to spelling instruction. (The activity cards are coded to indicate a visual, auditory, kinetic, and/or tactile instruction style.) Such an approach gives a child multiple ways to "retrieve" the phonics rules from his "mental filing cabinet." This approach is particularly well suited for children who have trouble retaining their spelling lessons, or have learning disabilities.
First Lesson Word List: a, big, dog, is, my
Final Lesson Word List: way, glad, happy, how, ten, stand, very, name, walked, train