Language Arts Fun

Yesterday, when Wander was out of town and Glitter was taking her nap, I asked Sparkle if she wanted to cuddle with me. She heartily agreed and then asked if I would read a book to her. I suddenly thought of the new language arts program I had recently purchased.

Despite the fact that Sparkle is no longer being homeschooled, and that I already own over a dozen language arts resources, I couldn't resist when this particular language arts program went on sale. However, unlike all those other programs, this one I actually wanted to try.

Being sneaky, I didn't tell Sparkle that the book I chose, "Grammar Island," was a school book. (She would have balked, especially since she is officially on winter break.)

We read the first several pages. I tried to discuss the lesson with Sparkle, but she wasn't used to the idea of discussing a book; she kept wanting to turn the page to see what was next. Sparkle seemed to enjoy the book but quickly hopped off to other things when we were done.

Fast forward to today. Wander was at work and Glitter was again taking her nap. Sparkle asked me to cuddle with her again. She picked out a book for me to read to her, but when I hesitated over her choice she suddenly suggested returning to "Grammar Island." We did a few more pages today, learning about about nouns and pronouns.

The lesson mentioned several names. Sparkle immediately recognized the name Robert Louis Stevenson as the author of several poems she likes (e.g. Rain). She found the name "Long John Silver" amusing and thought "Jim Hawkins" sounded familiar. So, after we put the book away, I dug up a copy of "Treasure Island." Although I generally dislike abridged books, at least this version is right around Sparkle's reading level. I showed Sparkle the author's name and the list of characters, and Sparkle's interest was hooked.

Sparkle set to reading the book. Although Sparkle normally reads silently, she started reading several sentences aloud to me, emphasizing the pronouns with joy and excitement "I ... he .. it .. " She was taking what we had just discussed in the textbook and was identifying pronouns. Sure she made mistakes and didn't think of nouns at all, but she was voluntarily applying the lesson to the world around her.