Any Teachers Here?-OT
I know this is extremely off topic but I need advice. My son is in the 2nd grade and has been struggling in school for quite some time. However, in the 2nd quarter he has pulled up his grades dramatically. I am so proud!!!!! He has begun taking Focalin for his ADHD, and I have been giving him extra lesson plans at home to help with reading(I do what I can, I'm not a pro or anything). He is also in a team teaching setting and is really thriving there (the two teachers helps give him more individualized attention).
My question is, he has to jump two more reading levels before being promoted to 3rd grade. Are there any pointers out there for someone like me to help my son? We are required to read one book a night. I don't want him to fall behind so we are doing what we can.
Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated 
- GiGi222's blog
- Log in or register to post comments
Comments
flashcards for vocabulary
flashcards for vocabulary building. that will help bring his reading up...his comprehension also needs to get higher. so maybe one/two books a week you do an "analysis" beyond the reading. ie, "who is the main character?" "what was the story about?" "why do you think so and so did that?" that is the level of analysis they should have in third grade so you want to start moving comprehension of reading in that direction.
Thanks Folk, that's the
Thanks Folk, that's the biggest issue right now, comprehension. Should I be asking more questions, or maybe have him write practice book reports?
book reports usually start
book reports usually start in 4th grade, so i think that is a bit advanced. in third grade they do one paragraph summaries. so you want to work him to that direction. to begin, i think more questions out loud is good.
we actually do this with our 4th grader. she does not always "think" about what she reads. it is not what mom taught. she just read. so for the past 12 months, every book she reads we have a family discussion about and i really will push her on thinking about morals and concepts (but that is 4th grade...not 2nd) and her comprehension marks have shot WAY up. she jumped a whole letter grade this last marking period (with a 98 on her first book report!)
so second grade is two fold...word recognition and understanding vocabulary and beginning to understand concepts of stories. that is really where they are at.
it can be as simple as you are reading out loud together (try him one page, you the next, or alternating paragraphs) and the character does something..say pull a girls hair..."SS, why do you think Joe pulled Susies hair?" he might not answer..or say I don't know...takes some practice. so if it is i don't know...give it in multiple choice verbally..well, do you think it is because Joe likes susy...or do you think it is because Joe was mad at susy? now he will pick. "oh good, and how do we know Joe is mad at Susy...what happened?" ...answer..or multiple choice...and move on to the next part of story.
Thanks Folkmom, that is very
Thanks Folkmom, that is very helpful
no problem. i love
no problem. i love reading. i do all of that and social studies with SD. math...that is all her dad:)
i teach college, but everyone in my family teaches elementary or above...the only good news is i avoided my own mom in school for a teacher...
My parents and my sister are
My parents and my sister are all teachers & they all say that reading TO your child is just as important as your child reading himself. Have him read out loud to you as well as having him read to himself. Making him sound out words for himself is really important too, not just telling him what it says. Good luck!
"There are two things over which you have complete dominion, authority, and control over - your mind and your mouth".
Thanks SM008, we do take
Thanks SM008, we do take turns, but I am trying to slowly wean him off that. Its hard getting a child on the proper reading level when they don't like to read to begin with, which I can never understand because I looooove reading.
Me too! I get a bit
Me too! I get a bit frustrated with SD9 because she's never liked to read & when she does she sets a timer for 20 minutes. And of course her mother bought her the damn bookmark timer. I keep telling her to just finish the chapter she's on instead of timing herself but, you know, a 9 year old knows best. And Wilda reinforces that continuously.
"There are two things over which you have complete dominion, authority, and control over - your mind and your mouth".
reading together is good! no
reading together is good! no need to wean him off of it yet! we still do it with SD 9. in fact, we have had "reading nights". Gosh, half of Anne of Green Gables was done this way...me reading, dad reading, SD reading. it helped her get into it and she LOVED it.
second grade is still ok to really read with him. it helps keep their attention on the book.
choochoo loves reading but
choochoo loves reading but he used to hate it with a passion.
one thing that worked for me was I started making our saturday night activity "Write a Book" night.
We would sit and brainstorm a story together...do the brainstorming clouds on paper, come up with all the parts of a short story...then we'd write it together. When we were done we'd do the pictures to go along with the story.
Then on Sunday night, we'd read the story we created and talk about it. We did this for SEVERAL months and I would participate less and less to make him do it on his own...eventually he started picking out real books to read and gradually stopped wanted to do our homemade books.
he is now reading books that 4th graders read and his vocab skills and comprehension are outstanding.
_______________________________________________________________________________
"Venting without the desire to look within and improve your situation is simply venting to hear yourself bitch."
"Never let the hand you hold, hold you down." ~Aut
SD9 did this when she was in
SD9 did this when she was in second and third grade. wrote her own books and illustrated them. great idea. she loved to show people. was the writing great? hell no...but the process was.
also...things to make reading "fun" include:
chapter books that have a movie...watch the movie when you are done as a reward (probably more applicable in older grades)
or...say you are reading a book about farm animals..or policeman or something...if youc an now incorporate an activity in your area into your weekend that ties to the book, you can relate it back. in third grade SD read a lot about the colonial revolution...so we did the freedom trail timed to that. brings the words alive a bit.