Today’s guest post comes from Merry Marinello, a homeschool mom who uses All About Spelling with her own kids and is part of our Customer Care team.

As a Customer Care rep for All About Learning Press, I think I have one of the best jobs in the world – talking to other moms about teaching their kids how to read and spell.

Moms often ask me what a typical day with All About Spelling is like. I thought it might be helpful to show what happens in our homeschool and give you a peek inside our lessons.

Right now we’re in Level 6, and a step (lesson) usually takes us a week to complete. (In the early days, a step often took only 1-3 days. We went through Level 1 in about three weeks because my kids were older and already had all the words memorized – they just needed to learn the concepts.)

Here’s how we divide up our week:

Day 1: Review and New Teaching

I actually set a timer for the lessons: 15 minutes for my seventh grader and 20 minutes for my ninth grader. Each day starts with 2-5 minutes of review. Here I am trying to review the Phonogram Cards with my jokester.

After the review, we begin the New Teaching section. This section is scripted, so I know immediately how to demonstrate new concepts with the letter tiles on the magnet board.

When my kids were younger, we set the magnet board against the wall or couch because I didn’t have room to hang it in our school area. After the first year, I realized I could reorient the tiles vertically, so now the magnet board hangs on a nearby closet door.

Day 2: New Spelling Words

I make sure that the new material we covered yesterday is totally understood, and we do our 2-5 minutes of review. Then it’s time to meet the ten new spelling words.

I dictate the new spelling words and several sentences that contain the spelling words. After the dictation, I put the new Word Cards behind the Daily Review tab in the Spelling Review Box so we can review them tomorrow.

All About Spelling has a philosophy of “we don’t just teach it and forget it,” which I totally appreciate. I mean, after I put in the time to teach my kids something, I want to make sure that they remember it later, and that’s where the built-in review really helps.

Day 3: Reinforcement

We review older flashcards with just a couple of the new ones mixed in, because I like to spread the new ones out over a few days. Then we quickly review the new concept we’ve been studying, followed by reinforcement words from the More Words section and more of the dictation exercises. If my kids miss any of the reinforcement words, I make Word Cards for them and put them behind the Daily Review tab.

Day 4: Writing Station

Here’s where we fit in the Writing Station activity (which starts in Level 3 of the program.)

In the Writing Station, students make up their own sentences with words that are dictated to them. Sometimes my kids like to make a little story using the words, sometimes they try to be funny, and sometimes they try to squeeze all the words into just one sentence! Here’s one that my daughter wrote:

This exercise makes a nice bridge between dictation and longer writing assignments that kids will do outside of spelling. I love how AAS gradually prepares kids for writing.

Day 5: Wrapping Things Up

Whatever we don’t get done on Days 1-4, we complete on Day 5.

If my children misspelled words in the dictation exercises during the week, I tucked those Word Cards behind the Review divider. If any concept needs to be re-taught, now’s the time to do it before we move on to the next step of the program. All About Spelling is mastery-based, so if my kids are confused about something, we fix it before moving ahead to the next lesson.

So that’s our typical week with All About Spelling. You may go faster or slower depending on your child’s needs and ability…and that’s the beauty of using a fully customizable program!

What about you? Are your days with AAS similar to mine? 

Enter to win a $100 gift certificate good toward the purchase of any All About Reading or All About Spelling materials!

This gift certificate is enough to cover the purchase of the Teacher’s Manual and Student Packet for All About Spelling Level 1, the Deluxe Interactive Kit, and shipping — and still have $10 left over. Or you could purchase the All About Reading Level Pre-1 Basic Package or Level 1 Kit.

What a great opportunity to introduce your students to this fun, multisensory way of learning to read and spell.

Click on these links to find out why these programs work for all types of students, and to download sample lesson plans:

• Why All About Spelling works + sample lesson plans
• Why All About Reading works + sample lessons plans

If you already own the entire AAS or AAR line-up — or if you make a purchase during the giveaway period — we’ll just send you a check for $100 if you win!

How to Enter the Giveaway

1. Sign in to the Rafflecopter widget with your name and email. This is the only way to be officially entered into the giveaway!
2. You will see a list of tasks with big green buttons next to them. Each task has a point value.
3. Click on the ones you want to complete, and follow the instructions. Please note that it is not enough to just click the green buttons; you must also complete the task to earn the points.
4. The more tasks you complete, the more times your name goes in the hat to increase your chances of winning.

IMPORTANT: You must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget below in order to be “officially” entered into the giveaway! (Your email won’t be published or shared. We use emails only to contact the winner.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Giveaway Information

• The giveaway will be open until 12:01am EST Tuesday, June 12, 2012.
• Winner will be announced on Tuesday, June 12, 2012.
• In order to enter the contest, you must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget and complete at least one task.
• Giveaway is open to residents of any country we ship to (see our shipping page for details).
• The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter and contacted via email. If the winner does not respond with the requested contact information within 48 hours, another winner will be chosen.

Good luck!

I’m happy to report that now, several months later…not so much has changed. Why happy? Because their little personalities are really beginning to emerge, and it’s been fun to see how their interests diverge and meet.

While reorganizing their books recently, it dawned on me that I could chart their reading progress in terms of ages, like in prehistory or something.

First, there was the Book-Eaters Age. Archeological exploration revealed fossils of half-chewed board books and coverless specimens held together by the decaying remains of transparent packing tape.

Then came the Classics Age, marked by the twins’ complete refusal to have anything whatsoever to do with classic books I was led to understand that every child in every corner of the earth would ask for every night of their lives from birth until I wanted to hurl said books from the nearest cliff. Nope. These books are in pristine condition, with nary a tiny fingerprint or spot of drool to mar them.

Next came the popular Gotta Have a Gimmick Age, which, judging by the state of the relics uncovered, enjoyed more success than previous ages. These specimens had noise buttons for quacking and snoring, tabs to push and pull, sparkly raised insects to touch, puzzle pieces to arrange, and even music that played at the touch of a button…

…even if it seems early inhabitants might have taken the phrase “lift the flap” a bit too literally.

And finally there was the All the Rage Age, marked by a parent’s willy-nilly desire to build a library of all the most popular contemporary picture books. These are all gorgeous and wonderful and rich and funny…and to date have been read by only one person, who happens to be taller than a two-year-old.

Every night, when the boys point to this lovely stack of books, I hold up new titles with a lilt in my voice and a hopeful look in my eyes.

Ooh, you want to read about the sad fish?

Son 1: No. Muh, muh…
Son 2: No. Shebbah dado ohhhh…

Oh, the kitty and birdie!

Son 1: No! Muh muh muh muh….
Son 2: Noooo…ooo….shebbah dadooooo…

Look, it’s a bear with a hat!

Son 1: No, no, Mamma, muh muh…!
Son 2: Mamma! Shebbah dadooooo…ohhhhh….!

Sigh.

It’s Moon and Sheep once more; to each his own. We are smack dab in the middle of Again and Again Age, when Moon will lose his shoe every single night and Sheep will not be able to sleep ever, ever again. (At least their reading choices are from the beautiful books in the crossover All the Rage Age!)

During this age, which I suspect will last a good long while, I will continue to exclaim enthusiastically about every detail of every page in two books simultaneously, showing how to turn pages with the least amount of mangling, keeping vigilance over the drool factor to minimize water damage.

Of course, I am glad the boys know their own minds and have their favorites. But still I wonder when we will enter the New Horizons Age, when we can leave old friends behind now and then and make new ones from among the fish and owls and cows, and yes even boys and girls, who are waiting patiently in my beloved pile of picture books.

What about you? What “Reading Age” are your children in? Do you follow your kids’ leads on reading material, or do you require that they read certain books…or do you manage a combination of both?

Enter to win a $100 gift certificate good toward the purchase of any All About Reading or All About Spelling materials!

This gift certificate is enough to cover the purchase of the Teacher’s Manual and Student Packet for All About Spelling Level 1, the Deluxe Interactive Kit, and shipping — and still have $10 left over. Or you could purchase the All About Reading Level Pre-1 Basic Package or Level 1 Kit.

What a great opportunity to introduce your students to this fun, multisensory way of learning to read and spell.

Click on these links to find out why these programs work for all types of students, and to download sample lesson plans:

• Why All About Spelling works + sample lesson plans
• Why All About Reading works + sample lessons plans

If you already own the entire AAS or AAR line-up — or if you make a purchase during the giveaway period — we’ll just send you a check for $100 if you win!

How to Enter the Giveaway

1. Sign in to the Rafflecopter widget with your name and email. This is the only way to be officially entered into the giveaway!
2. You will see a list of tasks with big green buttons next to them. Each task has a point value.
3. Click on the ones you want to complete, and follow the instructions. Please note that it is not enough to just click the green buttons; you must also complete the task to earn the points.
4. The more tasks you complete, the more times your name goes in the hat to increase your chances of winning.

IMPORTANT: You must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget below in order to be “officially” entered into the giveaway! (Your email won’t be published or shared. We use emails only to contact the winner.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway Information

• The giveaway will be open until 12:01am EST Tuesday, May 15, 2012.
• Winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 15, 2012.
• In order to enter the contest, you must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget and complete at least one task.
• Giveaway is open to residents of any country we ship to (see our shipping page for details).
• The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter and contacted via email. If the winner does not respond with the requested contact information within 48 hours, another winner will be chosen.

Good luck!

We’ve heard More Ziggy, please! on a daily basis, so I’m excited to share this beautiful book with you!  This is a supplement to Level 1 of the All About Reading series, and it’s a fun way to provide additional practice for your beginning reader.

Here is the “Blast Off with Ziggy” game from the book. You simply remove the perforated game pages and paste them into your own file folder.

To play, choose your game piece.

If you need an extra player, Ziggy is always a willing participant. The Zigzag Zebra is already a familiar face to users of our pre-reading program, but if you’re just meeting Ziggy for the first time, you’ll soon discover that he is a young zebra who is learning to read right along with your student. He is a supportive friend for beginning readers, and he likes to have a good time as he learns. And if you don’t own our plush Ziggy puppet, don’t despair! We’ve included a paper Ziggy in the book, and you can paste his likeness onto a file folder and prop him up to play along.

When you are done playing, store the instructions and game pieces in the front pocket that is included in the book.

It’s pretty cool: Ziggy travels to each continent and practices his reading skills. Here he is teaching sheep in New Zealand how to read.

And here Ziggy goes to the beach in Cape Town, South Africa.

Other destinations include Paris, a Caribbean island, Mongolia, and the South Pole. The book includes a map so your child can keep track of the places visited.

You can store your reading games in a file drawer, between two bookends on a book shelf, or in a plastic storage bin. Your kids will want to take them out again and again!

Have you ever used games and reading activities to motivate or teach your beginning reader? Please share in the comments below! We can all learn from each other!

Enter to win the supplemental Adventures in Reading book of file folder games and a Ziggy the Zebra puppet to play along with your child!

The full-color book Adventures in Reading with the Zigzag Zebra contains nine file folder games that reinforce the skills taught in All About Reading Level 1. The games take your student on reading adventures through all the continents and outer space!

And what would an adventure be without a worthy travel — and reading — companion? Enter Ziggy the Zebra, ready to play all the games along with your child! Ziggy is a plush, high-quality hand puppet destined to become your child’s best reading buddy.

What better way to keep your child interested and learning at the same time?

How to Enter the Giveaway

1. Sign in to the Rafflecopter widget with your name and email. This is the only way to be officially entered into the giveaway!
2. You will see a list of tasks with big green buttons next to them. Each task has a point value.
3. Click on the ones you want to complete, and follow the instructions. Please note that it is not enough to just click the green buttons; you must also complete the task to earn the points.
4. The more tasks you complete, the more times your name goes in the hat to increase your chances of winning.

IMPORTANT: You must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget below in order to be “officially” entered into the giveaway! (Your email won’t be published or shared. We use emails only to contact the winner.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway Information

• The giveaway will be open until 12:01am EST Tuesday, April 10, 2012.
• Winner will be announced on Tuesday, April 10, 2012.
• In order to enter the contest, you must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget and complete at least one task.
• Giveaway is open to residents of any country we ship to (see our shipping page for details).
• The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter and contacted via email. If the winner does not respond with the requested contact information within 48 hours, another winner will be chosen.
• If you purchase the book or the Ziggy puppet during the contest period and are chosen as the winner, you will receive a full refund.

Good luck!

Enter to win a $100 gift certificate good toward the purchase of any All About Reading or All About Spelling materials!

This gift certificate is enough to cover the purchase of the Teacher’s Manual and Student Packet for All About Spelling Level 1, the Deluxe Interactive Kit, and shipping — and still have $10 left over. Or you could purchase the All About Reading Level Pre-1 Basic Package or Level 1 Kit.

What a great opportunity to introduce your students to this fun, multisensory way of learning to read and spell.

Click on these links to find out why these programs work for all types of students, and to download sample lesson plans:

• Why All About Spelling works + sample lesson plans
• Why All About Reading works + sample lessons plans

If you already own the entire AAS or AAR line-up — or if you make a purchase during the giveaway week — we’ll just send you a check for $100 if you win!

How to Enter the Giveaway

1. Sign in to the Rafflecopter widget with your name and email. This is the only way to be officially entered into the giveaway!
2. You will see a list of tasks with big green buttons next to them. Each task has a point value.
3. Click on the ones you want to complete, and follow the instructions. Please note that it is not enough to just click the green buttons; you must also complete the task to earn the points.
4. The more tasks you complete, the more times your name goes in the hat to increase your chances of winning.

IMPORTANT: You must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget below in order to be “officially” entered into the giveaway! (Your email won’t be published or shared. We use emails only to contact the winner.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway Information

• The giveaway will be open until 12:01am EST Tuesday, April 3, 2012.
• Winner will be announced on Tuesday, April 3, 2012.
• In order to enter the contest, you must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget and complete at least one task.
• Giveaway is open to residents of any country we ship to (see our shipping page for details).
• The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter and contacted via email. If the winner does not respond with the requested contact information within 48 hours, another winner will be chosen.

We’ll contact the winner via email. If we can’t contact you, another winner will be chosen.

Good luck!

I have to admit…I’ve been really spoiled. My daughter has made dinner almost every night for the past eight years. But now she is working full time and has a busy social calendar, so if dinner is going to happen, it’s up to me.

After I had a short pity party for myself, I pulled out my trusty old crock pot: the one that got me through the early years of homeschooling.

I love this crock pot. Once I saw it, I actually got excited about preparing dinner again. And I happened to run across a friend’s pin on Pinterest (thanks, Sue!) featuring chicken tacos. It’s really simple, and calls for just three ingredients:

• Boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used 1.75 pounds)
• A jar of salsa (I used a 16oz jar of Newman’s Own)
• A packet of taco seasoning (I used Ortega)

It honestly took less than five minutes to put the ingredients in the crock pot, give it a stir, and turn the dial to low. I got it started at 7:00 this morning, and when I came home tonight, there was delicious chicken taco filling waiting. A quick stir with a fork, and the chicken shredded perfectly. We had friends over, and we all built our own tacos, adding our favorite combination of sour cream, lettuce, avocado, and cheese.

My son announced that he could eat this for dinner every night. :)

So tell me, what do you do when you know you won’t have time to make dinner?

All About Reading and All About Spelling are research-based, sequential programs that ensure your student has no gaps in his learning.

Each of our lessons builds upon previous material learned and presents new material in a logical way, so your student never has to guess at missing information. Our step-by-step programs make it easy for your child to achieve reading and spelling success!

What a great opportunity to introduce your students to this fun, multisensory way of learning to read and spell.

Click on these links to find out why these programs work for all types of students, and to download sample lesson plans:

• Why All About Spelling works + sample lesson plans
• Why All About Reading works + sample lessons plans

If you already own the entire AAS or AAR line-up — or if you make a purchase during the giveaway week — we’ll just send you a check for $50 if you win!

How to Enter the Giveaway

1. Sign in to the Rafflecopter widget with your name and email. This is the only way to be officially entered into the giveaway!
2. You will see a list of tasks with big green buttons next to them. Each task has a point value.
3. Click on the ones you want to complete, and follow the instructions. Please note that it is not enough to just click the green buttons; you must also complete the task to earn the points.
4. The more tasks you complete, the more times your name goes in the hat to increase your chances of winning.

IMPORTANT: You must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget below in order to be “officially” entered into the giveaway! (Your email won’t be published or shared. We use emails only to contact the winner.)


a Rafflecopter giveaway
Giveaway Information

• The giveaway will be open until 12:01am EST Tuesday, March 27, 2012.
• Winner will be announced on Tuesday, March 27, 2012.
• In order to enter the contest, you must sign in to the Rafflecopter widget and complete at least one task.
• Winner is chosen randomly by Rafflecopter.
• Giveaway is open to residents of any country we ship to (see our shipping page for details).
• The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter and contacted via email. If the winner does not respond with the requested contact information within 48 hours, another winner will be chosen.

Good luck!

This is Kjarkur (pronounced Kee-yar-kur). He’s a sweetie. I thought he could help me explain the Silent E in words like love and thick mane and snuggle bug.

Doesn’t he look sweet and cooperative?

Wait. What is this?

Is that a bit of attitude coming out? Oh, dear. I don’t expect that kind of behavior from you.

That’s the kind of thing I’d expect from Oskar.

“Who, me?” Yes, you, Oskar. You are a pill. Always goofing off.

“Cheese!”

“How does it look from this angle?”

Very funny, Oskar.

“Hee hee!”

I tried to get some nice photos, but Oskar kept sticking his nose in the camera, and all I have are dozens of silly shots.

So I’ll have to explain the reasons for Silent E without help from my boys.

Silent E has five basic jobs.

Job #1: Silent E makes the vowel before it long, as in FUNNY JOKE .
Job #2: Silent E can make c and g soft (say /s/ or /j/), as in SILLY FACE.
Job #3: Silent E keeps u and v from being the last letter in the word, as in LOVE YOU.
Job #4: Silent E adds a vowel to syllables with the Consonant+l-e pattern, as in YOU MAKE ME GIGGLE.
Job #5: Handyman E takes care of the jobs the other e’s don’t cover, such as

• Handyman E keeps a singular word from ending in s, as in An Icelandic is officially a HORSE, not a pony. Without the Silent E, horse would look like hors, which looks like a plural word at first glance.
• Handyman E is added to distinguish between two homophones, like aw and awe, as in I am in AWE of Oskar’s creativity.
• Handyman E is added to indicate a voiced /th/ sound in words such as breathe, as in Have you ever watched sleeping ponies BREATHE. The Silent E differentiates it from the unvoiced /th/ sound found in the word breath.
• Handyman E is found in a few words in which the e used to be pronounced, as in COME and get it—hay is being served!

Just about everyone knows about Silent E’s first job, but few people know all five jobs. When you teach all five jobs, spelling and reading make much more sense!

Now, have you ever had one of those days when you really wanted to get some good photos, but everything was working against you? Please share!

I’m off to delete a bunch of goofy photos from my camera…