Learning to Love Latin

Once upon a time, Latin was a central part of students' education.  Students not only learned to conjugate verbs, but to read and enjoy literature in Latin as well.  Unfortunately, Latin has slowly been pushed aside to make way for other subjects.  Many schools only offer Latin as a lower-level course, making it a poor option for students concerned with their GPAs.  Luckily, as afterschooling parents, we have the option of giving our kids what the schools do not provide.  Even if you don't know a bit of Latin, you can learn along with your kids!  Here are some fantastic reasons to teach your kids Latin:

• Your child will increase his vocabulary and increase his ability to understand unfamiliar words.  (SAT skill!)
• Latin teaches grammar explicitly, which helps kids comprehend confusing English grammar concepts.  (SAT skill!)
• Understanding Latin makes learning other Romance languages easier.  Since most college-bound students will study a Romance language in high school, this could be a huge help!
• The ability to read Latin opens up a door to a world of Classical literature and culture. 

Convinced?  There are many wonderful Latin programs out there designed for homeschoolers.  While it is nearly impossible to teach your child a spoken language if you aren't fluent yourself, it is possible to teach Latin!  Most classical homeschoolers and afterschoolers start Latin instruction around third grade.  At this age, kids have the ability to read and write in English and understand basic grammar rules.  They are still young enough to memorize easily (a skill that fades as we grow older) and see learning a "secret" language as exciting.  

One Latin program I've looked at is Visual Latin.  It's a lively video Latin program that takes the pressure off nervous parents.  I've heard nothing but positive reviews from parents in the Well-Trained Mind Forums.  (Although I can teach my daughter Latin now, I know she'll probably progress faster than me as she gets older.)  And right now, it's 30% off!  Check it out below.

 

Math Enrichment Resources

A few weeks ago I asked Crazy Bug what she wanted to do this summer.  I expected the typical responses: swim, go to Six Flags, camp.  Instead she said, "Math! Lots and lots and lots of math."  So math it is!

We are currently using Math Mammoth 1b as our basic curriculum.  It's a nice, steady, easy to implement mastery-based approach to math.  I love that you can just open it up and go because I don't have time for lots of planning.  While its nice to know the basics are covered and Crazy Bug is not missing any concepts, I have to admit that Math Mammoth is a bit dull.  So I supplement with other materials that increase critical thinking skills and mix up the material a bit.

Here are some terrific supplements:

Sunshine Math is a program created by the Florida Department of Education to challenge advanced students.  The worksheets are available for free online.  Each worksheet has a mix of concepts and problem types, and many explore concepts outside of the general grade-level curriculum.

Singapore Math's Challenge Word Problems is another great resource.  Word problems ensure that your child not only understands how to do math, but also when and how to use each concept.  These problems are a little tough, so you may need to go down one level from your child's general math level.  Be prepared to provide support and assistance while your child adjusts to this type of problems.

Critical Thinking Company offers a large variety of math and non-math resources.  They all challenge children to expand their ways of thinking about and solving problems.  This year I'm using Mathematical Reasoning Level B and Building Thinking Skills Level 1, as time allows.

Dr. Wright's Kitchen Table Math: Book 1 is the first in a series of three books for elementary school children and their parents.  The three books span the entire elementary school math curriculum with easy, hands-on math activities to do at home.  If your child is a tactile learner, then this is a great place to start.  Personally, we have only used Book 3, which focuses on non-arithmetic math: geometry, problem solving, probability, graphing, and more.

Early SAT Prep 2: Math

SAT math and high school math are very different animals.  In high school, students study one concept at a time, from one area of math.  For example, most students take a year of geometry.  During that year they might study angles, then triangles, then polygons, then circles.  After studying a concept for a couple of weeks, they're tested on that concept.  For the test, they mainly have to recall the information learned over the prior few weeks and apply it over and over again in slightly different ways.

The SAT tests dozens of concepts from different areas of math.  What's more, many problems test multiple concepts within one problem!  Students can't simply regurgitate the same information again and again.  They have to use their critical thinking skills to evaluate the information provided and determine the concepts, equations, or strategies necessary to solve the problem.

Student who do well on the SAT are not necessarily the ones who receive the highest scores on their classroom tests.  But they are the ones who understand how math works.  They are the ones who can reason out an answer even without a handy-dandy formula.

So how can you help prepare your child?  Here are some tips:

Know the Facts
The SAT is a timed test and every minute counts.  So having basic math facts memorized obviously helps.  Yes, students can use calculators, but calculators are easy to confuse.  Hit plus instead of minus or add an unnecessary decimal and your answer is thrown off.  I've seen many many students multiply 36 x 9 and get 4 without realizing that something strange is going on.  I love the free site XtraMath for memorizing facts.  It's simple, graphic free, and kind of boring, but it gets the job done!

Work the Word Problems
The SAT is the wordiest math test you'll ever see.  Many students can't even figure out what the problem is asking them to do, much less how to solve it.  Public schools do spend more time on word problems than they used to, but it's still not enough.  Particularly at higher levels.  Two useful resources are Singapore's Challenge Word Problems workbooks and The Art of Problem Solving curriculum.

Don't Give Partial Credit
Teacher's often give students partial credit if they solve the problem the right way but make a calculation error.  The SAT does not, and for good reason!  I remember watching my husband and father-in-law build radiator covers for our old house.  They knew how to do the calculations, but kept making minor mistakes.  Much cursing ensued when the resulting radiator covers didn't fit over the radiators.  There's not such thing as a "partially correct" answer to a math problem!


Mix It Up
While new concepts clearly need to be taught one at a time, it doesn't mean students should only work on one type of problem at a time.  Every lesson should end with review problems from several different areas.  And as students get older, problems should be multi-step and multi-concept.  For example, the SAT often gives students the area of a square inscribed in a circle, then asks for the circumference of the circle.  Students must use their knowledge of area to find the length of the square's sides.  Then they must use their knowledge of right triangles and squares' diagonals to find the length of the diagonal.  This in turn is used to find the circle's radius, which is then (finally!) used to calculate circumference.  See why your teenager's head is spinning?


Don't Wait to Get Help
If your son or daughter is struggling with math, don't delay getting help or hire a "homework tutor."  I have frequently been asked by parents to tutor their children by helping them with their homework each day.  I see two problems with this.  First, it's just treading water.  Students who are struggling generally need to go back to the basics and move slowly forward from there, filling in gaps in knowledge and skills as they go.  Second, it teaches the student to be dependent on outside help.  Tutors should help students master concepts so that they can do homework problems (which are designed as practice) on their own.  Math continues to build each year, so getting your child help with pre-algebra will be much more useful then trying to diagnose what she's missed when she's in algebra II.

I hope these ideas help!  If you have other ideas or resources, let me know and I'll try to add them in.

Early SAT Prep 1: Vocabulary

One comment I hear again and again when I tutor is, "I've never seen any of these words before.  How come I have to know them?"  Students often feel that having a strong working vocabulary is unimportant because they can just look up any unfamiliar word as they come across it.  What they fail to realize is that the SAT tests the level vocabulary they should be writing and speaking with, not just reading.  The difference between a sophisticated paper and one that lacks style lies partly in the words chosen to express the ideas.

So how can you help your child build this kind of working vocabulary?  Well, you could get flashcards...

Just kidding!

Here are some easy ideas:

1.  Read books that use sophisticated vocabulary.
I find that older books tend to include many more words than newer children's books.  Compare Andrew Lang's fairy tales with Disney versions, for example.  Or even one of the original Curious George books with the new stories based on the PBS show.  When in doubt turn to the classics.  Roald Dahl's books also pack a verbal punch.  (If you know of other vocabulary-rich children's books, please leave a comment!)

2.  Discuss unfamiliar words.
When you come to a word your child may not know, stop and ask him about it.  Explain what it means.  If you don't know it, you can find plenty of free dictionary apps for your smartphone to help you out.  Try to use the word again later when discussing the book or having a conversation.

3.  Encourage descriptive writing.
If your daughter is writing a thank you note, postcard, or story, encourage her to use stronger descriptive words.  Can she change "We saw some big mountains" to "We saw some gigantic mountains"? 

4.  Talk like a grown-up.
Children absorb what they hear.  Anyone who's ever accidentally let an expletive fly knows that!  Use this to your advantage by using sophisticated words yourself.  If your child doesn't understand a word, you can always explain it.  If your own vocabulary is weak, go ahead and sign up for a word-of-the-day e-mail program. 

I hope these ideas inspire you!  Maybe someday your child will put his arm around you and say, "Mom, thanks for all you did to help me succeed on the SAT and get accepted into my top choice college!" 

Or maybe not.  But we can hope, can't we?

Advice from an SAT Expert

I've been an SAT and ACT tutor for 5 years now.  I've taught hundreds of students in test prep classes and in their homes.  The majority of my private tutoring students are bright teenagers taking multiple AP and Honors classes.  These kids should be well prepared for the SAT.

They're not.

Here's what I would like to say to their parents.

"Your child has spent 12 years in school learning to read, write, and solve problems.  Now he has 8 weeks to prepare for the SATs.  In 8 weeks I can:

• Teach him strategies to improve his accuracy and avoid careless mistakes so his test scores will reflect his actual abilities.
• Review math concepts he hasn't used for a while and may have forgotten.
• Show him how to write the specific type of essay that the essay graders are looking for.
• Review and/or teach grammar rules.

In 8 weeks I cannot:

• Provide your child with a college level vocabulary.
• Greatly increase your child's critical reading ability.
• Increase your child's math problem solving ability to the point where he can see a problem and determine the simplest way to find the information he needs to solve it.

What can you, as a parent, do?  You can get in a time machine, go back to kindergarten, and start working on those skills then!"

Somehow, I don't think that conversation would go over well.  But hopefully, your child is still in elementary school and you have plenty of time to prepare!  Does this mean I advocate spending 12 years "teaching to the test"?  Absolutely not!  However, I do advocate spending 12 years helping your child prepare to be an articulate adult who reads critically and solves difficult problems.  Starting tomorrow, I'll help you out with a series of posts demonstrating how to build these skills in children.  No flash cards or bubble tests necessary!