Name: Thrive! NCHE Homeschool Conference
Start: 2025-05-22T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-05-24T23:59:59-05:00
Location: Winston-Salem, NC

Tagged: 3rd grade language arts, Language arts, Language arts for 3rd grade, Language arts for early elementary

This topic has 8 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 10 years, 5 months ago by Monica.

Viewing 9 posts - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)

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November 12, 2014 at 6:51 pm
vikingkirken
Participant
Hi all,
I’ve been feeling like our language arts work is sorely lacking nowadays. While I have grand ideas about writing projects, CM-style exercises related to our current read-alouds, etc etc, they require a good deal of energy and time to plan and execute. That works fine on good days, but add in unanticipated interruptions, or mama sick/pregnant days, or outings, and language arts falls by the wayside. “Lifestyle” language arts is awesome on paper, but I really need something that fits in my “non-negotiable” list every day–like our math and spelling programs, which get done no matter what because I can just open the book and do the next thing, despite whatever else is going on or how sick I might be feeling. Or how much two, soon to be three, little ones steal my time and attention.
I’m looking for a bare-bones CM-style resource that would give me a basic “framework” of writing skills. Something I can open each day and do a 10- or 15-minute exercise, then add more elaborate projects as time and energy allow… or my kids can glean from for their own creative writing. (This “bare bones + unschooling” approach seems to work very well at our house–I give my kids the basic tools, and I see them run with them on their own. Or is that “short lessons + masterly inactivity”?) I am already using Sequential Spelling with my 3rd grader, so that particular subject is covered well. I’m considering Primary Language Lessons. Any opinions on this or another simple, straightforward program that might work for us?
November 12, 2014 at 6:54 pm
vikingkirken
Participant
Forgot to add–I am current teaching a third grader and a first grader. The first grader is done with phonics and an excellent and voracious reader; I’m more concerned with writing skills than reading.
November 12, 2014 at 8:18 pm
LindseyD
Participant
Language Arts includes several aspects: literature, composition (written & oral narration), copywork, dictation, poetry, elocution, and grammar.
For your first grader, there isn’t really anything you should be doing except oral narration, copywork, poetry, and literature.
For your third grader, you can do aspects of all these, except probably formal grammar (such as PLL or JAG). Charlotte didn’t recommend beginning formal grammar instruction until age 10, and I absolutely agree w/ her. Grammar is a finite body of knowledge that is never going to change. Why should children learn it in first, second, third, fourth, fifth grades and so on? A noun will always be a noun, a verb will always be a verb, forming contractions, thinking of synonyms, etc. can come much later when the child is at that level of thinking and understanding. I’m just touching the tip of the iceberg w/ my year four 9yo dd with English for the Thoughtful Child.
It sounds like you’re putting a lot of unnecessary pressure on yourself. If both of your children are good readers and can give good narrations, you’re doing a great job. Touch on poetry once a week. SCM has three fantastic new poetry resources that make it pretty idiot-proof. 😉 When my children were in years 2 and 3, I added in once weekly creative writing. They draw a topic from a jar of ideas I’ve already put together and write about it. I don’t check punctuation, spelling, or grammar. It’s simply a way for them to practice putting their thoughts together. Amazingly, correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling happen more and more over time. Maybe introduce prepared dictation using SCM’s Spelling Wisdom next year when your dd is in fourth grade.
I would not be overly concerned w/ writing skills at this point. Honestly, my children just get better and better because I don’t force programs and practice on them. It comes gently in the form of oral and written narrations, creative writing, and reading lots of good books. Children catch on to these concepts naturally the more they’re exposed to them.
As far as short lessons go, your first grader shouldn’t be doing any 15-minute lessons, except for maybe math. That’s the maximum time for lessons at that age. 20-30 minutes is plenty for your third grader, but other than reading independently for that time, there’s no reason why dictation, poetry, narration, copywork, or even introductory grammar should take that long. If you feel you need to be doing something daily, how about this:
Monday: copywork, read aloud w/ oral narration (this can be history, literature, or a book just for fun)
Tuesday: copywork, read aloud w/ oral narration, poetry
Wednesday: copywork, read aloud w/ oral narration
Thursday: read aloud w/ oral narration, creative writing
Friday: copywork, introductory grammar such as English for the Thoughful Child orally, read aloud w/ oral narration
That’s covering language arts every day in several different subjects, but shouldn’t take too long and definitely wouldn’t be complicated.
Even for my older children, we do a max of 5 minutes of best-effort copywork 3-4 days per week. Dictation is twice per week and takes no longer than 10-15 minutes from start of study to completion of exercise, creative writing takes them as long as needed to complete the topic giving their best effort, oral grammar exercises w/ dd take 2-5 minutes twice per week, reading poetry aloud takes no more than 5 minutes daily. It’s very simple and straightforward.
Hope that helps. Please ease up on yourself and your children. I speak from a place of experience. I tried to push too much too soon, and paid the price for it later. I’ve learned my lesson the hard way and am a less-is-more/later-is-better advocate. You and they will burn out if you’re trying to do all this right now. You’ve still got 9 years left with one and 11 years left with the other one. Plenty of time for lots of language arts!
Blessings,
Lindsey
November 13, 2014 at 1:01 am
HollyS
Participant
We switched to Learning Language Arts Through Literature this year and I’ve been very happy with it. LA was not getting done because I wasn’t getting passages found and prepared. LLATL is open and go and I feel it has a nice blend of LA. There is dictation/copywork so it blends fairly well with CM methods. I belive it’s based on Ruth Beechick’s methods. I’m teaching 3 levels, so it takes a bit of time, but I find it very easy to get through.
November 13, 2014 at 1:35 am
Janell
Participant
I use Rod and Staff English and Spelling Wisdom (from SCM). They are open and go and, in my opinion, an awesome combination. Eventually the children add written narrations.
While I have not used it (because I love R&S), English Lessons from Literature by Kathy Devore has been recommended recently as an open and go CM language arts program. It uses classic literature and incorporates copywork, dictation, and grammar. http://barefootmeandering.com/site/lessons-through-literature/eltl/
November 13, 2014 at 4:06 am
vikingkirken
Participant
Thanks for the suggestions everyone! It sounds like I just need to expand on what I’m already doing, and find a couple resources that do my planning for me. I’m thinking I might pick up something like A Child’s Copybook Reader to incorporate a bit more ready-to-use copywork in our schedule. Then maybe after “maternity leave” in January, start my daughter on dictation using Spelling Wisdom 1. So the language arts schedule might look something like this:

Monday: memory verse copywork, Sequential Spelling
Tuesday: only Sequential Spelling (arts co-op day)
Wednesday: A Child’s Copybook Reader, Sequential Spelling
Thursday: Print-to-Cursive Proverbs, Sequential Spelling
Friday: journaling, Spelling Wisdom dictation

And for my 6yo son, just the memory verse copywork, ACCR, and journaling. Is that really all that’s necessary at this point?? I have a good friend with a progressive education degree, so I hear a lot about all the exciting language arts projects she is working on with her second grader, and I think I let it panic me too much.
November 13, 2014 at 4:52 pm
JenniferM
Participant
My nine year old daughter likes to read and write in her free time. While she has always been a natural at storytelling (dramatic!), I think one of the greatest reasons she pursues books and writing outside of school is because she is not burdened by tons of reading and writing during school.
Daily narrations are compositions. Oral narration in the early years (grades 1-3) will eventually lead to written narrations in grades 4 and up. Copywork in the early years will prepare the child to write independently in the later years. It may be hard to believe when you’re at the beginning, but I have seen the fruit. It is wonderful.
This year I have added Intermediate Language Lessons (the second book by Emma Serl) to my daughter’s school work. She works from it three times per week, and occasionally I skip or change a lesson. I did not use any type of language arts/grammar program prior to this. She also does dictation twice per week, which we pull from one of her books or a Scripture.
I share all this to encourage you. Remember the tortoise and the hare. 😉
November 14, 2014 at 2:19 pm
meagan
Participant
I second LLATL if you’re looking for something to get done and that your kids will enjoy. We stopped using it around 7/8th grade, but until then it worked really well for us.
November 14, 2014 at 3:33 pm
Monica
Participant
LLATL wasn’t our favorite Language Arts program, but we just love English Lessons Through Literature. I’m using it with my 8YO this year and it is a big hit. I plan to start level one with my younger two girls next fall. So far, using level two, the book has gone through nouns, verbs, pronouns, abbreviations, state abbreviations, the months of the year, the seasons of the year, and how to address an envelope. In addition, each lesson usually includes a poem, an Aesop’s Fable, some copywork, and occasionally a picture study. We are supposed to be reading a book while we go along (Wiz of Oz, Peter Pan, etc.) but I have him listen to those on audio, which he really enjoys. (All of the books are available on Librivox.org).
To me it is an all-encompassing CM approach to Language Arts – narration, picture study, short lessons, etc. I’m so glad I bought the book that has the first two levels because I can see us using it for years to come. Level 3 is already on our list for next year.