Monday, November 28, 2011

that mom

crud, I'm that mom.  I never understood when my (student's) parents couldn't figure out our lower elementary grade homework.  I'm that mom today. It's only first grade and I don't know my special sounds. 


Apparently, Bee doesn't either.  She was asked to redo this page.  She is a smart gal and can read most anything you put in front of her, so she isn't so focused on the phonic of words anymore.  She can't for the life of her remember which letters make special sounds.  I even searched online and can't figure it out.  First grade is tough!  For me!

4 comments:

Aunt Donna said...

Alright...just call me "that aunt". I've been teaching for over 30 years (with being the reading resource teacher to first grade students the past 10 years) and I only see one error. I would have marked my paper just like Bee did... with the exception of circling the "r controlled vowel" in dirt. I say, "she's one smart cookie"!

Amanda said...

Hmmm... I have taugh k for 5 years and am almost done with my reading masters - this assignment is a little ambiguous. I'd have trouble as a 6 year old too! Aren't all sounds "special?" Thank goodness she has such a great mom to help her figure it out! So many children do not have any support at home (probably why she is a stong reader!)

Unknown said...

You are so sweet to come visit and comment on our blog! I am so glad they are giving you (and all the other parents) charts and info. I know some of the reading termonology can be overwhelming! It is exciting that you were a 3rd grade teacher. I'm following you and am excited to read more!

Anonymous said...

I just went online searching for a clear definition of "special sounds" after attempting to grade my 2nd grader's A Beka phonics test. It is the same type of questions you posted in your picture. The definition seems to be "there are 132 of them because we said so..." My kid marked the "o" in go as a long vowel... but I guess o is not really a vowel in this case... but a special sound.. Arrrghhh!
I guess this is a fair warning for those of you who switch from something else to ABeka. I found Sing Spell Read Write to be fantastic through Grade 1. My daughter's reading seems to be advanced well past the Grade 2 ABeka, but this different set of phonics rules is proving to be frustrating. The lack of teacher-level reference in the 2nd grade books adds to it.