dictation question for bigger/wheres next level

[sherry80]

I'm confused about dictation. I am using Bigger and my girls have gone through all spelling words and all of dictation in Bigger. I am a member of the yahoo group but confused as to the Dictation Day by Day levels that you can print off because in Bigger it says its level 1. On the yahoo group is says level 2 and thats whats used in Bigger. Plus it doesn't match up to what I have.
Where do I get the next level that would come after the dictation in Bigger?
I'm also not too sure about this dictation thing, we have never really stuck with any spelling program and I feel they are a little behind with spelling. (4th and 5th grade) I'm also considering the Rod and Staff spelling workbooks as an addition to dictation or instead of dictation.
In the past we have tried AAS, completed level 1 and 2.......we have sequential spelling level 1 for the ipad they have done about 1/2 of.......I don't really feel like these worked for us, SS was not retained well and AAS never got done, its too teacher intensive for me.
What do you think?
Sherry

[pjdobro]

The passages for dictation were taken from Dictation Day by Day, but they aren't exactly the same as the ones that you can find in that book. From what I can see in comparing them, Carrie has picked and chosen the ones she felt appropriate. The next level of dictation would be level 3 which is included in Preparing and also Creation to Christ. Starting with Preparing, 3 levels of dictation are giving in each guide. Preparing has Level 2 (same as in Bigger), Level 3, and Level 4; CTC has Level 3, 4, and 5; RTR has Level 4, 5, and 6; etc.

Dictation is a slow burn as far as spelling concerned. It takes time to see the fruits of your efforts. I have seen many Moms who have reported that dictation has helped their dc tremendously but it has taken time. I am starting to see the results myself after a couple of years with dictation. My dd is a natural speller so for her it has only enhanced her spelling, but I think it has given her a much keener eye to detail and editing her own work. My ds is not a natural speller but a struggling one. He started out before dictation slightly below grade level and now after 2 years of dictation has risen to a grade level above. I continue to see improvement in his everyday writing. Make sure to do the dictation as stated in the guides. I usually take the study time to review any spelling rules or exceptions that the new words might have also. For my ds, it is helpful to re-emphasize those things. Also make sure to find the appropriate level to use. It's possible that your dc could use to be at an even higher level of dictation than they have been. I'm not for sure exactly what the rule of thumb is but I do know that they shouldn't be able to get the passage entirely correct everyday with little effort. If it is too easy, they won't be getting everything out of it that they should.

Hopefully that helps a bit.

[sherry80]

So, if I print off the free dictation day by day level 3, it would just have some extra sections that Carrie might have taken out if she did not feel were necessary? I don't want to buy another guide yet but we really need the next level, we are in our 2nd week of school and the girls got through everything with few mistakes total in the entire dictation.
I think we will give it a try and over time see how they improve.
Sherry

[pjdobro]

So, if I print off the free dictation day by day level 3, it would just have some extra sections that Carrie might have taken out if she did not feel were necessary? I don't want to buy another guide yet but we really need the next level, we are in our 2nd week of school and the girls got through everything with few mistakes total in the entire dictation.
I think we will give it a try and over time see how they improve.
Sherry

I think she has added or reworded or rearranged it some as well. You can tell that by comparing level 2 with your Bigger guide dictation. It won't be exact if you use the other source but it will be approximately the same level. If you can't afford to get your next guide yet, I think it would be a reasonable choice. Once you do get your next guide, it shouldn't be a problem though since it will have levels 2, 3, and 4. So that will take you through several years of dictation.