Stories of the Pilgrims...he doesn't pay attention??

[erikdeb]

I am in week 3 of Beyond with my 6yo first grade ds. We just read Stories of the Pilgrims for the third day...I think, and he is just not interested in listening. If I read one paragraph and then asked what happened in that paragraph, he "doesn't remember". So I came on here to see how other parents kept their dc engaged with this book....and all I can find is how much kids are LOVING it!

I had similar listening issues with his older brother when he was in 2nd grade...and I ended up just having him read the book to himself instead of listening to me, and he learned much better that way. I'm tempted to try that now, even though the book is about 3 years too old for him. He does have good reading comprehension, and it's just so frustrating to sit and read to him and have him pay no attention whatsoever. He does love the read-aloud (we did Helen Keller for the biography) and was doing great with American Pioneers and Patriots, but this book is dragging us down.

Any tips?

[my3sons]

"Stories of the Pilgrims" is (IMO ) the hardest book in Beyond's Reading about History resources, so rest assured that it is the one dc probably need the longest to grow into fully. It has fewer pictures and a more mature style of writing, and dc must really learn to focus on listening and think about what is being read carefully. Honing auditory listening comprehension skills is actually a different skill than reading independently and comprehending well what was read. For this reason, it is important to continue to help your ds learn to listen carefully to what is being read aloud and respond to it with the follow-up discussions/activities. It sounds like he has a natural ability to read well independently and comprehend what he has read well already - HOORAY! But by letting him take over the reading of "Stories of the Pilgrims" you'd only be strengthening an already strong skill area for him, whereas by continuing to help him learn to listen more carefully to your reading and grow in his ability to comprehend in this manner you'll be helping him build a newer skill that doesn't come as easily to him. Your ds is only in Unit 3, so he has much time to continue working on these skills.

We found that each week our sons were able to understand more and more, little by little. We also found that their vocabulary (and their ability to properly pronounce new words) grew through listening to "Stories of the Pilgrims". In Bigger Hearts, the Eggleston books that are history read alouds have even fewer pictures, and an even more mature style of writing, so it will be important to help ds develop good listening/comprehending habits with "Stories of the Pilgrims" in Beyond. Looking even farther down the road, this listening skill is also a stepping stone for being able to listen to a speaker and take good notes upon what was lectured upon by a speaker, only often at that point the extra "help" of following along within a book is removed, which forces dc to rely completely upon their listening ability. I'd keep on encouraging ds to grow in this area - it will be an important skill to develop not only for this year - but for future years of schooling as well. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

[MelInKansas]

I felt myself that the listening comprehension level of that book was pretty high! It may be a bit slow for you to get into, but as you go on the stories will actually interest your son, I promise! I guess I can't guarantee it, but they get more interesting and there is a lot of stuff, and one of the things that has made us enjoy it so much is the activities that go along with the readings, when our daily activity was making something or modeling something that was in the story that was read that day.

Maybe there's some way you could make a contest out of it, or something fun he can have/do if he listens really well and answers the questions. Something to encourage him to try. I generally don't "bribe" my children for doing their school work well, we try instead to talk about some of the things that are actually in the Beyond Bible verses and questions that will be coming up for you - why its important to work hard as working unto the Lord, why we should always do our best even when something is difficult or we don't like it much, how that honors God and our parents, why we should keep trying when things are difficult (week 11 poem... we loved this one!). So maybe those can be your prayer points and hopefully your son will pick up on those things as he memorizes and talks to you about those Bible verses.

I was going to suggest maybe you have him read part aloud and then listen to part, but Julie's point about listening skills were something I hadn't really thought of. My own listening/comprehension and retention are really horrible, I've always been someone who learned something by reading the book, working problems, or doing something. Therefore I don't get too much out of sermons or lectures unless I take lots and lots of notes.

I hope you can figure out how to make it work!

[Tracee]

We are in week 4 of Beyond, and we also hit a little bump in the road at week 3. I started to panic, and I could feel my discouragement welling up. My ds has an auditory processing difficulty (dyslexia), so I never know if what we are going through is normal or if it is because of his dyslexia. I struggle between not pushing him enough because he has dyslexia, and pushing him too hard in this skill. I kept pressing on and modeling narration after we read a section, and a few days ago. Unit 3 day 4 he got it! I said, Do you remember anything from what I just read? Did you see anything in your mind?" He said, "Yes, let me just tell you what I remember." He narrated the whole section. Honestly, I don't think I could have asked for a better narration. I have to also remember everyone has bad days. Some days, he just has a hard time listening, but I have HOPE.

Someone else mentioned a reward of some kind. I have to do this. My ds is an over the top artsy/crafty kid. He asks for a craft or art project everyday, so I say first we have to read the history lesson and then we will do an art or craft project afterwards. Today, we made a windmill and learned what the windmill was used for in Holland and how it worked.

HTH,
Tracy

[Kims]

Mine did that until about week 5 or 6. He would say I don't know but if I would tell him something he would remember and I could prompt him. I thought he would never get it but he is really. He really was hearing me even though I thought he wasn't. I just kind of narrated myself or asked questions.

[my3sons]

Good advice here! I just had another thought. It helps my dc to be able to hold the book with me and follow along as I read. This helps them see the words as I read, but also learn to listen as they follow along. For dc that are good independent readers, this is a way to draw upon those natural abilities while also strengthening their listening abilities. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

[erikdeb]

I tried to have him follow along on that third day, but he got distracted with the fuzz on his pants or whatever and quit following. His older brother isn't good at following along either (we do practice that skill sometimes when we do Bible reading together). However, today I decided to have him close his eyes and picture what I was reading in his mind...and it seemed to work for now. I checked on what his picture looked like once in a while, and he was following it. He did miss some details, but who remembers EVERYTHING they are read. Thanks for the advice. I was ready to ditch it and let him try reading himself...but hopefully this will work for a while, and then he'll get into it and WANT to hear what's happening.