R2R Research Box

[Nealewill]

So, how long are the writing assignments for the Research box supposed to be? My dd and I are trying to find a happy balance here. I don't know how long the box is supposed to take I guess. And I am not sure how much time should be spent on research vs writing. She can write a ton but then the research takes her a lot longer. If she researches for about 15 min, she can make a 4-5 sentence post card. But if she researches longer, her postcard can have 8-10 sentences. Obviously, the longer she researches, the more interesting the post card. But I also need some balance to the day. I don't want this box to take over my day.

So what is expected? Should the post card be lengthy or more brief in nature. Just trying to accomplish what is desired here.

[mrsrandolph]

My daughter's are brief addressing 2 or 3 of the questions.

[rumkimom]

My daughter answers 3 or 4 of the questions on the post card. There is not that much room on it to write and my daughter writes small.

[Nealewill]

How long does it take your kids to complete this box?

[rumkimom]

My daughter struggled with this at first, so I cut down the time. I think she now spends about 20-25 min doing it. First she writes down the questions on a paper, does the research on the computer, then writes a paragraph using her answers on paper and finally writes it in the notebook. some days it goes longer than other days.

[Nealewill]

That is a good idea. I think I will help her with this a bit more. I will have her start making a few notes and encourage her to do a bit more skimming as I think that skill is lacking a bit. She constantly wants to read all of the items she finds and even if she found the answer to the question, she won't move onto the next item. I hope that if I make a point of pushing her to just answer the question and then move onto the next item, it will get better. And I think I am going to have her sit next to me the next few times she does this box to do a bit more handholding.