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I was wondering if it would be ok to do dictation everyday. We're in our 3rd week of Bigger, just at the beginning of our journey in dictation. My dc are really enjoying it and are disappointed on the days that we don't do it. I'm wondering if there would be anything wrong in doing dictation every day instead of only 3 days a week as scheduled in the guide? Assuming they continue to do well, I know we would finish the list before the year is out, but I really want the Preparing guide anyway so I would just get it when we were ready to move onto the next passages. I love how doing dictation is teaching them to listen and write carefully. I figure this is a really good thing and surely more would be better. Is there a downside to doing more?

Hi Patty, I can't wait to hear the answer to this question...my dd wants to do dictation every day too!

I can't respond to the concept of overdoing dictation, but I do know that for dication to be successful you really need to do it a minimum of 3 days a week. Thus, I can't imagine you could overdo it. I would suggest, however, making sure your other Language Arts needs are met on non-dication days before tackling an "extra" dication assignment. I have found that I can easily get off track when I incorporate MORE of what is going well, but not necessarily needed.

I have found out that I have to do our R&S grammar everyday. We went to the mountains for a few days last week and I took our school work with us. I accidentally forgot our Grammar book and I almost had a mutiny on my hands They are loving R&S3 this year. Thanks Julie for your help on another post about how to do the diagramming without having to write them all out. It's helped out and our time spent is coming down. I still think I'll have to allow at least 15 minutes for grammar. Since dictation is so quick, I don't think it will interfere with our other language arts. I think I'll go ahead with everyday for a while.

We do dictation every day with our oldest ds, as he had speech therapy early on and benefits from that little bit of extra time to do dictation. I think one dictation each day is just fine, provided it's not interfering with being able to do the rest of the plans. The day you add dictation to the plans will be a little heavier in the writing department, but if it's going well, then that's just fine. I'd never double up and do 2 dictations in a day, but doing it daily when it seems the best pacing is fine IMO.

In Christ,
Julie

P.S. I'm glad the diagramming is going better!

I'm laughing inside... how have you gotten your kids to LOVE dictation and grammar? It's just something we "do" and they are glad for a day off. Any tips appreciated! Now my kids love storytime, history, science... that kind of stuff... but not grammar!

I am glad this question was asked. I do extra dictation. I have some that just need it and I am beginning to see the fruit of it. It would be a lot easier if we just did it daily maybe 4 days a week since we are on the 4 day schedule. It's great to see what others do.

My son NEEDS extra diction, but I am pretty sure he would keel right over and die on the spot if I told him he had to do it every day! LOL Consider yourselves blessed!

I'm wondering now if I'm doing something wrong with dictation. My daughter (3rd grade) is working on the list in Bigger, and I'm not really seeing it accomplish anything. It seems very easy for her, and feels like a waste of time. How do I approach this to be able to see the fruit?

mom23 wrote:I'm wondering now if I'm doing something wrong with dictation. My daughter (3rd grade) is working on the list in Bigger, and I'm not really seeing it accomplish anything. It seems very easy for her, and feels like a waste of time. How do I approach this to be able to see the fruit?

I'm wondering if maybe your daughter is in too easy a level of dication. Let me suggest just jumping ahead 1/2 way through the level you currently are working in and see if it becomes a little more thought-full for her. She still should be able to master it quickly, but not feel like you're "wasting time."

Thanks, deltagal. I think you may be right. I've spent some time tonight reading older posts on this subject, and didn't realize that the dictation in Bigger is actually 2nd grade level, instead of 3rd. I'll jump ahead in the list and see if I can find something more challenging to her.

I am really blessed that my dc are loving grammar and dictation! We make grammar fun by doing the majority of it orally and make it active. We do things like stand up for sentences and fall down for fragments/phrases (since they can't stand on their own ). They love really getting into their grammar. So far they are liking the dictation because it's new and they are easily able to master it. My ds is a really checking off kind of person so for him to be able to master the section and get to check it off really gives him a thrill. My dd likes anything that involves talking and social interaction.

At this point I don't think the dictation is challenging them too much in the spelling, but I still think it is beneficial. Both of my dc have a tendency to be careless when writing so I think dictation makes them slow down and thoughtfully consider the spelling and punctuation as well as letter formation. They both tend to leave out letters occasionally when writing not because they don't know how to spell the word, just because they are careless so dictation is helping them to listen, visualize, and think as they write. I think this is a wonderful skill and will pay off big in the long run. We may decide to jump ahead to more difficult passages later if they continue to find these easy. I do think though that even the easy passages have merit.

You know I'm no help here, but I have to say my dd loves dictation too!

Patty,

You've already gotten great advice as the ladies visit about dictation and grammar in this thread. Florence is right that we need to do dictation at least 3 times weekly to see its fruit. We have done dictation 4 and 5 days a week at our house on many years as well.

For me, how often we do dictation each week honestly depends on how it fits in my schedule for that year when balancing all of my time with my kiddos. Sometimes it is just easier for me to give dictation a daily time slot for the year. Other years, I'm more strapped for teaching time and am glad to do dictation only 3 times a week.

Hope that helps!

Blessings,
Carrie