Question about copywork

[Tracee]

We are currently in Beyond, and copywork has always been a struggle for ds. I've said many times before that he has dyslexia and dysgraphia, so I know it makes copywork a little more difficult for him. We've really had to work hard on forming the letters correctly. His handwriting is pretty good, but he couldn't remember where to start the letters or which way to go. I think he pretty much has that down now, and I want to keep him moving on the copywork. We were using the K-1 grade paper through HWT, and I just moved him to the 2-3 grade paper, and he did very well. Right now, I've been writing the sentences and leaving space for him to write directly under my writing. Just the other day, I caught him drawing a picture of one of our science activities and labeling it per the book, so that tells me that he is ready to try some copywork where he doesn't have to write directly below my writing. I want to start out with just one line from our poem this week and then continue to add to it.



My questions:

How long should we work on copywork per day?
Are they supposed to be writing the entire poem per week?
What is the natural progression for copywork according to Charlotte Mason?


Thanks,
Tracy

[lissiejo]

I believe the recommendation is 10-15 minutes, however, for my daughter it is better for her to have a set amount of lines to accomplish each day. I try to divide it between 4 days because I do a Beyond unit in 4 days instead of 5. If the poem is a little longer I have her do some on the 5th day. If it is a lot longer, I just have her do 3-5 lines a day instead. She doesn't have either of the issues as your son, but did have some issues with letter reversal. She HATES printing. That being said, I went ahead and let her start cursive and she LOVES it. I have no idea how this will translate to your situation, but cursive has been much easier for her.

I don't worry about it anymore if she doesn't get the whole poem done. I encourage her to try, but if she doesn't make it, she doesn't make it. No biggie

I have no idea what the Charlotte Mason idea is. I'm probably loopy for this, but it took me until Beyond to figure out that I was following a particular learning method. I somehow missed the whole idea that Charlotte Mason was a teaching philosophy.

Anyway, I hope this helps some!

[Tracee]

Thank you!

[my3sons]

This is great progress to be celebrated, Tracee! You must be so pleased - thank you for sharing ds's good progress here. Now, the questions...

How long should we work on copywork per day?
Copywork sessions should be limited to 5-10 minutes. Work should be
required to be done neatly and correctly. It is more important for students
to produce careful, quality work, rather than a large quantity that is
carelessly done... (taken from Beyond's introduction)

Are they supposed to be writing the entire poem per week?
No, not unless they are ready to do so. We started with one line of the poem each day at first. We then worked up to 2 lines a day. I tried by the end of the year to have each of our sons be able to copy the entire poem within a week. The length of poems varies, so this makes a difference as well. In general, I think it is helpful if dc can copy 3-4 lines a day by the end of Beyond.

What is the natural progression for copywork according to Charlotte Mason?
In general, the length increases a bit at a time, as does the maturity level of what is copied. Copywork becomes less of a focus in the upper years, though the keeping of a Common Place Book is encouraged always.

HTH!
In Christ,
Julie

[Tracee]

Thanks so much Julie! Wow, 3-4 lines a day by the end of Beyond is definitely doable for us. I'm excited. Even with some learning differences/challenges. DS is moving along nicely. I'm so excited!!!! Thank you HOD .



Tracy