I've posted before how & why I started making these seemingly boring videos. I've also talked about the successes I've had. Today, I received more evidence that these silly little videos I make actually do work.
At 7am, we had our first parent/teacher conference with my 1st grader's teacher. She had nothing but nice things to say (of course,) but we prodded her for more info. He's doing well, but HOW well?
Mind you, they school year just started less than two months ago. He's still early in his 1st grade year. But, she showed us on a chart where he is with reading (almost 3rd grade level.) She showed us where he is with writing (late 2nd grade level.) She showed us where he is with math, science, critical thinking and a few other "key performance areas." Without exception, he's way ahead of his class. They haven't started the formal "gifted" classes, yet, but says he's a shoe-in for them.
Hearing her bragging on him was one thing, but it wasn't until I saw examples of his classmate's school work on the wall that I started to understand just how far ahead he has gotten. On the wall outside the classroom were the results of a "research project" they had to do (yeah, first graders are doing research, now!) It was a very simple project with a picture of some type of weather (rain, sleet, sunshine, hurricanes etc,) with a few sentences describing it below.
Most of the kids' work were the type of thing where you try to decipher what the kid was trying to write. "Hrrcans are yuje stroms." Some of the letters are backwards, some are perfect, and some are impossible to figure out what they're supposed to be. Our son, the little genius, had perfectly written sentences that clearly described what sleet is. The punctuation was perfect, zero spelling errors, and the sentences actually flowed quite nicely.
Seeing this, I actually felt a tinge of guilt in that I realize just what a disparity there was between the bottom of the class and the top. Inadvertently, we'd made that challenge a bit worse for the teacher. I'm not saying my son is a super-student, but just that he's clearly at the top of the class. There was at least one other kid who seemed to be around the same level our kid is. But, if I were to choose between having my kid at the top or the bottom, I'd have to say I'm quite pleased he is where he is.
Plus, it must be said that the videos aren't ALL he ever had for preparation. We did plenty of other school work with him over the last few years, too. Now, he loves school, enjoys his homework, and seems to be off to a roaring start for his education.
Here they are, again... check 'em out! My Educational Videos
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Reading Road Signs!!! New Video Up!!!
I mentioned a few days ago I was collecting pictures for my next video, and I've finally managed to put it all together. I was rather surprised at what a challenge some pictures were to get. I mean, where can you stand to get a picture of a 55mph speed limit sign? Luckily, traffic jams were my friend!
I also mentioned I'd ask my 6 year old to play piano for background music in this video, and he was thrilled to do so. There are four very simple songs playing softly in the background, and they're all his! Well, they're public domain songs he played for me. I think he'll get a big kick out of hearing his music on Youtube. Hopefully, it'll further stoke his joy of playing.
In the process of snapping all these pictures, I got plenty of those speed limit signs. That gave me another idea for a video. How about one counting by 5s using speed limit signs? I have most of the images I'll need, so it shouldn't be long before that one is up, too. I think I'm just missing 20, 40, 50 and 60 for me to have them up to 65. If I can't find actual pictures, I'll just photoshop the ones I already have.
As always, I welcome your comments & suggestions!
Plus me on Google+, share me on Facebook, like the videos & subscribe so you can get updates!
Thanks!
I also mentioned I'd ask my 6 year old to play piano for background music in this video, and he was thrilled to do so. There are four very simple songs playing softly in the background, and they're all his! Well, they're public domain songs he played for me. I think he'll get a big kick out of hearing his music on Youtube. Hopefully, it'll further stoke his joy of playing.
In the process of snapping all these pictures, I got plenty of those speed limit signs. That gave me another idea for a video. How about one counting by 5s using speed limit signs? I have most of the images I'll need, so it shouldn't be long before that one is up, too. I think I'm just missing 20, 40, 50 and 60 for me to have them up to 65. If I can't find actual pictures, I'll just photoshop the ones I already have.
As always, I welcome your comments & suggestions!
Plus me on Google+, share me on Facebook, like the videos & subscribe so you can get updates!
Thanks!
New Video Idea!
In the back of my mind, there's almost always an undercurrent of thought looking for ideas for new videos for kids. I know that everyone reads most words by sight, not by sounding out the words. For example, when you read the word "STOP," you don't look at the ST combination, sound it out, add on the AH sound for the O and then finish off by adding the P sound at the end. No, what we do is recognize the basic shape of the word. This is how we can read as quickly as we do. We actually read several words at a time, piecing together - not individual words - but whole sentences.
That is the basis behind "sight words" or "frequency words." Kids need to know them just by glancing at them, not actually reading them.
As I was driving along with my 3 year old in the back seat, I remembered some of the first words either of my boys learned to read. They were the words they see from their carseats as we drive along! STOP, YIELD, SCHOOL BUS STOP AHEAD, SPEED LIMIT....
With that, I had the idea for my next video!
I had another idea floating around in the back of my head for my next video, as well. My 6 year old has been taking piano lessons for a few months, now, and has gotten pretty good (for a 6 year old, anyhow.) It's going to take me a few days to gather all of the pictures I need for the video, and in that time, I'm going to see if there's a "public domain" song he can play for the background music!
Like I said, I'm always looking for new ideas, so if you have an idea that you think would fit in with the educational videos, let me know in the comments below!
Thanks!
That is the basis behind "sight words" or "frequency words." Kids need to know them just by glancing at them, not actually reading them.
As I was driving along with my 3 year old in the back seat, I remembered some of the first words either of my boys learned to read. They were the words they see from their carseats as we drive along! STOP, YIELD, SCHOOL BUS STOP AHEAD, SPEED LIMIT....
With that, I had the idea for my next video!
I had another idea floating around in the back of my head for my next video, as well. My 6 year old has been taking piano lessons for a few months, now, and has gotten pretty good (for a 6 year old, anyhow.) It's going to take me a few days to gather all of the pictures I need for the video, and in that time, I'm going to see if there's a "public domain" song he can play for the background music!
Like I said, I'm always looking for new ideas, so if you have an idea that you think would fit in with the educational videos, let me know in the comments below!
Thanks!
My oldest son who was the catalyst into me making educational videos for little ones is now six years old. When he was about 12 months old, I made my first home movie for him on my PC. It was primitive and simplistic, but he liked it. For me, it was little more than a tool to help pre-occupy him while I cat-napped. You see, I was working at night and was getting very little sleep. So, if I could find something that would pre-occupy him for even 20 minutes, I was in heaven!
I had looked at what was already on TV, and while many of the shows for tots are great, I didn't feel like they were what I was looking for. Yes, I admit that I clearly was looking to use video as a babysitter, but I wanted the best video-babysitter I could find. So, I made videos of me reciting the ABC, numbers and what were essentially "video flash cards" for vocabulary words. Mind you, he wasn't even talking, yet.
By the time he was 18 months old, he knew his ABCs and 123s.
Re-read that if you need to. That was huge.
We didn't put him in public school until he was old enough for the 1st grade. We just skipped kindergarten (he knew all that stuff and then some by the time he was 3.) Last night, we had a sort of open house with his teacher to see how he was doing and what they were learning. She covered tons of stuff they're learning, and it was a real eye-opener for me. One thing she said that caught my attention was that by the end of the 1st grade, they would have to be able to read at "level D."
Uh... I had to ask what that meant. So, I was directed to examples of what a "level D" book was. After reading it and sharing it with my son, I had to contain my smugness. This wasn't even close to challenging him, and it's what he's supposed to be working up to! I'm not saying my son is gifted or that I'm a super-dad or anything, but just that this experience underscores the fact that spending a little extra time focusing on educating your kids BEFORE they're school age goes a very long way. My kid is reading at a level well above where he's "supposed to be," is above where he's "supposed to be" in math as well as other subjects. This is not only going to pay dividends for him via direct academic strengths, but also through making school something more fun and less stressful.
Don't wait until you think your kid is "ready" to start learning. If your is old enough to track movement with his/her eyes, your kid is old enough for you to start teaching them how to read. Avoid shows like Curious George or Pokoyo. They don't need all that flash. Just find videos online that are simple and straightforward. The simpler, the better, in my opinion. Sit down with them in front of those videos and make "TV" something you do together for fun and education.
God Bless!
Here are my "eductional videos" in Youtube playlist form. Enjoy!
Roopull's Giggling Brains
I had looked at what was already on TV, and while many of the shows for tots are great, I didn't feel like they were what I was looking for. Yes, I admit that I clearly was looking to use video as a babysitter, but I wanted the best video-babysitter I could find. So, I made videos of me reciting the ABC, numbers and what were essentially "video flash cards" for vocabulary words. Mind you, he wasn't even talking, yet.
By the time he was 18 months old, he knew his ABCs and 123s.
Re-read that if you need to. That was huge.
We didn't put him in public school until he was old enough for the 1st grade. We just skipped kindergarten (he knew all that stuff and then some by the time he was 3.) Last night, we had a sort of open house with his teacher to see how he was doing and what they were learning. She covered tons of stuff they're learning, and it was a real eye-opener for me. One thing she said that caught my attention was that by the end of the 1st grade, they would have to be able to read at "level D."
Uh... I had to ask what that meant. So, I was directed to examples of what a "level D" book was. After reading it and sharing it with my son, I had to contain my smugness. This wasn't even close to challenging him, and it's what he's supposed to be working up to! I'm not saying my son is gifted or that I'm a super-dad or anything, but just that this experience underscores the fact that spending a little extra time focusing on educating your kids BEFORE they're school age goes a very long way. My kid is reading at a level well above where he's "supposed to be," is above where he's "supposed to be" in math as well as other subjects. This is not only going to pay dividends for him via direct academic strengths, but also through making school something more fun and less stressful.
Don't wait until you think your kid is "ready" to start learning. If your is old enough to track movement with his/her eyes, your kid is old enough for you to start teaching them how to read. Avoid shows like Curious George or Pokoyo. They don't need all that flash. Just find videos online that are simple and straightforward. The simpler, the better, in my opinion. Sit down with them in front of those videos and make "TV" something you do together for fun and education.
God Bless!
Here are my "eductional videos" in Youtube playlist form. Enjoy!
Roopull's Giggling Brains
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