Its the end of the school year for us here in Australia, so I got my daughter to sit the CAT (as I did last year). She has had mood issues but is currently her normal self and is sleeping better on melatonin. I felt like she was in a good place for the test and that it accurately highlighted her strengths and weaknesses.
The results were essentially the same as last year:
Vocabulary 99th percentile
Reading comprehension 99th percentile
Math computation 22nd percentile
Math concepts and problems 68th percentile
Language mechanics 67th percentile
Language usage and structure 91st percentile
Spelling 57th percentile
I was really surprised about the Math Computation because I know she can do it. (Last year she was on 33rd percentile and I expected an improvement). She can do it, but it is still taking her a lot of time and effort despite knowing her math facts and most of her times tables (R&S4 was a big slow effort and we didn’t get to the end). When she sees a written maths problem she finds it a lot easier. Even a maths problem written horizontally is more likely to be answered correctly.
With spelling I changed her to IEW Phonemic Zoo early in the year because despite consistently getting 17-20/20 in her Spelling Workout over at least 2 years there wasn’t a lot of carry over to her normal writing. Changing spelling program hasn’t fixed that. She can do better when applying significant effort. I have been getting her to write out her answers on scrap paper then I can correct her spelling and she can copy it into her book. She often makes errors in the copying too. And all these errors are so random...even common words that we have gone over so often still get misspelt (eg. with, because).
My husband has said that he feels that the issue is ‘inconstancy fueled by immaturity.’ I’m just not so sure. Yes, there is immaturity aplenty. But she is trying and...well, based on my own experience of being a decent but not outstanding speller...it was never that hard. I don’t think her peers are finding it that hard. (She has asked me why I haven’t taught her how to spell like her friends from Girls Club can!!!)
I have been blaming her spelling difficulties on the fact that I taught her to read with whole-word readers. I tried phonics with her, she was young and keen but she just didn’t seem to be able to get it (probably too young for it). But I’m starting to think it’s not that I did things wrong early on that are the root of the problem here. Now that I think of it, I learnt to read whole-word myself and managed spelling just fine.
I enquired last December at our Registration meeting about getting testing through the school system and I can’t get testing that way...my only option is to pay for it myself and we just don’t have that kind of money, especially for something that my husband doesn’t see as an issue.
My daughter is 10 now and I am determined for her to do MP5 core next year (subbing Maths...my son has changed to Math U See and I have bought it for her as well, IEW Phonemic Zoo and Grammar - which she actually really enjoys). I have told her that this is going to be the priority in our days. And I’ve asked my husband to keep me accountable and check her work most days (a strong motivator for Miriam as well).
Is there something else I ought to be doing? Does she need specialist spelling tutoring? Should I start her at the beginning of Traditional Spelling? Is this just the way she is and I can teach her to adapt? My husband points out that there is spell check these days...but I want her to be able to spell. I feel that poor spelling creates a bad impression. My husband admits that he is embarrassed about his own poor spelling and often makes his own bad handwriting worse when writing on the board (he is a college lecturer) to help cover up that he doesn’t know how to spell.
With Maths I’m hoping that a new format will boost her morale. She’ll enjoy the video, it’s still mastery with review...I guess with Maths I am happy to settle her in to a program that she can plod her way through without the Herculean effort she has been needing to get through work she can get right, and can do flash cards of (despite huge resistance much of the time.). I want her to use the character building effort to focus on the subjects I think she has real strengths in (C.C., Literature, FFL, FMoR). Does this sound reasonable?
The results were essentially the same as last year:
Vocabulary 99th percentile
Reading comprehension 99th percentile
Math computation 22nd percentile
Math concepts and problems 68th percentile
Language mechanics 67th percentile
Language usage and structure 91st percentile
Spelling 57th percentile
I was really surprised about the Math Computation because I know she can do it. (Last year she was on 33rd percentile and I expected an improvement). She can do it, but it is still taking her a lot of time and effort despite knowing her math facts and most of her times tables (R&S4 was a big slow effort and we didn’t get to the end). When she sees a written maths problem she finds it a lot easier. Even a maths problem written horizontally is more likely to be answered correctly.
With spelling I changed her to IEW Phonemic Zoo early in the year because despite consistently getting 17-20/20 in her Spelling Workout over at least 2 years there wasn’t a lot of carry over to her normal writing. Changing spelling program hasn’t fixed that. She can do better when applying significant effort. I have been getting her to write out her answers on scrap paper then I can correct her spelling and she can copy it into her book. She often makes errors in the copying too. And all these errors are so random...even common words that we have gone over so often still get misspelt (eg. with, because).
My husband has said that he feels that the issue is ‘inconstancy fueled by immaturity.’ I’m just not so sure. Yes, there is immaturity aplenty. But she is trying and...well, based on my own experience of being a decent but not outstanding speller...it was never that hard. I don’t think her peers are finding it that hard. (She has asked me why I haven’t taught her how to spell like her friends from Girls Club can!!!)
I have been blaming her spelling difficulties on the fact that I taught her to read with whole-word readers. I tried phonics with her, she was young and keen but she just didn’t seem to be able to get it (probably too young for it). But I’m starting to think it’s not that I did things wrong early on that are the root of the problem here. Now that I think of it, I learnt to read whole-word myself and managed spelling just fine.
I enquired last December at our Registration meeting about getting testing through the school system and I can’t get testing that way...my only option is to pay for it myself and we just don’t have that kind of money, especially for something that my husband doesn’t see as an issue.
My daughter is 10 now and I am determined for her to do MP5 core next year (subbing Maths...my son has changed to Math U See and I have bought it for her as well, IEW Phonemic Zoo and Grammar - which she actually really enjoys). I have told her that this is going to be the priority in our days. And I’ve asked my husband to keep me accountable and check her work most days (a strong motivator for Miriam as well).
Is there something else I ought to be doing? Does she need specialist spelling tutoring? Should I start her at the beginning of Traditional Spelling? Is this just the way she is and I can teach her to adapt? My husband points out that there is spell check these days...but I want her to be able to spell. I feel that poor spelling creates a bad impression. My husband admits that he is embarrassed about his own poor spelling and often makes his own bad handwriting worse when writing on the board (he is a college lecturer) to help cover up that he doesn’t know how to spell.
With Maths I’m hoping that a new format will boost her morale. She’ll enjoy the video, it’s still mastery with review...I guess with Maths I am happy to settle her in to a program that she can plod her way through without the Herculean effort she has been needing to get through work she can get right, and can do flash cards of (despite huge resistance much of the time.). I want her to use the character building effort to focus on the subjects I think she has real strengths in (C.C., Literature, FFL, FMoR). Does this sound reasonable?
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