All About Teaching and Learning Phonics

[concern2]

sleepy:

Reward system


...When she managed to overcome some obstacles in her language studies, I would ask her 'do you feel happier with your accomplishment?...Told her she's already punishing herself by not learning

Wow, sleepy, how does your daughter normally take to that? Ask because I am doubting if it'll work on my son.

[buds]

sleepy:

Reward system


I don't quite believe in reward system. Told my girl she's studying for herself, not for my sake. When she managed to overcome some obstacles in her language studies, I would ask her 'do you feel happier with your accomplishment?'

If she exceeds expectation, I always say 'good job!' and plant lots of kisses on her cheek. For her SA1, I bought her Enid Blyton story books at her request but I didn't promise her any rewards before exam

There isn't any penalty in placed if she refuses to do her homework (happens frequently!) Told her she's already punishing herself by not learning

This is a good way, sleepy. Kudos to you, dear.

No promises of reward upfront.

My girls are used to this too. If they do well, then good.
Then if we pass by a bookshop, i will just ask if they need
any stationeries or would like a new book.

It's more like if i have money and think i can buy something
for them that day, i will just get it... Yup, no harsh penalty for
not learning. They're losing out if they do not wish to learn. If
they refuse to do their homework I just say that they would
have to answer to the teacher themselves. I will not speak
on their behalf in explaining incomplete or un-touched work.

When my daughter got Band 1 for her subjects, she said
to me, \"Thanks mum for teaching me. I'm very happy with
my results. It was hard work for me and also for you... with
worksheets preparation and sitting with me throughout my
revision hours, but I did it, mummy .....actually WE did it!\"

I hug her, kiss her and tell her i am very proud of her
achievement. She told me she will try to do even better for
the next exam. She was happy her teacher was proud of her.
When there is a family gathering and she was asked by relatives
how she fared in her exam.... grandparents, aunties and uncles
all complimented her till she was red in the face and she told me
she felt really good about it, that she has done well for herself.

[tamarind]

sleepy, buds,

It is very rare to have a child like your girls. You are very fortunate.

At least 75% of my students could not care less about working hard to get good grades. About 50% of them are not even scared of failing a module. These are 17 to 19 year olds, about to come out to work in the society. I am sure that their parents, and all the teachers before me, have tried to explain to them the consequences of not doing well in exams. I also explain to them that if they get bad grades, it will be difficult to get a job now, but they still don't want to work hard.

I think most kids do not know how to worry about the future, because they can get whatever they want from their parents without the need to work hard at all. If they cannot find a job, mommy and daddy will still give them pocket money and 3 meals a day.

One day I saw a student with his mom. This student has failed many modules. His mom was very sad, she told me that he played computer games all day long, and she did not know what to do with him. That student was very well dressed, he obviously gets whatever he wants easily. How can such a boy learn about the harsh realities of life ?

When I told my boy that he must study hard so that he can live a comfortable life in the future, he does not understand at all.

My girl also does not worry about the future. But when she loves to do something, she does not need any rewards to do it.

For example, she often draws and writes cute little stories on her own.
http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2009/07/written-and-drawn-by-chloe.html

She also practices on her piano on her own initiative, and even learns to play new songs from her music book, before the teacher starts to teach her.

I do advise other parents to try first motivating your kids like sleepy and buds. But if talking fails, it is best to take action. And don't wait until it is too late.

[RRMummy]

tamarind:

I work all day, even on weekends. So it is easy for me not to bring them out at all, except to their Berries class. I need to rest !


I also seldom bring them with me when I do my shopping. So they have not much chance to ask me to buy things too.

My kids are not deprived lah. They have tons of toys, which they get on their birthdays. But kids always like new things. So if they want something new, they have to work for it, like finish reading a book.

Sorry, I hope my comments did not offend you. Really no offence intended.. just different strokes for different folks, I guess..

[tamarind]

RRMummy:

Sorry, I hope my comments did not offend you. Really no offence intended.. just different strokes for different folks, I guess..

Don't worry. Your comments did not offend me at all

Both my hubby and I grew up in the same way, so we are sure our kids can take it. They are already enjoying a better childhood than us anyway.

[RRMummy]

tamarind:

RRMummy:

Sorry, I hope my comments did not offend you. Really no offence intended.. just different strokes for different folks, I guess..

Don't worry. Your comments did not offend me at all

Both my hubby and I grew up in the same way, so we are sure our kids can take it. They are already enjoying a better childhood than us anyway.

I was starting to ...

Your kids are really doing great from what I can see in your blogs.. I would enjoy making little log-house and baking yummy cupcakes too!

:celebrate:

[starz]

Hi Tamarind,


I happened to find this thread n i m impressed with your kids.

In fact, i have taught my kid to read sight words first (around 100 words) before teaching her phonics. Cos i thought perhaps most words are sight words. Until i saw your blog i started to teach her phonics starting off with vowel a on how to blend even word she already know how to read.

We have started out and done -at, -an, -am, -ap and now seems stuck at -ag, -ad. The problem is she seems very confused between ap and ag and ad. How to tell her to differentiate? cos she is not sure how to pronounce the the 3 of these 2 letters words. Any advise?

Is it a must to complete all the vowel a first then proceed to vowel e? can i mix since she seems abit frustrated on the ap, ag, ad…she does know her basic phonics well.

btw, how do i pronouce fish? how many sounds? 2 or 3? any good websites teach how to pronounce fish, shop n etc?

Lastly May i know which branch montessori phonic class were u attending?
Is it accompanied? May i know why did u stop after 11mths with your elder ger?

Thank you for your time to read my post.

[Charmaine_chong]

Hi mummies,


Found a website that is great for teaching phonics + sight words + cute pictures + fun stories.

Have a look!

http://www.progressivephonics.com/index.php

[tamarind]

starz,

My girl went to the Montessori phonics enrichment class near Lakeside MRT. The phonics course is only 11 months, my girl completed the whole course. It is an express course for kids above 3 years 6 months old.

How old is your girl ?

You can break up "ap" to a - p, then teach your girl to sound out each word. Young kids may take quite long to learn to read 2 letter words. They need lots of practice. Try to make it fun by using games. For example, put the letter "a" on a toy car, put the letter "p" on another car, then roll them towards each other while sounding out the "a" and "p" sounds until they collide ! Some fun and actions will enable the child to learn better.

It is not necessary to make sure that she knows all the "a" words very well, when you think she has enough practice, you can move on to "e" words, then "i", "o", "u" words. Then go back to practice "a" words again. It make take 6 months to 1 year to learn read 3 letter words.

My girl’s phonics class take only 2 weeks to complete all the "a" words. Her classmate’s mommy told me that her 6 year old son cannot follow up. The advantage of learning at home is that you can progress at a speed that suits your girl.

Also try to explain the words to your girl, by find the real object, or demonstrating the actions.

[joyip]

Hi Tamarind,


I read your blog and feel inspired to teach my girl phonics using the same method. have since started teaching my girl phonics, I realised that four year old girl got confused with the vowels "a" sound and "e" as they sound almost the same.How do you differentiate their sound?