Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Recommended Resources Math/reading for young VSL's

Thank you. I looked it up and had to go to bed before going through the video "how to play." Ha, I did get the battle part. Thanks for the tips. I am going to PM you with one more question (for now:) - hope you don't mind.

Of course not. HTH!

@amazedmom: I just started DS on Time4learning today (online curriculum). You can try it out for two weeks free (after paying up front - $19.99/mth) - which I think is reasonable for Math, Language Arts and Science; and it makes DS sound out each sound and recognize each sound in a word as well, instead of the typical c-at: cat. It will say for example: which one (animated character) sounds out hog; then you move the cursor over the three options, one sounding out the following letters (eg.) o-g, next h-o-g, next h-o. So they really have to listen closely. Hopefully it will help. He and I really liked it though, so far. I had to sit with him the whole time; because some of the directions had to be read??

@Kriston: Are you using any online curriculum? Thanks for all you ideas! (this was going to be my PM:)

Don't know if it'll help or not, but when DS was showing an interest, DH made up a game. He'd hold up X number of fingers and say "let's add X more". Then, with a flourish and great sound effects, he'd add the fingers and DS would count them. As it progressed, DS would come up with the factors and tell Dad to do the game. He did the same with subtraction and called it the "Take Away Game". DS seemed to really like it. Of course, this only works up to 10, .

He has no problem with counting; it is the memorizing. He can visualize how many are in a group of something by counting them in his head (not using his finger to count them) if there are less than 10 or 12. Thank you though!

Plato Science. It's geared to 6th-9th grade, and it has been a big hit for DS8. He loves it!

I just have to make sure that he remembers to turn on the words on the screen and not just try to listen. He has to see the words or he replays it over and over and over. He doesn't mind, but it drives me INSANE and it makes him take forever to get done. The words on the screen fix that.

Otherwise, we bought Descartes' Cove for math, and he uses that from time to time. (Not online, but on the computer.) We also use bits and pieces like www.freerice.org and a free geography game (the address is on the other computer, so I don't have that right now, but can find it this weekend if you want it).

That's it. Most of our stuff is from books, with some--mainly math and grammar--from workbooks.

Thank you...I would like it. Trying free stuff is always helpful. Since I am just starting, I am unsure what will work. Plus, that's a great hint on seeing the words - typical for VSLs?

plato science looks really cool!

Well, I figure that seeing the words is easier than just hearing the computer talk, right? At least the input is visual instead of aural.

I'm a visual learner, though not visual-spatial. Seeing the words certainly helps me, and it seems to help DS8.

DS8 has done nearly all of the 3 Plato Science programs. (One expired before the end of our year, and we were close enough to done, that I didn't renew it.) He really likes them, and it's something that he can mostly do by himself now. (Not so much at the start of last year, when he was just barely 7yo, but now it's no problem.) It has turned him on to chemistry in a big way!

I like Plato because it is very visual, but it's also nicely interactive. The kids do things like diagnose what's wrong with a cell using a machine that tells them the cells symptoms. Then the child has to say that the mitochondria is not working, for example.

And the content really seems geared to the 7-9yo HG+ kid without talking down to them. The material is challenging. DS8 rarely gets 100% on the tests, which I LOVE! He's actually having to work at it! And he remembers the material. It sticks!

I don't love the time slots. That's a fairly recent development. It's a limitation. But it's a good product and I give it my highest recommendation, especially for visual learners.

Board games with 2 dice
"Look 2 plus 1 more means you get to move 3 spaces."

Leave one dice on 1 and roll the other one it will not take long before the wires connect and they realize the pattern of 1 more.

then do the 2's and so on.. can also be done on a number line.

Also use every day situations to talk about math. "You have 10 snacks and I give you 2 more how many will you have? What if I eat 2 of your snacks?"