Last Monday, in part 1 of our unit study on dogs, your child read a book (or part of a book) about dogs to you. And then you read a more difficult story, also about dogs, to him (I suggested Jack London’s The Call of the Wild.) You also went grocery shopping together and practiced math while doing so. Then you baked dog treats and learned about fractions while doing so.
Today your child will work on his or her writing skills, learn how to be a responsible dog owner, work on some math problems, and learn a little about geography, finishing the day with a brain game.
HOW TO CARE FOR A DOG
SKILLS: READING, WRITING, TYPING, RESPONSIBILITY, MATH
If you don’t own a dog, but you’re thinking about getting one, go to the Planning for Your New Dog page on Janet Wall’s How to Love Your Dog site. As you read through the information there, have your child write down answers to the questions in the red box. Then follow the instructions below the box which explain what your child should write next. If he doesn’t know what the word "responsibility" means, have him click on the link to read the page that explains what it means. This site is written in a very easy-to-read style so have your child read most of the questions and explanations out loud.
If you already own a dog, go to the page entitled I Have My Dog Now What? Read through the info there together and have your student write out the answers. If you’re working on improving handwriting, have him print the answers by hand or write them in cursive.
If you’re trying to teach him how to type, have him type the answers out on the computer. Don’t just let him use two fingers. Instead, position his fingers with his two index fingers on the letters "f" and "j", and his middle fingers on "k" and "d", his ring fingers on "l" and "s" and his pinky fingers on "s" and the semicolon. Make sure that when he reaches for other keys, above and below the middle row of keys, he uses the finger placed closest to it. This is a slow process with kids, but even ADD kids can do this without freaking out if you explain to them that there is no rush and even say "let’s do this nice and slowly" Some kids find this interesting. Steven seemed to pick this up rather quickly. If he is bored by it, just have him do a sentence or two each time he writes while he handwrites the rest of the sentences.
The answers to the questions don’t need to be long, but make sure that your child is putting some real thought into it. If you find he is just writing them down quickly without thinking, you might have to say "Let’s plan out what you’re gong to write. Tell me some of your ideas." Then help him to brainstorm before he writes. However, don’t think for him. Make sure that he realizes that writing is a way to say how he feels and that there are no exact, correct answers.
Now go to the What Dogs Cost page of the same site. Read through the page together, then click on the button on the bottom of the page to do some math together to figure out how much it costs to own a dog.
If your child does not yet know how to add or multiply, we’ll be posting some addition and multiplication memorization exercises combined with physical exercises and games next week. Meanwhile, just use some of the numbers on the What Dogs Cost page to teach him how simple addition works, such as adding 7 + 7 to discover that buying both a food and water dish will cost a total of $14.00.
BREAK
If you own a dog, take him on a 10-minute walk along with your child. If your child is old enough, show him how to hold the leash tight and how he can control the dog so that he walks on one side. Alternatively, toss the ball around with your dog in the back yard. If you don’t own a dog, toss a ball around together. If the weather doesn’t permit going outside, play with the dog and your child together inside or play an indoor game like hacky-sack. The idea is to give your kid’s brain a break and get him to move around.
WHERE DIFFERENT DOG BREEDS ARE FROM
SKILLS: GEOGRAPHY, TYPING, COMPUTER SKILLS
Go to Wikipedia read a list of dog breeds and where they originate from. Have your child pick a country that he has heard of, click on it to view a list of dog breeds from that country, then click on the dog breed name to see a picture of it.
Now, in a separate tab on our Web browser (or you could open another instance of your browser so that it appears in a new window), go to Pin In the Map. Use the Hand tool to move the map around and put the country you chose in the middle of the screen. Then use the Zoom tool on the left of the screen to zoom into the country.
Have your child click on the country to put a pin in it. Then have him type in the name of the dog breed in the box.
Do this with 5 to 10 breeds and then print the map and hang it somewhere in his room.
BRAIN EXERCISE
SKILLS: PROBLEM-SOLVING
Go to Zipper Kennel Chaos on the National Geographic Kids site. Talk to your child about why it’s important to read instructions before doing things. Then click on the "How to Play" link and read the game instructions together. Next, play the game. It’s super-easy at first but gets harder as you progress to higher levels. I actually found this one fun to do myself!
COMING NEXT WEEK
Next Monday we’ll take a break from the unit study format and do some memorization exercises combined with physical exercise. Until then, please leave your thoughts and experiences with this lesson here.
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