Aug. 17, 2008 - Bumping Up FIAR
I have tried to walk away from FIAR several times but I keep coming back. The relational way lessons are taught and the good books are just too good to let go.
My youngest two are 9 and 11 and I know they are supposedly beyond the FIAR ages but I am going to give “bumping up FIAR” a go. My 9yo has some learning difficulties and his basic skills are at 6yo level (reading/writing) though his thinking skills are on target. My 11yo though a competent reader isn’t comprehending non-fiction independently yet and therefore not ready for independent study. So I want to do FIAR with them together.
Over the last 6 months we have dibbled and dabbled here and there and though they have been learning it hasn’t been a concentrated effort. I want that to change. This afternoon I made some decisions and planned our next unit.
- I am going to start at FIAR Vol. 1 and do each book, unless there is a good reason for not doing it. This will reduce my decision making. Just do the next book on the list!
- I want to make sure we do the activities that we didn’t do the last time (or two) around – ensuring that we do the “harder” lessons
- Nomi needs opportunity to learn independent study skills – key words, summarizing, reading non-fiction, using various resources etc
- Daniel needs a couple of independent activities that he can do at other times and yet enhance his FIAR studies
- We will give lapbooking another try. I am toying with the idea of making the lapbooks smaller – either ½ foolscap or A4 just so we aren’t faced with such a large area to fill. Still thinking on this one.
Here are my notes for our lessons on The Story of Ping. Some of these lessons come from the manual, some from online links and some from my head.
Introduction: Story Disks, maps, vocab, narrations,
Atlas work, non-fiction books
Make “About China” mini book
Maintain a Resource List (DM) / Bibliograph (NM)
Create a Lapbook cover (photocopy book cover)
Social Studies
Review: Map, vocab, sequence of story
Read Ms.Frizzle’s Adventure to Imperial China
Discuss Culture
Compare Chinese culture with Australian
Chinese meal (possibly cooking)
Literature
Review: Map, vocab, sequence of story
Choices Authors make – Fiction – stories using imaginations
List the things in this story that are true about China
Choices Authors make – Repetition
NM – Write a short story – possibly about an animal living on the Great Wall of China – and use repetition.
Art
Review Map, Vocab
Unity of Theme (as per manual)
NM – use this technique to illustrate her short story
Composition
Create a picture about China, ducks, boats (??) using a line of composition
DM – use magazine pictures/collage
NM – drawing
Science
Review Vocab
Read a book on Ducks – non-fiction
Review Animal Classification
DM – dictate – make a “What I know about Ducks” mini book
NM – keyword outline from non-fiction text on Ducks, rewrite (IEW lesson)
Independent activities for Daniel
- build a mud brick – using a popsicle stick mould – take photos
- Buoyancy experiment, observation and recording
This will cover 5-7 days lessons. On the last day we will ensure our lapbooks are finished and head into the library to look for books for the next unit: Who Owns the Sun.
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