Vocabulary - Card size, Card alternatives...

[Lucy]

I am getting my supplies together for ECC, & I'm wondering is it important for each child to have their own box of vocabulary cards or can they all share one?

I suppose if you have one large box you could use dividers to divide up whose cards are whose. For older children you will end up with about 60 cards and for younger ones half that(just depending on if they can do 2 a week).

Lucy

[Heidi]

My children began using index cards, but found them too small. They enjoy making their pictures a full size page. So, we had to switch tactics about 4--5 weeks in. Instead of a vocabulary box of index cards, we have a separate section in their notebooks for these.

[Julie in MN]

We started ECC in January and love it, except. . . My son groans each week when it's time to make the vocab cards using Geography From A to Z. Last week he asked me why he had to make them and what was the point. So HELP!! What does anyone do with these cards?
Dee

Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2008 9:01 am
I think the intention is to help the child remember the vocabulary by using it in several ways -- writing it, drawing it, having cards to review with.

That said, I think the goal is that your ds learns the geography terms. Using the already-planned-out methods will be easiest for you & proven methods for students. However, if you find something else that works just as well for your particular child, then I don't feel there's any other benefit to "just doing it" (besides being easier for you & possibly being a method that will work for him).

I don't have any completely new ideas, but some ideas for the cards:

* We put the cards into "photo pages" in our notebook, for review even in later years.

* Also, the version of the World Atlas that was available when we did ECC had an illustration of many of the geography terms (in the back of the book?). I even picked up a laminated version of that illustration at convention from a Geography booth -- my ds just responds to having something in his hands :o) So that illustration was a good alternative to the ones in A to Z, and it also sort-of "put all of them together" on one page. That's the only thing *I* added.

* Would he respond better to creating a notebook for vocabulary?

* Look up the terms in the dictionary?

* Singing a song about them?

* A few kids really like worksheets, and there are some ideas for worksheet resources on the "ECC Country Ideas" board -- tho I caution that some of the kids like worksheets because they can "fill it in & forget it"!

[TurnOurHearts]

Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2008 10:10 pm

This particular activity on the schedule is my son's favorite (unlike spelling - there's where you'll hear our groans). Literally CHEERS every time I tell him it's time to do a new vocabulary card. Why? He's an art kid. He loves drawing those pictures each week! So trying to think outside my own little box...

I guess my only suggestion would be to see if there's a way to integrate the activity into something he really loves. Or, so that it doesn't seem like so much busy work, maybe use it as a sit-down-at-the-computer-together, let's-learn-how-to-use-the-internet-search-and-research kind of time. Maybe? Your child may already be savvy on the computer, but I have to make a point to spend time there with my kids. You said that you often look things up for him. Could this be a time to turn the mouse over to him - with your supervision, of course? You'd be able to check off the box for the week & he might pick up a skill or two. In our case, it will just be nice when the kiddos know which letters are where... ;)

Keep thinking & writing. And let us know if you find something that sparks the flame! HTH!

[donutmom]

Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 4:25 pm

Paige, you mentioning that your son loves to do the cards because he's an art kid--hit me right between the eyes. My son is so far from that! Maybe that's why he "hates" it!!!! I never gave it a thought. He's more the engineer sort of mind--just like my hubby. Do you know what I mean? Yup, my hubby would have hated doing them too. You'd think I may have thought about that. Duh!

Now that I'm enlightened maybe I can think of a new way to approach this task. One that appeals to a non-artist. All suggestions welcome on that!! I guess I could go ask my husband. Imagine that! That's who I go to when I just can't get a math concept through to my son. Hubby sits down and my son gets it right away (remember they think alike). How come I forget to go to that live-in resource??!!

Julie, I know MFW doesn't do "busy work" and that all the tasks have a purpose, which is why I kept making him do the cards. I think I'll find some photo pages, too. Give the cards some "importance" that way.

Dee

[TurnOurHearts]

Posted: Thu Mar 13, 2008 1:43 pm

My son is also a math/engineer type (I credit my sister for his love of drawing - it so doesn't fit the norm...). I had a thought:

Does your little engineer have a lot of legos like mine? Maybe to make a fun Friday thing, you could have him design a scene with legos which depicts the vocabulary word? Blue legos for the river, etc.?

He could still copy the definition on the card, but then he could take a photo of his design to be printed & pasted on the front.

I realize this is a more labor-intensive activity, but I bet he'd remember the vocabulary terms! I'm so gonna ask Max to try this! Anyhoo, just a thought from one engineer-in-training Mom to another. ;)

[MJ in IL]

Posted: Thu Mar 13, 2008 4:10 pm

We needed to play catch-up on some of the cards when we did ECC. Instead of drawing the word, I used clip-art from the computer and Internet.

I have a Lego kid too! I'm going to have to file that idea for ECC vocab. in a few years. He would love that! He's always trying to "illustrate" something with Legos.

[donutmom]

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 3:01 pm

It may be more labor intensive, but I suspect less time intensive based on now (draw, erase, groan, draw, erase, grumble--did I mention he's a slight perfectionist, so if it doesn't look just like the drawing, he thinks it's not "right"--no matter what I say). Fridays usually end up with legos or magnetix or something else out in the afternoon anyway, so it's a perfect idea.

Taking a picture of whatever we do is a great idea to put on the card with the definition. I just love how handy digital cameras are!

When my 4 year old got out the play-doh yesterday, I thought of using that, too. So that gives me 2 ideas--YEAH!!

Oh, I just thought of another idea! When we were in North America we did the activity for art that was the Sand Paintings. Well, it happened to be an nice day to go outside, so we did it on the driveway with chalk, and the kids loved it. So that may work for some of the words.

Now I'm anxious for next Friday to roll around to give it a go!! Maybe we'll even try it on Monday. I'm so excited. I just love these boards. I have been encouraged so many times from what I've read.

[cbollin]

When you file them do you keep them in the order they were done or do you put them in alphabetical order?

We did our cards on 8.5 x 11 notebooking paper instead of index cards. Then the oldest girl put the papers in geography notebook in the same continent that we did the geography term. middle gal..... she put them in a special section in the 3 ring binder and just put the next one on top so, filed in order we did them.

there's no wrong way to do this. you have lots of flexibility to personalize it.
-crystal

[Missy OH]

We prefer doing them on index cards and putting them in alpabetical order.

[Kelly1730]

We did them on index cards and filed them in order of how we did them. Lots of families, lots of answers:)

[meagabby]

We did them on index cards but didn't keep them in any special order.

[Amy C.]

We did ECC this past school year. My older 2 ds doing ECC were 3rd and 5th grade. This was something they did on their own (after a reminder from me) so I was lucky the cards even made it in the index card holder (I would find them lying on the table or countertop and have to remind them for the 3rd time to put them up). So I really don't know what order they are in. I count it a success if they all got put in there. I have learned to choose my battles, KWIM. We are reusing those index card holders this next year so I had my boys put a rubber band around their cards and put them up until I can decide how we are going to store their past schoolwork.

Probably not the answer you are looking for, but an honest look at how we did it at our house.
Amy C.

[NJCheryl]

We did ECC last year. I would shuffle the cards every time we did our vocab. review. I think sometimes if things are left in the same order, we remember the order, and not necessarily the definition of each particular word. Just my thoughts.

Cheryl

[cbollin]

Is there an advantage to having the voc. cards loose verses bound? I have card stock and a binder. I was thinking of printing up 4X6 cards with appropriate lines front and back and binding them for my kids. It would get rid of the box thing on their desk that I know would become a distraction for my ds, and still keep the cards together.
Are there things done with these cards that they need to be individual?

We did ours on "notebooking" paper. 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper with blank space at top and lines at the bottom. It was fine for us. I don't remember there being a specific review game or anything like that. But we enjoyed informal review each week as we flipped through our pages each week. We just filed them in our geography notebook in their own section.

There may be some advantages to having them in a box, but I don't know what it would be and doing other ways was ok. maybe it's a cost issue and MFW was thinking of the least expensive way to do it? I don't know. that's total speculation.

-crystal

[annaz]

I just like mine in a box with ABC dividers. Just helps dd with alphabetization.

[jasntas]

We do ours like Crystal's. Paper with blank space at the top for drawing and lines below for the text. For my dd in 1st but wanting to be a part, I type up the vocab. with a print type font and print in a light grey. She then traces. We then put them in inexpensive folders in sheet protectors. I have a binding machine so I plan to bind them at the end of the school year. Otherwise, I would just three hole punch them before placing them in the folders.

I love the alphabetizing idea, though.

[MFW-Lucy]

Dear Sandy,

We used the cards to review like flashcards throughout the year so I liked having them on the note cards so that the root to learn was on one side and the definition and words were on the other. We also liked playing a game where I would layout either side of the card and they would have to give me the correct root or definition in order to "win" that card. I just made this up, but you may think of other games you might play with them as well.

I did store them in a box, and the boxes were but on the shelf with other school books for easy access.

It's just another idea to help you think about what will work best for your family.

Lucy

[momsflowergarden]

Thanks, Lucy. This sounds like something that I might try with the Eng. from the roots up. I am in the process of making a book for the voc from Geo. A-Z. They will have plenty of room to draw a picture and I think they will totally enjoy that.

[cbollin]

Hi all,
We are wrapping up our first week of ECC, and I'm just so tickled I don't even think I can express it properly. Praying that it continues to go so well.

My silly question of the day is, what do you do with your vocab from Geography A-Z if you don't use index cards? I had my dd do hers on paper with writing lines at the bottom and a space for drawing at the top (side brag - she did such a great job with her drawing!), but now I don't know where to put them. Geography notebook? Language arts notebook? Just looking for others' ideas.

We did it that route with the "blank at top and lines on bottom" paper.

I holed punched it and put in it's own section in geography notebook. I do wonder though, if I should have put them in with the correct continent? nah... worked for us to have them in a section in geography and then, each week it was all there and easy to spot and review.

-crystal

[TriciaMR]

We did it like Crystal - hole punched, and then was a section in the back of the Geography notebook.

any after the fact thoughts of "should have placed it somewhere else?"

No, I think since the terms are so specific to Geography, it makes sense to put them in the Geography notebook. You want to have them together for review time. (Where in CTG/RTR, the language arts notebook makes more sense because they're more general.)

I suppose, if you wanted, you could make a second copy and put it with a continent/country that has that specific Geography term. I can remember a couple of times we'd be looking at a map or one of the books and I would say, "Hey, remember, that's an isthmus" or, "Oooh, that's just like <whatever>."

-Trish

[Poohbee]

We use 4 x 6 index cards. My dd writes the definition on the lined side and draws her picture on the blank side.

I got a little pocket chart in the dollar section at Target when the school supplies were there, and we put them up in that pocket chart for the week to display them. Then, when it is time for the new cards to be displayed, we file the old ones in a coupon caddy, which I also bought in the dollar section at Target, and my dd keeps the coupon caddy file in her desk.

Just another idea as to how the vocabulary can be done...similar to a file box, I guess, but a little different. I can't remember what size index cards are recommended, but the 4 x 6 cards work well as they provide enough space for the definition and picture.

[momsflowergarden]

So glad ECC is going great for you. We just finished wk 2 and are loving it.

I made a 'blank book'. I made up a page that had a place for date, voc. wd, and def. on the top not quite 1/2. I put line in so my kiddos would have that guide. I left the bottom for their picture. I have a binder so I made a front and back page, laminated them and bound them with respective sheets printed out. Enough to see us through the year. I bound ours on the top so they don't have the ridge to contend with. They love them. This is one of their favorite things to do.
My page is made up in Word Perfect but if it will help I can send you a link.

[MelissaM]

Ooh, Sandy, I love the book idea! I might just steal it from you. I think I would just do the sheets every week and save them, then bind them at the end. I don't have a binder, so I would have to get it done, and once it's done I don't want to have to take it apart in case one sheet gets messed up, kwim?

Hmmm, have to think about this. Love it, thank you!