Daily Grammar Practice (2nd Ed.)

Description

This series has a very simple premise: grammar doesn't have to be difficult - it can be learned (and retained!) through daily exercises that are highly effective but very unintimidating. Teachers will need to spend a few moments familiarizing themselves with the approach, but once that is understood, the daily exercises shouldn't take more than a few minutes. The course is organized into 30 5-day weeks, for a total of 150 days of grammar practice. Students work with the same sentence for a period of a week.

The consumable (permission is not given to reproduce any pages) Student Workbook has two sections. The first section briefly teaches and explains all of the grammar rules as they will be used on each day of the week. The second section contains the daily exercises - one week per page (these exercises really are quick!)

For example, for the first section in Grade 3: Monday is always noun, pronoun, adjective, preposition, conjunction, and interjection; Tuesday is always simple and complete subject, simple and complete predicate/verb, and adverb; Wednesday is always clauses, sentence types, and sentence purpose; Thursday is always capitalization, apostrophe, underlining/italicizing, quotation marks and commas; and Friday is always writing your own sentence using the specific grammar rules provided for that week. In Grade 11: Monday is parts of speech; Tuesday is sentence parts and phrases; Wednesday is clauses and sentence types; Thursday is punctuation and capitalization; and Friday is diagramming.

The Teacher Guide includes: background on the DGP method; instructions on how to best implement this method; reproducible help pages and marking guides; the answer pages; reproducible quiz templates, pretests and check sheets; and a program scope and sequence. Easy to use in both home and classroom settings (this is the secular version). ~ Zach


(Publisher description)

How Does Daily Grammar Practice Work?

The key to Daily Grammar Practice is its organization. Most methods are organized by concept--a lesson on nouns, a lesson on verbs. Daily Grammar Practice pulls all the concepts together so students always see the big picture. Daily Grammar Practice is also daily. Other "daily" grammar programs require students to apply grammar skills by correcting errors in sentences. However, students can't apply what they don't understand.

Daily Grammar Practice helps students understand the basics of grammar and mechanics so that they can get the most out of lessons in usage and writing. Daily Grammar Practice works like a daily grammar vitamin. It gives students one sentence per week to work with. Each day, students have a different task to accomplish with the week's sentence. At the beginning of each class, you go over the day's assignment.

Students correct any errors they have made and ask any questions they may have. You explain any new concepts that the sentence presents. The whole process takes a couple of minutes, and you're ready to move on with class. Students learn through daily repetition and discovery. You don't have to do any other grammar exercises--ever. You may be wondering how students can possibly learn everything they need to know about grammar and mechanics with only one sentence per week. Here's why:

1. Less is more. They really take these sentences apart and understand every aspect of them.

2. Concepts are broken into small parts, but the program is organized in a way that allows students to see how all of the parts fit together. Concepts are then revisited on a daily basis so that they aren't forgotten.

3. The sentences they're working with aren't just random sentences. They're intentionally loaded with specific concepts at specific times. They start simple and get increasingly difficult. Concepts that students should have mastered at their grade level appear in early sentences and appear often. More difficult concepts appear later.

Teaching Method
Traditional
Teacher-centered curriculum commonly used in classrooms that may include a text, teacher manual, tests, etc.
Charlotte Mason
A methodology based on the work of a 19th century educator who maintained that children learn best from literature (Living Books), not textbooks.
Classical
A methodology based on the Latin Trivium (three stages of learning), including the grammar stage (memorization and facts), logic stage (critical thinking), and rhetoric stage (developing/defending ideas).
Unit Study
A thematic or topical approach centered around one topic that integrates multiple subject areas.
Montessori (Discovery)
A methodology based on the work of a 20th century educator that emphasizes student and sensory-driven discovery learning and real-life applications.
Religious Content
Christian/Religious
Faith-based or including instructional religious content.
Neutral
Avoids religious or theoretical topics or presents multiple viewpoints without preference.
Secular
Contains content contrary to common Christian beliefs (i.e. evolution).
Learning Modality
Auditory
Learns through listening, talking out loud or reading out loud.
Visual
Learns through seeing, prefers written instructions and visual materials.
Kinesthetic/Tactile (Hands-On)
Learns through moving, doing and touching.
Multi-Sensory
Curriculum that employ a variety of activities/components.
Presentation
Sequential
Curriculum progresses through well-defined learning objectives. Emphasizes mastery before moving to the next topic.
Spiral
Topics and concepts are repeated from level to level, adding more depth at each pass and connecting with review.
Conceptual/Topical
Focus is on the “why,” often with a unifying concept as well as specific skills; coverage may be broader.
Teacher Involvement
Low Teacher Involvement
Student-led materials; parent acts as a facilitator.
Medium Teacher Involvement
A mix of teacher-led time and independent student work.
High Teacher Involvement
Teacher-led lessons; may utilize discussions, hands-on activities and working together.
Additional Materials Required
No other materials needed
Everything you need is included.
Other Materials Required
There are additional required resources that are a separate purchase.
Other Materials Optional
There are additional resources mentioned or recommended but are not absolutely necessary.
Consumable
Consumable
Designed to be written in; not reusable.
Non-Consumable
Not designed to be written in; reusable.