Language arts assignments for the summer

[momz]

DD failed language arts this quarter. She is just competing 8th grade. All her other courses are As and Bs with one C+. I can live with the C. I can't live with the F.

The reason she failed is because she did not turn in her assignments. Unfortunately, her struggles in this course are nothing new. When the assignment is given out, she struggles with formulating a plan. She gets behind and before you know it, she is so far behind she has no hope of being able to complete, so she doesn't even try.

She is not happy with herself, but she doesn't know how to fix the problem. At home, her dad and I are so frustrated. She is a very bright kid. She blows away her score on the standardized testing for language arts, but she just cannot seem to figure out the assignments.

We HAVE to do something to help her over the summer. High school starts in the fall and these grades matter. How can we help her?

She and I had a long discussion last night about how her expectations of herself are so lofty that she just freezes up and does nothing.

 

[sam_gordon]

Doesn't she also get assignments in the other classes? How does she handle those?

My only suggestion is to get a planner and she has to write down all deadlines and assignments in the planner. You or DH will need to check the planner each night. Maybe put a big calendar on the wall somewhere with the key dates of the assignments written on it (like you'd see in movies/tv shows). Have her come up with a plan (with your help unfortunately). If the key dates aren't met (note cards by 'x', rough draft by 'y', etc), privileges start being taken away.

 

[lizabu]

The planner is a good idea or if she has a cellphone she can set up alerts in her calendar. My DD is the same age and I've always just recommended to her to do the assignment when its first assigned. Then just edit and clean it up before it has to be turned in. In her class they take steps to prevent kids from leaving big assignments to the last minute. For example the teacher will have a due date for the outline then there's a due date for a rough draft and a due date for the final draft. That way you don't get to the time the final assignment is due with nothing done.

 

[Colleen27]

If she's not having the same problem in other classes, you might want to work with her on how to narrow a topic and get started. My son has that issue in writing-intensive courses too. The wider the assignment (ie write a how-to speech or an opinion piece on a current issue), the more he struggles with the planning process and getting started because he gets too bogged down in choosing his specific topic and then falls behind on the planning/pre-writing process. I had the same issue to a point but I'm good under pressure so I was usually able to pull it together at the last minute. He needs the time the process gives him, so if he falls behind early on the whole assignment becomes an overwhelming mess.

I have been working for years to teach him that the only thing editing can't fix is an empty page. He wants "perfect" from the start - the right topic, so everything falls into place with minimal revision/rewriting and never having to go back to the drawing board - but I'm trying to impress on him that trial and error is better than planning paralysis. If you pick a topic and find as you get into the research that it isn't working out, change course. But pick something and get started!

 

[mjkacmom]

I have diagnosed ds17 with executive functioning disorder, same issues. It made AP history a bear this year. He currently has a B this marking period, got as low as a D in previous ones, and should have an A. Lots of long projects, which is always a struggle for him (tests, class work, and overnight assignments save his grade). She needs to break down the assignment, and schedule when she will do what.

 

[Bec3b1g]

We got our DS tutoring for his freshman year of high school. He is wicked smart, but his organizational skills are lacking. The tutor was in contact with his teachers and helped him with due dates and planning.

 

[OceanAnnie]

Her other grades indicate she is capable. I agree with others about organizing, planning and prioritizing work will help. Outlining and creating manageable chunks as a pp stated is also good. What does she say about the work? Does she like reading? I'm reading an interesting book; "The Evelyn Wood Seven-Day Speed Reading and Learning Program". It was designed for struggling readers and showed good results in every school in which it was implemented. I know it sounds counterproductive, but I'm keeping an open mind about it. I'm not saying it's for everyone, just repeating what was in the book. The author details strategies that were recommended on this thread.

There are cases outlined where students were having similar difficulties as your daughter where the program helped them to succeed.

The author talked about how fast our brains process information and how slowly we are taught to read. The average reader reads at 200-300 words per minute IIRC. That's why kids get bored and uninterested with reading. With the first strategy in the book you can double your reading speed. It's not hard, it involves tracking and hand motions. It also goes into note taking and ways to increase reading comprehension.

Like I said, I know it sounds counterproductive, but it was designed by reading specialists that got proven results. Hard to argue against it.

With that said, I'm keeping an open mind about it. It has helped me to read faster already. I'm doing a read through and when I'm done I'm going to introduce it to my kids.

 

[bsblady01]

as a teacher I would have her buy a planner and have everything that has to be done written down on the day it's do. and when the work is done you check it and mark it off in the book. in high school if work is not done and you fail for the year you either have to do summer school or take the class again the next year, teachers do not remind you when something is do in high school

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Middle school can be a rough time for kids. The workload increases. The hormones kick in. The social scene becomes a pressure-cooker. Classes where the work is more cut and dried, like math, are often easier. When planning and time-management are involved, it becomes more difficult. Some kids just don't have the executive functioning skills to plan out a project. Our middle school teachers were always really good about breaking projects into steps and having various due dates: decide on your topic, write an outline, turn in your sources, write a rough draft, turn in your final draft. Middle schoolers need these steps. "Write a paper" can seem like a huge, daunting task, so they're apt to just give up.'

Rather than leave them on their own, I think it's important to guide them through projects until they get the hang of it. I did this many times with my son. We kept the assignment sheet out where we could both see it. I would prompt him on the due dates, check his work, and help him whenever he needed it. I wouldn't do the work for him, but I would ask him leading questions to help him figure out what to do. This continued for big projects partway into his freshman year. Now he's almost done with his sophomore year and I'm hardly involved in his homework at all. He handles it on his own. He's good with the due dates. He paces his papers and projects. He currently has As in everything except PE and Spanish, where he has Bs (I can forgive those!).

I just think it's important to jump in and show kids how to organized their projects step-by-step. Before you know it they'll be doing it all by themselves.

 

[mom2rtk]

Sit down with her each night and set goals then follow up with her on when those goals (steps toward project completion) are met.

Being able to handle a big project like this is a pretty important skill as she moves forward toward high school and college.

She has shown she can't do it on her own. So it's time for you to get in her business. Most kids will dislike that enough to want to do it on their own to get you back OUT of their business.

 

[mom2grace]

I have a friend who swears by this camp. http://www.supercamp.com

 

[momz]

If she's not having the same problem in other classes, you might want to work with her on how to narrow a topic and get started. My son has that issue in writing-intensive courses too. The wider the assignment (ie write a how-to speech or an opinion piece on a current issue), the more he struggles with the planning process and getting started because he gets too bogged down in choosing his specific topic and then falls behind on the planning/pre-writing process. I had the same issue to a point but I'm good under pressure so I was usually able to pull it together at the last minute. He needs the time the process gives him, so if he falls behind early on the whole assignment becomes an overwhelming mess.

I have been working for years to teach him that the only thing editing can't fix is an empty page. He wants "perfect" from the start - the right topic, so everything falls into place with minimal revision/rewriting and never having to go back to the drawing board - but I'm trying to impress on him that trial and error is better than planning paralysis. If you pick a topic and find as you get into the research that it isn't working out, change course. But pick something and get started!

BINGO! You just described DD perfectly. She doesn't know how to start. The assignments are very broad and she, being an emotional middle schooler, feels like she has to create some earth shattering, ground breaking colossus of a paper. Of course she is never able to formulate a plan for this.

This is a problem that is exclusive to language arts.

 

[mom2rtk]

BINGO! You just described DD perfectly. She doesn't know how to start. The assignments are very broad and she, being an emotional middle schooler, feels like she has to create some earth shattering, ground breaking colossus of a paper. Of course she is never able to formulate a plan for this.

This is a problem that is exclusive to language arts.

One of our corporate trainers at the company I used to work for had to train everyone on a huge new computer system. She started the process by telling everyone "the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time". Your DD needs to learn how to tackle her project this way..... break it down in little bites.

 

[kuhltiffany]

I have a son struggling with writing too. The tutor we have for him suggested using an app on his iPad called Inspiration Maps. We just started using it and so far he's finding it helpful (and fun)…

Here's some examples of how it can be used:
http://www.inspiration.com/ipad/example